Bonnie Voyager.....We need your help!

[Aprille]

I had found a picture on the net of the space under the deck 6 aft cabins, but for some reason the link to it I posted was removed ?????

Is this the post you're talking about? If so, the link is still there and working.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=12517719#post12517719

 

Interesting picture. Thanks for posting.

[JJSMaine]

Is this the post you're talking about? If so, the link is still there and working.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=12517719#post12517719

 

Interesting picture. Thanks for posting.

 

Well there is some considerable amount of avian reproductive casing on my face now!!!!! ( otherwise known as, open mouth-insert foot)

 

Thanks for the correction!!!!

[ddy123]

Hi Bonnie. I did a search and just read though this entire thread. What a service you provide to the Cruise Critic members! You are a wealth of information and I am sure you have made many cruisers very happy with their choices!

 

We recently switched from two aft D1s on Voyager to the Royal Family Suite 8394. We "justified" (maybe more me than my sweet DH who said yes!) this to celebrate my change in jobs after 25 years with the same and only company I have ever worked for. Plus we have two DDs ages 10 and 13 who were planned to be in their own adjoining cabin (not connecting) and the nervous mama kicked in about not having them being in the same cabin with us. So we did it and booked 8394!

 

I have been told that we will be able to find some shade on the balcony away from the railing. My DH needs to stay out of the sun as much as possible so I am hoping that is the case. What do you think? I am likely going to purchase a two of these umbrellas to take with us as well. I would imagine we could attach them to the balcony chairs.

 

 

 

 

Even if we don't end up needing them on the balcony, they will come in handy for our DDs soccer games.

 

Thanks for any thoughts you have and all of the information you have provided in the past. You are the reason we went AFT on our first cruise on Explorer!

[dwdwnurse]

Hi Bonnie! We followed your advice and were able to get 1400 on Freedom of the Seas - every other D1 will now pale in comparison, lol :)

 

Thanks for all your tips!

[Bonnie Voyager]

Hi Bonnie. I did a search and just read though this entire thread. What a service you provide to the Cruise Critic members! You are a wealth of information and I am sure you have made many cruisers very happy with their choices!

 

We recently switched from two aft D1s on Voyager to the Royal Family Suite 8394. We "justified" (maybe more me than my sweet DH who said yes!) this to celebrate my change in jobs after 25 years with the same and only company I have ever worked for. Plus we have two DDs ages 10 and 13 who were planned to be in their own adjoining cabin (not connecting) and the nervous mama kicked in about not having them being in the same cabin with us. So we did it and booked 8394!

 

I have been told that we will be able to find some shade on the balcony away from the railing. My DH needs to stay out of the sun as much as possible so I am hoping that is the case. What do you think? I am likely going to purchase a two of these umbrellas to take with us as well. I would imagine we could attach them to the balcony chairs.

 

 

 

 

Even if we don't end up needing them on the balcony, they will come in handy for our DDs soccer games.

 

Thanks for any thoughts you have and all of the information you have provided in the past. You are the reason we went AFT on our first cruise on Explorer!

 

 

Here is a link to a photo of a Royal Family Suite...

http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2985794700101647595FSiQnN

 

There is NOT much (if any) overhang above, but depending on the time of day, direction travelled, and cloud cover, you may or may not have some shade at any given time. You will just have to move your chairs around and chase the shade! I think your umbrellas will work great though. We used those same umbrellas on one of our aft cabins. We sort of had to "rig" it to make it attach though. It just depends on what type of furniture you've got. Good luck! I think you will enjoy your balcony!

[Bonnie Voyager]

Hi Bonnie! We followed your advice and were able to get 1400 on Freedom of the Seas - every other D1 will now pale in comparison, lol :)

 

Thanks for all your tips!

 

 

Congrats! :D I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

[ddy123]

Hi Bonnie. Thanks so much for your reply! Wow...I did not realize how little overhang there would be. I wonder whether the RFS on the 8th deck will have more? The picture was I believe on the 9th so maybe we will get lucky with more overhang on the 8th? If not, moving chairs it will be! Thanks again for such a quick reply!:)

[Kikkycat]

I'm currently booked on Liberty of the Seas in 8710. I see that 9404 is also available without upgrading room category. Does either of these balconies offer more shade than the other? I am aware of the single door, and that 9404 does have the extra porthole that 8710 does not. The possibility of shade is the primary question, but I'd be also interested to hear which is the larger balcony, if there's much difference.

 

I am checking nearly every day to see if one of the corners on deck 7 come available. We had 7388 on AOS a year ago and adored it, and have 8168 booked for a week from today on Serenade.

[Bonnie Voyager]

I'm currently booked on Liberty of the Seas in 8710. I see that 9404 is also available without upgrading room category. Does either of these balconies offer more shade than the other? I am aware of the single door, and that 9404 does have the extra porthole that 8710 does not. The possibility of shade is the primary question, but I'd be also interested to hear which is the larger balcony, if there's much difference.

 

I am checking nearly every day to see if one of the corners on deck 7 come available. We had 7388 on AOS a year ago and adored it, and have 8168 booked for a week from today on Serenade.

 

 

8710 and 9404 are both pretty sunny balconies. 8710's balcony is a tad larger than 9404. 9404 has the porthole window for extra light in the cabin, as you know. It is really pretty much a 50/50 as far as one cabin being any "better" than the other. But as far as shade goes, neither has much.

[Kikkycat]

Thanks for taking the time to answer Bonnie! That pretty much confirms what I thought. I'll keep 8710 for now, and keep looking for another aft balcony (praying for deck 7 corner, which DH & I loved on AOS).

[Bonnie Voyager]

Thanks for taking the time to answer Bonnie! That pretty much confirms what I thought. I'll keep 8710 for now, and keep looking for another aft balcony (praying for deck 7 corner, which DH & I loved on AOS).

 

You'll be fine either way! After all you'll be cruising! ;):D Also, if one of the cabins one spot over on decks 8 or 9 open up they will be shadier than the corners on those decks. Just something else to consider. But don't worry about it too much though! You will have SOME shade on your current balcony at certain times of day! :D

[MDSue]

Just wanted to say hi Bonnie! I don't see a spring break cruise on your schedule. I'm booked on the Serenade again this year in March. Cathie [Chippendale] is booked as well.

What are your spring break plans for this year?

[Bonnie Voyager]

Just wanted to say hi Bonnie! I don't see a spring break cruise on your schedule. I'm booked on the Serenade again this year in March. Cathie [Chippendale] is booked as well.

What are your spring break plans for this year?

 

 

You are correct in your observation! GASP!!! :eek: We are doing a LAND VACATION over spring break this year! :p This was my husband's idea, not mine! For me cruising is the way to go! But, I will give in and let him have a land vacation every now and then! I'm nice like that! ;)

[SliderNc]

Hey Bonnie,

 

We booked 9404 on the Freedom and we're happy with the choice we made as we just wanted the larger balcony and the privacy. I have a few questions as this is for our honeymoon.

 

The AFT JS's (7712/7714/7412/7414): aside from the cabin differences, how do these compare in terms of balcony space?

 

Can we request a single lounger to be put out on our balcony if one isn't out there? I read in the thread previously that a single lounger should fit and this will be great for my fiance as she'll love to lay out there in the afternoons and read/drink wine.

 

Thanks in advance for all your advice on this thread. It's been really helpful.

[Bonnie Voyager]

Hey Bonnie,

 

We booked 9404 on the Freedom and we're happy with the choice we made as we just wanted the larger balcony and the privacy. I have a few questions as this is for our honeymoon.

 

The AFT JS's (7712/7714/7412/7414): aside from the cabin differences, how do these compare in terms of balcony space?

 

Can we request a single lounger to be put out on our balcony if one isn't out there? I read in the thread previously that a single lounger should fit and this will be great for my fiance as she'll love to lay out there in the afternoons and read/drink wine.

 

Thanks in advance for all your advice on this thread. It's been really helpful.

 

 

There should be a lounger already on your balcony (9404), but certainly go ahead and request one if there is not! As far as those aft JS balconies, they are all almost identical to each other. I attached a photo of the equivalent of one of those balconies (but on a Voyager-class ship) so you can see what they are like. I also attached a photo of 9390 (Voyager-class) which is the same as 9404 on Freedom. Enjoy! :D

[ottawapuppy]

In our opinion, on the big ships......... go down to the seventh deck and try 7688 / 7388 . The room is standard but the balcony is not. We took Bonnie's advice on this a few years ago on Navigator. We have booked it again on Adventure for next April. Last year we had 1700 on Freedom and I agree it is a great cabin.

 

Note...... some people claim to not like the 7688/7388 balconies because of outward structure. It certainly is not a full sun aft balcony such as 9256 on Serenade but it is the roomiest and has an awesome side view also. We hold big parties on it.......dancing room too.

 

7388...I know it well...fantastic balcony!!! We hosted a Cabin Crawl on one cruise and had 37 people on the balcony.

 

We have it again on back-to-back cruises on Adventure in May.

 

Mike

[ottawapuppy]

How exciting! I got my OWN thread! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed "our" cabin! :)

 

Wow, the *real* Bonnie Voyager!

 

Love your Aft Cabin Pictures pages. (We have you as one of our favourite links on our web site!)

 

Mike

[Bonnie Voyager]

Wow, the *real* Bonnie Voyager!

 

Love your Aft Cabin Pictures pages. (We have you as one of our favourite links on our web site!)

 

Mike

 

 

Thanks Mike :D ...and I love your COUNTRY! Canada is beautiful!

[ncook1970]

Thank you Madame Voyager for the sage advice. (about better to have a bad cabin on a great ship than a great cabin on a bad ship, that is...) Hopefully we can land a great cabin on a great ship!!! :) What ship and what cabins/staterooms/suite, etc should we book? My husband is starting to get annoyed with me for spending so much time on cruise critic, and frankly, so am I. But I want to make sure that I'm left feeling like a rec'd a good value. We have never cruised before and haven't even booked anything yet...the choices are so overwhelming...We will be travelling with our 14 year old daughter. Have it narrowed down to Port Canaveral for a port. That's it. I'm thinking that I'm preferring RCs Freedom of the Seas. I would LOVE to do Oasis, but for a first time cruise I think it's too expensive and too big. But then, I wonder if Carnival wouldn't be better! I hear so much conflicting information. In the interest of time...I've spent hours on this site and think I've just ended up with more questions! I'm desperate! I'm almost resigning to just picking the next cruise that comes into my view and booking it. But then I came across your wonderfully cheerful and informative thread. So I'll take one last kick at the cat. I will take your advice and not hold you liable for anything! If you were travelling for the first time via cruise, didn't have many opportunities to get away, and are on a medium budget, like modern, up to date decor, desperately need some R & R until we feel rested and then need to balance the rest with a great time, not to mention ensure our daughter is having a blast, with us (ie: excursions) and without us (kids club) AND MOST importantly need a nice warm and sunny balcony!!! (Am I asking for too much ;)!? Respectfully, ncook1970

[ncook1970]

How was Carnival Dream?

[Stevesan]

The thread that wouldn't die. :p

[Bonnie Voyager]

Thank you Madame Voyager for the sage advice. (about better to have a bad cabin on a great ship than a great cabin on a bad ship, that is...) Hopefully we can land a great cabin on a great ship!!! :) What ship and what cabins/staterooms/suite, etc should we book? My husband is starting to get annoyed with me for spending so much time on cruise critic, and frankly, so am I. But I want to make sure that I'm left feeling like a rec'd a good value. We have never cruised before and haven't even booked anything yet...the choices are so overwhelming...We will be travelling with our 14 year old daughter. Have it narrowed down to Port Canaveral for a port. That's it. I'm thinking that I'm preferring RCs Freedom of the Seas. I would LOVE to do Oasis, but for a first time cruise I think it's too expensive and too big. But then, I wonder if Carnival wouldn't be better! I hear so much conflicting information. In the interest of time...I've spent hours on this site and think I've just ended up with more questions! I'm desperate! I'm almost resigning to just picking the next cruise that comes into my view and booking it. But then I came across your wonderfully cheerful and informative thread. So I'll take one last kick at the cat. I will take your advice and not hold you liable for anything! If you were travelling for the first time via cruise, didn't have many opportunities to get away, and are on a medium budget, like modern, up to date decor, desperately need some R & R until we feel rested and then need to balance the rest with a great time, not to mention ensure our daughter is having a blast, with us (ie: excursions) and without us (kids club) AND MOST importantly need a nice warm and sunny balcony!!! (Am I asking for too much ;)!? Respectfully, ncook1970

 

 

I'll make this easy for you! Book Freedom of the Seas! As far as the sunny balcony for 3 passengers, I guess for you I'd recommend aft cabins 1702 or 1402, then 1704 or 1404.

 

Carnival Dream was fine, but if you are possibly on a "once in a lifetime" vacation....go for Freedom of the Seas!

[RnBluvher]

Bonnie...

I'm coming to the aft queen because I can really use your help. I currently have a 24 hr hold on 7688 and 1392 on the Explorer of the seas. I have never had an aft cabin before and i'm a little nervous about movement and getting sea sick. In all of your infinite wisdom on aft cabins, can you tell me which one of these decks will have the LEAST amount of movement and the MOST sun exposure????

 

Thank You

[Iamthesea]

The higher up, the most motion. Also, we find that the very aft staterooms cause us problems when sleeping because the bed is usually oriented so that you rock head to toe and not side to side.:eek:

 

Did you know that 1392 connects to another stateroom?

Edited August 28, 2013 by Iamthesea

[Bonnie Voyager]

Bonnie...

I'm coming to the aft queen because I can really use your help. I currently have a 24 hr hold on 7688 and 1392 on the Explorer of the seas. I have never had an aft cabin before and i'm a little nervous about movement and getting sea sick. In all of your infinite wisdom on aft cabins, can you tell me which one of these decks will have the LEAST amount of movement and the MOST sun exposure????

 

Thank You

 

1392 will have more sun. 7688 will have the least movement.

 

Am I correct in assuming you have 3 passengers? If you are booking 2 passengers in either of these cabins, you will have the risk of being "bumped" to allow for a family of 3. (It happened to me once). But if you have 3 or more passengers you would be fine.

 

I have never been seasick in an aft cabin....but I have never been seasick period, so I guess I am not a good judge of the aft movement! ;) I have never found it to be very bad. However, I have also sailed in a cabin on the bow of the ship and that cabin "moved like Jagger!" :eek::D

 

Personally, if I were booking 3 passengers on Explorer, I'd go with the category D1 (1392 in your case) because the cabin itself is larger. I find 7688 to be a tad small for 3 passengers (unless the 3rd passenger is a small child). Keep in mind the bed for the 3rd passenger in 7688 is a Pullman that comes down from the ceiling and is located directly on top of the heads of the passengers in the "regular" bed! (I attached a photo below)