Decisions, decisions! Help please!

[dmonroe]

Ok, we've decided to forgo our annual trip to WDW in favor of the DCL cruise!

I am ready to book, but I have a few questions. Here are the particulars--We are a family of 4 and will be booking connecting cabins to insure that everyone gets a good nights sleep. We absolutely can not all sleep in the same room, so that is a nonissue!

1. How important is having a verandah? I know there is quite a big price difference in outside staterooms and the ones with verandahs. Is it worth it?

2. If I decide against the verandah, is category 8 or 9 better, as far as location goes? It looks like category 9 is only on decks 1 and 2. I could possibly get on deck 5 (with the kids club) in a category 8. Since I've never cruised before, I don't know which would be more convenient.

Help, please! TIA-Dana

 

[mommasita]

HI, glad to hear your choice.

The veranda is a real personal choice. Some people can not cruise without it, some can. We can cruise without it, it is nice believe me, but the price is just too much $$ for us...

You can definitely book a cat. 8 on deck 5, here is a link to the staterooms, and where they are located http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruise-new/cr-deckplans.htm# The rooms with arrows back and forth, signify CONNECTING cabins..THere are none on deck 5 however I also just wanted to add that the first 2 persons in each cabin will pay ADULT fare, regardless of age, so that could play a big factor in 2 cabins, and their pricing.

I prefer to be higher up, so I would book the higher deck. I have also stayed on Deck 2 and enjoyed it. I just prefer the proximity of the higher decks.

HTH

 

[CraftyMouse]

We have sailed with a verandah and without. For us the verandah is a waste of money. I am sure you will hear from others who say a verandah is a necessity. It really comes down to your preference. We found that we were so busy with the activities on (and off) the ship that we never really used the verandah...well, at least not nearly enough to justify the cost. Since you are booking 2 cabins it would be considerably more to cruise with the verandah.

As for decks, we have sailed on Decks 2, 5, 6 and 7. Our favorite, by far, is Deck 2. We now always get an ocean view cabin on Deck 2 Aft and find it very convenient. You are just a few flights of stairs away from everything. Once you get aclimated to the ship nothing is very far away. No matter where you are you'll be closer to some things than others. We sailed on Deck 5, just around the corner from the kids' clubs and found it no more convenient than being anywhere else on the ship. If you get paged to pick up your child the chances are that you will be somewhere out and about on the ship so location of cabin doesn't really matter.

Hope that helps. Happy Sailing!

 

[dmonroe]

Thanks so much for the quick responses! I think I have pretty much made up my mind that we can do without the verandah. This is our first cruise, so I don't expect that we'll be in our rooms much. Anyway, we might want to upgrade for our 2nd cruise! LOL

From all I've read, people seem to be happy with deck 2, except for a few noise issues. I figure we can just bring our white noise machines and be happy there!

 

[jw2736]

1. How important is having a verandah? I know there is quite a big price difference in outside staterooms and the ones with verandahs. Is it worth it?

A veranda is a nice this to have, but this being your first cruise, you will probably not spend much time in your cabin with all the exploring and activities to enjoy. My opinion is to save the money on this cruise and stay in a cat 8 or 9. If you really enjoy this trip,(as if you wont) then you'll have a veranda room to look forward to the next time.

2. If I decide against the verandah, is category 8 or 9 better, as far as location goes? It looks like category 9 is only on decks 1 and 2. I could possibly get on deck 5 (with the kids club) in a category 8. Since I've never cruised before, I don't know which would be more convenient.

Been in both rooms before. The cat 8 and 9's are the same room mostly. The cat 9's on deck 1 have two small portholes ( about 1 foot wide each) while the cat 9's on deck 2 and cat 8's have a large (3 foot) porthole. The cat 8's or on deck 5,6 and 7 all forward, towards the bow. If you are on deck 2, its only a short trip to the kids clubs. Really no big deal. The cat 8's are at the end of a hallway so you really dont have too many people walking around. Depending on where you'd be on deck 1 or 2, that may be an issue for you. I was on deck 2 under the clubs and heard music all night long. I have a cat 8 on deck 7 booked for the repo cruise next May.