When balconies go bad

A cruise ship holiday has to be the ultimate in luxury; being pampered by attentive staff 24/7; food and drink on demand; being immersed in opulent surroundings constantly and surely the most ultimate expression of that luxury is your own private balcony cabin to relax in? Whilst I’m sure most people would agree with that statement it does make you think - are there any situations where a balcony cabin can be a bad thing?

Here are a few examples I’ve thought of, do you agree with any of them?




People smoking on the balcony next to you/above you/below you has to be one of the main down sides to a balcony cabin. Whilst many cruise lines have now banned smoking on your balcony many others still have not. Whilst I’m sure some non-smokers don’t mind a little bit of cigarette smoke could you imagine having someone smoking above/below and to either side of you whilst you’re trying to sunbathe in peace?

Only a minor complaint maybe but have you ever considered the air conditioning? If you’ve got your balcony door wide open sunbathing in the glorious Mediterranean sun and then suddenly decide you’re getting too hot then your balcony cabin is going to be the exact same temperature as outside, it’s going to take a bit for the air conditioning to kick in.

Maybe not a problem in the Med but if you’re heading to an exotic location a balcony cabin may be the last thing you want. Whilst I’m sure the views will be spectacular, (cruising down the Amazon for example), just think of all the giant bugs that could fly into your cabin whilst you’re not looking and then crawl all over you later when you’re asleep!

Something that may not have occurred to you if you don’t have young children but something my wife has always been paranoid about is our children jumping over the side of the balcony. Maybe not a problem if you don’t leave them unattended and some cruise lines will provide nets you can put up to prevent this but still another thing that might be worth considering.

Another point is how much use will you get out of your balcony. If you’re cruising to a cold destination, (or even to a hot destination at a cold time of the year), will you be using your balcony much? If you’re going to spend the majority of your time inside is the extra cost worth it?

Another issue, linking back slightly to the smoking issue, has to be privacy. When you’re on your private balcony you’re only a thin sheet of metal apart from the people on either side of you.                          
What if they’re loud?
What if they're nosey?                                                                                                   
Even if they aren’t using their balcony at that particular moment in time, if the balcony door to their cabin is open you’ll still be able to hear everything they are saying or doing.                                                                                                                                          

Continuing on the privacy thread a lot of balcony cabins, especially on the lower decks can be overlooked either by other cabins or by the bridge of the ship. Not too much of a problem you may think if you’re only looking to use your balcony for the odd cigarette but not brilliant if you were planning on doing a bit of topless sunbathing in private.

Not all balcony cabin problems are limited to ocean going vessels either. If you’ve booked a balcony cabin on a river cruise they come with their own set of problems. Most river cruise ships have something called Juliet or French balconies. These have the sliding doors to open fully but no deck to walk out onto, just a railing to lean on. Many river cruises however, when docked in a town, will be docked side by side so there may only be inches between you and the cabin in the next ship; not great for privacy!

Even if you book a balcony cabin and mange to avoid being overlooked, being next to a smoker, being next to loud neighbours and don’t have any nasty bugs fly into your cabin you still may end up with a cabin that’s permanently over-shadowed by the deck above. Not a problem if you just want to sit and enjoy some peace and quiet but not great if you were planning on getting some serious sunbathing done.

Lastly, one of the big drawbacks to booking a balcony cabin has to be the price. Whilst some cruise lines offer free upgrades to balcony cabins, (or don’t charge too much for the upgrade), for the majority of cruise lines for what you spend on booking one balcony cabin you could book two cruises in an inside cabin. Does a balcony cabin add so much enjoyment to a cruise that it’s worth passing up another cruise for later in the year?

What do you think? Do you normally book a balcony or do you always go for a cheaper cabin?

Happy cruising