rear balconies on Island/Coral?

[AZJerry]

Looking at the deck plans for the Island and Coral I see there are what appear to be (viewing?) balconies on the rear of Decks 8-11. There are doors shown so are they open to the public? They would appear to be good for going through the Panama Canal.

[Colo Cruiser]

Looking at the deck plans for the Island and Coral I see there are what appear to be (viewing?) balconies on the rear of Decks 8-11. There are doors shown so are they open to the public? They would appear to be good for going through the Panama Canal.

 

 

Yes they are open both forward and aft. ;)

[Astro Flyer]

Looking at the deck plans for the Island and Coral I see there are what appear to be (viewing?) balconies on the rear of Decks 8-11. There are doors shown so are they open to the public? They would appear to be good for going through the Panama Canal.

We had a Baja deck aft inside cabin & often used that great deck in Alaska. There were loungers & the area is half covered & was rarely crowded. The Caribe deck appeared to be slightly smaller & I could be wrong but think deck 8 & 9 were not for passenger use. I only used the Baja aft deck & here's a panoramic view.

[AZJerry]

Yes they are open both forward and aft. ;)

 

So both forward and aft are open on all 4 decks? I ask because the deck plans show doors at the aft of all 4 decks but no doors forward.

Edited December 26, 2013 by AZJerry

[Pam in CA]

So both forward and aft are open on all 4 decks? I ask because the deck plans show doors at the aft of all 4 decks but no doors forward.

Almost. The Sanctuary is aft on Lido deck. Otherwise, you can go forward or aft.

[Astro Flyer]

Here's a link to great info on the Coral & Island including a photo of the aft decks:

 

http://mysite.verizon.net/res76zxu/princessbalconies/id6.html

[AZJerry]

Thanks, that's a great resource.

[cruisehappy001]

So both forward and aft are open on all 4 decks? I ask because the deck plans show doors at the aft of all 4 decks but no doors forward.

 

The forward decks that are open to the public are on Caribe and Baja.

 

The forward deck on Dolphin is Crew only, and Aloha is the Bridge.

 

Mark

[dorisis]

Best canal viewing will be on the upper forward decks but they can be crowded. The ships can start passing into the canal as early as 5AM.

[ChesterTheCat]

Looking at the deck plans for the Island and Coral I see there are what appear to be (viewing?) balconies on the rear of Decks 8-11. There are doors shown so are they open to the public? They would appear to be good for going through the Panama Canal.

 

The forward balconies are only available whenever the ship is not underway, other than the canal. Great viewing and I will definitely be there when we go through on the Coral on 1/3/2014

[TrnrMom]

Looking at the deck plans for the Island and Coral I see there are what appear to be (viewing?) balconies on the rear of Decks 8-11. There are doors shown so are they open to the public? They would appear to be good for going through the Panama Canal.

 

We just got off the Coral. Yes, the aft decks make for great viewing and are less crowded than the upper and forward decks. But it's good to move around - eye started on 15, went to Baja aft, then a little forward on Baja and promenade.

 

As for reserving a cabin near one of these, they are having a problem with the doors banging loudly on closing. We had B737 and fortunately this was an issue only during the day time. These rear cabins also tend to be noisy in anything above mild seas due to engine and stabilizer noise and vibration.

[AKman2495]

On our canal trip we were on deck 8 (Emerald) and it has a great aft deck. The best part was our cabin was near the stern and we could out there whenever we wanted and most of the time the deck was completely empty.

 

Even on canal day the aft decks tend to be much less crowded.

 

They are really great viewing decks.

[Host Jazzbeau]

This is what makes Coral and Island so great for Panama Canal and Alaska cruises. You have those forward balconies (note: you have to go through a door marked "no admittance" but they don't mean it - ask a crew member if you're concerned and they'll tell you to go ahead) and the aft balconies -- plus a full Promenade Deck -- as well as the usual top decks.

 

Going through the Canal that gives you many perspectives.