Why do people pick connecting cabins when they don't need them?!

[Sweet10]

Why pick a connecting cabin if you are only booking one cabin? It is so frustrating for people with families that actually NEED connecting cabins to look at deck plans and see tons of connecting cabins with one cabin already taken! I don't even see why cruise lines allow this! It is not location either, because most of these cabins have single non-connecting cabins on each side of the pair. So frustrated!

 

 

 

We like the connecting cabins because it's always been our best chance at an upgrade. Since they become so high in demand as the price of the cruise goes up, we get reached out to for an upgrade. We always pick the connecting cabins for that reason!

 

 

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[desilennay]

I just upgraded and the cabin happened to be a connecting one. I had no idea before hand, or even when I picked it. They gave me a few options and I liked the location of that one.

[PattBenatar]

I just looked at 2 different ships 550+ days out and I can not get a balcony fully accessible cabin on either ship to do the Panama locks. I don't just want a FAC cabin I need one. I am sorry, I can not even begin to feel for the OP's dilemma. I bet if he/she searches those 2 cruises he will get his much needed connecting cabins. Just saying.....

[nealstuber]

I just upgraded and the cabin happened to be a connecting one. I had no idea before hand, or even when I picked it. They gave me a few options and I liked the location of that one.

 

 

 

Lots and lots of threads on all of these boards about picking a cabin... Most talk about desirability of being on decks between Pax decks, close but not too close to the elevators, best obstructed view cabins, best side of the ship if you like sun or shade on a CW vs CCW sailing, what cabins have beds near the balcony instead of the hallway, pros and cons of aft view cabins, balcony privacy/ virtues of humps...yet... Very, very, very few about avoiding connecting cabins.

 

So again, I think OP raises a valid point. We've been more put off by connecting cabin noise than galley noise above, elevator traffic noise or even thruster noise.

 

When DW and I are cruising with the kids, the first thing I look for is a balcony where the kids are in the neighborhood with an inside. Balcony noise bothers us more than cabin noise so we try to book the first or last balcony cabin on the deck closest to the water, unless it's a cabin just above a protruding boardwalk, then we'll get as far above that as possible, if none of that is available, then the trail edge of a hump works, balcony size plays a factor too.

 

So really, that <-> symbol on the deck plans has been pretty near the bottom of our priority list when selecting a cabin (and we'll always pay at lest $50 pp to pick instead of guarantee$) and maybe it should not be. We always book late, so I doubt we're breaking pairs and affecting others, but it connecting door noise bothers us more than we realized so, again, it would be swell if all cruise lines nudged folks away from available pairs until no other options in that class are available.

 

 

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[aunt nancy]

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[crazyboutdisney]

In all fairness to some, they may not even realize they have connecting. I booked with carnival over the phone and just requested to be in a room away from elevators or anywhere noisy. I went to look at my deckplan and figured out that they booked me in a connecting room.

 

 

 

This!!! We booked over the phone several cruises ago and it was a connecting cabin. I had no idea until we walked on the ship as the booking person chose the room.

 

 

 

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[richstowe]

Perhaps the OP was not very polite with his points but non the less I would thank him for raising an interesting issue

The only time we've had a connecting room is when Carnival called and offered us an upgrade to a cove balcony (our favorite type of cabin) for a good price and it happened to be a connecting room. We would NEVER book another connecting because we could literally hear EVERY SINGLE THING our neighbors were saying. We also just happened to be under the galley and it sounded like the crew were throwing pots and pans on the floor all night long. Worst cabin we've ever had. It was the Magic, 2439 I believe.

I have gotten 2 connecting cabins and many connecting rooms in hotels . I usually open my side and stuff a blanket or towels at the base of the doors . This has usually solved any noise issues .

 

One more who agrees with this. Other than taking a handicapped cabin, all cabins are first come, first served.

It seems all bets are off as the cruise gets nearer . We got a great upsell direct from Holland less then 3 weeks from sailing on an accessible room . I was told all restrictions are removed close to sailing for handicapped cabins and cabins which sleep 3 or more people. It was 50% larger then a regular room and I would be happy to get this type of cabin again .

I was later told by a TA that this is pretty standard policy for all cruiselines shortly before sailing .

[maracalone]

I ended up with a connecting cabin just by asking PVP to place me on Verandah deck. Luckily, someone else reserved the other room first. TBH, I'm looking for a certain floor and placement. I know the floor number and rely on PVP to do the rest.

 

TBH, if you want something then you better be the bird that got the worm. If you want a connecting cabin then watch for it from the get go. But I am also a no nonsense person, so I don't get whining. No matter the cruise line.

 

So straight talk? Please for the love of all that is holy, cry less and study more. I missed the excursion I wanted but it was my fault. Accepted it and moved on.

[Bookbug53]

Why pick a connecting cabin if you are only booking one cabin? It is so frustrating for people with families that actually NEED connecting cabins to look at deck plans and see tons of connecting cabins with one cabin already taken! I don't even see why cruise lines allow this! It is not location either, because most of these cabins have single non-connecting cabins on each side of the pair. So frustrated!

 

 

So the cruise line should keep these cabins empty because someone MIGHT want to book connecting somewhere down the line?

[ducklite]

So the cruise line should keep these cabins empty because someone MIGHT want to book connecting somewhere down the line?

 

It's all about the special snowflakes...

[6rugrats]

Why do people purchase a house with four bedrooms when they only have two people in their family? Shouldn't they save those larger houses for those who "need them?" This makes about as much sense as your silly complaint. Book earlier and choose the cabin you think you need.

[nealstuber]

Why do people purchase a house with four bedrooms when they only have two people in their family? Shouldn't they save those larger houses for those who "need them?" This makes about as much sense as your silly complaint. Book earlier and choose the cabin you think you need.

 

 

 

Very poor analogy. A four bedroom house would cost more (all other things being equal) and if a couple wanted to pay a couple of extra hundred bucks a month to put up visitors up, have a home office and an entertainment room, the location justifies the extra cost, or be ready for kids down the road, fine. But are you suggesting they SIGN A CONTRACT ON A FOUR BEDROOM HOME BEFORE THEY KNOW THEY WILL NEED IT ?

 

Connecting cabins in the same class do not cost more. Booking early when you are not reasonably certain you can serves nobody's interest: 1) Others can not book those two cabins, 2) Cruise lines have scramble to fill cabins in the last 90 days, 3) TAs and others get more work, sometimes for no money. 4) The passengers in question may end up paying fees, committing money they do not yet have, or making other costly decisions due to unforeseen circumstances which increase exponentially with time.

 

I guess the reason I'm so active on this thread (when I could give a rats what Cabin my adult kids are in when we cruise) is I actually feel like people who don't need connecting cabins don't want them, but are stuck with them because they can not book earlier. And then there are people like OP who do desire them, but can't get them. So a little front side control might benefit both parties as well as those who have a choice but unwittingly book a connecting cabin because they are more concerned with elevator noise, deck noise above or below or half a dozen other things - when it really is a thing.

 

 

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[wagtail_syd]

OK I understand your frustration as I've had the same experience. I don't blame the other passengers but wish the website or TA would warn the person that they are booking a connecting cabin and offer them a non-connecting cabin in the same location. Of course if they still want to book it that is their right but would be a huge help to families if these cabins weren't booked unknowingly by people who don't need them.

On the cruise I just booked there were maybe 10 connecting pairs in the outside category. Of those, 6 had both cabins booked and 3 had only one cabin of the pair booked. These cabins had empty non-connecting cabins on either side that I would assume would have suited people just fine and left the connecting cabin for us. We were lucky to get the last unbooked outside pair and that is with >8 months till sailing. It is very frustrating.

[bUU]

In the end, after all of this has been said, if this is a matter of concern at all it is a matter of concern for the cruise line, and it is the cruise line's call about whether this is a matter worthy of their concern or not. Casting aspersions on other passengers for their choice of cabin is without any merit whatsoever, akin to complaining about someone with a smaller family purchasing the minivan you wanted. If there is to be succor for those complaining, that's going to come from the cruise line.

 

And be careful what you ask for: A solution to this problem is to put cabins with different capacities in different categories, i.e., instead of just Category 8D, perhaps 8D1 (for the solo-specific cabins in Category 8D, if any), 8D2, 8D2c (connecting), 8D3, 8D3c (connecting), 8D4, and 8D4c (connecting). And with such sub-categories comes the capacity for the cruise line to realize that some sub-categories are in higher demand than others, and voila! suddenly the the 8D2cs, 8D3cs, and 8D4cs cost more (assuming that they really are in higher demand). "Problem solved." Then there would be no excuse for challenging people reserving a connecting cabin since they'd have paid the special price for the 'c' cabin.

 

And if you like this idea, I grant you license to claim it as your own and advocate for it with the cruise line.

[LNNLNNLNN]

This. [emoji122][emoji106]

 

 

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Yep....

[Moonarino]

I always try not to pick a connecting stateroom because I don't want that door. But as others have said, sometimes the pickings are extremely slim. Even booking 8-12 months out as I've done more than once. And as others have also said, maybe folks don't think to check or can't tell if the stateroom is connecting or not, or the CSR or PVP won't bother to ask if the customer wants a connecting or non-connecting stateroom. They should ask, but that's not saying they always do.

 

In other words, there are multiple reasons why people take connecting staterooms even when they can do with non-connecting. On my last booking, eleven months out, for my preferred deck and location only two non-connecting staterooms were offered online. I called Carnival and did get confirmation that even booking that early, there were very few non-connecting staterooms available.

[richstowe]

It does seem that there are way more connecting cabins then people who actually want connecting cabins .

We only cruised with our kids once and they got the best cabin we wished to spend on them - an inside .:D So even then we did not want connecting cabins . I can't see ever getting this sort of cabin .

[nealstuber]

In the end, after all of this has been said, if this is a matter of concern at all it is a matter of concern for the cruise line, and it is the cruise line's call about whether this is a matter worthy of their concern or not. Casting aspersions on other passengers for their choice of cabin is without any merit whatsoever, akin to complaining about someone with a smaller family purchasing the minivan you wanted. If there is to be succor for those complaining, that's going to come from the cruise line.

 

And be careful what you ask for: A solution to this problem is to put cabins with different capacities in different categories, i.e., instead of just Category 8D, perhaps 8D1 (for the solo-specific cabins in Category 8D, if any), 8D2, 8D2c (connecting), 8D3, 8D3c (connecting), 8D4, and 8D4c (connecting). And with such sub-categories comes the capacity for the cruise line to realize that some sub-categories are in higher demand than others, and voila! suddenly the the 8D2cs, 8D3cs, and 8D4cs cost more (assuming that they really are in higher demand). "Problem solved." Then there would be no excuse for challenging people reserving a connecting cabin since they'd have paid the special price for the 'c' cabin.

 

And if you like this idea, I grant you license to claim it as your own and advocate for it with the cruise line.

 

 

 

Your ideas are your ideas and you can own them. Nobody seemed to mind when many lines deployed a strategy of restricting the bookings of cabins of the same class (and price) based on occupancy, even though that resulted in more crowded ships. And they did so without enacting the elaborate classification scheme that you can claim as your own.

 

Restricting early bookings of connecting cabins to those booking two cabins would benefit those who desire a connecting cabin, those who don't and the cruise line (as those who can't find what they want will look elsewhere). True, those booking a single cabin who care about things other than a "Noisy Neighbor Door" (NND) more might not see all the options that are currently available; But, this thread is chock full of cruisers who begrudgingly accept NNDs as well as others who haven't given it the weight it deserves in their cabin selection criteria.

 

I honestly can not understand why the early, early, bookers of single cabins, working from a virgin booking plan, would choose a a cabin with a NND vs one that didn't have one a few doors down.

 

 

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[bUU]

Nobody seemed to mind when many lines deployed a strategy of restricting the bookings of cabins of the same class (and price) based on occupancy, even though that resulted in more crowded ships.

That benefited the cruise line. Their house, their rules. You're asking for them to do something other than what they are doing of their own accord. What are you and the majority of other passengers willing to give up to take away choices from passengers, thereby perhaps costing the cruise line sales in response, as you described? (And remember, you're making a lot of wild projections about what's happening to bring about the situation you're complaining about. Don't dare do so and then complain when people point out the problems with your line of reasoning by making projections that are quite a bit less wild.)

[nealstuber]

Don't dare do so and then complain when people point out the problems with your line of reasoning by making projections that are quite a bit less wild.)

 

 

You seem a little tense, can I buy you a beer?

 

 

 

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[bUU]

Don't skate over the point. You're posting support for criticisms of other passengers. That criticism had no merit. Let's get that straight and then you can buy me a beer.

[nealstuber]

Don't skate over the point. You're posting support for criticisms of other passengers. That criticism had no merit. Let's get that straight and then you can buy me a beer.

 

 

 

I believe I am stating support for the notion that cruise lines should be more proactive in keeping connecting pairs available primarily because, as a last minute booker, I would rather not have a connecting door - especially if there were other cruisers who would like the pair. I'm sorry you can't see the merit of that position but that does not make it an invalid point of view.

 

 

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[Chefaleslie]

I just did on an upcoming celebrity cruse, I picked it because of the cabin location in front of a tender boat, but there is a gap in front of the cabin, I could care less about some one that wanted it because it was connected...... book earlier next time if you want the room I want.

[bUU]

So you are saying that someone hacked your account and entered this post, instead of having entered it yourself:

I honestly can not understand why the early, early, bookers of single cabins, working from a virgin booking plan, would choose a a cabin with a NND vs one that didn't have one a few doors down.

Okay well thanks for letting us know.

 

Regardless, you are still skating past the point. I asked you, "What are you and the majority of other passengers willing to give up to take away choices from passengers, thereby perhaps costing the cruise line sales in response, as you described?"

[Barnes11]

Wow....relax people. I really was not that angry. Just frustrated. We need a connecting room because my boys are 7 and 9 and my husband and I like a little privacy so we can "do it". I understand for booking purposes I need to have one adult in each cabin, but for actual sleeping arrangements we put the boys in one cabin and us in the other with the door slightly open. I am not comfortable with them in a completely separate cabin. I usually book about 6-8 months out once we have my husband's work schedule. He is required to choose all his vacation up front for the year. It is very nice that some of you have more flexibility with when you can cruise....more power to you. My original post was an honest question. I for one do not want an extra door in my room if I don't need it, for example when we do not have our boys with us. Sorry to those of you who were SO easily offended by my legitimate question and felt the need to make useless comments. Thanks to those of you who had honest answers. I find myself frustrated with how bad most of the cruise line's websites are. It seems like a simple fix to give a person some sort of notice that they are booking a connecting cabin at the time of their booking if they are only booking one room, especially seeing as many posters said they were not aware. Peace