Celebrity Reflection 30% obstructed balcony... Yes or no??

[dgreenie28]

My boyfriend and I are avid cruisers. We have been on about 20-30 each. We are a young couple and decided to upgrade this time to a balcony rather than an interior or oceanview. We got a very good deal with booking the balcony ($125 onboard credit + a free Classic Bev. Package) but we are extremely concerned with this 30% obstructed view. We are room 6302 and the balcony basically just has an extended balcony where we see the top of the dining room or whatever is underneath. Has anyone sailed the Reflection with this balcony? Thoughts on keeping the balcony or going back to interior? Should we pay extra for a better balcony? Sailing in January 2016. Oceanview is out of the question because oceanview and balcony are the same price. With booking an interior, the price of the room is $300 less a person plus we were only offered $125 onboard credit-no bev package. Thank you!

[cle-guy]

The general answer to questions about the roof below is, if you are sitting on the veranda looking straight out, you won't know it's there, If you stand at the railing and look down, you will see it.

 

6302 also has as slightly larger than normal veranda, oddly and angular shaped, so some people like that feature as well.

[az_tchr]

Have been in a cabin similar on the other side of the ship. The obstruction was not a problem to us. If it is a good deal to you. Book it.

 

That said if you will use the beverage package it is a slam dunk. If not the ho hum. The interior cabins are just fine for some and awful for others. No idea where you are cruising but being able to see the ports is certainly worth something.

Edited October 10, 2015 by az_tchr

[purpletequila]

Here's video of 6301. Pretty sure this is exactly what the "obstruction" is. It's not that bad but I would upgrade to an unobstructed.

 

 

I'd be concerned about noise from the restaurants below during prep like bashing pots and pans etc. But I don't know if that is a valid concern or not. I just personally wouldn't book above or below a restaurant.

 

One other thing to consider is it looks like it is really far aft and on the S class ships, it can be quite a hike to get from A-B from that location.

Edited October 10, 2015 by purpletequila

[TMLAalum]

We booked a Suite Guarantee for our October 2013 cruise and were assigned a Sky Suite 1 on Deck 6 that was directly over the blue jut out from the deck below.

 

Did not bother us in the least! No noise from below!

 

I would keep what you have because you do have a slightly larger veranda and the obstruction for other 2C cabins consists of lifeboats rather than the blue roof below. And since you've not been in any veranda previously, try this one out and if it's not to your liking you can book differently for your next cruise.

 

For our upcoming cruise we chose one of the 2Cs on the angled part of the hump with the triple-sized veranda! I know we'll have some lifeboat obstruction but am not concerned.

Edited October 10, 2015 by TMLAalum

[drakes2]

I have stayed in 6305 on the Silhouette (same configuration as the Reflection) and have booked that cabin again, actually booked a 2D and they upgraded me to a 2C and I was able to pick the cabin I wanted. Loved the massive balcony, quiet area in the aft of the ship, very little traffic. The roof below is actually the top of the Tuscan grill and also a solar panel. Spent a lot of time on the balcony and never heard a peep from the restaurant underneath. Another thing I liked about being in that area is the room where they keep the towels, toiletry items, etc. was right there and my cabin steward was always around the area. Whenever I ran out of ice I would just open my door and hand him the ice bucket to refill. IMHO great cabin and location, I would keep in a heartbeat.:)

My boyfriend and I are avid cruisers. We have been on about 20-30 each. We are a young couple and decided to upgrade this time to a balcony rather than an interior or oceanview. We got a very good deal with booking the balcony ($125 onboard credit + a free Classic Bev. Package) but we are extremely concerned with this 30% obstructed view. We are room 6302 and the balcony basically just has an extended balcony where we see the top of the dining room or whatever is underneath. Has anyone sailed the Reflection with this balcony? Thoughts on keeping the balcony or going back to interior? Should we pay extra for a better balcony? Sailing in January 2016. Oceanview is out of the question because oceanview and balcony are the same price. With booking an interior, the price of the room is $300 less a person plus we were only offered $125 onboard credit-no bev package. Thank you!

[greydog]

but we are extremely concerned with this 30% obstructed view. We are room 6302 and the balcony basically just has an extended balcony where we see the top of the dining room or whatever is underneath. Has anyone sailed the Reflection with this balcony?

 

Have had these 'over roof' cabins 2 x and also selected for two months from now on Reflection. Balcony seating area is almost 2 feet deeper for the 10? aft cabins over the roof extension below. Wife reported hearing some occasional bangs from below (slamming restaurant cabinet?) but I didn't notice. Occasional daytime workers outside on roof doing maintenance. GOOD CHOICE

 

PIC BELOW

[dgreenie28]

Thank you everyone for your advice! The main reason why we are keeping this balcony or at least thinking about it is because we like the idea of a free Bev package. We have sailed numerous times with our families in nice balconies so we aren't sure if we should just spend the extra money. We called celebrity and they said that the balcony is mid ship and on deck 7 or 8. When reading these forums I saw that people said you see the lifeboats anyway. So maybe that's not even a good idea?

@drakes2, when you were on the balcony did you feel like the wall for the back of the boat was a problem?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have stayed in 6305 on the Silhouette (same configuration as the Reflection) and have booked that cabin again, actually booked a 2D and they upgraded me to a 2C and I was able to pick the cabin I wanted. Loved the massive balcony, quiet area in the aft of the ship, very little traffic. The roof below is actually the top of the Tuscan grill and also a solar panel. Spent a lot of time on the balcony and never heard a peep from the restaurant underneath. Another thing I liked about being in that area is the room where they keep the towels, toiletry items, etc. was right there and my cabin steward was always around the area. Whenever I ran out of ice I would just open my door and hand him the ice bucket to refill. IMHO great cabin and location, I would keep in a heartbeat.:)

[jmfdr]

We had one of these deck 6 extended roof balconies one time and were very unhappy with it even though the balcony was deeper. We found the expended roof very distracting and missed being able to see what was happening water level next to the ship---ie in port when docked. It was a very quiet room and location.

[Algebralovr]

If your other option is an interior cabin, I would keep the room you have. I regularly book the 2D and 2C rooms for the discount. We like the light and fresh air of the balcony, without paying for a "better view".

 

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

[JHUNTGOLF]

Thank you everyone for your advice! The main reason why we are keeping this balcony or at least thinking about it is because we like the idea of a free Bev package. We have sailed numerous times with our families in nice balconies so we aren't sure if we should just spend the extra money. We called celebrity and they said that the balcony is mid ship and on deck 7 or 8. When reading these forums I saw that people said you see the lifeboats anyway. So maybe that's not even a good idea?

 

@drakes2, when you were on the balcony did you feel like the wall for the back of the boat was a problem?

 

 

One year my group had cabins 6302 & 6304 on the starboard side and 6303 & 6305 on the port side on one of the other solstice class ships that has the same exact cabin configuration. We thought these were great cabins because of the larger balconies for each cabin and we ended up making them larger by having the steward open the partition between the balconies. We never heard any noise from the restaurant below

 

To me, the icing on the cake is the "free" Classic beverage package. To not owe anything on a bar bill at the end of the cruise, is the best way to end your vacation. Let me give you an idea of how much you can enjoy the "free" package. In the morning, hubby goes and gets two specialty coffees at Cafe al Bacio ($5 each so $10 for two). At breakfast, two freshly squeezed orange juices ($3 each so $6 for two). You then get two bottles of water ($2 each so $4 for two). So far, the cost would have been $20. Then, on to lunch where you have a beer at $6 and a fruity drink at $9 so it totals $15. Afternoon on the deck by the pool results in another beer ($6) another fruity drink ($9). Time to go back to the cabin to get ready for dinner. Hubby stops by a bar to get two cocktails to sip in the cabin ($18). At dinner, you each have two glasses of wine at $9 per glass ($36). Then, at the show, another cocktail for each of you ($18 total). Now, let's see what the cost would be for the day for the two of you--breakfast $20 + $15 + $6 + $9 + $18 + $36 + $18 = $122. So for the day a couple would have consumed 2 specialty coffees, 2 glasses of orange juice, 2 bottles of water, 2 beers, 2 fruity drinks, 4 cocktails, and 4 glasses of wine. That doesn't sound too excessive, does it? Yet, if you did that for a week, the bill would total $854. Because you have the Classic package, you get if for "free." How great of a deal is this!!!!

 

John

[drakes2]

I didn't have any issues at all with either the room or massive balcony. I think the wall you are talking about is the side of the Aft suite, their balcony fronts the wake of the ship, so no neighbours on one side and I never saw anyone to the right of me. I sit and read on the balcony quite a bit and enjoy the view. Once I did see a maintenance worker on the solar deck panel, only there for maybe 5-10 minutes, he never reappeared for the remainder of the cruise. Don't recall any noise whatsoever from the restaurant below and I am a very light sleeper. Can't wait to be in that cabin again. On my earlier cruise this year on the Reflection I booked and paid for a guarantee and was assigned a 1A mid ship on the bump out section also a huge balcony.

Thank you everyone for your advice! The main reason why we are keeping this balcony or at least thinking about it is because we like the idea of a free Bev package. We have sailed numerous times with our families in nice balconies so we aren't sure if we should just spend the extra money. We called celebrity and they said that the balcony is mid ship and on deck 7 or 8. When reading these forums I saw that people said you see the lifeboats anyway. So maybe that's not even a good idea?

@drakes2, when you were on the balcony did you feel like the wall for the back of the boat was a problem?

[drakes2]

Attached is a pic of the 2C balcony from 2 years ago on the Silhouette. You can see the top of the roof of the Tuscan grill below, the view was great, both standing and sitting down, massive extra deep balcony, could comfortably sit 6people. I have picked the same balcony for my upcoming cruise in January. :)

Thank you everyone for your advice! The main reason why we are keeping this balcony or at least thinking about it is because we like the idea of a free Bev package. We have sailed numerous times with our families in nice balconies so we aren't sure if we should just spend the extra money. We called celebrity and they said that the balcony is mid ship and on deck 7 or 8. When reading these forums I saw that people said you see the lifeboats anyway. So maybe that's not even a good idea?

@drakes2, when you were on the balcony did you feel like the wall for the back of the boat was a problem?