HotelChatter

· Toiletries. Our cruise cabin shower also boasted the toiletry dispensers overtaking upscale hotel rooms these nowadays. Other products, like lotion and razors, were free samples from the brands.

· Public spaces. Atriums and design-driven lounges and even large room corridors now exist on ships as well as at hotels. This is thanks in part to the growing fleets of newer, ever-bigger ships coming out of the shipyards with their advancements, but also because it's what vacationers are coming to expect. If a hotel can have an impressive, 8-story atrium, then why can't ship that's three times the size of the hotel? Just check out our image of the hallway to our room on the lowest passenger deck. There are no bulkheads doors visible or anything to make you think you're not in a hotel.

· Windows and balconies. Although our room had only a window, it was the smallest size of window available with passenger rooms. Everything else was large and in charge, with plenty of glass to take advantage of sweeping ocean views. We remember the days when large portholes were great to have, but today it's all about the balcony.

· Bunk beds. Top and bottom berths have been standard on ships since forever, and they still show up in newly-built cruise ships. With hotels, bunk beds are losing their dorky reputation as design-focused properties successfully incorporate them into funky rooms, or create rooms with them as budget specials.

So, those are our thoughts. Have you noticed any other huge similarities between modern cruise ship cabins and hotel rooms?