Stateroom selection - first timer - questions

[Duke07]

I'm booking DCL for the first time - likely a 4 night cruise on the Wish. I've never cruised before and would love some insights/tips on where the best deck and area is to select a stateroom. High vs low...mid vs aft...

I'm traveling with 2 young kids, so movement of the ship is a concern (I'm also prone to motion sickness at times).

Any other tips for a first timer would be appreciated as well...thanks!

 

[lklgoodman]

Midship on a lower deck is best if you get motion sickness. I use Bonine and ginger candy for motion sickness. The ginger candy really helps. I get the brand Tummy Drops, also used for morning sickness. Amazon sells it. Look at the deck plans and get a cabin on a deck that is in between decks that are cabins only, they will be quieter. We once had a cabin under a restaurant and it sounded like bowling balls were being dropped above us from 11pm-2am. You also don't want to be under the sundeck because you will hear them moving the deck chairs early in the morning. Basically avoid being directly under or over any public areas.

 

[lklgoodman]

If you can't get a midship cabin then try aft. Forward will have the most movement.

 

[sponica]

My first cruise was on mid-ship deck 8 on the Dream. Loved that location, and having a verandah is essential for us, so for our return to cruising next year, we've booked mid-ship deck 9 on the Wish. I get claustrophobic and the lower levels trigger that for me.

My kiddo gets car sick, but she doesn't get plane sick or boat sick so we're rolling with it....

 

[Calantha]

I'm booking DCL for the first time - likely a 4 night cruise on the Wish. I've never cruised before and would love some insights/tips on where the best deck and area is to select a stateroom. High vs low...mid vs aft...

I'm traveling with 2 young kids, so movement of the ship is a concern (I'm also prone to motion sickness at times).

Any other tips for a first timer would be appreciated as well...thanks!

We just did the Wish in January (me, my mom, and DS (then 7)). We're big fans of Deck 2 - although if you want a balcony, you'll have to go higher. We snagged a room in the 2128-2140 block - right by the kids club and the nursery. It was super convenient to the elevators/mid-ship. We didn't have any noise issues either.

Also, my mom gets super motion sick, so this was a good spot for her.

 

[Duke07]

Is there a good resource to see what staterooms are considered midship? I'd rather not have to try and estimate this when choosing the room number.

 

[sadiecatie]

Is there a good resource to see what staterooms are considered midship? I'd rather not have to try and estimate this when choosing the room number.

You can go look at the deck plans - for whatever ship you're planning to sail, you can easily see what is featured on each deck, including staterooms locations.

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/ships/deck-plans

 

[sponica]

Is there a good resource to see what staterooms are considered midship? I'd rather not have to try and estimate this when choosing the room number.

When you go to book, it divides the ship up into aft, midship, and forward.

You can also look at the deck plans linked in the post above.

 

[anjuan]

One other thing that may help add to your comfort level- I've been on all of the DCL ships and felt the least rocking on the Wish.

 

[Weedy]

Pay attention to what is above and below your cabin.
You don’t want to be above or below a restaurant, bar or theater.
Also not directly below the pool deck.

 

[auntlynne]

 

[CeCe0906]

I'm a newbie crusier, sailing on the Wish this summer. Did all the research, looked at the deck plans, decided to go mid deck midship as it's both mine and my granddaughter first cruise and don't know about any seasickness issues. Although I've been on catamaran type boats and had no issues. Then decide to splurge on consierge. And most of that research didn't do me any good as those stateroom all all forward and deck 12/13. So high and forward, hope we have calm seas!

 

[kiford]

The Wish has a new type of propulsion that produces very little movement (obviously unless you have rough seas which we did not in January/February). I'm used to being able to feel the vibration as the ship starts to move away from shore and feeling it move. We were well out of CC before I even realized we were moving and I missed push off from Port Canaveral because I didn't think we had left yet. I generally like the gentle rocking of the ship when in bed but I didn't feel very much at all (we were well aft on deck 7).

We used to always pick mid-ship, but on all ships but the Wish we have decided that we prefer aft because it's closer to those areas where we typically spend our time. On the Wish, we just did VGT and ended up aft on deck 7 which was just fine.

Because elevators are always so slow regardless of the ship (but far worse on the Wish) and usually crowded, we typically choose a deck that is in the middle because we take the stairs. So we consider where we spend most of our time. If I'm not planning to get off the ship or not too often, I'm going to put more weight on climbing stairs from restaurants or to pool deck. If I'm going on a cruise where it's colder or where I don't plan to spend a lot of time in the pools, I'm going to put more weight on climbing stairs from restaurants. We partly decided to book a VGT on the Wish rather than selecting a room partly because of the price differential but also because we'd never sailed on her and I had no idea where I might like or where I might spend my time. I did like deck 7 so I'd probably book that deck again although I'm not sure anywhere would be particularly bad so I'd also do a verandah guarantee again and take my chances. We spent so little time in our stateroom because it was only 4 days and we wanted to spend as much time exploring the ship as possible. About the only time we were in our stateroom was when we went to bed and occasionally to change or drop off a purchase.

 

[Duke07]

Thanks for all the replies.

Is there a consensus on the best deck for noise and movement? It seems deck 9 is mentioned often as being desirable.

Also, what's the advantage of a verandah guarantee (the price doesn't appear to be much of a difference)?

 

[auntlynne]

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Best deck is truly one that is cushioned above, below, and across from other cabins.

GENERALLY speaking. But not always true.

 

[auntlynne]

 

[Hubie]

We've booked a veranda stateroom on Midship, Deck 6 on every cruise but one where we decided to try the rearend stateroom that offers you a huge veranda. Our DD and SIL were next door so when we combined the two veranda's we shared the biggest veranda available on the Dream. The walk, however, back to those staterooms takes forever. We also occasionally experienced a lot of vibration. Whereas, on Midship, Deck 6 the only noise we've had is when uncontrolled kids run down the hallway, and we also once had an arguing family next door. But we're going for Deck 7 Forward for our next two cruises to see how it is. Oceanview for the Pacific Cruise to Sydney on the Wonder and a veranda for the Eastern Carribean on the Fantasy.

 

[Anna131517]

We cruised in cabin 7586 and felt absolutely no movement. I kind of wished we were on deck 8 though because they have the laundry.

 

[Duke07]

Thanks...we went with deck 9 midship (Wish). Seemed to be the consensus among recommendations.