Oosterdam Aft Deluxe Suite: SC4180 or SB8140

[Cruisers1975]

Hi,

 

RE: Oosterdam

 

Which of these aft wrap balcony suites would you choose, and why?

 

SC4180 is on Deck 4, port

SB8140 is on Deck 8, port

 

Proximity to the Neptune Lounge is not important. Really interested whether possible spill over noise from the Lido Deck (for SC8140), or ship vibration (for SB4180) would make you choose one over the other?

 

And, which one feels more private?

 

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers.

[TahoeTraveler]

We always book the SC cabins on Deck 4, for several reasons. First, with the new aft expansion, all the other aft suites are almost completely covered. Deck 4's SC suites stayed the same after the expansion, so their verandahs are more exposed on the back (with a bit more cover on the side portion). Also, we really enjoy being closer to the water, and hearing the sound of the wake, with no one below you. On our Zuiderdam cruise last October, I fell asleep to the sounds of the wake on several occasions late at night on the verandah. Very relaxing, to say the least (and when you lean over your railing to look at things, you're not looking at anyone below you).

 

The only problem we've ever had with vibration is when the port azipod wasn't working on the Oosterdam several years ago, and so the starboard azipod was doing all the work. That happened to be the azipod we were directly over, so when the ship was at sea, our cabin vibrated badly. However, if all azipods are working, as was the case on the Zuiderdam in October, you don't feel any more vibration on Deck 4 than you do up on the Lido.

 

Also, I did notice that people like to lean over the railing up on the Lido deck, and if you're out on your verandah on Deck 8 aft, people will literally be looking straight down at you, about 8 feet above you. That alone would keep me from enjoying my verandah if I was on Deck 8.

 

I really recommend Deck 4...I don't think you'll be disappointed. Oh, but do be aware that there is some window washing equipment that they store on the side of the aft suites on Deck 4. It doesn't really affect your enjoyment of the verandah, since it's way over on the side, and not on the back where you'll most likely spend most of your time. But it is there, nonetheless.

[IRL_Joanie]

We always book the SC cabins on Deck 4, for several reasons. First, with the new aft expansion, all the other aft suites are almost completely covered. Deck 4's SC suites stayed the same after the expansion, so their verandahs are more exposed on the back (with a bit more cover on the side portion). Also, we really enjoy being closer to the water, and hearing the sound of the wake, with no one below you. On our Zuiderdam cruise last October, I fell asleep to the sounds of the wake on several occasions late at night on the verandah. Very relaxing, to say the least (and when you lean over your railing to look at things, you're not looking at anyone below you).

 

The only problem we've ever had with vibration is when the port azipod wasn't working on the Oosterdam several years ago, and so the starboard azipod was doing all the work. That happened to be the azipod we were directly over, so when the ship was at sea, our cabin vibrated badly. However, if all azipods are working, as was the case on the Zuiderdam in October, you don't feel any more vibration on Deck 4 than you do up on the Lido.

 

Also, I did notice that people like to lean over the railing up on the Lido deck, and if you're out on your verandah on Deck 8 aft, people will literally be looking straight down at you, about 8 feet above you. That alone would keep me from enjoying my verandah if I was on Deck 8.

 

I really recommend Deck 4...I don't think you'll be disappointed. Oh, but do be aware that there is some window washing equipment that they store on the side of the aft suites on Deck 4. It doesn't really affect your enjoyment of the verandah, since it's way over on the side, and not on the back where you'll most likely spend most of your time. But it is there, nonetheless.

 

 

Looking at the following silhouette from HAL for the Oosterdam http://abqreunion2008.com/Oosterdam/Oosterdam_Decks.gif even if people lean over the railing at the aft of the Lido, they cannot see down into the Verandah of SB 8140 as Deck 9 sticks out further than Deck 8's aft section.

 

I'd love to have any of the adt wrap around staterooms would make me happy. BUT, gimme the preference and I'd choose SB 8140 for the views!!

 

Joanie

[cruisemarmee]

Thank you for your detailed review of deck 4 aft wrap cabins. We are sailing in January in an SC cabin on deck 4 with the wrap. I was concerned that balcony may not be worth giving up a larger SA cabin. I can't wait to experience the views from our balcony!

[TahoeTraveler]

Looking at the following silhouette from HAL for the Oosterdam http://abqreunion2008.com/Oosterdam/Oosterdam_Decks.gif even if people lean over the railing at the aft of the Lido, they cannot see down into the Verandah of SB 8140 as Deck 9 sticks out further than Deck 8's aft section.

 

I'd love to have any of the adt wrap around staterooms would make me happy. BUT, gimme the preference and I'd choose SB 8140 for the views!!

 

Joanie

Sorry, Joanie, but the drawing doesn't capture the aft of the ship exactly. I was able to look down from the Lido Deck (didn't really even have to lean over) on the Zuiderdam in October, and carry on a nice conversation with the people on the verandah of their aft wraparound suite on Deck 8 (they even invited me down for a glass of champagne, which I thought was awfully nice, since I was sort of intruding on their verandah space!). My understanding is that all the Vista ships were reconfigured the same way, so the Oosterdam should be the same.

 

There is little to no privacy on the verandahs of the aft suites on Deck 8 due to the proximity of the Lido deck above. Plus, Deck 8's corner wraparound suites are quite a bit smaller than those on the lower decks (Deck 5 has the largest, but it's verandah is completely covered by the verandah above it, and it has support poles that block some of the view. Deck 4 is the next largest, which is another reason we always choose it).

 

I only know all this because I did extensive research before booking our cabin on our last cruise, and on our upcoming cruise. That, and personal experience, lead me to believe that the aft corner suites on Deck 4 are by far the best. But that is just my opinion, and I know there are others who would gladly give up the privacy and space to have the higher Deck 8 suite.

 

Either way, you're cruising...you're being pampered, your room is being cleaned for you, and your cooking is being done for you. So in the scheme of things, it's all good, no matter what type, or where, your cabin is!!:D

[TahoeTraveler]

Thank you for your detailed review of deck 4 aft wrap cabins. We are sailing in January in an SC cabin on deck 4 with the wrap. I was concerned that balcony may not be worth giving up a larger SA cabin. I can't wait to experience the views from our balcony!

 

I think you will love your Deck 4 SC cabin. You will be absolutely amazed at the verandah, and if you prefer wonderful verandahs and views to being near the Neptune Lounge, you will be really, really happy you made that choice. I know there are a lot of people who say they'd rather be near the Neptune, but honestly, it's not a far walk at all to get there from the aft of the ship, and you simply cannot beat the views from the back of the ship (it doesn't matter what side you're on...you'll be able to see everything from there).

 

We went through the Panamal Canal having breakfast on our aft verandah and were able to actually watch the locks close behind us, the water rise, and get up close and personal with the guys manning the "mules" that assisted us through the canal. I wouldn't have given that up for any distance to the Neptune!!

 

Have a great time! Wish I was going with you!

 

Tami

[delos456]

Hi - we're not in a CORNER veranda cabin on Deck 4, but we're right next to one on an upcoming partial Panama Canal cruise. We know there's not much of an overhang over our veranda, but we were wondering if there's any shade out there at all? I would assume there is sometime during the day. Also, we're hoping there's a breeze that makes it into the center aft verandas? Any information you could share on your neighboring verandas would be great!

 

 

We always book the SC cabins on Deck 4, for several reasons. First, with the new aft expansion, all the other aft suites are almost completely covered. Deck 4's SC suites stayed the same after the expansion, so their verandahs are more exposed on the back (with a bit more cover on the side portion). Also, we really enjoy being closer to the water, and hearing the sound of the wake, with no one below you. On our Zuiderdam cruise last October, I fell asleep to the sounds of the wake on several occasions late at night on the verandah. Very relaxing, to say the least (and when you lean over your railing to look at things, you're not looking at anyone below you).....

[TahoeTraveler]

Hi - we're not in a CORNER veranda cabin on Deck 4, but we're right next to one on an upcoming partial Panama Canal cruise. We know there's not much of an overhang over our veranda, but we were wondering if there's any shade out there at all? I would assume there is sometime during the day. Also, we're hoping there's a breeze that makes it into the center aft verandas? Any information you could share on your neighboring verandas would be great!

 

I think you'll be fine in your aft verandah. For one thing, the verandah is quite a bit larger than those on the side. Depending on the sun, the entire verandah may be in shade...it all just depends on the time of day and the position of the ship. Keep in mind that if it rains (which it did several times on our Panama Canal cruise), you really don't have enough overhang to stay out on the verandah...but we found it was so humid then that we didn't want to.

 

As for the breeze, we actually found ourselves staying in the back, and avoiding the side, because it would just get too breezy at times on the side. The back is nice because you just don't get as much wind...but you do get enough to make it pleasant (especially this time of year).

 

You will absolutely love the wake directly underneath your cabin. If you enjoy the sounds of the water at all, you will be hooked. Plus, you simply cannot beat the views, as you have a full 180, unlike all the side cabins.

 

Have a great cruise!

 

Tami

[catl331]

... or ship vibration (for SB4180) would make you choose one over the other?

We were recently in VB4178 (next to 4180) on the Noordam, and at times the vibration was quite bad for 6 hours or so at a stretch, and other times it was very quiet and smooth.

[fann1sh]

For those of you troubled by vibration: Have you noticed or been bothered by it while eating in the dining room? If so, Deck 4 may not be for you, as it will have a similar level of vibration.

 

I'm utterly oblivious unless my silverware starts "walking" across the table on its own.

 

Even without people looking down onto your deck 8 balcony, I'd find the noise of scraping chairs and pool deck conversations more annoying than vibration. So, I agree with Tahoe Traveler but, YMMV.

[catl331]

For those of you troubled by vibration: Have you noticed or been bothered by it while eating in the dining room? If so, Deck 4 may not be for you, as it will have a similar level of vibration.

Neither of of are bothered by DR vibration, but the first night out neither of us could get to sleep because of the strong vibration until it suddenly stopped around 3:00a. The next day DH asked a young deck officer if we had slowed down at that time, and he said "No". So apparently it's a function of both speed and sea conditions.

[FireIce0010]

Deck four due to the change in the aft cabin balconies after the last screw up by HAL. Hated to see the changes made back there.

[TahoeTraveler]

Neither of of are bothered by DR vibration, but the first night out neither of us could get to sleep because of the strong vibration until it suddenly stopped around 3:00a. The next day DH asked a young deck officer if we had slowed down at that time, and he said "No". So apparently it's a function of both speed and sea conditions.

 

It must be a function of sea conditions, because on our Panama Canal cruise we had a medical emergency when at sea, and the Captain had to push up our speed to full throttle to get us to Aruba as early as possible. We arrived 4 hours early, but we never felt any worse vibration during that sea night than any other sea night. However, we had really, really calm seas, and so that might have been the difference.

 

I wonder if the ship makes a difference too. Perhaps the closer it is to its scheduled dry-dock time, the worse it gets (maybe part of the maintenance is to service the azipods to make them operate more smoothly)? I have no idea when the Zuiderdam is scheduled to go into dry-dock, but all I know is that we had absolutely zero vibration in our Deck 4 aft cabin in October. And I don't remember any in the dining room either.

 

So...I guess I can't answer the vibration question accurately, except to say in our case, we've had a horrible situation (with the Oosterdam, when only one azipod was working) and a fantastic one. But for us, the cabin, its verandah and its location, makes up for any risk of vibration.

 

And yes, FireIce0010, I agree completely with you. HAL completely screwed up the back sides of the Vista ships when they added those extra cabins and extended decks 6 - 9. I understand their need for making a profit, but they very nearly lost all our business after the retrofit, until we discovered that Deck 4 had been left "unmolested." Unfortunately, the Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam both have that new aft like the Vista ships. We're trying Deck 4 on the Eurodam this summer...but if it is the way it looks in the pictures (smaller verandah that is almost completely covered), we'll be sticking to Deck 4 on the Vista ships from now on.

[GigCrusier]

Thank you all for the great info here. I am booked in 8140 in a few weeks and I am sure we made the right choice for our desires.

[jankn]

We just returned this week from a b2b cruise on the Westerdam in Suite 6166 and to say that suite was a disappointment is putting it mildly. Booking a suite was supposedly quite a treat for us, especially because we enjoy the wake so much. We sailed last year in 5191 on the Zuider-dam and it was a totally different story. On the Westerdam we needed to move one of the chairs that was facing the coffee table, to a spot in front of the door to the deck,because we were barely able to pass between the coffee table and end of the bed, we could hardly use the desk chair because it was difficult to move it out where we could get into it because it was so tight in there, and the closet space was ridiculous...two narrow hanging closets no more than 18 inches wide, and two stacks of deep shelves for all other clothes. Not nearly enough space for clothing for a 14 day cruise, thats for sure. The drawers under the bed were full of bedding so we didnt have the use of those either....We have cruised nearly 55 days, all on HAL, so you can see we have had good experiences with them, but this one was a definite disappointment. Thank goodness the service was wonderful and the entire crew couldnt have been better or it would have been a total disappointment. We sure hope for a better experience on our next cruise in two months.....

[maxsmamma]

Thank you all for the great info here. I am booked in 8140 in a few weeks and I am sure we made the right choice for our desires.

 

I'm sure you will love your cabin, it would be hard not to!

 

But, I love the 4th floor. I think the views are still amazing, and the space is to die for. We are not bothered by vibrations at all (never in the MDR either--I thought that was a fair comparison) In fact, we find it very sleep lulling, if we do notice. I could not handle people so close to me on the top, and the debris that occasionally falls. And the middle cabins get both shade (depending where the sun is) and breeze. Truly wonderful!:D

[LADYLAYLA]

Hi,

 

RE: Oosterdam

 

Which of these aft wrap balcony suites would you choose, and why?

 

SC4180 is on Deck 4, port

SB8140 is on Deck 8, port

 

Proximity to the Neptune Lounge is not important. Really interested whether possible spill over noise from the Lido Deck (for SC8140), or ship vibration (for SB4180) would make you choose one over the other?

 

And, which one feels more private?

 

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers.

 

 

No contest SC4180 Larger more open balcony We have this cabin for our next cruise and am so looking forward to it.

[vino100]

We just returned this week from a b2b cruise on the Westerdam in Suite 6166 and to say that suite was a disappointment is putting it mildly. Booking a suite was supposedly quite a treat for us, especially because we enjoy the wake so much. We sailed last year in 5191 on the Zuider-dam and it was a totally different story. On the Westerdam we needed to move one of the chairs that was facing the coffee table, to a spot in front of the door to the deck,because we were barely able to pass between the coffee table and end of the bed, we could hardly use the desk chair because it was difficult to move it out where we could get into it because it was so tight in there, and the closet space was ridiculous...two narrow hanging closets no more than 18 inches wide, and two stacks of deep shelves for all other clothes. Not nearly enough space for clothing for a 14 day cruise, thats for sure. The drawers under the bed were full of bedding so we didnt have the use of those either....We have cruised nearly 55 days, all on HAL, so you can see we have had good experiences with them, but this one was a definite disappointment. Thank goodness the service was wonderful and the entire crew couldnt have been better or it would have been a total disappointment. We sure hope for a better experience on our next cruise in two months.....

 

Sorry about your experience.I will be in 6166 on the Noordam and was wondering if the cabin is the same configuration as yours.Was the balcony bigger than most? Was it a wrap around? thanks for any other information.

[jankn]

Hello............I dont know if the two are similar in that respect (size )as I do know that the Westerdam had some retrofit done to it and the cruise consultant I visited with while on my cruise said she thinks that is why the size was so unsatisfactory. If you are anticipating "space", like we were after being on the Zuiderdam 5159 (opposite corner) you will be sadly disappointed. The deck was VERY much smaller than the other one too but both were wrap around, which is very big PLUS....we spent much of our time out on the deck enjoying the sun and sounds of the wake but sure would have appreciated room on the inside too. Suites are advertised to be "spacious" and this was far from that........... In six cruises on HAL this was our smallest space altho only one other was an SC.