Just gave up an Aft cabin for A Hump cabin

[rt1092]

Just gave up an Aft cabin 7676 for A Hump cabin 8102(largest balcony), On the Radiance Ultimate Alaska May 11, 2009

Did I do the right thing?

[FitzLA]

Hmmmm. Hump balconies on Radiance can be larger, but can also be smaller. And just personally, I would never give up a aft balcony. Those are the most coveted. Unless you really want to be close to the elevator, I would stick with aft. Just a personal opinion, of course.

[familycruzer]

It would take a lot for me to give up an aft cabin but I think I would do it for a hump in Alaska. I am guessing you will get a better view.

[terri23]

very close call but I might have stuck with the aft D1 vs the hump E1 (or did I read the deck plans wrong?). you can't go wrong in either cabin, though!

[Oville]

Not I, we just a had center hump and it we thought is was our best location ever.

[firefly333]

Alaska might be the one time Id rather be on the hump than the aft. I want to view the icebergs calving directly, not from the aft. ... the flip side is you can only see out one side of the ship, so from the aft you might see both sides and the icebergs, just a side view.

[chefcaw]

We currently have the 2 GS on the Hump and the GS on the aft booked. 1060 has come available. Should we give up the aft and take the other side GS?

 

Chris

[Darkwolfe]

Just gave up an Aft cabin 7676 for A Hump cabin 8102(largest balcony), On the Radiance Ultimate Alaska May 11, 2009

Did I do the right thing?

 

Nope.

 

 

:D

[Fblack]

The Radiance lets you walk all the way forward to watch the glaciers. That's better than in any cabin in my opinion.

[vickiw0318]

I have had a side balcony and an aft balcony on Alaska cruises. The aft was much better.

[hcat]

We always pick the best hump cabin we can get--great views, you have easy access & use of the areas overlooking the nearby Centrum-libraray or computers--, close to getting up to the concierge club , a nice smooth ride & NO long walks to the elevators...but it's personal taste---aft lovers usually won't trade but we'd never book anything else than a hump!

[BDL]

Just gave up an Aft cabin 7676 for A Hump cabin 8102(largest balcony), On the Radiance Ultimate Alaska May 11, 2009

Did I do the right thing?

 

I think you absolutely did the right thing! The hump area on Radiance is wonderful and the balcony you have is HUGE! We were on the other side of the hump on 8 and had an opportunity to see this cabin and balcony.. you will not be disappointed!

Barb

[above sea level cruiser]

Aft is Aft.....you see thing later than most do. We had an aft last cruise and are still trying to figure out what the big deal is. It is somewhat noisey back there.

[FLCruiseGirl]

We had an aft on the Serenade a few years back. It was our first and we only booked it because of all the hype on this board. We were so unimpressed by it that when we got back we changed an aft we had booked on the Freedom to a side cabin. Personally, I wouldn't book an aft again.

 

Don't second guess yourself. Some will say you made a mistake, some will say you didn't. Nobody's right - and nobody's wrong.

[PH8]

I am an aft lover and have had one on my Alaskan cruise.............I think it was the best location esp for that itinerary......you can sit out there and see both sides esp when cruising thru the Inside Passage........

 

Tried a hump cabin once and it wasnt for us.......sure,the location cant be beat,but to me,thats all it had going for it.

[BettyCruiser]

I would stick with the aft on the Radiance class.

[jmezmom]

Just gave up an Aft cabin 7676 for A Hump cabin 8102(largest balcony), On the Radiance Ultimate Alaska May 11, 2009

Did I do the right thing?

Hey rt,

 

I am on your roll call thread!

 

We are in the center hump cabin 7602! See you at the meet amd mingle!!

[critterchick]

We currently have the 2 GS on the Hump and the GS on the aft booked. 1060 has come available. Should we give up the aft and take the other side GS?

 

Chris

 

That's a close call. If you'd like to see pictures of both 1600 (on Brilliance, but she's Radiances twin) and 1060 on Radiance, click on the link in my signature.

 

Plusses of 1600: the balcony. I love the view of the ship's wake, and it's nice and quiet back there. People from the WJ can see a bit of you if you're standing on your balcony, and your neighbor in 1602 can see your entire balcony, but that's all.

 

Minuses of 1600: the cabin has a very odd layout. I think it's the largest of the GS cabins, but most of the extra square footage is in an entry hall to get into it, so it's not really usable space. And the closet area sucks. It's 2/3 the size of the regular GS, and it's jammed into a corner near the bed and the vanity, so two people are going to be on top of each other trying to get ready. And the cabin is a bit dark because it only has a single sliding door, not the double doors/windows that the other GS cabins do.

 

Plusses of 1060: HUGE balcony, probably the largest on the ship. It's very conveniently located across the elevator lobby from the Concierge lounge, and we heard virtually no noise from the Centrum. The cabin layout is much more logical than 1600.

 

Minuses of 1060: It's a bit dark, too because the balcony is fully covered by the WJ overhang. There is a big white wall (the elevators are on the other side) on the balcony that completely cuts off any view forward. If you're standing at the rail you can see the balcony of every cabin aft of you, so they can see you, too. We had a lot of people waving at us. The biggest minus: there's a speaker for the PA system on the balcony and the Captain woke us up every morning with his announcement and "you should get out of bed."

 

I just asked DH and he said he would pick 1060, but only by a whisker. I'm not sure which I would pick. If more than 2 will be in the cabin, I'd go with 1060, but for just 2 I might go with 1600 for the balcony. Even in Alaska I spent a lot of time out there (in 1100, the JS) and the views were much better from there than they were from 1060.

 

Good luck deciding!:)

[mringenoldus]

I was also really interested in Critterchick's response. I gave up Radiance 1100 to my sister and her family and took 1060 for my husband and myself.

 

This will be my first time having access to the concierge lounge which I think my husband will enjoy. If it wasn't for that - I would never have left the aft!

[rt1092]

Hey rt,

 

I am on your roll call thread!

 

We are in the center hump cabin 7602! See you at the meet amd mingle!!

My mother in laws cabin is right near yours its 7598.

I have had a few aft cabins and they have been my favorites.

The pros are the lounge chairs on the balconies, the shelter from most of the wind.

The con's are long walks to get to and from the elevators. And I have read on here that the deck 7 aft cabins have a somewhat restricted view (I believe we had something like that on the voyager class).

Normally that would not bother me in the least. But I'm told theres an awful lot to see in Alaska. 8102 seems to have the biggest balcony, and its on the port side while my DMIL cabin is on the starboard side so hopefully we will not miss anything

[pinkrosesdeb]

We always try to book a hump cabin. We tried an aft...did NOT like it. 1060 is an awesome cabin & balcony!!! Great choice all around. You are steps to the CL and just off the elevator...we loved every min. in that cabin.

[DonnaK]

We had an aft on the Serenade a few years back. It was our first and we only booked it because of all the hype on this board. We were so unimpressed by it that when we got back we changed an aft we had booked on the Freedom to a side cabin. Personally, I wouldn't book an aft again.

 

Don't second guess yourself. Some will say you made a mistake, some will say you didn't. Nobody's right - and nobody's wrong.

 

 

Same here. We did not care for the aft cabin (1388 on Mariner) despite all the love for it here on CC. We wouldn't book one again, and much prefer side-facing balconies (even though they are smaller), closer to the elevators, preferably on the hump.

 

I think you made an excellent decision!!

[jmb4534]

Same here. We did not care for the aft cabin (1388 on Mariner) despite all the love for it here on CC. We wouldn't book one again, and much prefer side-facing balconies (even though they are smaller), closer to the elevators, preferably on the hump.

 

I think you made an excellent decision!!

 

Donna,

 

We have 1388 booked for our 46-day Around the Horn cruise. What were the negatives? Were there any positives?

 

I realize that in the Caribbean that balcony is going to probably be HOT, but I fugured that once we get into cooler climates having a more protected area will be a plus. Thanks for your input. Janelle

[DonnaK]

Donna,

 

We have 1388 booked for our 46-day Around the Horn cruise. What were the negatives? Were there any positives?

 

I realize that in the Caribbean that balcony is going to probably be HOT, but I fugured that once we get into cooler climates having a more protected area will be a plus. Thanks for your input. Janelle

 

I am in the minority. Most people love this cabin. For us, it was very hot - too hot to go out and enjoy the large balcony - there is a vacuum like effect when the ship moves forward and the air is very still across the stern/aft no crossbreeze to temper the heat. The little shaded corner of the balcony became like an oven. As you mentioned, you'll be sailing in cooler climate so heat probably won't be an issue for you.

 

We also didn't care for the view. On Voyager/Freedom class ships, there is a criss-cross of beams across the back of the ship, extending beyond the balconies, so the view is obstructed. 1388 has one beam that dips low over the balcony and you have to duck under it - I hit my head on it twice. The back of deck 6 extends quite far out, too. So, you have to look in the distance to see the ocean. We prefer the view from a side cabin, where you can look straight down/out into the ocean with no beams in the way. This is just our personal preference, as most people love the view and don't mind looking between the beams and beyond the lower decks.

 

We felt that the walk was very long, and we prefer the convenience of being near the elevator/stair lobby. In the corner of the hallway outside the cabin is a crew only stairwell, and we encountered Capt Johnny several times out there - it seems he utilized this stairwell a lot!!! He's very personable and friendly, and stopped to talk to us. (There was no other noise or issues from this staircase, just encounters with the Capt)

 

On the positive side, we did not experience any issues with soot on the balcony or noise from the Windjammer above. However, each morning, our balcony was soaking wet from the runoff of water used to clean the sports deck and Windjammer windows overnight, so don't leave things out there.

 

Like I said, I am in the minority. You'll probably love this cabin, as most people do. It's as large as a JS (without the tub and the walk-in closet), which is important on a 46 day cruise. Have a great trip!

[dougp26364]

Booked an aft cabin once. Neigther of us cared for it and don't plan on booking another. If it were us this would have been the right thing to do.