Questions about choosing staterooms?

[MillbrookMom]

Can someone please explain to me how to go about choosing a stateroom, I believe you want middle of the ship, but if it's not available, do you want forward? or Aft? and what about which deck to be on? is it better to be higher up? on on a lower deck? And finally, is the bathroom part of the square footage of a room?

 

Thanks.

[Happy ks]

We all have personal preference, such as I prefer middle or aft to forward. The only reason I prefer middle at all is to be close to the elevators (I get lost easily). Other than that, I really prefer a higher deck to a lower deck.

 

You will have a lot of people say that mid and low will prevent seasickness. But take it from me, as someone who easily gets seasick, you will get sick if the ship is rocking no matter where you are located. Plus, you don't want to be spending all your time in your cabin. So, if motion sickness is a worry for you, use a preventive measure other than location.

 

Choose what is important to you. Do you want easy access to the pool, the dining room, the kids club? Choose the area you want to be closest to.

 

If you are going on a modern, large, mass market cruise ship they are so large you cannot be close to everything. If you have any mobility issues, mid level and mid ship are the best choices.

[rkacruiser]

Study, very carefully, the deck plan of the ship on which you are planning to book. Be wary of booking a stateroom over or under any public room in which there could be music and/or noise created(i.e. the casino, a nightclub or lounge). Consider what areas of the ship you are probably going to spend the most time in and book a stateroom near the stairs/elevators that go to that area of the ship.

 

The most stable ride on a ship will be found on the lowest deck, mid-ship. Staterooms near the bow and often the stern will hear, and maybe feel, the thrusters when docking and undocking. This bothers some travelers. Also, if the anchor is lowered, staterooms near the bow will probably hear that as well.

 

I hope this helps.

[wrp96]

There are a lot of things that can make a difference. Are you looking for an inside cabin, an oceanview or a balcony? What ship are you on? What are your personal preferences.

 

For example, on RCCL's Sovereign classes the rooms are very small, so if you can go for an oceanview room at the very least that is best. BUT, the oceanview rooms on deck 8 are partially obstructed and the oceanview rooms on deck 7 literally look out onto the Promenade Deck so you have people walking past your room all day.

 

Another example. I love AFT balcony cabins on RCCL. But on each ship they are different. On the Voyager class and Freedom class, there is superstructure on the back of the ship that blocks part of the room. I still like the balconies back there because they are so much larger than side balconies, but other people don't. On the Radiance class and the Vision class there is absolutely no obstruction so you get a perfect view plus a much larger balcony. Other people love the Hump Balconies on RCCL ships because they are central to the elevators (no long walks to the back like the Aft balconies) and in some cases they have much larger balconies.

 

When I'm booking an inside cabin, I go for the cheapest room possible. At least on RCCL, there isn't any difference in size between an inside cabin on deck 2 or deck 8, but you usually pay a lot more for that deck 8 cabin, which is not worth it to me. But somebody else might not mind paying extra because it puts them closer to the activities and the pool deck.

[lozmark]

Checking plans of the ship is essential to find the best cabin, we had the owners suite, aft, top accomadation deck directly underneath the outdoor breakfast resaraunt...the noise from 5 oclock in the morning from the staff moving plastic tables and chairs arround was horrendous... however the cabin was superb and a big as many homes!