Guaranteed cabin - what's the risk?

[dadofgage]

Okay, so my wife and I decided on taking the kids on a cruise but wondered about the guaranteed cabin.

 

There is a significant cost savings - I believe $100/pp for the first two people in the cabin.

 

So is the risk of getting this cost savings worth it?

 

What is the worst that could happen?

[klfrodo]

#1 risk

Every ship has cabins that could be considered to be in undesirable locations. You could get one of those.

[G'ma]

Okay, so my wife and I decided on taking the kids on a cruise but wondered about the guaranteed cabin.

 

There is a significant cost savings - I believe $100/pp for the first two people in the cabin.

 

So is the risk of getting this cost savings worth it?

 

What is the worst that could happen?

 

You are only guaranteed the cabin you bought. There is no guarantee of an upgrade.

 

So, the worst that can happen is you'll be in the cabin you paid for. If the ship is full, there won't be upgrades at all.

 

Personally, I buy the cabin I want. It's not worth the risk of spending a week in a minimum cabin located in an area that is undesirable.

[dadofgage]

Okay, so to be more specific - what cabins do I want to avoid on the Freedom?

[klfrodo]

Okay, so to be more specific - what cabins do I want to avoid on the Freedom?

 

Most of the times, thats a personal choice.

 

Some want to be near an elevator, some want to be far.

Some want to be on a higher deck, some want to be lower in the ship.

Some want to be near the galley, some far.

 

Each has it's own positive and negitive

[GTO-Girl]

On any ship I always want to have a cabin that has other cabins above & below it. I do not want to have a room that is under the pool decks, galley, lounges, shows, etc., etc. That's why we always select our cabin.

 

We spend a lot of time on our balcony and we don't want to run the risk of having noise problems that would spoil our trip.

 

You will find many varied opinions on this subject, but you are wise to get feedback so that you can make an informed decision.

 

Happy Sailing

[Ship Addict]

I have used the guarantee option on a few cruises and I have never been disappointed. Received small upgrades some times, others not. I guess the reason why I'm never disappointed is cos I really don't care where my cabin is. One time we had a cabin way forward, which some really don't like, but it made for a fun experience when we hit rough weather one night.

 

The biggest factor that you need to decide for yourself is will you be happy with whatever you get, or do you think you might be severely disappointed if you get a cabin in what some consider a "bad" location?

[tiffytutu99]

Some people have posted a complaint after booking gaurantee that they received a cabin that was close to a source of loud noise in the ship or entertainment area.... so far that from the boards that seems to be the #1 complaint. One I've seen complained about being to far forward on the ship and it caused her seasickness... Personally, if there is a considerable discount I'd take it and bring plenty of earplugs just in case!

[firefly333]

The only risk I would care about is getting below the main pool area on Lido deck. They can put me any place else :D

 

The reason folks do it, they want to roll the dice on the chance to get a free upgrade.

[tiffytutu99]

what happens if you're below the lido deck?

[GTO-Girl]

You get to listen to them dragging pool chairs ALL night long.......every night :eek:

[firefly333]

what happens if you're below the lido deck?

 

It's not carpeted, so its the lounge chairs scraping on the wood that starts about 3 a.m. when they wash down the decks. Anywhere else I can sleep.

 

Most of the venues have carpet.

[Dr. Jack Daniels]

As others have said, the biggest risk is your cabin being in an undesirable location. One time when we booked a guarantee we were put in a cabin directly above the Piano Bar. This made it extremely difficult to fall asleep until 2:00 am as the piano sounded like it was in my room:mad:. That was the last guarantee I ever booked.

 

 

Dr. Jack

[SUSANITA]

Dr. Jack, we also had a cabin directly above the piano bar on the Freedom, it was HORRIBLE, and we're piano bar lovers. It sounded like he was sitting in the middle of our bed every night until 2:30am, sometimes later. Not so bad, unless you have a 7am port day the next day. We asked to be moved, even at our own expense, but ship was full.

 

Complained after we got back that these cabins should have either been discounted, or soundproofed, and rec'vd $200 off a future cruise, each.

 

Lesson learned, always choose your own cabin. Upgrades "usually" consist of a higher floor, not a different type of cabin, anyway.

[tiffytutu99]

makes sense... while earplugs may work for me i can't see my kids wearing them... but what time does the piano bar stop?

[firefly333]

Complained after we got back that these cabins should have either been discounted, or soundproofed, and rec'vd $200 off a future cruise, each. .

 

Carnival has gotten much cheaper than this lately. 15% off the next cruise tops is all Im hearing around here for problems I consider much worse than this. When did his happen?? Before the economy dropped the last 3 - 4 months?

[sunnydd]

We booked a cruise on carnival triumph last year with a balcony guar. and recieved a very nice suite, the people we sat with at dinner did the same thing, so in my opinion, its worth a shot.:)

[Javacruiser]

If you have certain cabin locations you really don't want you are taking a risk with a guarantee. If you are looking at an Inside guarantee, you know you could end up anywhere...... If you take an OV guarantee, you know you will be on a lower deck.....etc. Depending on what guarantee you are looking for, check the least desirable cabins in that group (IS, OV, Balc). If you see many cabins you would not want then you are taking a risk.

 

I have booked an IS guarantee on the Imagination & got an IS, aft on Empress deck that was just great for the price I paid. I recently took a balcony guarantee on the Miracle & got a midship balcony on deck 7 with cabins above and below me right by the main atrium. I'm glad to be right by the atrium but others may not like it. I've been lucky and would do it again but I'm just happy to be on the ship.

 

Another thing to consider... Is this your first Carnival Cruise? If so, you are taking a bigger risk as past passengers generally will get upgraded more frequently.

 

Bill

[teachswim]

We book 2 rooms for our family of 4. If we choose "guaranteed cabin" we won't have our cabins near one another, so I have never tried it.

 

jm

[Upandadam]

In a nutshell, the risk is that you'll get the minimum cabin you're guaranteed.

[Catrin]

I do not have any more advice, from what you have received so far.

 

But, the one time we did a guarantee, I got M11 - which was an upgrade to an outside cabin, but far far forward.... and it did not sit well with my physcially!

 

I book a cabin in the middle of the ship now.

 

Catrin

[houseflipper48]

We will be on the Legend Jan.18, and booked a balcony guarantee. Today we received our cabin number, midship extended balcony. We are over the moon!! This was the first time we ever booked a guarantee, and we won't hesitate to do it again. :)

[firefly333]

Is this your first Carnival Cruise? If so, you are taking a bigger risk as past passengers generally will get upgraded more frequently.

 

Bill

 

And there will be 10 others who will all claim that Carnival seems to go out of their way to upgrade first time cruisers.

[Ken076]

The WORST that can happen is that you'll get the worst location in the minimum category that your book; as in if you book an Inside Guarantee you could end-up with a Riviera deck cabin (lowest deck) way forward (with wave-slap and/or anchor noise) or way aft directly above the screw (there's a thread somewhere about unhappy cruiser who booked IS Guarantee and got this). If you're booking multiple cabins with a Guarantee, there's no guarantee that they'll be together, equivalent or on same deck.

 

Be aware that you don't have to book an Inside Guarantee (which is CAT 4A) you could book a 4B or 4C or... Guarantee and therefore avoid Riviera deck, etc. Your cabin will generally be assigned 30-60 days before sailing, but may not be assigned until you check-in. Whatever cabin you're assigned, you're stuck with with little sympathy from Carnival and not much sympathy on this forum. If you're a light sleeper and sensitive to noise, you might want to avoid Guarantees, as there are lots of locations that are "unbearably" noisy to some (but hardly noticed by others).

 

ken

[aggieastrosfan]

It all boils down to what do you prefer more - savings off the price, or a cabin location?

 

I've only done it once, when I took my mom on her first cruise. We did great, booked lowest inside GTY and ended up with the highest inside GTY on Lido (this was on Princess). DH and I have become aft wrap snobs, so we book way early to get those cabins. But for me personally, if I'm looking for a quick cheap getaway, I have no problems booking a GTY, because I honestly don't care where I end up. If you're this way, a GTY is a great way to go. If not, you might be better off selecting a specific cabin.