Cabin at 'front' of ship...rethinking view?

[buzymom3]

Hi Everyone

I am sailing on Freedom of Seas on March 22nd...I have two cabins at Cat. 6 and I am sort of rethinking where we choose them

 

They are on the very FRONT of the ship...(fore?) Cabins 6502 and 6202. We choose them because they both had pull out sofa's and they are close together to each other. We knew that we would lose the sofa's if we had adjoining and we really wanted the sofa for the kids to sleep on.

 

What do you think about the placement of the cabins? I am worried that all we will see is the bow of the ship with no real view of the ocean...

 

On the other hand, I could down grade to Cat 3 inside and save $500 on my mom's cabin cause she is a senior! But I was looking for the extra room AND the RCCL sales person said higher is better...

 

HELP! This is a spring break cruise and I know there is not too much left.

Janet

[Gonzo70]

With a stateroom near the front of the ship you are prone to feeling more motion than one towards the middle; you also have a longer walk to most public areas of the ship than if you are near the middle. If nobody in your party tends to easily become seasick and if nobody in your party minds walking a fair amount then your current location should be fine. I do not think your view from your balcony would be any different than if you were near the middle.

[buzymom3]

We don't have a balcony...we just have a large OV room. That is why I am sort of concerned about the view...looking out of a porthole, might now be the best view...looking at the deck below and the front of the ship.

 

I am concerned about this...

J

[hazmatt]

with a porthole view you'll have a view away from the ship. More than likely you probably wont even see the ship unless you get your face up against the glass.

[hazmatt]

I just looked at your deckplan and noticed that youre on either side of the presidential suites. You will have the same view as tose two suites, and I dont think RCCL is going to give them a bad view.:)

[buzymom3]

Hazmatt...That is pretty funny!! Nice way to look at it....:D

 

Price cuts just reduced the cost of a balcony to only $200 more per cabin on our cruise...Aghhhhhhhhh I just don't know what to do!!

 

I feel like a kid in a candy store who can only choose one thing in the WHOLE STORE! I don't want to make a mistake...it's alot of money for two cabins and I feel like I have 6 people's vacation dreams on my shoulders...plus this is a once in a lifetime event for us...{{{sigh}}}

 

Balcony for $200 more per cabin

OR

Save $500 and go to deck 3 oceanview (no balc) smaller room and have Pullman beds and no couch

OR

stay where we are

 

I am NEVER this indecisive...

j

[willysgrandma]

I would absolutely move to the balcony room for $200 more. Once you have a balcony, you may never want to go back to an oceanview.

 

One of our favorite things to do is sit on our balcony in our pj's and have breakfast from room service.

[hazmatt]

I agree with willysgrandma a balcony is a great way to go. Sitting on the balcony early in the morning is a great way to start the day. Its also a great way to see the ocean or port when you want to get away from the crowds and relax.

[sayhello]

I totally agree. $200 for a balcony on a 7-night cruise? Absolutely! Only way to go.

 

Sayhello

[buzymom3]

Gee would it be sooo bad to put Grandma in the ov regular room on deck 3...save the $500 AND use that to get one balcony??? LOL :eek:

 

no no no I am just kidding!! lol:D

[sayhello]

Gee would it be sooo bad to put Grandma in the ov regular room on deck 3...save the $500 AND use that to get one balcony??? LOL :eek:

 

no no no I am just kidding!! lol:D

Hee! now, now....

 

Actually, I would say the OV is also going to be very nice... I had the OV on Adventure of the Seas and enjoyed it quite a lot. They aren't the same class of ship, but since Freedom is newer, I wouldn't *think* it'd be that different. The square footage you have is definitely better than what I had. And the couch is a very nice thing to have when you're not sleeping, and I really wouldn't give that up. But if it was me, I'd still go for the balcony. :D

 

Sayhello

[willysgrandma]

Gee would it be sooo bad to put Grandma in the ov regular room on deck 3...save the $500 AND use that to get one balcony??? LOL :eek:

 

no no no I am just kidding!! lol:D

 

Who is paying for Granny's cruise? If you are - it isn't the worst idea in the world.....;)

[DonnaK]

Initially, I was going to recommend staying where you are rather than downgrading to OV's on deck 3 even though that would save you $500. I think that you'll appreciate having the larger OV cabins. The location wouldn't bother me too much. The ship travels pretty slowly between the ports because they aren't that far away from each other. As well, the ship has excellent stabilizers to minimize the rocking. The view out the front of the ship is very special and unique, too.

 

However, when I read that you could upgrade to a balcony for just $200 per cabin, that's almost a bargain. If you could swing it and it won't break the bank, I'd say "go for it". This advice is coming from a budget cruiser who generally spends less on a cabin and puts the additional money towards excursions/onboard expenses. But in this case, I'd splurge because I'd be getting something really special for "just" $200 more.

[cruisePRN]

I wouldn't cruise in an inside cabin PERIOD :)

[lazygal]

Not to confuse you more, but have you checked your prices today? I don't know what you paid, but as of today the balcony guarantees are going for the same price as your OV H category and the insides are guarantees. Not only would you save $500, but chances are excellent that Granny would be on a higher deck than 3.

 

I would jump on both of those. That's a lot of bingo money for grandma.

[buzymom3]

Not to confuse you more, but have you checked your prices today? I don't know what you paid, but as of today the balcony guarantees are going for the same price as your OV H category and the insides are guarantees. Not only would you save $500, but chances are excellent that Granny would be on a higher deck than 3.

 

I would jump on both of those. That's a lot of bingo money for grandma.

 

Wait..Oceangal...I don't see any balcony guarantee's on the 3/22 sailing of FOS!! Where are you seeing this???? HELP! I wanna do that!! lol :p

Janet

[LonW]

My vote is for the balconey. Once you get a balconey you can never go back!;)

[The Flying Pirate]

We had a very similar cabin on Mariner, deck 6 forward. The view was great, and being in the bow you can see out both sides of the ship. It was a lot of fun to have coffee in the morning and watch the ship come into port out the window. Yes you can see the bow and the helicopter pad but you have a great view of the ocean. You just can't see straight down into the water, but then who cares? it is the view of the horizon that you want to see.

[halos]

Only $200 more for the cabin??

Choose the balcony. :)

[DrivesLikeMario]

We don't have a balcony...we just have a large OV room. That is why I am sort of concerned about the view...looking out of a porthole, might now be the best view...looking at the deck below and the front of the ship.

 

I am concerned about this...

J

 

Without a balcony, I don't think it's a good location. If the light coming in through the window is important to you, then go with the cabins you have picked out, but if it's not, go with something else. With a window in those cabins, you really won't have much of a view other than straight out. Looking down, you'll have the ship in front of you still, so you can really only look straight out. With a balcony, it's totally, totally different.

 

We've had a completely forward-facing suite with another adjoining suite next to it. It wasn't my first choice of location, but once we were there, WOW! It was incredible!! Having the balconies and being able to go right out in front of the ship was amazing. ;)

[lazygal]

I'm getting the prices right off the RCL website. Balcony guarantees are available, but the price went up since this morning. Still, it's only $60pp for a guaranteed balcony!

 

OV guarantees are $999.

 

I've gone from suites to an inside, so yes, you can go back - depends on how much you want to be on a ship!

[LAKaye]

I just looked at your deckplan and noticed that youre on either side of the presidential suites. You will have the same view as tose two suites, and I dont think RCCL is going to give them a bad view.:)

 

The view out the front of the ship is indeed unique and quite wonderful. It is a very short trip to go from 6502 and 6202 one deck down to the Pharaoh's Palace, where there is a door on the starboard side to get you out to the walkway to the helipad!

 

6502 and 6202 are on either side of two Family Stateroom ocean view rooms, not the one and only Presidential Family Suite on the aft, which actually has the very worst view on the entire ship.

 

Balcony rooms are great because they have a whole window-wall to look out of while you are in the room in addition to the obvious balcony to enjoy.

 

Leslie