My daughter and I are currently sailing on a Carnival cruise. This is one of three “free” cruises I am sailing on this year thanks to status matching Hyatt to MGM to Carnival and Holland America (see this post).
After status matching, I first received an offer for a free interior room on Carnival. I’ve sailed in an interior room on Disney before, and I did not like it. I disliked not knowing the weather outside, if it was light or dark out, etc. It just felt weird to me. So, I waited for a balcony offer from Carnival, and sure enough I received one. I booked a free balcony room and sailed on the Carnival Celebration in January (see my review here).
But, my free interior room was still on the table. I decided to just peruse some cruises and decide if the itinerary was worth tolerating an interior stateroom. And that’s when I found the perfect interior stateroom.
Category 4J Interior Stateroom with Picture Window (Walkway View)
My free cruise was valid on any interior stateroom, and that included Category 4J, Interior Stateroom with Picture Window. Now, why isn’t this cabin classified as an Outside Stateroom? I suppose it’s because the window doesn’t go directly to the outside of the ship. The window faces a public deck in the front of the ship. However, most people don’t even know how to access this public deck. So, the stateroom has a view of the ocean plus a large almost-private deck a few doors down.
I was happy to have booked this room for my free cruise. But, would the room still feel like an inside stateroom?
Not at all! We’ve been in this room a few days now. It’s large and bright.
Closet:
Bathroom:
This is the view outside our window:
Just a few doors down from our room, we can access the public deck in front of our room:
During the day, you can’t see into our room from the outside walkway due to the glare. At night, you can see inside, but we can also close our curtain for privacy.
No, it’s not the same as having our own private balcony. There are no lounge chairs, only two hard benches. But, it’s nice to get some fresh air and views.
Final Thoughts
This Category 4J Interior Stateroom with Picture Window is better than the average interior stateroom. I love the window and the convenient deck outside. Several Carnival ships have this category. If you are hesitant to book a free status-match interior room or you just want to save money on your next cruise, see if any 4J staterooms are available.
Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
Carnival Cruise Lines, runner up, the morgue.
What ship had this?
I’m not sure how many have this category, but many do. Vista, Horizon, Panorama, Dream, Sunrise….
Any suggestions on how to get started with a World of Hyatt CC? Do you reach Explorist status by simply opening a certain CC? Is there a best time of year to do this if you want to status match (like one has to do with SW companion pass)? Thanks for any advice.
@Michelle Unfortunately, the Hyatt credit card only gives you Discoverist status. I got lucky several years ago to get matched to Hyatt Diamond status from Hilton Gold status (through credit card). I went down one grade to the Explorist status but have managed to hold onto that by matching back and forth between Hyatt and MGM. I’m not sure of a way right now to get Explorist status from the get go. There was a Bilt promotion a few months ago that gave a temporary Hyatt Explorist status, but that match wasn’t eligible for the MGM match.