lets hear it for the "cheap seats"

[bananawindnj]

My criteria is that if an OV is available for no more than $200 pp, and the OV is larger than an inside, then we will take it. Which doesn't happen often, due to perks usually given for OV and higher cabins. Otherwise we only go with an inside.

 

 

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[TinaPerth_Australia]

I totally agree with ozarkmama that it does feel like cruising in steerage on the Titanic reading some posts. We have had varying cabins depending on price and availability. Balcony is our choice but we do & have survived other cabins. What annoys me is the bitching about what perks they get re what cabin they book. Sometimes it sounds like they might catch something with the plebs in steerage. I get that if you pay more you expect more, but think about how you sound when you whine. I also think some people may extend themselves too far to get a better class of cabin. Are they the ones that expect more for their $$ than those that can afford the cabins & perks anyway? - Just a thought. The best fun is mixing with all sorts of people - regular, rich and poor & not knowing which is which. Any cruise is a good cruise! :D

Cheers

[upwarduk]

-----The best fun is mixing with all sorts of people - regular, rich and poor & not knowing which is which. Any cruise is a good cruise!

 

This will happen less & less, since Aqua Class eat in Blu and with the introduction of the Suite Class dining room in April.

[dhill]

17+ cruises in 25+ years ranging from 4 to 21 days. With ONE single exception, all have been booked as inside guarantees. The exception was booked as av OV so we could get the free drinks package. We are perfectly content to sail in the worst cabin on the ship (and actually did once). We retired young (62 and 52) and spend our money else where - typically, more vacations.

 

Seven different cruise lines, and only two ever upgraded us to something other than inside. MSC and Celebrity, both in 2014, both times upgraded to balcony. We enjoyed the balcony but wouldn't pay extra for it (but admit that we asked our TA to work hard to get us these upgrades).

 

Which brings up another point. We never received upgrades when we booked inside gty with the big online TA or directly with the cruise line. The last three cruises we've booked with the same TA who owns her own franchise of a large TA company. Suddenly, we're getting balconies! Coincidence? I think not.

305 cruises 20 years nothing but balcony

[jkgourmet]

305 cruises 20 years nothing but balcony

 

That's 12 cruises a year for 20 years. Sure. Whatever. :screwy:

[Banjo]

Years ago when I was single, I went around South America on the Royal Viking in an interior cabin. I had no problem doing it. Then Princess ruined me for life by upgrading DW and me to a balcony on an Alaskan cruise 25 years ago. Since then depending on the line we've had balconies, mini-suites, AQ, regular suites but never an interior.

 

Friends of ours will soon embark on a Princess around the world cruise. Interior cabin. 111 days, I think. They are hoping for an upgrade and I am hoping they get one. I can't imagine leaving home for 111 days but I really can't imagine being in an interior for that length of time. Has anyone ever done it?

 

The same happen to us. My last job assignment before retirement was on the Mississippi coast. We had kids at home then and for years we took these 4 and 5 day cruises of the W. Caribbean out of New Orleans and Mobile. All of them in a OV or interior cabins. Never gave it a thought of up grading to a balcony. Then I retired and our 1st cruise was a Princess Baltic cruise out of Copenhagen. Princess upgraded us to a balcony and I was spoiled for life.

 

Love watching the ocean go by in the privacy of my room. Even at night if it is a warm evening I will sit out in the balcony and it acts as a natural sleep sedative for me. Wife and I enjoy in the morning getting room service for breakfast and having it out on the balcony. A fantastic relaxing way to start the morning. I always bring on board 2 bottles of wine, enjoying that in the evening is really nice out on the balcony.

 

I don't think I could go back :):)

Edited January 20, 2015 by Banjo
add more info

[Ex-Airbalancer]

I think it depends on the cruise

In Oct we got lucky and pick up a Holy land cruise for $808cad, taxes and gratuities included, in an inside cabin. Airfare was $870 cad. How could we not go !

There was only 4 sea days in the two weeks

It was a great trip,

so much depends on the people who you meet, if there is a great group of people on board , you are not going to spend anytime in your room anyway :D

[kampinguru]

If you check the websites of the various cruiselines, you will find that the inside rooms are often sold out. That tells you something. We started out with Inside rooms and then we took our daughter on one and got a balcony. We have had balconies on our last few with this one being our last. We will be going back to inside rooms for our next cruise. As others have said, we do not spend enough time in the room to justify the balcony and the extra cost. We can watch the sail-aways from the pool or upper decks. One other thing is that if you have the beverage package, you are constantly running upstairs to get a refill. I prefer to sit by the pool than on a balcony.

[stratixman]

We have cruised in insides, Ov's, and balconies. Personally if it were up to me alone I would opt for an inside cabin over the other two and use the savings for other things. Alas my wife gets the tie breaker vote and she likes having a window so ...... Anyway, in my thinking the amount of time we spend in the cabin (primarily sleeping) typically doesn't justify the added extra cost. After our last balcony experience the wife even came to the conclusion that the extra cost wasn't probably worth it. But a new variable in the consideration might be the 123 perk offered only for OV and above level cabins. Depending on the base cost differential then getting an OV or balcony might make economic sense once one factors in the additional real or perceived value of the 123 perks chosen.

[flames9]

We have cruised in insides, Ov's, and balconies. Personally if it were up to me alone I would opt for an inside cabin over the other two and use the savings for other things. Alas my wife gets the tie breaker vote and she likes having a window so ...... Anyway, in my thinking the amount of time we spend in the cabin (primarily sleeping) typically doesn't justify the added extra cost. After our last balcony experience the wife even came to the conclusion that the extra cost wasn't probably worth it. But a new variable in the consideration might be the 123 perk offered only for OV and above level cabins. Depending on the base cost differential then getting an OV or balcony might make economic sense once one factors in the additional real or perceived value of the 123 perks chosen.

 

The 123 go perks are not as great as u think....esp if ur a non-drinker...I have gotten quotes on An Aqua class room fairly low, that the TA said that the 1.2.3 promotion was not included....and when I added up the cost of the classic beverage pkg..gratuities and the celebrity OBC...not a huge savings...and if u didnt drink, better to go with the lower cabin cost!

[TinaPerth_Australia]

This will happen less & less, since Aqua Class eat in Blu and with the introduction of the Suite Class dining room in April.

 

They don't want to mix with us, & maybe we are be better off.

I think this will be the deal breaker for me with Celebrity - becoming too class conscious. Maybe should never have looked at cruise critic, these posts have opened my eyes. I was better off not knowing. Cheers

[blindrid]

Often as I cruise these forums I feel like DH and I are the only ones that are perfectly happy in a "cheap" cabin. Our first cruise was in an interior and the only reason I prefer an ocean view is the natural daylight to help wake up in the morning. We are only in our cabin to shower, change, sleep and ;)

 

Am I all alone? Sometimes reading these forums I feel like I am in steerage class on the Titanic. :o

 

In our case, wife needs balcony. Me, I don't care.

[Cruise Raider]

Often as I cruise these forums I feel like DH and I are the only ones that are perfectly happy in a "cheap" cabin. Our first cruise was in an interior and the only reason I prefer an ocean view is the natural daylight to help wake up in the morning. We are only in our cabin to shower, change, sleep and ;)

 

Am I all alone? Sometimes reading these forums I feel like I am in steerage class on the Titanic. :o

 

Not alone at all.... I would rather cruise more often than cruise extravagantly. Cruise #44, #45 and #46 booked -- they are all in inside and oceanview cabins. No balcony cabins booked but if they upgrade me, I wouldn't complain. If they don't upgrade me, I will still have a great time -- even in the inside cabin.

[LabGuy64]

I don't think I could handle 111 days in a mini suite ....let alone an interior...of course I don't think I culd take 3 days in an interior. Need a big shower when you are 6'8...come to thing of it you need big ...everything

 

 

Years ago when I was single, I went around South America on the Royal Viking in an interior cabin. I had no problem doing it. Then Princess ruined me for life by upgrading DW and me to a balcony on an Alaskan cruise 25 years ago. Since then depending on the line we've had balconies, mini-suites, AQ, regular suites but never an interior.

 

Friends of ours will soon embark on a Princess around the world cruise. Interior cabin. 111 days, I think. They are hoping for an upgrade and I am hoping they get one. I can't imagine leaving home for 111 days but I really can't imagine being in an interior for that length of time. Has anyone ever done it?

[LabGuy64]

For me ...I would rather cruise less in a full suite than more often in even a veranda cabin.....would not even consider an interior or ocean view...(at 6'8 on way on the interior or ocean view.....the way i see it ...I work VERY hard and when I do finally take a vacation I wantall the perks and little niceties that I don't get at home.....

 

 

 

DH and I have been cruising together for about 20 years and at different stages of life our preferences and financial priorities have changed. When the kids were small we started out with four of us in an OV and we had a blast. We spent no time in the cabin. The kids are now out of college and working full time (thankfully!) and tend to plan their vacations with friends so it's just the two of us cruising now. We have pretty demanding jobs and like to take one really nice and relaxing vacation each year so we will go for a suite. We love the extra space in the room and the balcony. When we retire we plan to travel more frequently and that will certainly factor into our cabin choice. One rule we've always followed is we don't spend money we don't have for a vacation (e.g. save for retirement first and no debt). Everyone's thought process is different and there is no right answer! Just enjoy!

[teecee60]

Often as I cruise these forums I feel like DH and I are the only ones that are perfectly happy in a "cheap" cabin. We are only in our cabin to shower, change, sleep and ;)

 

Am I all alone? Sometimes reading these forums I feel like I am in steerage class on the Titanic.

 

 

For me ...I would rather cruise less in a full suite than more often in even a veranda cabin.....would not even consider an interior or ocean view...(at 6'8 on way on the interior or ocean view.....the way i see it ...I work VERY hard and when I do finally take a vacation I wantall the perks and little niceties that I don't get at home.....

 

These two posts pretty much show the opposite ends of the cruising spectrum.;)

 

I think it's fantastic that the cruise lines cater to both ends, and the middle as well! :)

 

Another poster preferred to use the term frugal, and that's fine. I am just plain CHEAP! :o

 

I book only insides because I like to sleep REALLY late, till noon sometimes. Being retired, I would MUCH rather cruise multiple times, than pay premium prices for a room that I am in only to sleep, shower and... smile. :rolleyes:

 

I usually wont even consider a cruise if its over $50pp per day, and I have cruised with Celebrity for as little as $30pp per day! (I told you I was cheap! err... "frugal") I think its GREAT that I get the same ship, ports, food, drinks, service and entertainment as somebody paying several hundred dollars per day more. :p

Edited January 21, 2015 by teecee60

[BubMunkeyBles]

I'm okay with being cheap. We travel a ton and I wouldn't give that up for anything. We are budget travelers and it allows us to travel at least 30 days a year.

 

We have an oceanview booked only because when we added in drink package it was actually cheaper than an inside. :) Win win!

[BosoxI]

I'm glad people are happy in an interior cabin, as I am a firm believer in thinking that if I am happy with a less expensive product, be it cabins, wines, cars, or whatever, I am better off for the cost savings. But I also believe that many people who say "I don't spend time in the cabin, so an interior is fine" don't spend time in their interior staterooms because they'd be bonkers if they stayed in their cabins for any length of time. If I'm going to be on the ocean, I want to see the ocean in my bathrobe, in my underwear, or from my bed. I need my balcony. To each his own, once again.

[R'man]

Often as I cruise these forums I feel like DH and I are the only ones that are perfectly happy in a "cheap" cabin. Our first cruise was in an interior and the only reason I prefer an ocean view is the natural daylight to help wake up in the morning. We are only in our cabin to shower, change, sleep and ;)

 

Am I all alone? Sometimes reading these forums I feel like I am in steerage class on the Titanic. :o

 

DW and I love the "cheap seats" in the best deal sense. We mostly do insides with the occasional OV. I seek no approval or sympathy. To each his own. We're enjoying ourselves, and hope you all are, too.

[MicCanberra]

We cruise in the cabin type that suits the cruise, lots to see, scenery wise, while cruising and many sea days we go Balcony, short cruises and port intensive we go OV but this is mainly as we like the drink packages that come with the promos. Price is a key point, often a balcony is just slightly more than a O/v.:D

[smtcan]

We cruise in the cabin type that suits the cruise, lots to see, scenery wise, while cruising and many sea days we go Balcony, short cruises and port intensive we go OV but this is mainly as we like the drink packages that come with the promos. Price is a key point, often a balcony is just slightly more than a O/v.:D

 

This is our strategy too. We just returned from a Caribbean cruise in an inside cabin that we booked two weeks ahead at a price we couldn't refuse. We have three longer cruises scheduled to interesting destinations that were carefully planned and budgeted for, but when we have the chance of an extra get away, we would rather be on the ship in an inside cabin than at home in the snow.

 

We have done inside, outside and balcony cabins and have no problem switching from one to the other according to itinerary and price. We do not belong to the 'once you have had a balcony you can never go back' group!

 

Sheila