Our opinion of the aft balcony

[stargate fan]

Don't want to hijack the thread, but...

 

I just didn't think the extra size of the balcony (and the extra cost for only 2 days at sea) was really worth it.

 

Most people say the obstructed view down is no big deal because when you're sitting there, you don't see the lifeboats. Well, I'm one of those who DOES like to spend a lot of time standing at the rail and looking down at the sea.

 

So - for me - if I can't get an aft (I booked my next Miracle well over a year in advance so I could get one before they recategorized the cabins and made it even more expensive), I'll just take a "regular" balcony with an unobstructed view.

 

It's not a big deal, really. But why pay more for a couple of extra square feet and an obstructed view down when I can save those few dollars and get that unobstructed view?

 

Thank you again for the pictures and info on the extended balcony. I called my PVP in a panic. (I LOVE my PVP!) He switched us to a regular balcony, mid-ship, still on the Verandah deck. He even took it upon himself to speak with a supervisor so our rates didn't change. (Carnival had two great sales since we booked so we had received reduced rates.)

When I talked with my PVP. he said that it was his first time hearing about the life boats bothering someone's view straight down to the water. He said that all his customers have loved the extra space on the balcony. I explained the situation so now he knows.

Thanks again. I can't imagine how devastated I would be when I saw the lack of view had I not known about this ahead of time. Phew!

[june2006]

Booked aft panaorma deck (june 09) ... anyone been there? any pictures? I have been on the side so I am looking forward to something new and if I like it great, if not then next time I will go on the side again :)

 

Thank you

[dvan68]

I know a lot of people complain about the lack of privacy of the aft balconies, but we kind of enjoyed speaking with our neighbors. Each time we left an island it was like we all had our own private sail away party. DH was trading cigars with some guys, and we had a wonderful time. Please note that this is only possible if you are standing out by the railing - if you are back by the cabin door, then you will still have the privacy 'blinders' on either side of you.

[San_Antonio_Ex]

Trock - thanks for the pics - I'll be in 6331 next March!! Your pictures brought it all that much closer!

 

Shelley

[smc0320]

Well, I booked Miracle 12/09 extra early so I could lock in an aft (5297) while they were still a Cat 8C. The only balcony I've had was on Miracle last December (7192, extended portside; wouldn't pay for that again as I also like the unblocked view straight down into the water).

 

It was recategorized to an 8I just after I booked. Then I moved down to 4230 after reading some threads about it being so sunny.

 

Now, with the current sale code, I got $200 pp price reduction, so am paying the 8A price, which makes me very happy.

 

I do realize that I may not get as much sun as I want being on Deck 4, but with 4 sea days, I can drag my butt up to one of the other decks. Plus, if it rains, I can use the balcony. And if it's sunny, we'll get some shade. Deck 4 should also give a better view of the water and has more useable space since it doesn't have the slant.

 

Hopefully, adding Ginger to Bonine has cured me of my motion sickness (used it for Miracle and Glory and had no problems; we'll see how it works on a smaller ship in a couple of weeks).

 

Do you have any pics of the cabin? I've found a ton of the wrap balcony cabins but very few of the "plain" aft. Thanks for posting.

 

please tell me where I can find pics of the Aft-Wrap balconies on the Legend.

[coolcruisin79]

Hey everyone! Here's a great video I found on youtube of an aft suite with a wrap around deck... If this doesn't get you excited about cruisin' nothing will! Enjoy!

[Piatt1011]

OK, we just got back from the Miracle last Thursday (the 11/05/08 cruise). We stayed in aft balcony cabin 6333 on the Empress deck (not the wrap - just extended). Since so many inquire about the aft balcony, I thought I'd give the opinion shared by me and my husband. This was our sixth Carnival cruise, third balcony and first in the aft.

 

As always, we loved our balcony but in the end we decided that we prefer a balcony on the side. Here's the pros and cons -

 

1 - We enjoyed the view of the wake, but with the aft balcony we couldn't look straight down to the water because the rear of the ship is sloped. I like standing at the railing looking down into the water, so for me this was a problem.

 

2 - You could get some sun on the aft balcony, which on one hand is nice but it does cause it to be rather hot back there. Plus, when it rains my husband likes to sit on the balcony during the storm and he couldn't do this with an aft balcony because there's only a couple of feet of overhang.

 

3 - If you stand at the railing of the balcony you get a little bit of breeze, but not much. We missed the breezes coming from the ocean.

 

4 - If you have smokers on the balconies under you, the smoke will drift up. There was a cigar smoker on the deck below us and that nasty stench drifted up every time he was out there. He smoked a cigar out there at least once a day too and always at sailaway. It really put a damper on using the balcony for us. I wish people had more consideration for others.

 

5 - Being able to see a panoramic view was nice, but you also don't get to see much of the port when you arrive. My husband pointed out that this was a peeve of his.

 

6 - There was more motion back there, but it didn't bother us. We're not prone to motion sickness.

 

7 - Because the back of the ship is slanted, you do lose part of the extended balcony because of the slant. Not a big deal for us, but just thought I'd point it out.

 

Overall we loved the balcony of course, but next time we'll just book one on the side.

 

 

Thanks for your view on the aft balconies. I would like to try it ourselves to see what we think but it's just good to finally see some cons of it. People have been raving about them so much I didn't think there could be a con but some of your views make perfect sense. Thanks again!

[NOLA_Cruiser88]

I have that cabin booked that is in the youtube video. Apparently if you are worried about privacy you book the main deck (level 4) rooms. There is barely any slant to the dividers and nobody can see down from above.

[bjinouno]

Ahhh thanks for the photo's I just found them, we will be in room 6331 on the 19th of July, Can't wait! where were u docked for these? Can U asked the room steward for one more chair since we have 3 in our room? or is it always just 2 out there?

[terri910]

Ha Ha, and the corner afts are even worse!

Hubby and I will find out in 145 days. We have booked 7347 on the Spirit this coming December, a wrap-around aft.

 

I figure we will have the best of both worlds! If we want to look straight down, we'll go to the part of the deck that wraps around to the side. If we want to look at the wake and wave goodbye to the ports, we'll go to the extended balcony, with it's slant!

[tiggerman101]

Not all ships have the same aft balconies...that's the problem. Our aft on our Celebrity Infinity cruise was HUGE yet I've seen pics of other people's aft balconies and the balcony wasn't much bigger than any other on the ship.

 

Really? care to clarify? I booked a CC Aft balcony on the Infinity to Antarctica. I haven't been able to find much info on them. Sorry for the tangent.

 

I can understand why people wouldn't care for the aft balconies. For us, it is all we book now. We love them.

[terri910]

Hey everyone! Here's a great video I found on youtube of an aft suite with a wrap around deck... If this doesn't get you excited about cruisin' nothing will! Enjoy!

Thanks for that...in browsing among some of the "related" youtube videos I found one taken just this past May of the very room we have booked for December! So cool to see our very room!

[G'ma]

OK, we just got back from the Miracle last Thursday (the 11/05/08 cruise). We stayed in aft balcony cabin 6333 on the Empress deck (not the wrap - just extended). Since so many inquire about the aft balcony, I thought I'd give the opinion shared by me and my husband. This was our sixth Carnival cruise, third balcony and first in the aft.

 

As always, we loved our balcony but in the end we decided that we prefer a balcony on the side. Here's the pros and cons -

 

1 - We enjoyed the view of the wake, but with the aft balcony we couldn't look straight down to the water because the rear of the ship is sloped. I like standing at the railing looking down into the water, so for me this was a problem.

 

2 - You could get some sun on the aft balcony, which on one hand is nice but it does cause it to be rather hot back there. Plus, when it rains my husband likes to sit on the balcony during the storm and he couldn't do this with an aft balcony because there's only a couple of feet of overhang.

 

3 - If you stand at the railing of the balcony you get a little bit of breeze, but not much. We missed the breezes coming from the ocean.

 

4 - If you have smokers on the balconies under you, the smoke will drift up. There was a cigar smoker on the deck below us and that nasty stench drifted up every time he was out there. He smoked a cigar out there at least once a day too and always at sailaway. It really put a damper on using the balcony for us. I wish people had more consideration for others.

 

5 - Being able to see a panoramic view was nice, but you also don't get to see much of the port when you arrive. My husband pointed out that this was a peeve of his.

 

6 - There was more motion back there, but it didn't bother us. We're not prone to motion sickness.

 

7 - Because the back of the ship is slanted, you do lose part of the extended balcony because of the slant. Not a big deal for us, but just thought I'd point it out.

 

Overall we loved the balcony of course, but next time we'll just book one on the side.

 

I've not stayed in one, but my brother did on our cruise together in December on Triumph. I prefer side balcony but he wanted the aft. He wasn't real pleased with not having a sofa in the room, only a small table and two chairs. Seemed to make the room feel small and cramped. He loved the balcony. He was right next to the wrap balcony on portside...and made friends with those folks. Their cabin was normal size with sofa, etc........ Nexti time he'll opt for the wrap.....

 

I thought the wrap was nice too but didn't like the loss of privacy so I'll stick to the side balconies. Seems to be more private and "cozier"......

[coolcruisin79]

Hey Everyone!

I was on the miracle in June in an aft wrap balcony. It was a catagory 11, suite 4228. My husband and i loved it!! I have heard some of those "pros and cons" before. I can't speak for how it was in other aft balcony rooms, but i LOVED the one we were in. It was set up with separate rooms like in the video i posted a few posts up. This was great because my parents could come and visit us whenever they wanted even if someone was still sleeping or taking a quick nap in the bedroom. Also, the "changing room/vanity area" was perfect for getting ready while others are waiting. (Our room was usually the meeting place)

The balcony on the 4th deck doesn't have the slant to it that all the others do so you can look right over to the wake. The overhang is enough to give shade all the time, yet depending on where the sun is during the day there was usually an area of sun. That was the best of both worlds. We could move the chairs a little further out and be in the sun or closer to the room and be in the shade. There was just enough breeze to stay cool, but not so much your hair was all over the place. We never had problem with a smoker below us because there were just a few passer-bys below us on the lower deck. I think i only saw someone standing below us once or twice and that was only if I leaned against the rail and looked down. Otherwise complete privacy!! Another nice thing was that we were near the dining room, just one floor down, so it was a quick walk after getting ready for dinner. We usually popped back upstairs to change again after dinner and head out for the night's events in comfy clothes and shoes. Sooo convienant!!

Hope this helped!

[lorriv20]

Hey Everyone!

I was on the miracle in June in an aft wrap balcony. It was a catagory 11, suite 4228. My husband and i loved it!! I have heard some of those "pros and cons" before. I can't speak for how it was in other aft balcony rooms, but i LOVED the one we were in. It was set up with separate rooms like in the video i posted a few posts up. This was great because my parents could come and visit us whenever they wanted even if someone was still sleeping or taking a quick nap in the bedroom. Also, the "changing room/vanity area" was perfect for getting ready while others are waiting. (Our room was usually the meeting place)

The balcony on the 4th deck doesn't have the slant to it that all the others do so you can look right over to the wake. The overhang is enough to give shade all the time, yet depending on where the sun is during the day there was usually an area of sun. That was the best of both worlds. We could move the chairs a little further out and be in the sun or closer to the room and be in the shade. There was just enough breeze to stay cool, but not so much your hair was all over the place. We never had problem with a smoker below us because there were just a few passer-bys below us on the lower deck. I think i only saw someone standing below us once or twice and that was only if I leaned against the rail and looked down. Otherwise complete privacy!! Another nice thing was that we were near the dining room, just one floor down, so it was a quick walk after getting ready for dinner. We usually popped back upstairs to change again after dinner and head out for the night's events in comfy clothes and shoes. Sooo convienant!!

Hope this helped!

 

Thanks for the great post. We are booked on the "sister ship", Pride, in 11 days in cabin number 4228. We can't wait!!

[bioteach12]

My wife and I went on a cruise on the Freedom this past January. I noticed ALOT of movement in the dining room, and figured that was because it was so far aft. Do you have that same engine vibration in the aft balconies?

[douglinc@msn.com]

I couldn't get the pictures to open, but then again, I don't speak German.

 

Doug

[coolcruisin79]

My wife and I went on a cruise on the Freedom this past January. I noticed ALOT of movement in the dining room, and figured that was because it was so far aft. Do you have that same engine vibration in the aft balconies?

 

 

Hey there!! Glad to hear my post was well received! I have to say we did notice a little vibration from time to time, but it was never more noticable than in other rooms we've been in. My husband and I have been on a number of cruises, all different areas of the ship and different floors. It definately wasn't a remarkable difference to be at the aft vs. anywhere else. (other than we liked it a lot better!)

I'm so jealous of everyone cruisin' out soon! I want to go back!!

[mom2tcdx2]

I have booked my first aft balcony this coming September, guess I will find out if we like it or not then.

[WhansaMi]

We had an aft wrap cabin last month on the Pride: 5295. Overall, I loved it. It was *huge*; we had our CC group end up there on our first M&G and then return there the night before we left, for drinks. I loved watching the wake; water sounds are very soothing to me. Yes, from time to time there were people on the upper decks, but, actually, that was pretty seldom, and... well, since I don't care who sees me in my robe, I just waved back!

 

The only down side, for me, was that it does seem to run a bit hotter back there. We took to closing all the drapes during the day. At one point we asked for an engineer to come and see if they could turn down the climate control -- it wasn't *hot* in the room (about 74 or 75), but it is warmer than we are accustomed to. Of course, it doesn't help that we were travelling to the Carribean during the summer!

 

I would not hesitate to get an aft wrap again, although, I'd probably choose to go north on the trip!

[cathyoo]

 

The only down side, for me, was that it does seem to run a bit hotter back there. We took to closing all the drapes during the day. At one point we asked for an engineer to come and see if they could turn down the climate control -- it wasn't *hot* in the room (about 74 or 75), but it is warmer than we are accustomed to. Of course, it doesn't help that we were travelling to the Carribean during the summer!

 

I would not hesitate to get an aft wrap again, although, I'd probably choose to go north on the trip!

 

Thank you for that piece of info. I was thinking of an AFT for our 2010 cruise but my DH doesn't do well in heat. We keep our A/C around 68 at home so I better not try for an AFT until we head for Canda or Alaska.

[CrusinCyndi]

I am deciding between Main Deck 4 and Empress Deck 6 on the Miracle Aft Cabin for Feb 10 sailing. Any opinions as to which might be better? Or why would you prefer one over the other? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated!

[NCTribeFan]

You may need to do a search. I know there are threads here about the various Spirit-class aft balconies. It's why I said earlier that I changed from Deck 5 to Deck 4 (more overhang; less sun; less "slant").

 

I had read several comments in other threads about the differences from Deck 4 the higher decks. If you look at photos of the stern, you can see how Deck 4 is pretty much completely covered, where the others are pretty much full sun.

[paradoc1]

we never stayed in the middle aft but have stayed in the aft wrap around and love it we get the best of both breeze on the side, fantastic rear views, more shade and a great big balcony with lounge chairs as well as upright chairs and a table, also the room is bigger and has a table with two chairs love it and always book that for the 7 day cruises

[Gordonzoo]

On our last cruise we stayed top aft near the center on the Legend. We traveled in Feb on the western Carib so temp was just right back there. There is almost no breeze We only heard 30 sec of chair noise a little after sunrise but it wasnt that lould, and we were up anyway. We never had butts or soot on our balcony like I read on some posts. We liked that location soooo much that this Feb were in about the same location on the Victory doing the southern. Looking at the deck plan there is a table and chairs above us this time. I'm hoping they are stationary. IMO if you plan on spending time back there the extra space is worth the little extra $. Expecially if there are three in your party as in our case.

Rich