1403 on the dream???

[tuscandream]

What a night. I had 2 rooms booked on the carnival dream for Nov 19 2011. My family which consist of my husband, myself and my 16 year old daughter and 19 year old son. They each were going to bring a friend, final pmt was due on 9-5. My daughters friend didn't come up with the money by the due date. I called carnival and they were able to give us an extension for her or to get someone else to replace her. Tonight my daughter's friend provides me with her dads credit card to make final pmt due. She also gives my husband 250.00 in cash since he fronts the deposit. I call carnival provide the card information, I am relieved she paid in time all is good. Than an hour later I get a phone call from her dad saying she is not authorized to go she stole his credit card and he was going to dispute the transaction as unauthorized. At this point it is 11:00 at night I am stressing out I can't believe this. I am thinking I am in trouble because I assumed everything was fine I called in and provided the card info. So I call carnival and explained the situation, they say I need to either find so eons else to go by tomorrow or we have to pay 775.00. She lost her 250.00 deposit. Who was I going to find to go at a moments notice. So I ask if we can get a room for 3 for the kids and my husband and I in a room for 2. They didn't have a room for just 3 but she said they have an ocean view room that will sleep 5. Here is the deal our rooms were on deck 9, the so called upgrade was on deck 1 room 1403. She said the difference is 499.00 dollars I would have to pay. So she put me on hold and someone in guest relations was going to. check what the price of this room would have been at the time of our original booking. She said I have great news we can switch you 5 into this cabin and all you need to pay is 65.00. So we took it. I am bummed it is on such a low deck, I like to be as close to the top for convience. Did I make a mistake by doing this? Has anyone stayed in this room? I now feel bad for my daughter who won't have a friend with her, maybe I can talk her into going to the teen program to meet some new friends. If anyone is going on this cruise and has a teen age daughter let me know maybe they can meet and hang out. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[kujobie]

I'm confused. Did you keep her $250 deposit? And the balance is $775? So is her fare over a thousand bucks for a quad cabin? And why can't the 3 kids who are going stay in the existing cabin?

[tuscandream]

We booked as early saver. She will not get her deposit back. When we originally booked it was just my family of 4 that booked the inside quad. We later added another room for 2 that had my son's friend and my daughters friend in the room. They each had to pay 775.00. We were going to switch rooms so the kids can be in the quad and my husband and I in the other room. Does this make sense so since she didn't pay I would have had to pay to have someone else in that room.

[kujobie]

We booked as early saver. She will not get her deposit back. When we originally booked it was just my family of 4 that booked the inside quad. We later added another room for 2 that had my son's friend and my daughters friend in the room. They each had to pay 775.00. We were going to switch rooms so the kids can be in the quad and my husband and I in the other room. Does this make sense so since she didn't pay I would have had to pay to have someone else in that room.

 

OK, so the amount you're out is not $775. You made the friends pay the full price of the double cabin while you got the discounted price of the 3rd and 4th person in the quad cabin which you intended to put them in. So, divide the total price of the inside quad cabin by 4, and subtract the $250 deposit that was paid and you're out $200 at best. I'd bite the bullet and pay the 200 bucks to keep the two cabins and be ashamed that I made my kid's friends pay $775 to stay in an inside quad.

[tuscandream]

Wow I was not trying to rip anyone off. We booked our cruise first. Than later they decided to ask friends to go. So at that time is when we booked a separate room for the friends. We all had inside cabins, it was not as though they pd for a deluxe ocean view room and we took it. We were driving to Florida for the cruise and paying for their food along the way and hotel stay, not to mention gas that is over 3.70 a gallon. So I would have to say we are spending our fair share. I was hoping someone would read it and answer how this particular room is verses giving their negative opinion. But thanks for reading. Weren't you ever taught if you don't have nothing nice to say than don't say it. Just saying...

[kujobie]

Wow I was not trying to rip anyone off. We booked our cruise first. Than later they decided to ask friends to go. So at that time is when we booked a separate room for the friends. We all had inside cabins, it was not as though they pd for a deluxe ocean view room and we took it. We were driving to Florida for the cruise and paying for their food along the way and hotel stay, not to mention gas that is over 3.70 a gallon. So I would have to say we are spending our fair share. I was hoping someone would read it and answer how this particular room is verses giving their negative opinion. But thanks for reading. Weren't you ever taught if you don't have nothing nice to say than don't say it. Just saying...

 

Well, you laid it all out there and asked for advice. I don't know about 1403 but you're sailing over Thanksgiving so there's bound to be a bagillion kids for your daughter to hang out with. But I will say that I have sailed with two teens in a quad more than once and it would be worth every penny to pay two or three hundred dollars to not do it again. My best advice is to pay the $200 out of your own pocket, let the friend go, get 2 cabins, and save your own sanity.

[k2excursion]

There is nothing wrong with Riviera deck. It's not the class system like it was in the old days. A lower deck doesn't mean a "lower class of people". Lido deck is convenient for pool/waterslides/buffet, but lower decks are more convenient than lido for the shows/dining room/promenade activities. So you lose one convenience but you gain another. 1403 will be a large 230 sq.ft. room, as opposed to a 170 sq.ft. room. Your room will have 1.5 baths: a regular bathroom plus a half bath with a sink & junior tub. I think you will be happy with this room. I hope all works out well for you & your cruise. We'll be on the Dream just 2 weeks before you.

[okwriter]

...

My family which consist of my husband, myself and my 16 year old daughter and 19 year old son....

My daughters friend didn't come up with the money by the due date...

Tonight my daughter's friend provides me with her dads credit card to make final pmt due...

Than an hour later I get a phone call from her dad saying she is not authorized to go she stole his credit card and he was going to dispute the transaction as unauthorized...

 

I would be more concerned that my 16-year-old daughter is friends with someone who stole her father's credit card! :eek:

[medianeh]

We were on the Riviera Deck for our Dream cruise. You will be fine. The only difference is you hav to wait for an elevator a bit longer. We never had that problem because we always use the stairs anyway. :)

[TheCalicoCat]

Weren't you ever taught if you don't have nothing nice to say than don't say it. Just saying...

 

99% of the people on CC (with the anonymity of a "tuscandream" tag) feel empowered to say anything, nice, rude, indiffernt, judgmental, etc.:rolleyes:

 

& Thanks for giving me an excuse not to let this happen to us in the future.

[BeccaBecca1713]

If the girl was also booked ES then she only lost 50 bucks of deposit. The other 200 can be transferred to a future cruise......

[finzup-kt]

I'm not trying to be rude or pass any judgement but perhaps with teens it's best to confirm with their parents first that they are allowed to go.

 

Should the kid have stolen the dad's credit card, NO, but hell, back in the day I probably would've done the same thing so I could go on a trip with my friends... I would've tried to convince my parents after the fact that it was OK and I'd pay them back with my babysitting money or whatever... (it likely wouldn't have worked but ) :D

[sweetlissa]

I would just look at it like this, I'm on a cruise ship, Yay and have a great time!

[tuscandream]

I'm not trying to be rude or pass any judgement but perhaps with teens it's best to confirm with their parents first that they are allowed to go.

 

Should the kid have stolen the dad's credit card, NO, but hell, back in the day I probably would've done the same thing so I could go on a trip with my friends... I would've tried to convince my parents after the fact that it was OK and I'd pay them back with my babysitting money or whatever... (it likely wouldn't have worked but ) :D

 

Trust me lesson learned. I did try to reach out to the mom several times. She went with us last year so I didn't think much about it.

[tuscandream]

There is nothing wrong with Riviera deck. It's not the class system like it was in the old days. A lower deck doesn't mean a "lower class of people". Lido deck is convenient for pool/waterslides/buffet, but lower decks are more convenient than lido for the shows/dining room/promenade activities. So you lose one convenience but you gain another. 1403 will be a large 230 sq.ft. room, as opposed to a 170 sq.ft. room. Your room will have 1.5 baths: a regular bathroom plus a half bath with a sink & junior tub. I think you will be happy with this room. I hope all works out well for you & your cruise. We'll be on the Dream just 2 weeks before you.

 

I wasn't referring to the type of people, once when I booked a room on the glory we were on the lowest deck and I felt the ship move more than when we were up higher. Everyone says it should be the opposite but not for me unless the seas were bad.

[k2excursion]

1403 will be a large 230 sq.ft. room, as opposed to a 170 sq.ft. room. Your room will have 1.5 baths: a regular bathroom plus a half bath with a sink & junior tub.

 

What I mean by that is that the interior rooms are around 170-175 sq.ft. Reading your scenario closer, having 2 of those for 5 people would've worked out well. But hey, at least you now have an oceanview, and the room will be much larger than an interior, at 230 sq.ft. The teen clubs are up on Deck 4, almost in the same spot as your room, so it'll be really convenient for them to reach those spots, just straight up the aft elevators/stairs near your room to deck 4.

 

It is the case that lower decks should feel less movement. But what you said is true, if the seas are rough, you'll still feel it. But higher decks are probably feeling it more. It also has to do with where you are on the ship. Midship feels less motion. Forward rooms tend to feel the most motion. Aft doesn't feel as much as forward rooms. Your room is between midship & aft, so that's a pretty good spot. The most ideal would've been around the midship elevators, but you're still in a good spot. I know there was some negativity directed at you here, but don't worry about that. I've been flamed for being positive many times. I've been flamed for reporting that I loved a cruise. I know that when something like your scenario happens, it can really put a damper on your outlook. I hope that the information I gave you will help put your mind at ease, help forget about the bad stuff that happened, and help you to be optimistic about your upcoming cruise and your new room. I have found some pics of what your type of room will look like:

 

This is an artists drawing:

 

Here is an actual pic. I do believe that the sofa is actually longer, and it will be made up into a comfy bed:

 

 

Here is the extra half-bath, with the sink & junior tub. 2 can shower at a time with the 2 bathrooms:

 

[k2excursion]

If the girl was also booked ES then she only lost 50 bucks of deposit. The other 200 can be transferred to a future cruise......

 

That is true as long as they were able to cancel before final payment. In this scenario, they were passed final payment already. They were delayed in making final payment for the girl. Once the final payment date has passed, standard penalties apply. The whole $250 is gone, cannot be applied to a future cruise. That's true under any rate. The main difference with ES is that there are no name changes allowed, before or after final payment, not even for a fee.

[B and C Blake]

Here is Dream 1396

 

Go to Cruise Line Rooms dot Com

 

Select Dream then view 1396.

 

The stupid URL block will not let me post just the picture.

[tuscandream]

Thank you everyone for the great information. I appreciate it.