will I really use a balcony in the Med?

[Fabulous2B50]

I have just booked my first inside cabin on Golden Princess for June 2006-12 night Med/GreeK Isles with my DD- she will just be 15 and I will be turning the big 50 next year. I have always had balconies. I really wish I had not read this thread as I am starting to miss my balcony already! If I decide to upgrade, can anyone suggest which side to book in order to have a view of Monte Carlo as our first port is Monaco. We end in Venice, so would the better side of the ship for Venice be the same side to see Monte Carlo on? I am starting to realize the "value" of having room service breakfasts and dinners with all of these busy port days!;)

[drwong]

[quote name='Fabulous2B50']I have just booked my first inside cabin on Golden Princess for June 2006-12 night Med/GreeK Isles with my DD- she will just be 15 and I will be turning the big 50 next year. I have always had balconies. I really wish I had not read this thread as I am starting to miss my balcony already! If I decide to upgrade, can anyone suggest which side to book in order to have a view of Monte Carlo as our first port is Monaco. We end in Venice, so would the better side of the ship for Venice be the same side to see Monte Carlo on? I am starting to realize the "value" of having room service breakfasts and dinners with all of these busy port days!;)[/QUOTE]

In the old days, we used to have to anchor in the outer harbor, so depending on the prevailing winds, passengers both sides of the ship could have seen Monte Carlo from their balconies as the ship swung about. Now that they've constructed a new cruise ship pier, I think the ships now moor outbound, so port side passengers will have a view of the opera house and casino, while starboard passengers will have a view of the Prince's palace. There'll be a lot to see sailing into Venice, so I'd recommend going onto the upper deck just so you won't miss anything!

[Fabulous2B50]

Thanks drwong!

I will have to double check the brochure as I thought I read that we tender in Monte Carlo. If that is the case, does it still matter which side we are on?
Thanks

[libertygirl05]

I was wondering the same thing about a balcony in the Med. We are booked in an outside room with a floor to ceiling window (spa deck) near the top. The room is suppose to be as large as a room with a balcony, and felt a larger room would be better. I also thought about the privacy if you have someone on the next balcony talking, it will not seem private and what about the smokers in europe, sorry I am allergic to smoke. Please help with info.

[drwong]

[quote name='Fabulous2B50']Thanks drwong!

I will have to double check the brochure as I thought I read that we tender in Monte Carlo. If that is the case, does it still matter which side we are on?
Thanks[/QUOTE]

If you're tendering ashore, it really doesn't matter, because your ship might be swinging back and forth depending on the wind and water currents. All the more reason to move to an upper deck, as you would sailing into Venice.

I guess a key question is do you like direct sunlight streaming into your stateroom? If your cruise is sailing eastbound, the sun will be to the south, shining directly into the staterooms on the starboard side, with the port side in a perpetual shadow.

[Maine Coon]

I've booked Balcony for my upcoming Eastern Mediterranean, and it is like $700 pp/ $1400 total but I think it is worth every penny.

 

I happened to have a balcony suite on my very first cruise Roma - Barcelona. I've had a few cruises after that, but nothing compares to the first one..

 

Yes, you can travel without it...but why? :D

[muse_clio]

If you are on the Millennium from Barcelona to Venice get a balcony on the starboard side. You will transverse the whole length of the Grand Canal mid day and all of Venice will pass by your balcony. The upper decks are so crowded its hard to get a place to stand at the rail. Besides, The Millennium has several decks that are all balconies so they are not that much more expensive.

 

We were there in early May and the weather was perfect. We used our balcony a lot.

 

We've booked the Grand Princess in May 06 and are traveling Venice to Barcelona. At first I figured we'd just book an inside, but based on your input and a couple others, we booked a balcony. There are four balconies on the stern of the Grand. Crossing my fingers, I requested one of them. Am waiting for the confirmation today..... someone said that the views from the stern would be great. Whadaya think?

[pcur]

We had an outside cabin on our Med cruise 3 years ago, and have an inside on our Brilliance 12 day cruise this October.

 

We used the window only to glance out at the weather conditions, because it was up-dress-and-out every morning. The port intensive cruises don't really leave you an opportunity to use the window or balcony during the day. You're in port early, so the morning relaxation (unless you like to get up around 5:30) isn't going to happen. You dock between 7 - 8 AM, and the ports are about 1 - 1.5 hours to the sights. Up and out!

 

Then you're back at the end of the day, and it's get ready for dinner. It's dark by the time you have the time to use the balcony or window.

 

Depends on the time of year, too. Our Med cruises were/are October ones, so it's a little cooler. I like balconies for warm weather.

 

It's more expensive all the way around in the Med: cruise, excursions or transpo cost, money exchange rates. I'd rather spend the money on other stuff. With so few days at sea, the cabin is really only a place to sleep, shower, and......er.....bump and grind when one gets the chance !!! :D :D

 

JMHO

[John&Betty]

Hi muse clio,

 

I'm sure your stern balcony will be spectacular! If you have never sailed into Venice before you are in for a real treat. Be sure you to take lots of pictures. You only get to do something like this for the first time once. Might as well do it right.

 

We are leaving tomorrow on our Baltic cruise. http://home.mchsi.com/~jbglenn33/

The weather will probably be in the mid 50s to low 60s but we still booked a balcony cabin. Even if we don't spend a lot of time on it we can still put our jackets on and get a good look around when we go through the passages and in and out of the ports. That means a lot to both of us. It would be a shame to go to all these new exciting places and not see everything we can.

 

John

[Juliadlf]

If we could have afforded it, we would have booked a balcony. I'm hoping we get upgraded into one. You never know.....:)

[gsb]

Go for it! The more ports, the better the scenery. On our upcoming Liberty we have an "L" portside, our friends have one starboard. --(20ft rather than 10 ft)

whichever side faces the port is the one that hosts the parties.;)

[gsb]

Go for it! We have an "L" portside on our upcoming Liberty Med cruise. Our friends have a starboard "L" (20 ft balcony rather than 10 ft) Whichever side faces the port hosts the parties.:)

[dogsrule]

Go for it-you won't regret it and once they are booked its too late. You are spending so much to fly over and the trip why not add a little extra and enjoy the scenery.:)

[libramitch]

nothing like waking up and going straight to the veranda for a view of the new port and a cup of coffee.

 

Verandas are great for entertaining cruise critic friends as well for cocktails or breakfast.

 

Or when you just can't sleep because you are so overwhelmed for the previous day's activities or excited about the next day, nothing like some quiet time on the veranda. Nothing but you, the water, the stars, and the moon. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

 

Go with your heart!!! You best know whether or not you will use it. I can tell you that the morning I woke up in Santorini alone was worth paying for the veranda we had.

[DEL67]

It depends how many days you have at sea, but If there are just one or two then I would not spend the extra money for a balcony, especially if you plan to be off the ship all day in each port. We found that we were off the ship by 8 AM and often returned just in time to get showered and changed for dinner. A balcony would have been a waste!

[Queenk2]

When we gp to the Caribbean, I oftenfind the extra cost worthwhile. However in the Med. or the Baltic we are rarely even on the ship! On sea days we tend to ret up so a dark inside is fine LOL! In the Northern parts of Europe it can be quite chilly...even in July. I uess if miney meant nothing I would ask the Capt. for his cabin LOL!

[Breezey]

I am going on Med cruise in September. My 3 top reasons for getting a balcony were:

 

1) I love the early morning breakfasts on the balcony watching all the activities at the port

 

2) I love returning to the ship after a hectic day at port, taking a shower, grabbing a book and a drink and having my own little private oasis

 

3) I love leaving the balcony door open (depends on ship) overnight and listening to the sea (ocean) as we cruise along

 

Enough for me. While the Med cruise, as we continue planning, is adding up in cost, we look at this as a once in a lifetime experience so the extra couple of hundred dollars in the overall costs are insignficant, in my opinion.

 

Good luck in making your choice.

[Jane110]

I am going on Med cruise in September. My 3 top reasons for getting a balcony were:

 

1) I love the early morning breakfasts on the balcony watching all the activities at the port

 

2) I love returning to the ship after a hectic day at port, taking a shower, grabbing a book and a drink and having my own little private oasis

 

3) I love leaving the balcony door open (depends on ship) overnight and listening to the sea (ocean) as we cruise along

 

I agree! A cruise without a balcony just isn't as wonderful. Of course, if people can't afford it, then shouldn't break the bank. But when people in inside cabins say they only use it for sleeping, I can only think, "well yeah, why be there anytime you don't have to?" Being on a ship is all about seeing the water and the scenery and there's nothing like standing on my private balcony when I get out of the shower in the morning with my coffee in hand and seeing a new port or having a glass of wine on our balcony before heading off to dinner.

We also sleep with the door open to hear the sea. ahhhhhhhh..........

 

Jane

[OhJinkies]

I would think the number of sea days would influence your decision. My October Med cruise on the Liberty has 3 sea days and I hear that the decks can get rather crowded. The balcony will allow us to enjoy the sea and fresh air (well, if we don't have smokers for neighbors), a guaranteed seat and at least a possibility of some privacy and quiet!

I don't know how much more this stateroom cost than the others but when my travel agent named the price I thought it was VERY reasonable and didn't hesitate to book it. We have a balcony gurarantee so that I don't know for sure where we'll be yet.

I'm definitely looking forward to enjoying some room service breakfasts from that balcony as we cruise into port!

[lucyjohnz]

On our 7-day Splendour cruise the difference in Balcony from Outside started at $800 per cabin. That's a BIG difference. We had an outside cabin on Deck 3 which was convenient when leaving the ship (either from Deck 1 or Deck 4) and convenient to all the public rooms - dining room (Decks 4-5), casino (deck 4), shops (deck 5). We really enjoyed the location and even thought sunlight in the room starting at 6:30am was nice.

 

And, we left between 8-10 every morning and were never back on the ship earlier than 5pm, once even at 8pm. So, we didn't miss the balcony.

 

If the difference were $500-$600, I might do it, but probably still not on a 7-day cruise with only 1 sea day.

[DaisyGal]

To add my two cents -

 

I just returned from a fantastic med cruise last Friday. :D We had a balcony and we definitely used it everyday. It was so great to be able to open the door, to sit outside after a day of playing tourist with a drink, and to watch the ship pull in and out of ports. I have no idea what the cost difference was for our room vs. an oceanview room, but whatever the difference, it was worth it to us.

 

BTW - I was on a 12-day cruise and we had 2 sea days.

[enidgirl]

We are recently back from our cruise on Brilliance and we absolutely used our balcony several times each day. It was wonderful - the sea was very calm, the air warm during the day and a bit crisp at night. The ports are intense and there's nothing like relaxing on your balcony before or after dinner.

[3dogmom]

Do you need a bungee cord to hold open the balcony doors on the Brilliance? Or are they sliding doors? Thanks!