Vista Ship - Deck 5 mid ship cabins

[doodbug]

Hi!

Will be grateful for any help I can get. I am currently booked on room 5102, a triple room on the Oosterdam for Dec. While I note that the balcony is tiny, I was wondering whether the cabin interior is larger? On a certain website (not HAL), it was mentioned that all the V rooms are 176 sq ft but the VE rooms with the tiny balconies are 194 sq ft....wonder if that is true? I wouldn't mind paying more for the VA rooms but I would trade balcony space for interior space since I have 3 in the room. Thanks so much.

[ore-ee-gun]

Hi Doodbug,

We were in 5120, which was also a triple. I can't compare to the VA category, but I can say we were comfortable with just two of us. Three might be do-able in terms of sleeping space, but when the sofa bed is made out, you will have almost certainly to climb over it to get to the verandah. Another consideration is these cabins are directly above the tenders, and they do make a racket early on the mornings when they use them.:)

[doodbug]

Hi oreegan,

Thanks for the quick reply! I was wondering whether the cbin interiors are larger than the other V rooms, ie VA to VF (excluding VE), and that is why the compromise in balcony space? Does the sofa bed stretch out to a twin size mattress?

 

I can't believe it, I called HAL up and they told me ALL VA to VF cabins and balconies are the same size!!! I just emailed them to get this in writing.....from all the discussions, I am certain the VE cabins have smaller balconies........

[bepsf]

Hi oreegan,

Thanks for the quick reply! I was wondering whether the cbin interiors are larger than the other V rooms, ie VA to VF (excluding VE), and that is why the compromise in balcony space? Does the sofa bed stretch out to a twin size mattress?

 

I can't believe it, I called HAL up and they told me ALL VA to VF cabins and balconies are the same size!!! I just emailed them to get this in writing.....from all the discussions, I am certain the VE cabins have smaller balconies........

 

Somebody is either confused or doesn't know what they're talking about...

...there are most definately larger and smaller balconies - but the vast majority of the V staterooms themselves are about the same size inside.

 

Yes, the sofas make into a twin bed, if so noted on the deckplans, but no additional space if they do so

[doodbug]

The worst thing was that I told the HAL lady on the phone that I had seen pictures and that I was certain balcony sizes differed....she told me not to trust the pictures as they were inaccurate!!! I couldn't believe my ears but I couldn't say anything against her.

 

I wonder if I should subscribe to cruisestateroom.com to find out. In any case, cruiseshopping.com did list the VE rooms as 194 sq ft vs 176 sq ft on the other non midship deck 5 V staterooms......

[lcs]

Ore-ee-gun,

 

Do you remember what time "early" is when the staff is working on the tenders? We are in cabin 5077 and wondering if we should change to something on deck 4 aft instead so we can not only see below us but avoid the noise. We are usually up and about by 7:00 or 8:00. Appreciate your response.

 

Linda

[ore-ee-gun]

How early depends on what time the ship arrives in port. I think we first heard the motors running between 6:30 and 7:00. It didn't bother us, since we were going ashore early anyway. However, if you're in #5077, this cabin is located well forward of the lifeboats used for tendering - you probably won't hear anything. :)

[lcs]

Thanks so much for the quick reply! That helped my DH out since he was the one that would have to call and see if we could get the room changed. While standing on the balcony could you see over the lifeboats? It almost looks like we're right on top of them.

 

Linda

[ore-ee-gun]

The tops of the lifeboats are a few feet below the bottom of the verandah and will not spoil your view. You won't be able to stand and look straight down to the water, but the view is otherwise not impeded. Enjoy!

[doodbug]

Oh! HAL just replied my email...guess what? The deck 5 staterooms are indeed larger than the other V staterooms, 194 sq ft vs 176. So it isn't too bad I suppose....forgoing some balcony space for stateroom space since I have 3 people in the room......