Aft Balconies - Any good?

[SJChaput]

Wife and I are going on our second cruise next week and after finally caving and upgrading from an interior to a balcony I had some questions.

 

My last balcony was on the port side deck 7... This time the only room left available is aft deck 8 immediately adjacent to a port side aft wrap. From what I can tell the room has a bigger balcony and does in fact have a couch and all the stuff you'd expect but I was wondering if I made the right call.

 

I am concerned that I may not get as nice a view from an aft balcony as I think if i look down I will see people on the deck and if they look up they can see me... or if someone from above looks down they will see me as well.

 

Should I expect to lose my privacy on this balony? I have never had an aft balcony before and just wanted to see what I'm getting into.

[Rosebud5t]

Nope. You'll love it. My friends always get aft balconies and I would if I could afford it. The balcony is lots bigger and you'll have all of the same privacy. Enjoy!

[4evercruiser]

I love the aft balconies. Much bigger than the standard balconies on the ships.

[FloridaLaura]

I have had both regular balconies and aft balconies. I remember on my "regular balcony" portside or starboard side I was able to look down and see people on their balconies, but on my first aft balcony, the way the ship is structured when i looked down I only saw water, so my balcony must have stuck out a little further if that makes sense.

 

Cant wait for my aft balcony #2 in 12 days, 21 houre, 19 minutes and 42 secs lol on the Carnival Legend, surprise for hubby! he thinks we have a cabin on the starboard side but towards the aft lol....cant wait to see his face when he realizes we are true aft!

[seashinesunshine]

You won't really lose your privacy from above and below, but the dividers between the aft balconies are slanted so at the rail they are rail height, which means, it is not hard to see into your neighbors balcony, and with a bit of effort you can see into thier room.

They are excellent balconies, some people don't like the view, they say they don't want to see where they have been, but I love watching the island we just spent a wonderful day on sinking into the horizon at sunset.

[bibbysnow]

We love the aft balconies.:D

[dvan68]

If you stand out at the rail, yes you can look down and up at fellow passengers in the other aft cabins. We think it's great at sail away time to have the aft club. Everyone hanging out and chatting. If you sit, all you see is the water - total privacy. Way more room than a standard balcony.

[JaniceW]

I had an aft balcony once and loved it. I adored having a large balcony. I really got spoiled!

[ck53]

I am sure you will love the aft balcony. They are usually structured that they cantilever out. So as stated before if you are @ the railing you will be able to see the people below you standing @ their railings, and the same w/ people above you. The views are incredible much better than a side balcony ( we believe) and usually less noise @ that end of the hallway and best of all, it can be a walk so it burns up some of the calories from ther DOD's;) Enjoy!

[markstudy]

I've always got a balcony in the middle of the ship, for wave mitigation.

 

How are the aft balconies on a rough day? Do you really feel the ship see-sawing up and down? :D Or is it just a lot of fun going up and down the hills?

[ccartman2]

Loved the Aft balcony when I had it. Would do it again if the price is right.

[mdcrim]

I booked an aft balcony on the Legend because it was less than $300 more than a guarantee. I'll let you know how it was when I get back.

[TheRejector]

We could have easily put 20 people on our aft wrap balcony, loved it. It was our first cruise and worth every cent of the extra cost. We had 6492 last time on the Dream we are moving up and to the starbord side this time on the Dream to 8473. We had our daughters entire wedding party on our balcony with lots of room still.:p

[JoeMissile]

Wife and I are going on our second cruise next week and after finally caving and upgrading from an interior to a balcony I had some questions.

 

My last balcony was on the port side deck 7... This time the only room left available is aft deck 8 immediately adjacent to a port side aft wrap. From what I can tell the room has a bigger balcony and does in fact have a couch and all the stuff you'd expect but I was wondering if I made the right call.

 

I am concerned that I may not get as nice a view from an aft balcony as I think if i look down I will see people on the deck and if they look up they can see me... or if someone from above looks down they will see me as well.

 

Should I expect to lose my privacy on this balony? I have never had an aft balcony before and just wanted to see what I'm getting into.

 

We’ve always had Cat 11 cabins before, but this last cruise we tried a 9V (aft wrap) on the Triumph. AFA your original question, an aft wrap (or any aft cabin) is not as private as a normal balcony cabin. No ifs, ands, or buts. it is not as private as a regular balcony. Also, being on deck 8 you may get noise from the Lido deck above you.

 

Next cruise we're getting a Cat 11 again.

[ChefSusan]

The Afts are not as private as the standard/extended balconies. You do get more room out there (60 sq ft instead of 30/45), but have to deal with others being able to see down into your balcony.

[tef43]

If you are directly below the Lido deck, then yes, people above will be able to see most of your balcony.

 

You may also experience more vibration from the thrusters, specifically when docking or leaving port.

 

Again, if directly below Lido, you may experience the early morning scraping sounds of deck chairs being arranged above. Others report cooking odors from the deep-fryers.

 

None of this diminished our enjoyment of the aft extended balconies, and we would not hesitate to book them again.

[SJChaput]

We’ve always had Cat 11 cabins before, but this last cruise we tried a 9V (aft wrap) on the Triumph. AFA your original question, an aft wrap (or any aft cabin) is not as private as a normal balcony cabin. No ifs, ands, or buts. it is not as private as a regular balcony. Also, being on deck 8 you may get noise from the Lido deck above you.

 

Next cruise we're getting a Cat 11 again.

 

Lido is deck 10 so isn't there a between us and the Lido?

 

I would IMAGINE that most of the noise would be dampened by the floor in between... at least I HOPE so.

 

I will have to see it for myself because some people here are saying that it is as private and some are saying it isn't, I don't know what to think, will have to wait and see I guess.

 

Is it so wrong that I want the privacy to get busy with my wife in private on my lounger :)

[tandemcruzr]

We are absolutely balcony fans. Been on 6 so far and have another one for next January. We've had one aft. Very hot -- no breeze while underway, and soot from the whale tail was a mess.

 

We'll stick with our port or starboard balconies until we can afford an aft wrap. :D

[JoeMissile]

Lido is deck 10 so isn't there a between us and the Lido?

 

I would IMAGINE that most of the noise would be dampened by the floor in between... at least I HOPE so.

 

I will have to see it for myself because some people here are saying that it is as private and some are saying it isn't, I don't know what to think, will have to wait and see I guess.

 

Is it so wrong that I want the privacy to get busy with my wife in private on my lounger :)

 

I've been on 10+ cruises on 8 different ships and Lido was always deck 9 for my cruises. I'm not sure what class of ship you'll be on so you may be right!, maybe some ships have Lido on 10. Enjoy your cruise!

[seashinesunshine]

I've always got a balcony in the middle of the ship, for wave mitigation.

 

How are the aft balconies on a rough day? Do you really feel the ship see-sawing up and down? :D Or is it just a lot of fun going up and down the hills?

 

I did not notice more motion in the aft, but we didn't have any really rough seas. I get really sea sick so I would have noticed.

[jayscore]

Being an aft snob, (#4 coming up next time), I can't give a non-biased opinion!

There must be a reason they sell out so fast, eh?;)

[Falls Cruiser]

Just got off the Triumph Saturday. Had an aft balcony on deck 7. It was WONDERFUL. The view was unbelievable!! So relaxing! Wish I could get one on every cruise. YOU will love it!!!!

[Djonemore]

We never had an aft "wraparound" balcony, so I can't speak for that, but we had balconies in the middle and the very front of the Sprint class ships, and... Something about being close to the front of the ship, there was one stateroom that I really liked, it was in the very front of the ship, the balcony was extended outward a bit so you felt a little bit more open-ness when standing at the railing... Deck 5, #5114 You might not notice it from the photo, but if you look directly up, you see sky, not a celling of the deck above you and I loved that feature