schwaja3 Posted January 4, 2011 #1 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Hi, I am looking at the Gem this April, and have found myself in a slight (but good) dilemma. I'm am travelling with my wife, and 2 sons, aged 16 & 12. We have cruised before, in an oceanview room, about 3 years ago. Since then, my boys have grown. We have a choise of getting 2 cabins, one oceanview (DD), for my wife & myself, and an inside (KK) for the boys directly across the hall. We have no problem with this. They are very responsible and we trust them in this situation. Now, for about $50 more, we can get a balcony cabin (BA - deck 10). My questions are: Is the balcony cabin going to big enough for all 4 of us? Is it better to be on deck 10 (or 9) than on deck 5? Will we be able to use the balcony, or will the wind be to much? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I am hoping to make a decision and book soon. Jack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnIreland Posted January 4, 2011 #2 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Two cabins , no question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeHeartCruising Posted January 4, 2011 #3 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I would vote 2 cabins as well. Your teens are nearly full-size adults, I would assume. 4 in one cabin like that would be awfully tight. We did 3 adults and it was acceptable, but to add a 4th would have been pushing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnql Posted January 4, 2011 #4 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I would definitely opt for the two cabins instead of one. The space (especially the extra bathroom) is much more important to me than having a balcony. All four of you in one cabin would be much too crowded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeno Posted January 4, 2011 #5 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Another vote for 2 cabins - the extra space (to me) is worth more than a balcony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roger001 Posted January 4, 2011 #6 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Two cabins. The balcony cabins aren't really that bigger, just have a small balcony. Of course, ideal would be mom and dad balcony cabin, kids inside across the hall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fridaythe13th Posted January 4, 2011 #7 Share Posted January 4, 2011 We love a balcony but I would NEVER put 4 people in one. You will literally be in eachothers way all week and probably get on eachothers nerves after the first day. With two cabins you will be happy to have two bathrooms, two TV's, mom not telling the kids to be quiet because dad is trying to sleep or the kids saying "dad snores too loud". It will just be a better cruise all around. I think I'm safe to say you will love the Gem! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMH15 Posted January 4, 2011 #8 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Definately 2 cabins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justcake Posted January 4, 2011 #9 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Might as well add my 2 cents...2 cabins. Save a bit more money and go for 2 insides. An oceanview IMHO adds nothing to the experience. Our first cruise was an OV and the 5th an inside and I would take the inside anyday for the price difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kodiaknurse Posted January 4, 2011 #10 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Just for information - BA is only 3 person capacity - so you will have to book, 2 cabins. In order to get balcony and 4 people you have to book mini suite. Have a great cruise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnql Posted January 4, 2011 #11 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Might as well add my 2 cents...2 cabins. Save a bit more money and go for 2 insides. An oceanview IMHO adds nothing to the experience. Our first cruise was an OV and the 5th an inside and I would take the inside anyday for the price difference. Actually, I agree with this. An oceanview (without a balcony) isn't worth it to me. I'd rather save the money and just book the inside. So...I've modified my vote to two insides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefgirl Posted January 4, 2011 #12 Share Posted January 4, 2011 We packed four of us into an inside when our kids were small, but would not do that now that they are teenagers. 2 cabins, definitely Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garycarla Posted January 4, 2011 #13 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Question: Was the $50 more for just one of the cabins, or $50 more than the total of two cabins? If it was just $50 for one of the cabins, then I would do a balcony with the inside across the hall. If going from two cabins (OV and Inside) to one balcony. No way would I do that with grown boys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms belp Posted January 4, 2011 #14 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I would go for two cabins instead of a balcony. We have always done a balcony and we are two small women about 5'2-5'4. It was tight even then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schwaja3 Posted January 4, 2011 Author #15 Share Posted January 4, 2011 All: The price difference was total. As for the BA holding 3, the NCL site let me pick one with 4 of us in it. Maybe I pick a mini suite, not sure. I have notes all over the place! :) My wife won't do an inside. She says she needs to see the outside. I thought about a balcony/inside, but that was a couple of hundred more, so we decided against it. Thnaks for the help, I think I will be getting 2 cabins. Jack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerapau Posted January 4, 2011 #16 Share Posted January 4, 2011 We were in a BA on the Pearl in December with our two boys 15 and 12. We got a great deal where the boys were free and we had a free upgrade to the BA (unless the Gem is different, yes you can get 4 in a BA). Including taxes it was just under $1400 total for the week. It was a great deal and would do it again at that price but if we could have gotten two rooms for the same price we would have liked that a lot better. With 4 it was quite cramped. I have included a pic of our BA with the beds turned down. With the beds down it was extreemly cramped and almost impossible to access the balcony. Basically the room turns into one big two story bed. That said, we did enjoy the balcony (no wind problems) when we could access it but didn't spend much time in the room so the lack of space wasn't too bad (that small sofa is very uncomfortable to sit on though). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms belp Posted January 4, 2011 #17 Share Posted January 4, 2011 All: The price difference was total. As for the BA holding 3, the NCL site let me pick one with 4 of us in it. Maybe I pick a mini suite, not sure. I have notes all over the place! :) My wife won't do an inside. She says she needs to see the outside. I thought about a balcony/inside, but that was a couple of hundred more, so we decided against it. Thnaks for the help, I think I will be getting 2 cabins. Jack The mini suite is not a "suite" and is not much larger than the balcony. We had one on our first cruise. Same story, two small women, not much room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roger001 Posted January 4, 2011 #18 Share Posted January 4, 2011 All: The price difference was total. As for the BA holding 3, the NCL site let me pick one with 4 of us in it. Maybe I pick a mini suite, not sure. I have notes all over the place! :) My wife won't do an inside. She says she needs to see the outside. I thought about a balcony/inside, but that was a couple of hundred more, so we decided against it. Thnaks for the help, I think I will be getting 2 cabins. Jack I don't mean to be trying to spend your money, but I'm such an advocate of balcony cabins (and your wife could certainly see outside then...and I don't blame her), may I suggest this. If you are within just a couple of hundred dollars (as in $200 I'm assuming), if you haven't tried pricing through a TA, it might not hurt to try one. Our TA always comes up with some savings over the price NCL has posted. Tell them what you want (the balcony/inside combination) and what you will pay. See if they can get it for you. They can negotiate some with NCL and also have a small amount they can throw in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjkacmom Posted January 4, 2011 #19 Share Posted January 4, 2011 We're a family of 7, kids range from 7 - 14, and we had 2 connecting BA cabins. I can't imagine have just one single cabin for 4 people - when the room was turned down at night for my 4 kids, it was like a giant mattress! Very little floor space (but they looked cozy ;)). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjkacmom Posted January 4, 2011 #20 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Just for information - BA is only 3 person capacity - so you will have to book, 2 cabins. In order to get balcony and 4 people you have to book mini suite. Have a great cruise! Nope - there are some balconies that sleep 4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kodiaknurse Posted January 5, 2011 #21 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Nope - there are some balconies that sleep 4. I apologize, on the 2 sailings I checked for April, there were no 4 person occupancy BA's available. Also under the category description it states occupancy 3. So again I apologize, did not mean to mislead. For me - I'd go with a balcony and an inside if you can get them across from each other. I like the balcony, something about being able to open the window! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms belp Posted January 5, 2011 #22 Share Posted January 5, 2011 The balcony actually has a patio door rather than a window. The OP's wife may really enjoy that; the boys can still get an inside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.