River cruise cabins and windows?

This isn't something everyone is going to agree on and the motivations and criteria will vary hugely.

If you only have time to vacation once a year, or money is no object then spending a lot more for something you may only benefit from here and there is perfectly understandable.

If you have plenty of time and money is not unlimited then the cabin choice can be the difference between 1, 2 or 3 vacations a year.

Also experience is a factor, sometimes people need time to convince themselves that the balcony just isn't good use of money, or conversely to convince themselves that it is... :)

The good thing though is that we have choices!

This isn't something everyone is going to agree on and the motivations and criteria will vary hugely.

 

If you only have time to vacation once a year, or money is no object then spending a lot more for something you may only benefit from here and there is perfectly understandable.

 

If you have plenty of time and money is not unlimited then the cabin choice can be the difference between 1, 2 or 3 vacations a year.

 

Also experience is a factor, sometimes people need time to convince themselves that the balcony just isn't good use of money, or conversely to convince themselves that it is... :)

 

The good thing though is that we have choices!

Excellent point. We are all different and have different wants and needs. I’m a quality over quantity person. I’d rather have one spectacular experience than several great experiences - the spectacular being subjective. What I consider great is most likely spectacular to someone else. It’s all relative. I fully understand that.

I absolutely respect those who are happy with their choice of accommodations - especially those who go with the least expensive ones so they can go more often. I understand that the room isn’t as important to others as maybe a special souvenir or spending money on some other aspect of the trip.

But I get the feeling that those who do so don’t respect the choices of us who choose differently.

Could be this written medium, which doesn’t allow for facial expression, but I often sense a frosty tone towards those who choose a different path. It’s like you know they think they are right and we are off in the ditch. [emoji12] Perhaps it’s just human nature to see only ones own path. To think it’s the best way for all, and not just a different way.

For myself I want what I want. Sometimes I’m willing to sacrifice one aspect to achieve another, but most times not.

We are at a point in our lives, my DH and I, where we are going to treat ourselves as well as we can. If the flight is over 4 hours and Viking is subsidizing part of the cost within the cruise cost (I know it all comes out of our pocket in the end but there are offsets), we are flying business/first. It’s special and a treat.

We are staying in the lovely boutique hotel because it feels good to be pampered and to be in a special environment. We are booking the cabin with the veranda, maybe even a suite - but so far I haven’t felt the need for that much extra space. I can understand those who do, however. So far that’s been my line, my upper limit, but it’s not a hard and fast line that can’t be crossed.

I think keeping a mind open to all possibilities is wise, even as you choose what is best for you. And remember that others are doing the same - choosing what works best for them.

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Well stated, Mark. Lower category cabins help me to stretch my vacation dollars. For instance, by booking a Category 5 on this fall's Uniworld cruise, I'm able to do an ocean cruise too.

Roz

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Excellent point. We are all different and have different wants and needs. I’m a quality over quantity person. I’d rather have one spectacular experience than several great experiences - the spectacular being subjective. What I consider great is most likely spectacular to someone else. It’s all relative. I fully understand that.

 

I absolutely respect those who are happy with their choice of accommodations - especially those who go with the least expensive ones so they can go more often. I understand that the room isn’t as important to others as maybe a special souvenir or spending money on some other aspect of the trip.

 

But I get the feeling that those who do so don’t respect the choices of us who choose differently.

 

Could be this written medium, which doesn’t allow for facial expression, but I often sense a frosty tone towards those who choose a different path. It’s like you know they think they are right and we are off in the ditch. [emoji12] Perhaps it’s just human nature to see only ones own path. To think it’s the best way for all, and not just a different way.

 

For myself I want what I want. Sometimes I’m willing to sacrifice one aspect to achieve another, but most times not.

 

We are at a point in our lives, my DH and I, where we are going to treat ourselves as well as we can. If the flight is over 4 hours and Viking is subsidizing part of the cost within the cruise cost (I know it all comes out of our pocket in the end but there are offsets), we are flying business/first. It’s special and a treat.

 

We are staying in the lovely boutique hotel because it feels good to be pampered and to be in a special environment. We are booking the cabin with the veranda, maybe even a suite - but so far I haven’t felt the need for that much extra space. I can understand those who do, however. So far that’s been my line, my upper limit, but it’s not a hard and fast line that can’t be crossed.

 

I think keeping a mind open to all possibilities is wise, even as you choose what is best for you. And remember that others are doing the same - choosing what works best for them.

 

 

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Kath-

I can definitely understand wanting to choose a balcony. If I was sailing in the summer and wasn't solo, I would most likely have gone for a balcony. I do like the idea of the floor to ceiling windows of the balcony. It was just hard for me to justify the extra expense of the supplement as a solo on this cruise during the winter with fewer daylight hours.

I do see that four of Ama's ships have small solo balcony cabins. If I like this cruise, I might try one of those next time if the price is right.

On different trips, I pick different levels of luxury depending on what I'm looking for. On my last trip to Europe, I was traveling with my mom who was 79 so I upgraded our flights and hotels as I wanted her to be comfortable. When I'm traveling solo, I'm probably not as likely to do that. I still want to be comfortable and have enough space to spread out, but I don't want the same level of luxury for myself. I like that the ships offer different levels of accommodations to suit different tastes and budgets.

It all comes down to choices. We are doing an Amsterdam to Budapest cruise with Scenic in June and the price difference between aquarium class and verandah was $2000 each. We decided to go cheap cabin and put that extra money towards business class fares as 22 hours actual flying time in economy was too hard now that we are more mature.

There is also the supplement for solo occupancy to consider.

With Viking charging a 100% supplement, and other lines 30% to 50%, even 'aquarium' class becomes extremely expensive.

Upgrading merely exacerbates the cruise cost.

If Tauck can waive the supplement for entry level cabins why can't other cruise lines.

To be honest, many times we are docked next to another boat or when we are sailing we are at dinner or in the lounge or topside! Just a thought.

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I enjoyed my upper deck French balcony. I like lots of natural light, and I enjoyed laying on the bed, reading, and looking out the window as the sights went by. As an introvert, I do best with a little alone time. ;) That said, I'd say half the time we were in port, I had to keep the curtains closed due to proximity to another ship or people on the river bank, or my view was a wall. So for a significant increase in cost, this would not have "worth it" to me. I could have had alone time with an aquarium window just as easily. For the ship we were on, it was just a few hundred dollars more to be upper deck with French balcony vice lower deck with windows.

I'm definitely also in the "save money so I can travel more" camp when it means significant savings.

If Tauck can waive the supplement for entry level cabins why can't other cruise lines.

I suspect the answer is occupancy levels...

There is also the supplement for solo occupancy to consider.

 

 

 

With Viking charging a 100% supplement, and other lines 30% to 50%, even 'aquarium' class becomes extremely expensive.

 

 

 

Upgrading merely exacerbates the cruise cost.

 

 

 

If Tauck can waive the supplement for entry level cabins why can't other cruise lines.

I have seen certain sailings on AMA and Avalon advertised as single supplement waived. Check out the webpages.

I like the larger windows on Christmas Market cruises. Because the ship sails at night I can watch the homes and towns along the river, especially the Rhine, decorated with colored lights. It's a small experience, but adds to the holiday spirit.

I have seen certain sailings on AMA and Avalon advertised as single supplement waived. Check out the webpages.

Here's a link to the Avalon page. It's not very useful since it just lists codes for cruises with no single supplement. You can find a cruise and then check back to the page to see if it qualifies for no supplement or maybe just let a travel agent do it for you.

https://www.avalonwaterways.com/Specials/Waive-Single-Supplement/

A quick check on Avalon's site showed Christmas time single supplements ranging from $176 for a seven-night cruise to $347, and $556 for 11 night cruises.

In the past we've been in interior cabins for ocean cruises. My mom slept well but found the lack of sunlight made her feel like she should be hibernating full time. That would be the advantage of Aquarium Class on the river cruises. On the Viking River cruises we've been booking the French balcony rooms. Even though the weather wasn't fabulous when we were sailing, we enjoyed being able to open the window to take picture or to look at the view along the way.

It's true that most of the sailing was at night, other than one day of scenic sailing when everyone went up to the higher decks so we could watch both sides of the river (castles to the left, castles to the right!). I only saw one couple using their balcony in April and no one using them in December - but since I'm not Spider-Man I could really only see who was using balconies when we were docked - and even then could only see the shore-side balconies.

I did enjoy being able to look out at the locks as we went through them at night and looking at the lights of the places we passed in the night. That was particularly interesting in December when (as someone else mentioned) we could see Christmas lights in the distance.

In spite of the helpful Viking weather information in the daily bulletin, I tend to utilize the traditional "stick my face outside" approach to determining what layers to wear for each day. Having a window in the cabin undoubtedly saved me from having to rush back to the cabin to change. We were only sandwiched to other ships a couple of times so that wasn't a significant issue. I'm sure that's different when traveling in peak seasons.

Another factor for us in selecting the French balcony rooms is their location on the ships. My mom can manage stairs but they can be hard on her knees. With so much walking and stairs to do during our time ashore, it made sense for us to try to minimize stair climbing while on board. The Aquarium Class cabins obviously require an extra flight of stairs to go anywhere. By staying on the middle deck we avoid stairs on the way to and from the restaurant (quick and easy) and only had to go up one flight to reach the bar (and one ship had an elevator that went between the main and upper deck). My mom only took the stairs up to the Sun Deck (top level) when there was something special going on. Depending on the port, we either entered/exited the boat from the middle deck (most often) or the upper deck. By staying on the same floor with the restaurant and reception area, we gave my mom's knees a break and saved ourselves time. On the other hand, we made friends with folks staying in Aquarium cabins and they were happy with their cabins, particularly since they saved so much money and didn't spend much time in their cabins, anyway.

And I have awakened early in my aquarium class cabin, put on a robe, and gone up to the sundeck to take sunrise pictures. To each his/her own.

On many nights I would get up after midnight, get a hot cup of coffee, and go up on deck to enjoy the beautiful night sky or watch the nightlights of a small river town pass by. Typically, only two others were awake - the night captain in the pilot house and one other crewman. Towards the end of the river cruise, the early morning pastry chef would even bring me up a couple hot cinnamon rolls to go with my coffee!

It's true that you can spend very little time in your cabin, but there are times that you do as you rest up, get changed, etc. but that's minimal. In my opinion, if you can afford it, any cabin on the top is the best. Friends traveling together might appreciate the extra space a veranda cabin provides and you can pull your beds further apart (I put the larger table in between them). Traveling with a spouse, or partner, you may be happy with the French balcony.

 

Others totally love the Aquarium level. I personally can not stay there due to some claustrophobia; the high window and below water level would not be comfortable for me.

It is definitely the claustrophobia that keeps me from booking aquarium class on any ship but since we rarely use the balcony, we always go for a French balcony on the middle deck -- middle deck so we don't get the running/jogging noise at odd hours of the day and night from the sun deck.

I like not having to wander around the ship in my pjs! I'll stick with my veranda! Enjoy!

Same here. With Avalon, you don't lose room space to having a balcony, the entire wall opens up and your room becomes a balcony. We loved that. Having the extra space and being able to sit and enjoy the view from my room was wonderful. Also, not once were we rafted to any other boats, perhaps we were just lucky. It's all about what you want and need and what it is worth to you. With all the sitting and viewing areas....you really don't NEED a balcony ... it's about what you want.

Same here. With Avalon, you don't lose room space to having a balcony, the entire wall opens up and your room becomes a balcony. We loved that. Having the extra space and being able to sit and enjoy the view from my room was wonderful. Also, not once were we rafted to any other boats, perhaps we were just lucky. It's all about what you want and need and what it is worth to you. With all the sitting and viewing areas....you really don't NEED a balcony ... it's about what you want.

On Viking the balcony cabins are bigger than those with the French balconies. The Veranda cabins have extra drawer space and a chair. Never said I “need” a Veranda, but we definitely want one.

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On Viking the balcony cabins are bigger than those with the French balconies. The Veranda cabins have extra drawer space and a chair. Never said I “need” a Veranda, but we definitely want one.

 

 

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Unlike the other cruise lines, the Viking hallway is NOT in the middle of the ship on the upper and middle decks; it is offset so that there is less space on one side (the French Balcony side) and more on the other (the Veranda side).

Also, never once have I recalled anyone posting on CC that they were sorry they chose Aquarium class. But, there have been posters who wished they saved themselves the $2000 because they rarely stayed in the cabin except for sleeping.

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Also, never once have I recalled anyone posting on CC that they were sorry they chose Aquarium class. But, there have been posters who wished they saved themselves the $2000 because they rarely stayed in the cabin except for sleeping.

 

 

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Having never been in anything except aquarium class on any cruise except the Mekong (where all cabins were twin balcony), perhaps there is already self selection involved; those that don't think they will like aquarium class don't choose it, so won't have to complain about it.

Unlike the other cruise lines, the Viking hallway is NOT in the middle of the ship on the upper and middle decks; it is offset so that there is less space on one side (the French Balcony side) and more on the other (the Veranda side).

I knew that [emoji16]

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Also, never once have I recalled anyone posting on CC that they were sorry they chose Aquarium class. But, there have been posters who wished they saved themselves the $2000 because they rarely stayed in the cabin except for sleeping.

 

 

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We were not among those who wished they had not booked the veranda cabin. We loved it so much we booked the same cabin for our upcoming cruise.

Had we gotten the Aquarium class, I would have been sorry, for the same reason I don’t book inside cabins on ocean cruises. I get claustrophobic. If you are not afflicted, I guess you can’t understand why some of us simply can’t or don’t wish to deal with it.

I assume the reason why there are different type cabins on most ships is because each person has their own preferences, and the cruise lines want to accommodate. We prefer to have the extra inside space, and to have the balcony available for however much time we use it.

Different strokes for different folks. And Vive la difference!

We all choose to spend our vacation dollars in different ways. I'm prone to claustrophobia, but didn't find my aquarium cabin at all. The window at the top ran the entire width of the outside wall, and there was plenty of daylight, and I could see city lights at night.

Roz

We just like a window that opens.... we appreciated the fresh air when we hadn't been able to open our windows at home as it was still to cold. It wasn't until the 2nd or 3rd day we found out our A/C wasn't working (the sensor was broken, easily & quickly fixed).

Would I go for the aquarium class... probably not. When we book a holiday like this, we factor in the cost. If it meant that we couldn't take the trip because of the cost, then yes, but then we probably wouldn't be going anyway. We don't fly first class, so that saves us a big chunk. I guess it's all down to how anyone wants to spend their money, and if you want to save on the room, then there is no reason not to. We appreciated having a comfortable chair & love seat to sit on while we were in our cabin, instead of a wooden chair you would have on the balcony, so the french balcony is our preference, but, as it's been noted, some french balconies have less space than the balcony suite.

It's all a matter of what you want, and what you can give up in order to enjoy your holiday rather than worry about it.