Category 11 on Deck 6

[MM2U2]

Has anyone had a category 11 room on deck 6? I have a category 11 room for the CA to FL cruise next year. The location looks great but I am concerned about the size for my family (2 adults and 2 kids ages 7 and 11 at cruise time.) However, I cannot afford a state room. Would a port hole in category 9 really make a difference?

 

[CM_Mom]

We were in a Cat 11 -- 6015 which was fairly far forward on the 5/1/04 Magic cruise. That stateroom is turned parallel to the length of the ship but the layout actually gives you more room. We had 3 adults in the room. My mom and aunt had a "normal" category 11, 6101 nearer midship.

The main drawback of the Cat 11s is that they have the single bathroom, instead of the split bath. The main adjustment I made is to put my makeup on and do my hair at the vanity instead of in the bathroom like I usually do. That actually worked out better since the electric outlet in the bathroom is for shavers only and won't work for curling irons. Also, most category 11s don't have the steamer truck so you have less storage space.

The room we had, 6015 will only sleep 3 (no bunk) but 6101 had a bunk. Since the bunk is over the couch you don't loose any floor space.

It was very windy on our cruise and I think I would have enjoyed having a porthole to watch the ocean some of the time when it was windier than I liked up on deck. On the plus side, you can take great naps in the afternoon in an inside cabin!

I think you will have enough room unless you plan to spend LOTS of time in the room. Who knows, you might get an upgrade but as other posters have said, book the stateroom you'll be happy in and if you get an upgrade, that's gravy.

 

[rsschneck]

I will tell you my thoughts and quick experience.

We booked a category 11 in October for a 3 night DCL cruise to the Bahamas. The room is small! We had 2 adults and 1 DD aged 6 at the time. No place to store luggage. No split bathroom. Felt crowded. I was ready to get out of that room after 3 days. Not sure how a 14 day cruise would feel.

Now saying that I would have to weigh a couple of things. If this is your first cruise you would not know what a bigger room felt like. So, you wouldn't feel like you were being ripped off. Finances! If this is what your budget can handle then you will make it work!

I love having a window and a balcony is great too! However, I don't think it is a must. If you could get a category 10 for just a little more money you would have 30 more sq. feet. I know 30 feet doesn't seem like much but it does make a difference and having a split bath would be nice for a family of four.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[CM_Mom]

One additional thought. Regardless of which cabin you choose, but especially if you stay in the cat 11, be sure to take the suction hooks and a shoe organizer. We put one suction hook behind the commode in the bathroom and hung the organizer on it. It was a lifesaver for bath stuff (facial cleanser, daily medicines, toothbrushes, toothpaste, etc) so we didn't have as much sitting on the small shelf. I put another suction hook on the mirror near the door to hang our lanyards with our KTTW cards on so they were always visible and out of the way.

 

[Ladyhawke10]

The Cat 11s have bathtubs, right?

 

[Bmwdsny]

Yes, every stateroom has bathtub except maybe a few handicapped ones.

 

[JenLynn]

And a little tip about storing luggage ..... We stored all of our luggage under the bed on our recent cruise. Most of the pieces just slid underneath the bed frame. To get the larger suitcase underneath i had to lift the bedframe up a bit, but then it slid right under.

 

[Bmwdsny]

Great Idea JenLynn!!

Thanks for the tip!! I will tried that!!!

 

[MM2U2]

Yes, this is our first cruise ever! We live in So. Cal. and wanted to take the special Ca. cruise next year. However, the price for the Panama Cruise was just $300 more total - so we went for that one. Thank you for the information about organizing. I am trying to upgrade to the next category or two.
Thanks again!!

 

[ciadriamom]

We had stateroom 6111 on our four day cruise last year. Worked out fine for our family of 4 (3 girls, 1 guy). Only problem was dressing. So we worked out a schedule. Girls first starting with the youngest (mom dresses and got her ready while dd 11 was in shower) then mom went after dd 11 while she dressed, kids usually wanted to grab a snack before show so they left while mom and dbf got ready.

Stored luggage inside of each other and then under bed. Used the over the door shower organizer. Only thing will do differntly next time, bring suction hooks for all the wet swimsuits.

BTW: Highly recommend that room centrally located near elevator very little noise.