Is it worth the extra cost for a verandah?

[bethy]

We have to have one...the wife wants two ways out of our cabin in case of an emergency. From that height, she'd probably break a bone if she jumped, but she wants the option.

I basically would rather not cruise than cruise without a verandah. A lot of it has to do with feeling a bit trapped on a ship anyway - so I need the openness in the room. Also I need a lot of down time away from people. Love that peaceful escape - to me that is what cruising is about - with some fun thrown in with the Disney activities and shows

 

[kiford]

Only if you plan on spending time on them.

Not entirely true. We like having the verandah since it makes the room feel more open because of the wall of windows even if we don't spend a lot of time on them. Also, even if we only spend an hour or two on it, it enhances our enjoyment of the cruise. If we get tired of sitting on deck but want to still look out at the ocean we can do that on the verandah or from the couch looking out through the doors. Whether it's worth it or not to any particular individual is really not something anyone else can answer. I wouldn't cruise without one but I know lots of people including my father who could care less. I can only say why I like having one; it may not be relevant to others. But the amount of time I actually spend on the verandah isn't the primary factor for us. It's the open feeling and view.

 

[CamColt]

I know this wont help much but I think it comes down to what is important to you. We like to have one of course, and when we do our big summer vacation each year we do usually get one. Now there have been times when we have squeezed in an extra, shorter cruise in the winter time, and once did a cruise just for the Castaway Cay Challenge, and for those types of trips, I just wanted to get us on the ship. I didn't need the extras and was more concerned at keeping the cost down. We would have preferred to have one, but we still had amazing cruises in inside and ocean view rooms.

 

[jaiminee krikit]

My first DCL cruise we didn't have a verandah, but we did have a large window we could sit in. DD was 11 or 12 at the time I think, and she loved sitting in the window. Our next DCL cruise, we got an oversized aft verandah. That was simply amazing! It was covered so we could sit out there when it was raining, or when it was sunny and we had shade. We spent more time out there than anywhere on the ship. Our next cruise was on Princess to Alaska and we had a midship regular sized verandah. Once again I spent more time out there than anywhere else on the ship. We will not sail without a verandah.
That being said, there are plenty of places you can enjoy the ship while getting fresh air, plenty of chairs everywhere. I just loved the peace and quiet on our own verandah. If it saves you $2K, I say skip it this time. The littles won't care IME.

 

[Cruising Engineer]

We always have a veranda. BUT with 5 children, you will be running all over the ship from sunrise to sunset. For a first timer, get two connecting Ocean View and enjoy the time you have in the stateroom changing clothes or going to bed and looking out the big porthole. The kids will probably enjoy the porthole and you won't have to worry about them climbing on the veranda furniture to looking over the railing.

 

[Dug720]

We have to have one...the wife wants two ways out of our cabin in case of an emergency. From that height, she'd probably break a bone if she jumped, but she wants the option.

At the very least...

 

[TiggerBouncy]

For shorter cruises, I generally wouldn't bother. However, for longer cruises it's a must for us. (Actually we get them with the short cruise too). We personally sleep better with one - but that's us. DW is big on fresh air.

That said, would I spring 2K for one? That would be difficult and I might have to try to convince DW to just go above deck.

 

[cmwade77]

It depends on the cruise and the price difference, unless this is an Alaska or Hawaii cruise, I would tend to say no at that price difference. Other cruises I have seen have had less than a $200 price difference, at that it was a given we would do a veranda.

 

[a1tinkfans]

Balcony/verandah. YES makes a difference for us. We d not cruise without it.
But it’s a personal decision... some say... it’s just a room when they use a hotel and stay value, others say the Room/resort have a large impact on the vacation ( we fall in that group)
Best to know what type of vacationer you are. Very personal decision imho.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I would not consider a cruise without a veranda. It is a deal-breaker for me. It isn't that I feel confined or anything like that - it is that reading on the veranda or sleeping on the water with the veranda doors open are among my favorite things in the world. Whether I would pay to book a cruise where it was unusually pricey would depend on my budget.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We personally sleep better with one - but that's us. DW is big on fresh air.

Does this mean you keep the verandah door open?

 

[dtrain]

We’ve spent the extra money 2x before on 7 day cruises, and to be honest it’s not worth it for us. I felt like we needed to spend time out there to justify the cost, which made it feel forced...but there was always better things to be doing out and about the ship. I’d say there was a total of 1 hour spent on the verandah over the week both times for us. Looking back I could have saved $4K and easily paid for another 7 day cruise, so now we book OV to have natural light in the room and it gives us the ability to peek outside.

 

[aflynn33]

One of my cruise buddies with three children pointed out that with 2 connecting staterooms, you get two bathrooms. That was huge for her...

 

[jetskigrl]

In your situation I tend to agree with the Connecting Oceanview room suggestion And this is coming from a verandah person, LOL. For me, having that verandah to relax with a book, listen to the ocean, check out the wildlife, etc is part of the reason I cruise. So I have had a verandah on 13 out of 14 cruises. I did try an oceanview on a 2-night cruise because I figured I wouldn't be inside the room much but I started to walk over to the window multiple times to open the door and get fresh air (then realizing I couldn't because it was a window, LOL). I really missed the fresh air.

But with younger kids and your first cruise, you probably won't be in the room much at all. Plus the extra TV, shower and toilet will definitely come in handy.

 

[Shanti]

I never thought I'd want to cruise, but after looking at the Disney ships and reading trip reports in this forum, I really want to try it.

I am looking at a spring 2020 cruise on the Magic. We have five kids though, so we would need two staterooms. It's already pricey and I'm wondering if it's worth the cost to have a verandah? It would be approximately $2k more. (I would not be okay with some kids sleeping in an inside room across the hall - too young. We would need connecting rooms).

I know this is subjective, but I just want to hear people's opinions. Does it significantly add to your enjoyment of the cruise?

It was worth it for us on our Alaska cruise, definitely.

On our Bahamian cruise, it was nice, but not anything that made a huge difference imo.

We've sailed inside, as well, and liked that, too. We particularly liked our "magical porthole" in our inside stateroom on the Fantasy. That's great for kids.

 

[elle21]

Great thoughts and ideas to consider from all of you...thank you!! I do love quiet and privacy, and I keep thinking that even after younger kids go to bed, DH and I would be able to sit outside and enjoy the ocean air instead of being stuck in the cabin. Though I also imagine we'll be letting kids stay up much later than our normal early bedtimes at home.
I'm looking at five day cruises to the Caribbean - no major views to see. I didn't realize that the price difference was much smaller on the larger ships. Something to think about. Though I have my heart set on the Magic because I like the idea of a smaller, less crowded ship. And I like what Magic has to offer for shows and dining.

 

[taaren]

Keep in mind that if your kids are old enough you could get a veranda for you, then an inside stateroom across the hall for them. I've had friends do this with their teens. Technically you put mom in one room, dad in the other, and a kid or two in each but sleep wherever you want to. I think they did mom and dad in veranda with youngest and the teens and tween in the inside, but that depends on your family ages/responsibility level.

I get a veranda on some cruises and inside on others. Its usually worth to me an upgrade difference of $100/night per cruise, but there are some itineraries I wouldn't sail without it (Alaska, for instance). But I'm not a fan of oceanview so I get either inside or veranda, and out of 6 cruises I think we're 3 and 3 so far.

 

[Intr3pid]

The price difference is significant on cruises "with views" - such as in Alaska and some of Europe. You might end up with difference of $2,000 per guest!

For Caribbean cruises, you will likely have more fun on the deck or on the beach than in your verandah - but, it's still a toss-up, as the price difference you quote for the five of you is actually bearable.

One thing to note: remember to filter out the situations of folks who "must sail" with a verandah but actually don't have any kids. When you book a family verandah category, the price of each guest incl. the kids will be priced higher. For 5 of you, that can be a huge number relative to a couple in a standard verandah room right below yours.

 

[cruiser21]

If you have teenage boys with smelly shoes that you want to put outside....then yes. Otherwise no it's not worth it. If it's the Wonder or the Magic the cost difference is huge. I never get a balcony... I'll deal with the smell. On the dream class sometimes the up charge is minimal and I'll do it.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

When you say 2k more, what are you comparing it to?

If it’s 2k more than an ocean view/window, then I think it’s a no-brainer. Take the window and put that money towards special experiences. Sitting on a verandah is nice, as is the access to fresh air, but 2K worth of shore excursions, spa experiences, specialty dining etc, is better.

If it’s 2k more than an inside, the choice is harder. I found an ‘inside’ claustrophobic and would pick a different style of vacation over cruising in an inside cabin again. Yet, I know others who happily cruise in insides, saving a lot of money in the process.