Balcony Room with a fear of heights??

[TohoCassie]

I'm in the process of planning my first cruise. It'll be my fiance and I and I wanted to do something nice (it's for his birthday) and get a bigger room. The thing is, I have a horrible fear of heights; it doesn't matter if it's over water or land. I don't want to waste money on a balcony room and we end up just not using it at all. Has anyone ever had this problem before? :(

[Scrapnana]

I have a horrible fear of heights but I don't have it over water. Maybe you could get the largest ocean view cabin or have a special dinner at one of the specialty restarurants.

 

Good luck!

[swoonx]

Same here. I have fear and have problems to enter some balconies in normal houses or hotels. But I have absolutely no problem to enter balconies on ships and love it to sit there.

 

You should try it! :)

[Keith1010]

I do have a fear of heights and that can include water so I know where you are coming from.

 

As much as I have cruised sometimes I will have it for the first day or two.

 

I can still go out on the verandah but just position your chair closer to the sliding glass door and don't stand all the way at the verandah (balcony) railing.

 

Keith

[Ehpride]

I have a very bad fear of heights. But I love having a balcony cabin. I think part of it is because the only way you could go over is by climbing on something. If you use the balcony as it is intended, there is no chance.

 

One other thing is that I always do something to push my fear of heights. Next time, I'm determined to parasail!

[paul929207]

My wife has a fear of heights, and never has trouble on the balcony

[Havin'fun]

I do have a fear of heights and that can include water so I know where you are coming from.

 

As much as I have cruised sometimes I will have it for the first day or two.

 

I can still go out on the verandah but just position your chair closer to the sliding glass door and don't stand all the way at the verandah (balcony) railing.

 

Keith

 

Exactly! My DH has a terrible fear of heights and this is what he does. He would never consider a room without a balcony as we love the extra room it gives you along with the sounds of the ocean and the fresh air. Give it a try, the worst that can happen is you don't use it and you will know not to book it again on future cruises,

[NMLady]

I have a fear of heights but the two times we had a balcony I simply kept my chair near the sliding glass door, I didn't go near the railing and I was fine.

I enjoyed looking at the distant view, which didn't look down.

 

I think it depends on what kind of fear you have. If being in a cabin on a high deck doesn't bother you, then balcony might also be fine.

[calliopecruiser]

Even if you don't go out on the balcony, it's still lovely to have balcony doors open to hear the waves, and it adds more light into the room (like a giant floor-to-ceiling window). And, who knows, you might not find it frightening at all.

[cb at sea]

Your traveling partner....does he have a fear of heights? If not, then get the balcony...even if you don't use it, he will! If both of you have this fear, don't get a balcony!

[Gold Mine Gal]

My SIL has a fear of heights, so when we went to Alaska we booked an obstructed balcony. She loved it as she liked the lifeboat in front of her and she didn't have to look straight down. We have booked another Alaskan cruise and are booking another obstructed balcony.:)

[beachbum53]

My DW has a fear of heights, but it's never been a problem for her when we have a balcony, or standing at the rail on the Lido deck. Standing on a ladder? Forget it! She also doesn't like to sit by the window on an airplane. If it's within your budget to get a cabin with a balcony, go for it. You may find that the pleasure of sitting out on your own balcony and looking out at the ocean will cause your fear of heights to diminish. If you experience some trepidation, you don't have to stand at the rail and look down. Just sit back and look straight out at the ocean. It can have a very calming, almost hypnotic effect.

[OCruisers]

You won't realize how high up you are unless you stand at the edge and look down.

 

LuLu

~~~~

[LandlockedCruiser01]

You won't realize how high up you are unless you stand at the edge and look down.

Not necessarily. When you stand on high ground, doesn't matter if it's a building or a cliff, your eyes are naturally drawn to what's called a "reference point", that is, the level that the structure is standing on. It's why "don't look down" is such a cliche thing to say to mountain climbers; they have to manually override the natural instinct to look down in the first place. It's also the reason why most people with a fear of heights aren't afraid to fly. Since an airplane isn't standing on anything, there is no reference point. So the eyes are drawn to the horizon instead, which does not trigger a fear reflex in those people.

 

Perhaps the same will be with the cruise ship balcony. After all, no object can physically stand on an ocean, either. But if the OP is that concerned, a visit to a specialist is in order.

[TohoCassie]

Thanks for your suggestions and experiences everyone.

 

I've been thinking maybe to get a Scenic OceanView room since we're cruising Carnival and if I can handle being on a balcony on the upper decks with the pools and so forth (Lido deck?) then I might just get one for the next cruise. I'll just take him to one of the specialty restaurants or celebrate in another way.

 

If I can't get that room then I might just bite the bullet and go for the Balcony :D

[JimAOk1945]

Having a balcony is great. We always get one. My wife was hesitant on first cruise, but now she loves it.

Hope it all works out for you.

[attilamom1217]

My DH also is afraid of heights, but loves the balcony and being up on the lido decks. he loves watching the water. However, he doesn't like ladders. Difference could be the fear of falling - the railings on the ship prevent you from falling.

 

If your fiance is not afraid of heights, then try if. if you don't like it, then do something different next time.

[WhoKnowsWhere]

We are booked onto our first cruise and I worried about this, we ended up booking an interior cabin with a view over the promenade one deck below. I know for sure that I would not be able to cope with a balcony (I can't cope with them any higher than first floor on land). Even on our small local ferries I cannot go within 10 feet of the railings. Having one and not using it is not an option either as my fear extends to worrying about my children on there as well, I would not be able to relax for a minute if they had access to it. Hoping I will be able to cope with the decks.

[mytank]

I have a fear of heights as well... Pretty much anything that isn't right on the ground gives me anxiety... But going on the balcony on the ship didn't really bother me...it takes a few minutes to adjust and I can't say I lean on the railing so much as I'm afraid of falling over, lol... But I've been happy to have one to get fresh air sway from other people... I do get motion sick so this helps me with that if needed. :)

 

 

Kari

[dsrdsrdsr]

Check cabin sizes before you book. In my experience, balcony cabins are only bigger than other cabins because they include the balcony area in the size. The actual room size is the same. (And because of the configuration of the cabin - the balcony door has to be left clear, so that wall isn't available for furniture - the balcony cabin can be more cramped than the inside.)

 

Or choose a ship which has large inside cabins. P&O's Arcadia, for example, and there must be more.

[ParkerIngle]

Take a look at the ship you're considering. Some ships have balconies that kind of stick out while other ships have balconies whose edges are flush with the side of the ship -with the balcony cut into the ship. I would think you might be more comfortable with the latter.

[Tiggertastic]

If you will have a problem with the balcony, you need to think about how you will deal with the open decks. You can stay away from the edges no problem and still enjoy them all.

 

My first cruise, it really freaked me being able to see the water moving and by the 3rd day I was entirely comfortable with it and now it is one of my favourite things to do

 

We book a balcony and I hardly go out there but I sit on a chair, pulling it near the glass doors. Listening to the waves is just lovely. Remember when sat down you don't actually look straight down either, you look across at the sea.

[sjcruiser]

We've been trying to get my sister to cruise for 6 years. She was afraid of heights, and being on that much water, so she would never go. We talked her into going on the Miracle last summer, and she refused to go outside on her balcony when she first went to her room. She would open the door, and just look out. During sail away, she wouldn't go outside on the Lido deck either. We were outside snapping pictures, and saw her walk up on one of the highest decks with Fun Ship Freddy, and then we couldn't get her to go inside!!!!

[TeresaMac1971]

Which cruise line are you sailing? I know Carnival has the cove balcony rooms which are closer to the water - 2nd or 3rd deck. I too have a fear of heights - especially on the upper decks of the ship. But I loved our cove balcony. Since they are kinda closed in - it didn't feel as threatening :-)

[Smog&Smoke]

I'm in the process of planning my first cruise. It'll be my fiance and I and I wanted to do something nice (it's for his birthday) and get a bigger room. The thing is, I have a horrible fear of heights; it doesn't matter if it's over water or land. I don't want to waste money on a balcony room and we end up just not using it at all. Has anyone ever had this problem before? :(

 

I also get creeped out by serious heights but never gave the balcony a thought. We loved our balcony on our 25th anniversary cruise, especially in the morning watching the ship dock with room service coffee, fruit and bagels waving at the crew. The observation thing that looks like a hammer head had a great view of me in jammies lol.

 

We went cheaper this cruise--all the way to lowest deck and that sounds a little creepy to me, :eek: I chickened out and moved outward to a ocean view window. I will miss the balcony. Maybe for our 30th anniversary cruise.