Questions about Star Forward Suite

[k9Rulez]

I am looking at a 9th floor forward suite in late November or December on the Star from Tampa. The balcony looks huge and we have never had a forward suite before. Will we be able to use the deck during sea days? Also, the balcony door looks like a heavy duty door. Is this easy to open? Can we keep it open. The other option is a family suite and we have done several of these in the past, but don't need the room. Any help on the pros and cons of the forward suite would be appreciated.

[Oviedo32765]

<snip>Will we be able to use the deck during sea days? </snip>

 

Use during sea days will depend upon the Apparent Wind.

[Alvarado]

You are right the balconies are huge, however they are not that useful when the ship is in motion. They are wonderful when in port. The door is like a submarine door. It is very heavy and hard to open and close. There is also a certain amount of noise involved with the door. You can certainly leave it open in port but it is dicey when the ship is in motion, no matter which way the wind blows.

[wonderdog1]

We had a Deluxe owners suite and the front balcony was great, it was warm and the breeze felt good, but also had the use of the side, we used both equally.

[marelind]

There is a double door to the front balcony. The inner door is a regular wooden door that is not wind or water tight. The outer door is a heavy water tight door. Depending on the angle of the wind you can keep this heavy door open. If it is a headwind, no; otherwise it shouldn't be a problem. Whether you can use the front balcony while under way depends on the weather. We spent 2 weeks in the Owner's Suite for the Panama Canal (not the Star DOS which doesn't have a balcony) and the weather was great. We were able to use the balcony every day. The bulkhead around the balcony deflects the wind when you lie down. You can get full sun, as well as being visible from the bridge.