Beyond - Best Infinite Verandah (IV) location?

[rodndonna]

We are looking to book the Beyond for our first Edge class cruise for January 2026 and have almost full selection of cabins. 

 

We had initially planned on an aft (sunset) balcony but am so curious of the love/hate relationship with IV's that I think to see what all the fuss is about and experience what is the most contentious feature of Edge class ships - we just have to book an IV and see for ourselves!

 

That being said -we want to book a good location. The only  thing I know I care about is having the sofa nearer the window. It appears the rooms alternate with regards to that layout (please correct me if I am wrong on that).

 

Other than that, I just look at the Celebrity deemed "Prime Concierge IV"  rooms and they seem to be higher and towards the front - as an example cabin 12151 is on the Prime. I guess they are picked as prime because they are near stairwells  and higher up? 

 

Am I safe to generally pick from Celebrity deemed "Prime Concierge" locations (as long we it has our preferred layout with sofa near window)? 

 

 

[Nado44]

If you're not a Zenith with Retreat Lounge access, I would go with a standard midship IV, i.e. cabins 8255, 8259, 8250, 8254. They're close to the central midship elevators, have beds near the bath and are located in an area of the ship where you have almost non-obstructed views to the water when looking down from your open window. 

 

Concierge isn't worth the upcharge, imo.

 

Aqua class might be worth the upcharge if you're after better quality sit-down meals and daily spa access. If Aqua, consider midship cabins 9239, 9243, 9236 or 9240.

[rodndonna]

7 minutes ago, Nado44 said:

If you're not a Zenith with Retreat Lounge access, I would go with a standard midship IV, i.e. cabins 8255, 8259, 8250, 8254. They're close to the central midship elevators, have beds near the bath and are located in an area of the ship where you have almost non-obstructed views to the water when looking down from your open window. 

 

Concierge isn't worth the upcharge, imo.

 

Aqua class might be worth the upcharge if you're after better quality sit-down meals and daily spa access. If Aqua, consider midship cabins 9239, 9243, 9236 or 9240.

 

Thanks! 

 

You must be onto something because every room on deck 8 that you recommended is gone but one - 8254 - so we put a hold on it until  tomorrow when our Celebrity cruise consultant is back.

[keesar]

3 hours ago, rodndonna said:

We are looking to book the Beyond for our first Edge class cruise for January 2026 and have almost full selection of cabins. 

 

We had initially planned on an aft (sunset) balcony but am so curious of the love/hate relationship with IV's that I think to see what all the fuss is about and experience what is the most contentious feature of Edge class ships - we just have to book an IV and see for ourselves!

 

That being said -we want to book a good location. The only  thing I know I care about is having the sofa nearer the window. It appears the rooms alternate with regards to that layout (please correct me if I am wrong on that).

 

Other than that, I just look at the Celebrity deemed "Prime Concierge IV"  rooms and they seem to be higher and towards the front - as an example cabin 12151 is on the Prime. I guess they are picked as prime because they are near stairwells  and higher up? 

 

Am I safe to generally pick from Celebrity deemed "Prime Concierge" locations (as long we it has our preferred layout with sofa near window)? 

 

 

 

The key in picking a room on Beyond is getting a quiet room.  When we were on the Beyond, many people were complaining about banging sounds that kept them up at night.  Do your homework.

[rodndonna]

34 minutes ago, keesar said:

 

The key in picking a room on Beyond is getting a quiet room.  When we were on the Beyond, many people were complaining about banging sounds that kept them up at night.  Do your homework.

 

Thanks.

 

I've been reading up on that. Problem is I can't find any real definitive source as to what rooms or what the source is that are impacted. We booked 8254, can't find any mention or review on that cabin here or on cruise deckplans (maybe that is a good thing). At least we know we are surrounded by cabins and we always sleep with white noise (playing on our tablet).

 

Hopefully the noise issues were just a new ship breaking in thing...and we have 2 years of "breaking in" to go or some resolution to whatever the problem is 🤔

 

 

[cruise47]

Is Deck 10 a good location Aqua Prime mid ship / Port Side ? 

[keesar]

5 hours ago, cruise47 said:

Is Deck 10 a good location Aqua Prime mid ship / Port Side ? 

Yes, that should be a good location.  We have stayed on that floor and were pleased.

[vwlmember]

How about a Sunset Veranda?  Great locations and a real balcony. The cabins are a few feet longer than the average IV.  

[keesar]

33 minutes ago, vwlmember said:

How about a Sunset Veranda?  Great locations and a real balcony. The cabins are a few feet longer than the average IV.  

If you have mobility issues, that could be a factor as it is a long walk to the elevators.  However, great views of the wake and a true balcony.

[rodndonna]

7 hours ago, vwlmember said:

How about a Sunset Veranda?  Great locations and a real balcony. The cabins are a few feet longer than the average IV.  

 

We started with the intention of getting a sunset verandah, but since this is our first Edge class, we decided to try an IV since we are so curious. 

 

We do love afts though - had a sunset on Summit - that balcony was crazy massive 😃

[bruzin_for_a_cruizin]

3 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

We started with the intention of getting a sunset verandah, but since this is our first Edge class, we decided to try an IV since we are so curious. 

 

We do love afts though - had a sunset on Summit - that balcony was crazy massive 😃

Why set yourself up for what will likely be disappointment? If you had originally intended to get an SV, and you do "love afts," why would you spend your hard-earned vacation dollars/time on a cabin category which most self-affirmed balcony-lovers most assuredly do not enjoy?

 

With all due respect, OP, curiosity seems a poor excuse to intentionally potentially self-sabotage a vacation!

 

Go with your first instinct. The E-class SV cabins are spectacular. The E-class IV cabins are a disappointment to most (although some people like them, and others do all sorts of mental gymnastics to convince themselves they like them). 

[rodndonna]

14 minutes ago, bruzin_for_a_cruizin said:

Why set yourself up for what will likely be disappointment? If you had originally intended to get an SV, and you do "love afts," why would you spend your hard-earned vacation dollars/time on a cabin category which most self-affirmed balcony-lovers most assuredly do not enjoy?

 

With all due respect, OP, curiosity seems a poor excuse to intentionally potentially self-sabotage a vacation!

 

Go with your first instinct. The E-class SV cabins are spectacular. The E-class IV cabins are a disappointment to most (although some people like them, and others do all sorts of mental gymnastics to convince themselves they like them). 

 

We'e actually never had a cabin have that made a big impact on our cruise - we do everything from GTY insides (more common) to aft balconies (rarer treat). We've never been on a cruise where we didn't enjoy ourselves. Our most recent cruise last week was on NCL's newest ship (Viva) and we had an inside and loved it. 

 

I actually think we may like having an IV (it's unique and I really would like to check it out).  I can't imagine I am going to hate it - worse case it's still a kick-a** Oceanview, but regardless, there is NO WAY it could sabotage our holiday 😎

 

Edit: Forgot to add that the afts in the Beyond also don't appeal to us from a location point of view on the ship dues to distance from the stairwell. For example on the Summit we were one deck below Sunset bar (or 2/) and close to stairs - so we would just pop up to get a drink and sit on our balcony and listen to the evening performer. Same with HAL, when we have had afts we were close to stairwell and could just pop up to their aft deck bar area (which is where we spent alot of our time)

Edited February 12 by rodndonna

[jackandmary]

Went to Alaska on the Millenium and loved our experience with Aqua class. BUT at that time it included wifi and drink package. Now all Aqua gets you is access to Blu (which was great) and spa access. I don't think it's worth the price anymore. We booked all included infinity veranda for same price.

[jackandmary]

Forgot to mention we booked Cabin 8272 on the Ascent for this summer. Love to know if anyone has experience with this cabin. When we booked choices were limited.

[highway180]

She's a stunning ship, You will have an awesome oceanview cabin!

I prefer the s class with a real balcony. We did just get off the Ascent a few weeks ago, and like I said she is beautiful, just not a fan of the IV. We had limited choices when we booked, ending up on the 12th floor just under the pool deck....was very noisy. You should be fine.

 

Enjoy!

[jackandmary]

Thanks Highway 180!

 

So does the infinity veranda not have an actual balcony? Not sure I realized that.

[highway180]

It's basically an extension of your room, with a power window. So its a glass wall that opens...not a true balcony. Some here love them, i personally do not. Either way, I'm sure you'll enjoy your cruise!!

 

Cheers

[bruzin_for_a_cruizin]

1 hour ago, jackandmary said:

Thanks Highway 180!

 

So does the infinity veranda not have an actual balcony? Not sure I realized that.

Yeaahhhhhh.... you might want to do a search here on the IV cabins. As @highway180 says, some here love them, and RCL has built them into the Icon-class ships, so there must be some amount of demand for a larger cabin with a big window. If your expectations are properly set, you should be fine. If you're expecting a balcony in the traditional sense of the word (or in the dictionary sense of the word! LOL!), you'll be disappointed.

[CruiseManMikeFromPA]

While the right aft balcony can be great my family really enjoyed our first IV cabin and have one coming up on Beyond in June. I really don't like dealing with the salt spray and chairs that get icky. For me dropping the big window is just fine and the extra space in inclement weather helps too.

[vwlmember]

On 2/11/2024 at 10:56 PM, keesar said:

If you have mobility issues, that could be a factor as it is a long walk to the elevators.  However, great views of the wake and a true balcony.

Yes, it is a long walk to the aft elevator bank. Having mobility issues would make that walk difficult. 

[Cruise till you drop]

We’re doing Beyond in Jan 2025 and booked 11th deck midship IV

 

we usually do Sunset V but they were all gone and similar to OP, we decided to try it for ourselves

 

Last March we travelled with friends who had an IV.  Husband loved it as it felt like the cabin was bigger.  Wife not so much

[jackandmary]

On 2/13/2024 at 6:11 PM, vwlmember said:

Yes, it is a long walk to the aft elevator bank. Having mobility issues would make that walk difficult. 

Yes, I think we'll be keeping our IV midship cabin. I'm sure the view is great, but not sure how much time I'd actually spend on the sunset veranda. (At least as long as the casino is open!)

[NMTraveller]

On 2/12/2024 at 11:44 AM, jackandmary said:

Thanks Highway 180!

 

So does the infinity veranda not have an actual balcony? Not sure I realized that.

It is just an open/close window.  No balcony.  You do not go outside.

 

When the window is open there is no heat or AC ...

Edited February 25 by NMTraveller

[Cruise till you drop]

On 2/12/2024 at 2:44 PM, jackandmary said:

Thanks Highway 180!

 

So does the infinity veranda not have an actual balcony? Not sure I realized that.

More positively stated, the space for the balcony is in your room and you don’t have to go outside to be on the balcony.  The large window opens up to get the outside air (and yes unfortunately when the window is open, the AC shuts off)

 

The big positive is that since the space for the balcony is in your room, your room does feel larger that other balconies