GUARANTEE BOOKING.

[comas]

Good evening,

we are in the U.K. and so is our T/A. At this late date we decided to enquire about an Aquamarine Veranda stateroom on a Symphony voyage 18th. ~ 26th. September. 2023.
We were given a quote with flights incorporating the Society double discount and £400. pp flight discount. After selecting a room number from 6 offered, it was explained a further £760. pp would be additional to the original quote. We were shocked when it was explained the original quote  was only for a Guarantee booking, which meant a room number would be allocated two weeks before the sail date. This is not something we have encountered with any cruise line before.  
We are hoping CC members are able throw some light on what we might expect.
 

[oakridger]

I don't know about Crystal, but in my experience, all of the mainstream cruise lines operating with US passengers charge less for a Guarantee cabin.  Windstar does too. I don't have experience with Silversea, Regent, Seabourn, Azamara which are more premium lines.  Old Crystal offered a lower guarantee price previously in the US.  The GBP 760 per person does seem overly high though!

 

I am picky about my cabin location so haven't ever booked a guarantee cabin.

 

Folks booked on new Crystal will hopefully let you know their experience soon.

 

~Nancy

Edited July 17, 2023 by oakridger

[comas]

Thank you Nancy for your views, which are most helpful. I feel certain we wouldn’t book a Guarantee ~ it seems far too risky. Ann. 

[Embowaf]

I frequently booked guarantee on OC when it was available and it was cheaper. So Crystal doing it isn't new. But I dunno if the exact sales flow you went through is the way it used to work.

[NWX]

59 minutes ago, comas said:

Thank you Nancy for your views, which are most helpful. I feel certain we wouldn’t book a Guarantee ~ it seems far too risky. Ann. 

If you book a guarantee, you are guaranteed the level you contract for, plus the added possibility you will

be upgraded. Really no risk, you either get what you ask for or better.And they ask you if you want it, at least they did in the past.

Edited July 18, 2023 by NWX

[nancygp]

41 minutes ago, Embowaf said:

I frequently booked guarantee on OC when it was available and it was cheaper. So Crystal doing it isn't new

i did this several times and the price was NOT CHEAPER/less than the price for a cabin/suite in the particular category. 
 

Nancy

[FlyerTalker]

One other thing to remember is that OC would charge the same for all cabins in a particular category.  To the best of my knowledge, NC has variable pricing within the categories, depending on cabin location.  I have been quoted different prices varying by where the cabin was situated.  (Note how the website shows prices "from" a base number.)

 

 

[Roland4]

3 hours ago, comas said:

Good evening,

we are in the U.K. and so is our T/A. At this late date we decided to enquire about an Aquamarine Veranda stateroom on a Symphony voyage 18th. ~ 26th. September. 2023.
We were given a quote with flights incorporating the Society double discount and £400. pp flight discount. After selecting a room number from 6 offered, it was explained a further £760. pp would be additional to the original quote. We were shocked when it was explained the original quote  was only for a Guarantee booking, which meant a room number would be allocated two weeks before the sail date. This is not something we have encountered with any cruise line before.  
We are hoping CC members are able throw some light on what we might expect.
 

I have not had any current experience with NC, but I can offer some clarity on the concept as most lines work the same way.

 

When a room category is getting close to full, the lines will offer a Category XX Guarantee at a price. You will get Category XX or higher when the rooom is assigned. The other category is, for example, Balcony Guaranty. In this case you could be assigned a balcony cabin anywhere on the ship, and as a result, it is at a lower price, as you could be in a higher category than the XX Guarantee, or a lower category. Unless you are worried about location, the Balcony Guaranty can be the better deal.

 

In either case, the actual room number may not be assigned until two weeks to ten days prior to sailing, and in extreme cases, not until you check in at the pier.

[nancygp]

11 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

To the best of my knowledge, NC has variable pricing within the categories, depending on cabin location.  I have been quoted different prices varying by where the cabin was situated. 

It was the same on the “old crystal” for all non penthouse categories.  This change occurred 8 to 10 years ago.

 

nancy

[crickette]

One drawback we experienced, is that OC might give a higher category - according to their definition of higher category.  You may be assigned a higher floor (which they considered an upgrade), but it might be far forward or far aft.  Yes, the cabin price is more than the guarantee you booked, but by our definition it is not an upgrade.  On another occasion, the upgrade was several categories higher, and a true upgrade by our definition.

[Roland4]

33 minutes ago, crickette said:

One drawback we experienced, is that OC might give a higher category - according to their definition of higher category.  You may be assigned a higher floor (which they considered an upgrade), but it might be far forward or far aft.  Yes, the cabin price is more than the guarantee you booked, but by our definition it is not an upgrade.  On another occasion, the upgrade was several categories higher, and a true upgrade by our definition.

That is always the risk you take with a Guaranty booking. Some "upgrades" are better than others, but if you are not fussy about where you are, it can be a good deal.🙂

[comas]

6 hours ago, Embowaf said:

I frequently booked guarantee on OC when it was available and it was cheaper. So Crystal doing it isn't new. But I dunno if the exact sales flow you went through is the way it used to work.

I’m afraid ‘flow’ doesn’t come to mind, more like ‘bumpy’. The 5 hour time difference between the U.K. and US causes long waits for replies.  In the meantime availability changes. It didn’t used to be this way!

[comas]

5 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

One other thing to remember is that OC would charge the same for all cabins in a particular category.  To the best of my knowledge, NC has variable pricing within the categories, depending on cabin location.  I have been quoted different prices varying by where the cabin was situated.  (Note how the website shows prices "from" a base number.)

 

 

Oh that’s definitely what has happened ~ hence the GBP760 pp. I mentioned. 

[comas]

5 hours ago, Roland4 said:

I have not had any current experience with NC, but I can offer some clarity on the concept as most lines work the same way.

 

When a room category is getting close to full, the lines will offer a Category XX Guarantee at a price. You will get Category XX or higher when the rooom is assigned. The other category is, for example, Balcony Guaranty. In this case you could be assigned a balcony cabin anywhere on the ship, and as a result, it is at a lower price, as you could be in a higher category than the XX Guarantee, or a lower category. Unless you are worried about location, the Balcony Guaranty can be the better deal.

 

In either case, the actual room number may not be assigned until two weeks to ten days prior to sailing, and in extreme cases, not until you check in at the pier.

 Thanks for your explanation.  By opting for a Guarantee, we could end up with a Sapphire suite, but on Deck 8  which doesn’t appeal to us. 

[Keith1010]

1 hour ago, comas said:

Oh that’s definitely what has happened ~ hence the GBP760 pp. I mentioned. 

As Nancy mentioned the staterooms have had variable pricing for many years including location and also if the view was somewhat hampered.  Although other luxury lines have had variable pricing for years expanding this to the Aquamarine and to the Sapphire suites is something new for NC.  

 

For those who don't care about location it can be a bonus. For my wife and myself location is important so we won't do a guarantee. In fact, for one of the cruises we booked for one of the suite categories we were interested in the only option was guarantee and for the other suite category there wee several voices including preferred locations so we went with the latter.

 

Keith 

[comas]

1 hour ago, Keith1010 said:

As Nancy mentioned the staterooms have had variable pricing for many years including location and also if the view was somewhat hampered.  Although other luxury lines have had variable pricing for years expanding this to the Aquamarine and to the Sapphire suites is something new for NC.  

 

For those who don't care about location it can be a bonus. For my wife and myself location is important so we won't do a guarantee. In fact, for one of the cruises we booked for one of the suite categories we were interested in the only option was guarantee and for the other suite category there wee several voices including preferred locations so we went with the latter.

 

Keith 

Thank you Keith for your input. Certainly location is important for us. We have in the past always chosen a double room with verandah, deck 8 or 9 on Serenity.
I do wonder if Crystal have removed too many double rooms with verandah on Symphony, as they have been wait-listed for some time.  

 Ann. 

[skybluewaters]

14 hours ago, comas said:

I do wonder if Crystal have removed too many double rooms with verandah on Symphony, as they have been wait-listed for some time.  

 Ann. 

 

Very much so. There are very few (only 22) double guest rooms with verandas, and they are sprinkled about the ship, almost exclusively in poorly-located areas, either right at the elevators or far front or far aft. It's clear from looking at the deck plan of Symphony that they're located only where new suites couldn't be placed.

[crickette]

Some/many (not us) were critical of the small size of the staterooms.  I think A&K were listening to them, and thus you and I are experiencing the result of that criticism.  They heard solos say they were quite happy with the size, although they hoped for better locations.  Now they have priced some couples out of the Crystal experience.  I do think that future cruises will be repriced to be more inclusive.

[May B]

1 hour ago, skybluewaters said:

 

Very much so. There are very few (only 22) double guest rooms with verandas, and they are sprinkled about the ship, almost exclusively in poorly-located areas, either right at the elevators or far front or far aft. It's clear from looking at the deck plan of Symphony that they're located only where new suites couldn't be placed.

We always choose staterooms closest to elevators/stairs. I’d have to book early, though, to get them, I guess.

[comas]

7 hours ago, skybluewaters said:

 

Very much so. There are very few (only 22) double guest rooms with verandas, and they are sprinkled about the ship, almost exclusively in poorly-located areas, either right at the elevators or far front or far aft. It's clear from looking at the deck plan of Symphony that they're located only where new suites couldn't be placed.

Exactly, you’ve hit the nail on the head!
For us, who only cruise in Europe now, Symphony is possibly our only option from Crystal. Bagging a double room with balcony will be difficult.  It’s disappointing for us.  Other lines in our view don’t come close to Crystal as we knew it. 
Ann. 

[comas]

7 hours ago, crickette said:

Some/many (not us) were critical of the small size of the staterooms.  I think A&K were listening to them, and thus you and I are experiencing the result of that criticism.  They heard solos say they were quite happy with the size, although they hoped for better locations.  Now they have priced some couples out of the Crystal experience.  I do think that future cruises will be repriced to be more inclusive.

I agree with all you have said.  We found a double room with balcony perfectly adequate. The fact that we selected Aquamarine this time was purely because there was really no other option other than even larger suites. By the way, we decided against booking a Guarantee or opting for adding the supplement.  
It’s back to browsing the web. 
Ann. 

[canadianINtexas]

Am eagerly looking forward to our first cruise with NC next summer so, for fun, logged into my account and was surprised to see a room/suite number already assigned to our Guaranteed booking.   Problem is, it is a 3 digit number so doesn't align with any of the suite numbers one sees when looking at the Symphony deck plans (all are 4 digits such as 7040, 8042...).    Any thoughts?  Should I be looking at the last 2 digits to determine location (with floor TBD) or is this merely a code/placeholder that only means something to NC and I truly will have to wait til we're a couple of weeks away from sailing?   

[Keith1010]

5 hours ago, canadianINtexas said:

Am eagerly looking forward to our first cruise with NC next summer so, for fun, logged into my account and was surprised to see a room/suite number already assigned to our Guaranteed booking.   Problem is, it is a 3 digit number so doesn't align with any of the suite numbers one sees when looking at the Symphony deck plans (all are 4 digits such as 7040, 8042...).    Any thoughts?  Should I be looking at the last 2 digits to determine location (with floor TBD) or is this merely a code/placeholder that only means something to NC and I truly will have to wait til we're a couple of weeks away from sailing?   

Not sure what the 3 digits are for. I would have your TA check with Crystal.

 

As to assignments, it can happen anytime from now till the day you board the ship but often before you board.

 

Keith

[BWIVince]

6 hours ago, canadianINtexas said:

Am eagerly looking forward to our first cruise with NC next summer so, for fun, logged into my account and was surprised to see a room/suite number already assigned to our Guaranteed booking.   Problem is, it is a 3 digit number so doesn't align with any of the suite numbers one sees when looking at the Symphony deck plans (all are 4 digits such as 7040, 8042...).    Any thoughts?  Should I be looking at the last 2 digits to determine location (with floor TBD) or is this merely a code/placeholder that only means something to NC and I truly will have to wait til we're a couple of weeks away from sailing?   

I see the same in mine — it’s another value that’s pulling over through the API because of the way the field is used in the reservation system, it’s not a stateroom number.  I agree with Keith, your agent may be able to get more info about what it means from their contacts at Crystal, but the stateroom number shouldn’t show until closer to sailing.

 

Vince

[Sdancer]

On 12/3/2023 at 6:46 PM, canadianINtexas said:

Am eagerly looking forward to our first cruise with NC next summer so, for fun, logged into my account and was surprised to see a room/suite number already assigned to our Guaranteed booking.   Problem is, it is a 3 digit number so doesn't align with any of the suite numbers one sees when looking at the Symphony deck plans (all are 4 digits such as 7040, 8042...).    Any thoughts?  Should I be looking at the last 2 digits to determine location (with floor TBD) or is this merely a code/placeholder that only means something to NC and I truly will have to wait til we're a couple of weeks away from sailing?   

There were no cabins available in the category I wanted. I went on a waitlist than was moved to a GTY a couple of days later. The GTY cabin number in my booking was listed as "SUITE NUMBER 514" which is not a real cabin number. 

Crystal agent who booked me did not know what 514 number for a cabin meant. I suspect that it is a code number for GTY cabin.

 

Edited February 2 by Sdancer