How do people feel about being mandated on some cruises to accept Guarenteed cabins vs choosing your cabin.

[gardenbug22]

 I recently booked a cruise and was told that if I wanted  an ocean view cabin I had to accept a guarenteed cabin.   I cancelled it. as on two other lines I accepted the grarenteed cabin; the first time I was placed next to the room sharing a  wall with the icemaker... who was quite loud at nite. The second time I was placed by a very active crew door. They told me there were rooms available,  but I could not choose them.   

 

 I am curious how other people feel about this, and what are your experiences?

[NotADopey1]

I’m very picky about location of my cabin.  Unless the cruise is free I want to know where I will be staying.  Since I’m paying, I should have a choice.

[Mum2Mercury]

Did you make your reservations close to the cruise date?  I'm wondering if the good selection was gone.  

1 hour ago, NotADopey1 said:

I’m very picky about location of my cabin.  Unless the cruise is free I want to know where I will be staying.  Since I’m paying, I should have a choice.

I like Guarantees, as they're money-savers.  That IS a choice.  

[gardenbug22]

We are are little over 6 months from the sail date.

 

[CruiserBruce]

9 minutes ago, gardenbug22 said:

We are are little over 6 months from the sail date.

 

That doesn't mean there is still an unlimited supply of every cabin type. Guarantee bookings can be a good deal...have done about 10 of them. But you need to know the best and worst case scenario in a given cabin category. 

 

 

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, gardenbug22 said:

 I recently booked a cruise and was told that if I wanted  an ocean view cabin I had to accept a guarenteed cabin.   I cancelled it. as on two other lines I accepted the grarenteed cabin; the first time I was placed next to the room sharing a  wall with the icemaker... who was quite loud at nite. The second time I was placed by a very active crew door. They told me there were rooms available,  but I could not choose them.   

 

 I am curious how other people feel about this, and what are your experiences?

 

"... being mandated on some cruises to accept ..." ??

 

Sorry, but...

Who is forcing you (or anyone) to accept anything?

That's like us claiming that we were forced (aka, "mandated") to accept a smaller cabin rather than the large suite that we wanted... when the reality was that ... the large suites were sold out, *OR* perhaps because we didn't want to pay the higher price for the larger suites.

 

I am unaware of regular mainstream cruiselines who "mandate" what accommodations each passenger must have. (If there are indeed ships that have a general policy of "we'll assign you a cabin type and location of our choosing"... I certainly don't know about it.)

This is [usually?] entirely a matter of choice.

 

My understanding was that the pricing tends to drive the choices.  For those who really want/need to pay "less", sometimes *IF* they accept ("ACCEPT" - nothing forced here!) a "guaranteed room", they *might* get something better than they could otherwise get for that price, OR they could at least get on a sailing that was otherwise sold out (meaning, no longer available in the cabin/suite choices they preferred.

In some cases, those "guarantees" might get one something *much* nicer, but for a much lower price!

 

This pricing situation can work in the other direction, too.

We once got an Owners Suite because we were booking late (plans for a different trip were suddenly canceled), and when I was looking at ships and itineraries, suddenly I saw... this wonderful suite (in the exact ship location we most enjoy) for a startlingly low amount.  We figured someone must have cancelled late.  They probably paid some hefty penalty, and the the cruise line also got some nice $$$ from us in addition.

... and they avoided having that suite sail empty.

 

Ship cabins (and hotel rooms) are "perishable";  once the date arrives and passes, they can't fill the empty rooms.

And it's much worse for ships.  In a hotel, they can hope that someone *else* might show up to pay for the room during at least some of the cancelled nights (say, a 14-night stay at each, for comparison).  That's just about impossible on a ship once the sailing date passes.

 

Just because "someone wants something" doesn't mean it's available, or available at a price they are willing to pay.

 

We personally would NOT choose any sort of guarantee IF that meant not having choice about our accommodations.  We care a *lot* about the type and location of our accommodations on a ship, and we are willing to pay accordingly.

Obviously, others feel otherwise, and that's great for us and for them. 🙂 

 

GC

 

[CruiserBruce]

@GeezerCouple, some cruise lines will only offer guarantee bookings when the number of available cabins is small. But, yes, you are correct, no one is MANDATED to book guarantee fares. 

[9tee2Sea]

I don't think I have sailed on GTY.  I would rather pay the extra fee to choose my cabin.  Always go to a cruise ship deck mapping website to see where the worst cabins are located.  What may be horrible for one, might not be that bad for another.  Personally, I would not want a cabin right by the stairs or elevators, but maybe folks with mobility issues might want those cabins ( close to the elevators).

[Woody14]

16 hours ago, gardenbug22 said:

We are are little over 6 months from the sail date.

 

6 months out is defiantly a time when guarantees are common as categories are selling out.   Ocean view is often one of the first to sell out as this is usually the smallest of the 3 main categories (inside, ocean view, balcony).    Cruise lines are trying keep attracting people at a certain price point to fill the ship.   The cruise companies have all sorts of algorithms they use to come up with pricing strategies to fill a ship and guarantees is a popular one as it give them flexibility on where they put the passengers.   One of the big target benchmarks for cruise companies is to be sold out before they get to final payment date (most cases 3 months from sail date).

[calliopecruiser]

You're thread title is a little hyperbolic about a "mandate" - you are only required to accept a guarantee cabin if you want a category of cabin that is in high demand.  You could choose a different category of cabin, or decline the voyage entirely.  To me it sounds like you would rather they had said that the category of 'ocean view cabins' was sold out. 

 

I don't mind a guarantee if it gets me into a desired category that would otherwise be sold out - sometimes it results in a good one, and sometimes it results in a less-good one, but I still get the category (and price) I wanted. 

[wwcruisers]

Add me to the list of "picky about my cabin" folks. For that reason, I have never booked a 'guarantee' cabin. I also don't do 'move-up' bids, for the same reason.

[Host Kat]

Perhaps this oldie but goodie Cruise Critic article last updated January 07, 2020 will be helpful to anyone reading this thread. In the article, Cruise Critic asked each major cruise line to detail their own policy on guarantee cabins.

 

The Guarantee Gamble: The Odds of an Upgrade When the Cruise Line Picks Your Cabin

[Honolulu Blue]

11 minutes ago, wwcruisers said:

I also don't do 'move-up' bids, for the same reason.

I did an upgrade bid on my last cruise. I have to say it worked out very well. I was able to choose a sub category that had all of its cabins acceptable to me. YMMV, of course.

[Hlitner]

DW and I are strange, because we routinely book guarantees on many different cruise lines.  50+ years of extensive cruising has taught me that the best cabins are more a matter of luck then anything else.  Why?  You can have a perfectly located cabin (whatever that means) and happen to have noisy neighbors, strange squeaks/rattles, etc.  Although we sometimes do choose a cabin, we also see that as no biggie.  For us, the best cabins are quiet places.  We do try to choose cabins and cabin categories that are surrounded by other cabins (above, below and on all sides) and roll the dice that we get good neighbors.  

 

Hank

[mjkacmom]

7 hours ago, 9tee2Sea said:

I don't think I have sailed on GTY.  I would rather pay the extra fee to choose my cabin.  Always go to a cruise ship deck mapping website to see where the worst cabins are located.  What may be horrible for one, might not be that bad for another.  Personally, I would not want a cabin right by the stairs or elevators, but maybe folks with mobility issues might want those cabins ( close to the elevators).

We always book balconies midship close to the stairs/elevators (use mostly the stairs). Makes it faster to get around, plus we have 5 kids so it was easier for them as well instead of going down long hallways. Never had a noise issue.

[KarlK]

We cruise as cheap as possible and have always had the cruise line pick our inside room. Never had a room we were dissatisfied with, but then again, we are never in the room much. Down by 9PM out by 6AM for the day and many days never return to the room. The view from inside rooms are pretty much the same ...LOL

[gardenbug22]

On 11/27/2024 at 6:47 PM, GeezerCouple said:

 

"... being mandated on some cruises to accept ..." ??

 

Sorry, but...

Who is forcing you (or anyone) to accept anything?

That's like us claiming that we were forced (aka, "mandated") to accept a smaller cabin rather than the large suite that we wanted... when the reality was that ... the large suites were sold out, *OR* perhaps because we didn't want to pay the higher price for the larger suites.

 

I am unaware of regular mainstream cruiselines who "mandate" what accommodations each passenger must have. (If there are indeed ships that have a general policy of "we'll assign you a cabin type and location of our choosing"... I certainly don't know about it.)

This is [usually?] entirely a matter of choice.

 

My understanding was that the pricing tends to drive the choices.  For those who really want/need to pay "less", sometimes *IF* they accept ("ACCEPT" - nothing forced here!) a "guaranteed room", they *might* get something better than they could otherwise get for that price, OR they could at least get on a sailing that was otherwise sold out (meaning, no longer available in the cabin/suite choices they preferred.

In some cases, those "guarantees" might get one something *much* nicer, but for a much lower price!

 

This pricing situation can work in the other direction, too.

We once got an Owners Suite because we were booking late (plans for a different trip were suddenly canceled), and when I was looking at ships and itineraries, suddenly I saw... this wonderful suite (in the exact ship location we most enjoy) for a startlingly low amount.  We figured someone must have cancelled late.  They probably paid some hefty penalty, and the the cruise line also got some nice $$$ from us in addition.

... and they avoided having that suite sail empty.

 

Ship cabins (and hotel rooms) are "perishable";  once the date arrives and passes, they can't fill the empty rooms.

And it's much worse for ships.  In a hotel, they can hope that someone *else* might show up to pay for the room during at least some of the cancelled nights (say, a 14-night stay at each, for comparison).  That's just about impossible on a ship once the sailing date passes.

 

Just because "someone wants something" doesn't mean it's available, or available at a price they are willing to pay.

 

We personally would NOT choose any sort of guarantee IF that meant not having choice about our accommodations.  We care a *lot* about the type and location of our accommodations on a ship, and we are willing to pay accordingly.

Obviously, others feel otherwise, and that's great for us and for them. 🙂 

 

GC

 

  Sorry the word mandated offended you.  It did feel like a mandate... it wasn't presented as a choice. They did not want to let me off the phone till I booked..  altho I did refuse to continue with the booking 4 times before they would cancel it!. I mentioned previously thalt I have accepted a guarentee twice  before, neither time was a pleasant experience.. 

I asked why they had guarenteed rooms.. and I was told what is left in my catagory will sleep 3 people vs 2 and they are holding out to get the extra money of getting a booking for  3 vs 2 in those rooms.  

[Mike981]

This is the main reason that I don't partake in 'move up' bi ds, you have no choice on where you will be. We don't cruise in top tier rooms (normally balcony), so it it could really make a negative experience for us.

[ldubs]

For all of our many cruises on Princess, RCI, Celebrity, and Carnival, we have never used a GTY.   To answer the OP's original question, we prefer to select our cabin location.   

[explorebysailing]

We booked a balcony GTY on Princess.....paid for a lower class balcony GTY, got a top of the line BA balcony.

 

If all of the lower priced cabins in a group are already booked, you are going to book a GTY or you are going to cancel your trip.

 

Lastly, we booked South America, oceanview obstructed, got a phone call from HAL thru  our TA....they wanted to know if we wanted a full oceanview for an extra $11.  (she said yes!)

[MacMadame]

17 hours ago, ldubs said:

For all of our many cruises on Princess, RCI, Celebrity, and Carnival, we have never used a GTY.   To answer the OP's original question, we prefer to select our cabin location.   

My first cruise, I did GTY (it wasn't called that back then) and got assigned to a tiny, tiny cabin. But I also didn't end up with a roommate and didn't have to pay the single supplement so I was fine with it.

[mom says]

On 11/29/2024 at 4:44 PM, gardenbug22 said:

Sorry the word mandated offended you.  It did feel like a mandate... it wasn't presented as a choice.

You still fail to grasp the definition of a mandate. If something is mandated, then it is obligatory. Buying a cruise in a specific cabin category is not obligatory. You have a choice with a GTY cabin- take it or don't take it. Book it or book a different category, or different sailing, or a different cruise line, or don't book at all. No one, including the person  on the phone, was forcing you to take that cabin.

 

Why would you be surprised a sales rep didn't want to take no for an answer- their job is to sell bookings. 

 

[Hlitner]

I also do not get this "mandated" talk,  We are the customers and are "mandated" to do nothing,  If you do not like the deal, you simply say NO.  There are many ships and many cruise lines and cruisers/customers have the freedom to choose.  

 

As far as various folks trying to sell something (like a cruise) you always have the power to say NO.  I recall one cruise line (Oceania) that reached out to me with a phone call from one of their cruise reservations folks.  He made it clear they wanted our business and started to suggest several deals.  I simply responded with a question which was "are you willing to match the best deals I can get from several cruise agencies."  He admitted that he could not do that but we should feel free to book through him and later transfer the booking to a cruise agency.  I simply told him that I do not play those kind of games, and unless he had something to offer, there was no reason for me to deal with him...at all!  

 

For whatever reason, there are some folks that are unable to resist sales pitches, but that is a personal problem.  Just say NO and move on.

 

Hank

 

[SbbquilterUT]

We have accepted a GTY when that was all that was left on that cruise.  We have been fortunate when we had these cabins  and did not have any problems.

[CDNPolar]

On 11/29/2024 at 11:37 PM, Mike981 said:

This is the main reason that I don't partake in 'move up' bi ds, you have no choice on where you will be. We don't cruise in top tier rooms (normally balcony), so it it could really make a negative experience for us.

 

I agree with this.

 

We are Viking loyal and even on ship that was not fully sold, we have never been offered an upgrade, however those that have also have stated that they were not given a choice to the upgrade, or where the cabin location was.

 

We specifically book mid-ship or mid-aft and want the cabin location that we choose, so an upgrade or having a GTY cabin would not be for us.

 

We did take a GTY on a Viking River last year, but the category we were guaranteed to was deck 3 French Balcony and so we had to receive that or the next category up which was also deck 3.  On a River cruise we are okay with that because we will stay anywhere on a River cruise ship.