Any difference between cabin VA 5189 or 5187?

[bw333]

I need help picking a cabin on the Westerdam. Is there any difference between cabin VA 5187 and VA 5189? I have also read that deck 5 is covered and shaded, Deck 4 has more sun, along with more noise and vibration? I would prefer a little shade, and sun, vibration is OK, however I do not do ear plugs. Any suggestions appreciated.

[jtl513]

If the deck plan is totally accurate, 5187 might be a tiny bit larger. Yes, those stern cabins are completely covered on deck 5. The deck 5 railing is directly below the deck 6 railing. Deck 4 would give you a lot more sun, deck 7 or 8 would give you the least vibration, but on 8 you might hear deck chairs being moved around early in the morning for deck cleaning.

[Typhoon1]

Any cabin that far aft on any deck will get some degree of vibration.

[Riverpig]

Two years ago, I took a back-to-back cruise on Westerdam in one of those aft VA cabins. I was interested to find out if there were significant differences in the various aft cabins, so I had packed a tape measure to see for myself. When we pulled into Ft. Lauderdale for the turn-around between cruises, I waited till all the passengers had departed, and with the permission of my buddy the cabin steward I carefully measured all those aft cabins. The results were interesting.

 

On the deck where I was, there are six VA cabins facing aft. The three on the Starboard side are mirror images of the three on the port side, so we need only analyze three cabins, call them inboard (5185) middle (5187) and outboard (5189). Due to the curve of the stern, the cabins grow longer as you go from outboard to inboard, and the difference is about 9" from one cabin to the next. The verandas stay about the same for all cabins, but the sitting area on an inboard cabin (5185) is about 18" longer than the outside cabin (5189). If all else were equal, the inboard cabins would be the most desirable, but all else is NOT EQUAL.

 

Apparently, the ship designers decided to try to equalize things, so they shrunk the width of the inboard cabins by 4", and expanded the width of the outboard cabins by another 4" while leaving the middle cabins the standard width. 4" doesn't sound like much, but it makes a huge difference in the livability of the various cabins. The pinch point in the cabins is at the foot of the bed, and in the hallway past the closets. In the narrow inner cabins, it is very difficult to even access the closets, and two people can't pass each other in the hallway or at the foot of the bed. In the wide outer cabins, it is much easier to move about and rummage in the closets.

 

The extra 18" in length is pretty much waste space in the sitting area, but that extra 4" in the narrowest parts of the cabin are wonderful. I heartily recommend the outer cabin (5189) for this reason.

 

My survey was done before the Westedam was rebuilt with more cabins aft and smaller verandas, but I believe my analysis is still valid.

[lastlook]

Terrific information - thank you very much for taking the time to measure and post!

[IRL_Joanie]

RESURRECTION ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!

 

This is more than 2 years old everyone.

 

Joanie

[Shmoo here]

RESURRECTION ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!

 

This is more than 2 years old everyone.

 

Joanie

 

 

:)