Christina Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 We're planning to bring our teenager along. Want to know what the difference is between a pullman and sofa bed (or double sofa bed). Are they different sizes? How comfortable are they? Any other tips for our 2nd cruise would be great. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bella Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 We stayed in an inside cabin with my two kids only once. It wasn’t for us. My youngest wouldn’t sleep on top bunk. Therefore, my husband had to climb up there each night. The bed is much harder than the bottom ones. He said he would have rather slept on a lounge chair for the week. Ha. We have found the balcony with the pull out sofa to work best for us. Balcony gives a place for everyone to go while one is getting ready. Also makes room feel not too cramped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 A pullman bed is actually a bunk bed that pulls down from the ceiling and has to be climbed into for sleeping. Based on the photos of them that I've seen, they do have side rails so that you don't have to worry about falling off when you roll over at night. How tall is your teen? I'd say those beds are geared more towards small children than teens or adults, but if he/she isn't too tall, it might be OK. Definitely have to mind the ceiling right above you when you wake up! And some (most?) of those pullmans are located above the main bed, so the people below the pullman also have to watch their heads when they get up. Sofa beds at least have the advantage of being at floor level and also bigger than the pullmans; at least a small twin size for a love seat sofa bed, double-bed (full twin?) size if the room has a full sofa and not a love seat. Can't speak to the comfort of them, but I know my two teens have both come to loathe sleeping on sofa beds. I can't imagine a pullman would be any more comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 I can't say for certain because we have never brought our kids with us on RC, but we have done several Disney cruises with them while using the pullman and sofa beds. The pullman bed comes from ceiling (as others have described) and the sofa bed can be a single or double depending on the room (make sure you check specific deck plans). However, I am surprised by @Bella's post about her husband because on all our Disney cruises there was a weight limit to the pullman bed. I don't remember exactly what it was but the bed was not big and I definitely would not put any child over 10 on it. Even that might be pushing it. Perhaps RC pullman beds are bigger/stronger? On our upcoming Disney cruise in December I have already told my daughter who is now 11 that her pullman bed days are done. I would think that for one teenager the sofa bed would be fine though....if you are really curious, there is a vlog by JEM Sessionz on YouTube from their Harmony cruise and it's parents and a teenage daughter and they had a balcony room with sofa set up. They show it several times and you can see the layout. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 45 minutes ago, JLMoran said: Can't speak to the comfort of them, but I know my two teens have both come to loathe sleeping on sofa beds. I can't imagine a pullman would be any more comfortable. @JLMoran what are you doing with your kids on your upcoming cruise? Sofa bed? Curious cause mine hate to share the bed too. Right now I have the Family Junior suite so it's not a problem but if I upgrade again then they would have to share... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 Just now, Sabrinaklai said: @JLMoran what are you doing with your kids on your upcoming cruise? Sofa bed? Curious cause mine hate to share the bed too. Right now I have the Family Junior suite so it's not a problem but if I upgrade again then they would have to share... We've booked two connecting balcony rooms (D1 and D2 class). Freedom doesn't offer a Family JS and has only a few 2-BR Grand Suites. Getting the two connecting balconies saved us a ton of money! I know others here have done the same with other combinations of connecting rooms, like two inside rooms or two ocean views. Others have done fully separate rooms, often across the hall from each other (like a balcony and inside room), with one parent booked in each to meet the requirement of at least one person over 21 in the room; then when they board, the adults stay in the "better" room and the kids in the other one. RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 1 minute ago, JLMoran said: We've booked two connecting balcony rooms (D1 and D2 class). Freedom doesn't offer a Family JS and has only a few 2-BR Grand Suites. Getting the two connecting balconies saved us a ton of money! I know others here have done the same with other combinations of connecting rooms, like two inside rooms or two ocean views. Others have done fully separate rooms, often across the hall from each other (like a balcony and inside room), with one parent booked in each to meet the requirement of at least one person over 21 in the room; then when they board, the adults stay in the "better" room and the kids in the other one. What about on your Anthem cruise? You have the JS for that right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 1 minute ago, Sabrinaklai said: What about on your Anthem cruise? You have the JS for that right? Hah! That cruise is just my wife and me! The kids are in school when that cruise happens. Well, the younger one anyway; the older one is looking like she'll take a gap year to figure out what she really wants to do in college (music performance? Music therapy? Jazz studies? Other???), and maybe just clear out some core classes at the local community college before applying anywhere. The JS is actually a surprise upgrade that my wife doesn't know about; she thinks we're staying in a regular balcony room. I can't wait to see her face when she sees us directed to the suites-only line! RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 1 minute ago, JLMoran said: Hah! That cruise is just my wife and me! The kids are in school when that cruise happens. Well, the younger one anyway; the older one is looking like she'll take a gap year to figure out what she really wants to do in college (music performance? Music therapy? Jazz studies? Other???), and maybe just clear out some core classes at the local community college before applying anywhere. The JS is actually a surprise upgrade that my wife doesn't know about; she thinks we're staying in a regular balcony room. I can't wait to see her face when she sees us directed to the suites-only line! I see...You are one of those husbands! Love it! My poor husband doesn't even know where we are sailing half the time, no clue on ship or stateroom. I'm lucky if books off the correct vacations days off work. Probably no chance ever that I'm getting that surprise CLS or genie.... RestingBird and JLMoran 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 3 minutes ago, Sabrinaklai said: I see...You are one of those husbands! Love it! My poor husband doesn't even know where we are sailing half the time, no clue on ship or stateroom. I'm lucky if books off the correct vacations days off work. Probably no chance ever that I'm getting that surprise CLS or genie.... Usually my wife is the vacation planner and I just go along. But she hasn't been interested in cruising before we booked this trip on Freedom, so I've done all the learning and planning. The Bermuda booking itself was something of a surprise to her, since we hadn't even taken the first cruise yet. But she understood at that point how you have to book so far in advance to lock in the best price, I think she liked the idea of a short getaway for the two of us to an island she said she's wanted to to visit for a while, and she just went along with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted October 11, 2017 Report Share Posted October 11, 2017 I'm not sure about overall comfort, but we prefer rooms with Pullman's as they don't take up floor space, which can be quite limited with a sofa bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2mybugs Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 My teens didn't have any issues with the pullmans... and my son was about 5'9" at the time. They never complained about comfort and I like dock liked the space it freed up. Jane RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 I sailed with P & O last year and was on a bunk - very comfortable and like the usual bed but with steps to climb up to sleep. Next year I'm on the Navigator with friends and will again be in a bunk - I'm expecting a similar experience RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestingBird Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 18 hours ago, Sabrinaklai said: I see...You are one of those husbands! Love it! My poor husband doesn't even know where we are sailing half the time, no clue on ship or stateroom. I'm lucky if books off the correct vacations days off work. Probably no chance ever that I'm getting that surprise CLS or genie.... Your husband sounds like some of my friends. No idea what line, ship, ports...I just shake my head at them, lol. Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 1 hour ago, RestingBirds said: Your husband sounds like some of my friends. No idea what line, ship, ports...I just shake my head at them, lol. Add Dan to that list. He is usually clueless. Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiny260 Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 Hey, take it easy on the Husbands! We are clueless most of the time but periodically we have a bright idea... JLMoran, Lovetocruise2002 and WAAAYTOOO 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 21 hours ago, Sabrinaklai said: I see...You are one of those husbands! Love it! My poor husband doesn't even know where we are sailing half the time, no clue on ship or stateroom. I'm lucky if books off the correct vacations days off work. Probably no chance ever that I'm getting that surprise CLS or genie.... 2 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said: Add Dan to that list. He is usually clueless. I'd like to formally apologize to all of the husbands I just got in major trouble with their wives. WAAAYTOOO, ellcee, RestingBird and 1 other 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbk999 Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 When we were dating, my wife worked at an office where I knew most of the co-workers and significant others. Half the fun of sending flowers to the office was getting the other guys in trouble.... Back to cruising, I am the vacation planner (with input and lots of interest from my wife). As such, it always amazes me, talking with people on the trip or after other trips, they don't know/can't remember the name of the ship (often it's just Royal Caribbean or Carnival), don't know the ports they will go to, or even the basic geography. We were sailing from Grand Cayman to Cozumel once and I was listening to a group on the pool deck talking about how excited they were to finally see Acapulco. All they knew was that they were going to Mexico and just assumed it would be Acapulco. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkelBierJay Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 My oldest slept in an upper birth on Freedom in 2016. She is the smallest and the oldest of our three. She is also the one who swears she will never cruise again. The other two loved it. I am convinced it was her experience with the upper birth, although she says it was the ship's motion. The seas were as close to glassy as I have experienced on a cruise. So, for comfort, although I have no experience myself with an upper birth, I would favor the pull out in a balcony stateroom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 52 minutes ago, mbk999 said: We were sailing from Grand Cayman to Cozumel once and I was listening to a group on the pool deck talking about how excited they were to finally see Acapulco. All they knew was that they were going to Mexico and just assumed it would be Acapulco. I seriously think there's this massive contingent of people who just binge-watched Love Boat on the vintage shows channel or something, assume that's the be-all and end-all of cruising, and set their expectations of everything around that. How disappointed they must be when they find out their bartender isn't named Isaac, and that he doesn't magically work at every bar on the ship! rjac 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 21 minutes ago, JLMoran said: people who just binge-watched Love Boat So you're saying I shouldn't expect to come home married? DAMNIT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 12, 2017 Report Share Posted October 12, 2017 41 minutes ago, ellcee said: So you're saying I shouldn't expect to come home married? DAMNIT. LOL! Sorry to disappoint. Actually, though, as you said that you jogged my memory that a guy I used to ride the train with wound up meeting his current wife on a cruise. Just went for a getaway, not at all looking for anything as he just went through a rather nasty divorce. Wound up meeting someone who lived close by, they started dating, and a year later were married. So I guess that it could happen, just in a longer plot line than a 42-minute show could allow for. ellcee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyC Posted October 13, 2017 Report Share Posted October 13, 2017 8 hours ago, JLMoran said: I seriously think there's this massive contingent of people who just binge-watched Love Boat on the vintage shows channel or something, assume that's the be-all and end-all of cruising, and set their expectations of everything around that. How disappointed they must be when they find out their bartender isn't named Isaac, and that he doesn't magically work at every bar on the ship! We had a wonderful bartender named Issac on the Harmony group cruise! You could find him in Sabor. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianAlt Posted October 13, 2017 Report Share Posted October 13, 2017 14 hours ago, KathyC said: We had a wonderful bartender named Issac on the Harmony group cruise! You could find him in Sabor. LOL We met Issac at the end of the Pub Crawl! Terrible time for that to happen since we all ribbed him about his name. Here's a joke: What's the name of the Bionic bartender? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted October 13, 2017 Report Share Posted October 13, 2017 56 minutes ago, BrianAlt said: We met Issac at the end of the Pub Crawl! Terrible time for that to happen since we all ribbed him about his name. He was not too pleased to hear that joke again it seemed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyC Posted October 14, 2017 Report Share Posted October 14, 2017 7 hours ago, Matt said: He was not too pleased to hear that joke again it seemed LOL I'm sure he is so sick of hearing it. But he was a good sport about it anyway, especially in the pouring of the tequila shots. Thanks to you guys, Tony brought home a bottle of tequila. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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