Opening balcony walls

[cb at sea]

On some ships, the dividers are not meant to be opened...either they are part of the hull of the ship, or are bolted in place. Allure/Oasis's dividers are meant to be opened, as they feature a sliding door in the divider, which can be secured in the open position.

 

On ships where the divider could be opened, but not secured, it's up to the Captain if it's safe to have them opened.

[redlobster]

Our group was on Oasis a few months ago and we had no problem getting them opened up. I recommend starting with your stateroom attendant before moving any higher up the ladder of authority. We have found that is all that has been needed except for one time a few cruises ago.

[mark290]

because the Captain says so is all the reason they need, and yes each Captain has the authority to say no if he wants to. His ship, his rules.

 

That is true about many questions but is this not the proper place to ask why ?

[Gaynors]

Thanks for all the great info and insight.. we thought it was a guarantee to get our balcony dividers opened up on our upcoming Indy cruise.. we were unable to get connecting rooms and were thinking this would be just as good.

 

Hopefully it will all work out. :)

[ladysail2]

because the Captain says so is all the reason they need, and yes each Captain has the authority to say no if he wants to. His ship, his rules.

 

Okay, settle down. It was asked with smile on my face and in a nice voice!!

 

No need to lambaste me. And..not all the Captains are male. :rolleyes:

 

Relax a little, enjoy life, it was a legitimate question. Now that I read about the fire walls, it makes sense that they cannot all be opened. I doubt if any Captain just says No for the heck of it anyways. There's always a reason.

[ladysail2]

That is true about many questions but is this not the proper place to ask why ?

 

Yes, this the proper place to ask, Mark. Don't be put off by those who feel smug or superior, just ignore them. You don't want them as your friend anyways.

 

Feel free to ask questions anytime you want. We'll treat your question with dignity, no one know everything, :D

Edited October 3, 2014 by ladysail2

[ladysail2]

Thanks for all the great info and insight.. we thought it was a guarantee to get our balcony dividers opened up on our upcoming Indy cruise.. we were unable to get connecting rooms and were thinking this would be just as good.

 

Hopefully it will all work out. :)

 

I hope it does too! I've been on Indy a lot and have seen the dividers open many times. Hopefully your's will be one of them!

 

:D

[KKMurphy2]

I assume the Radiance class ships are too old to be with the ability to open the balcony dividers. We are in side by side Junior Suites.

[Clarea]

I assume the Radiance class ships are too old to be with the ability to open the balcony dividers. We are in side by side Junior Suites.

Neither Radiance class nor Vision class can open balcony dividers.

[chengkp75]

It hadn't occurred to me that this wouldn't be possible. We're on the Freedom- with connecting rooms- are those dividers able to be opened (if allowed)? Thanks!

 

Connecting rooms (those with an interior door between rooms), by definition are in the same fire zone (the door will not provide sufficient fire protection to be classed as a boundary), so yes they can be opened, but again at the Captain's discretion.

Edited October 3, 2014 by chengkp75

[ladysail2]

Connecting rooms (those with an interior door between rooms), by definition are in the same fire zone (the door will not provide sufficient fire protection to be classed as a boundary), so yes they can be opened, but again at the Captain's discretion.

 

 

I thought the point of having ( interior) connecting doors is so that family/friends could have them opened as desired. Are you saying that the Captain can forbid their opening under usual conditions at his/ her whim? Just wondering :confused:

 

:D

[leaveitallbehind]

And..not all the Captains are male. :rolleyes

 

We were told on Explorer by Captain Henrik Loy that RCI has had two, in fact. He by the way is the youngest Captain in service with RCI. I haven't checked the current captains thread recently, but there were two women in active service as Captains in 2012.

Edited October 3, 2014 by leaveitallbehind

[Clarea]

I thought the point of having ( interior) connecting doors is so that family/friends could have them opened as desired. Are you saying that the Captain can forbid their opening under usual conditions at his/ her whim? Just wondering :confused:

 

:D

I've not heard of interior doors being refused to be opened as long as the occupants of both staterooms want the door open. I believe the other post about Captain's discretion was referring to the balcony dividers.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

While most dividers will open (makes it easy for the deck gang to wash the doors on turn around day), those that separate two cabins that are in different fire zones will not be allowed to be opened during the cruise. It is also up to the Captain how many total dividers, and where, he allows to be opened, again as fire boundaries. This all stems from the Princess ship fire a few years ago, where the fire jumped fire zones by travelling down the balconies. You can determine where the fire zones are by the passageway doors.

One thing I don't understand about this answer though... the balcony dividers I've seen don't (I think) extend fully between the floor & ceiling. So how does that work as a "fire break"?

 

It is possible I'm not remembering correctly also.

[chengkp75]

One thing I don't understand about this answer though... the balcony dividers I've seen don't (I think) extend fully between the floor & ceiling. So how does that work as a "fire break"?

 

It is possible I'm not remembering correctly also.

 

It is a fire break, not a fire boundary. What the divider does is to stop the wind from blowing all along the balconies, carrying flaming material and heat to the next balcony. It's not an A-60 fire bulkhead (must not transmit fire from one side to the other for a minimum of 60 minutes), but it will slow fire propagation. The dividers are now (after the Princess fire) all made of material that will only smolder when flame is applied, not burn.

[spookwife]

[quote name='mark290']That is true about many questions but is this not the proper place to ask why ?[/QUOTE]

and many people feel that the stated reason is not valid or they think they are special and deserve an exception to policy. the Captain is GOD on board and all he needs is to be asked when he is having a bad day and it can be denied.. Cheng's equally correct reasons of fire safety do not even have to be factored in. if the Captain does not want them opened, they don't get opened and no amount of demanding reasons why will change that.

'Because I say so' works for parents, why do they not accept it from other adults?

[time4u2go]

[quote name='spookwife']and many people feel that the stated reason is not valid or they think they are special and deserve an exception to policy. the Captain is GOD on board and all he needs is to be asked when he is having a bad day and it can be denied.. Cheng's equally correct reasons of fire safety do not even have to be factored in. if the Captain does not want them opened, they don't get opened and no amount of demanding reasons why will change that.

'Because I say so' works for parents, why do they not accept it from other adults?[/quote]
I just read back through this thread and I didn't see anybody that said that the stated reason is not valid, or that they think they are special and deserve an exception to the policy, or that questioned the captain's authority.

Did it ever occur to you that some people (including me!) are just curious, and like to learn new things? If you're not curious, that's fine, but don't try and tell other people that they shouldn't be. Edited October 3, 2014 by time4u2go

[S.A.M.J.R.]

[quote name='chengkp75']It is a fire break, not a fire boundary. What the divider does is to stop the wind from blowing all along the balconies, carrying flaming material and heat to the next balcony. It's not an A-60 fire bulkhead (must not transmit fire from one side to the other for a minimum of 60 minutes), but it will slow fire propagation. The dividers are now (after the Princess fire) all made of material that will only smolder when flame is applied, not burn.[/QUOTE]
Ah, thank you.

[ladysail2]

[quote name='clarea']I've not heard of interior doors being refused to be opened as long as the occupants of both staterooms want the door open. I believe the other post about Captain's discretion was referring to the balcony dividers.[/QUOTE]


Thank you for clarifying that. I thought it was referring to the inside doors. :D

[ladysail2]

[quote name='time4u2go']I just read back through this thread and I didn't see anybody that said that the stated reason is not valid, or that they think they are special and deserve an exception to the policy, or that questioned the captain's authority.

Did it ever occur to you that some people (including me!) are just curious, and like to learn new things? If you're not curious, that's fine, but don't try and tell other people that they shouldn't be.[/QUOTE]

Amen to that!

[h18furball]

We had 5 adjacent balcony rooms on Indy, all on the hump, and had all the dividers open. It was a great way for the 9 & 10 year old girls to move from room to room without roaming the halls. It was also fantastic for everyone to congregate and converse before dinner. I loved it.