Have you ever booked a room for a particular view, and then arrived to find out that the view is nothing like you expected?
Few things are more disappointing than looking forward to watching the waves with your morning coffee on your balcony every morning, only to find out that you have to stand on your balcony and lean……way……over…..the…..edge…..in order to actually see the ocean. (Plus that’s not very safe either!)
If what you see when you look outside is a priority for your vacation, making sure you book the right “view” category is important. Especially if you’re traveling to a tropical island for a bucket list vacation – where you may be expecting to see turquoise waters from your balcony – you’ll want to know what those room descriptions mean.
Oceanview. Oceanfront. Beachfront.
They all mean the same thing, right?
No, they sure do not.
As the differences may seem confusing, let’s take a look at what they do mean, so that you’ll know exactly what kind of room to book in order to enjoy the tropical view you’ve been dreaming of.
Oceanview – An oceanview room is one where you’ll have a view of the ocean from your room.
In this room category, the ocean will be visible from your room, but it may not necessarily be the first thing you see when you look outside. In fact, all it takes for a room to be considered oceanview is for there to be some small portion of the ocean visible from your room, even if you can only see it from an angle or be in a particular spot in the room to see it. So that leaning-over-the-balcony-to-see-ocean room is exactly that – a *view* of the ocean. Now some oceanview rooms may have a much bigger view of the ocean than that, but it’s important to know what that view *could* be like. Oceanview rooms are generally the most economical for anyone who wants to be able to “see the sea” from their room.
Oceanfront – Oceanfront rooms always face the ocean, as the name would suggest. To clarify the difference between this view and oceanview, oceanfront rooms have a more direct view and are often located in short distance from the water, so you can hear the ocean when opening the window, while oceanview rooms tend to offer a partial view of the ocean. To put it another way, an oceanfront room is always oceanview, but an oceanview room is not necessarily oceanfront. Make sense? Oceanfront rooms are typically priced in between oceanview and beachfront.
Beachfront – A beachfront room is one that is literally steps away from the beach or is directly overlooking the beach. Want to leave your room and be on the beach in a flash? This is the room category you want. However – and this is important to realize – beachfront rooms don’t *necessarily* come with an oceanview. Consider for example, a room with a private garden, which blocks a direct view of the ocean from your window. Stepping out of this garden will have you a few steps away from the beach and the ocean – but you will not see the ocean from your room. In most cases, however, beachfront suites are also oceanfront. Because of the desirability to be right on the beach, beachfront rooms are typically the most expensive of these 3 options.
Planning a bucket list vacation to a Caribbean paradise is exciting, and you’ll want to make sure you understand what kind of room you’ll have when you arrive. If it all still seems a bit confusing, no worries, because your friendly travel specialist can help you figure out the right room with the amenities, options, location, price – and the view – that you’re looking for!
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