Balcony- yes or no

[nancycara]

Is a balcony something I would enjoy on a Baltic cruise? Are you ever close enough to land to see things? I have always had a balcony but with the prices for "07 being so high, I thought maybe I should save some and do an interior. We are doing the Star Princess with Oslo. Thanks for any thoughts.

[dileep]

Is a balcony something I would enjoy on a Baltic cruise? Are you ever close enough to land to see things? I have always had a balcony but with the prices for "07 being so high, I thought maybe I should save some and do an interior. We are doing the Star Princess with Oslo. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

We always like a balcony. You will see interesting sight going into ports. This is especially true in Stockholm. We enjoyed it in St Petersburg, Tallinn, Warnemunde, and Klaipeda.

 

We like to sit outside with our coffee in the morning and with our wine or Scotch in the evening.

 

There are 2 kinds of people in this world - ones like us who love our balconies and one who think it is a waste and would rather be in an inside cabin.

 

Decide for your self.

[stipmom]

I think alot depends on the time of year you are sailing. We had a balcony on our July sailing and the weather was okay to sit outside-not that cool. I'm not sure I would take one in May although it is very scenic sailing in and out of Stockholm

[JodiBB]

We had a balcony for our August trip and loved pulling into ports and going through the fjords, while sitting out on our balcony....we never regretted having it!

[Host CMLA]

There are 2 kinds of people in this world - ones like us who love our balconies and one who think it is a waste and would rather be in an inside cabin.

I believe there are far more types of people than that. Just because someone doesn't get a balcony doesn't mean they think it's a waste. Balconies are great. There's nothing like sitting on the balcony relaxing. However, on my Baltic trip the itinerary was so port intensive that there was very little time to just sit on the balcony. So I didn't get a balcony for the Baltic cruise. I got an oceanview with a window and that worked out great and I saved a lot of money.

 

To the OP...if money is an issue, I don't think you'll be missing a lot by not having a balcony. You're in port A LOT. A balcony isn't going to be the highlight of your trip. If you have the money and enjoy a balcony no matter what, then get the balcony. Try to think realistically how much you'll use the balcony and then decide if it's worth the money.

[Juliadlf]

We are doing the Star this August - Oslo - and I had the same questions on whether to do the balcony or not. We decided OV was better for us since we plan to be off the ship more than on it.

If we need to be in the open air viewing the scenery,then we can go up on deck.

Have fun planning your cruise.

 

Julia

[nancycara]

That is what we were thinking. I love having a balcony but this trip is so much more expensive than I thought it would be for 10 nights that we are thinking we should save the extra money towards another trip if we won't use it as much.

[sultan_sfo]

Now that you are leaning toward Inside, some suggestions for the Star. On our B2B, we did Inside for Baltic and Balcony for the Transaltlantic. For the Inside: Avoid a cabin next to the white spaces on the deck plan. They have a vibrating sound from the bowels of the ship. Get a cabin if possible between other cabins. And for sailaways, go about 20 minutes before sailaway to the Skywalker's lounge, get a drink, and watch. Even when we have balcony we do sailaways from Skywalkers on these cooler (temp-wise) cruises. The excursions are so early that missing the docking on the Baltics cruise will not matter! /Sultan

 

That is what we were thinking. I love having a balcony but this trip is so much more expensive than I thought it would be for 10 nights that we are thinking we should save the extra money towards another trip if we won't use it as much.

[mycruz]

I really enjoyed having the balcony to experience the sail aways from all the ports with out having to leave my room. Everyday we returned from our excurions very tired. It was nice to just step out on the balcony with a glass of wine and relax while leaving port. The best experience was leaving St. Petersburg and watching the Russian naval band playing on the pier as we left. Everyone that was on their balconys were waiving and enjoying the music. This was also a very emotional moment leaving the country that I never dreamed I would ever get to visit, all withou having to find a spot up on deck. Second best was leaving Oslo, what a beautiful sight sailing through the fjords with sail boats and the scenery was just breathtaking. I may be spolied, but what the heck, I'll probably never see these countries again but will have lasting memories.

[swdke]

Is a balcony something I would enjoy on a Baltic cruise? Are you ever close enough to land to see things? I have always had a balcony but with the prices for "07 being so high, I thought maybe I should save some and do an interior. We are doing the Star Princess with Oslo. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

We sailed on the Star last season and had an inside cabin to save money. For us, we were doing some pre and post stays in Copenhagen, as well as three nights in Paris, plus there's all the exciting things to see and do in each port. So for us, it was easy to forgo a balcony in exchange for all the other things we were doing. Although a balcony cabin is always a good thing as you've experienced yourself. Scandinavian weather can be cool, but that wouldn't stop me from enjoying the view and being outside. For myself, I walked around the ship, enjoying the view from all parts of the ship. It was really cool being up on top of the viewing platform. However, in terms of scenery, most of the sailing is too far from shore to see. But, naturally when your sailing into and out of port, there's lots to see then. I wish I could give you a yes or no answer, but it's really a matter of personal choice and budget. Overall, it's a very busy and port intensive cruise. You're up early, and back late, having a balcony might be great, but you may find that you won't use it as much as you would hope. But it's still a nice thing to have if it's affordable. What ever you decide, you'll have a wonderful cruise.

[dileep]

I believe there are far more types of people than that. Just because someone doesn't get a balcony doesn't mean they think it's a waste. Balconies are great. There's nothing like sitting on the balcony relaxing. However, on my Baltic trip the itinerary was so port intensive that there was very little time to just sit on the balcony. So I didn't get a balcony for the Baltic cruise. I got an oceanview with a window and that worked out great and I saved a lot of money.

 

To the OP...if money is an issue, I don't think you'll be missing a lot by not having a balcony. You're in port A LOT. A balcony isn't going to be the highlight of your trip. If you have the money and enjoy a balcony no matter what, then get the balcony. Try to think realistically how much you'll use the balcony and then decide if it's worth the money.

 

I only gave the two extremes, and you are right there are many in between. We had a balcony in the Baltics last May and we throroughly enjoyed it. We always get a balcony and we make the most of it. As far as cost goes, we rarely take the ship's excursions, and we take only one cruise a year, so we don't mind the extra expense of the balcony.

[zaban3]

Check the prices. Sometimes, especially on Princess, there is only $100 dollars or so difference.

[Dbedros]

zaban3 gave you the best information. Watch the prices, get a good TA that helps you watch them. I also was thinking of taking an OV because this cruise is so port intensive but I prefer the balcony and actually use it.

 

I got a special promo in the mail from Princess for balconies for a category BE. Called the TA she beat their price by $300pp and the category is a BB. Also, if you do a balcony on the Star remember that they come, uncovered, partially covered and covered depending on the deck that you choose.

 

To your original questions it appears from what I have been reading on the boards that there is definitely something to see on the Baltic cruises. You just have to decide where you want to see it from, the deck or your balcony.

[sunprincess]

While I would love to secure a balcony cabin for every cruise I take I cannot always do this. Especially tavelling as a single passenger most of the time.

Personally there are select itineraries that "require" a balcony, but, not the Baltic. This is a port intensive cruise, without much free time.

My vote would be to save the money for tours :)

The Star Baltic cruise is awesome.

 

Good Luck.

[cruisemom42]

Is a balcony something I would enjoy on a Baltic cruise? Are you ever close enough to land to see things? I have always had a balcony but with the prices for "07 being so high, I thought maybe I should save some and do an interior. We are doing the Star Princess with Oslo. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

 

We were on Star Princess last year (first week in June) with a balcony cabin. I had my doubts as to whether we really needed one, but it turned out that the weather was balmy and we did use it a lot. It was great for sailaways -- like the band in Russia or the cheering and singing we heard leaving Warnemunde.

 

We also found that it was the best place to relax after a long port day. I'd send my son up to the buffet for a plate of cheese and crackers and we'd sit and have wine (and cokes) on the balcony waiting for our second wind to kick in so we could get ready for the evening ahead.

 

I also like to keep the doors open anytime I'm in the room. and it was warm enough to do that except for one day.

 

Star Princess does not cruise up the fjords to Stockholm, so that is something to consider. To tell the truth, there is not a lot that can be seen between ports, although my son enjoyed looking for other ships and ferries in the crowded shipping lanes.

 

I guess it's up to you. If it's a choice between spending the money on a private guided two-day tour of St. Petersburg or getting the balcony, I'd go for the tour. However, if you can get a balcony for not much more than an ocean view, I'd go for it.

[sandyruth]

balcony- YES YES YES!!!!!!

[MTemple212]

Another thing you have to consider also when doing the Baltics is the sunlight, as in hours per day and if you can sleep with sunlight coming in your window or balcony windows. During most of the months June, July, August, it is daylight for about 18 hours a day and possibly more!! So if you are sensitive to this when sleeping, it is something to think about.