Thinking Aft Extended Balcony, Is it worth it?

[Dreamer115]

I missed out on an aft a few years ago and have wondered if it is worth the extra cost. Is it as great as I've heard?:confused::confused:

 

Connie

[RenoNanaOz]

In our opinion it is absolutely worth it. It's quiet back there and the beautiful blue water trailing behind the ship. We just sit out there with a glass of wine and totally relax.

[Luke Saint Joe]

Everyone will have their own opinion, their favorite location on the ship, BUT my husband & I truly LOVE an aft extended balcony! We recently tried our 1st cove balcony on Magic over New Year's week and while sitting on the balcony, he had me call my TA to change our August Pride cabin to an aft extended balcony! Nothing like it! One time, we did have a bit of soot on the balcony, but I took care of it quickly & easily with a damp towel. No need to call for assistance. Yes, you'll feel a bit of vibration here & there, but we were not bothered every by it. We could hear the music from one of the deck parties, but we were up anyway and it didn't disturb us.

[Lori Dobson]

Had an extended aft a few years ago, on the Splendor, I think - we had a CC cabin crawl and fit about 20 people out there with no problem. Loved it! :)

[deedle7544]

I was in one on my last cruise and loved!

[CruisingMainer]

We did one on our Alaska cruise on the Miracle. It was fantastic. We spent our whole sea day out on the balcony, and the whales were so close you could feel the spray. I fell asleep out there a couple of nights with my blanket. So relaxing. Also did one on a girls cruise to Canada. It was great to have the extra space, as we had three in our cabin, plus two more across the hall. We spent a lot of time on it when we splurged for it. However my last cruise we booked very late and did an inside cabin . . .I'm happy to be on a ship.

[blackwd]

Take painters tape with you. We were on Miracle in an aft extended balcony, view was fantastic but everything vibrated due to props below. We taped TV, every door in cabin along with drawers to cut down on noise. Did not fully eliminate all the noise but it was tolerable. Also, if you like the old vibrating beds you will love the aft cabin. I enjoyed it but my wife had her fill by end of cruise. On Splendor we had serious issues with ash from the funnel falling on our deck. What a mess! We just booked a cabin with the wrap around deck on Splendor, will see how that works but will still take tape with us.

 

 

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[nicoleds]

We love the extended aft balconies! theyre our favorite type of room

[klfrodo]

I'll never spend the money for it again.

Have had it twice on 2 different ships.

Both times we were awaken early in the morning due to the crew setting out loungers and dragging them across the deck above.

Both time we were also shaken out of bed with vibrations either from entry into a port or the way the ship was yawing or whatever,,,, but never again

[cynt]

Yes

 

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[MDavis23]

We have never booked an aft cabin, but were in one. With the balcony door and the front door open at the same time, it caused a whirlwind. I did love the space though!

[SeeJennyCruise]

I missed out on an aft a few years ago and have wondered if it is worth the extra cost. Is it as great as I've heard?:confused::confused:

 

Connie

 

Are you asking about one of the aft balcony cabins or the aft wrap cabins that go from the back to the side of the ship? We have sailed in several aft wrap cabins on decks 6, 7, 8, and 9. We love the aft wrap and book it whenever it is available. I prefer to be at least two decks below the Lido. Only once on the Magic did we have a problem with ash.

 

We spend hours on the large balcony with two chaise deck chairs and several chairs, you can invite a number of people to join you or enjoy the space. We have hosted cabin crawls and people are always impressed with the size of the balcony and the great view. It is our favorite spot on the ship. There is also an extended balcony on the side next to the aft wrap. I've sailed in that cabin on several ships. It is the same size as most suite balconies.

[Pellaz]

We had an aft extended balcony on Conquest last October and we loved it. Great views of the ship's wake and we didn't hear too much noise from the Lido Deck, which was just above ours (although we DID hear some).

 

But the BEST thing about our balcony, Stateroom 8450, was that it was BIGGER than the normal aft extended balcony, but didn't cost any more! :D

 

On Conquest-class ships, the two aft extended balconies closest to the sides (adjacent to the aft wraps) on Decks 6 and 8 are half AGAIN as big as a normal aft extended. This is 8450, 8457, 6454 and 6485. So, on our balcony, there was room for two loungers, two chairs and a small table. The regular aft extended can't fit all that.

Side note: the aft wrap balconies on Decks 6 and 8 are also bigger and extend around the side to the back more.

 

Decks 6 and 8 have only 6 aft extended balconies, whereas Deck 7 has eight across, which is why this is the case.

[Dreamer115]

We had an aft extended balcony on Conquest last October and we loved it. Great views of the ship's wake and we didn't hear too much noise from the Lido Deck, which was just above ours (although we DID hear some).

 

But the BEST thing about our balcony, Stateroom 8450, was that it was BIGGER than the normal aft extended balcony, but didn't cost any more! :D

 

On Conquest-class ships, the two aft extended balconies closest to the sides (adjacent to the aft wraps) on Decks 6 and 8 are half AGAIN as big as a normal aft extended. This is 8450, 8457, 6454 and 6485. So, on our balcony, there was room for two loungers, two chairs and a small table. The regular aft extended can't fit all that.

Side note: the aft wrap balconies on Decks 6 and 8 are also bigger and extend around the side to the back more.

 

Decks 6 and 8 have only 6 aft extended balconies, whereas Deck 7 has eight across, which is why this is the case.

 

Wow this is very interesting. Thanks for the info. It doesn't state that they come with lounge chairs, do they, or do you request them? I am heading to the web site now to see if these are available for the cruise we are thinking of booking. Thanks very much.

[FloridaMommyof3]

I'm the minority here - I didn't like it. It got so hot and there is absolutely no protection from the sun. I was only able to really enjoy it after the sun went down.

[jayscore]

Aside from my first two cruises, we've had the wider (8450,8457). middle aft and Vista suite on Spirit class, and 9C aft wraps.

I guess you could say we like them, eh?;)

[Rizzorp]

I must agree that there will be a lot of different opinions. For me.... I'm not getting one again. We had 6487 on the Freedom and although I loved the view of seeing the wake behind us there were more cons for us. We felt a lot of motion and vibrations so much so that we had motion sickness for the first time and it always happened when we were in the room. There is even less privacy on these balconies than the side ones due to the tiered decks at the end and slanted side dividers... also since they are tiered there is no protection from the sun at all unless you are traveling in a direction where the ship is sailing right at it.

[Dreamer115]

After hearing that there is no protection from the sun, I have to say I am now thinking against them. We are more into shade so would only be able to use early morning and at night. So I guess a good balcony on the side and spend the extra on drinks to enjoy on the balcony.

Thanks to all who responded.

 

Connie

[Rizzorp]

I found a picture that shows you what they look like....You can see the lack of privacy and shade from this angle

 

[DaisyandMoe010]

We have had one on our last 2 cruises. We LOVE it. We have booked the Vista Suite on the Pride for our cruise next year. Some have mentioned the noise from chairs being moved and music, etc. All of ours were on deck 6 and we didn't have that issue at all.

[yepthatsme]

Have never had aft extended before. will have coming up on carnival dream. Have had side balconies before and really liked. I think we are on deck 7 this time so might not get as much noise. We'll see I guess.

[crusing48/51]

You either love them, or hate them. For me, it's never again! Had one once. It was deck 7 on the Victory. It was very hot during the day, we has the ash all over our lounger and chair, there is absolutely no privacy above, below, or side to side. But the worst for me was the motion of the ship. Was sea sick the whole cruise. Felt the vibration, and the swaying of the ship more than on any other cruise. Now we always book mid ship. Way less motion.

 

One and only plus was the wake of the ocean at sail away. Lovely! Just not enough to make me ever want to stay in an aft cabin again. If you get the least bit sea sick, do not book one of these cabins!

[Pellaz]

Wow this is very interesting. Thanks for the info. It doesn't state that they come with lounge chairs, do they, or do you request them? I am heading to the web site now to see if these are available for the cruise we are thinking of booking. Thanks very much.

 

Looks like you've already opted not to get an aft extended...and for good reasons if privacy and shade are issues to you. They weren't major issues for us, and we also didn't feel any unusual motion to trigger any motion sickness, but everyone's tolerance is different there.

 

But to answer your question, we didn't have to request any loungers for ours; they were already out there along with the table and two regular chairs.

The BEST thing about an aft extended -- along with the view of the ship's wake -- is the extra depth to the balcony. Instead of just a few feet of wiggle-room, you have enough depth to fit a lounger the long way between the wall and the balcony railing. That cannot be done with any "regular" side balcony.

[Midwestgal]

We had an extended on the Breeze......it was very nice but I probably wouldn't do it again.

I'm not a fan of not seeing where we're going, I much prefer a balcony on the port side so I can see where I'm headed and where I've been , this is just my preference.

Give it a try so you will know if it's something you would like to do in the future.

[Alaskan Joe]

My DW and I will find out about AFT balconies in about 521 days. We have never had one but we are doing the 14 day Alaskan "Journey's" cruise in 2018. So we opt for the AFT balcony (rather I did:D), I think going through the inside passage would be cool to see both shore lines at the same time, along with the wake of the boat. We have cabin 6456 which I think I found out is above one of the lounges. However this should not effect us since my DW and I are the ones keeping the lounges open:o.