Aft vs. Bow cabins

[mueller74us]

Hello Everyone!

 

I thought that I saw somewhere on the boards that aft cabins were preferred by most over bow...or vice versa!? Any opinions one way or another?

 

More specifically, DH and I will have a port bow cabin on our upcoming Destiny trip. Any drawbacks to this location?

 

Thanks, Jennifer

;) ;) ;)

[kitty9]

I've found forward cabins to be more bouncy than aft cabins. In rough seas, the bow of the ship hits the heavy waves and by the time it gets back to the rear of the ship, much of that motion has been dispelled by the stabilizers.

[mueller74us]

Thanks, Darcie!!...by the way..I used to live in WI...DH is a native!!

[chasetf]

I've found forward cabins to be more bouncy than aft cabins. In rough seas, the bow of the ship hits the heavy waves and by the time it gets back to the rear of the ship, much of that motion has been dispelled by the stabilizers.

To add: A front facing balcony may be unusable when underway (heading into the wind). You will also hear the anchor in the morning in the forward cabins.

 

Aft cabins could also have some exhaust ash if the smoke is dirty.

[dforeigner]

To add: A front facing balcony may be unusable when underway (heading into the wind). You will also hear the anchor in the morning in the forward cabins.

 

Aft cabins could also have some exhaust ash if the smoke is dirty.

 

The ash may be because the ship's filtering system is faulty. Ships routinely incinerate garbage and then unload the ash remains back at port for proper disposal.

[jman_in_minnesota]

aft cabins do indeed move alot in rough seas...the last cruise I was on it was so rough I couldn't even stand while getting dressed!

[kitty9]

mueller, I was born and raised in Ohio and have relatives not far outside Columbus, in Mount Vernon.

[katier825]

I would take an aft balcony over any other anyday! Forward is windy. Never had issues with smoke on the aft balcony. As for the motion, I find it soothing...like rocking to sleep!

[Cuizer2]

Most cruise ships don't offer front facing balconies. NCL does, but Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Princess don't. Most cruise ships (but not all) offer rear facing balconies. So if you want a balcony, most likely all that is offered is a rear facing balcony.

 

The front facing balconies can be a bit windy when the ship is under way, but then the front facing balconies are great when you are approaching the port. Also, if there is a tail wind, the front facing balconies are not that bad.

 

For ocean view cabins, the front facing cabins tend to have port holes while the rear facing cabins will have a picture window. So once again, you gain a little with the rear facing balconies.

 

Lets see what photos I have ...

 

Here are a couple of the Carnival Pride ...

 

 

 

As you can see, no front facing balconies and the front facing ocean view cabins have port holes.

 

Here are a couple of photos of two Royal Caribbean ships (the Navigator and the Vision of the Seas) ...

 

 

 

As you can see, the Navigator only has port holes. The Vision has picture windows, but then there is a walk way in front of the windows, so people might be blocking your view.

 

Finally we have the NCL Star ...

 

 

Now the Star has forward facing balconies, but those are not balcony cabins, they are suites.

 

There is a limit of five photos per post, so I have to continue on the next post ...

[Cuizer2]

Now lets see what rear end photos I have (none of mine - fortunately) ...

 

Here is the NCL Star ...

 

 

Some of those are suites, some are balcony cabins.

 

Here is the Vision of the Seas ...

 

 

The windows all belong to public areas. The top row of balconies are junior suites and the bottom row are balcony cabins.

 

The is not the best example of a Voyager class aft end, but it is what I have (the Navigator and the Explorer - the one pictured below, are both Voyager class ships) ...

 

 

The red line marks the four Royal Family Suites. The port holes are the windows to the main bedroom. There full sized windows belong to the sitting room. The Voyager class ships also have rear facing balcony cabins.

 

Here is a photo of the back of the Carnival Spirit's aft (I don't have my rear Pride photo hosted on the Internet). The Pride is a Spirit class ship ...

 

 

 

On the Spirit class ships, the corner cabins are suites, the rest of the aft facing cabins are balcony cabins.

[Cuizer2]

And this is why people like aft facing balconies ...

 

Carnival Pride - May 2004 ...

 

 

From the Carnival Glory - April 2006 ...

 

 

[mueller74us]

Darcie...what a small world! My stepfather and his family are from Mt.Vernon. We will be there in a few weeks for a party....

 

Cuizer2...thank you so much for the pictures......

 

Jennifer

[winnyd]

Excelent Pics .But your comment Re Princess doesn't have front cabins is not quite right I've just returned from the Tahitian Princess & we booked a front Cabin at first but changed to a stern because of comments I'd read .I made a big mistake on that ship .It has a balcony that you have to stand to see out of also She only does a max 12 knots so hardly no wake .There was soot one day on the Chaise lounges but a towel fixed it.There was no breeze at all ,the only cruise where we kept the door closed most of the time.How I wished we had kept the front cabin.the wind the wife was concerned about would have bin welcomed as the temp was always near the 90s.Another thing the Captain announcd there was dolphins following the ship into one of the Islands They of course did'nt appear at the stern. Also I like to see whats happening not after the fact After 2 front Balconys & numourous side ones No more Rear for me.Guess I'm not romantic because I wasn't impressed by the wake

[Isla Gal]

winnyd, I am so disappointed to hear you didn't like your cabin. We have reserved an aft cabin on deck 7, after reading all the great comments about aft cabins on this board! I was concerned after seeing pictures of the stern that you would not be able see over the metal railing when seated - but someone on this board told me you could :confused: . . .but you were not able see over it when seated?? thanks!