When booking
a cruise, many people never consider an inside cabin even though those are far
less expensive than cabins with windows or balconies. Too confining, they say,
and you never know what’s happening when you can’t see outside.
RoyalCaribbean has created a way to keep guests in the know even when they are bunking
in an inside cabin. Navigator of the Seas was their first ship for which
certain interior cabins have a simulator wall called a virtual balcony. This
impressive innovation was rolled out in 2014 and has been added to other ships
in the Royal Caribbean line since then.
Navigator ofthe Seas features virtual balconies for 98 inside cabins. The view you see is
determined by the position of the screen in each room. For example, if your
cabin is on the port side of the ship, your view will be from the port side.
Even if you can’t book one of these innovative cabins, there are still times when an interior cabin may work out okay. If you’re sailing in the Caribbean—Western, Eastern, or Southern—and expect to spend balmy port days on shore engaging in different activities, you may not use a balcony so much.
When the weather is warm and sunny, you’ll probably spend more time enjoying amenities in public areas such as the FlowRider Surf Simulator, rock climbing wall, or ice skating rink. Your cabin then becomes just a place to sleep, and you may not miss a balcony at all.
I’d love to
try out the virtual balcony and see how close it comes to the real thing.
Photos from free sources.