Does anyone else prefer OV cabin to Balcony?

[Dixie24]

I may be in the minority or maybe the ONLY person who prefers Ocean View cabins to Balcony cabins. Don't get me wrong, I love the perks of having a balcony, but recently have found myself booking OV's only and not even upgrading when price difference was minuscule.

 

The reason for this is that I love the extra size of the OV (220 sq ft inside v 185 sq ft inside). The rooms just seem so much bigger to me, especially not having one side of the bed not butting up right to the balcony windows. Does anyone else feel the same way I do?

[firemanbobswife]

I am the same way! I'll even go one further and say I'm happy in an inside room as well. I love saving money and I hate the balcony doors on Carnival because they slam.

 

If the price is right I'll do the OV. But I would rather cruise more often and being its just me, an inside is just right. But if I'm sharing a cabin, then it's OV all the way!

 

I have even turned down a FREE upgrade from OV to Balcony. I dislike them that much.

Edited March 31, 2016 by firemanbobswife

[cruizinisthebest]

Here!! We prefer oceaview cabins and have booked our first balcony for next year ONLY because we have a big credit to use up. I am not a fan of the regular balconies and have yet to see the extra cost for such a narrow space worth it. My sister always books balconies and had her first aft extended last year. Nicer space as balconies go, but I still wouldn`t pay for one.

 

In August we will try 4Js for the first time. Very much looking forward to it. My favorite room type is the 6K - grand scenic OV. Best cabins on the ships that have them IMO.

[pirate4me2]

I have yet to have an OV, however, November 2017 I am booked in one of the Grand Scenic OVs on the Sunshine and I am SO FLIPPING EXCITED to see that room! I love my balconies, especially the aft ones, but I saw pictures of this room in other reviews and have been dying to sail in one. I will be turning down any upgrade calls that may or may not happen too. :)

I have seen regular OVs on cabin crawls and they seem really nice too. I agree that the extra square footage would be awesome, the first time DH and I saw one we were like "Dang, this room seems huge!" We have discussed booking OVs to save money and cruise more, but we ended up booking just an interior room on the Sunshine last year and discovered we don't even mind them! With the pitch black we both slept REALLY well. That was almost a bad thing, as we didn't realize how late we slept a few times! Haha. I will say though that my first choice is an aft balcony, if funds allow.

[CruzCrazy]

The only time I feel that way is when I can get one of the 6K cabins on a Conquest class ship (all the way front on lido deck). The whole wall is windows. I never missed my balcony when I had that cabin on the Glory. It's huge! We could have upgraded to a balcony for just a few dollars, but we kept the 6K and were glad we did.

 

We've tried a 4J on the Breeze the first time we were on that ship (technically an interior but with an obstructed view of the "secret deck"). It was okay, but, after that 6K, everything just kind of seems "okay."

 

That being said, we haven't been on a Conquest-class ship in a while and have concentrated on the Breeze for the last two and the Magic coming up next, and they don't have 6K cabins, so we take a lido deck balcony. It's true that the cabin is smaller, but I love the fresh air and having coffee or reading on the balcony. In fact, I love a balcony so much that I've tried to get DH to try an aft extended or aft wrap or vista suite, but he refuses to go aft.

 

I personally don't like being on the lower decks, so I rule out other ocean views, but I guess that's what's great about cruising--everybody has their likes and dislikes and preferences. I can see that having the extra square footage in and OV would be a good thing, so I don't find fault with your thought process, and I'm sure you're not the only one. Then there are lots of people who always cruise in interiors and can't see spending more on any other kind of cabin. There's something to be said for that, too. To each his own :)

[cruizinisthebest]

The only time I feel that way is when I can get one of the 6K cabins on a Conquest class ship (all the way front on lido deck). The whole wall is windows. I never missed my balcony when I had that cabin on the Glory. It's huge! We could have upgraded to a balcony for just a few dollars, but we kept the 6K and were glad we did.

 

We've tried a 4J on the Breeze the first time we were on that ship (technically an interior but with an obstructed view of the "secret deck"). It was okay, but, after that 6K, everything just kind of seems "okay."

 

That being said, we haven't been on a Conquest-class ship in a while and have concentrated on the Breeze for the last two and the Magic coming up next, and they don't have 6K cabins, so we take a lido deck balcony. It's true that the cabin is smaller, but I love the fresh air and having coffee or reading on the balcony. In fact, I love a balcony so much that I've tried to get DH to try an aft extended or aft wrap or vista suite, but he refuses to go aft.

 

I personally don't like being on the lower decks, so I rule out other ocean views, but I guess that's what's great about cruising--everybody has their likes and dislikes and preferences. I can see that having the extra square footage in and OV would be a good thing, so I don't find fault with your thought process, and I'm sure you're not the only one. Then there are lots of people who always cruise in interiors and can't see spending more on any other kind of cabin. There's something to be said for that, too. To each his own :)

 

Being on lower decks is always our dilemma, because my husband doesn't like the lower decks at all. He's very adamant. But we have always found a way around that while still opting for a room with a window. Most of our trips have been on fantasy class ships, and they have OVs on the higher decks. Thats one reason why I like them. On the Freedom we booked a 6K and of course like we both think, nothing tops those. On the Sunshine we had an OV on deck 5 which was really nice. I loved the location and the cabin was quite nice and roomy.

 

Now for our Magic sailing, it was either go low and book an OV or come up with something else. I sorts wanted to try a Cove but no deal with hubby, so we booked 4Js. I am hoping we like it since it will probably be our go-to cabin on ships we book with no OVs higher up.

[canadaman111]

I haven't cruised yet but we are booked for feb 2018. We booked an deluxe ocean view on the breeze. We debated on getting a balcony but ultimately thought that since it is our first cruise we really don't expect to spend much time in our room anyway, and therefore just went with the OV room.

[Cushing985]

As my wife tends to get a bit seasick we like O/V and amidships as much as possible. If we go on a Dream class we pick the cove balcony.

[WendyVF]

We prefer a OV for the additional space and they're a bit quieter. It makes me crazy to pay extra for a balcony and have to listen to the doors slamming shut. We also like the lower decks to help with the seasickness.

[Je Souhaite]

I may be in the minority or maybe the ONLY person who prefers Ocean View cabins to Balcony cabins. Don't get me wrong, I love the perks of having a balcony, but recently have found myself booking OV's only and not even upgrading when price difference was minuscule.

 

The reason for this is that I love the extra size of the OV (220 sq ft inside v 185 sq ft inside). The rooms just seem so much bigger to me, especially not having one side of the bed not butting up right to the balcony windows. Does anyone else feel the same way I do?

 

There's only certain ships that have that extra square footage, down below the balcony rooms.

 

But if I had my choice of that 35 square feet outside or inside the ship, I would ALWAYS choose OUTSIDE.

[firemanbobswife]

Oh, yeah. I forgot to add that I LOVE the lower decks. It's so convenient to get on/off at ports. Plus never a wait for elevators and going to dinner is so easy being you're going against the flow. Everyone is trying to go down and I'm walking up 1 or 2 flights. Besides I love the aft where there's a lot of noise and vibration. It puts me to sleep.

[Savlamara]

I'm the same way. First few cruises were suites and balconies on higher floors, and I went outside on the balcony maybe once each sailing and not again. Once we were in a bad storm that had VERY rough waters and I was scared water was going to come in. I only book insides/portholes and OVs now.

[HectorAchilleus]

On our next cruise (Splendor to Aruba, etc. in November) we originally booked an interior but changed to an OV for on $20.00 PP more - a great value. I asked how much to upgrade to a balcony and it was an additional $220.00 pp. NOT such a great value - I kept the OV.

 

If the price for the Balcony were the same or a little more I would think about it - but not at those prices!

[Viv0828]

If we had cruised when our oldest son was little we would never have chosen a balcony. If we had, I would have been a nervous wreck as he was a climber who could get into anything.

 

Now that our kids are grown, we do prefer verandas if the price is ok.

 

 

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[Florings]

I started out cruising with balconies only - then one cruise, I spent a lot of time up on Lido deck, aft, in the evening with my book and glass of wine on one of the lounge chairs and found I much preferred that to the tiny balcony with the chair (and sometimes others chatting or smoking :eek:).

 

Since then, we do O/V all the time. Don't think I could get an interior because I get anxiety if I can't see the outside... I don't mind the lower decks, but wouldn't go lower than deck 2 (Main) so there are rooms below us. Don't ask me why - just habit, I guess.

 

Would like to try scenic o/v some day. They look wonderful!