In Hull Verandah?????

I'm looking to book the QM2 for January and my travel agent said something about cabins B 3 to 7 that he called in hull verandahs. What is that and has anyone sailed in one of those? He said it was something like having an enclosed verandah and only having a porthole to look out of, and not a completely clear view from the entire verandah.

These cabins are on the lower decks below the promenade deck and basically have have a hole cut out in the hull of the ship. So you can sit out on the verandah, but I beleive its not possible to see out from a seating position as their is no conventional glass panel as in the higher balcony cabins. If you look at a picture of the ship, these cabins are located in the black area.

They are actually bigger thatn the regular B cat balconies and are cat B4-7 I believe.

Eveyone gives these cabins a bad wrap, but I loved the Cate B5 we had, the verandah is much larger and more private than the upper categories, and they get enough light. They are similar to the balconies on older ships like the Regal Princess, or S-class HAL ships when they did not use glass on the balcony railings. ALso they are a great location and you can look right down into the ocean vs the top of lifeboats

We booked a B5 in-hull balcony on the 4/2/05 Caribbean sailing. The total square footage is 269 opposed to 248 in the glass balconies (bigger balcony). Also, it looks very private opposed to the traditional balconies (solid partitions and can't look over from the rail).:p Being midship a little aft on deck 4 (4108) will hopefully be far enough back to avoid spray and nothing below except the ocean. OK, when you're in the loungers, you don't see the ocean, but the upper balconies see the life boats, and then the promenade deck looking down, so they HAVE to see out. We'll holler up to you guy's up there when the dolphins are swimming alongside.:D We'd turn down an upgrade unless it was to a suite. We read a thread on Yahoo about a passenger who sailed in one of the duplexes and was freaked out that when they stepped out onto their balcony. Everyone on the pool deck (deck 8) stared up at them. No privacy at all. A little disappointed that today we received a coupon that would have saved us $275 off, if it included our cruise.:mad: They included every Caribbean cruise in January, February and March, but didn't include the one April cruise. Wonder why?:confused: We're staying put though as we heard our cruise is basically sold out.:)

Photo of hull balcony cabin:

http://www.clwydtravel.co.uk/queen_mary_photo_gallery_48.htm

Photo of hull balcony:

http://www.clwydtravel.co.uk/queen_mary_photo_gallery_49.htm

Hope this helps, Stephen.

We've just come back off the royal mediterranean cruise where we had a "hull balcony" cabin (Deck 5). We became friends with people with "Glass balcony" cabins on both decks 8 and 12. There was absolutely no difference in the cabins except the balconies (The hull balconies being slightly - but noticeably larger ... the sunloungers 'fit' with a bit of room to spare on the larger hull balconies but only just fit on the glass balconies).

Things to consider: The hull balconies are on lower decks and are therefore cheaper. With a hull balcony you may need to stand up to see the sea/port. but the balcony is a LOT more sheltered than the higher balconies and we preferred this (also, its much more private - our friends on Deck 8 were on full view to those on the promenade deck below - not to mention the bridge and the cctv cameras!). Unless you're a serious sun worshipper (and you know which way the ship is sailing!), we would not consider the higher grade cabins on decks 8-12 worth the premium you have to pay, and would definiely choose a hull balcony cabin on deck 4 or 5 again.

I wish I had read all these messages about hull balconies before booking our B1 on deck 12. I'm beginning to think the extra money spent is a waste.

I have been in the Hull balcony and actually prefer the regular one even though it is smaller. There are chaise lounges but you have no view! At least they could provide chairs that afford a view or cut the window differentely. I do not think you will be dissapointed.

Some people prefer hull balconies and others prefer glass balconies. Views seem very mixed. I have even heard of people favouring hull balconies on crossing and glass on cruises. On my crossing I dont think any balcony got much use. The only balconies that nobody likes are on the duplexes.

Best wishes, Stephen.

with the only downside being the cut-out and therefore having to stand to see out, we also preferred the hull balcony for several reasons besides the larger size...we could look directly down at the water which was sortof fun watching the ship dock (upper balconies look at promenade deck and/or lifeboats as stated above so can't see this procedure); much more privacy; and the light coming through or being able to open the balcony door for the seabreeze was just as functional as the upper balconies. while i wouldn't turn down a b-1 - b-3, i think the hulls were quite a good buy, very enjoyable and would pick that category again. but whatever you pick, enjoy the qm2...she's a great ship! enjoy! mike and jon