Jump to content

Subjective question - Oasis class - Junior Suite v Ocean View Balcony - discuss/advise!


Bazza

Recommended Posts

Hi RCI gurus.

Looking at a 2024 cruise on an Oasis class ship.

Good offers on today (ends tomorrow) with a reduced deposit and savings on the cabins.

Difference between a sea view balcony and a junior suite is about £1400/$1800 on Oasis and £1100/$1500 on Symphony - both for 14 nights on back to backs. 

Big advantage with Junior suite is it will give me double C&A points and jump me up to Diamond so future cruise will benefit from that, but when you factor in flights from UK will add over $1200 to the trip is it worth it? 

The discussion with the boss/wife will take place tonight but wondered what the experts thought?!

Thanks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes that is basically all you are receiving in return for the JR vs OVB is the Points, along with these other perks,

Sea class

  • Dinner at Coastal Kiten based on availability
  • Plush bathrobes for use onboard
  • Luxury Pillow Top Mattress
  • Luxury Bathroom Amenities
  • Lavazza Expresso Coffee Machine

So its really a call if you can justify the cost for those additions, 

My personal 2 cents would be yes for the fact of Moving up to Diamond.

Enjoy the Cruise planning!!

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks @Midwest Cruiser

Just found this link https://www.royalcaribbean.com/gbr/en/faq/questions/what-are-the-benefits-of-the-suites-program where it says about priority boarding but without the pillow tops - maybe the UK and US lists are different!! 

My 2 pence is with your 2 cents and would go for the JS - but the wife may disagree!!  🤞🙏

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The JS in Oasis and Anthem class are very nice.   We made the decision to switch from Balconies to JS a couple of years ago.    I try to pick cruises where the JS price is not significantly above the Balcony price.  Part of the strategy was to take 2 or 3 cruises each year instead of just one with the goal of hitting Diamond in 2020.   Then COVID hit and we had to reschedule all 5 or our cruises but eventually made it to Diamond last Fall.

Now we no longer purchase the drink package and enjoy our Diamond drinks each day.   The savings helps to offset the extra money we paid for the JS.    4 drinks per day x two people = $100+ each day.  Multiple that by the number of days for your cruise and the savings add up quick. ( If you are a dedicated drink package purchaser, the math may not work in all cases.) 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sheryl and I much prefer the JS on any sailing. We just had one on a 6 nighter on Allure which due to the double double points scheme polevaulted us to 73 points, so we are now emerald and after our 7 nighter on Serenade later this year will join the ranks of Diamond.

However, we have two reasons for liking the JS. Firstly, more space. Its a larger cabin with a walk in closet, and the balcony is bigger. Secondly and probably more important, the JS has a proper bath tub. Truly a luxury onboard any ship.

There are other benefits of course, but those are our two top listers

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Should be interesting for us in August. We have done JS & balcony (balcony is our minimum!), and in August, we have adjoining JS for a 9 day. We just decided to pull the trigger & make it a B2B for the next one, which is 7 days, but unfortunately the JS were sold out by then, so we'll be moving to balcony cabins. It will probably not be fun to go to smaller spaces, but on the plus side, the first one will put us at Diamond by the end, so we plan to visit C&A on our last day of the 9 night to get our Diamond privileges for the 7 night one!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 minutes ago, Andy & Sheryl Unwin said:

However, we have two reasons for liking the JS is two fold. Firstly, more space. Its a larger cabin with a walk in closet, and the balcony is bigger. Secondly and probably more important, the JS has a proper bath tub. Truly a luxury onboard any ship.

There are other benefits of course, but those are our two top listers

I agree with Andy. The bathroom really is a big upgrade for us compared to non-suite rooms. Not tripping over bags and/or anything else because of the closet is a bonus as well. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We book JS's.  The reasons in order are:

Bathroom  - Bathtub w/shower, much more room.  I'm a big guy and I like the extra space

Double C&A Points

We have never taken advantage of the Coastal Kitchen

On Quantum class ships some of the JS's had both a half bath (commode and sink) and full bath with commode, sink with the bathtub/shower.

There is another JS layout on Quantum class that have split baths with commode and sink in one and tub/shower, sink and separate shower with a rain shower head.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, Neesa said:

@MaryCS62 have your TA or yourself if you self booked place you on a wait list for a JS for your second leg. Cabins open up all the time, especially around final payment date. Increase your chances of that B2B suite life! Good Luck!

We are working with a TA, but the kicker is that they have to be connecting -- traveling with adult DD's, but one is disabled, with medical issues & we need to be essentially "there" in case of any issues.  Can still look, though, you're right!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, Toby said:

We book JS's.  The reasons in order are:

Bathroom  - Bathtub w/shower, much more room.  I'm a big guy and I like the extra space

Double C&A Points

We have never taken advantage of the Coastal Kitchen

On Quantum class ships some of the JS's had both a half bath (commode and sink) and full bath with commode, sink with the bathtub/shower.

There is another JS layout on Quantum class that have split baths with commode and sink in one and tub/shower, sink and separate shower with a rain shower head.

That might be the Junior spa suite.  I like the family suite -- comes with the powder room in addition to the full bath with tub.  Main reason we like 2 rooms is 4 people, 3 female, so 2 bathrooms is kind of a necessity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, MaryCS62 said:

Should be interesting for us in August. We have done JS & balcony (balcony is our minimum!), and in August, we have adjoining JS for a 9 day. We just decided to pull the trigger & make it a B2B for the next one, which is 7 days, but unfortunately the JS were sold out by then, so we'll be moving to balcony cabins. It will probably not be fun to go to smaller spaces, but on the plus side, the first one will put us at Diamond by the end, so we plan to visit C&A on our last day of the 9 night to get our Diamond privileges for the 7 night one!

We are moving from Diamond to Diamond Plus after the first of a B2B cruise and were advised by Q&A support to let the loyalty desk know early into the first cruise to give them the time to make sure our new status was awarded on the 2nd cruise.  We were also advised to visit the customer service desk on day 2 or 3 (after the initial crowds on day 1) to make sure they know we are on a B2B (AKA continuous cruise).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, Toby said:

We are moving from Diamond to Diamond Plus after the first of a B2B cruise and were advised by Q&A support to let the loyalty desk know early into the first cruise to give them the time to make sure our new status was awarded on the 2nd cruise.  We were also advised to visit the customer service desk on day 2 or 3 (after the initial crowds on day 1) to make sure they know we are on a B2B (AKA continuous cruise).

Thanks for the hint!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Andy & Sheryl Unwin said:

Its a larger cabin with a walk in closet, and the balcony is bigger.

 


THIS. The walk-in closet! That should’ve been at the top of all lists 😂 Half the reason we like full suites is the extra closet/storage space and while the JS has less space than the full suites it has a great deal more than a balcony (relatively speaking). 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Andy & Sheryl Unwin said:

Sheryl and I much prefer the JS on any sailing. We just had one on a 6 nighter on Allure which due to the double double points scheme polevaulted us to 73 points, so we are now emerald and after our 7 nighter on Serenade later this year will join the ranks of Diamond.

However, we have two reasons for liking the JS. Firstly, more space. Its a larger cabin with a walk in closet, and the balcony is bigger. Secondly and probably more important, the JS has a proper bath tub. Truly a luxury onboard any ship.

There are other benefits of course, but those are our two top listers

 

@Andy & Sheryl UnwinFor me the Tub is almost a deterrent, I'm 6'7" and do not fit in the Tub/shower combo.  Of which we will have on in our GS on Wonder(I'll be taking Bath showers HAHA).  Wish I would have booked 1 day sooner to get the Owner suite with the shower and the bath tub separated. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We booked a couple JSs when we got close to Diamond to get us there faster. When you consider we live 1500 miles from the port the JS double points cut the travel and expense in half.   Ss are nice but we've since gone back to balconies and insides. It will take decades for us to reach D+ at 2-3 cruises a year so the points aren't a big thing anymore.  I will say that the Coastal Kitchen was a nice experience.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, Midwest Cruiser said:

@Andy & Sheryl UnwinFor me the Tub is almost a deterrent, I'm 6'7" and do not fit in the Tub/shower combo.  Of which we will have on in our GS on Wonder(I'll be taking Bath showers HAHA).  Wish I would have booked 1 day sooner to get the Owner suite with the shower and the bath tub separated. 

@Midwest Cruiser - I can see how that would be an issue. I am 5' 9" and just about fit for a shower.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, Toby said:

On Quantum class ships some of the JS's had both a half bath (commode and sink) and full bath with commode, sink with the bathtub/shower.

There is another JS layout on Quantum class that have split baths with commode and sink in one and tub/shower, sink and separate shower with a rain shower head.

We have a JS booked on Odyssey for 2023 and it has the split bathroom layout.   Should be nice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...