Anyone who has priced a suite on a cruise ship knows they can be expensive.
As TPG shows in this family cruise price comparison, you’ll typically pay at least 50% more for a cruise suite than a standard cabin. Sometimes premiums can be much higher.
Top suites on luxury cruise line Regent Seven Seas’ four-year-old Seven Seas Splendor cost $11,000 a night, more than five times the price of a standard cabin on the ship.
Still, it’s not just the price that makes suites on cruise ships special. Cruise ship suites are also typically much larger than standard cabins on cruise ships, are in better locations, and offer a long list of perks not available in regular cabins.
These benefits often include many free items that would normally cost extra onboard, such as Wi-Fi access and dinner at top-rated onboard restaurants.
Add it all up, and for some cruise lines at least, the higher-priced suites on a cruise ship may be the best value of all the cabins on the ship. Here are seven things you typically encounter in a cruise ship suite that might make you want to book a suite instead of a standard cabin.
Priority boarding
The benefits of staying in a suite begin the moment you arrive on the ship. Typically, you’ll find a special check-in area for suite guests in the arrivals terminal, without the long lines you’ll find when checking in for regular cabins. Sometimes, there’s even a private seating area for suite guests, with drinks and snacks available.
As a suite guest, you will be one of the first passengers to board the ship. This means you’ll be able to start your vacation earlier than everyone else on the cruise.
larger room
This one is a bit obvious, but we’ll say it again for the sake of thoroughness: suites on cruise ships are larger than regular cabins—sometimes much larger. It’s no secret that regular cruise ship cabins are small (at least compared to hotel rooms on land), but some cruise ship suites can be enormous, with multiple rooms including a living room, dining room, and additional bedrooms.
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In other words, while you pay more for a suite, you get more space.
On the higher end, there are cruise ship suites that are larger than the average American home, such as the striking Regent Suite pictured above. Measuring over 4,000 square feet, it has its own spacious living and dining area, as well as two spacious bedrooms.
Related: 6 Reasons Why You’ll Want to Book a Balcony Cabin on Your Next Cruise
Room location is better
Cruise ship suites are not just larger than regular cabins. Their location is better too.
On many ships, you’ll find some of the largest suites at the very front or very back of the ship—two locations that offer the most stunning views. You’ll also often find suites on the sides of the ship at the balance point, which is near the middle of the ship and is most stable in rough seas. If you’re prone to seasickness, this is where you want to go.
Better room benefits
When you stay in a cruise ship suite, your stateroom experience will receive a variety of upgrades, from higher-thread-count sheets to upgraded toiletries.
For example, on Royal Caribbean ships, Royal Suite cabin guests receive upgraded bottles of L’Occitane shampoo, conditioner and lotion in the bathroom, Mr. coffee/tea service and Royal Caribbean bathrobes for use during the cruise. The top suites on Viking ships have minibars stocked with free drinks, including hard liquor. The exquisite cruise ship suites also come with a fully stocked minibar and two bottles of wine of the passenger’s choice.
More considerate service
Your suite usually comes with a personal butler who is on call day and night. Some suites also offer private concierge services. These people’s whole job is to take away all the little stress you may experience during your vacation and take care of you at the highest level.
RELATED: 5 Reasons to Say No to a Cruise Ship Cabin Upgrade
If your suite comes with a butler, your butler can handle everything from unpacking your suitcases to serving you a private meal on your balcony. This butler (or your concierge, if you have one) can also make reservations for you at the ship’s top restaurants, where you may have priority entry, another common suite perk. They can also escort you to the suite guest’s private seating area in the ship’s theater, another perk of suites flying multiple lines.
Butlers and concierges can also provide you with tickets to onboard activities (again, priority access) and assist you with quick disembarkation when you arrive in port, allowing you to make the most of your time in port.
Access to exclusive onboard areas
On a growing number of mega-ships, suite guests have access to spacious, private “ship-within-a-ship” luxury areas, offering comforts not found on other ships.
For example, on more than half of Norwegian Cruise Line’s ships, many of the top suites are part of an exclusive keycard-accessed area called “The Haven.” Aimed at luxury travelers, The Haven complex is located on the topmost floor of the ship and often comes with a private lounge, swimming pool, sunbathing area and restaurant.
Several MSC Cruises ships offer similar “ship-within-a-ship” areas for suite passengers called the MSC Yacht Club, while the latest Celebrity ships, such as Celebrity Beyond, offer suite passengers exclusive and stylish indoor and outdoor seating areas called The Retreat.
Some cruise ships also have private concierge lounges that are only open to suite guests (some are also open to top elite-level passengers).
RELATED: How to Get Access to a Cruise Ship Concierge Lounge
Contains freebies
Staying in a suite brings you a variety of value-added perks on board that normally come at an additional cost, from free Wi-Fi to dining in restaurants for an additional fee.
For example, Princess Cruises’ suite experience includes a complimentary dinner at one of the ship’s restaurants for an additional fee on the day of embarkation. Passengers staying in Royal Caribbean’s Premier Star Suites receive complimentary dining at additional chargeable restaurants throughout the cruise, as well as gratuities and a complimentary luxury beverage package.
On Regent’s Seven Seas Splendor, Seven Seas Explorer and Seven Seas Magnificence, the top-of-the-line Regent suites come with a personal masseur on call and unlimited treatments during your cruise, in addition to a host of other benefits.
Other freebies that often come with suites include laundry service, access to a spa suite (usually for an additional fee), a bottle of champagne on boarding, and snacks each afternoon. If you stay in a large enough suite, you might even have dinner with the captain.
Additionally, many promotions run by airlines offer free gratuities, drink packages, shore excursions, and even onboard points as incentives for booking a suite.
bottom line
Suites on cruise ships can be significantly more expensive than regular cabins. But when you factor in all the free perks that come with suites and other value-adds, the price difference isn’t as high as it seems.
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