We recently sailed on Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas and because it was a fairly last minute decision to sail on a brand new ship, we decided to be economical and book an interior cabin.

Our thought process on booking cabins is this – if we are sailing with friends / family, are on a short trip with no sea days, or are sailing on a new ship, we generally book an interior room figuring we won’t be spending much time there. It essentially becomes a place to shower and sleep. If we are sailing for a longer period, one with sea days, and / or on a ship we’ve explored before, we typically go with a balcony or higher.

As this was our first sailing on Utopia (its 8th revenue sailing overall, I think) we knew we wouldn’t be spending time in the cabin very often. There would be lots to explore on this new ship. But when we got an email to RoyalUp and noticed the virtual balcony had a very low minimum bid, we decided to bid low and if we got it, score – it would be the first time we got to try it. If we didn’t, no big deal.

Three days before the cruise, we were notified that our bid of $40 per person had been accepted and our cabin was upgraded. For a total of $80 we were getting to see what the fuss about the virtual balcony was all about.

One of the first things we noticed while making our way to the cabin was its location. It was located fairly close to the elevator in the center of the forward of the ship, which turned out to be a rather quiet area. As it wasn’t part of the main hallway system, we didn’t have people walking by our door very often unless they, too, had a cabin in the area. Unlike the main hallways which tend to be used by people in search of the elevators, this area seemed to be traveled almost exclusively by those staying there.

The second thing we noticed was the parking lot. No, seriously. When we opened our cabin door, our first view was the parking lot! As the view used on the virtual screen was actually the view streamed via live feed from a camera on the outside of the ship near the bridge, it had a view of the parking lot. During the cruise itself, we often had water views or views of another ship while docked in port, but that initial image was amusing.

The overall effect of the virtual balcony was to open up the room and make it brighter and feel less confined. The screen has curtains as if it were a real balcony, and it was possible to close them in order to darken the room, which could become quite bright in the early morning.

As Steve might tell you, I can get a little “freaky” when it comes to having a balcony cabin. It weirds me out to have the curtains open when I’m inside, especially when we’re in port across from another ship. But honestly, I feel a little exposed if I’m partially clothed even if it’s just ocean outside the window. So the thing that took some getting used to was remembering that although I could see the couple across the way drinking coffee and the young girl sitting on her balcony taking selfie after selfie, they could not see me.

Utopia only does 3 and 4 days sailing, alternating between 3-day weekend and 4-day weekday cruises. As such, our weekend cruise definitely had a party vibe. The celebrations often went into the wee hours of the morning according to the Cruise Compass, Royal Caribbean’s activities guide for each sailing.

I have to assume they actually did go into the wee hours. As I’m not a night owl and need more beauty sleep now than ever, I rarely make it past 11 p.m. (and often even earlier). But with music, dancing, and even sporting events that could go late, there was potential for a lot of noise. We never heard any of it. It was truly a quiet part of the ship.

Bottom line, the price was right, the location was fantastic, and the virtual balcony made an interior room feel more open. If you’re looking to economize for reasons such as ours or one of your own, or for some other rationale such as not wanting access to an open railing, this really was a great room.

Although it isn’t one I would likely use too often, if I found myself in one again, I would be OK with it. It certainly brought the outside in or the inside out.

Until Next Time,

Cheryl & Steve

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