We've sailed twice and stayed in a category 3. If you can, book one of the mid-ship staterooms. They are set up a little differently and give you more room than the standard category 3's. We were very comfortable travelling with our 3 children (19, 14 & 8) and our most recent cruise was just the two of us. Standard catergory 3's have a 4 person dining room table, sink & refrigerator. The living room has a pull out sofa and 2 chairs. There is a tv center with vcr and cd player. Concierge has movies that you can borrow. There is a bathroom with a shower. Sliding glass doors open up onto your verandah. The bedroom has a standard bed, plus a pull down murphy bed and another tv. There are also sliding glass doors onto the balcony and doors that you can close between the bedroom and living room. There is a vanity area, a huge walk in closet, a bathroom with double sinks and a whirlpool tub and another bathroom that contains the toilet and shower. Plenty of room, but when the sofa bed and the murphy bed are open, you can't get out onto the balcony very easily.
In the mid-ship layout, the shape is more square and the murphy bed is in the living room. There are 2 sets of sliding doors onto the verandah from the living room and one from the bedroom. The verandah is a whole length longer. We had 4 chairs and a lounge chair out there. It just gives you alot more room.
The suites also come with concierge service. You can book Palo's dining before your cruise. When you arrive at the
DCL terminal, there is a special spot to check in and you receive gold key to the world cards. You wait over on the sofas for boarding and not in the regular line. Once on board, they have a concierge meet & greet where you can go for kids club registration, spa appointments, shore excursions, booking bridge tours, etc. It's all done in one location while you're sitting down enjoying a cool drink. The concierge staff stops by your stateroom everyday to check on you. They leave little gifts like soda, a fruit basket, coloring books, a plate of cookies, etc. You'll be invited to a cocktail reception for concierge guests during your stay. They make your cruise a little easier by dropping off the tip envelopes and saving you a trip to guest services. You'll also receive your statement of charges earlier and if there are any problems, they are available to assist you.
