Balcony guarantee on Allure

[klb1978]

I found a good deal on Allure for a balcony guarantee room.  With those I can be assigned any balcony right- meaning possibly Central Park or Boardwalk right?  Any experience in booking guarantee on Oasis class?  We love an ocean view but I think I could deal with a different type given it’s just four nights.  We so badly want to cruise but I’m having a hard time swallowing these crazy high prices.  We do live in Orlando and homeschool so have a little flexibility as far as not needing airfare and such.  This particular cruise is the week after Thanksgiving.  

[OCSC Mike]

6 minutes ago, klb1978 said:

I can be assigned any balcony right- meaning possibly Central Park or Boardwalk right?

 

Yes, and you most likely will, unless you specifically book an OV Balcony GTY but that would cost more.

 

I'm going on Allure on Wednesday (her 1st cruise from PC) b/c a good price popped up 3-4 weeks ago. I obviously live here as well. Some reasonable last minute deals are finally popping up again so take advantage of them if your schedule allows!

[klb1978]

3 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

Yes, and you most likely will, unless you specifically book an OV Balcony GTY but that would cost more.

 

I'm going on Allure on Wednesday (her 1st cruise from PC) b/c a good price popped up 3-4 weeks ago. I obviously live here as well. Some reasonable last minute deals are finally popping up again so take advantage of them if your schedule allows!

Thanks for the reply.  This one looks like it’s not an ocean view guarantee.  I’m going to have to talk to my husband.  We love Oasis class.  Cruised last year in December and oh my the weather was amazing (we typically cruise Sept/ Oct and it’s SO hot).  I also expect the week after Thanksgiving the Christmas decorations would be up which I love as well.  Guess I need to just start checking periodically and seeing if we can find a good last minute deal.  We prefer Port Canaveral as it’s just an hour drive from home.  

[OCSC Mike]

9 minutes ago, klb1978 said:

Guess I need to just start checking periodically and seeing if we can find a good last minute deal.  We prefer Port Canaveral as it’s just an hour drive from home.  

 

I won't sail from anywhere else; it's about an hour for us as well. Do you check the Going, Going, Gone, sale? It runs every TUE-WED and you can find the flier here (usually by Monday)...

 

https://creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/Promotions/rci_sales_event_USD.pdf

 

9 minutes ago, klb1978 said:

we typically cruise Sept/ Oct and it’s SO hot

 

If you think that's hot, don't go in July, lol. My wife is a teacher so we are largely limited to school breaks and almost exclusively sail during spring break or June/July. We sailed in October for the first time last year and it was quite nice (like 82 on CocoCay). Similar temps next week, it's just supposed to be very windy so hopefully docking isn't an issue.

Edited October 20, 2023 by OCSC Mike

[Biker19]

40 minutes ago, klb1978 said:

 We so badly want to cruise but I’m having a hard time swallowing these crazy high prices.

Then don't. Mariner seems to have a bit better prices.

[neverbeenhere]

The famous seer and soothsayer says: "You will be getting a Boardwalk Balcony."

[teddybear231]

We booked a balcony guarantee on Oasis last August because we couldn't justify the dramatic price increase for an ocean view. We were assigned a central park balcony, but we submitted a bid of $75/each ($150 total) for an ocean view balcony through Royal Up and we won! So you may be able to upgrade that way for a lot less.

Edited October 20, 2023 by teddybear231
corrected a misspelled word

[klb1978]

38 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

Then don't. Mariner seems to have a bit better prices.

I’ll have to look at the dates and also what Mariner has to offer.  We are traveling with a 10 year old.  I haven’t been on Mariner since 2006 😳 We have done Oasis and Allure and love those ships.  

[Biker19]

Just now, klb1978 said:

We have done Oasis and Allure and love those ships.  

Like the savings you get for booking a GTY, you can get some savings by opting for something other than O class.

[klb1978]

27 minutes ago, teddybear231 said:

We booked a balcony guarantee on Oasis last August because we couldn't justify the dramatic price increase for an ocean view. We were assigned a central park balcony, but we submitted a bid of $75/each ($150 total) for an ocean view balcony through Royal Up and we won! So you may be able to upgrade that way for a lot less.

I was wondering about that option as well.  We have only cruised once since they started that bidding option so I wasn’t sure how it worked exactly.  More to research I guess!  I personally think I’d be ok w a Boardwalk Balcony on a short cruise but I admit that we love an ocean view.  Just not looking to spend a ton on a short cruise right now

[yogimax]

Last two cruises on Oasis we were assigned Central Park cabins on Deck 10.  No problem... they were fine.

[teddybear231]

On 10/20/2023 at 11:38 AM, klb1978 said:

I was wondering about that option as well.  We have only cruised once since they started that bidding option so I wasn’t sure how it worked exactly.  More to research I guess!  I personally think I’d be ok w a Boardwalk Balcony on a short cruise but I admit that we love an ocean view.  Just not looking to spend a ton on a short cruise right now

 

I agree, for a short cruise a boardwalk balcony would suffice for me even though I do enjoy the ocean view. The price differences between the two are so far apart that sometimes I can't justify it. Bidding for Royal Up usually starts about 4-6 weeks before the sail date, keep an eye out for the email or log into the cruise planner from your computer and you may see the option listed.

[FishOn55]

On 10/20/2023 at 2:44 PM, yogimax said:

Last two cruises on Oasis we were assigned Central Park cabins on Deck 10.  No problem... they were fine.

Does Allure have a large screen TV visible from Central Park/Boardwalk balconies?  I've heard that the sound from the TV can be very loud. (even with balcony door closed) Any one with first hand info about this concern? 

[Biker19]

9 hours ago, FishOn55 said:

Any one with first hand info about this concern? 

For most people, it's not a concern.

[FishOn55]

7 hours ago, Biker19 said:

For most people, it's not a concern.

I am one of the people for whom it would be a concern and would not want to book a balcony guarantee. I've read that a balcony cabin in Central Park has music playing in the early evening and that it is possible to enjoy it from ones balcony. (but not if there is competition from a loud TV  speaker at one end of the park) Just would like some firsthand knowledge if anyone has experienced the noise issue while sailing  in that cabin category.  

[yogimax]

19 hours ago, FishOn55 said:

I am one of the people for whom it would be a concern and would not want to book a balcony guarantee. I've read that a balcony cabin in Central Park has music playing in the early evening and that it is possible to enjoy it from ones balcony. (but not if there is competition from a loud TV  speaker at one end of the park) Just would like some firsthand knowledge if anyone has experienced the noise issue while sailing  in that cabin category.  

Enjoyed listening to Classical Guitar from our 10th deck balcony last night. I will caution, however that location is critical.  If you are at either end 

of Central Park, you probably won’t hear from your balcony.

[FishOn55]

10 hours ago, yogimax said:

 If you are at either end of Central Park, you probably won’t hear from your balcony.

I'm assuming you mean that you won't be able to hear the guitar music. Correct?  Was there a jumbo screen visible from your balcony located at either end of Central Park that showed movies or played videos with loud music? Someone complained about it on Wonder and I wasn't sure if Allure had the same thing or  not. 

[dcgrumpy]

31 minutes ago, FishOn55 said:

I'm assuming you mean that you won't be able to hear the guitar music. Correct?  Was there a jumbo screen visible from your balcony located at either end of Central Park that showed movies or played videos with loud music? Someone complained about it on Wonder and I wasn't sure if Allure had the same thing or  not. 

As of now only Wonder has the big screen there.