Thank you this is very helpful to know. My husband was wondering about whether they would clean the soot if asked. Also I agree about the IV's. I prefer a traditional balcony where I can go outside. I wouldn't say I am prone to sea sickness but if I feel the motion getting to me a little, going outside always solves the problem. This has been true for me for both on mid-ship and forward facing balconies. So an IV, even midship, I wouldn't personally want to chance it. I'd rather have the option to truly go outside. I ended up taking a chance on Deck 7 because it looked like it could have a little bit more usable space since the railing isn't slanted (of course that could be an optical illusion lol). It was the same shape balcony I had on deck 11 just lower and the opposite side of the ship. I can post a video of that cabin as well if anyone wants to compare it to the deck 7 cabin video I posted earlier. All that being said though, if a center balcony on deck 8 opened up, I would probably totally take that one for the "openness" of it and the fact that it's not directly above Eden. I wish someone who has actually stayed on a deck 7 sunset veranda on beyond could give us some insight as to how they liked it but for now we make do! 🙂