Inside Cabins from those that been in a Balcony before.

[bigrednole]

The reason for asking the question was our experience on our last two cruises. I was glancing at prices for Summer 2023. The price difference is about $1,000 for 3 of. I know my daughter would never use the balcony. I couldn't care less for it. My wife can just go to another deck to find a spot to assist. I am looking at $2k vs $3k for a cruise.

[Jelly_Toast]

Aside from our very first cruise, we always are in balcony cabins. Then we booked a spur of the moment spring cruise this year and chose interiors to save money. Of the four of us, I'm the only one who really hated the interior cabins. I felt claustrophobic and hated how dark it was.  My husband and kids all appreciated the darkness because they say that they sleep better.  I am an early bird and enjoy being able to sneak out on the balcony while everyone else is sleeping.  I also like a quiet and private place to sit just to watch the water and/or read.  I enjoy a glass of wine or my morning coffee out on the balcony as well. 

 

If I had to choose interiors or not being able to cruise, I would take an interior but having a balcony is part of what makes the cruise special for me.  If you don't feel like you utilize it, booking an interior can save you money and you may enjoy the darkness for better sleep.  Worst case scenario, you find it's not for you and don't book an interior again.

[tampabrat22]

We have stayed in all type of cabins and areas of the ship (except the suites and up).We used to only book inside cabins, but I realized I need a window or balcony because I am quite claustrophobic. If the inside cabin works for you, that is great, you can save so much money!! 

[FiredogCruiser]

Over the years we have booked a number of different types of cabins. Currently on the newer Carnival ships (Mardi Gras especially) the standard balconies are very small, and the furniture uncomfortable. Just did Mardi Gras and Holland's Nieuw Amsterdam and the balcony was much larger, chairs nicer and more comfortable. So, we have 3 more Carnival cruises booked and have opted for interior on all 3.

[NolaBliss]

I’ve done both and prefer the balcony for heavy sea day itinerary, or Panama Canal. It was beneficial on a S.American voyage for the days I had to work and was utilizing my AT&T connection. I would open the door to get a good connection prior to docking. I would have liked having the option on my Alaska cruise, but most times I was looking at the action from both sides of the ship so I would have missed some events if I had been on a balcony. I do sleep better in inside cabin because of the cave effect. So there are pros for both. Someone I met books inside cabin along with the thermal spa for the cruise so that they can look out and also get the benefit of the spa. My favorite benefit is to be able to get fresh air. Although some ports that practice free burning for cooking etc have caused me to have to keep door closed due to toxic fumes in the air.

I’m just delighted to be able to cruise again. 

[LatinaInTexas]

I doubt I will ever book a balcony. Besides the price I can't see myself being comfortable sitting in an upright chair. I like soft cushions and something that reclines to relax in.

[sc4125]

I've cruised all categories with CCL - over 25 cruises.  For the past several years, we always cruise using casino deals.  If the deal includes balconies - either "free" or at a low rate - I always go for balconies.  If not, an interior works though it is a bit claustrophobic.  

 

I love quiet down time and nothing beats a drink and a good book out on the balcony.  It's also nice to grab something to eat on the Lido and taking it back to balcony - great break from the crowds.  That being said, balconies at the height of summer are not as enjoyable.  

 

I do find that I spend a whole lot less time in the cabin if I'm in an interior - great for napping, but too closed in for kicking back.  

[bandjwayne]

We book balcony when we have the kids, it was nice to sit outside when they needed a break. We normally are never in the room and now that the kids are older (teenage) it would not bother us to pick inside again.  We will do inside to save money also, we just sleep and shower in there anyway.  The other time we get balcony's are if we are with some friends, then the ladies can sit on the balcony if they wanted to.  When it comes down to it, if you just use the  room for sleep and getting dressed, then I say save the money and go inside.  If you are one to enjoy a cup of coffee and do not want to get moving in the morning OR you just don't like being around people that much....get the balcony.

[cruizergal70]

We spend a lot of time in the cabin. We need the natural light and fresh air from a balcony. We like having a place to spend down time. I never understood the whole "shower and sleep only."  We also usually book longer cruise (10-16 days). 

Edited April 18, 2022 by cruizergal70

[Sailin Gal]

I love a balcony on a Caribbean cruise and spend a lot of time out there.  I sailed AK with family and was in an interior across the hall from the rest of my party's balcony cabin.  We rarely used their balcony; we spent more time on the public deck areas where we could move from side to side to see.  For the price difference between an interior and a balcony on the Alaskan sailings, I'll take an interior on that cruise and use the difference for excursions. 

[jetsfan58]

I always talk about being a balcony cruiser. The big picture with us is economy and saving for the next cruise adventure. We only book inside and love the quiet and dark sleep environment. 

 

The last time we cruised in a balcony was late 90's. My philosophy is that we all leave the Port at the same time, i can see daylight when it is visible, the solitude can't be beat and the money saved is put towards our future cruises. Have not had a bad inside cabin experience in our many years of cruising.

 

I always say just enjoy the voyage!!!     

[cruizergal70]

I don't understand the comments about darkness and sleeping. Are you talking about daytime naps? At night, the blinds/drapes on the balcony door and windows can be closed for full darkness. 

[Dadofsix]

We started cruising booking balconies. First cruise was an aft extended balcony and then a few spa balconies. Some of the earlier cruises we would book connecting balconies (Dad, Mom and 6 kids) split between the cabins. Always hunted for a deal with that kind of crowd and were fortunate to find them. Then one cruise we found three inside cabins on a trip when we only had 4 kids with use much cheaper than two balconies and got hooked on them. We find that much of our time is out and about the ship and really little time in the cabin. Now if I ever book Alaska I will go back to balcony again in a heartbeat.

[day-day]

12 hours ago, bigrednole said:

We have been on 2 cruises now: one on Magic and one on NCL Breakaway. The balcony is decent, but not something we really used. We are more of the types that sleep and shower in the room then out doing "stuff". As for a balcony, we can just go to a deck and experience it anyway. For those that have cruised in an Interior cabin and balcony in the past is there anything that you missed with a balcony?

 

I'm glad you started this thread.  My wife and I tried a balcony on our 3rd or 4th cruise and decided we would always get a balcony after that.  Every cruise afterwards we got a balcony.

 

I've been solo for my recent three cruises and continued to get balconies.  I have been checking deals for another cruise and I'm considering going with an interior.  I use the balcony occasionally but maybe I won't miss it much if I choose a cabin without it.

 

I'm leaning towards giving the interior a try after reading all the comments.  I think it will be the only way to finally figure it all out.

[bigrednole]

Another factor we have in our decisions to cruise is we have college bills coming soon. At some point it may become a decision of whether we cruise with interior or not cruise at all. Just trying to be realistic on what we may experience. I am fairly certain that being in an interior room would not ruin a vacation, but it may give us the answer we need to either ditch the idea or it works for us.

[evandbob]

No one has mentioned this yet, but for us, one can use the balcony and the other relax lounging on the bed.  Gives us a feeling of more space.  There's no escaping from each other in an interior cabin.

 

I've booked interiors when sailing solo, but as a couple, we enjoy the balcony.

[Jelly_Toast]

12 hours ago, cruizergal70 said:

I don't understand the comments about darkness and sleeping. Are you talking about daytime naps? At night, the blinds/drapes on the balcony door and windows can be closed for full darkness. 

I cannot speak for anyone else, but even with the curtains closed there has never been full darkness in any balcony room I've been in.  Even using magnets to attach the curtain to the wall does not provide the absolute black hole quality of an interior room.

 

Edit: I'm talking about morning light coming in, obviously it's dark in the balcony rooms at night.

Edited April 19, 2022 by Jelly_Toast

[wesorbeth]

We have done both, I do enjoy having a "nightcap" on the balcony but it's not always worth the price difference to us. We don't use the balcony that much.  We are cruising next week and have an interior. 

[MisterOJ2]

12 minutes ago, Jelly_Toast said:

I cannot speak for anyone else, but even with the curtains closed there has never been full darkness in any balcony room I've been in.  Even using magnets to attach the curtain to the wall does not provide the absolute black hole quality of an interior room.

 

Edit: I'm talking about morning light coming in, obviously it's dark in the balcony rooms at night.

 

This is my experience as well. I'm the kind of person that always wakes up when light starts coming into the room in the morning (whether at home or on a cruise). It doesn't matter if I've been sleeping for 3 hours or 9 hours - once sunlight starts coming into the room, even if it's just a little, I'm awake. Sometimes if I'm tired enough, I'll fall back asleep. But sometimes not.

 

When I am in an interior room on a cruise, I will sleep later than any other time. I have no doubt it's because of the darkness of the room.

[crusin okie]

We regularly book a regular balcony but have also booked suites ( not often 🙂 ), OV ( which on some ships we absolutely prefer ), and on one Carnival cruise we did an interior cabin simply because we had never done it before.  On RCCL and Celebrity we prefer specific OV staterooms and should they not be available, we choose a different cruise.  We find cove balconies a matter of personal preference and my Bride chooses not to.  Other than that, if properly chosen, we find one balcony much like any other.  The interior stateroom as great if you are a late sleeper or if you truly spend little to no time in the cabin.  Personally, we found it too small and truly missed not having a sofa or love seat.  If you do your due diligence on picking a specific cabin, how can you go wrong - it's a cruise.  The worst cruise we have ever had was wonderful.  

[ray98]

We no longer book balconies unless they are close to giving it to us.  We simply do not spend enough time on it to justify the cost.  Our last balcony cruise we spent no more than 10 minutes a day on it and I think 2 of the days we never went outside.  We now save that money for other things.

[LasVegasSolo]

I am a strange cruiser now after cruising for over 10 years(mostly solo). I cruise because I absolutely love, love the water no matter the season or conditions (luckily I do not seem to get seasick), the peace of just hanging out on the balcony with my music, a good book and something to drink is the cherry on the sundae.  I do not get off the ship most of the time because been there and done that if I do it is to just walk around a bit with nothing specific.  I have had interior rooms that have had virtual windows that are really nice, I have turned on the TV putting on the ships cameras and listened to everything going on in port (listening to the dock side musicians) or just ocean sounds and have fully enjoyed myself.  I worked hard for what I have and to me the balcony is my present to myself so that is what I do.  BUT if it was cruising in an interior versus not cruising I would be in an interior in a heart beat as I can always find and special place on the ship somewhere.

[cruizergal70]

3 minutes ago, LasVegasSolo said:

I am a strange cruiser now after cruising for over 10 years(mostly solo). I cruise because I absolutely love, love the water no matter the season or conditions (luckily I do not seem to get seasick), the peace of just hanging out on the balcony with my music, a good book and something to drink is the cherry on the sundae.  I do not get off the ship most of the time because been there and done that if I do it is to just walk around a bit with nothing specific.  I have had interior rooms that have had virtual windows that are really nice, I have turned on the TV putting on the ships cameras and listened to everything going on in port (listening to the dock side musicians) or just ocean sounds and have fully enjoyed myself.  I worked hard for what I have and to me the balcony is my present to myself so that is what I do.  BUT if it was cruising in an interior versus not cruising I would be in an interior in a heart beat as I can always find and special place on the ship somewhere.

I'm assuming you only cruise the Caribbean? There's an entire world out there to see but you would have to get off the ship. 

[LasVegasSolo]

1 minute ago, cruizergal70 said:

I'm assuming you only cruise the Caribbean? There's an entire world out there to see but you would have to get off the ship. 

I have cruised other places but outside of that I have lived all over the world (retired Army) and traveled everywhere I have been.  I have lived and traveled on both coasts (northwest, desert, northeast and south) Midwest, Europe and Korea.  I have always taken advantage of my opportunities so now I know what I like the best and that is what I treat myself too.  I have found cruising to be what I enjoy because I can go so many places and only pack and un-pack once.  Also just FYI I prefer 10 plus days cruising at a time and before COVID I averaged 3 times a year.  So far I have a Hawaii and TA scheduled with things starting to get more regular.

[SRQbeachgirl]

I have been hooked on balconies ever since we upgraded from OV years ago, but I am on the brink of booking an inside Havana cabin on the Horizon. A Havana balcony would cost almost $5,000 more, so if we are going to try Havana it's either going to have to be an inside cabin or not at all. Decisions, decisions...