cant decide between a reg balcony or an aft

[singbluesilver1]

i am booked in a 8c for my honeymoon on the valor.......we can get an aft cabin for about 100 more bucks total

 

we are not sunshine people and i have heard that you dont get much shade there on the back of the ship as its on a slant...which is why we went with a 8c..however i have heard so much good stuff about the aft cabins...i am rethinking it

 

so what is everyones opinion??

 

 

it would suck if the only time we could use the balcony was at night due to blinding sunlight out there...

[Catnip]

I think with aft cabins, you either love them or hate them. I prefer the cabins on the side of the ship, because I love to stand out on the balcony and watch the ship pulling into port each morning. I like to watch the people getting on & off the ship and having a good view of the island itself.

 

I've never stayed in an aft cabin, but I've been in one. I would dislike the thought of only being able to see where I've been! :eek: And on some ships, there is a problem of ashes from the smokestack.

[poobears]

I think I would only do aft if I could get a corner wrap so I had an extra big balcony and could still see the side. Seems like the best of both worlds. Otherwise, I'd go with a side balcony. I wouldn't want to just be able to see the wake and where I've been either.

[TaterSalad]

i am booked in a 8c for my honeymoon on the valor.......we can get an aft cabin for about 100 more bucks total

 

we are not sunshine people and i have heard that you dont get much shade there on the back of the ship as its on a slant...which is why we went with a 8c..however i have heard so much good stuff about the aft cabins...i am rethinking it

 

so what is everyones opinion??

 

 

it would suck if the only time we could use the balcony was at night due to blinding sunlight out there...

 

I personally love the aft and try to get it whenever possible. However, there is no shade. Sometimes when I want to read I put the chair in the corner right up against the door to get what little shade is available. To me the trade off is worth it for the view from the back. I also don't notice much of a breeze in the aft. I like that as I don't like the wind that I get on side balconies.

 

It's just about what you are looking for. One person's perfect location is another person's "what was I thinking" location.

[cmlmich]

I am thinking about booking a balcony room for our first cruise in Jan. What is a aft???

[poobears]

It's a balcony on the back of the ship instead of the side of the ship.

[Heirloom]

.....that some people LOVE the idea of an aft balcony.

 

We just returned from an awesome cruise on Carnival Freedom, and enjoyed most every minute . Early on, we walked the ship inspecting this and that.....and ended up having a pizza at very back of ship Lido Deck adult pool area. Looking down, what did we see ? Lots of aft balcony people standing at their railings, smoking, drinking, talking and looking at each other. From where we were, trust me.....it was kinda like watching a group of exhibitionists. No privacy.......we could see essentially down the back of ship with no effort.....lots of heads and backs. Not a "classy" looking area of this great ship. Each level visable and exposed. Yuk.

 

Don't most cruisers like escaping to themselves after being with 3,000 + other cruisers on the rest of the ship ? (Not these aft-balcony repeaters, trust me).

 

Aside from lack of privacy, other people having commented about.....there is no shade or wind on back aft rooms......they run hot. There is an engine grinding sound that many say they don't hear or feel after awhile, and some report soot from engine exhaust accumulates at night on balcony? One thing that may or may not be important to you (it is to us):

 

The very front and back of any ship is much less stable than the middle.

Well our latest cruise (April 25-May 3)......was very ROUGH waters for first 3 days. Many were ill and uncomfortable. My guess is that it included LOTS of aft customers. If you've ever been seasick....you don't ever want it again.

 

Anyway......here's an idea of what to expect regarding "privacy" (click on derf's pics):

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=312964&highlight=privacy

 

To each his own !

[tef43]

To each his own !

Absolutely! And with that said, we will continue to book aft balconies without exception.

 

But keep in mind, all aft balconies are not created equal.

 

We once had 8430 on Triumph, directly below the Lido. Early morning chair-scraping sounds as the deck stewards prepared the aft pool area for the day. Also, occasionally we detected cooking odors. But these two distractions did not minimize our enjoyment of the balcony. To avoid the noise, make sure you book a cabin on a deck with passenger decks above and below.

 

Yes, people can look down to your balcony, but you can only be seen if you are right up to the rail. If someone is *that* interested in what we may be doing, more power to them. In fact, if you want pics, or even video, I'll be glad to email them to you, provided you submit an affadavit stating your age. :rolleyes:

 

Engine noise? Honestly, we only heard anything when they were using the thrusters to maneuver in and out of port.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

I personally like my aft balcony but agree there is less privacy up against the rail and I had soot on the chairs from the smoke stack. Just put a towel down before you sit on a chair. My dh ruined his shorts from the black soot. The view was awesome and we watched dolphins jumping in the wake. It was noisy. That water rushing from the wake is very loud but you don't hear a thing when the door is closed. But if you want to nap with the door open while sailing isn't really easy to do.

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

A couple more

 

view all at http://travel.webshots.com/album/570837738JmKKIZ

[terinzak]

I've book an aft-wrapped balcony on the 06/19/10 Carnival Dream. It's our first Carnival Cruise and our first balcony ever:D

[paradoc1]

We have booked the aft wrap around on the Glory every time we have been on her and just love it, yes it's warm during the day with little shade but the evenings and nights are more than worth it. we took a small cd player with speakers, put them on the table , glass of wine, full moon ships wake and stars and danced together with nobody to bother us, it was fantastic, the room for the wrap around is comparable to a suite and is much bigger than the reg balcoly room. look for the 9A cat and try to stay on the empress deck or upper, that way you have no noise from the lido deck, the empress is the best. its also great for sitting out in the am with coffee and room service. never had much trouble with noise or soot. but taking a nam then waking up and sitting out there watching the wake is sooooo relaxing.

[BBigfoot613]

 

Yes, people can look down to your balcony, but you can only be seen if you are right up to the rail. If someone is *that* interested in what we may be doing, more power to them. In fact, if you want pics, or even video, I'll be glad to email them to you, provided you submit an affadavit stating your age. :rolleyes:

 

Engine noise? Honestly, we only heard anything when they were using the thrusters to maneuver in and out of port.

 

It's great to hear about the engine noise. We have the twin (8435) of 8430 on our upcoming cruise. If you seriously have pics and/or video of the room/balcony can you email them to me please? I couldn't tell if you were just joking with the age verification thing lol. email's bnc13 at hotmail dot com.

[spleenstomper]

I'll probably try an aft wrap eventually (when we sail with the kids we like to get a penthouse so the kids can be with us and an aft would be too small).

 

From what I have gathered, the pros:

 

Great views. I think the room is a little larger than a reg. balcony? (someone correct me). Great views. Outside in the hallway is less noisy because no one walks that far down. The wake is soothing (I don't know if it would be any more soothing than on a regular balcony).

 

Cons:

 

Blinding and hot sun. Lack of privacy. Sometimes trash and ash and cigarette butts land on aft balconies.

 

At any rate, definitely you did well with a balcony! I'm a balcony snob and I dont' think I could ever do without.

[Skywench]

I prefer the aft balconies to the ones on the side. I have an aft wrap booked for my next cruise and am looking forward to it. When I booked it, my discount wasn't available for the cabin I chose, but was for a suite. I chose to have the aft wrap instead of the suite, which was on the side. For me, the view from the aft as you sail away can't be beat.

[michiganirish]

I haven't been back - 3 years in a row - aft wrap - booked 4 next year - the heat is no problem for us- we sail in february we never complain about being too hot- takes a few days to thaw out! :D

[Amber F]

I sailed on an extended balcony on the Pride, which is on the side of the ship. The lack of privacy looks the same on the aft pictures as the extended baclconies on the side of the Pride. We have an aft balcony booked on the Splendor for two weeks, so it will be interesting to see if there is a difference.

[sail2thebay]

Good to hear both pro's and con's on this issue. I did not book on, but did get an oceanview cabin, port side, aft on the Riveria Deck and did indeed hear the engine, but got used to it very quickly. The only "con" about the cabin location, was when the engines started up early in the morning when departing from the port. It felt and sounded like an earthquake:eek:. I did enjoy the view from the cabin and did enjoy the view from the aft itself on the deck(Lido I think). Love the view of the wake! Very soothing! I cruised on Carnival Sensation last year. I did indeed feel the motion of the ocean a little, but used the wristband thing and that helped alot. What's best? The seaband wristband, motion sickness pills or the patch behind the ear? Pro's and con's please! I am planning another cruise in October leaving from Norfolk and going to Nassau and Freeport. I hear it's best to get a cabin midship and in the middle of the ship, middle deck. Pro's and con's on this?

[crusinpsychRN]

We had an aft on the Mariner on RCL. The balcony was gigantic! It would have held 12 people easily. We had 2 loungers, 2 chairs, 2 tables. I put my suitcase out there because there wasn't enough room inside for it. We got some soot I had to wipe up and those above us could see us as we could see below us.

 

I didn't like it. I'd rather be on the side. I don't like to see where I've been. An aft wrap would be different. The Carnival afts are small compared to the Mariner.

[dahkota]

I loved the aft on our sailing to Alaska on the Spirit last year. So much so, I'm looking for a ship with one available to the caribbean this year. If you are sitting down or not at the rail you won't be seen by those above you or below you (even those beside you) any more than on side balconies. The sun was only hot (or at least shining in your eyes) when the boat's stern was directly facing the sun - probably about as often as the sun is shining on one side of the ship. You don't get the wind that is on the sides, but you get the sound of wake which, if you enjoy white noise generators, waterfalls, or waves crashing, is just as soothing. Out of all the days spent on the ship, we had soot once, and it was very light. The aft was also an added bonus in that when the ship pulled away from glaciers, guess who had the best view? Standing at the rail, you can see both sides and the rear - something not possible on most other cabin balconies. We also had better opportunities meeting our neighbors, a few of whom turned out to be very interesting and fun people. We had our on little clique form, and felt priveleged to have experienced many things (whale sightings, dolphins playing, seals gliding by) other did not.

 

On my upcoming but unbooked cruise, I'm going to be very sad not to have an aft, something for which I am more than willing to pay extra. For me, its kind of like flying first class - I don't need it, but it really adds to the wonderfulness of the total experience.

 

Oh, and for sea sickness, I highly recommend the sea bands. My first trip to Alaska I used them. We were on a private charter to visit Tracy Arm (about a 30' boat). A storm came up and we were jumping chop and 5' swells all the way back to Juneau, about 2 hours. Of course, I was told afterwards - I slept the entire way back, oblivious to it all. Never once did I even have a bit of nausea.

[Kurbanfan]

It depends...do you want to see where you have been....or where you are going....

I prefer to see where I am going:D

[aggieastrosfan]

I know a lot of people don't like the lack of privacy in aft cabins, but I actually like the camaraderie back there. :) Of course, the only aft cabins we've had are wraps, and we always have the side balcony as an option. Rarely use it, though. I'm one of those that doesn't like all the wind associated with being on the side.

[Insel]

We just returned from a aft cabin and I would never choose any other area of the ship. Having done other balconies, I am now a huge fan and will book another for next year, without a doubt. It was just amazing. Dh, who typically doesn't have an opinion either way agrees.:)

[Grits53]

The balconies I've had have been either mid ship cat. 11 suite or 9A aft wrap (except on the Miracle, the aft wrap is a cat. 11). I'll list the pros and cons that I've noticed.

 

Side balconies:

Pros: Mid ship means you'll probably do less walking, which can be a good or a bad thing! Mid ship usually gives you a smoother ride.

Cons: Side balconies are always windy. Smoke from neighboring balconies drifts to yours if you're down wind. Your view is limited to one side of the ship.

 

Aft balconies:

Pros: Bigger balcony. Much better view. No wind. No smoke from neighbors. Convenient to the aft dining room and Lido. Not much traffic in the halls outside your room.

Cons: You will occasionally have something land on your balcony from above. Usually, it's an ice cream cone, but we've had a drink glass, apple core, and a few more things end up on ours. This really makes DH mad, but I don't think it's a big deal. Sometimes you will have some soot on the chairs. That's easy enough to cope with!

There is some vibration at the aft, but it's not necessarily a bad thing. I sleep better there than anywhere!

Bottom line is, I will always have an aft balcony, if I can afford it!

[sccindy]

We had an aft on a 12 day Mediterranean cruise on the Freedom. LOVED IT!!! We would book an aft each time if one was available.