Hello, I have booked a cruise to Hawaii on the golden princess and the only vista suite they had left were on the rear of the ship on the dolphin deck room 737 and my question is this a quiet area? Is it a good area on the ship? Does anyone have comments about the vista suite that have been in one before? Any comments appreciated. Shana

Hello, shana;

I have not had a Vista Suite but I have been in a mini-suite just a couple of doors down the hall from you; and yes, we found it to be very quiet and pleasant. There is no foot traffiic past your cabin and there are cabins above and below you. And you only have a neighbor on one side.

We love the location; two decks down to the Promenade; three down to the dining room; and it's very close to the aft stairs and elevators which go right to my favorite part of the ship--the Horizon Terrace, with the buffet, pool and Outrigger Bar.

The only noise or vibration we ever noticed was from the thrusters when docking; and that only lasts a couple of minutes.

We went to Hawaii last year (on Island Princess) and really loved it--especially the long, lazy days at sea. Have a wonderful cruise and please stay in touch.

Rick

Hi Shana,

My only concern is that in a previous post you mentioned the need for a wheelchair accessible cabin. In looking at the deck plan at your cabin, it does not appear to be HC accessible.

If it turns out not to be suitable, you may want to ask about availability of a suite compatible with your needs. Actually none of the suites I looked at had the designation for HC accessible.

Aloha deck has Cat BB balconies A301,302,303 and 304. Baja deck has B301,302,303 and 304 in Cat BC. Caribe deck has BA balonies C301,302,303 and 304. These are the only HC accessible cabins with a balcony I see on Golden. Perhaps they have suites as well but didn't indicate which ones on the legend of the deck plan.

Cheers, Neil

Well Shana, that didn't take long! You made a great choice. Aft cabins are my favorites since the view from the balcony is better than those along the side of the ship.

As Rick said, since you have cabins above and below you, and you are in a corner, it will be a very quiet area. I've not been in a Vista Suite but a well-traveled friend of mine has, and he enjoyed it immensely.

Good point, Neil; I didn't remember shana needing a wheelchair- accessible cabin.

shana, there will certainly be room enough in the suite, but if you are confined to the wheelchair, access to the cabin and bathroom could be a problem.

The last two mini-suites on Dolphin Deck, D732 and D733 are accessible and have the large shower in the bathroom.

Rick

But isn't it true that they don't allow the scooters in the cabin? They always leave them in the passageways to charge.

If it's truely a scooter, yes they do charge them outside the cabin unless someone is permanently confined to the chair like some of the power chairs. Then they charge them inside the cabin so they're available if needed through the night. Some modern ships have charging stations in a type of closet on the decks so they're out of the traffic. You just call an ext they provide and they retrieve it for you. My main concern with the suite she's chosen is if a chair will fit through the doorway of the cabin and things like turning radius in the bathroom with grab bars, shower seats and things that may be needed.

Cheers, Neil

Wow,thank you all for all your responses. I called the medical cordinator for princess cruiselines and she said I am able to request a shower chair to go in the shower or tub and am able to get a raised toilet seat and wedges for use in the bed since I am in a hospital bed at home, I just have to send in my request about 6 months prior to sailing and they will take care of things but I think my dr. has to fill out some information as well and that's fine. I need to call the cruiselines to check wether the scooter can go in the cabin if not we will also have a collapsable regular wheelchair that we will be taking with but thank you for raising the question as to wether the scooter can get in the room or not, thank goodness I can walk some in the cabin with my cane and get on the balcony with the cane as long as it is not more than a 1 step on to it. I have this cruise on a courtesy hold and have to make partial payment by june 8th so I thought if I can do investigating and find out information from you all to make sure I am asking and doing everything I need to be doing so I so appreciate all of your help and suggestions. Dave, Lol, no it didn't take long cause I was fixed on going to Hawaii granted I did want a 2 bedroom so my snoring mother wouldn't keep me awake, lol, but this suite will be fine with some good earplugs . Rick, thank you very much for providing the information about that area of the ship. Neil, thank you so much for checking out the handi-cap accessible areas but the rooms are just not what I wanted since I need a large room to at least be able to use the manual wheelchair when I am to tired to walk with my cane or to weak after a busy day. I am in a electric wheelchair 99.9% of my day at home so if it is able to be in the room I will have it in there otherwise they will have to get it to me when I need it is all. My cruise is booked for Jan. 2010 but I possibly will take a shorter cruise somewhere prior to that cruise. Rick, do they have much lobster or shrimp for meals? Or is there a specialty resteraunt where I can order this? I love both these and being this is my vacation to spoil myself rotten, lol, I thought it would be great to eat my favorites . I am sure I have many more questions coming your way. Thanks, Shana

shana, on our last two cruises, which were both 15 days, they served lobster twice in the main dining rooms. They served shrimp twice also, but one of those times was with the lobster. The other time was with filet mignon, or "Surf & Turf", as they call it.

They also had beautiful large shrimp twice in the Horizon Court for buffet lunch (and not the same days it was served for dinner).

Lobster is also one of the entrees available every night in Sabatini's; Sabatini's will spoil you beyond repair. We didn't try Sterling's Steakhouse, but I would imagine the have a steak and shrimp or lobster combo. Hopefully someone else knows for sure. Both restaurants have a cover charge.

Wow! I have this sudden craving for seafood.

Rick

shana, this was part of the buffet twice during the cruise:

Rick, was that your portion?

Shana, you're getting advice from the right source. Rick cruises Princess regularly and knows the ships and the cruiseline very well. He's the guy I go to when I have questions about Princess too.

I'm glad you are on top of the special needs and be sure you send them in the form they're requesting once you finalize your booking. That will assure they cover all the needs and nothing gets missed. Have a great vacation!

Cheers, Neil

Thank you, Neil, for the kind words.

Dave, I did the best I could; but of course I had to save room for dessert.

quote:

I had to save room for dessert

Oh man. I'll bet that needed some black coffee to balance out the sugar.

O My Gosh, that shrimp has me drooling, lol, I could take the whole upper platter there people would sure stare at me. O I see it's bowls of shrimp that's even better. There is so much to research once you get online and start looking at cruises but at least I have chosen and got a suite now, now I just need to start doing alot of reading to see what to expect and check out things to do while were there, that polynesian place looks neat at one of the ports in Hawaii plus I am looking forward to learning more about what they have to do on board but I bet each ship is different. Rick, how much is a cover charge at Sabatini's or other specialty resteraunts? I am getting so excited and looking forward to talking with you all more. Shana

I would love to see more of your pictures from the golden princess and of Hawaii Rick, I don't know if your able to put pictures on here or how you share them with others but would love to see some. Shana

shana, I have so many photos I wouldn't know where to start; and this is really more of a chat site than a photo sharing site. I just like to throw one up once in a while when appropriate.

But if you click on one of the photos above it will take you to our Webshots account. We don't have a lot of photos there--just the ones we've posted on different sites; but you are welcome to browse through them. I haven't put up any of Golden Princess yet; but all the large Princess ships are very similar.

You can also go to Webshots.com and in the "search" box type in "Golden Princess Cruise Ship" and you will get lots of photos.

Oh, and the cover charge for Sabatini's was $20.00, but well worth it, at least once or twice during the cruise.

Rick

Also note that the extra-fee restaurants (Sabatini's and Sterling Steak House) use reservations and they usually book up quickly, although I'd think it less frantic on a 15 day cruise as opposed to a 7-day. It is wise to make reservations on embarkation day.

Thank you, I will be sure to make reservations as soon as we board. Is the steak really tender at the steakhouse? Does anyone know. I have no teeth, lol, and I love steak but it must be very tender. Is the steakhouse worth going to? and what's the difference between the main dining and the specialty resteraunts besides the steakhouse serving steak? This is very exciting learning so much from you regular cruisers. I will go to webshots to check out pictures of the golden princess and Hawaii. Shana

The specialty restaurants are "upscale" with more select ingredients and preparation being more individualized. The main dining rooms are fine, but they are turning out meals for over 2000 people, where the specialty restaurants have a comparative handful of guests. You can get steak in the dining rooms and it is very good, but it is going to be U.S.D.A. Choice grade where the steakhouse will be serving Prime grade.