Cabin Review

We sailed out of Baltimore in late December 2011 on the Pride. It was too cold for the first 2 and last days [all at sea] to spend more then a few minutes outside. This was especially unfortunate because we had the LARGEST BALCONY ON THE SHIP!

Let me tell you, this thing is huge, 3 times as large as a regular extended balcony. There are 3 reserved as accessible cabins [6234, 7260, 8234], and 3 regular [6232, 7258, 8232] that have this balcony at a regular 'extended balcony' price. There are other accessible cabins that have double extended balconies as well [6281, 7303, 8239]. Other accessible rooms on the ship, which I believe are held reserved, so you need to call them to arrange it: 4202, 4203, 4205, 4207, 5238, 5245. As is typical, we got a call last minute seeing if we wanted to upgrade to the Ocean Suite, 6182, which apparently is also an accessible room, but does not show up on the ADA Spirit Class map as one [google search it if you have accessibility needs]. That makes me wonder if other rooms are wheelchair/scooter accessible and not listed as such.

Anyway, ours was 8234, just below the Lido Deck with the Cafe and adult only Serenity area. **I am the able bodied partner writing this** It was great being able to run up the stairs or elevator right by the room to get food or drink or just relax in the adult only area, where we spent most our time on board. Our two 'thrifty' friends got an interior room adjacent to us to make spending time together easy. We also had FRS radios which worked over the entire ship.

Accessible room- this room was a little bigger then its class suggests so it can accommodate a larger cabin door, bathroom door, balcony door, and scooter/wheelchair. I think we lost out on a larger sitting area, but over all had plenty of room. The bathroom was very large, though often wet. See, there is no lip to the shower area to accommodate a wheelchair bound person, just a large roll over drain by the door, so the entire floor gets wet with every shower. I am the kind of person who usually uses the same towel for the whole week, but instead used it to dry up the floor after each shower. The housekeeping always removed the used ones and provided new ones, so it was never an issue. There is a 4-5" lip to the balcony for those who can't get out of their mobility aid. However, once out there, there is plenty of room to maneuver. It came with 2 chairs, a side table, and 2 lounge chairs. Our friends were often over hanging out while my partner finished getting ready for meals [the only girl in our party]. We could have entertained 20 standing people out there. Its also rather private since the Lido deck over hangs by 6 feet above. My only gripe is that the room layout puts the balcony glass door as far away from the bed as possible. No romantic sunrises. Although its triple long, you only get the standard door and small window, which is off at an angle. Meaning the only place to get a view was on the balcony it's self. Most of the exterior wall was covered with the TV, vanity, etc. But you can't complain too much, its larger inside, larger bathroom, and triple balcony for the price of just an extended balcony. It was also pretty quiet, below the dinning area of Lido desk, so a couple tables being scrapped across the floor, but never late at night. No noise from the service area adjacent to the room either.

Military rate: I never would have known there was a military rate if I hadn't called for the accessible room in the first place. So, if you are current or former military, call them for the best rate. It should be lower than anything else you can find.

Even on this cold weather cruise, the $100 more for a balcony [even a regular sized one] was well worth it to us. We didn't spend a lot of time in the room, but we felt we had that option with a balcony.