Alaska on a “Vista Class”, it the verandah worth it?

[drco]

the Varandah is probaly the least crowded place to view the glaciers. Ships will usually preform a 180 turn in front of the gaciers to allow for equal viewing time from both sides of the ship.

 

Ooh! Good to know. Thanks!

[Typhoon1]

Definitely. Nothing like observing the scenery from your verandah with a pair of binoculars.

[marysb]

We've had 2 trips to Alaska with a balcony on both trips. On one trip we enjoyed the balcony quite a bit, but we didn't spent hours out there the way you do in the Caribbean. In July it is still a bit cool and breezy. I considered it only one of many good viewing areas on the ship. There is the back aft deck, the open bow, the warm and cozy crows nest, the promenade deck , etc, etc.

 

On the other Alaska trip it was cold and rainy and we rarely used it at all. But we did enjoy the wall to wall window in our room.

 

It is nice, but definitely not a necessity.

[Jemery]

A verandah is nice; we've had one our last couple of cruises (the result of upgrades), but we don't swear by them. Our biggest objection to them on a scenery intense cruise is you only see one side of the ship, and so much is happening on both sides. Alaska, Panama Canal, and other such cruises, I would say get an outside cabin; a Caribbean or Mediterranean cruise, get a verandah. It all comes down to personal preference.

-John

[Fog123]

HAL just came out with some price reductions last week. I think the biggest drop was for the ocean view, but depending on the cruise there were also some pretty good drops for the balcony. Might be worth a check if you haven't already.

 

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[marysb]

It's almost a full day in Glacier Bay, so you will want to be all over the ship.

You will want to take in views from everywhere!

 

 

 

From deck 6 aft on the Volendam - there were rarely people there, so it was like a huge private balcony

[CowPrincess]

It's almost a full day in Glacier Bay, so you will want to be all over the ship.

You will want to take in views from everywhere!

 

 

 

From deck 6 aft on the Volendam - there were rarely people there, so it was like a huge private balcony

 

bolding mine

 

I completely agree with you! I'm in a Neptune on my upcoming Alaska cruise and I still intend to be on the public decks for much of the scenic cruising. We won't be going to Glacier Bay, we will be doing Tracy Arm (or Endicott, depending on ice conditions). Regardless, the best views are the wide-angle ones from the public decks.

 

Last time I went to Alaska, I was with friends who had a Neptune. I forced them out on deck to see what they were missing, and they were amazed. They were very glad I'd forced them outside :D

 

If someone is physically capable of getting out onto the public decks and moving around to take in the views, I strongly encourage them to do it.

[legalslave]

We had an aft wrap last year and will be in the same aft wrap this year. Hopefully, it won't be raining hard as we love the views from back there. However, there are many public places, as mentioned, to see all there is to see and be warm!

 

Diane

Edited May 6, 2014 by legalslave

[LindaM]

One of the biggest cruising mistakes we have ever made was to not booking a balcony for Alaska. Sure, you can go out on deck, but to have the view 24/7 would be priceless.

[runnergirl71]

I debated and debated for my Westerdam July 26 cruise, but finally made the jump to a balcony and I cannot wait!!

 

 

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[Aruba]

I debated and debated for my Westerdam July 26 cruise, but finally made the jump to a balcony and I cannot wait!!

Good choice -- hope you enjoy it. :)

[runnergirl71]

Good choice -- hope you enjoy it. :)

 

 

Thanks!!

 

 

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[Tapi]

We sailed on the Westerdam last year. Initially we booked an OV but just a few days before departure, prices dropped and we were able to upgrade for free and we were even given OBC! :)

 

While it was very nice to have the balcony, we didn't consider it a must. We think that we would've been OK without it as we only used it for quick peeks at what was going in outside, and for watching the ship sail in and out of ports.

 

Any time that we wanted to do some serious scenery watching, we always headed for the open decks even though we had a balcony just steps from our bed. I do see why some people may consider balconies a must. It just wasn't one for us.

 

We are brainstorming another Alaska cruise and we are not even pricing out balconies. That's how little we considered them to be worthwhile.

[runnergirl71]

The main thing that helped make my decision for me is that from every picture I found of an OV on the Westy and from all reports here, unless I wanted to a) basically kneel on the bed every time I wanted to look out the window or b) not have the beds pushed together, the window was going to be pretty useless as the pushed together beds sit directly under the window. I'm not sure who decided that was a good arrangement, but to me it renders the window virtually useless. If I want to see out, I don't want to have to climb on my bed and kneel, and I prefer to not sleep in twin-sized beds if I can help it.

 

I don't know if the arrangement is the same on all the Vista-class ships, or if perhaps they reconfigured the room arrangement during the Westy's drydock, but I have my balcony and am super excited about it! :)

 

(And yes, I've got one excursion booked and am debating between two others. So I'm not "penalizing" myself for having a balcony. They aren't float plane excursions, but I'm not really interested in flying around. I'd rather boat or travel over land. :) )

[mrluckycharms]

I debated and debated for my Westerdam July 26 cruise, but finally made the jump to a balcony and I cannot wait!!

 

 

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I will disagree with the majority here and say that on an Alaskan cruise it is NOT worth the cost of a veranda. First of all, unlike the Caribbean, where it is in the 80's and you can sit on your veranda in the evening when the ship is sailing...you will FREEZE out on your veranda especially if it is windy. Remember, Alaska ain't the caribbean. Temps in the summer in many ports will average in the 50's. Plus if it is overcast and raining...BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

 

Just don't think you will be spending as much time as you think out on the veranda. Plus you will miss everything on the opposite side of the ship. This is why they open up the bow of the ship when sailing thru certain areas cuz you can see the scenery on BOTH sides.

 

I cruised on the 14 day Seattle RT 4 years ago and will do so again this summer and will again book an outside room.

 

Now the Caribbean....that's different cuz I think you can COMFORTABLY spend much more time on the veranda. But have fun anyway. Just bundle up.

[DaveOKC]

One thing to add - it does depend a bit on other factors:

 

Scenery when sailing from/to Vancouver is much better.

 

An early season sailing gives you better views (more daylight).

 

Thus, a Sept sailing out of Seattle will not have anywhere near as nice of views as a May sailing out of Vancouver. I have done both in the past year.

 

DaveOKC

[krazy4kruisin]

IMHO if you have to cut back on your shore excursion budget in Alaska in order to afford a balcony, the balcony is not "worth it". If, however, you can still do everything you want on shore and can afford the balcony in addition to your shore excursions, go for it.

 

I travel OV or interior to Alaska usually and spend a lot of time on deck.

 

Very well put! I will remember this. I plan on taking my first Alaska cruise

on Westerdam first week of May 2015 Waiting for a sale. I am so there!