Crown Princess - cabin B751 and B752 - obstructed view

When we booked the SGC2006 on the Crown Princess august 25th sailing,
we booked an aft balcony, B751. We were told at the time of booking
that the balcony was partially obstructed, but that it would be a very
minor obstruction, maybe just a flagpole. My TA checked with Princess
several times and was told it was nothing major.

About a month before sailing I was on cruisecritic and asked if anyone
knew about this cabin. Turns out that B750 is the twin to B751 and
there were pictures of the obstruction. Turns out that it is not such
a minor obstruction, IMO it is rather major and makes it impossible to
use the balcony as we had planned to use it.

Another point here is that our BB Aft cabin was priced the same as all
the other BB aft cabins and there were only two BB balconies that had
a BEAM!! This may be the case on the other decks, but I can't be sure
since I didn't see them in person. Our TA got Princess to give us a
very small cabin credit, but could not get any further with them.
Kevin and I are in the process of writing a letter to Princess and
will include pictures, so they can see what their cabins really look
like.

As you know from my other comments here on RTC, we had a wonderful
cruise with wonderful friends and didn't let this BEAM prevent us from
enjoying our cruise. I am posting this information in the hopes that
others will know what they are getting when they book B750 or B751 on
the Crown Princess. I also hope that at some point Princess will lower
the pricing of these two cabins, since they are not as usable as the
others.

Here is a link to our BEAM pictures, there are eight of them.

http://travel.webshots.com/photo/554...14545039uYjDAY

sue

Hi sue i see what you mean .I would be mad to if they charged you the
same as the rest of the Balconys !! On the Miracle last august we had
an obstructed view cabin a life boat was in front of us .But it was
low dawn .So we still had great views !! And besides we booked an Gun.
inside and got bumped up to that cabin !! If you know this when you
booked you would have changed it i"m sure !! But you did the right
thing not letting get in the way of your cruise . You like us had a
great time .
Ken G........


Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:
When we booked the SGC2006 on the Crown Princess august 25th sailing,
we booked an aft balcony, B751. We were told at the time of booking
that the balcony was partially obstructed, but that it would be a very
minor obstruction, maybe just a flagpole. My TA checked with Princess
several times and was told it was nothing major.

About a month before sailing I was on cruisecritic and asked if anyone
knew about this cabin. Turns out that B750 is the twin to B751 and
there were pictures of the obstruction. Turns out that it is not such
a minor obstruction, IMO it is rather major and makes it impossible to
use the balcony as we had planned to use it.

Another point here is that our BB Aft cabin was priced the same as all
the other BB aft cabins and there were only two BB balconies that had
a BEAM!! This may be the case on the other decks, but I can't be sure
since I didn't see them in person. Our TA got Princess to give us a
very small cabin credit, but could not get any further with them.
Kevin and I are in the process of writing a letter to Princess and
will include pictures, so they can see what their cabins really look
like.

As you know from my other comments here on RTC, we had a wonderful
cruise with wonderful friends and didn't let this BEAM prevent us from
enjoying our cruise. I am posting this information in the hopes that
others will know what they are getting when they book B750 or B751 on
the Crown Princess. I also hope that at some point Princess will lower
the pricing of these two cabins, since they are not as usable as the
others.

Here is a link to our BEAM pictures, there are eight of them.

http://travel.webshots.com/photo/554...14545039uYjDAY

sue

wrote:
Hi sue i see what you mean .I would be mad to if they charged you the
same as the rest of the Balconys !!

But then again, it's an aft cabin, which is always delightful ;-)
Although I gotta admit that's a small balcony after you factor in the
beam.

Even the aft suites have the beam. We were in a Vista Suite on
Caribbean Princess, and loved it. I had done my homework before
leaving, and zoomed in on a lot of aft pictures. So I knew there'd be
a beam. Fortunately, the suites have a balcony about twenty feet
wide, with the beam towards one end, so it's not so bad. Actually we
enjoyed the shade of the beam at times!

Best - Kev

wrote:
Hi sue i see what you mean .I would be mad to if they charged you the
same as the rest of the Balconys !! On the Miracle last august we had
an obstructed view cabin a life boat was in front of us .But it was
low dawn .So we still had great views !! And besides we booked an Gun.
inside and got bumped up to that cabin !! If you know this when you
booked you would have changed it i"m sure !! But you did the right
thing not letting get in the way of your cruise . You like us had a
great time .

When I found out what the "minimal obstruction" was, I asked our TA if
there were any other balcony cabins available. We were offered another
balcony cabin, not aft, and we would of taken it but it was right
underneath the Lido Deck I think. I am sure you know, our sailing was
full and had many waitlists. I would even of been ok staying where we
were if Princess hadn't hidden the facts and charged us the same as
our neighbors "non-obstructed" cabin. This is why I posted about the
BEAM, so others who book these two cabins will know ahead of time what
they are getting.

sue

wrote:

wrote:

Hi sue i see what you mean .I would be mad to if they charged you the
same as the rest of the Balconys !!


But then again, it's an aft cabin, which is always delightful ;-)
Although I gotta admit that's a small balcony after you factor in the
beam.

After having an aft cabin on the Infinity in 2/06, we were looking
forward to a similar experience. We also felt that it wasn't right
charging us the same price, as our neighbor BB aft cabins that did not
have the obstruction. We had planned on having a party on our balcony
to celebrate our 40th anniversary, but that just wasn't possible with
the beam in the middle.

Even the aft suites have the beam. We were in a Vista Suite on
Caribbean Princess, and loved it. I had done my homework before
leaving, and zoomed in on a lot of aft pictures. So I knew there'd be
a beam. Fortunately, the suites have a balcony about twenty feet
wide, with the beam towards one end, so it's not so bad. Actually we
enjoyed the shade of the beam at times!

Looking at the back of the Crown Princess, there are a lot of aft
cabins that have beams. It isn't all that bad if you know what you are
getting and aren't paying the same as someone in the same cabin that
doesn't have a beam. If you have a large balcony such as the suites
you mention and there is a beam to the side it wouldn't be so bad.

Our balcony was completly covered, so we had lots of shade.

sue

Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:
wrote:
But then again, it's an aft cabin, which is always delightful ;-)
Although I gotta admit that's a small balcony after you factor in the
beam.

After having an aft cabin on the Infinity in 2/06, we were looking
forward to a similar experience. We also felt that it wasn't right
charging us the same price, as our neighbor BB aft cabins that did not
have the obstruction. We had planned on having a party on our balcony
to celebrate our 40th anniversary, but that just wasn't possible with
the beam in the middle.

No offense, but wow. Even without the beam, how many people did you
expect to party on that tiny balcony?

For our parent's 58th, we paid for Princess to rope off part of the
main deck inside near the atrium as a private gathering.

After seeing your pics, I do agree that Princess should charge less.

Cheers - Kev

wrote:

No offense, but wow. Even without the beam, how many people did you
expect to party on that tiny balcony?

The balcony without any obstruction isn't so tiny. We were traveling
on the SGC2006 which was formed here on RTC. I figured on inviting as
many SGCers as wanted to come, Probably about a dozen people would of
showed up for a drink.

For our parent's 58th, we paid for Princess to rope off part of the
main deck inside near the atrium as a private gathering.

This never entered our mind, but it would of been too formal like for
us. What we wanted would of been spur of the moment.

After seeing your pics, I do agree that Princess should charge less.

On this we agree.

sue

Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:
wrote:

No offense, but wow. Even without the beam, how many people did you
expect to party on that tiny balcony?

The balcony without any obstruction isn't so tiny. We were traveling
on the SGC2006 which was formed here on RTC. I figured on inviting as
many SGCers as wanted to come, Probably about a dozen people would of
showed up for a drink.

Hi Sue,

I agree! Without that beam, it actually looked like a pretty big
balcony! I'm sorry, but I'm unfamiliar with the cabin categories on
this ship. Is a BB just a verandah cabin or is it a verandah suite? If
it's just a verandah cabin, then I think it's a HUGE balcony. For a
suite, maybe not so much. I had an aft junior suite on Enchantment OTS
with a balcony that I think was a little bigger than what I can see
from your pix. I've also had an aft verandah cabin on Miracle, and your
balcony was DEFINITELY bigger than the disappointingly small balcony I
had in my aft Miracle cabin. On the Miracle, there was room for two
chairs, a tiny table...and that's about it. You actually had room for a
table to sit at and enjoy a meal! Wow!

Lee

For our parent's 58th, we paid for Princess to rope off part of the
main deck inside near the atrium as a private gathering.

This never entered our mind, but it would of been too formal like for
us. What we wanted would of been spur of the moment.

After seeing your pics, I do agree that Princess should charge less.

On this we agree.

sue

LeeNY wrote:
Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:

wrote:


No offense, but wow. Even without the beam, how many people did you
expect to party on that tiny balcony?

The balcony without any obstruction isn't so tiny. We were traveling
on the SGC2006 which was formed here on RTC. I figured on inviting as
many SGCers as wanted to come, Probably about a dozen people would of
showed up for a drink.


Hi Sue,

I agree! Without that beam, it actually looked like a pretty big
balcony! I'm sorry, but I'm unfamiliar with the cabin categories on
this ship. Is a BB just a verandah cabin or is it a verandah suite? If
it's just a verandah cabin, then I think it's a HUGE balcony. For a
suite, maybe not so much. I had an aft junior suite on Enchantment OTS
with a balcony that I think was a little bigger than what I can see
from your pix. I've also had an aft verandah cabin on Miracle, and your
balcony was DEFINITELY bigger than the disappointingly small balcony I
had in my aft Miracle cabin. On the Miracle, there was room for two
chairs, a tiny table...and that's about it. You actually had room for a
table to sit at and enjoy a meal! Wow!

Hi Lee,

Without the beam it would of been a very large and usable balcony! The
BB cabins are just balcony cabins, not suites. I have to say that the
cabin itself was a very nice size, had lots of storage area and was
very comfortable. We had an aft balcony cabin on the Infinity and it
was fantastic!! Guess we are spoiled.lol

Now what is very interesting is that not all BB cabins are "aft"
cabins. Princess charges the same price for a BB balcony cabin no
matter where it is on the ship. Some have normal balconies, some are
aft cabins and have larger balconies and then there is what we had, a
BB aft obstructed balcony. I find it so strange that there are such
large differences in what you get for the same catagory, at the same
price.

sue

Sue and Kevin Mullen wrote:

Now what is very interesting is that not all BB cabins are "aft"
cabins. Princess charges the same price for a BB balcony cabin no
matter where it is on the ship. Some have normal balconies, some are
aft cabins and have larger balconies and then there is what we had, a
BB aft obstructed balcony. I find it so strange that there are such
large differences in what you get for the same catagory, at the same
price.

It is strange that they're all considered to be the same category. If
I'm not mistaken, on Miracle, my aft cabin was in an 'extended
verandah" category. I'd say the balcony was, maybe, at most, two feet
deeper than one of the regular verandah cabins on the side of the ship.
I was VERY disappointed with the size, after enjoying our aft balcony
so much on Enchantment. Not that I didn't enjoy sitting out there on
Miracle...I guess my expectations were unrealistic as to what I could
expect from "extended".

Lee


sue