Dear Friends I need some input about aft BAL

[BOUDREAUX]

I'm thinking about up grading and moving down to a aft bal on upper deck from side bal on veranda deck. It's only 60$ pp more and I've already spent 180$ to upgrade to just that. So I'm really wondering is REALLY WORTH IT!!!!!!!

 

Thanks to all who apply,

 

B

 

P.S.

 

Please dont say depends on how much time you spend in your room.

[hawaiikat]

While we LOVED the extra space on the AFT Balcony...it was really hot out there and we couldn't really enjoy it...even at night. I guess it depends where and when you are going. We were in the Caribbean in July...so....what else to expect?...LOL. Have a great trip no matter what you choose!

[serene56]

Aft cabins are not for everyone. Your balcony WILL be bigger on the aft compared to the side one.

But the aft cabins can be extremly warm because you get no ocean breezes.

 

Some complain that the wake is very loud for them.

 

I love the aft but can no longer afford them.

 

I say upgrade and try it at least you can judge for yourself if its worth it

[BOUDREAUX]

We are sailing on the Legend on Dec 5th

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

Some ppl love them and some don't. The view is awesome. Not sure I would be willing to pay that much to move from a side extended balcony to an aft extended balcony though. I think side extended balconies have more room. On the back of the Spirit, the extra 2 feet was wasted space because the railing angled inward. Less privacy because of the slant the back of the boat had. Standing at the rail you could see above you to the people at the lido deck & all decks in between and when looking down at the water,you could see the people at their balcony railings. It is hotter back there will less air movement and it is noisy. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it and it is great to experience it at least once to form your own opinion. I would cruise on one again but since they priced them so much higher, it likely won't happen again for me.

[seashinesunshine]

We were in an aft balcony room on the Victory, it is the only time we have had a bolcony so I can't compare it to another balcony, however I really enjoyed the big balcony. It was nice to have space to walk around the balcony and there is room for a few people so if you make or bring some friends you can all sit and visit on the balcony. Also the Victory is a port a day cruise, it is nice to watch the island slip away at sunset every night. Since we were in port every day, we didn't notice if it was hot. It is less private since the aft balconies have slanting dividers. At the rail the divider is only as high as the rail. But it's not like there are tons of people milling aorund on the balconies. I loved hearing the wake and waves of the ship at night when our door was open. The one problem we had, we were on the upper deck, right above the lounge. It was so noisy from the music, that our floor was vibtrating. So check out what is below you. If you are late night people that won't bother you, it quit at 1 am every night.

[cubdaddy]

Loved ours on the Freedom! Got one for our Splendor cruise this fall!

[Cruiser303!]

We also have an aft balcony on the Glory in Sept. We are on the 7th floor in between cabin floors. I am hoping we like it - we did pay extra. I am curious to see if anyone had this cabin area on a cruise to Canada/New England in early September and what they thought. Thanks in advance for any feedback :)

[idlenote]

We were on an aft on deck 7 on the Conquest last September. Wasn't sure if we would do it again, but since we have seven of us going in September we talked ourselves back into it. We did find it warm but the extra space was nice.

[photojunkieEMT]

Aft cabins are not for everyone. Your balcony WILL be bigger on the aft compared to the side one.

But the aft cabins can be extremly warm because you get no ocean breezes.

 

Some complain that the wake is very loud for them.

 

I love the aft but can no longer afford them.

 

I say upgrade and try it at least you can judge for yourself if its worth it

 

I had to quote this one because it was pretty much exactly what I was thinking. We tried the aft for the first time last month and while we liked it we would not upgrade to it again. I say go for it since you can get such a good deal. Then you will know if it is worth it for the next time when you might not get as good of a deal.

[zachnlucy]

Every time I can afford an aft balcony, I go for it. I love a cool room. I've had 3 or 4 cruises in an aft, and until now when a poster above mentioned it, it never occurred to me. I haven't noticed any difference in temps between side and aft. Yes, the balcony is hotter because of the lack of breezes (there are some), but its size is great. We usually have our early breakfast (before the one in the dining room) on our balcony, as well as some lunches.

 

And the evenings out there are fantastic!

[rosemont5380]

The first two times we cruised we had oceanview rooms. At the time I was so exciting about the fact that I was even on a ship to even care. The third time we decided to try a balcony on the side. We love it! But now that we finally had a chance to upgrade to an aft, I'm now spoiled! I want one every time now. The view is amazing and being able to sit out and see the whole back of the ship and sides is unforgettable. I say upgrade, you won't regret it.

[cruzzza]

This question came at the perfect time. I am planning my next cruise and was considering paying extra for the aft balcony. We will be cruising in December and I do NOT want any breezes, so it seems that it would actually be a good thing to be back there. The privacy issue doesn't really bother me too much. What does matter, however, is the noise from the lounge below. We will have our daughter with us, therefore early bedtimes. I really don't want to spend more to move up to a higher deck. Anyone else have noise issues? I have cruised before above a lounge and it was not fun, but I may be willing to risk it for the aft balcony. I love looking over the wake and always seek out an aft spot on deck when we cruise, so I think I'd really enjoy it.

[tiyana4]

We had the same debate as the OP. Do we spend the extra money and hope we like the aft balcony, or get a regular balcony on the side?

 

Well, we went for it. We book early (min. of 12 months out) so we really had a chance to mull over the rooms, locations, pros/cons, etc. although there were very limited reviews. Thanks to a previous cruiser on CC, we discovered a cabin that has a balcony twice the width of the center aft cabins. We are really excited about our first aft cabin.

 

I say go for it! If you're lucky, maybe you will also get a price drop. :)

[maritaysa]

I'm thinking about up grading and moving down to a aft bal on upper deck from side bal on veranda deck. It's only 60$ pp more and I've already spent 180$ to upgrade to just that. So I'm really wondering is REALLY WORTH IT!!!!!!!

 

Thanks to all who apply,

 

B

 

P.S.

 

Please dont say depends on how much time you spend in your room.

 

Go for it! We had an aft wrap last year, and it was THE BEST!

[cruzzza]

We had the same debate as the OP. Do we spend the extra money and hope we like the aft balcony, or get a regular balcony on the side?

 

Well, we went for it. We book early (min. of 12 months out) so we really had a chance to mull over the rooms, locations, pros/cons, etc. although there were very limited reviews. Thanks to a previous cruiser on CC, we discovered a cabin that has a balcony twice the width of the center aft cabins. We are really excited about our first aft cabin.

 

I say go for it! If you're lucky, maybe you will also get a price drop. :)

OK, you've gotta spill it! I have to know which cabin this is. Is it directly on the aft or the one technically on the side of the ship that is right next to the aft wrap. I had a double-wide balcony cabin on the Destiny, but it was the one right next to the aft, #7316. It was a different style room, but great! I didn't know there were any extra wide ones on the true aft of the ship, though. I'm sailing on the Triumph, so maybe the rooms are different.

[zqvol]

I'm thinking about up grading and moving down to a aft bal on upper deck from side bal on veranda deck. It's only 60$ pp more and I've already spent 180$ to upgrade to just that. So I'm really wondering is REALLY WORTH IT!!!!!!!

 

Thanks to all who apply,

 

B

 

P.S.

 

Please dont say depends on how much time you spend in your room.

 

OK you said don't say it depends on how much time you spend in your room so I won't , but the truth is that it does. We spend very little time in the cabin and on the balcony. To me paying extra for an aft balcony is a waste of money.

 

Lots of people like them because they like to spend a lot of time on them. Only you can decide if you are going to use it enough to make it worth while.

[tiyana4]

OK, you've gotta spill it! I have to know which cabin this is. Is it directly on the aft or the one technically on the side of the ship that is right next to the aft wrap. I had a double-wide balcony cabin on the Destiny, but it was the one right next to the aft, #7316. It was a different style room, but great! I didn't know there were any extra wide ones on the true aft of the ship, though. I'm sailing on the Triumph, so maybe the rooms are different.

 

Shhhhhhh...only if you promise not to tell.:D

 

We're in 9474 beside the aft wrap on the main back. If you look at the deck plans on cruisedeck plans, it shows the aft balconies at 60 sq. ft compared to 35 sq. ft but it looks to be bigger than that. There are a couple of these between decks 7-9.

 

I picked this one because it is completely covered, so are 9476, 9481, 9478, 9479 and 9477, and the 2 wrap balconies on the Vista deck. I haven't been able to find any pics of the inside of the cabin, but here are pics of the actual balcony.

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=23422741&postcount=27

[cruzzza]

Thanks. The rooms are different on the Triumph. We ended up booking directly aft. It's a little bit larger than normal balcony. It's not really private, but I've always wanted an aft balcony, so we went for it. We'll have exactly the view that you had. That does look like a very nice balcony - and it's covered, which I like. I might bookmark those pictures in case I ever sail on a Dream class!

[tiyana4]

Thanks. The rooms are different on the Triumph. We ended up booking directly aft. It's a little bit larger than normal balcony. It's not really private, but I've always wanted an aft balcony, so we went for it. We'll have exactly the view that you had. That does look like a very nice balcony - and it's covered, which I like. I might bookmark those pictures in case I ever sail on a Dream class!

 

Hopefully others will post pics on CC, cruiselinerooms or cruisedeckplans in the near future so we can see the inside too. This is our first aft balcony too. I'm looking forward to seeing what all the rave is about.

 

Happy cruising!

[Devonish]

We are staying in 9474 on the Dream on 16 October!

 

Cant wait:)

[Cruise2Karaoke]

Another advantage to an aft cabin is that it's generally very quiet in the hallways back there.

[tiyana4]

Devonish - you will have to come back and post pics for us after your cruise.

 

CruisetoKaraoke - this was another reason we chose this cabin. We usually pick cabins mid-ship but thought we would try something different this time. I hope it's quiet overhead since we're right under the Lido deck.