French balcony question

[jacksonnh]

For anyone who sailed in rooms with a french balcony, would you give up interior room space in order to have a step out balcony if price was comparable?

[PTsPT2004]

We had a french balcony in December in Germany but it was still nice to be able to open the door and get some fresh air. It is really not big enough to step out on just lean out with the rail to hold you. It did make the room seem bigger with the double sliding door which could be opened. I do recommend it. Besides I am short and the higher windows in other rooms I could not see out of and would make me claustrophobic.

[LHT28]

We have not sailed yet but we took the real balcony even though it may be small

It is a personal choice

[PCruzer]

Originally Posted by jacksonnh

For anyone who sailed in rooms with a french balcony, would you give up interior room space in order to have a step out balcony if price was comparable?

No, I don't think I would give up interior room space in order to have a larger balcony. We had a "larger" balcony on a GCT cruise. There were 2 chairs out there, but they faced each other and not out to the water. They were fit into the balcony so tightly that you could not turn them. I did not feel that this tiny balcony was worth giving up any more of the little space that you have in the cabin.

[AtMaui]

I was upgraded to a balcony on the Douro River cruise and I loved it. But then it was just me so I didn't have to share the inside space with anyone. I wouldn't pay for a balcony or a French balcony but the upgrade was very nice.

PTsPT2004 -- Where are you from in Central Illinois? I grew up in Gibson City.

[alexandra cruiser]

booked the new AMACERTO and it has 2,,plus larger than average room size due to extra length(it says).
but to answer re French vs.regular,,we also had small balcony on Douro cruise and enjoyed even CRAMPED outdoor space.
The new ones look larger,as chairs facing out,not each other.But French would be absolute minimum,,,,not portholes or windows.

[stagerobin]

My husband and I love the balconies. Much as we enjoy our shipmates, it's nice to have a little private time sitting or standing on the balcony while drinking a glass of wine and watching the world go by. We never felt like the few extra square feet of cabin space was worth giving up the view from the balcony. On one trip we had a romantic happy hour with several ducks and swan while passing windmills and tulips - a memory we'll never forget.

[PTsPT2004]

We ar from Greenville, but we are not native, moved here 25 years ago, but that still does not make us one of then!

[Ray in NH]

Originally Posted by jacksonnh

For anyone who sailed in rooms with a french balcony, would you give up interior room space in order to have a step out balcony if price was comparable?

Not to be overly vague, but "it all depends". We were on Viking Legend and had a French Balcony, and really enjoyed it. We had plenty of fresh air whenever we wanted it and yet space to sit inside the cabin and just view through the floor-to-ceiling doors. We love balconies, but would not have wanted to give up the interior cabin space to have a "real" balcony, which would have to have been a fairly small balcony.

The French Balcony gave us "the best of both worlds". Others may have very different views on this matter. We will be on the Viking Prestige next year and will have another French Balcony -- we would not want one of the French Balconies on Viking's new Longships (they require giving up too much overall space). Again, personal preference.

Ray in NH

[wecruiseto]

We love the French balcony – it makes the entire room feel like your balcony! We’ve been on four river cruises so far and we’ve left those sliding doors open a lot. We’ve never had any issues with bugs or temperature. We get more use out of the French balconies than we ever do out of the step-out balconies on big ships!

[rjscott]

Originally Posted by wecruiseto

We love the French balcony – it makes the entire room feel like your balcony! We’ve been on four river cruises so far and we’ve left those sliding doors open a lot. We’ve never had any issues with bugs or temperature. We get more use out of the French balconies than we ever do out of the step-out balconies on big ships!

Agree! We loved our French balcony on the Viking Idun. When the weather was too cold to be out on deck, we could enjoy cruising by the countryside, but feel like we were still "out there", by having the drapes open all the time.

[MURPHY27]

Originally Posted by rjscott

Agree! We loved our French balcony on the Viking Idun. When the weather was too cold to be out on deck, we could enjoy cruising by the countryside, but feel like we were still "out there", by having the drapes open all the time.

Im just looking thru Viking deck plans now. Some of the newer ships seem to have wider balcony rooms than the French balcony. Looks like they are making the sq ft up that way.