Advice on cabin choice for cruise

We may be going on a cruise next year. Never been on one. Some good prices out there for the standard room inside 183 square feet. Wow that’s like a closet.


So you experienced cruisers—-What do you choose? I’m sure I wouldn’t go for a suite but maybe a balcony or large window view. Thanks for any suggestions, opinions, and experiences.

 

Hi Valgal,

If you are a first time cruiser and choose a balcony, you probably willl not want an inside room ever.

Now that we have that out of the way . . . an inside room might be good for a first time cruiser as you have nothing to compare it to. And there are some seasoned cruisers who enjoy an inside room: good for sleeping in, cozy.

My choice is always a balcony cabin for these reasons: I like to stand or sit on my balcony away from the throngs on the public decks. I sometimes enjoy coffee in the early morning on my blacony. I like to nap without interruption or noise, the sound of the water waves really lull you to sleep. If you dock portside, you get to see the island in full or the late pier runners struggling to get back to the ship before the pushback!

It is really a matter of personal preference. If you are interesed in a great cruise site, try CruiseCritic. Their discussion boards are like here, very informative.

 

My first cruise I had a outside stateroom on deck 2. Slept great. Next cruise, went for a junior suite with a balcony. Unfortunately, it was right under the pool deck. No sleep for me that cruise . When there weren't people on the deck making noise, they were cleaning it, dragging deck chairs, rolling carts across it. etc.

Regardless of balcony or no balcony - just be aware of where the cabin you choose is on the ship, and what's above it or next to it.

I really enjoyed having a balcony on my recent river cruise. But on a sea cruise, not a hell of lot to look at most of the time. Just depends on how much time you plan on spending in the room.

 

I won't cruise without a balcony. But I know me, and I know how much time I spend on a balcony. A lot ;-) What there is to look at, of course, depends greatly on your itinerary. I also don't cruise a ton (prefer to visit one spot at a time, usually) so I can save up and am willing to spend more for the balcony. People who don't care about their cabin/room and spend most of their time in public spaces might be happier to save the money for an additional vacation. Your priorities. Means there's no bad choice, just the choice that makes sense for you.

 

my first cruise I picked a balcony because I wanted to make sure I wasn't claustrophobic -- I wasn't.... I did love standing on the balcony as we pulled into ports...I have 3 more cruises planned - one a mini suite, one a balcony and one an inside room... the inside room is because its only a 4 night cruise and the price was right... I look at the deck plans for the ship to see where I want my room.. I want a room above and rooms on either side to keep the noise down... I also watched many youtube videos of the different rooms on the ship I might pick... I have only cruised on Norwegian

 

if the price difference for a balcony isn't going to be an issue, go for the balcony.

some other info might help get you better advice, cruise line, itinerary, time of year etc...many times the difference in price is worth it-

for instance with Norwegian, a balcony will usually get you some extras included

 

I am a claustrophobic frequent cruiser and I have stayed in every level of stateroom with the exception of an Inside. I can honestly say that I have had a great time in all of them. I think it depends on if you will be out and about on the ship most of the time (which as a first time cruiser is pretty likely), or if you like to relax in your room a lot. As JosieCat said, cabin location is just as important as room type. I recommend you make your choice based on price & personal preference, but beware of booking a guarantee because you won't know where your room will be located.

 

What about cruisers who are prone to motion sickness? Will the location matter?

 

Then you probably would want an outside room. I think the lower floors tend to sway less.
I don't really care about the room, and in fact I sleep better in inside rooms. However my wife is not comfortable without a window.

 

I’ve never stayed in an inside cabin, always a balcony - sailaway(*), docking, whale watching, relaxing with a good book, napping, enjoying that morning cup of tea as the sun comes up, and just listening to the ship cutting through the water in the dark with the stars overhead - all things that I love about cruising.

An ocean view cabin would be a good choice if the balcony is too expensive. I’ve been in a friend’s inside cabin and it felt claustrophobic to me.

Mid ship, mid level or higher is often recommended for those who are motion sensitive, although unless the water is really choppy, we’ve never noticed it on lower decks when moving around the ship.

As others noted, If you choose a deck directly below the pool deck, be careful of location so you don’t hear the scraping and moving of chairs all night. We prefer a deck that has cabins above us.

There is so much to do on the ship, you may not spend much time in the cabin!

(*) on first day of the cruise, we always do sailaway on the upper decks since it’s such a fun, party atmosphere.

Have fun planning! As @VegasGroove noted, the cruise critic site really has great information and answers from cruisers. Some of those folks have over hundreds of sailings.

 

On our last Cruise we had an Oceanview though probably could have gone with an inside because we had a stop at a port everyday. Only one sea day. So not much time on the ship.

But for our next cruise if it ends up with 2 or 3 sea days we'd probably opt for a balcony. And midship is best for seasickness.

 

I've only just been on my first cruise. I had booked outside oceanview cabin. But, I took the upgrade for the balcony. We were port side, so had views of where we were. And, we were kind of mid ship towards the bow. deck 10, so pretty much middle in terms of height. I have a small older house with tiny bedrooms and bathroom but a huge kitchen so we didn't feel crunched. There's a lot of storage and good use of the space. I did spend time in the cabin, hanging out on the balcony or just relaxing in general. We agreed that we would need a balcony for sure if we do another cruise.

It would have been quiet if the cabin next to us wasn't a family with 3 girls aged around 8 to 14. They must have had adjoining cabins or been in the cabin next door or something. Oh sorry, I think they called them "staterooms". I don't have the lingo down yet. Anyhow, those girls were at each other's throats.

It's like Vegas. Your first cruise, you're going to do everything wrong and spend too much money. You'll meet people who have cracked the code and are doing it better and cheaper. There will be things you loved and things you could do without (the lines at disembarkation for example...).

 

It is best to avoid cabins that are in the front or the back of the ship as they tend to get more motion. The optimum choice for folks with motion sickness is midship, on a fairly low deck.

For seasickness, there are lots of remedies including natural things as simple as ginger tablets. Many people opt for Seabands or a Patch, and some take dramamine or the like. Talk to your doctor before you go to see what they think would be best for you.

I suggest packing (or grabbing from the buffet) something like saltines if you think you might have an issue. In a pinch, even a glass of ginger ale can help. Fresh air can make a big difference, too.

And yes, the cruise critic forums are almost mandatory for cruise planning. I wish I had known about them when I took my first cruise!

 

We had a higher level cabin on one of our trips--Deck 10 or something like that on Carnival. My wife did not do well on that trip. There is more movement as you go up in levels. On our fishing trips in a much smaller boat, the best seat for avoiding motion is the very back of the boat. I have spent time up on the fly deck of a fishing boat; the movement up there is huge compared to on the deck. The same applies to ships, though obviously in different amounts since thy are so large and have equipment to dampen motion. The higher the deck you are on, the more motion there will be...but the state of the seas when you travel makes a difference, too.

I find a balcony at about the middle height of the ship is best for us. The kids stayed in an inside cabin one time while we had a suite across the hall. They were a bit of a nuisance (jk...of course), always wanting to use our huge shower/bath compared to their tiny one. The good thing for them is that they could sleep forever--it was extremely dark and cool inside their cabin.

Have a great cruise!!

 

We always do Balcony Staterooms - Mid Ship - as High up as we can go... Less motion of the Ocean that way.

 

Also, I was loaded for bear when it came to seasickness. I had pills, patches, oils, bracelets etc. I've had balance issues since the accident. Mostly with quick changes one way or another. Pivoting basically. You know the bird dog pose? On the one side, I'm solid. On the other side I fall over. Apparently that's the part of the brain that got bruises or whatever. What I found with the movement of the ship is that it has a rhythm and is predictable. I actually liked it when I was going to sleep. Felt like somebody was rocking me to sleep like when I was a little baby. Awwwww. I was even able to put my eyeliner on.

I think it you're fighting it, it's worse. So much worse. If I got off balance when walking, I would just stop for a second. Because it's a crowded environment I would try to let people ahead of me. If anybody was behind me I would put my hands out and say that I was stopping for a second. Often if I was off balance they were too, which was nice for a change. I've been careful with stairs and what's ahead of me and where are my feet since the accident. Maybe I was better prepared for being off balance?

Our ship was Norwegian Getaway and it's not quite 5 years old. I'm pretty sure they keep building them more and more stable for the comfort (and safety) of passengers.

 

Not to thread jack but I would be interested in any feedback on the Norwegian Getaway....booked for Feb. of next year.

 

Balcony all the way. Midships if possible.

 

As you can see, the answers are all over the place.

LOTS and LOTS of people book insides. Some because they like them. Some because of cost.

In general, people prefer balcony, that is why they cost more.

As to what is important to you - only you know for sure. Lower and more to middle MIGHT help with motion sickness. Front and high are the worse for that.

Best site for cruising is cruisecritic.com

 

Just an FYI - cruisecritic is in the middle of a site/software update and has been "read only" since yesterday. Scheduled to be up again for posting in a couple of days....