Travel

How to choose a cruise ship cabin

Photo by Ulrich Dregler from Pixabay

If you’ve thought picking a cruise ship cabin is as easy as booking a hotel room, get ready for a shocker. Choosing a cabin for your cruise holiday is a billion times trickier. Okay, there’s a bit of an exaggeration there, but you get the point- selecting a cruise ship cabin isn’t a walk in the park. That's especially because there are numerous factors to consider when determining the best option for you.

First, you'll have to consider your budget and the room size. Next, you need to decide whether you want a private balcony or one with a window. What location on the ship is your ideal cabin? Are there any special benefits or offers to make your cruise trip more enjoyable?

That's not all, you also have to realize that cabins are typically smaller than hotel rooms. Also, the size of your travel party will significantly affect your choice of cabin. We can go on and on!

Fortunately, while picking the perfect cabin can be challenging, it's not impossible. In this article, we'll let you in on the important tricks you need to get the hang of it. Let's get started.

Types of Cruise Ship Cabins

Photo by Larry White from Pixabay

The first step to choosing the perfect cruise ship cabin is understanding your options. While many cruise lines offer numerous choices, these are the most common ones:

  • Interior Rooms

Interior rooms are the best way to go if you're on a strict budget. That's if you're okay with staying in a room without windows.

  • Outside or Oceanview Rooms

Ocean-view rooms, unlike interior rooms, have windows. So you can enjoy natural light in an oceanview room. If you're lucky, you can find an outside room with an additional sitting area beside the bathroom and bed.

  • Balcony Rooms

As the name implies, balcony rooms have exclusive outdoor areas where you can enjoy the fresh air. This type of cruise ship cabin is pretty popular and typically comes with a sitting area with a chair and desk, closet space, beds, and an ensuite bathroom.

  • Suites

If you need luxury and a large cruise ship cabin, suites are your best bets. Sometimes, suites are spacious enough to accommodate dining tables, several bathrooms, a large private balcony, and multiple rooms with several sleeping spaces.

  • Specialty Cabins

Some cruise lines arrange specialty cabins for cruisers with specific needs. Although they'll cost you more money than basic cabins, they also offer some privileges to improve your vacation experience.

Common specialty cabins include accessible, spa, concierge, and family cabins.

Essential Tips For Booking the Best Cruise Ship Cabin for You

Now that you know what cabin options you have, here's how to choose the most suitable one:

  • Consider the Cruise Ship Location

The first step to choosing the perfect cruise ship location is getting the location right. It mostly depends on your preferences and needs. For example, if you're prone to seasickness, you should go for a cabin as low and central in the ship as possible. Meanwhile, if your priority is socializing, you'll want a room close to the dining, pools, entertainment, and drinking locations.

Do you love the sun? Then a room on the upper deck will be perfect. If you could use some quiet, consider a cabin far away from the entertainment areas.

  • The Cabin Amenities

The amenities and perks you can access largely determine how enjoyable your cruise will be. Generally, regardless of the cabin you choose, you should be able to get housekeeping, toiletries, and other basic services. However, for extra privileges like spas, afternoon canapas, in-cabin bars, etc., a suite or specialty cabin should be your focus.

  • Determine the Cabin Size You Want

How much space do you want? This will determine whether you should go for a balcony room, minisuite, loft, duplex, etc. However, note that the larger the room, the more money you may have to spend on them.

Balconies aren't a bad idea to find the right balance between space and cost. Nevertheless, it's your decision to make; just ensure that you and your travel party are comfortable with your choice.

  • Consider Luxury

If you really want to go all out to have the cruise of a lifetime, go for the luxurious options. Although getting a suite will cost more than an interior cabin, it offers you great value for the price.

Final Thoughts

There you have it— simple tips to choose the perfect cruise ship cabins for a fun vacation. What type of cruise ship room is most appealing to you?