bigger balcony vs. aft ? which cabin?

[Charity0000]

Hi all.... I need help deciding which would be the best cabin for my family. We are traveling on the Epic in September. It is me, my husband and our 1 year old daughter. It if it was just the two of us, we'd be in an inside cabin, but since we have the baby, i figured having a balcony would be a nice place to escape to while she naps and after she goes to sleep.

 

Are the cabins in the front of the ship with the bigger balconies really worth it? Why do so many people like the Aft cabins? Why would you pick one over the other? Is there another category of cabin that would be best for our situation?

 

 

Thanks a million!

[Ask4Jay]

@Charity0000

Since you ask, we LOVE aft cabins - for various reasons.

The ship protects you from the wind while cruising. In port it does not matter much.

However, on an Atlantic crossing (6-7 days non-stop) it does matter.

You have a beautiful view of where you have been. You are never on the wrong side of the ship. When we approach a port, we turn the TV on and watch what's up ahead. Way aft there is very little foot traffic or noise outside your door. Very important for light sleepers and babies. As you can see, we always take an aft cabin, usually a Cat. BA. Cheaper than a mini suite, large enough for the two of us.

Now please keep this to yourself; don't give away our secret.

[NYAustinGal]

Am sailing Epic in a week in a BA Aft cabin. It will be my 3rd aft (Alaska and Hawaii were my first two). Alaska was the first and after that, I was addicted. While people on the sides only got to see what was port or starboard - we got to see it all and it was amazing. I totally agree with the post above - very little foot traffic, so it is very quiet back there and there is a nice lulling movement that just rocks me to sleep.

 

The first cabin I had reserved on Epic was 10179 which has a big bump balcony. I wasn't happy about being on the side of the boat, but the balcony was going to be large. I was happy to switch to AFT when I actually booked because I really love the serenity of sitting and watching the ship's wake and what feels like a larger panorama.

[deb603]

I don't know about the aft cabins, but we were in a bump cabin and our balcony was huge! Much bigger than our friends balcony (who wasn't on a bump). There were 4 of us and we could easily fit on it. We could've fit a couple more chairs out there comfortably. In fact, it was the only place in the cabin where the 4 of us could be and have plenty of room around us, without having to all stand in a row.

[elsplace2]

I don't know about the aft cabins, but we were in a bump cabin and our balcony was huge! Much bigger than our friends balcony (who wasn't on a bump). There were 4 of us and we could easily fit on it. We could've fit a couple more chairs out there comfortably. In fact, it was the only place in the cabin where the 4 of us could be and have plenty of room around us, without having to all stand in a row.

 

Did they have loungers on those large balconies? We were originally booked on the large balcony then upgraded to a mini suite.....but we usually like the larger balconies because they put loungers on them....from the very few pics I saw, there were no loungers, so that's why we went ahead and upgraded.

 

To the OP, we sailed in the aft twice, once in Alaska and it was perfect, being able to see both sides, wouldn't have traded that cabin for the world!! But we also sailed in the aft in the Caribbean, but it was an aft wrap around balcony, which was perfect because during the day, in the hot sun, the direct aft was very HOT, no breeze at all, unbearable at times....but we were fortunate enough to walk around the corner to get some breeze, from the side balcony, which made a world of difference. But in the evening the direct aft was wonderful!!

[bled01]

I have never stayed in an aft cabin for one reason...despite all the positives that are raved about, the universal opinion is that there is very little wind back there. It is still very hot in the Caribbean in Sept. so that is something to think about if you want a cool breeze out on the balcony.

[deb603]

Did they have loungers on those large balconies? We were originally booked on the large balcony then upgraded to a mini suite.....but we usually like the larger balconies because they put loungers on them....from the very few pics I saw, there were no loungers, so that's why we went ahead and upgraded.

 

To the OP, we sailed in the aft twice, once in Alaska and it was perfect, being able to see both sides, wouldn't have traded that cabin for the world!! But we also sailed in the aft in the Caribbean, but it was an aft wrap around balcony, which was perfect because during the day, in the hot sun, the direct aft was very HOT, no breeze at all, unbearable at times....but we were fortunate enough to walk around the corner to get some breeze, from the side balcony, which made a world of difference. But in the evening the direct aft was wonderful!!

No, they didn't have loungers, although they would've fit nicely.

[Twelvevman]

Hi all.... I need help deciding which would be the best cabin for my family. We are traveling on the Epic in September. It is me, my husband and our 1 year old daughter. It if it was just the two of us, we'd be in an inside cabin, but since we have the baby, i figured having a balcony would be a nice place to escape to while she naps and after she goes to sleep.

 

Are the cabins in the front of the ship with the bigger balconies really worth it? Why do so many people like the Aft cabins? Why would you pick one over the other? Is there another category of cabin that would be best for our situation?

 

 

Thanks a million!

 

Charity - you may want to contact NCL directly to verify if the balcony room you are looking at will fit a pack and play or crib. There is an issue where the stock of cribs they have will not fit in the balcony rooms because of the new wave layout. There were several threads on this. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1228961&highlight=crib

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1224710&highlight=crib