Cruise Lifestyle: Six secrets your cruise ship cabin is hiding

Cruise ship cabins are a very cleverly and practically designed space that we at Cruise Arabia & Africa have discovered hides many secrets.

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Whether you’re new to cruising or a veteran of the ocean holiday, we’re sure you’ll discover something new in our list of the top six things you didn’t know about your cruise ship cabin.

The average cruise ship cabin is about 15 to 20sqm and is your base of operations during your cruise, whether it’s a three-day taster cruise or a three-week grand voyage around Europe and the Indian Ocean.

The cabin is magnetic

All cruise ships are constructed from metal, with a steel hull and interior structural supports, so at least one of the walls of  your cabin is bound to be magnetic. Take a magnet with you on your cruise and use it to pin up the important paperwork given to you by the crew (and they will give you a lot of paperwork, from brochures, ship’s maps, daily programs and party invites to forms to be filled out and destination guides).

The en-suite doesn’t ventilate

On most cruise ships, even the modern mega-liners, the en-suite does not have a ventilation fan, and even if there’s just two of you sharing a cabin, the rich and abundant food on a cruise will soon create complications in terms of smell. Not to put too fine a point on it, but take a hangable air-freshener or scented oils.

There’s space under the bed

Wardrobe space in any cruise ship cabin is limited, even in the suites, so make sure you remember that under the bed is the best travel luggage storage space. It essentially acts as an extra drawer. Not all cruise lines have this space under the bed, but even those that don’t will have extra draws, so be sure to check and then stow your suitcases in the wardrobe instead.

The beds are convertible

You may have specifically requested a double bed cabin for yourself and other half, only to arrive in the cabin to find two twin beds. Fear not, instead of going through the hassle of requesting a cabin change and the inconvenience of actually moving cabins, just ask your cabin steward to make the twins into a double (this is a simple process and is possible aboard most modern cruise ships).

Interior cabins are extremely dark

An interior cabin, as the name suggests, is a cabin located on the inside part of the hallway, so it has no outside view whatsoever. While cruise lines such as Disney Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean have pioneered the use of virtual portholes and virtual balconies, the fact remains that most interior cabins, once the lights are turned out, are pitch black, even during the day.

While this is great for those who don’t want to be disturbed by the rising sun, for others its disorienting, so turn on the TV in the cabin and keep it muted on the Bridge View channel, not only does this give you a window to the outside world, but in the morning as the sun rises, the view from the bridge will gradually lighten your cabin as well.

Not all cabins in the same category are equal

And just because a cabin is of a higher category doesn’t necessarily make it better. Aboard one cruise ship Cruise Arabia sailed with, the Superior Outside cabins were located on the Promenade Deck, providing easier access to the ship’s public rooms, but had a view of the deck, rather than the ocean (which the cheaper Standard Outside cabins did have).

The cabins were also the same size. So, when selecting your cabin keep things like size in mind, are you paying for more room or for a so-called ‘better’ location? Often balcony cabins on the aft corner of the ship have wraparound balconies that are much larger than standard, but are priced the same. Similarly, ship’s that bulge out slightly amidships will have cabins in this area with moor floor space and larger balconies.