Is a premium balcony worth the money

[N00B]

I am trying to decide between a side facing balcony of 40sqft and an aft facing balcony of 56sqft. The aft facing balcony commands a premium of about 15% the cost of the cruise. Is it worth it?

 

I have heard that side facing balconies can be windy, but I've heard that rear facing can be noisy.

 

We plan to take advantage of the Ultimate Balcony breakfast, probably a couple times and possibly the dinner once, but we also will likely sit on our balcony for at least some time everyday.

 

Is it worth it to get the bigger balcony? And/or is it worth it to be aft facing?

 

On the one cruise I have taken before my favourite place to be when pulling out of port was at the rear of the ship with a slice of pizza and a drink watching the land slip away. So I'm thinking maybe a private aft balcony might be desireable for me?

 

If it matter we are looking at a 10 day cruise on the Carribean Princess.

 

TIA for any thoughts and opinions.

[chrysalis]

The balconies on the Caribe deck (side facing) are the biggest of all. 4 chairs and a table.

[chrysalis]

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[2 to cruise]

After having mini suites on most of our cruises, we "splurged" last December and had an aft Vista Suite on Sapphire Princess to the Islands. It was our first aft and we loved it. You don't have to have a suite to enjoy the aft, that was just our choice.

 

We have had the Ultimate Balcony Dinner 5 times and have always had to have it inside our mini due to winds. Our aft Vista was the first time we had the dinner on the actual balcony. It was wonderful!

 

Being able to sit out without wind was great the entire trip, I highly recommemend it. We have another booked for our Alaska cruise coming up.

[Drews_Cruise]

Aft facing is where it's at in my humble opinion. Its very private, is larger, and you get to sit watch the islands disappear into the horizon. The DW and I love them and always try to book early so as to get one. Yes the wake is often loud but we don't leave the door open at night anyway so the noise is a mesmerizing stimulation that relaxes us both. Do some research on the ship though and try not to get a cabin next to the ventilation fans in the middle. Outside cabins near the port or starboard side tend to be the best.

[2 to cruise]

After having mini suites on most of our cruises, we "splurged" last December and had an aft Vista Suite on Sapphire Princess to the Islands. It was our first aft and we loved it. You don't have to have a suite to enjoy the aft, that was just our choice.

 

We have had the Ultimate Balcony Dinner 5 times and have always had to have it inside our mini due to winds. Our aft Vista was the first time we had the dinner on the actual balcony. It was wonderful!

 

Being able to sit out without wind was great the entire trip, I highly recommend it. We have another booked for our Alaska cruise coming up.

[skynight]

I think the best value are the Caribe Deck cabins from C618/619 back. They are cat. BD. The balcony size is 9'x9', and is half covered and half uncovered. You are cautioned that if you select one of these cabins to make the booking "no upgrade." An upgrade could place you on one of the higher up decks with a smaller balcony, 9'x5', thus losing the advantage of the large balcony. All the interiors are the same.

[paul929207]

To me, yes it is worth the extra.

[TheBestIsYetToCome]

I'm probably pretty rare in this way, but I prefer the side-facing balconies. I'm not super-social with my neighbors (quick hello is about all) and I do like my privacy a great deal...but, I sort of lose the sense that I'm on a cruise with lots of other shiny-happy people with an aft balcony. Yes, I know there are thousands of shiny-happies just over my head at the pool or standing in line in front of me at dinner, but something disconnects for me in an aft cabin. There's a reason that some of the nicest cabins on the ship are back there, though.....

[PunkiC]

You really need to give it a try to see whether or not you like it. We were "upgraded" to a true aft balcony when we bought a guarantee balcony and we really didn't like it at all.

 

We like to be able to see where we are going, not just where we have been.

 

The only time we thought the aft balcony was cool was when we were stuck in SFO for several hours while they searched for a lost crew person. There was so much activity on the bay and the view was so amazing that we did enjoy that. The rest of the time, not so much.

[signe]

I also much prefer a side balcony so I can see where the ship is going. I'd pay extra not to be aft, suite or no suite! It's an individual choice, though, and many people love it.

[Astro Flyer]

The balconies on the Caribe deck (side facing) are the biggest of all. 4 chairs and a table.

Our Crown Caribe deck balcony in December had the newer furniture & it was 2 semi-reclining chairs, 2 footrests & a table.

 

OP...the aft facing balcony cabins are very popular & is why with the recent recategorization they're some of the most expensive balcony cabins. I have friends who enjoy them very much but I prefer the side facing Caribe deck larger half covered balconies to have an option to sit in the sun or in the shade.

 

They will get windy but we sit closer to the cabin when underway at sea. Our UBDs in port or during sailaway have been great & even the time we had it inside our cabin during a cold & windy November sailaway from Santorini.

[Gunner22aa]

If the wife and I can't get an aft Vista suite (now S6) we find another cruise. That is the one thing we will not compromise on.

[Queenk2]

I have had aft balconies,however we prefer side facing balconies! I love watching people run in order not to miss the ship! I find it hilarious that they don't plan to be back at least a half hour before they must be back on the ship!

[FawnRiver]

We love the aft balconies, its nice and quiet and private. It feels like you're alone. The side balconies you have people all around and above and the wind can be problematic, not to mention the occasional bit of stuff from the balconies above :(.

 

You can see more than just where you've been on an aft balcony, it all depends on the cruise. Some ports, the ships back into and in some ports you can still see the running of the time-impaired, if that's what you like. It all depends on the cruise, the ship and the port.

[Working 2 Cruise]

To be honest, to us, it would not be worth it. The side balconies are good enough for us! We had an aft balcony once and did not think it was worth the upcharge, and my husband really griped about the amount of walking he had to do!

 

As long as we have a balcony, any type, we are happy. We also had a Caribe deck balcony (the larger one) through an upgrade. Although we were happy with it, we would not pay extra for it. There is enough room on the regular balconies for the two of us to enjoy ourselves.

 

I know, we are going against all popular opinions here, but as long as you asked, I thought I would give my two cents.

[Pam in CA]

I'm giving up getting a balcony. The new furniture is so uncomfortable that even bringing pillows to use on the chair doesn't help much. They are rock hard; might as well be concrete. I've found myself not using the balcony other than to check the outside temperature or perhaps watch sailaway. The extra cost isn't worth it to me for so little use.

 

[dorisis]

I'm giving up getting a balcony. The new furniture is so uncomfortable that even bringing pillows to use on the chair doesn't help much. They are rock hard; might as well be concrete. I've found myself not using the balcony other than to check the outside temperature or perhaps watch sailaway. The extra cost isn't worth it to me for so little use.

 

[ATTACH]274850[/ATTACH]

 

The new furniture is NOT COMFORTABLE!!! I still like a balcony but I would not pay mega bucks for the aft balconies. I don't use a balcony enough so usually take the smaller side balcony. If I really want to be comfortable I can book the Sanctuary for half days and spend less But I also don;t like the aft sanctuaries,WINDY!!

[phabric]

We love an aft cabin. We try to get C752 or C753, there are end cabins. We find sometimes the pool area is too noisy for us so we return to our quiet balcony looking out over the wake. The walk from the elevator to the cabin is long, good exercise. You don't have any traffic as you are at the end of the hall.

[piper28]

I love the aft balconies, but with the recategorization of them to "premium" balconies, I'm not really convinced they're worth the extra cost. I've got one for my next cruise, but don't know that I'm going to be willing to spend the extra in the future. Personally I think if they want to call these "premium" balconies, they should add some sort of amenity to provide a "premium" to the cabin. But in the future, I'd have to really evaluate the cost difference, and 15% to me I think would be too much.

[Nebr.cruiser]

I'm giving up getting a balcony. The new furniture is so uncomfortable that even bringing pillows to use on the chair doesn't help much. They are rock hard; might as well be concrete. I've found myself not using the balcony other than to check the outside temperature or perhaps watch sailaway. The extra cost isn't worth it to me for so little use.

 

[ATTACH]274850[/ATTACH]

 

You are so right about that furniture! I could hardly stand to sit there more than a few minutes--it's like they bought the most uncomfortable furniture on purpose--maybe to send people into the ship to spend money?