How are the aft cabins on Oosterdam? Looking to book

We are about to book on Oosterdam over Christmas/New Years, and I'm a little curious as to why the aft cabins on Deck 4 are available....anyone know of any drawbacks? Thanks!

Do you mean the aft-facing cabins at the very back of the ship? Or the ones in the aft section of the ship (which may face port or starboard)?

I had an aft-facing cabin at the very back of the ship on deck 5. Advantage was it had a huge, very, very deep veranda. Like hosting a party-sized veranda. I think the verandas on deck 4 are also deep, but aren't fully covered like they are on deck 5. I seem to remember being able to look down and see people at the railing of the verandas on deck 4.

It's a very long walk from the front of the ship. So that's a disadvantage.

Finally, I'll say the cabins are a little bit narrower than other veranda cabins. I can't really describe it, but I remember there was something odd about the closets because of the cabin being narrower. And there was even less space to walk between the end of the bed and the wall.

My parents had an aft-facing cabin on the Zuiderdam (Oosterdam's sister ship) and their balcony was unusable due to the soot. It was mostly unusable due to the weather, but on the couple of days the weather was nice enough to be outside, the soot made it impossible to enjoy the balcony. They'll never have another aft balcony.

We usually book aft cabins. Never had any problems with soot or anything else for that matter. Love the perspective.

We usually book aft cabins. Never had any problems with soot or anything else for that matter. Love the perspective.

Been on Westie an Oostie in an aft cabin. No soot.

Thanks for the responses, all of you. I'll see if they have anything on Deck 5! Although I do like the idea of a larger veranda. @ellieanne, did the Holland do anything to compensate your parents for the soot??

We have had the aft balcony the last three cruises with Hal two on westerdam one on zuiderdam and booked another on zuiderdam for March 2019. It’s just hubby and I and we love the aft balconies. Never had a problem with soot. There are YouTube videos of these cabins as well.

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I also don't recall any issue with soot. Again, on deck 5, the veranda is fully covered so that may have made a difference.

I see a lot of people posting how they love the aft-facing cabins, so I think the soot is an infrequent issue.

Well, thank you all. I snoozed and lost-- no aft cabins remain! Oh well, we found a good stateroom midship starboard.

Well, thank you all. I snoozed and lost-- no aft cabins remain! Oh well, we found a good stateroom midship starboard.

I've sailed on the Oosterdam a couple of times and I think no matter what cabin you're in, it will be a great time!

We have had aft balcony cabins on the Zuiderdam, Oosterdam and Westerdam. We have also booked an aft cabin on the Eurodam for the 28 day March 9, 2019 Hawaii, Tahiti, Marquesas sailing. We always book deck 4 aft cabins because they are at the extreme back of the ship. Aft cabins on decks 5, 6, 7, & 8 all look down on the balconies below due to the tiered structure of the aft section. Deck 4 cabins have only the water and prop-wash to look down on, also all the marine life. When you lean on your balcony railing and look down, instead of looking at the tops of the heads of all the other decks, on deck 4, all you see is water. The MDR is below you and there is no noise from that. Deck 8 aft cabins have the aft Lido pool area above and there may be noise from sliding chairs. We never have had any problem with soot from the stacks. We occasionally would see a small chunk of soot on the balcony floor, but never a problem. The balconies are huge, and the cabins are definitely longer by a few feet. You usually get one lounge chair, a regular chair and a table. There is room for a 2nd lounge chair, and we have asked our cabin steward to get one for us. It was there the next day. The deck 4 aft cabins have minimal overhead coverage, so if you plan to spend a lot of time out there in hot climates, wear a hat and shirt.

I saw the OP's comment that they waited too long and the aft cabins were booked. That tells you something about the popularity of the aft cabins, they usually are the first to go, as there are only around 26 - 30 of them on Vista class ships. Keep checking the HAL website, especially close to final payment date. There are cancellations around that time, and you may snag one that was cancelled.