I can reserve an ouside/balcony cabin on RCL Explorer on either deck 7,8,or9. I need help deciding which deck to reserve, or does it really not make a difference?

I would choose either deck 8 or 9, but preferrably deck 9. The rooms on that deck are bigger which means less people.

I would say any deck, but the rooms are bigger on each floor,
but deck nine is the main deck usually, meaning that during the day, all you will hear is the partying outside

Also check the deckplans. Make sure your cabin is not directly above or below a night club, casino, eatery, etc. You'll sleep better.

What's the difference if you are on the lowest deck or highest deck...other than noise level. Seems to me the lowest deck would have you away from the noise. Is there something "lowly" (no pun intended) about being in an ocean-view room on the lowest deck compared to the same room on a higher deck? Genuinely curious here.

Ydujyak, That's a good question. I'd like to hear the answer also. Anybody?

Well, we've only been on one cruise but it happened to be on the Explorer this past April and we had two connecting oceanview rooms on Deck 2. For us it was perfect. Very, VERY quiet - and we were at the end of the hall so we had no running up and down. It seemed like (from conversations with other passengers) that the kids liked to run the corridors at night on the upper levels. The only way I would chose a higher deck is if we wanted a balcony, which for our first cruise we did not. Everything is connected by elevators - to listen to some people they would make you think that if you have a lower level room you have to climb 10 flights of stairs to get anywhere.

Hello,

I am a travel agent, specializing in cruises, and there is really nothing wrong with a cabin on a lower deck. You might consider doing a oceanview guarantee or a balcony guarantee because you might get a free upgrade to a higher stateroom category on a higher deck. The price is among the least expensive and my clients often get a really nice, big upgrade on their stateroom. In my opinion, don't worry about being located at mid-ship, though, because if your cabin is located fore or aft, it is often less noisy and fewer people walk by your cabin throughout the cruise.

I agree about being careful to not have a cabin under a public area, such as a nightclub; it can be loud. Also, try to avoid being on the lowest deck at the back of the ship because it can be loud, or sewage has been known to seep up into the shower/tub - that would be my only caution to you.

Best Regards,
Julia

How do you get an upgrade? Do you ask for one when you arrive at the port?

We usually get the least expensive outside cabin (we used to get the inside, but we really like the porthole!) We've never had a problem on the lower decks. The only problem we had was on one of the upper decks, where are room was right above one of the night clubs and the booming noise was horrible all night. We don't spend that much time in the cabin, so the decks don't really matter to us all that much.

I like the inside (for economy reasons) on an upper deck, with balconies across the hall. That way if the ship is going down, I'll surely be able to get in one of those rooms to jump overboard.
Ok, I'm kidding but, yes, the thought has entered my mind.
The real reason is that there are a lot more cabins on the lower decks, more people and, when I've gone to lower decks to get off the ship in ports, I feel like I've gone down to the dungeon.
Plus, if you are on an upper deck you only have to go up or down a couple of decks to get to everything should the elevators be slow for some reason.

But when all is said and done, I'd rather be anywhere on a ship if given a chose of sailing or staying at home!

Also! yes, check what you will be under in the deck plan. We were under a pool on one ship and you could hear a pin drop. We were under a casino once and we could hear some noise now and then but it wasn't really bothersome. On all others we were under other cabins and they were quiet, too. My TA always suggests mid deck, mid ship and under other cabins.

oops..choice, not chose. What can I say, I went to school in the Bronx!!

Other than making sure no public noisy places are below or above me, I like to be 2 decks away from the open top deck. That's where we spend a lot of our time and 2 decks are just right for using the steps and not using the elevator.

Julia,

You said something about sewage seeping up into a tub or shower on a rear, low cabin!! I have a cabin on hold for the Seven Seas Mariner to Alaska in June. The only cabin remaining on the port side was the back cabin in the lowest deck!!

I certainly hope that sewage backup wasn't on this ship!

Has anyone heard "bad" things about the lower deck on the Mariner??

For the price, I sure hope not. It was the only cruise out of Seward we could find that had any balcony cabins on the port side for the timeframe we needed.

I am excited! It will be our first cruise!

Ginny