If you like Infinite balconies, why?

[shofer]

6 hours ago, Rtowncruiser said:

Oh wow. I didn't realize true Verandas were so limited. Now I have to decide if I want Porthole aft or forward, or go midship with IV! Decisions decisions..... I'm leaning towards aft 

 

6 hours ago, Rtowncruiser said:

Oh wow. I didn't realize true Verandas were so limited. Now I have to decide if I want Porthole aft or forward, or go midship with IV! Decisions decisions..... I'm leaning towards aft 

Those Sunset Verandas are pricey and go quickly, unless you book far in advance.

[Maggie North]

Have not heard of an ‘infinite balcony’. Is this new?

[davekathy]

7 hours ago, Maggie North said:

Have not heard of an ‘infinite balcony’. Is this new?

Celebrity calls them infinite Verandas (IV). Celebrity introduced the first E class ship in 2018. The Edge. The IVs are on all the E class ships. Apex, Beyond, Edge and the Ascent coming out later this year. 

[Cruise till you drop]

What we’re noticing is that on the Edge, a lot of the IV’s come with a concierge class as a means to have people book them.

 

Problem is that concierge class isn’t really worth much

 

I’m guessing Celebrity is regretting this design for infinite balconies 

Edited May 12, 2023 by Cruise till you drop

[Georgia_Peaches]

37 minutes ago, Cruise till you drop said:

Problem is that concierge class isn’t really worth much

 

I’m guessing Celebrity is regretting this design for infinite balconies 

I would only book concierge class for the embarkation lunch in the MDR assuming prices were equal. 

As for regretting the design… I don’t think so. When NCL came up with the Epic (an epic failure in ship design, IMO) they were slated for 3 ships in that class. It was such a failure with the cruising market that NCL paid a sh** ton of money to get out of their obligation for the subsequent two ships. My guess is, if Celebrity had any regrets about the E class design, they wouldn’t have commissioned yet another ship (Ascent). They would have cut their losses like NCL. In fact, I’ve read that RCL is slated to introduce IV’s of their own on coming ship(s). somehow I think the IV’s are here to stay. 

[Maggie North]

4 hours ago, davekathy said:

Celebrity calls them infinite Verandas (IV). Celebrity introduced the first E class ship in 2018. The Edge. The IVs are on all the E class ships. Apex, Beyond, Edge and the Ascent coming out later this year. 

Thank you! I am quite familiar with IVs, having just enjoyed one on the Apex TA. Don’t understand the negativity towards them; especially on a rocky/rainy/cold TA. Was perfect for us.

[the penguins]

1 hour ago, Maggie North said:

Thank you! I am quite familiar with IVs, having just enjoyed one on the Apex TA. Don’t understand the negativity towards them; especially on a rocky/rainy/cold TA. Was perfect for us.

 

4 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I would only book concierge class for the embarkation lunch in the MDR assuming prices were equal. 

As for regretting the design… I don’t think so. When NCL came up with the Epic (an epic failure in ship design, IMO) they were slated for 3 ships in that class. It was such a failure with the cruising market that NCL paid a sh** ton of money to get out of their obligation for the subsequent two ships. My guess is, if Celebrity had any regrets about the E class design, they wouldn’t have commissioned yet another ship (Ascent). They would have cut their losses like NCL. In fact, I’ve read that RCL is slated to introduce IV’s of their own on coming ship(s). somehow I think the IV’s are here to stay. 

Only one major cruise line, Viking,  has extensive experience in having IV's and interestingly they chose not to have them on any of their ocean going ships.

Celebrity started building 3 Edge class ships before the first had even sailed. We won't know for sure how successful IV's are until X builds it's next class of ship. 

 

 

[the penguins]

1 hour ago, Maggie North said:

Thank you! I am quite familiar with IVs, having just enjoyed one on the Apex TA. Don’t understand the negativity towards them; especially on a rocky/rainy/cold TA. Was perfect for us.

So far none of the supporters of IV's have posted any pics of themselves "relaxing" on the very "comfortable" chairs that are a feature of the cabins. Nor of them enjoying a breakfast using the minute table. IV's are most suited for passengers who like the idea of a balcony but don't actually use it.

A 50:split would be perfect by which I mean every class, on every deck and in every position not just a few "token" balconies in unpopular locations. 

[davekathy]

8 hours ago, Maggie North said:

Thank you! I am quite familiar with IVs, having just enjoyed one on the Apex TA. Don’t understand the negativity towards them; especially on a rocky/rainy/cold TA. Was perfect for us.

No matter the stateroom type it's all personal preference.

[RichYak]

8 hours ago, Maggie North said:

Thank you! I am quite familiar with IVs, having just enjoyed one on the Apex TA. Don’t understand the negativity towards them; especially on a rocky/rainy/cold TA. Was perfect for us.

There's nothing wrong with IV cabins, particularly in the climates you described. The problem is the extreme lack of choice on E-class ships. Aside from the Retreat, there are very few balcony cabins. There are exactly 0 balconies in the entirety of AQ and Concierge class.

[gfkcruiser]

On 4/27/2023 at 2:53 AM, the penguins said:

Now choice would be good say a 50/50 split between standard and Infinite. 

The reality is no standard cabins have a "true" balcony - it's Infinite Verandah or pay a large upgrade fee.

Sunset verandas are tru veranda. 

[the penguins]

9 minutes ago, gfkcruiser said:

Sunset verandas are tru veranda. 

Ok. But they make up a tiny proportion of the total and can not be classed as "standard" which is why they have their own category. My definition of standard are the cabins that make up the bulk of the accommodation. For example Deck 7 on Apex has 6 (six) Sunset Verandas and 258 IV's and the figures are similar on many other decks.

[Cruise till you drop]

19 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Ok. But they make up a tiny proportion of the total and can not be classed as "standard" which is why they have their own category. My definition of standard are the cabins that make up the bulk of the accommodation. For example Deck 7 on Apex has 6 (six) Sunset Verandas and 258 IV's and the figures are similar on many other decks.

What’s interesting to me about the Edge is that for the top floors, they are sold as SV (no concierge) and the IV rooms on those same levels are sold as Concierge

 

My guess is to make them somewhat more appealing, they need to attach Concierge to that class and the SV aren’t 

[the penguins]

2 minutes ago, Cruise till you drop said:

What’s interesting to me about the Edge is that for the top floors, they are sold as SV (no concierge) and the IV rooms on those same levels are sold as Concierge

 

My guess is to make them somewhat more appealing, they need to attach Concierge to that class and the SV aren’t 

As Concierge you get the benefit of extra CC points which can be useful. Apart from that I see no value in the Class and certainly not worth the premium that is often charged.

However X sells it for us the bottom line is "low down, mid ship, and a real balcony with comfortable chairs". As E class offers none of these we will be sticking to S Class or, reluctantly, will book other options just as we did for our March Transatlantic.

[Miss SeaBee]

On 5/10/2023 at 5:10 PM, shofer said:

 

Those Sunset Verandas are pricey and go quickly, unless you book far in advance.

This is true! I just checked outa 2025 Beyond sailing I was interested in, and no SV cabins showed as available. ☹️

[NutsAboutGolf]

15 minutes ago, Miss SeaBee said:

This is true! I just checked outa 2025 Beyond sailing I was interested in, and no SV cabins showed as available. ☹️

 

Even if one was available it would most likely be around the same price as AQ

[NMTraveller]

On 5/12/2023 at 12:02 AM, the penguins said:

So far none of the supporters of IV's have posted any pics of themselves "relaxing" on the very "comfortable" chairs that are a feature of the cabins. Nor of them enjoying a breakfast using the minute table. IV's are most suited for passengers who like the idea of a balcony but don't actually use it.

A 50:split would be perfect by which I mean every class, on every deck and in every position not just a few "token" balconies in unpopular locations. 

The token balconies in the rear are difficult to book as there are so few of them and they are very expensive.  The non SV balconies are obstructed.

 

You really need to book a suite to get a good balcony on E class.

Edited May 20, 2023 by NMTraveller

[NutsAboutGolf]

On 5/11/2023 at 7:07 PM, Georgia_Peaches said:

I would only book concierge class for the embarkation lunch in the MDR assuming prices were equal. 

As for regretting the design… I don’t think so. When NCL came up with the Epic (an epic failure in ship design, IMO) they were slated for 3 ships in that class. It was such a failure with the cruising market that NCL paid a sh** ton of money to get out of their obligation for the subsequent two ships. My guess is, if Celebrity had any regrets about the E class design, they wouldn’t have commissioned yet another ship (Ascent). They would have cut their losses like NCL. In fact, I’ve read that RCL is slated to introduce IV’s of their own on coming ship(s). somehow I think the IV’s are here to stay. 

 

NCL ordered two Epic class ships from STX France with the option for a third...When she was 25% complete, while NCL was already claiming excessive cost overruns, NCL sold 50% to Apollo Management in August 2007.  Apollo demanded several changes to the designs, resulting in a higher cost for the Epic.  This led to a bitter pricing dispute and resulted in the Epic's construction being put on hold.  Both sides claimed they made massive concessions to resume construction and as part of their agreement, the second ship order was cancelled.  There was even a suspected arson fire by STX France workers a month before delivery.  The cancellation of the second ship was due to a pricing dispute, not her design as the second ship would have began construction before the Epic's was complete.  It should be noted that NCL never again has used STX France

 

Was on her in 2019, the separate water closet layout was awful in the lower category cabins, her entertainment venues do not have enough seating, she doesn't have enough elevators and she's very ugly but otherwise she provided a similar experience to other NCL ships.  I would need to be paid to sail her again

[ScottC4746]

I think it comes down to where am I cruising.  IF I were going to the hot and humid tropics and the Caribbean, I would probably think about it, but after reading this thread, I won't book one again.

[sarleo]

I was happy with my IV on Apex for my Northern Transatlantic because the weather most of the time was too cold to sit on a balcony. It was nice to see the water through a floor to ceiling glass window, especially from the bed. I also could leave the window open a bit at night to hear the ocean. The window was open as much as I wanted it to be at sea and in ports, so with the cool weather it was a good choice.

 

I would also choose an Edge class for a Norway trip. As far as warmer weather I would never pick an Edge class ship with an IV cabin. And I don’t want an SV. I want a real balcony on one of the other classes of ships. That’s why I take a cruise.

Edited May 26, 2023 by sarleo