My first move-up offer is a move down

[Germancruiser]

Oh yes- that I can imagine what customer relations nightmare that creats - why they  ( X) are letting it happen- well- that´s beyond me.

[PokerDave]

I have an Aft Veranda on the same cruise. We love the Aft. Got a call a couple weeks ago offering $300 per person OBC to switch to a regular Veranda. Said no thank you.

 

The problem for them seems to have come when they booked the same cruise in a couple of weeks as a charter and booted a bunch of people off that ship and lots of them moved to ours and other weeks. Ours went from lots of available rooms to sold out almost immediately...

[NMTraveller]

I would keep your cabin.  At least that way you know what you are getting.  The amount seems like a paltry amount.

[Shadow9612]

2 hours ago, Germancruiser said:

In this case I would also take the money. What I don´t get, why can get overbooked in the first place in this day and age...!

I also don't understand it....  How does overbooking happen when cabins are assigned at booking time (except guaranteed cabins?)

[crusinthrough]

I would keep my cabin.  If you wanted a $500 cheaper cabin you would have booked it.  If it wasn't a deal breaker when you booked, it's not a big deal now.  

 

50% off the cruise fare would make me change.  

[emmas gran]

The offer is a move from Veranda stateroom to Veranda stateroom with obstructed view for a $500 refund. Since this is our first trip to Alaska, we've decided to keep our original stateroom.

 

 

The OP said she decided to keep original cabin so the question is irrelevant!

[Lolou127]

This is a bit concerning, do they do this often? what happens if nobody takes the offer does somebody get bumped?
 

our upcoming cruise has vanished off the X website after weeks of saying either sold out or just odd cabins available, this makes me very nervous!!

[anniegb]

58 minutes ago, Lolou127 said:

This is a bit concerning, do they do this often? what happens if nobody takes the offer does somebody get bumped?
 

our upcoming cruise has vanished off the X website after weeks of saying either sold out or just odd cabins available, this makes me very nervous!!

Alas this is not the first example of people being displaced from a cruise.

 

There was a very long running thread on a number of Japanese cruises which were overbooked for part of 23 and 24.  Very few offers were made.  Your cruise was cancelled.

When Celebrity repeat a similar error within a short time period, you do wonder.

[hrhdhd]

3 hours ago, emmas gran said:

The OP said she decided to keep original cabin so the question is irrelevant!

The question was "What would you do?" People are answering.

[upwarduk]

Did you book a guaranteed cabin, or did you choose your room by number.

If the latter it’s a problem with the IT system, as cabins shouldn’t be booked twice.😱

[anniegb]

17 minutes ago, upwarduk said:

Did you book a guaranteed cabin, or did you choose your room by number.

If the latter it’s a problem with the IT system, as cabins shouldn’t be booked twice.😱

They shouldn't be but I know of possibly 10 cruises they were booked twice and no-one is sales dept noticed.  

 

Some of the customers bumped were in guarantee cabins but not all and had booked very expensive air with little recompense.

Edited July 18, 2023 by anniegb

[Mark_K]

13 hours ago, KellyCz said:

Departing for Alaska on the Solstice in two weeks, and I was excited to get what I thought was a move-up offer email. Instead, it's the opposite.

 

We're writing to let you know that, due to a rare inventory error, your scheduled sailing is currently oversold in certain stateroom categories.
If you would be willing to volunteer to move to a different stateroom type, you may be able to take advantage of a special resolution offer. 

 

The offer is a move from Veranda stateroom to Veranda stateroom with obstructed view for a $500 refund. Since this is our first trip to Alaska, we've decided to keep our original stateroom.

 

What would you do? 

We did that cruise last month and barely used the balcony.  The morning of the glacier viewing we were at the bow, at the ports we were either on an excursion or one of the open decks. Otherwise, the scenery is OK, but you’re not really that close.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

12 hours ago, hrhdhd said:

Take the money. You'll have better views out and about on the public decks anyway.

This!!

 

My first time to Alaska I thought would be my only so I went with a balcony. First problem was I didn’t spend a lot of time with the running group I was with because I thought I needed to get my money’s worth on the balcony. Second - and bigger - problem was that it seemed like every time they announced wildlife on the shore, it was on the other side of the ship! The next year I did an inside cabin and had a much better time both with the group AND seeing wildlife since I spent more time on the open decks.

[wrk2cruise]

This happened to me in 2019.   I had booked AQ about 4 weeks before the sailing.  My TA got a call asking if I would do a CC cabin and get $500 refund.  I was given a phone number at Celebrity to call.  When I called I confirmed it was $500 refund to my original form of payment.  She was very nicely suggesting C2 cabins close in position on the ship as my original cabin.  I had looked at available cabins before I called and knew the 4 C1's on deck 6 were available (M class) so I asked if I could have one of them.  She seemed delighted I'd take the offer and said certainly and made the swap.  They also gave me access to Blu and had all the AQ amenities in the room when I arrived.  I was very happy with the deal.  Saved about 25% on the cruise

[KellyCz]

1 hour ago, upwarduk said:

Did you book a guaranteed cabin, or did you choose your room by number.

If the latter it’s a problem with the IT system, as cabins shouldn’t be booked twice.😱

We chose our room by number.

[miched]

The obstruction are usually like others said.   Not much to worry about.  
 

How much time are planning on being on the balcony?   When sailing you will probably be in a public area most of the time .  If going to the glaciers you will probably want to be on an upper deck and not on the balcony.   The better views are from an open deck where you can get from side to side of there is something of interest.   We did 2 seven day cruises b2b.   One north and the other south.   During those 14 days there was one whale sighting.  We didn’t see it as we were in the dining room.  People were glued to every outside window hoping to see something.  For us the only way we seen any wild life was on a tour.  

 

Sailing thru the straights gets boring.   After the first mile you seen everything that you will see trough the passage.  Like traveling thru the desert or a forest after the first mile the rest looks the same.  
 

Take the money

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[moneeman]

2 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

This!!

 

My first time to Alaska I thought would be my only so I went with a balcony. First problem was I didn’t spend a lot of time with the running group I was with because I thought I needed to get my money’s worth on the balcony. Second - and bigger - problem was that it seemed like every time they announced wildlife on the shore, it was on the other side of the ship! The next year I did an inside cabin and had a much better time both with the group AND seeing wildlife since I spent more time on the open decks.

The best views on Alaska cruises are most always on the land side, except for the rare whale sighting.  A lot of people book balconies because they were told Alaska is so beautiful, but are disappointed when their view for the great majority of the trip is wide open ocean.

[lynncarol]

Another vote for keep the cabin.  If there is a lifeboat beneath you, the view directly below is obstructed.  On our Alaskan cruise, that would have meant missing the sea otters  that were traveling along on their backs near the ship when we were at a stand-still to allow viewing a glacier.

[SunnySunflower]

20 hours ago, KellyCz said:

Departing for Alaska on the Solstice in two weeks, and I was excited to get what I thought was a move-up offer email. Instead, it's the opposite.

 

We're writing to let you know that, due to a rare inventory error, your scheduled sailing is currently oversold in certain stateroom categories.
If you would be willing to volunteer to move to a different stateroom type, you may be able to take advantage of a special resolution offer. 

 

The offer is a move from Veranda stateroom to Veranda stateroom with obstructed view for a $500 refund. Since this is our first trip to Alaska, we've decided to keep our original stateroom.

 

What would you do? 

Looks like you got a lot of great advice.  I was watching a Travel Agency's cruise review and they mentioned your cruise.  They were really alarmed at that Celebrity had overbooked.  Evidently there are some great deals to be had if your travel is flexible.  It may be worth asking what Celebrity can give you if you rebook on another cruise at a later date.

[pfopma]

23 hours ago, KellyCz said:

Departing for Alaska on the Solstice in two weeks, and I was excited to get what I thought was a move-up offer email. Instead, it's the opposite.

 

We're writing to let you know that, due to a rare inventory error, your scheduled sailing is currently oversold in certain stateroom categories.
If you would be willing to volunteer to move to a different stateroom type, you may be able to take advantage of a special resolution offer. 

 

The offer is a move from Veranda stateroom to Veranda stateroom with obstructed view for a $500 refund. Since this is our first trip to Alaska, we've decided to keep our original stateroom.

 

What would you do? 

I've done an Alaska cruise in a balcony and an Inside cabin. I preferred the Inside Cabin. We hardly used the balcony. Even in August it was too chilly. There are plenty of places on ships like whatever nightclub/lounge is near the top of the ship. it's a quiet and a perfect place to take in the scenery and stay warm.

[NMTraveller]

17 hours ago, upwarduk said:

Did you book a guaranteed cabin, or did you choose your room by number.

If the latter it’s a problem with the IT system, as cabins shouldn’t be booked twice.😱

I would suspect that they are overbooking and projecting that people will cancel.  

[dateacher]

I would take it.  For an Alaska cruise you want to be out on the decks of the ship to take full advantage of the views.  You don't get the full effect from your veranda, even if it's an unobstructed view. 

[Spif Barwunkel]

Your initial cabin choice when booking is an important decision. Second guessing yourself when offered $$ is not always the prudent thing to do. Deciding to stay put is a smart move. Your balcony will serve you well and you will not miss out on the beauty that Alaska has to offer. Bundle up and enjoy the view outdoors, from your own personal space.

 

The worst that can happen when accepting a room change is that you can get caught up in the possible logistics nightmare of being a part of the cabin shuffle. Depending on the number of participants and availability of the cabin offered to you, where you wind up may be totally different than initially promoted. Perhaps you will have a bit more money in your pocket, however. Is the money worth the trepidation and the possibility of disappointment? Only you can make that decision. Seems that you have already made the right choice. Wisely done!

Edited July 19, 2023 by Spif Barwunkel

[The_Big_M]

On 7/18/2023 at 9:21 PM, upwarduk said:

Did you book a guaranteed cabin, or did you choose your room by number.

If the latter it’s a problem with the IT system, as cabins shouldn’t be booked twice.😱

 

They're not saying it's double booked so it doesn't make a difference whether individual cabin or just grade was chosen.

 

They need to make space in that grade of cabin so are just making offers, regardless of how you booked. This isn't an issue with the IT system, just revenue management.

[JFontaine]

For all those who say take the downgrade and money...

 

If when the cruiser booked, the obstructed view cabin was $1500 a person, and the unobstructed view cabin was $2000 a person ($1000 difference for two), why would anyone now take $500 total for the downgrade to the obstructed view? 

 

Lots of people have given this advice and I'd like to understand what I am missing (other than I'm guessing at the numbers, but so are you).