Should we switch to a BA Aft balcony on Jewel?

[Anthony&David]

We are currently booked into a mid-ship BA balcony cabin on deck 10 (10540) on the Jewel. I am now hearing of some of the advantages of an Aft balcony. The aft BA balconies on deck 10 are already taken, but the ones on deck 8 are still available. Is it worth getting my cabin changed?

[lhall85917]

I won't have any experience with an aft until March but from what I've read, the answer should be an unqualified YES - switch to the aft!! Everyone really seems to enjoy them, and if you already have the BA and it is just a matter of switching cabins without a price change I would do it in a second!

[GROOVERS]

Yes, but don't tell everybody, they'll all want the stern!:D

[Carey and Kerry]

Grab it!

[Redsgj]

I am going to be the dissenting vote! We had a cabin almost at the aft (just around the corner). We found we didn't like the constant sense of vibration from the engines and we felt the back moved around a lot more (kind of like a shimmy). Now this was on the Caribbean Princess so who knows if the Jewel would be the same but we are looking forward very much to our midship BB on deck 9 in February!!

[garycarla]

This is surely one of the big personal taste issues. Some people say it is the ONLY way to go -meaning an aft cabin. Others complain about them. Hard to say what each person will like, or dislike.

 

For sure there is some extra vibration being above the engines and props. We did an aft on one cruise. It was nice, but we prefer to be elsewhere. We did spend some time with people that will ONLY book an aft room. We visited with them in their penthouse. It was nice, but the vibration was there.

 

By the way, the cruiselines will often use the term AFT for cabins in the back third of the ship, mostly along the left and right sides. Others use the term AFT to describe those 6-10 cabins across the back end of the ship. Don't confuse the terms.

[Zimomiller]

Yes, you will learn to love it in the aft.

 

We had 10166 and 10168 on our last Jewel cruise and loved em.

[Brucemcdou]

Anthony&David - I second the post by GaryCarla that it is a matter of personal taste. We've had aft cabins (meaning ones all the way aft, overlooking the wake) on several cruises on different cruiselines. In general, they provide a larger balcony with more sunshine due to the slope of the back of most ships. They are also protected from the wind when the ship is moving. On some cruiselines including, I believe, NCL, you're in "Suite Territory" which means that even if you don't book a suite yourself you'll probably get the benefit of the higher quality of cabin attendants every cruise line assigns to service the suites. It's also usually a very quite neighborhood, not only because of the suites but also because it's the end of a very long hallway!

 

Which gives rise to possible negatives: You're all the way at one end of the ship, so you're as far away as possible from things at the front of the ship. If the ship doesn't have a rear set of elevators or stairs (such as Royal Caribbean) then you're hiking all the way to the middle of the ship just to go up and down, even when your destination is directly above or below you. Let me tell you, that can be annoying! Lastly, you may hear noise and even get some trash from the people eating and drinking (and smoking) on the aft of the buffet deck above you. If you're on deck 8, as you say in your post, that's likely not a concern.

 

Having tried it several times ourselves, we would only go in the aft if that particular category of cabin wasn't available elsewhere, such as the AD/AE Penthouse suites on many NCL ships, or FV cabins on Celebrity ships. But it's completely a matter of taste!

 

Whatever you decide, have a wonderful cruise!

[Rosiemeadow]

We are on the Gem in Feb.08 & so happy to get one of those aft cabins, I have always wanted to see what it was like (I love to watch the wake), We always get an aft balcony anyway, just not over the wake, anyway I'll be happy just to be on this new, crazy & wild design ship :D

[Ask4Jay]

A&D –

I’d go for a BA stern cabin (squeezed in between the suites).

With the balcony door open, the sound of the prop wash makes you think you are living next to a waterfall. Shut the door: blissful silence.

We have taken two crossings on the Jewel. You may want to take a look at our pix. If you do take a stern cabin, please don’t spread the word.

[2boyzmom]

A&D –

I’d go for a BA stern cabin (squeezed in between the suites).

With the balcony door open, the sound of the prop wash makes you think you are living next to a waterfall. Shut the door: blissful silence.

We have taken two crossings on the Jewel. You may want to take a look at our pix. If you do take a stern cabin, please don’t spread the word.

 

Thank you for the photos. We will be cruising in our first aft cabin on the Jewel in February and your pics are getting me psyched!

[Cosmopolitan]

Sailed my first aft (AE) on the Dawn in July.

 

It was lovely. No wind, you can leave your balcony doors open all night and listen to the wake. No garbage on the balcony.

 

You will not have to walk to midship for elevators on the Jewel.

 

The Jewel is a great ship, enjoy:)

[Anthony&David]

Thanks everyone for the great advice! As luck would have it, we received an email from NCL today offering an upsell to either a mini-suite (AF/AG) for a small additional fee or to a penthouse suite (AC/AD/AE) for a slightly larger additional fee. So after looking at some more great advice and great photos on this site, we decided to splurge and treat ourselves to a penthouse suite and went with one of the AC penthouses on deck 9 with the HUGE balcony. We were already looking forward to our cruise, but now, we can barely stand the wait. November 18th can't come fast enough!!!