Tired of Veranda Balcony

[ChelseaSailor]

We have got into the habit of booking balcony cabin and spend a lot of time on them during the cruise. Do other cruiser get tired of them. Do they trade up or trade down and what are the advantages of both?

ChelseaSailor

[sail7seas]

We don't like to sail without a veranda.

We always have a cabin that has an 'porch'. :)

[PathfinderEss]

We enjoy our verandah, would not go down to a room without one.

[bloofer]

I'm a balcony person myself, and love the stern wraparounds.:)

[cruz chic]

Had my first balcony for a major birthday 2 years ago. Now, I don't want to travel in anything less.

[ellieanne]

The times I have had a balcony it has been because of upgrades. I would not pay for one; I do not use the balcony enough to make the expense worthwhile. I love to watch the activity on the docks and bringing the tenders home, and you can never be assured the balcony will be on the "right" side of the ship for that view. Also, while I don't suffer from sea/motion sickness, I prefer to be lower down in the ship where the movement is not so dramatic. I know I'm in the minority, but having travelled in balcony cabins, I know I do not ever need to pay for one. A standard outside cabin with a window is perfect for me.

[BumperII]

We have never booked a balcony, we always book inside cabins. The most important reason is that because of medication, I'm not allowed out in the sunshine anyway! The second reason is the bathroom, because of this too, too solid flesh, I don't like climbing over the side of those bathtubs. The big advantage to the inside cabins is that because of the price, we can cruise six weeks a year, and we still have enough money in the budget to do all the excursions we want. We don't really save anything, what others spend on balconies and suites we spend on ship board expenses. It is really just a matter of picking out what you want for your money and paying for it. Only nine more days to go until we board the Ryndam.:)

[Krazy Kruizers]

We love our verandahs and when we aren't off the ship either on a tour or just walking around, we spend a lot of time there. We enjoy having a cocktail there as we leave many of the ports.

[KirkNC]

Put us in the occasional balcony buyers. Our typical purchase is a inside cabin. We find on most cruises we are not in our cabin enough to justify the cost of the balcony. Add to that our experience of usually having smokers upwind and we just don't book them that often.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have never booked a balcony, we always book inside cabins. The most important reason is that because of medication, I'm not allowed out in the sunshine anyway! The second reason is the bathroom, because of this too, too solid flesh, I don't like climbing over the side of those bathtubs. The big advantage to the inside cabins is that because of the price, we can cruise six weeks a year, and we still have enough money in the budget to do all the excursions we want. We don't really save anything, what others spend on balconies and suites we spend on ship board expenses. It is really just a matter of picking out what you want for your money and paying for it. Only nine more days to go until we board the Ryndam.:)

 

Bon Voyage!!

[GeriatricNurse]

We don't like to sail without a veranda.

We always have a cabin that has an 'porch'. :)

 

 

Along with the 'option' of (potentially) inhaling the sidestream tobacco smoke from your verandah neighbours, while your are enjoying sitting on your 'porch' eh Judy? ;):D

[cavecreekguy]

Right now, I can't justify the extra expense unless there is a lot of scenic cruising, like an Alaska cruise. I do admit that I love to be able to just pop outside on a moment's notice to get some air and watch the ocean pass by.

 

I just booked an inside "J" with quick access to the lower promanade. I am hoping this suits me.

[janmcn]

We sometimes book a balcony and sometimes prefer the Main Deck Outside View cabins if we will be in waters that could be rough. We rarely stay in one place on ship anyway, preferring to be watching activities entering and leaving port, or in scenic areas from other positions on the ship that offer the best photographic advantage. Too many constrictions from your own balcony. That, and the fact we've been "smoked out" several times make a balcony a lot less interesting to us.

[rafinmd]

Put us in the occasional balcony buyers. Our typical purchase is a inside cabin. We find on most cruises we are not in our cabin enough to justify the cost of the balcony. Add to that our experience of usually having smokers upwind and we just don't book them that often.

 

I'm mostly in this camp. I would really be in an inside where there's lots of uncrowded public space than have my balcony as the highlight of a limited selection of viewing space. The one exception, I'd hate to be on Celebrity without a balcony, but they're at the bottom of my list anyway.

 

Roy

[luvcruisn']

I just booked an inside "J" with quick access to the lower promanade. I am hoping this suits me.

 

I had a J that was located about 3 cabins and one launderette down from the outside doors to the Lower Promenade deck on the Veendam. It was great - quick access to the elevators, and to the outside. I often popped out on deck and checked the weather outside before leaving the ship. Really enjoyed the location.

[luvcruisn']

I booked a balcony once for a single night cruise. As I pay the single supplement, it doesn't fit into my budget on longer cruises. I did enjoy the balcony - only drawback - I missed some activities on the ship as I didn't want to leave my viewing point at sailaway.

[kazu]

We like having our balcony as well:) Enjoy sitting out there at night and watching the waves go by:)

[Sea King]

Along with the 'option' of (potentially) inhaling the sidestream tobacco smoke from your verandah neighbours, while your are enjoying sitting on your 'porch' eh Judy? ;):D

 

how did smoking get into this thread:(

[Randyk47]

Will not cruise in any cabin on any line without a veranda.

[innlady1]

We have never booked a balcony, we always book inside cabins. The most important reason is that because of medication, I'm not allowed out in the sunshine anyway! The second reason is the bathroom, because of this too, too solid flesh, I don't like climbing over the side of those bathtubs. The big advantage to the inside cabins is that because of the price, we can cruise six weeks a year, and we still have enough money in the budget to do all the excursions we want. We don't really save anything, what others spend on balconies and suites we spend on ship board expenses. It is really just a matter of picking out what you want for your money and paying for it. Only nine more days to go until we board the Ryndam.:)

 

We're on the same cruise, Bumper!

[innlady1]

I had a J that was located about 3 cabins and one launderette down from the outside doors to the Lower Promenade deck on the Veendam. It was great - quick access to the elevators' date=' and to the outside. I often popped out on deck and checked the weather outside before leaving the ship. Really enjoyed the location.[/quote']

 

I, too, have found that we really enjoy that location on the S class ships.

Until last January, we'd always booked verandas. A couple times they were unusable because of smoking on nearby locations...so we tried an outside "D" on the stern of the Maasdam in January, and in May, a "J" on the Veendam in May...both on the LP deck. Loved them!

I find that we prefer to be out and about on the ship rather than confined to our own verandah, so it works for us.

[sandij]

We always book a balcony cabin and I can't imagine getting tired of it, but we are getting ready to retire and will have more time to cruise but not more cash so we may cut back on the cabin type in order to do more overall cruising. Even with a balcony I always enjoy spending time on the promenade deck, stretched out on a lounge and reading and people watching.

[gigianne]

No balcony - no cruise!!

[NYteacher]

We tend to enjoy our balconies. The best we've ever had was a wrap-around aft balcony on deck five of the Zuiderdam for the Panama Canal. That balcony is, I believe, bigger than an inside cabin. One consequence of the great balcony was that we spent A LOT of time there.

 

On the Maasdam and the Statendam we've never had a balcony, we have therefore spent a lot more time around those ships. We travel both HAL and NCL and think HAL has much better "hanging around the ship" spots.

[LindaM]

how did smoking get into this thread:(

 

Because HAL is one of the few lines that allows smoking on balconies. I won't spend the money for a balcony on HAL for that reason.