Tell me about Deck 2

[eddnandee]

So far, all of our DCL cruises have been out of Port Canaveral and we've been on Decks 5,6, or 7. This time, we're going to Alaska on the Wonder and the price difference between Deck 2 and an upper deck is huge. Enough that we'd rather have an oceanview on Deck 2 and save $ for shore excursions. Can you give me pros and cons of being so low?

 

[ninergrl6]

I love deck 2 because it has quick access to restaurants, shopping, entertainment, and disembarking. It's also thought to be more stable than the higher decks because of the lower center of gravity, so that's beneficial if anyone in your party is prone to motion sickness (my traveling companions are). I haven't noticed any increase in noise or foot traffic on deck 2.

I do have to say, though, I've sailed to Alaska once on a different cruise line, and I LOVED having a verandah because I felt like I was sightseeing 24/7. Sitting outside my cabin bundled up in a blanket with room service hot chocolate watching the glaciers calve was pretty spectacular. Alaska is the one place I'd say springing the extra $$ for a verandah might be worth it.

 

[crazylady]

We stayed on 8 for Alaska. I loved our veranda and the view but I feel like the view from 2 would be better of the icebergs in the water. Maybe it's just my eyes, but I couldn't tell if there was a seal or bird or whatever sitting on the little icebergs or just some black ice, but from your window on 2 you could see that. Also, on Glacier day, we didn't spend much time in our room. It was fun to be on the top deck walking around with everyone else, listening to the naturalist and and drinking hot chocolate.

 

[ldo]

Not Alaska, but we had ov deck 2 for norway fjords and liked it fine. We just popped up to deck 4 if we wanted to get a better view or hang out on deck. The price difference for balcony was substantial.

 

[Geomom]

We love deck 2 oceanviews on the Magic/Wonder! We just can't spend thousands more for a veranda. Our first cruise was in 2116 to Alaska and second cruise was in 2108 in Europe (Baltic Sea). We like being near the aft elevators/stairs, quick walk up to decks 3/4 for restaurants, promenade, etc. Quick trip up elevator to deck 9. Some noise from below when porting, but otherwise quiet location. Love the large porthole. We spent a lot of time on deck 4 looking at the scenery on the inside passage and glacier days.

Pics from our porthole in Alaska:

 

[eddnandee]

We love deck 2 oceanviews on the Magic/Wonder! We just can't spend thousands more for a veranda. Our first cruise was in 2116 to Alaska and second cruise was in 2108 in Europe (Baltic Sea). We like being near the aft elevators/stairs, quick walk up to decks 3/4 for restaurants, promenade, etc. Quick trip up elevator to deck 9. Some noise from below when porting, but otherwise quiet location. Love the large porthole. We spent a lot of time on deck 4 looking at the scenery on the inside passage and glacier days.

Pics from our porthole in Alaska:
View attachment 565432

View attachment 565433

Oh Wow! This looks great!

 

[eddnandee]

I love deck 2 because it has quick access to restaurants, shopping, entertainment, and disembarking. It's also thought to be more stable than the higher decks because of the lower center of gravity, so that's beneficial if anyone in your party is prone to motion sickness (my traveling companions are). I haven't noticed any increase in noise or foot traffic on deck 2.

I do have to say, though, I've sailed to Alaska once on a different cruise line, and I LOVED having a verandah because I felt like I was sightseeing 24/7. Sitting outside my cabin bundled up in a blanket with room service hot chocolate watching the glaciers calve was pretty spectacular. Alaska is the one place I'd say springing the extra $$ for a verandah might be worth it.

I will say, if we were on a different line we would get a verandah. But the $4k-ish price difference is just too much on DCL. We do love our verandahs in the Caribbean though!

And thanks for the note of less motion sickness. I hadn't even thought of that, but this will be great for our daughter.

 

[auntlynne]

I love to do excursions in Alaska. And they are definitely not cheap when you do them in all three ports. (And I hear they added a boat excursion in Tracy Arm).

I was on Deck 2 , Magic, on a TA. Love the water view from that lower vantage point. Access from Deck 3 is so simple with the flight of stairs near the atrium.

In four AK cruises, I have only had a balcony once (Carnival, with Glacier Bay and College Fjord). Hands down, that itinerary deserves a balcony. Our first AK Cruise was Disney, Deck 5, sideways. We spent our Tracy Arm day in the teak loungers on Deck 4, with occasional forays to the pool deck. (It is great for viewing - and for character interactions.)

I’d vote for the window room and have some great excursions. And then do it again in the future.

 

[mevelandry]

So far, all of our DCL cruises have been out of Port Canaveral and we've been on Decks 5,6, or 7. This time, we're going to Alaska on the Wonder and the price difference between Deck 2 and an upper deck is huge. Enough that we'd rather have an oceanview on Deck 2 and save $ for shore excursions. Can you give me pros and cons of being so low?

The only difference I have noticed for Deck 2 (it was on another cruise line) is that when going through rough seas, the waves would crash against the hull and make « boom » sounds.

That being said, everyone in my party slept through it except me. To this day, I am still wondering if they are partially deaf. Lol They missed out on something. I could barely sleep that night but the view was magnificent.

Other than that, I see no cons. The ocean is very close to the port hole so you’ll get a great view.

 

[JulieODC]

We were on deck 2 for the Norway/Iceland cruise a few years back and really loved it! Convenient to dining rooms, easy to pop up to deck 4 - and we really spent so little time in the cabin, it was worth the price savings!

we booked again on deck 2 for the med/Greece cruise in 2022!

 

[lklgoodman]

We stayed in cabin 2072 on our Alaskan cruise. It was midship. Loved this cabin. It was very quiet. Few years later sailed on the Wonder again and stayed in 2592. I Hated the location of this cabin. It was also midship, but close to aft. Every night from 11pm until 2am it sounded as if bowling balls were being dropped above us. Also had a loud noise that sounded like metal was being cut or something, again always late at night. It think part of Triton's restaurant was above this room, so had noise from that. If I remember right there weren't any cabins across the hall from cabin 2592. But whatever type of area was across from our cabin was really loud late at night. Of course during the day it was always quiet. If we sail on the Wonder again, I will try to get a cabin close to the 2072 one we had and will avoid any in the 2592 area.

 

[over50visits]

Deck 2 on the Wonder is one of our favorite locations, if not our favorite. We choose an aft porthole cabin near the elevators. It is just one flight up to the great 3rd deck with the restaurants, atrium, activities, etc. It's a comfortable location as far as movement, the view is fantastic, and the price is right. Elevator right there up to the buffet and pool deck. Wow.

 

[eddnandee]

You all have been amazingly helpful AND encouraging. I thought I was "giving up" something by not being further above, but it sounds like its just a different experience - and maybe even preferable! We did book forward, only because for the first time, our family of 4 is over 18 so we can all be in the adult areas of the ship. We've stayed aft and midship on other cruises, so forward, Deck 2 will be brand new. I'm super excited now!

 

[mlayman7]

We just booked deck 2 as well. We have 5 of us so we wanted 2 staterooms connecting and the money saved will go towards excursions.

 

[ajo]

You all have been amazingly helpful AND encouraging. I thought I was "giving up" something by not being further above, but it sounds like its just a different experience - and maybe even preferable! We did book forward, only because for the first time, our family of 4 is over 18 so we can all be in the adult areas of the ship. We've stayed aft and midship on other cruises, so forward, Deck 2 will be brand new. I'm super excited now!

Just an FYI - we sailed all the way forward on deck 2 in Alaska in room 2500. We definitely felt more motion of the ship than we did when we were deck 2 aft.

 

[ninergrl6]

We were on deck 2 for the Norway/Iceland cruise a few years back and really loved it! Convenient to dining rooms, easy to pop up to deck 4 - and we really spent so little time in the cabin, it was worth the price savings!

we booked again on deck 2 for the med/Greece cruise in 2022!

Same and same! On my Norway/Iceland cruise (June 2016), the North Atlantic crossing from Kirkwall, Scotland to Reykjavik, Iceland was REALLY rough. I was literally holding onto the walls to keep upright, and my step tracker counted 80+ flights of stairs climbed even though I stayed on decks 2 and 3 all day. My motion-sickness-prone traveling companion spent 24 hours in bed in our deck 2 mid-ship cabin. I can't imagine how rough it must've felt on the higher decks.

I was deck 2 mid-ship for a Med cruise in 2018 and couldn't feel the motion of the ship at all. Hoping for the same in 2022.

 

[BruinEd03]

So far, all of our DCL cruises have been out of Port Canaveral and we've been on Decks 5,6, or 7. This time, we're going to Alaska on the Wonder and the price difference between Deck 2 and an upper deck is huge. Enough that we'd rather have an oceanview on Deck 2 and save $ for shore excursions. Can you give me pros and cons of being so low?

Deck 2 in general:

If you are near the front or back of the ship, you can feel the side thrusters during docking.

It’s pretty convenient to get to the dining rooms or shows, but a little bit more difficult to get to the Sodas or pools. In my opinion it’s got better access than the 6th floor or 5th floor only because less people are going down than up. In some respects it’s got the best of both worlds because elevators to go up are easier to get - only one floor for competition. However if you need to get down and you’re at a higher floor, you just go down the stairs (much easier than going up).

Just my opinion, but it’s also quieter than the higher floors.

I can’t say for Oceanview v Verrandah for Alaska - we’ve had the Navigator’s Verrandah both times. However, we did spend a bit more time in our rooms the second time, because we had seen a lot of stuff beforehand. However, the best views are still up top or on the 4th deck because you don’t just have your pair of eyes, but everyone else’s if you’re looking for wildlife. I will say the one time I really did enjoy having a Verrandah was right after dinner (or final show and before bedtime. Due to the extended daylight, it’s nice seeing the sunset with the spectacular scenery.

That being said, I agree - spend the extra $$$ on excursions.