Club Balcony labeled as Guaranteed

[bbnmom]

I was doing a mock booking on the Joy. The sail away was sold out but when selecting the normal club balcony they didn't have the ability to choose a specific room and labeled it as guaranteed! What is up with that??

[PATRLR]

19 minutes ago, bbnmom said:

I was doing a mock booking on the Joy. The sail away was sold out but when selecting the normal club balcony they didn't have the ability to choose a specific room and labeled it as guaranteed! What is up with that??

I don't understand the question.  A "guarantee" category means they will assign your cabin at a later time and you do not get to choose it.  A guarantee typically differs from Sail Away in so much as you can get the FAS perks.

Did that answer your question?  

[bbnmom]

So what I am saying is I have always been able to see what staterooms were available when selecting anything not sail away.  This time I wanted a club balcony but not sail away but it automatically came up as guaranteed and I see no way to bypass that in order to see what decks and staterooms are available.

[cruiserbear55]

46 minutes ago, bbnmom said:

So what I am saying is I have always been able to see what staterooms were available when selecting anything not sail away.  This time I wanted a club balcony but not sail away but it automatically came up as guaranteed and I see no way to bypass that in order to see what decks and staterooms are available.

 

  I asked this same question to an NCL agent a short while ago. Was told it is because the club balconies at that point are sold out. However , there would still be suites and above available. So some of those in clubs will get upgraded, leaving the club available. She said that is why it's called a guarantee, as you are "guaranteed" a club balcony, but may not find out till just before cruising which one. You'd still get the perks with a guarantee, unlike a sailaway, which has no perks. Hopefully, her answer is correct. Happy Sailing!

[njkate]

1 hour ago, bbnmom said:

So what I am saying is I have always been able to see what staterooms were available when selecting anything not sail away.  This time I wanted a club balcony but not sail away but it automatically came up as guaranteed and I see no way to bypass that in order to see what decks and staterooms are available.

I’ve come across this lately as well and I know a cruise I’m looking at that is over a year away isn’t sold out. 
Last cruise I wanted to book was getting that but I was on a cruise the following week so I booked on board and there were plenty of cabins available so I was able to get what I wanted as far as deck and section of ship.

Ive read others that had this issue called to book do try calling

[MeHeartCruising]

1 hour ago, bbnmom said:

So what I am saying is I have always been able to see what staterooms were available when selecting anything not sail away.  This time I wanted a club balcony but not sail away but it automatically came up as guaranteed and I see no way to bypass that in order to see what decks and staterooms are available.

 

While it doesn't always happen, NCL has always had this situation for some cruises.  People get used to thinking the Sail Away rate is the definition of a guarantee cabin.  And that all other rates permit cabin selection by the buyer.  That is not the case.  Sail Away rates means they do not include the Free At See perks AND they do not permit cabin selection -- they are a guarantee category.  
 

However, Guarantee categories still exist in other cases.  Such as you are seeing.  You can indeed SOMETIMES buy a Guarantee category with the Free At See perks.  They are not always available.

[BunnyHutt]

I would have preferred a guarantee category versus picking our cabin when we booked next month’s Alaska cruise. The cruise line cannot downgrade you, but there’s always a chance of being upgraded without paying a higher fare, bidding, etc. 

 

This was a ‘trick’ told to us by a TA 20+ years ago when my husband and I were booking our honeymoon cruise. On 2 different cruises we selected a guarantee at the highest regular balcony class (this was on Carnival). Both times CCL called us ahead of our trip to try and get us to lock in at a lower rate. We opted not to. Both times we ended up in full-sized suites. 

[jimsig]

17 hours ago, BunnyHutt said:

This was a ‘trick’ told to us by a TA 20+ years ago when my husband and I were booking our honeymoon cruise. On 2 different cruises we selected a guarantee at the highest regular balcony class (this was on Carnival). Both times CCL called us ahead of our trip to try and get us to lock in at a lower rate. We opted not to. Both times we ended up in full-sized suites. 

It's like when you rent a car and they ask if you would like to upgrade to a higher class.  It probably means they are out of the category you selected and they are trying to get you to pay for a higher category without telling you they are out of what you selected.  I have always declined their upgrade "offer" and almost every time I decline I end up with the upgrade.  Last time I got upgraded to a Dodge Challenger from an economy for nothing after they asked me if I wanted to upgrade for an extra $25 a day.  

[bbnmom]

Thanks for the answers to my question. I guess I will have to go back to using a travel agent in order to get what we want' We actually prefer club balcony because of the shower rather than a bath tub in the suites.