NEW to Princess, Cruising and Cruise Critic...HELP!!

[abster70]

;) Hi everyone...

 

I'm new to all things cruising and while I pride myself on doing TONS of homework, I have sooo many questions!:eek:

 

First, a little backround. We are planning our first cruise. After agonizing for 2 weeks on which Southern Carrib. cruise my hubby and I will take for our 10 year anniversary, we have I think settled on Princess (Golden) Southern Carrib. explorer on 1/14/06. It was either that or the Celebrity (Constellaton) 7 night Southern.

 

1-In your experienced opinions, are we making the right choice in terms or ship? (we are mid 30's leaving our kids for the first time. It's our first vacation in 6 years...! Constellation seems to get higher "scores". But l think the Princess itinerary is a little more exotic (St. Kitts, Caracas etc.) Price is almost identical between Princess and Celebrity.

 

2-On Princess, deciding between balcony cabin on Baja deck and inside cabin on Baja deck. Price difference is about $325 pp. Is it REALLY worth the extra money? SERIOUSLY NEED HELP WITH THIS. I mean an extra $700 would really help with drinks/shore excursions...

 

3-****How do we find Cruise Critic people planning to take the same cruise? We'd love to make some friends before sailing!****

 

4- Where do I find best info on shore excusions for my itinerary. Should I book through cruise lines or is it really easy to do stuff on your own even if we're first timers?

 

5-Personal choice or traditional seating? HELP!

 

6-Where can I find the "best kept secrets" for having a great cruise?

 

Have tons more questions but I will start here...input and info/suggestions would be very much appreciated!

[MichTraveler]

First of all -- great decision on taking a cruise vacation.

Many of your questions depend on personal choice.

1. This is the Princess board, so I prefer Princess. I don't think you can go wrong with either cruise line, so your decision on the ports and excursions seems very well informed.

2. I do inside cabins, so no help from me on this one.

3. Cruise critic calls this "Roll call". Done by ship and date. If nobody has started a thread yet, you can be first. 2006 may be early for some, but keep checking back.

4. Cruise critic area on port excursions too on the first web page

5. Tradional dining provides the opportunity to have the same table each evening and share with a group of people you will come to know well. Personal choice lets you switch times between early and late, and a different table each night. Table for 1 or 2 or groups of new friends. Traditional is for dinner only -- breakfast and lunch in the dining rooms are personal choice and not assigned. These boards will have comments from fans of each.

6. First secret of having a great cruise you've done -- research to find the one that fits your dreams and desires. Visit these boards for tips on packing, excursions, tips, and other must know information.

 

On tip for using the CC for Q&A: Ask one question per thread. That way that question will get the attention of cruisers who feel they know that topic best.

 

Happy anniversary and enjoy your cruise!

[elmtree]

After kicking and grumbling I convinced my hurband to take a cruise a few years ago on the Golden Princess to the Eastern Carribean...Well, we booked a balcony on Lido deck and he said it was the most relaxing and enjoyable vacation that we had ever taken! We loved the balcony...used it each night to sit and talk and watch the stars and listen to the water...We just booked our third cruise in May with Diamond Princess to Alaska with a balcony. I think he is looking forward to it more than I am...so if you can afford it..take the balcony and enjoy! You only live once!

[melissa_bel]

Welcome to Princess, abster.

First of all, you've made a great choice!

 

1. I have sailed on the Grand (the Golden is a sister ship to the Grand) and I heard it is even more beautiful! The Grand was the "template" for the whole class and they made further improvements. The Grand Class are classy, elegant ships with lots of brass, marble and woods. I love to look at the pictures of ships and I think they have the prettiest outdoor pools.

 

2. If you don't feel comfortable by booking a balcony, then don't. I know once you go balcony, you never go back ;) but in my opinion, I'd rather have some money left to be able to enjoy drinks, excursions, shopping, etc. We booked inside guaranteed but got upgraded to outside cabins. This coming cruise, we're still in an inside but upgarded on a better deck. You'll be on Baja deck so, the Lido Deck is not far away, you can enjoy breakfast on the Terrace and the view is even better than from any balcony IMHO.

 

3. There's a roll-call board for Princess, you'll have to search for your ship and date of sailing.

 

4. If you're really affraid of missing the ship, then booking through Princess. The ship will always wait if a Princess excursion is late. BUT it's really overpriced. DH and I always try to book independent tours or just visit on our own. It just makes it even more fun as I have to do all the research ;). You can find shore exursions sample for the Caribbean here: http://www.princess.com/destination/shoreExcursion.do?resTradeId=C&view=shorex

Once you are booked, approximately 60 days (I think?) before departure, you will be able to pre-order shore excursions online through your Cruise Personalizer or, when you'll receive your pre-cruise package.

 

5. Depends of you and your husband.If you like dining at the same time, with the same people and the same waiting team, then go traditional. If you like to just "show up" at the time you want, dine with your husband alone or with new found friends, then go Anytime Dining. You can also make a reservation for a table or a time if you select Anytime Dining.

 

6. There was a thread about Princess' secrets, I'm sure someome will find it for you.

[Aquarian]

Hi Welcome to our board and welcome to Princess. In your age group, I think you would prefer Princess over Celebrity (just my opinion). I'd like to address something you didn't ask. This is your first cruise and you have selected a southern itinerary which is a port intensive cruise. You might have enjoyed a western or eastern itinerary for your first cruise because that would provide you with more days at sea which would give you more time to experience the ship and it's activities. If you have already decided on a southern cruise, keep in mind that it will be a busy week with only one sea day. When in port, you might want to do some excursions that are morning or afternoon only so that you have some time while in port to enjoy the ship. Again, only a suggestion. By the way, my favorite cruise out of 7 cruises was our southern Caribbean cruise. Traditional or personal choice dining are both great. It depends on you. If you want to be alone for dinner, I would suggest personal choice and ask for a table for two ONLY. Traditional is a wonderful experience and everyone should try it at least once because the service is wonderful but it is regimented. If you want to be free to dine when and where you want, personal choice is for you. Inside or balcony? I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that if you have to ask, go for inside because money is probably a consideration. We always book an inside stateroom and use the extra money on excursions, drinks, souveniers, photos, etc. That said, if I had the extra money and didn't have to worry about a budget, I would go for the balcony room. You will love your cruise.

[AmyinGA]

1. We've been on the Grand (sister ship to Golden). We liked it so much that we booked a 2nd cruise on the Grand.

2. I love having a balcony cabin. It adds so much to my cruise experience. I get a pool longe chair out on my balcony and it's great at night to relax. We've done two mini suites and one balcomy on Princess and I can't imagine not having a balcony. For me I will save up for a few more months to get a balcony.

3. Ditto above post

4. use this site for port info, but you can also read up on shoretrips.com. I haven't booked with them, but it's good for research. We tend to book excursions with Princess--but we have booked with a private tour too. If I am going on a cruise during a risky season (hurricane) I will always book with the line. Or if I am going to a less travelled port I'll use the line, but if it's someplace like Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman or Cozumel there are plenty of good tour operators that are popular on CC.

5. We haven't done traditional since our schedule is so different each day. We like the flexibilty of Anytime and we have always found a great waiter that we stick with for the whole cruise.

6. There are quite a few topics here for first time cruisers and best secrets. I didn't really get into CC until after our first cruise and reading the posts here each day really helped with the planning for our second and third--so keep reading.

[KKB]

We are the same as you --10 year anniv. 30somethings, left kids.

Had a BLAST on Princess. My folks loved Celebrity, but I think Princess has a wider variety of ages.

We booked interior GTY, got upgraded to outside w/ large window; saw room w/ balcony. Personally, we decided the balcony was NOT worth the extra $ for us. We did like the big window. BUT some love the balcony. Decide if you would use it.

We spent $100/day on booze...(somehow were never drunk...), $250 on excursions (some ports we did them others not, loved both), $50 pics, $75 bingo (won $300), $150 tips, $150 shopping on the ship, $50 internet, $125 casino tournaments (won $500); plus $1K to spend on gambling, ports, and transfers/tips/meals/etc. the couple of days before and after. Just about right. So, extra $700 worth it for us.

My DH was somewhat skeptical of a cruise, but called it AMAZING by the first whole day, and is HOOKED. We were busy all day everyday--but you could just as easily do NOTHING, too.

Happy cruising!

Kristin

[SueSea]

7 day Southern Caribbean cruises are typically port intensive. Many have only 1 sea day. My rule of thumb when selecting a cabin is the longer the time on board, the better the cabin. I've booked anywhere from an inside to a minisuite, but I can't see spending the extra money if I'm not going to be in my cabin much. I would not spend the extra money for a balcony on a cruise when I only have one day at sea. Between exploring the ports during the day and exploring the ship at night, I wouldn't have any time to spend out on the balcony. I've sailed the Southern route twice, once in an inside and once in an outside (my traveling companion's choice). I did not miss for a moment not having a balcony.

[CruiseFever]

Welcome abster!

 

If the answers we give you cause you to have more questions let us know ok?

 

PS- Good choice on the Golden, we loved her!

[kkorman]

For me, I'd take the inside over the balcony any day. I just don't get enough use out of the balcony to justify the cost. Instead, choose a room where you can get outside easily.

 

As for your ship... I would have chosen the Constellation. Don't get me wrong, I love Princess, but I am really curious to see the Cirque Du Soleil show and masquerade they are putting on the Constellation.

[craftsrdkc]

Hi Abster...don't know if this is going to sound a bit harsh, but in my opinion I would never book an inside cabin again. My DH and I decided on an inside cabin on one of our Carribean cruises, and I never felt so cramped or claustrophobic as I did in that room. I personally need real sunlight to wake up and I had a really hard time doing so. We missed half of our day on the private island because we missed our wake-up call and with no sunlight streaming in we just could not get up. If you do not want to spend extra on a balcony, at least go for an outside with a window. You never know...the upgrade fairy could strike and you could get that balcony afterall. Also, we went on our last couple of cruises without the kids and we chose Southern cruises as well. With no kids, we felt we could spent extra on all the ports excursions and really pack it in. We loved it. So many islands and so many adventures. This time we are taking the girls, so we have opted for a cruise with only 3 ports and more at sea time. Good luck!

 

 

Dolores

 

---------------------------

 

March 27/05 - Star Princess - Can't Wait!!

[bunky144]

Now that everyone has made your head spin LOL, I too have to agree the balcony is still the best bet. We spent every morning looking out into the water over a wonderful coffee, danish and fresh fruit wonder to start our day and ended every night watching the stars and relaxing with a drink before retiring, although I stop stort at the balcony and do not move on to a mini suite, that would be over the top and over budget. I after a scare with cancer 9 years ago, changed my outlook on life and within reason try to reach for the stars every minute I can, take the balcony, you only live once! Have a Wonderful trip, this will be our 4th Princess cruise in February to Mexico and I am once againg on cloud nine. Princess is truly where I belong!!!

Welcome, Enjoy!

[momthecruisedirector]

We've had both an inside room and a balcony room. We were able to take two 4 night cruises this year by taking an inside room. The tv in the room has a web cam so we left the tv on all night so when we woke up we could tell if it was 'morning' at a glance and know if we were in port. It's really not necessary to have a balcony, especially for the first cruise - like someone else has said - it's really hard to go back down once you've had the balcony thought. Having your dinner on the balcony on a warm evening is...heavenly. Another idea to help research - go to your local library and check out all the Frommers guides and other books on the ports you'll be visiting. And try to fly in at least the night before so you can be well rested for your vacation!

[bruce-r]

;) Hi everyone...

Hi yourself and welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

1-In your experienced opinions, are we making the right choice in terms or ship? Price is almost identical between Princess and Celebrity.

In my opinion Princess is the right choice. It has a bit more casual atmosphere and I think that your age demographic will be better represented on the Golden.

 

2-On Princess, deciding between balcony cabin on Baja deck and inside cabin on Baja deck. Price difference is about $325 pp. Is it REALLY worth the extra money? SERIOUSLY NEED HELP WITH THIS. I mean an extra $700 would really help with drinks/shore excursions...

If a balcony is worth the money is very subjective. Undoubtedly you will get recommendations both ways, but if money is tight, since this is your first cruise, you should go with the cheaper inside cabin. Once you do have a balcony, it will be seriously difficult for you to go back to the inside. Most people that go with the inside only use the cabin for sleeping and changing clothes (newly weds are the exception ;) ) On the other hand, if you think you will be spending much time in your cabin and since this is a special occasion kind of trip and you don't plan to go on another cruise, then go with the balcony.

 

3-****How do we find Cruise Critic people planning to take the same cruise? We'd love to make some friends before sailing!****

Look over the Princess Roll Call section. If you can't find a roll call for your cruise, start one of your own.

 

4- Where do I find best info on shore excusions for my itinerary. Should I book through cruise lines or is it really easy to do stuff on your own even if we're first timers?

The ports of call section of Cruise Critic is a good place to start. I'll also recommend the book Frommers Caribbean Cruises and Ports of Call It will give you an idea of what is available at each island. Doing your own tours is easy enough, usually costs less, and is offer more personal than the ship's excursions. The one thing people will warn you about is that the ship won't wait for you if you don't make it back before she sails. This is something to consider, especially if you are an anxious type person. Plan to be back at least half an hour before last call and you should be fine.

 

5-Personal choice or traditional seating? HELP!

Personal choice is great in that it gives you more flexibility as to when you go to dinner. You will also have a choice of 2 dinning rooms in PC dining over the 1 Traditional dining room. If you go with PC, you can make a reservation for the same time, same table every night if you want. If you go with Traditional, there are a couple of things you will experience that PC diners don't get; Baked Alaska and the waiters parade. While they aren't that big of deal for a more seasoned cruiser, with this being your first cruise, I would recommend Traditional dining. You will most likely be placed at a table with other couples and it can be fun meeting others and making friends this way. If you do go Traditional, you still have the option of using PC dining if you need the time flexibility on a particular night. Again, my recommendation is Traditional dining.

 

6-Where can I find the "best kept secrets" for having a great cruise?

Keep reading this message board and pack your best, friendliest, most flexible attitude and you will have a great time.

[Bettyboop66]

Hi Abster,

I'm also kind of new to this board but not to cruising. Since I have been on both lines only 1 time each I will give you my opinion also. We loved both cruising (what's not to love?) but Princess just a little bit better. I can't help much with the excursions for Princess and Southern Carribean, we were in Alaska on Princess. I have to praise Princess for a minute, this might help you see what a good choice you made. We were in Alaska on 9/11 and when we got back to Ancorage Princess had rented a large conference room for all of us, we couldn't fly yet, and were doing everything they could to help us arrange travel home. Paid for hotel for ANYONE that had to stay over nite, we were lucky we got to fly home late that day. But I knew a few that weren't so fortunate and Princess did exactly what they said they would do. From what I learned while walking around Ancorage not all cruise lines were so nice. Enough about Princess and back to your questions.Out of the 5 cruises we have been on we've had a balcony once and did like it but, the one bad thing we had smokers on both sides of us. I'm not saying they don't have every right to smoke on their balcony but the smoke came over to our side which kind of ruined our balcony relaxing. But we are trying it one more time in Dec. hopefully we will get lucky this time. I would definetly spring for at least a window we had one on the other cruises and did like it. My daughter has been in an inside cabin and she said that they are pitch black. I liked personal choice much better than traditional, on 1 cruise we had some people at our table that complained about everything, it made us not look forward to dinner. With personal choice you get to meet several different groups of people. If you like them alot you can always make reservations and eat with them again. I hope that you enjoy your cruise, I know that my husband and I are hooked. It's the best way to vacation.

[PearlandCruiser]

I'm a returning newbie to cruise critic, (lost my old password :o and with a new internet service provider I couldn't email to get it) I totally relied on this board during our last cruise and they did not steer me wrong.

 

We had an inside cabin on our first cruise and thought it was great. Some of the good things were a really good nights sleep, its really is dark and this comes in handy for afternoon naps too. On our first cruise we really were all over the ship and we were with a large group of friends so we didn't spend a lot of time in the room. It was somewhat cramped but being your first cruise I would bet you won't be in the room 24/7.

 

On our second cruise we got a balcony. We thought we would try it out and see if it was worth it. It was, but this time it was just "us" and we spent lots of time on the balcony. From coffee in the morning to drinks at night. We loved it! I don't know if we will go back inside again or not.

 

On our next cruise we decided to change cruise lines ... to Princess. They are sailing from the Galveston port so we didn't have to fly this time so we are using the extra money to get a Mini....lord only knows if we will work our way up to a PH one day...lol I'm really looking forward to hearing about MUTS and any new improvements they have made. I think the first sailing is November 8th. I can't wait for the reviews.:D

 

As for the shore excursions, on our first cruise we booked everything thru Carnival, then I found Cruise Critic. On our Second one we booked our own. We saved lots of money and the excursions were much more personal. We didn't feel like cattle being herded. The groups tend to be much smaller. For example in Grand Caymans the did the stingray tour, our group had about 15 people, the ship had huge groups. With the smaller groups the tour guides were able to really talk to each person, help handle the stingrays and show us how to feed them. We also took a guided tour when we were in Jamaica again about 10 people. It just seem much more personal and we really got lots more out of the tours than the first time around.

 

Also on our second cruise somehow we ended up with a table for two. I'm not sure how this happened but we thought it was great the first few nights.... but we are both social people so we missed having table mates. It's fun to hear what everyone is doing plus you learn so much from others just like this board. We are wait listed for our up coming cruise with traditional early dining. I'm crossing my fingers that we get in but I'm not holding my breath...we are like 260 or something.:eek:

 

Whatever you and your husband decide don't worry, you WILL have a wonderful time, and you will come away with dreams and ideas for the NEXT cruise. I hope this helps some.:D

[Marmarjudy]

Hi Abster...don't know if this is going to sound a bit harsh, but in my opinion I would never book an inside cabin again. My DH and I decided on an inside cabin on one of our Carribean cruises, and I never felt so cramped or claustrophobic as I did in that room. I personally need real sunlight to wake up and I had a really hard time doing so. We missed half of our day on the private island because we missed our wake-up call and with no sunlight streaming in we just could not get up. If you do not want to spend extra on a balcony, at least go for an outside with a window. You never know...the upgrade fairy could strike and you could get that balcony afterall. Also, we went on our last couple of cruises without the kids and we chose Southern cruises as well. With no kids, we felt we could spent extra on all the ports excursions and really pack it in. We loved it. So many islands and so many adventures. This time we are taking the girls, so we have opted for a cruise with only 3 ports and more at sea time. Good luck!

 

 

Dolores

 

---------------------------

 

March 27/05 - Star Princess - Can't Wait!!

 

I will second this...go for at least an outside (with a window) for your first cruise and such a special vacation. Do the cheapest outside category in a guarantee. The last thing you would want is to be turned off by the cabin because it can ruin the whole trip. If you are at all claustrophobic, do not even consider an inside cabin. In my opinion, an inside cabin is like a coffin--absolutely no light. I did an inside for my third cruise and if I hadn't already been totally in love with cruising the cabin may have ruined it for me. (Can you tell I'm a light lover and somewhat claustrophobic???) Now, after 18 or 19 cruises, I may consider an inside if it is close to free, just to be on the ship. For a new cruiser it's a gamble.

 

Just my opinion. (And I think Princess is a much better choice as well for a first timer, with the anytime dining)

 

Judy

[brillohead]

2-On Princess, deciding between balcony cabin on Baja deck and inside cabin on Baja deck. Price difference is about $325 pp. Is it REALLY worth the extra money? SERIOUSLY NEED HELP WITH THIS. I mean an extra $700 would really help with drinks/shore excursions...

 

This is such a personal thing.... are you the type of person who is likely to spend a LOT of time alone in your cabin? Or are you more likely to spend time lounging up on deck by the pool, or up on the side upper decks getting sun, or walking around enjoying the view, or off doing the various daily activities (line dance class, port-of-call lectures, movies, shows, art classes, pool games, etc)?

In our case, we are *rarely* in our cabin, for different reasons: our 4yo would have lived in the Fun Zone if given the option, and my husband was always in one of three places: pool, hot tub, or bar with new friends. I was often in the library enjoying my backlog of magazines (moms NEVER get peace and quiet, so the library was heaven for me!), or chatting with new friends, or lounging in a pool or hot tub, or soaking in the heat in the steam room or sauna. We were in the cabin to shower/dress/sleep and that's really it.

None of us are morning people and enjoy sleeping in a bit, so not having any sunlight streaming in the window at 6am was nice in our inside cabin. (Take a power strip to put on the desk and plug a nightlight into it -- worked great for us! We also took a battery-operated alarm clock with an Indiglo nightlight built in.) Other people *hate* not seeing the sunshine coming into their windows and so they abhor an inside cabin. Neither of us is right or wrong, just better suited to one situation or the other.

As for those who find an inside "claustrophobic", that's just a personal mental issue -- insides are the same size as outsides - they just have a mirror instead of a window. The only way I see an argument for a balcony being more "spacious" is for those who bring their own SCUBA equipment with them; putting it out on the balcony to dry would leave more room in the cabin and bathroom. Other than that, relying on the weather's cooperation for you to have the balcony as "extra free space" is iffy, in my opinion. If you're fully dressed and need more room away from your traveling companion(s), just go to a different part of the ship! :p

 

4- Where do I find best info on shore excusions for my itinerary. Should I book through cruise lines or is it really easy to do stuff on your own even if we're first timers?

 

Depends on the port -- some are totally safe, others are not-so-safe. That said, just do your research. Type in the name of your port in any search engine and see what comes up; you may find something that the cruise ship didn't even offer! In many cases, you can buy the exact same excursion on the dock for a savings of 25%-50%, but then again not always. My advice would be to go ahead and book through the ship if you're going to a "questionable" port, or if there's a particular excursion that you have your heart set on. If you have a wide range of "possible" excursions in a particular port and you would be happy with any of them, chances are excellent that you can ONE of them yourself once on shore.

5-Personal choice or traditional seating? HELP!

 

Another "personal" issue. Do you want to have a table for two, or do you want to eat at a bigger table with strangers? Do you want to eat your dinner at the exact same time every night, or do you want the flexibility of going when your schedule suits each day? We really enjoyed the Anytime Dining aspect, and will never choose Traditional again -- our son wanted to be at the Fun Zone at 7pm each night, and that didn't work into either of the Traditional Dining time frames.

We also liked that the Anytime Dining focuses on OUR needs, not the kitchen's needs. My husband rarely gets soup and NEVER gets a salad, and I usually bypassed both of those courses as well, simply to make sure I had room for dessert when the time came. ;) If we were in the Traditional dining room, we would have been sitting there watching everyone else eat those two courses while we had nothing in front of us, b/c they bring out each course to everyone at the table at the same time. But with our Anytime Dining at our table just for our family, the courses were delivered only if we ordered them, so we went from Appetizer to Entree to Dessert most of the time. Other than Formal Night, I don't think we had a single night that we weren't in and out of the Anytime dining room in under an hour. (That part got a BIG thumbs up from all of us -- the kid got to go to Fun Zone on time, and we had more time to enjoy the ship!)

[llund]

Can you drop a deck or two and get an outside room which may save some money? I personally need a window as I would really feel cramped in a room with no windows or natural light. Balconies are great and you do get spoiled but, if money is a question, at least go for a window. Since it is your anniverasy and you will be alone without the kids, you may find that you will enjoy the balcony if it is affordable. I haven't done PC dining so cannot really comment about that. However, since this is your first cruise, you may want to go traditional to get the "cruise experience" of having the same waiter, same tablemates, etc. It is great when you get to the table and the waiter knows you and your choice of drink. I usually book my own excursions, but did not so this on my first cruise. You may feel a little better by booking through the ship since this is your first cruise. You can use the threads to give you an idea of what you would like to see and do in each port.

[kryos]

2-On Princess, deciding between balcony cabin on Baja deck and inside cabin on Baja deck. Price difference is about $325 pp. Is it REALLY worth the extra money? SERIOUSLY NEED HELP WITH THIS. I mean an extra $700 would really help with drinks/shore excursions...

What decision you make on this depends upon your own personal style. Do you think you'll spend a lot of time in the cabin? Is sitting out on the balcony and watching the ocean go by important to you? If you are the type of person who likes to be out and about (like I am), I would say you're better off with the inside cabin, and use that $700 bucks for other "goodies."

 

Also, destination of the cruise plays into the equation as well. While I don't consider balcony cabins important, I might change my tune if I were to go to Alaska or Hawaii or someplace like that. If the itinerary involves a lot of days at sea or some really awesome scenery, a balcony cabin could really be worth it since it will provide you with a private place to relax and watch the world go by.

 

So, while I realize this isn't much help, this is a decision that really all depends on your personal style ...

 

Good luck in whatever you choose ...

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[enymarsh]

As I read various comments I think an issue to consider is the location not just what kind of cabin. There are some inside cabins I would prefer over some balconies. Sometimes the (less expensive) balcony cabins are positioned over noisy areas like bars/clubs or under pool areas. Being directly over a club could be noisy at night, while a cabin under the pool area could be noisy early in the morning (when people are dragging lounges around). Unless I am going for an aft balcony :D I look for a cabin that's on a deck that doesn't have public areas above or below it.

[2cruisemates]

I say book the balcony~ You have not been on a vacation in 6 years!

 

Live it up! :)

[llund]

I agree!

[garycarla]

It is starting to look like this thread should be titled Balcony or Inside!

 

There is a middle ground called Oceanview that many have overlooked. Though we did a balcony on a recent Alaska cruise and LOVED it, we just did two weeks on a smaller ship with only a window and did fine.

 

For first time cruisers, if money is an issue, you will be fine with an inside. Keep in mind that many REPEAT cruisers normally take an inside. You do save lots of money. It does encourage you to get out and about more. And there is lots to do. Remember, on most of these ships, a third to half of the rooms are NOT balcony,and they are selling out.

 

And, regarding ports. Some people only get off at some of the ports. There is so much to do on the ship, and the food is already paid for. Do not feel that you HAVE to visit every port, especially when the main attraction is shopping. (Don't get me started on that.)

[Pam in CA]

I'm with those who really, really love the balcony. I use it during the day to relax and read, at night to watch the ocean go by and I leave it open so I have fresh air when I'm sleeping. I try for a balcony whenever I can possibly afford it. You're going with your husband, getting away from the kids, so treat yourself to a balcony. Since this is going to be like a second honeymoon, you're probably not going to want to spend all your time on deck with thousands of other passengers. Time to yourself and your husband is important. So, go for the balcony.

 

One other comment on the itinerary is about Caracas. While it's on the itinerary, it's usually taken off due to political unrest. So, don't count on going there. :( If you do, that's one place you'd want to take a ship's excursion and not go on your own.