You call That an UPGRADE!

[FitchburgWIFamily]

So how do you get to be platinum plus on a cruise line and not know how GTY cabins work?

There is no such thing as an Deck 8 Obstructed view GTY.

When you book GTY on line there is a description RIGHT THERE that says you are not booking a deck or location.

When you book GTY over the phone, they read you a blurb that says you are not booking a deck or location.

When you book an Obstructed View GTY, you are booking an Obstructed View GTY somewhere on that ship, knowing that an unobstructed view is a better class of cabin and you could well be booked into that.

 

I know I'll be lambasted for being an NCL cheerleader, but as others have posted, it just gets so frustrating to read all the "I was robbed, it's a scam, how unscrupulous, so incredibly devious" posts about NCL when the "crime" NCL commited is following their own stated policy.  How dare they!
 

[ColeThornton]

Edited because I hijacked the thread.   🙂

Edited September 10, 2019 by ColeThornton

[tomk3212]

We book Inside GTY/SailAway rate all the time.  We really don't care where we end up as long as it's not in a lifeboat out on deck 😲 or outside in sleeping bags...🤪

 

As several other posters have mentioned and cited a GTY/SailAway can land you anywhere on the ship in that cabin's category.  We're Platinum & have been as low as Deck 4 and have been "bumped" up to a Balcony (once!!).  We've had some unbelievably great cabins and some not-so-great.  We've gotten our cabin assignments as quickly as a week after booking and, literally, the evening before we sailed.  Bottom line: it's a crap-shoot however you look at it.

 

In all fairness to the OP even as a Platinum Plus pax if they've never booked a GTY/SailAway rate cabin I can somewhat understand her confusion.  However that's what doing your research is all about; if you don't know or aren't certain you ASK.

[Starry Eyes]

Now, now, Platinum Plus or not, clearly you did not understand how guarantee bookings work and did not bother to read about them before you posted.  Clearly your daughter did not understand and did not bother to learn details about guarantee bookings before she booked, either.  It works the same with other cruiselines, so quit the NCL-specific hate; your daughter needs to educate herself and then make adult choices.  If she goes to another cruiseline, she needs to understand gty bookings can be similar there, too.  What a cruiseline considers an upgrade may not be an upgrade in her mind; she should not book a gty unless she can accept absolutely any cabin in stated category or any “higher” category.  She is lucky she got her assignment so early; at least she has time to make a choice now; it could have happened just before the cruise.

 

Holiday cruises are expensive; that is that.  She is probably paying normal holiday rates, not double holiday rates.  Perhaps more than you pay for your non-holiday cruises, but that is immaterial.

 

Her family can sail at the gty rate on deck 4 (nothing wrong with it; we done it many times; great view of the waves from cabin window; smooth ride; easy to catch elevator; easy to get on/off in port; just adjust her attitude, unless there is a specific problem with that specific cabin). Or she can cough up more $ and chose her own cabin (and in some case it might be a lot more money to chose a cabin than to accept a gty, but hey, maybe that’s why she went gty in the first place).  Or she can pay the penalty and cancel and find another vacation opportunity.

[ray98]

Ehhhhh.....seems the failure is with the daughter instead of NCL.

[Até]

Many people have had this same complaint.  I think NCL does play a little game with the OK cabins being classified as the lowest in the category.  People seem to be willing to take an OK GTY because they think they will get one of the OK cabins, but as most of us know they may also get an "upgrade" to OG, OF, etc....  Those same people would never have booked an OG or OF guarantee. Caveat emptor.

[Umbarger]

How can you be Platinum and not know how guarantee cabins work?  This is not NCL's fault.  This happens on all the cruise lines.  Don't book a guarantee on MSC either as they will do the same. If this is so important she can probably pay a little more for something she would be happier with.  I have stayed on deck 8 and the cabins are much smaller.  Deck 4 will give them more room.  

 

As a previous teacher we were only ever able to cruise over Christmas and it is very expensive.  Retired now and loving the freedom of booking cheaper dates.  

 

Good luck. 

 

Linda 

[MrMike45]

On 9/9/2019 at 1:00 PM, Kalum said:

It is very clear what a GTY cabin is

...just read it...and she is a teacher...ouch...

 

I thought this same thing when I read the original post.  This is a teacher...who didn't read instructions fully.  She would fail one of her kids for doing that 

[Starry Eyes]

4 hours ago, MrMike45 said:

 

I thought this same thing when I read the original post.  This is a teacher...who didn't read instructions fully.  She would fail one of her kids for doing that 

Hmmm, if one of her students did this, perhaps the kid’s helicopter parent would probably swoop in to try to get the precious thing her desired outcome by badgering the teacher, going over her head to the principal while flaunting their status, then taking to social media with capital letters and an exclamation point.   Just a wild guess, though one might find occasional parallels.

 

It would be be better if they learned early on to read the fine print, to ask questions before committing, and to suck it up if you dislike the outcome of a gamble.

[DaCruiseBug]

On 9/9/2019 at 10:45 AM, roxyandbailey said:

My daughter booked online an obstructed oceanview on deck 8 on the Gem for a holiday cruise this December for her family of four. She and her husband are teachers and can only cruise during the school breaks and thus she is already paying twice the normal fare.  During the booking process it says you are getting a room (obstructed oceanview) on deck 8 and she checked no when asked if she wanted an upgrade to a porthole on deck 4. She booked a guarantee room which she thought meant any room on deck 8 obstructed oceanview.  Instead she was assigned a porthole room on deck 4. She is unable to change it to deck 8 as the rooms that hold 4 people are under a different category that are listed for sail-away. I guess NCL doesn't care about how morally wrong it is to mislead their cruise passengers to book something and than UPGRADE them to something worse. They are unwilling to un-upgrade her to an obstructed oceanview room even though they are available.

I am a platinum plus latitudes member and I am done with NCL. I am going to try MSC since they match my latitudes member and I will be a Gold member on their cruises. 

 

I just did a mock booking and there's no "GTY" for Obstructed Oceanview. The only Obstructed Oceanview category is OK category which lets you pick which stateroom you want.

 

The ONLY category that is a GTY is the Sailaway rate which clearly says your room will be on either Deck 4, 5, or 8.

 

You're still outside of final payment. If this is unacceptable then I would suggest they cancel this cruise and book a different one.

[adam_s_allen]

1 hour ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

I just did a mock booking and there's no "GTY" for Obstructed Oceanview. The only Obstructed Oceanview category is OK category which lets you pick which stateroom you want.

 

The ONLY category that is a GTY is the Sailaway rate which clearly says your room will be on either Deck 4, 5, or 8.

 

You're still outside of final payment. If this is unacceptable then I would suggest they cancel this cruise and book a different one.

If you change the number of people to 4 and go through a mock booking of an Obstructed Oceanview it will lead you to a guarantee rate. They are not outside final payment either.

[insidecabin]

There are more than one type of GTY.

 

The sailaway *X GTY(there are rooms in these categories often just 2)

 

There is also the GTY where you pick one of the other grades and you book as GTY.

 

A cruise I am on you can currently book IX or I2 both as GTY  they have loads of I1 which is most likely what you will get.

 

There is a feature/anomaly on a lot of ships especially the NCL jewel class where the OV cabin grades start with the obstructed view and these are quite decent locations on deck 8 but all the other OV are considered better grade but often the locations are not so good lower decks. 

 

The key with the OV if you want one of the deck 8 obstructed view ones is book a cabin by number as even if they are offering them on GTY there is a chance you end up in steerage. 

As there are only 4 4 berth OX cabins they probably sell out on a holiday cruises

(There are 8 access cabins aft that may be available nearer the date. 

 

.............................................

 

 

One thing you have to be careful with MSC, even if you book a cabin by number they can move you it comes up quite a bit.

[newmexicoNita]

17 hours ago, Starry Eyes said:

Now, now, Platinum Plus or not, clearly you did not understand how guarantee bookings work and did not bother to read about them before you posted.  Clearly your daughter did not understand and did not bother to learn details about guarantee bookings before she booked, either.  It works the same with other cruiselines, so quit the NCL-specific hate; your daughter needs to educate herself and then make adult choices.  If she goes to another cruiseline, she needs to understand gty bookings can be similar there, too.  What a cruiseline considers an upgrade may not be an upgrade in her mind; she should not book a gty unless she can accept absolutely any cabin in stated category or any “higher” category.  She is lucky she got her assignment so early; at least she has time to make a choice now; it could have happened just before the cruise.

 

Holiday cruises are expensive; that is that.  She is probably paying normal holiday rates, not double holiday rates.  Perhaps more than you pay for your non-holiday cruises, but that is immaterial.

 

Her family can sail at the gty rate on deck 4 (nothing wrong with it; we done it many times; great view of the waves from cabin window; smooth ride; easy to catch elevator; easy to get on/off in port; just adjust her attitude, unless there is a specific problem with that specific cabin). Or she can cough up more $ and chose her own cabin (and in some case it might be a lot more money to chose a cabin than to accept a gty, but hey, maybe that’s why she went gty in the first place).  Or she can pay the penalty and cancel and find another vacation opportunity.

We did gty on HAL one year with friends: we ended up at the far back of the ship with an obstructed view. The obstructed view simply was a stairway outside our window but we also could walk right out the door, around the corner and there were 2 lounges we could use for reading and sunning, plus the cabin was huge. Our friends got a better location, mid ship and higher deck but not the larger cabin nor the proximity to the lounges and the outdoor we got. For us, we totally understood what we were doing when we booked GTY. In this case of the OPs daughter to bad she didn't understand what she might get. Plus you know, in the end, unless one spends 1/2 their vacation in the cabin it really makes little difference where one is located. There is more to a cruise than the cabin. Give me decent food, decent entertainment, nice people and helpful staff and it is all good. 

[dexddd]

11 hours ago, Starry Eyes said:

Hmmm, if one of her students did this, perhaps the kid’s helicopter parent would probably swoop in to try to get the precious thing her desired outcome by badgering the teacher, going over her head to the principal while flaunting their status, then taking to social media with capital letters and an exclamation point.   Just a wild guess, though one might find occasional parallels.

 

It would be be better if they learned early on to read the fine print, to ask questions before committing, and to suck it up if you dislike the outcome of a gamble.

This is great.

[Birdie And Sue]

4 hours ago, insidecabin said:

There are more than one type of GTY.

 

The sailaway *X GTY(there are rooms in these categories often just 2)

 

There is also the GTY where you pick one of the other grades and you book as GTY.

 

A cruise I am on you can currently book IX or I2 both as GTY  they have loads of I1 which is most likely what you will get.

 

There is a feature/anomaly on a lot of ships especially the NCL jewel class where the OV cabin grades start with the obstructed view and these are quite decent locations on deck 8 but all the other OV are considered better grade but often the locations are not so good lower decks. 

 

The key with the OV if you want one of the deck 8 obstructed view ones is book a cabin by number as even if they are offering them on GTY there is a chance you end up in steerage. 

As there are only 4 4 berth OX cabins they probably sell out on a holiday cruises

(There are 8 access cabins aft that may be available nearer the date. 

 

.............................................

 

 

One thing you have to be careful with MSC, even if you book a cabin by number they can move you it comes up quite a bit.

 

 

*X USED TO BE called GTY, they are now Sail Away.  GTY is now only the second situation you described.  The additional difference being that with a Sail Away, not only is thr ability to select your own cabin not an options, but you also do not get any perks.  With a GTY you also do not have the ability to pick your own cabin but you DO get the perks of the cabin level (Inside, Ocen View, etc) that you are booking.

[Bluewake]

As others have written, it does seem that booking a guarantee can be "like a box of chocolates...you never know what you will get"  (apologies to Forrest Gump). 

 

In my personal experience as a platinum member,  it seems to be all about the window or balcony and not other factors.  For example, NCL classifies some cabins that many of us would be unlikely to want (e.g.  a porthole over/adjacent to the theater speakers) in a higher category than a midship inside because it has a window.   And, status doesn't seem to matter.  On two different occasions, I've persuaded friends who have never cruised on NCL to  join us on an NCL cruise and we've both booked sailaway rate guaranteed cabins. In both situations, those friends were placed in much better cabins than us despite them being new to NCL and us being platinum.  Shockingly, one couple went from an inside guarantee to a balcony (ok, really didn't see that one coming!)/  The second time, we both had lower category oceanview guarantees. Our friends were placed in an oceanview with a full window on an upper deck while we were placed in a porthole cabin on deck 4.  I called to ask (pleading our platinum status) if it would be possible to be placed nearer to our friends and was firmly told "no"...you get what you get.

 

Well, that is what the policy on guaranteed cabins is so NCL didn't do anything that was unfair or "shady"...nothing of the sort.  I was, however, a bit surprised that NCL doesn't seem to reward loyal cruisers over new ones with better guaranteed placements. But, it very well may be that NCL doesn't even consider status when it comes to guaranteed placements.

[All-ready2cruise]

19 minutes ago, Bluewake said:

As others have written, it does seem that booking a guarantee can be "like a box of chocolates...you never know what you will get"  (apologies to Forrest Gump). 

<snipped>

 

Well, that is what the policy on guaranteed cabins is so NCL didn't do anything that was unfair or "shady"...nothing of the sort.  I was, however, a bit surprised that NCL doesn't seem to reward loyal cruisers over new ones with better guaranteed placements. But, it very well may be that NCL doesn't even consider status when it comes to guaranteed placements.

As mentioned, I do book balcony GTY cabins, and, I'm Platinum. My upcoming cruise is in less than a month and I've just been assigned my cabin.  It's a BA, deck 15, right next to the elevators/stairs.  The location is  fantastic, especially if you have mobility issues. I'm lucky enough not to, but still, I'm sure I'll be grateful for this location considering the size of this ship. 

So, how do they assign cabins? I think it must be just a computer program that does it. No idea what it's based on though since I've always been happy with my cabins but haven't always been Platinum. 

 

Luck of the draw.  

[Starry Eyes]

57 minutes ago, Bluewake said:

As others have written, it does seem that booking a guarantee can be "like a box of chocolates...you never know what you will get"  (apologies to Forrest Gump). 

 

In my personal experience as a platinum member,  it seems to be all about the window or balcony and not other factors.  For example, NCL classifies some cabins that many of us would be unlikely to want (e.g.  a porthole over/adjacent to the theater speakers) in a higher category than a midship inside because it has a window.   And, status doesn't seem to matter.  On two different occasions, I've persuaded friends who have never cruised on NCL to  join us on an NCL cruise and we've both booked sailaway rate guaranteed cabins. In both situations, those friends were placed in much better cabins than us despite them being new to NCL and us being platinum.  Shockingly, one couple went from an inside guarantee to a balcony (ok, really didn't see that one coming!)/  The second time, we both had lower category oceanview guarantees. Our friends were placed in an oceanview with a full window on an upper deck while we were placed in a porthole cabin on deck 4.  I called to ask (pleading our platinum status) if it would be possible to be placed nearer to our friends and was firmly told "no"...you get what you get.

 

Well, that is what the policy on guaranteed cabins is so NCL didn't do anything that was unfair or "shady"...nothing of the sort.  I was, however, a bit surprised that NCL doesn't seem to reward loyal cruisers over new ones with better guaranteed placements. But, it very well may be that NCL doesn't even consider status when it comes to guaranteed placements.

As a Platinum Plus, it would certainly seem to be to my advantage if loyalty status were included in the cabin assignment algorithm.  Admittedly I say that with some hesitation as I agree with your assertion that not everyone sees a higher category as a better cabin for them; and it varies by personal preferences.

 

Setting aside my own self-interest, I think NCL is correct to not enter  loyalty status into the cabin assignment algorithm.  If they did, high status individuals would be incentivized to book the cheaper rates while expected better cabins.  Add to that the problem of frequent cruisers disagreeing on what is a marginal lily “better” cabin.  Further, as cabins are assigned at different times with different supply/demand variables, there will be different outcomes from the assignment algorithm.  So, you end up with loyalty members comparing their assignments, and some higher tier member is going to be angry  that a lower tier member got the “better” (in member’s opinion) cabin assignment.  Better to leave it out of the algorithm and say so when asked.  We all take the same gamble... Sometimes we get a bit better than promised; sometimes we get the bare minimum promised.

[Starry Eyes]

2 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

We did gty on HAL one year with friends: we ended up at the far back of the ship with an obstructed view. The obstructed view simply was a stairway outside our window but we also could walk right out the door, around the corner and there were 2 lounges we could use for reading and sunning, plus the cabin was huge. Our friends got a better location, mid ship and higher deck but not the larger cabin nor the proximity to the lounges and the outdoor we got. For us, we totally understood what we were doing when we booked GTY. In this case of the OPs daughter to bad she didn't understand what she might get. Plus you know, in the end, unless one spends 1/2 their vacation in the cabin it really makes little difference where one is located. There is more to a cruise than the cabin. Give me decent food, decent entertainment, nice people and helpful staff and it is all good. 

I love that last sentiment.  We the right attitude, the cabin is not so important.  And with a family of four in an OV cabin, let’s hope they are not planning to spend a lot of waking hours in the cabin.

 

I’m flexible on cabin location and I’m not too noise sensitive, so I’m a good candidate for gty cabins.   Done a lot of them on different lines over the years.  Some better assignments, a few noisier ones (always bring earplugs; neighbors could have colicky baby even in good location),  high decks, low decks...no assignment ever ruined a cruise for me.

[insidecabin]

1 hour ago, Birdie And Sue said:

 

 

*X USED TO BE called GTY, they are now Sail Away.  GTY is now only the second situation you described.  The additional difference being that with a Sail Away, not only is thr ability to select your own cabin not an options, but you also do not get any perks.  With a GTY you also do not have the ability to pick your own cabin but you DO get the perks of the cabin level (Inside, Ocen View, etc) that you are booking.

 

IN the UK/EU Sailaway qualify for free at sea.

[BostonGal35]

i hope this teacher doesnt teach reading comprehension.

[Catchum]

What the heck is wrong with a deck 4 porthole?

We choose our cabin midship on the lowest deck - and decline any and all offers of upgrade when we book. Next trip is on the Jade porthole midship deck 4. You get to feel like you are on ship, you get a little extra exercise walking up the stairs to the buffet and if the seas are rough you get the excitement of a blue out.

 

OK so don't want a sleeps 4 or connecting cabin (I assume they have these in all categories we only look at OV)  but that is why we choose our cabin number before handing over a penny.

Edited September 11, 2019 by Catchum
typo

[pc_load_letter]

If I were a gambling man, I would bet that the OP does not return.

[cruisequeen4ever]

Guarantees are at the mercy of the cruise line, and it’s unfortunate that your daughter didn’t understand that. Really, she did get a technical upgrade. As a teacher myself, I’ll quote the age old saying, “you get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit”. To avoid that, you must choose a specific stateroom. I too feel the pinch of paying for holiday sailings, but they are so worth it! I hope your daughter will be pleasantly surprised and have a fabulous cruise! 

[newmexicoNita]

7 hours ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

Guarantees are at the mercy of the cruise line, and it’s unfortunate that your daughter didn’t understand that. Really, she did get a technical upgrade. As a teacher myself, I’ll quote the age old saying, “you get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit”. To avoid that, you must choose a specific stateroom. I too feel the pinch of paying for holiday sailings, but they are so worth it! I hope your daughter will be pleasantly surprised and have a fabulous cruise! 

I shall try and remember that: have never heard it before but it fits so many situations.