Noise on Balconies?? Are they worth it?

[dc-snoopy]

Not a great tip. She was planning on travelling in May and that is still a popular time to cruise so the ship is likely to be completely booked weeks before sailing. It is very unlikely that there will be cabins available unless she sails in a less popular time.

 

She should make thedecision early enough to book the cabin of her choice.

[just4kixx]

I beg to differ... I thought it was a pretty good option to consider... but you are entitled to you opinion. The timing may not be right in this particular case, but it is definitely worth entertaining all the possibilities.

 

To the op... good luck with your final decision. Perhaps you could still get whichever cabin choice you want if you opt for a less popular ship/itinerary/cruiseline. Explore all of your options ;)

 

A

PS... I wouldn't consider May summer vacation. Just checking a few caribbean itineraries with RCCL in early May, I found quite a few cabins available in both oceanview and balcony. Now June... that's another story all together!

[dc-snoopy]

I beg to differ... I thought it was a pretty good option to consider... but you are entitled to you opinion. The timing may not be right in this particular case, but it is definitely worth entertaining all the possibilities.

 

Sorry that was what I was trying to convey. It is certainly a reasonable option to consider in an off-season like July-October when due to hurricane season, fewer travelers are out. However, in May, she will be encountering the start of the summer family season and in the March-May time frame you have a very busy season. No ships are going to be travelling with any open cabins and the cabins will be booked weeks in advance. Even cancellations within the last few days often get booked by people specifically on the lookout for these things (and TA's often have "holds" and "wait lists" for these cases). Short of "no shows" which aren't happening a lot, it doesn't really happen. I wasn't trying to discount the idea entirely, just during the time the OP was sailing.

 

To the op... good luck with your final decision. Perhaps you could still get whichever cabin choice you want if you opt for a less popular ship/itinerary/cruiseline. Explore all of your options ;)

 

A

PS... I wouldn't consider May summer vacation. Just checking a few caribbean itineraries with RCCL in early May, I found quite a few cabins available in both oceanview and balcony. Now June... that's another story all together!

 

And that is excellent advice to expore all options. However, it is important to know which ones have a likelihood of coming to fruition. As for whether you consider it summer or not, there are many schools, especially colleges and some private institutions which let out early in May and either groups of young folks travelling together or families get on the vacations early. And the bookings are available now, but try checking again in late March through April when many people figure out what their end-of-school-year schedule really looks like (many have to wait for exam schedules to be announced or when school-based activities get scheduled mid-to-late term). By 3-4 weeks out, they'll be booked. June and July can be planned earlier since they aren't waiting for school and event schedules.

[island lady]

I booked my GS a year in advance. The prices have since doubled, and for what I paid then, I could now only get a regular balcony cabin. Even worse, the whole ship is almost sold out already. And that is still 3 months away...yikes!!

We are talking 2nd week in June.

:eek:

 

Good luck on what you find, and hope you have a fabulous time!! :)

 

 

Cheers!

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

Wow, you're sure getting the whole gamut of opinions here, aren't you? :p

 

Well, let me add mine: personally, I will NEVER again book an inside cabin. We had one on our last cruise because it was a company cruise, booked and paid for by DH's boss, so we didn't get to choose the cabin. We really tried to make the best of it, but . . . somehow it just didn't seem like a "real cruise."

 

HOWEVER: I really believe that it comes down to one thing. There are cruisers who view their cabins as a “necessary evil,” a place you gotta have because at some point you will need to sleep and shower. Then there are others who look at it as their home base, the place where they want to be unless they are doing something in particular. If you are in the first category, by all means book an inside cabin. Unfortunately, DH and I are much more like “our cabin is our castle.” We will never be booking inside cabins when the choice is ours to make.

[island lady]

Then there are others who look at it as their home base, the place where they want to be unless they are doing something in particular. DH and I are much more like “our cabin is our castle.” We will never be booking inside cabins when the choice is ours to make.

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Ditto to that!!

I like to book a suite not just for the larger cabin (which is nice too :D), but mostly for the larger balcony. It is "our own little world" and makes the cruise for us. I spoiled my DH with a penthouse suite on NCL touring Hawaii two years ago. Tough to go down from there....cha-ching!!!

Ok....you have my interest totally perked....does your nickname mean "fun cruise"? My French is very weak. Sounds soooo elegant! :)

Cheers!

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

Ok....you have my interest totally perked....does your nickname mean "fun cruise"? My French is very weak

 

Well, Island Lady, it can't be all that weak, because you're very close!

 

Actually, it's the French title of the old TV series "The Love Boat." It's also a bit of a play on words, since it could also be translated as "the (female) cruiser has fun." :D

 

At any rate, flaka, please let us know what you decide and how it turns out! :)

[Renee L. Hill]

I have had inside, oceanview, and balcony and feel the balcony is worth the extra cost for us. I love having breakfest on the balcony in the morning, and hearing the ocean at night as well as seeing the stars and moon if your lucky!! We have not had any problem with noise.

 

It's like a private viewing of the ocean, warm breezes are so nice to step out anytime to feel them. Having a glass of champaine or wine before dinner on...oh yeah, I would give up something else to afford to slurge on it.

 

 

Renee

[island lady]

Well' date=' Island Lady, it can't be all that weak, because you're very close!

 

Actually, it's the French title of the old TV series "The Love Boat." It's also a bit of a play on words, since it could also be translated as "the (female) cruiser has fun." :D

 

At any rate, flaka, please let us know what you decide and how it turns out! :)[/quote']

 

I love it!! How cool!! :D

 

Of course you probably figured out my nickname too....:)

 

Cheers!

[Cruzntime]

One question not addressed is "... are there chairs on deck away from the noisy pool areas" (or something like that). The answer is yes. We went to deck four several times where there are many loungers. Occasionally someone would pass by but they were just out for a stroll and not disruptive. There was a nice breeze and it's fairly quiet. The front of the ship on deck 4 could be a little noisy with the ship parting the waves but that's ok with me.

We had inside cabin last year and have a D1 balcony for this year. My inside was fine but the DW wants to try a balcony. But, we were not in the cabin much except to sleep and change clothes, etc..