Inside cabin v. Balcony v. Mini-Suite, etc.

[johnjrval424]

We will be cruising for the first time in April on the Jewel. We are in cabins 8133, 8523 and 8615. We are really looking forward to it! :)

 

Because of cost considerations, and I suppose not knowing what our other options were, we all booked inside cabins (there are 6 of us - 3 couples). After reading these boards for awhile, it seems that the majority of people on here either do balcony or mini-suites (or higher). This was not an option for us since it would have increased the price to approximately $900 to $1100 or more per person.

 

My question is: as with any other type of vacation, you go once, see what you missed (in terms of accommodations, etc.) and eventually upgrade yourself to more spacious/accommodations. But is there anything really wrong with having an inside cabin? We don't plan on being in there very much except to shower and dress and to sleep after exploring. However, after reading the posts in here, I'm beginning to wonder if we will feel like we have been banished to the most undesirable part of the ship and have to hang our heads in shame when returning to our cabins! :p

[immargaret]

There is nothing wrong with an inside cabin, and as you say you probably won't be spending a lot of time in the cabin.

I think the reason you see many posters here on CC boards booking balconies and suites is that once you book one of those you will never go back to an inside. Also with your first cruise you try to do as many of the shows and events that are on the ship, in later cruises you tend to enjoy relaxing on the balcony and don't care if you miss a few of the shows since they are often pretty similar on each cruise.

 

Enjoy your first cruise in an inside cabin, there's always time for the balcony on the next cruise. Cruising is addicting and I'm sure you will be ready to book another even before you get done with the first cruise.

 

:)

[johnjrval424]

I am certain that we will enjoy our cruise, irregardless of where we are. As the old saying goes, "you don't miss what you've never had."

 

Is there anywhere you can get an advance copy of what is being offered on the ship prior to sailing? We are such planners and want to get an idea as to what we can expect. Once we get on there, I'm sure we will also do some very serious relaxing! ;)

 

Thanks for all your help!

[meluvtogocruise]

I am certain that we will enjoy our cruise, irregardless of where we are. As the old saying goes, "you don't miss what you've never had."

 

Is there anywhere you can get an advance copy of what is being offered on the ship prior to sailing? We are such planners and want to get an idea as to what we can expect. Once we get on there, I'm sure we will also do some very serious relaxing! ;)

 

Thanks for all your help!

 

John,

 

just to chime in, we booked inside on our first cruise and were so thrilled

with our vacation we couldn't wait for the next cruise. now, when we booked the second we did "run of the ship" allowed carnival to put us in any cabin they chose for us while we paid only for inside cabin. although i'm told this is unusual we were given two obstructed view balconies on legend. the obstruction was the lifeboat. it was below our balcony and was no problem at all. we were tickled pink. on our third cruise we did the same thing. this time we were assigned an inside cabin on the veranda deck on Liberty. We loved it. it was quiet, and when we wanted to rest it was just the ticket. I really enjoy both and it truthfully does not matter to me. hope this helps. Have a great time. enjoy the ship's deck in the morning with a great breakfast. you won't miss the balcony.

 

just my opinion...

 

mel

[johnjrval424]

Wow! A balcony for the price of an inside cabin? I don't think I could ever get that lucky!

 

When we first booked, we were told that we could have the "guaranteed" cabin and it would be assigned on the day of checkin. The other members of our party were not thrilled with that offer since we've never cruised and didn't know if we would end up in the engine room (just kidding!). So, we asked our TA very politely if she could check out the assigned cabins and we wound up on the 8th deck.

 

Thanks for making me feel better about our choice. Perhaps when we hit the lottery and money is no object, we will be able to experience the wonderful suite accommodations. Until then...ahem - well - I'm not holding my breath!

[7SeasLover]

There's absolutely nothing wrong with an inside cabin. Our first cruise was inside. Everything was perfect. The only downside for me was that I didn't have a watch to see what time it was. Pretty minor downside!

 

You will all have a wonderful time.

[CSM]

I have friends who could afford almost any type of cabin and still always book an inside cabin. They say they sleep better with no light coming in, especially when they want to take an afternoon nap.

[p2lockhart]

We recently did an 11 night cruise and booked a balcony for the first time. This was our 8th cruise, but it was our 25th anniversary so we decided to splurge because it was Hawaii and we hoped we could see some whales from the balcony and because of the length of the cruise.

 

I was pleasantly surprised that the balcony booking enabled us to be able to enjoy the services of the concierge, who booked dining reservations for us each night, even in the main dining rooms. We never had to wait in line at dinner because of that. Also, the room service menu was more extensive. We were able to get eggs, etc from room service, but our friends in an outside with picture window only had continental breakfast on their room service menu.

 

On past cruises we have stayed in inside, outside with porthole, and outside with picture window. I usually book a guarantee with the hope of an upgrade unless we are traveling with another couple with mobility problems and then we book a specific cabin to insure we are near the elevators, etc.

 

We have enjoyed them all, and I know that your inside cabin will be fine.

 

Bon voyage!

[Big Al B.]

p2, I have a feeling that you didn't have a regular balcony cabin, but a suite. Not that a regular balcony cabin isn't fine, but you wouldn't get those amenities in one.

[calmac]

p2, I have a feeling that you didn't have a regular balcony cabin, but a suite. Not that a regular balcony cabin isn't fine, but you wouldn't get those amenities in one.

 

p2lockhart was on the Wind (from signature) which is the same as the Dream. On both of these, because there are so few balcony cabins and suites you do get an enhanced breakfast menu. Not sure how we'll cope with continental breakfast only in our mini-suite on the Dawn :D

[Big Al B.]

Ah, thanks for clearing that up for me. :). I should have looked at a deck plan before I spoke :p. I think you are really going to enjoy the Dawn.

[Maryfrei]

A cruise in an inside is so much better than staying at home dreaming of a balcony!

[Rumncoke]

Friends of ours gave us this tip although we haven't tried it ourselves:

 

When you go to bed at night, turn your TV on to the bow camera and turn the sound off. As the sun rises, the TV will lighten up and you can pretend it's a window.

[johnjrval424]

Wow - the bow camera idea is great! I'm sure we will enjoy ourselves. Thanks so much for your warm comments. We just bought a house this year and we have undergone major remodeling which depleted our vacation budget but we are still going to have a great time!

[harmony6840]

Have a great cruise. Inside is just fine with us. We're going on our fourth cruise in March and have been inside each time. This will be our first on NCL. Not that if we got upgraded we wouldn't gladly take it, but since that's not going to happen we'll just be happy to be cruising instead of being at work. We are hooked on cruising and see it as the only way to vacation. We use the TV with the channel set on the camera of the front of the ship as our window. We don't leave it on all night, but do turn it on as soon as we wake up.

 

The best thing you can pack for your trip is a good attitude and a willingness to have a great time no matter what happens.

 

Bon Voyage!!!

[Birdnutty]

We've been on 12 cruises in all, and stayed in an outside cabin with a balcony only once. I think it was our 5th cruise Yes, it was great, but since we have only a certain amount of money to spend on vacations a year, we opt for two or three times cruising in an inside cabin over once with a balcony!

 

Someday, if we have alot more money to allocate for vacations, we'll spring for a balcony again. But for now, I'll keep on cruising the cheapest way possible, and that still beats a day at home. :)

[pattie63]

We've never been on NCL so I can't address specifics but we've been on Cunard and Princess several times. Ten years ago, before we had kids, DH and I would book inside and save the money -- we didn't need additional space and didn't spend much time in the cabin anyway. When the kids started coming with us, we booked balcony staterooms so that we would have extra space to keep snorkling gear, towels, and to have a separate "living space" as my oldest son and I are early risers and we could eat breakfast while DH and younger son slept in. Last cruise (Coral Princess - 10 night Panama Canal) we booked a mini-suite because the price was the same as a balcony. It was absolutely wonderful to have the extra space but we really did not spend much time in the mini. This year, G-D help me, I booked an inside on the Dawn for the four of us for a 10 day! The difference in price for inside and balcony/suite was significant and just wasn't worth it for me. We tore through money on our Panama Canal cruise and I' just rather put it towards excursions and stuff. We'll pack light, do laundry and be patient with one another. I'll let everyone know how it worked out when we get back on April 16.

 

Bottom line - I think that two adults in an inside should be fine. Based on my limited experience, I'd rather have the money to spend than the extra space since we don't spend much time in the room at all. Have a wonderful cruise!

[4merlurker]

John, we just took our our first cruise this past Nov. in a balcony. 2nd cruise? We are going with an inside. Why? Well, the balconey was GREAT! But it was our first cruise and with so much going on and all the exploring we did on the ship, honestly we didn't appreciate the balcony! Looking back we couldn't justify the price either!

 

You really only sleep & shower in your cabin. Honest! :)

 

It's hard reading these boards. There's tons of excellent information but you really have to read through some of the posts carefully and try not to be left with high expectations of what a cruise vacation is.

 

Whatever you decide, ENJOY your cruise!!!

 

~Connie

[tequilamary]

We have only been on 2 cruises. On the first, to the Southern Caribbean, we had a porthole and enjoyed being able to see out, day and night. Just got back from a cruise in an inside cabin and it was fine, booked it to save money. I was worried about claustrophobia but it was not a problem, we had a great time. Would like to do a balcony sometime, but we will see, who knows? Enjoy your cruise! Lynn

[NJBear]

But is there anything really wrong with having an inside cabin? We don't plan on being in there very much except to shower and dress and to sleep after exploring. However, after reading the posts in here, I'm beginning to wonder if we will feel like we have been banished to the most undesirable part of the ship and have to hang our heads in shame when returning to our cabins! :p

 

Let me share this with you.....I booked 2 cruises in the past 2 years, both times with a balcony cabin. I puffed my chest out...and told a good friend of mine who cruises often about what cabins I booked.. she replied "Oh my goodness, we ALWAYS book an inside cabin..that may be why i go on 3 cruises last year, and you went on one" ..and she could well afford any cabin she wanted.. I asked about the problem of "no light from a window"...she leaves the TV on the bridge camera channel with the sound off..the cabin gets dark at night and lightens up in the morning when the sun comes up--

 

Inside cabins have the same run of the ship, the same food, the same shows, the same pool and the same buns on the burgers at the poolside BBQ's as outside/balcony cabins.

 

I started feel as though there was a cast system develping on the CC' boards at one time with the owners suites/garden villa/ minisuites/balcony folks.......but it turned out to be just my perception...hold your head up

 

 

ENJOY!! :D :D

[WaldosPepper]

John, we're about to depart on our fifth cruise with NCL. Our first was our "familymoon" with our then 9 and 14 year old boys along. Our stateroom was a whopping 145 sq. ft., and we were packed in like sardines after a week of souvinir purchases, souvinir glasses, photos, etc. Nonetheless we felt like the King and Queen of the world! Our kids thought they'd died and gone to heaven!

 

Our next three cruises were all in 108 sq. ft. cabins, but no children along those times. It was still tight, but we didn't care! Again we had the time of our lives!

 

This time around, thanks to all the incredible information we've found here, we decided to spoil ourselves and booked a mini-suite. We're taking our youngest along - he's 16, and 6'2" already. We were fortunate to receive an upsell offer to an AB - a TWO BEDROOM SUITE! :eek: I can't imagine what that's going to be like! Am I excited? Oh you betcha! Would I still be happy if we were squeezed into a small cabin. Absolutely!

 

Just being on a cruise is such a wonderful experience, that accomodations are indeed secondary. As NJBear says - you still get all the great entertainment, food, access to pools and hot tubs, etc! You are going to have so much fun that you'll be booking another cruise again in no time. And you won't care what cabin you've got - you'll just be tickled pink to climb aboard a cruise ship again! :D

[Dolphins]

The only place I really enjoyed an inside cabin was the "J" cabins on the HAL Statendam class ships. They were actually on the promenade deck so that you were only steps away from enjoying the lounge chairs on the biggest "balcony" on the ship. In addition, being on a lower deck in the center of the ship, there was little motion even in the roughest seas.

Most ships do not have cabins on the promenade deck so now I always opt for a balcony cabin and enjoy the luxury of leaving the door open at night and enjoying the sea air.

[johnjrval424]

NJ Bear - you are absolutely right! We will be afforded the same amenities as everyone else so we can save a little bit of our vacation money for fun things!

 

I've also been told by my DH that we aren't going to be the only people on the ship in an inside cabin - we are going to have LOTS of company! We are really looking forward to our vacation - probably more this year than any other year due to the stresses of home remodeling. I know my DH is looking forward to lifting a frozen beverage instead of a hammer!

 

Thanks to everyone for your kind comments and uplifting viewpoints. I really appreciate them! :)