Inside vs. Oceanview

We are going on the Grandeur of the Seas for a 10 day Eastern Caribbean cruise. Currently we are booked in an inside cabin. What are your thoughts about upgrading to an oceanview or even balcony? We will have 2 children with us.

Thanks for any advice!

Oceanview is 151 sq.ft. and Inside is 136 sq.ft. You're only going to gain 15 sq.ft.

You need to determine how much an additional 15sq. ft. is worth to you ? Personally I would not pay to upgrade to an oceanview but rather watch pricing if the OV drops to at or below what an inside would cost and than upgrade.

Personally, even if an OV or balcony was the exact same square footage as an inside, I would still get the cabin that gave me the ability to get natural light and a view. That's something you'll need to decide whether or not the extra money is worth the advantage of not having any sense of "time" in an inside cabin. I can't do an inside - I need to be able to see OUT.

4 people in an inside cabin for 10 days.

I would rather not go than sail with that arrangement.

Get a separate cabin for the kids.

Or at least.

Get a larger cabin......

I agree with the poster who recommends looking at the prices and trying to upgrade for only a little more out of pocket to an OV. Not sure of the age of your kids, but my son was entertained for quite a while watching out the window on our last cruise (he was 7). If you can do OV for less than $100 out of pocket, I would take it. More than that, I wouldn't. As far as balcony goes, I'm sure they are wonderful (I've never sailed in one), but the price difference will probably be quite a bit more,so it depends on how much you can afford.

Depending on the age of your kids, I don't think 4 ppl in an inside room for 10 days is a fate worse than death. :). We have done inside rooms with our son (who is fairly young) without any trouble.

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inside room i loose track of time in the am

very dark

We are going on the Grandeur of the Seas for a 10 day Eastern Caribbean cruise. Currently we are booked in an inside cabin. What are your thoughts about upgrading to an oceanview or even balcony? We will have 2 children with us.

 

Thanks for any advice!

We gave done an aft balcony on MOS with our 2 children and that was nice. However, we weren't on the balcony enough to justify the cost. We're currently booked in two insides on IOTS for next June only because we got a good rate. That said, it depends on what you are accustomed to and how old your children are. We looked at OV for the four of us for our upcoming cruise and decided it wasn't worth the extra $. Plus, we would have been all the way in the front of the ship. My son can get motion sickness so you do tend to feel the ship move up/down more at the front. Another time the four of us had been upgraded to an OV on the NOVS due to them not having a virtual interior room for 4. It was on deck 3. So not worth it to us--the wait for the elevators since everything was up, etc. If you're looking for natural light in your cabin you can always tune your TV on to the bridge view--at night you'll see dark and in the morning the room will get gradually brighter.

Just some things to consider. Either way, enjoy your cruise.

4 people in an inside cabin for 10 days.

 

I would rather not go than sail with that arrangement.

 

Get a separate cabin for the kids.

 

Or at least.

 

Get a larger cabin......

Kind of on the same page here - I've done only 4 days in an OV with wife and 2 kids and that was SNUG. I would also not survive the lack of a window - but that's just me, obviously tons of people sail in Inside rooms every day.

We are a family of four.I can tell you we had an inside room our very first cruise.NEVER AGAIN.It gets cramped big time.You will so much more enjoy a balcony.Our kids are young and sometimes go to sleep much earlier then we do.We can sit ou on the balcony and not disturb them sleeping.Same for morning.I rise early and go get a coffee and sit out on balcony watching the sun rise.Im telling you,you won't regret it.

Have you priced getting two staterooms? The cruise we just booked it was cheaper to get our kiddos their own room than to squeeze all 4 of us in one room. I'd also been "price stalking" a few other cruises and the difference between one and two cabins was not that much in several cases.

If you do stick with one cabin, depending on the kids' ages a balcony may be completely worth it. We've sailed twice with ODD (at 16 months and at 2 years) and the balcony was well-used both times. It was nice to be able to put her to bed then go out on the balcony and watch the water, read, drink wine, etc. it was also really nice to have breakfast out there, go get some fresh air, etc.

For our upcoming cruise we wound up with connecting oceanviews. DH was really campaigning for the balconies, but the connected balconies sold out while we were debating, so outsides it was. I'm glad we'll get some natural light at least, but wouldn't usually pay too much more for an OV vs an Inside.

I'm in the group of "I'm just happy to be on vacation!", and never even considered a balcony pre-kids. With kids it's a little more about having a comfortable room, since we know we'll be spending a good bit of time there.

We are going on the Grandeur of the Seas for a 10 day Eastern Caribbean cruise. Currently we are booked in an inside cabin. What are your thoughts about upgrading to an oceanview or even balcony? We will have 2 children with us.

 

 

 

Thanks for any advice!

Balcony is my favorite.

Ocean view is great!

Inside cabin - I only like the ones with windows facing the Royal Promenade .

My advice based on your cruise and itinerary is to upgrade to OV. I don't recommend balcony for a family with children. Safety first!

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We have done an inside room with our 2 adult kids our most recent one in Sept with just one. We have no problem with it!

My concern with an ocean view is what is the bedding for the kids. I'd much rather have the pullman beds than a sleeper sofa!

We like the dark rooms as my hubby has to wear an eyemask if not!

You should know a little about your family. Do you like to wake up to light shining in around the curtains? Do you spend much time in a hotel room while you vacation or are you out and about? Is the extra money worth it to you or would you rather spend it on something else?

I can maybe see having a balcony room if you have children that will be napping as I would just hate to sit in the room doing nothing.

Honestly after 11 cruises 1 time we were upgraded in (April) to a balcony for a total of $18 and it was nice but I didn't think the space was that big of a difference and the bathrooms are still small! My hubby went out on the balcony a couple of times as we were coming into port and I was still getting ready, but we just didn't use it that much. I personally wouldn't pay very much more for a balcony or an oceanview, but that's my opinion!

Oceanview is 151 sq.ft. and Inside is 136 sq.ft. You're only going to gain 15 sq.ft.

 

You need to determine how much an additional 15sq. ft. is worth to you ? Personally I would not pay to upgrade to an oceanview but rather watch pricing if the OV drops to at or below what an inside would cost and than upgrade.

We did an inside room once and never again. If it comes to inside or not cruising we won't be cruising.

4 people in an inside cabin for 10 days.

 

I would rather not go than sail with that arrangement.

 

Get a separate cabin for the kids.

 

Or at least.

 

Get a larger cabin......

I agree.

I agree.

As do I.

We gave done an aft balcony on MOS with our 2 children and that was nice. However, we weren't on the balcony enough to justify the cost. We're currently booked in two insides on IOTS for next June only because we got a good rate. That said, it depends on what you are accustomed to and how old your children are. We looked at OV for the four of us for our upcoming cruise and decided it wasn't worth the extra $. Plus, we would have been all the way in the front of the ship. My son can get motion sickness so you do tend to feel the ship move up/down more at the front. Another time the four of us had been upgraded to an OV on the NOVS due to them not having a virtual interior room for 4. It was on deck 3. So not worth it to us--the wait for the elevators since everything was up, etc. If you're looking for natural light in your cabin you can always tune your TV on to the bridge view--at night you'll see dark and in the morning the room will get gradually brighter.

Just some things to consider. Either way, enjoy your cruise.

I don't think a TV qualifies as natural light.

If I had to have 4 people in an inside cabin I would not go on the cruise at all.

Take your wife and 2 children and get inside a closet in your home and sit there for awhile....that is what is will be like. Spend the extra money and get a balcony cabin......especially for a 10 night Caribbean cruise.

If I had to have 4 people in an inside cabin I would not go on the cruise at all.

 

Take your wife and 2 children and get inside a closet in your home and sit there for awhile....that is what is will be like. Spend the extra money and get a balcony cabin......especially for a 10 night Caribbean cruise.

Thank you!

Wow it is that tight?

I highly recommend getting a balcony cabin. As other posters have stated the added outdoor space makes these tight rooms not feel so bad.

Hubby and I have done inside more than once. We don't mind it. We did get the OV on the two we took the kids on. The natural light and view of the ocean was a better situation for the kids. Honestly, though, if you don't, I think you'll be fine. You won't be in the cabin that much, will you? We've been happy in whatever cabin we've been in.

It seems to me that the people that crab about how they'd rather not sail than be in an inside probably have more money than I do (and are perhaps a bit spoiled, honestly). Rather not sail? Really? I'm just happy to be cruising. We did our first balcony in June. I'm going to admit that we loved it, but we only did it because it was only $50 more pp than the inside, because the Allure has mostly balcony cabins.

Do what you're comfortable with. If you can afford a slightly larger room with a view, go for it. But I wouldn't worry about how terrible it might be if you don't. Having a great time does not depend on it. It depends on you.

if you're going to do a 10 day cruise, then pay the extra and get a balcony, otherwise do a 7 day and get a balcony...You're already paying the price for a 10 day, why suffer cause you want to save a few hundred...

We have been in inside, ocean view, balcony and connecting cabins. When traveling with kids, you will be much happier with a balcony or connecting cabins. If they are young and you will be putting them to bed before you go to sleep, you will appreciate the privacy or extra place to go. If they are bigger, you'll want the extra space. When we shared an inside cabin with our kids on the Disney Dream to save money, I was happy to escape the cabin at the end of the week (and Disney has bigger cabins than RCCL).

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Have just come off our 86th cruise. Have done all cabins. Dark is the way to go. Inside rules! :)

Hubby and I have done inside more than once. We don't mind it. We did get the OV on the two we took the kids on. The natural light and view of the ocean was a better situation for the kids. Honestly, though, if you don't, I think you'll be fine. You won't be in the cabin that much, will you? We've been happy in whatever cabin we've been in.

 

It seems to me that the people that crab about how they'd rather not sail than be in an inside probably have more money than I do (and are perhaps a bit spoiled, honestly). Rather not sail? Really? I'm just happy to be cruising. We did our first balcony in June. I'm going to admit that we loved it, but we only did it because it was only $50 more pp than the inside, because the Allure has mostly balcony cabins.

 

Do what you're comfortable with. If you can afford a slightly larger room with a view, go for it. But I wouldn't worry about how terrible it might be if you don't. Having a great time does not depend on it. It depends on you.

I am one of those that said I'd rather not go than be in an inside cabin. I am not spoiled and I do not have alot of money....honestly.....but I cut corners in my everyday life to be able to afford a nice vacation. I am not crabbing about anything so don't judge me. I am simply stating my preferences to someone who asked.