Sunny Balcony

[angel4daffodil]

Hi folks,

 

Sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam for the first time on 2/16/14. Any advice as to location on the ship for a sunny balcony? We are looking at VC, VB, or a VA category.

 

Thanks!

[JORAY]

Hi folks,

 

Sailing on the Nieuw Amsterdam for the first time on 2/16/14. Any advice as to location on the ship for a sunny balcony? We are looking at VC, VB, or a VA category.

 

Thanks!

 

Depends if ship is going North or South and sun raise or sun set for your time on balcony. Decks are your best bet.

 

Ray

[sail7seas]

We almost never have much sun on our "S" "SA" balcony execpt at the edge near the rail. It is rare when our whole verandah is sunny for any length of time.

 

The aft wrap around verandahs on Vista and Signature ships get the most sun.

 

 

 

[Boytjie]

The sum moves, the ship moves so it depends on things like what direction the ship is going and what time of day it is - and if the sun is out! :D

 

For example: sailing south from Ft. Lauderdale the port side (left) of the ship will get sun in the morning and starboard side (right) will get sun in the afternoon. It is the reverse for sailing back north.

 

If you are on the itinerary that goes to Grand Cayman and Cozumel and the ship is sailing west, the cabins on the stern will get sun.

 

The balconies on Deck 4 are deeper and are not completely covered (the balconies extend a few feet further than the balconies above it) so there is a bit more chance to get sun. The corner balconies that wrap around will also have better chances of getting some sun.

[sail7seas]

We almost never have much sun on our "S" "SA" balcony execpt at the edge near the rail. It is rare when our whole verandah is sunny for any length of time.

 

The aft wrap around verandahs on Vista and Signature ships get the most sun.

 

 

 

 

 

One of the few places we have sun on most of the verandah is when tied up in FLL. When we are at Pier 26 and the sun is out, our port side verandah has full morning sun if we are having our breakfast or coffee outside, it is glorious. :)

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

A lot depends on the itinerary.

We book port side cabins and there have been times when the verandah is in full sun.

[angel4daffodil]

I did notice in pictures that deck 4 seems to jut out just a bit. I do realize it depends on the position of the ship and the sun. On prior ships that we have been on though, some rooms have more of an overhang than others. I love the sun and my husband loves the shade so we always try to pick a verandah that has a little of both.

 

Wish I could find some pictures of the larger verandahs on deck 4 that have the railings that you can't see through. There isn't much talk of those on the boards and I haven't seen any mention of them on the HAL site.

 

Thanks for the responses!

[sail7seas]

A lot depends on the itinerary.

 

We book port side cabins and there have been times when the verandah is in full sun.

 

 

Really..... We also book port side cabins. ;) Lots of them. :D

 

 

 

 

The sky is blue.

[Boytjie]

I did notice in pictures that deck 4 seems to jut out just a bit. I do realize it depends on the position of the ship and the sun. On prior ships that we have been on though, some rooms have more of an overhang than others. I love the sun and my husband loves the shade so we always try to pick a verandah that has a little of both.

 

Wish I could find some pictures of the larger verandahs on deck 4 that have the railings that you can't see through. There isn't much talk of those on the boards and I haven't seen any mention of them on the HAL site.

 

Thanks for the responses!

 

Unfortunately I can't get to my pictures of those balconies on Webshots to post here anymore. :( I have to find a new place to post them.

 

The steel railings are only at the front of the ship up to cabins 4041 and 4042. Try getting 4166 or 4168 - those balconies are double wide! :D

[Sandi3667]

Wish I could find some pictures of the larger verandahs on deck 4 that have the railings that you can't see through. There isn't much talk of those on the boards and I haven't seen any mention of them on the HAL site.

 

Thanks for the responses!

 

I borrowed some shots from Joanie's site. Here's a shot from her Noordam page.

 

 

I've used Joanie's site to select our cabins for both our Alaska cruise, and our upcoming (to be booked today) Caribbean cruise. http://abqreunion2008.com/

[Boytjie]

I borrowed some shots from Joanie's site. Here's a shot from her Noordam page.

 

I forgot that my pics may be there! These show the difference between steel and plexiglass.

 

 

[angel4daffodil]

Thanks so much for the pictures; they definitely were a help in my decision! Joanie's site is invaluable and I use it quite often my self.

 

Travel agent just came through with great prices so I believe we are going for a V category cabin; port side or course!

 

I truly appreciate everyone's input!

[elycelynne]

VA4052 gets PLENTY of sun because it's a longer balcony and there's also one side that's completely exposed because there's no divider. It's the first balcony cabin forward of the lifeboats and there's only a corner railing where a divider would normally be.

[sail7seas]

How's the ride that far forward? Do you feel it is rougher there?

We've never been far forward so I wonder.

[navybankerteacher]

We do westbound trans-Atlantics in the Fall. We always book a port side veranda, which gives us a lot of sun all day since the ship is always heading west and the sun is low enough in the sky in October and November to flood the veranda with sunlight morning and afternoon.

[sail7seas]

Ah, yes,,,,,,,, the sun is lower in the sky. That makes the difference. Nice.

[elycelynne]

How's the ride that far forward? Do you feel it is rougher there?

We've never been far forward so I wonder.

 

I didn't really feel much of a difference. It's forward, but not WAY forward -- Right near the forward elevator bank. Plus I think being on Deck 4 it's still low enough so it's still pretty stable.

 

My issue is that there was too MUCH sun and heat (for me, anyway). But for someone seeking as much of it as possible, it's definitely ideal.

[Boytjie]

How's the ride that far forward? Do you feel it is rougher there?

We've never been far forward so I wonder.

 

We have been in 4043 on 3 ships and 3 cruises and did not have a problem; in 2009 the ocean was rough and it seemed like anywhere on the ship it was rocking and rolling.

[Typhoon1]

The ship moves and the sun rotates around the earth.

 

Any balcony will have sun at some point during the day.

[Linda&Vern]

This is from Vern ...

 

• When the ship is sailing North you want to be on the Starboard in the AM and the Port side in the PM.
  
• When the ship is sailing South you want to be on the Port in the AM and the Starboard side in the PM.
  
• When the ship is sailing East and you are looking Forward the sun will be in your eyes.
  
• When the ship is sailing West and you are looking Forward the sun will be at your back.
  
• When the ship is sailing East and you are looking Aft the sun will be at your back.
  
• When the ship is sailing West and you are looking Aft the sun will be in your eyes.
  
• If it’s cloudy and the sun doesn’t shine it doesn’t matter if you are going North, South, East, or West or on the Starboard or Port side looking Forward or Aft.
  
• It doesn’t even matter what ship you are on.
  

But my experience is The Westerdam aft pool has the most sun.

[navybankerteacher]

The ship moves and the sun rotates around the earth.

 

Any balcony will have sun at some point during the day.

 

Not on the starboard side on an autumn westbound transatlantic..

[510picker]

Check out VA4053, 4054, 4129 and 4132. The verandahs are much longer and mostly uncovered. In the lower-left of this photo you can see one of these verandahs. The down side is they are next to the life boats.