This is a piece of opinion about the need, or lack thereof, of buying (or upgrading) a balcony cabin on a cruise ship. Note that this is based on my personal knowledge of the Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), which is the only line I have traveled so far.
So, would I buy (or upgrade) a balcony cabin on a cruise ship? My short answer is: No, I will NOT buy a balcony cabin. However, I may improve if the price is right. Of the 4 trips I have ever traveled, I have only improved twice by any means, both times from the inside to the balcony.
When I look at getting improvement there are three (3) things I consider:
# 1: COSTS - This is very important to me, regardless of the "useful things." I wonder, "Can I afford it?" However, depending on my budget at the time, I will reconsider the following terms.
# 2: LOCATION - As they say in real estate, "It's all about: Location, Location, Location!" To me this is like sailing and it helps me decide if I want to get an upgrade. What are the telephone ports and how far is the ship from the shore?
# 3 LENGTH - If I was going to sail on the weekends, I would not be able to fully manage the interior wardrobe. But, if I were to take a 21-day trip I would choose to get an upgrade.
The first time I improved was when I was on a 14-day Trans-Atlantic Cruise trip from Copenhagen to Miami back in October 2012 with my older brother. This upgrade happened after we boarded the ship and asked to be added to the waiting list for upgrades. The day after the departure, the front desktop informed us that there was a $ 300 balcony upgrade, we agreed. This was a good development, I would probably have missed out on this gift if I had known what I now know.
Now I will jump forward in May 2015 while traveling Alaskan Cruise with my mom on my 21st birthday. In the spirit of saving, we have done as we always do ... book the cheapest cabin available.
Because May is usually the first month when shipping lines begin to re-enter Alaska after the end of winter, it was still a "very bad" time. At the time of booking, we paid only about $ 1100 - $ 1200 for a 10-day inside trip for two people.
Over the days we looked at balcony prices and sea views nearby. We felt the prices were too high to improve and we were really happy that our dear Scottish friend would join our ship again.
Less than a week before my departure my mother received an email from NCL giving us an upgrade on the porch of the house for only $ 200 per person. Since $ 200 per person was VERY cheaper than what the NCL website was still offering, we decided to call for more details.
We finally arrived on Friday before the door closed and a very honest lady told us to come back on Monday because we would probably be given a better deal.
Indeed, he was right! The new offer was only $ 100 per person. We jumped into it 3 days before we left. This was one of the best development agreements we have ever heard of, let alone our own. And we were able to get our friend from Scotland the same contract, something he would not have done alone because the NCL made these special gifts for US and Canadian travelers.
So, the development of the Alaskan Cruise brings me to my last point ... on a four-year cruise Alaskan Cruise was the only one you should try to improve. As I said above, location is a big factor.
On my other three boats (two of which I did not upgrade) I easily enjoyed the beach area from public places. However, on Alaskan Cruise (Inside Passage would not be the same without my balcony. Watching a dolphin pod passing very early in the morning or seeing Aurora lights late at night from my closet was totally worth it.
Unless you like to stare at the ocean for endless hours I would not recommend getting a view of the sea view on the balcony or an improvement of the sea view on the Baltic, Trans-Atlantic or even Mediterranean cruise. You may be surprised that I have included Med Cruises too, but, ships are usually very far from the sea so you can see a lot anyway. As I said before, there are plenty of public spaces for you to watch the sea if you like.
Well, those "two cents" stand on this issue. I hope it is helpful to you in deciding "Yay" or "No" on a development decision. Please let me know what you think in the comments below.
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