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No — and you might not even want it!

I’m not trying to manufacture controversy with this post, I promise. But it’s my opinion that not only do you not *need* a balcony in Alaska, you may even be happier with an inside cabin.

As I’m writing this blog post, I’m on my fifth Alaska cruise — but it’s the first one where I have a balcony. I was excited to be able to upgrade my interior cabin to a balcony for only about $400, which is a pretty good deal considering that I’m traveling solo.

Now, I’m no stranger to an interior cabin. They’re a great way to save money in order to cruise more, and on three of my previous Alaska cruises, I took an interior cabin in order to keep my costs down. On my first Alaska cruise, I had the same interior cabin for two weeks from Seward to Vancouver and back up to Seward. I wouldn’t have been able to afford this cruise in a balcony.

Plus, I’ve never minded having an interior stateroom. On those cruises, I use the room to sleep, shower, and change, and I spend my time in the public areas of the ship. On that particular cruise, I was on a Royal Caribbean Radiance-class ship, which has plenty of common areas great for hanging out and catching the Alaska views.

But I’ve always heard that “you have to have a balcony in Alaska,” so when I had the chance to upgrade, I thought I’d give it a try.

I will say, I’ve enjoyed having the balcony at times. We had beautiful weather for our sail into Sitka (our first port day), and the direct sunlight made it even feel warm. I was able to take some great pictures from the balcony without having to take them through a window.

Many times, however, it’s been too cold to really take advantage of the balcony, especially when the ship is moving. And I’m a person who doesn’t mind the cold weather, usually.

One thing I’ve learned I prefer about an interior cabin in Alaska is the darkness. We’re here in mid-May, and the sun rises before 5 am and sets after 9 pm. I’ve been having some trouble adjusting to the time change (four hours behind my usual East Coast time), and the early sunrises haven’t been helping that.

Would I cruise in a balcony in Alaska again? Sure, I would — but I wouldn’t pay extra for it. Although I’ve been able to take some great balcony selfies, I’d just as soon save money (and maybe sleep longer/better) with an inside cabin on future trips.