"Guarantee Cabin"??

[Arrow34]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

Contact a TA or NCL. There are 19 club balcony suites available. These are $50 more than the guaranty rate as @BirdTravels mentioned above. That's the average price difference between a guaranty and choose your own room. I do see that at ncl.com you're not able to select a room, but if you call or talk with a TA, they will be able to select your room for that $50 difference. To me, that's cheap to have the freedom to select a room. 

Where are you seeing that $50 price?  I called NCL and they said the price was $300 to "upgrade" to a selectable room?

[njkate]

Yes, never used to be this way. I want to pick my cabin and I'm not paying extra, if that's the scenario I just keep scrolling on to another cruise. Yes I know it's the norm on other lines but it wasn't on NCL and who wants to spend who knows how long on hold to try and book a cabin. They really need to take a page from both Royal and Princess as far as web set up. You can't even book two cabins on web you have to call.

The current format they have on selecting cabins stinks imo

[cruiseny4life]

40 minutes ago, Arrow34 said:

Where are you seeing that $50 price?  I called NCL and they said the price was $300 to "upgrade" to a selectable room?

You need to be able to access Norwegian's internal booking system. $999 on the website (ncl.com) for the guaranty. Call a TA and it'll be $50 more for a MA (Club Balcony Suite) category where you can select the room. Good luck!

 

You do mention "upgrade." Are you already booked on this cruise? If so, then anything I've said may/may not apply depending on your booking.

Edited February 2, 2023 by cruiseny4life

[Arrow34]

45 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

You need to be able to access Norwegian's internal booking system. $999 on the website (ncl.com) for the guaranty. Call a TA and it'll be $50 more for a MA (Club Balcony Suite) category where you can select the room. Good luck!

 

You do mention "upgrade." Are you already booked on this cruise? If so, then anything I've said may/may not apply depending on your booking.

Yeah, I have a booking already for a club balcony suite, it has a MB category and that must be why it is $300 more 😞

[cruiseny4life]

17 hours ago, Arrow34 said:

Yeah, I have a booking already for a club balcony suite, it has a MB category and that must be why it is $300 more 😞

That's it! I thought you were looking to book. Definitely won't be getting it for only $50 extra. \. If offered to you (it isn't offered to everyone) try to the bid upgrade. You should have received an email if you're eligible. Regardless, don't stress too much (easy for me to say, eh). You'll love your cruise!

[BirdTravels]

20 hours ago, njkate said:

Yes, never used to be this way. I want to pick my cabin and I'm not paying extra, if that's the scenario I just keep scrolling on to another cruise. Yes I know it's the norm on other lines but it wasn't on NCL and who wants to spend who knows how long on hold to try and book a cabin. They really need to take a page from both Royal and Princess as far as web set up. You can't even book two cabins on web you have to call.

The current format they have on selecting cabins stinks imo

It has always been this way on every cruise line. Cabin classes where you pick a room are more expensive than guarantee classes where you roll the dice and hope you get a good room. That being said, there are not that many "really bad" rooms,,, but they do exist. 

[njkate]

38 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

It has always been this way on every cruise line. Cabin classes where you pick a room are more expensive than guarantee classes where you roll the dice and hope you get a good room. That being said, there are not that many "really bad" rooms,,, but they do exist. 

I’ve been sailing NCL for years and NEVER had this issue booking on their website until maybe the last year.

Always chose my cabin when I booked I would first choose deck, then a deck plan came up with available cabins NEVER EVER did I get this guarantee BS. Did it cost a few bucks more? I’ve no idea as I never even looked at gty cabins. I find it hard to believe when you’re looking to book a cruise a year or more out that there isn’t available cabins to choose and you get that gty cabin that comes up. 

Edited February 3, 2023 by njkate

[JesseB]

They have certainly changed the way you select a cabin from the last time I did it pre-covid. This last go around it assigned me a room and it took me forever to figure out how to change it...and I honestly can't remember exactly how I did it now it was so convoluted haha.  I think I clicked on the stateroom number it assigned and then went from there....

[BirdTravels]

4 hours ago, JesseB said:

They have certainly changed the way you select a cabin from the last time I did it pre-covid. This last go around it assigned me a room and it took me forever to figure out how to change it...and I honestly can't remember exactly how I did it now it was so convoluted haha.  I think I clicked on the stateroom number it assigned and then went from there....

They changed it to be more like Royal Caribbean selection.... you either pick a guarantee (for a discount) and let them assign a room or pick your own room. When you pick your own room, they hide the internal cabin classes (e.g., BA, BB, BC, BD) which drive costs (e.g., High Mid-ship cost more than low aft/fwd which costs more than obstructed). 

 

People necessarily gravitate to high, mid-ship rooms which are the most expensive. The old system used to let you pick by cabin class (i.e., if you wanted a balcony, but wanted a lower cost, you picked the low fwd cabin class). Now that is all transparent. 

[BirdTravels]

5 hours ago, njkate said:

Always chose my cabin when I booked I would first choose deck, then a deck plan came up with available cabins NEVER EVER did I get this guarantee BS. 

And... you always paid more than those picking a guarantee cabin class. 

[eileeshb]

14 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

And... you always paid more than those picking a guarantee cabin class. 

Oddly the guarantee class wasn’t always listed when I was looking at booking cruises, was there most of the time but occasionally not. 

they used to sometimes be called “just cruise” which was a guarantee without FAS, but now they offer a Just Cruise pricing on specific cabins. I was booking a studio cabin for a friend and wanted to change it from the assigned to a different one but it kept saying no other cabins available. Yet when I checked later another cabin number was listed. I wound up giving up on it and just took the suggested cabin. 

[cruiseny4life]

3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

And... you always paid more than those picking a guarantee cabin class. 

I think what you're missing is that sometimes you may choose the non-guaranty balcony (as an example). When looking to "choose your stateroom," sometimes you don't have that option. Every so often NCL will just choose the stateroom for you and not allow you to select your own even though you're paying the higher price. 

 

I believe that's what others are referring to and certainly what the issue was with the club balcony I looked into based on the above conversation. 

 

But, in almost all cases, you are correct about being able to select. Just not for all cruises or categories. I haven't found any reason to it, unless a lot of folks chose the cheaper sail away rate and NCL wants control of the room selection.

[MoCruiseFan]

Part of the confusion here is a result of a change NCL made some time ago in their cabin nomenclature.  NCL has a specific cabin of each cabin type (inside, ocean view, etc) that comes with no cabin choice and no FAS perks.  In the past they referred to this as a GTY or guarantee cabin.  They have since changed the name of that to a "SAIL AWAY" cabin.

On the other hand, at some point in the process of selling cabins for a given cruise, it APPEARS that NCL halts allocation of specific cabins for a cabin type and level (IA, IB, OA, OB,etc) and sells a guarantee of that cabin type and level which DOES include FAS.

So what is now a guarantee is not the same as what was shortly ago.  This all (of course) is my conjecture based on my observations.  It could all be poppycock! 🙂

[debenson0723]

2 hours ago, MoCruiseFan said:

Part of the confusion here is a result of a change NCL made some time ago in their cabin nomenclature.  NCL has a specific cabin of each cabin type (inside, ocean view, etc) that comes with no cabin choice and no FAS perks.  In the past they referred to this as a GTY or guarantee cabin.  They have since changed the name of that to a "SAIL AWAY" cabin.

On the other hand, at some point in the process of selling cabins for a given cruise, it APPEARS that NCL halts allocation of specific cabins for a cabin type and level (IA, IB, OA, OB,etc) and sells a guarantee of that cabin type and level which DOES include FAS.

So what is now a guarantee is not the same as what was shortly ago.  This all (of course) is my conjecture based on my observations.  It could all be poppycock! 🙂

This is exactly what just happened on the cruise I booked last week (which leaves in 2 weeks). I had the option of the Sailaway rate without the FAS or a guarantee balcony cabin with the FAS, which I ended up purchasing.  The price difference between the 2 was $50, plus the FAS gratuities (so about $160 total).  I didn't know if paying that higher price would actually put me in a better cabin but was willing to take the risk (I could have done the same with an inside but when I looked on another site at what was available, the only options were on deck 5 below the theatre). 

2 days after booking I received my cabin number, which is mid ship, higher deck. I have done this several times on various ships and always been happy with what I have received. Just for fun, I also did an upgrade bid for the Haven, even though every site I check shows it is sold out.  Maybe my luck will hold and someone will cancel...if not, I am happy where I am.

[bsmerl]

On 2/3/2023 at 6:41 PM, cruiseny4life said:

I think what you're missing is that sometimes you may choose the non-guaranty balcony (as an example). When looking to "choose your stateroom," sometimes you don't have that option. Every so often NCL will just choose the stateroom for you and not allow you to select your own even though you're paying the higher price. 

 

I believe that's what others are referring to and certainly what the issue was with the club balcony I looked into based on the above conversation. 

 

But, in almost all cases, you are correct about being able to select. Just not for all cruises or categories. I haven't found any reason to it, unless a lot of folks chose the cheaper sail away rate and NCL wants control of the room selection.

I think the confusion here is that NCL website always gave you the choice to pick a cabin at a higher price or choose the cheaper "Guarantee".  Now there is no choice. 

 

You only see the guarantee and not given the option to pay more to choose a cabin.  I'm having this problem for the June 24, 2023 Getaway sailing.  They only let you select a family club balcony room (don't want the bathtub) but not a regular club balcony room. 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

On 2/5/2023 at 11:37 AM, bsmerl said:

I think the confusion here is that NCL website always gave you the choice to pick a cabin at a higher price or choose the cheaper "Guarantee".  Now there is no choice. 

 

You only see the guarantee and not given the option to pay more to choose a cabin.  I'm having this problem for the June 24, 2023 Getaway sailing.  They only let you select a family club balcony room (don't want the bathtub) but not a regular club balcony room. 

 

 

There is a choice....if you call NCL or use a travel agent. You're right though, the NCL website does not always give you the option to choose your own room. Many times it does, but not always. 

[carohs]

My preferred TA showed no rooms available for 4 on the POA for the date we were looking at on NCL. I guess I coulda just called, but I booked a gty on NCL and transferred the reservation to the TA. This was even with making the reservation over a year in advance. I'm not stressing about the room assignment since I know we'll be mostly off the ship. 

[BCOS]

On 2/2/2023 at 12:46 PM, cruiseny4life said:

You need to be able to access Norwegian's internal booking system. $999 on the website (ncl.com) for the guaranty. Call a TA and it'll be $50 more for a MA (Club Balcony Suite) category where you can select the room. Good luck!

 

You do mention "upgrade." Are you already booked on this cruise? If so, then anything I've said may/may not apply depending on your booking.

Is the $999 for the guarantee including taxes and fees? I'm booked in a club balcony on that same sailing  (as a guarantee) so I've been watching for a price drop, and $999 is higher than I've seen it since I started looking last month.

Edited February 7, 2023 by BCOS

[cruiseny4life]

27 minutes ago, BCOS said:

Is the $999 for the guarantee including taxes and fees? I'm booked in a club balcony on that same sailing  (as a guarantee) so I've been watching for a price drop, and $999 is higher than I've seen it since I started looking last month.

Just the fare (no gratuities, taxes, port fees, etc.). Might have changed by now. I haven't priced it since 2/2.

[BCOS]

Also regarding guarantee cabins, we are booked in one on the Jewel, and we will have four in our club balcony suite.  There is a little bit of a range in cabin size based on the info on the NCL site. Any chance our larger number of occupants will impact the cabin we're ultimately assigned?

[AdoraBelle]

On 2/5/2023 at 11:37 AM, bsmerl said:

I think the confusion here is that NCL website always gave you the choice to pick a cabin at a higher price or choose the cheaper "Guarantee".  Now there is no choice. 

 

You only see the guarantee and not given the option to pay more to choose a cabin.  I'm having this problem for the June 24, 2023 Getaway sailing.  They only let you select a family club balcony room (don't want the bathtub) but not a regular club balcony room. 

 

 

Bumping a slightly old thread rather than creating a duplicate ...

 

I haven't been on NCL since before the pandemic (I've switched to VV now), but I have some credit still burning a hole on my NCL account. I have been poking around the redesigned site and trying to figure out why I was getting GTY/guarantee only for SO many sailings and cabin types, I guess I know now. 

(As it happens, one thing I was trying to figure out how to select a club balcony with a tub, which I guess is a family club? perhaps? but sailing after sailing wouldn't let me select anything but a guarantee. Same for some other cabin types including studios.)

 

If they don't want to let me pick my own cabin (or at least show me which one I have been auto-assigned to before I pay, like VV), I guess that last bit of NCL credit is going to expire. 

Edited April 24, 2023 by AdoraBelle

[wolft927]

1 minute ago, AdoraBelle said:

 

Bumping a slightly old thread rather than creating a duplicate ...

 

I haven't been on NCL since before the pandemic (I've switched to VV now), but I have some credit still burning a hole on my NCL account. I have been poking around the redesigned site and trying to figure out why I was getting GTY/guarantee only for SO many sailings and cabin types, I guess I know now. 

(As it happens, one thing I was trying to figure out how to select a club balcony with a tub, which I guess is a family club? perhaps? but sailing after sailing wouldn't let me select anything but a guarantee. Same for some other cabin types including studios.)

 

If they don't want to let me pick my own cabin (or at least show me which one I have been auto-assigned to before I pay, like VV), I guess that last bit of NCL credit is going to expire. 

If you want to get an assigned cabin, simply call and book over the phone. It takes a few minutes but you can get the location you want. 

[MoCruiseFan]

On 1/22/2023 at 2:24 PM, TACoor said:

Is this something new, not being able to select a cabin, it will be assigned just before sailing? We haven't sailed since before covid, but in the past I have always carefully chosen our cabin location - not right at the elevators, cabins on the deck above and below (not over or under potentially noisy public venues), prefer not adjoining rooms. I'm just not happy about being placed wherever they put us. Is there any way to actually select a cabin at booking?

 

If you book a GTY or Sail Away rate you do not get the FAS options nor do you get to select your cabin.  It has been that way at least since 2010 whne we started sailing.

 

[podgeandrodge]

On 4/24/2023 at 7:07 PM, MoCruiseFan said:

 

If you book a GTY or Sail Away rate you do not get the FAS options nor do you get to select your cabin.  It has been that way at least since 2010 whne we started sailing.

 

when booking from Europe you can get FAS options on the Sail Away and the GTY.  Hence, I can't figure out the difference!

[wolft927]

On 4/24/2023 at 2:07 PM, MoCruiseFan said:

 

If you book a GTY or Sail Away rate you do not get the FAS options nor do you get to select your cabin.  It has been that way at least since 2010 whne we started sailing.

 

When you book a guaranteed cabin you absolutely get the FAS, only sail away doesn’t get FAS