We just returned from an Alaska Cruisetour on the Summit...We were in two Sky Suites (My wife and I were in one, our daughters in the other)...
We have cruised, over the years, in inside cabins, window cabins, verandas and suites...and on six different cruise lines...
Here's my honest take:
The sky suites are quite nice...they're about 1 and a half times the size of an "ordinary" cabin...the balconies are also about that same ratio larger...the cabins are decorated nicer--with wood paneling and other added touches...There is quite a bit more closet and storage space--in fact, more than we needed...
There are several added service touches you don't get with an ordinary cabin: Obviously, the butler...We had Champagne waiting in our cabins at boarding, we had appetizers and desserts delivered every day...we were invited to a special "suites only" elegant tea in the Normandie (It's the "Olympic" on the Millie)...and more...little things...
Is it nice? Yes, very...You really feel "special"...
Is it worth the extra money? Ay, there's the rub...
It ALL depends on YOU...
If you are the average working guy who scrapes and saves to afford a vacation, then, no way...the service in ANY cabin on the ship is very good, all of the cabins get the same dining room, the same entertainment and activities and stop at the same ports...and how much time do you spend in the cabin anyway? As the old Motel 6 ad says, "All the rooms look the same in the dark when you're asleep"...If every dollar means something to you, then, no way you get a suite...you get a cheap cabin and put the rest toward the next cruise...
If you are extremely wealthy and extravagant with your money and a couple of thousand doesn't really mean much to you...you want the nicest vacation experienc you can get...and what''s an extra few bucks anyway...then, y all means, spring for the suite...why compromise your cruise experience and settle for something less than the best?
Now, if you are somewhere in the middle...like me...You spend money fairly freely, you never have to live paycheck-to-paycheck, you work hard all year, then take one big cruise vacation...and you'll do another next year whatever that costs no matter what you do this year...You want a nice cruise but don't want to blow the whole budget on just the room...well, then it gets tough...Save a couple of thousand bucks on the cabin and you can really go to town in port...or, you can book a second or third quickie cruise duringthe year, if you can get away...
On my Summit cruise, the difference for two people between an inside cabin and outside (ignoring the various intermediate categories) was about $500...from an outside to a veranda, another $1000 and from a veranda to a sky suite, another $2000...
The kicker is the increases don't look that bad when taken in increments ...If you're thinking inside, why not spensd a little more and get a window? If you're looking at a window, why not spend some more and get a balcony? and so on...
Personally, I think the best call is to take the balcony and save the extra money...I can go retrieve my own snacks from the buffet...and the cabin is big enough already...especially when I spend most of my time in port, in the dining room, in the showroom, in the lounges...or asleep...
Of course, some times I just get a little more extravagant...
