Guarantee stateroom

[Snaefell3]

4 hours ago, Psoque said:

Regardless of whether the cruise line managed to entice any passenger buy up to a higher category or not, only way to "clear" the overbooked situation is to have less people booked to be on the ship.  The problem with the denied boarding was that there were more passengers than what the ship could hold. Moving passengers around the ship would not have solved this problem, since I highly doubt that the ship sailed out from Brisbane with empty cabins.  So, I can't see any way this would have remedie the actual problem with overbooking.  Only "remedy," if you can even call it that, is to entice some of the booked passengers to forgo their cruise for some compensation, and to make this arrangement much sooner than the day of embarkation.  Another remedy is to not overbook in the first place.

> [O]nly way to "clear" the overbooked situation is to have less people booked

Yep.  "Move up" and "move down" offers only work for an overbooked category.  For an overbooked ship, it's indeed "move over" or cancellations.

 

> and to make this arrangement much sooner than the day of embarkation. 

Yep, again.  But inferring from news reports, the first time someone actually added 2+2 and got "won't fit" was dockside -- the first offer was "go over there and sit while we see if anyone doesn't show up".   (and we complain about O's IT folks 🙄)

 

> Another remedy is to not overbook in the first place.

A final "Yep".  But at least some of the lost revenue from empty cabins ends up as cost-cutting on board and higher fares.

[Bob from Florida]

My recent experience with a Guaranteed suite worked out very well on O.  Booked a PH2 guaranteed and waitlisted a PH1.  The PH2 assignment came in today on deck 11 in a very nice location.  The PH1 remains waitlisted with two in front of me.  The best part is that we're on a B2B trip with the first leg in a PH1.  The PH2 for leg two is literally 2 doors away.  An easy move.  

 

[azbirdmom]

Has O made moveover offers lately?  I ask because we booked our cruise well over a year ago and it's coming up on February 19th leaving from Papeete.  We have a PH3 guarantee and that category and above have shown as "waitlist" for many months now.  This is our first O cruise but we were lucky enough to get a moveover offer from Princess 5 years ago.  For giving up our cruise we got our money back AND got two cruises in an upgraded cabin (true upgrade, not just within the category).  We're getting close to the cruise so I was just curious if this is a normal thing for O to do.

[shepherd really]

9 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

Has O made moveover offers lately?  I ask because we booked our cruise well over a year ago and it's coming up on February 19th leaving from Papeete.  We have a PH3 guarantee and that category and above have shown as "waitlist" for many months now.  This is our first O cruise but we were lucky enough to get a moveover offer from Princess 5 years ago.  For giving up our cruise we got our money back AND got two cruises in an upgraded cabin (true upgrade, not just within the category).  We're getting close to the cruise so I was just curious if this is a normal thing for O to do.

no, it is not a normal thing for O.  Not saying it has never happened, but you are more likely to spot a unicorn.

[Happyexplorer]

We are currently on the Marina  cruising from Rio to Santiago. Booked a B4 guarantee and assigned a B2 cabin two weeks prior to the cruise. Cruise was booked in early August last year.

[ORV]

2 hours ago, shepherd really said:

no, it is not a normal thing for O.  Not saying it has never happened, but you are more likely to spot a unicorn.

About 7 years ago and past that it used to happen frequently. Not so much anymore. 

[Snaefell3]

14 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

Has O made moveover offers lately?

Instead, O went to 150 day Final Payments, and so can be less aggressive with overbookings since they have 60 extra days to find replacement pax compared to the 90 day Final Payment lines.

[Sthrngary]

On 1/18/2024 at 3:31 PM, trickylibrarian said:

We will be taking our second Oceania cruise next week and booked a "guarantee" stateroom.

For those of you who have done this before is there a chance of them upgrading our booking 

(Inside to Oceanview?).  Thank you for your input.

 

 

 

 

@trickylibrarian Hello.  Full disclosure, I have not read all the responses.  Sorry for being lazy.  

 

I wrote a document that I never released that I call FAQ designed by a Oceania Guest.  One of the topics is Guarantee Staterooms.  I had a Guaranteed PH3 for my guest.  

 

Booking a Guarantee Staterooms Details:

1.     “What are the Oceania rules/policies if I book a Guarantee Stateroom?”

Answer: If a stateroom is a Guarantee Stateroom, you are purchasing it like you would any other stateroom in that category.  It will be assigned usually one week prior to the cruise departing. You have no control over the stateroom provided.  You will receive stateroom at the level you guaranteed or higher. 

2. “Do I save money when I book a Guarantee Stateroom?”

Answer: NO. The fare is the same in a specific category if it was an assigned or unassigned stateroom.  The motivation for a Guarantee Stateroom is not for a value price. It is often used because the ship is sold out or as I did, to accomplish a four-category upgrade. No real financial benefit.

3. “Will I get an upgrade if I book a Guarantee Stateroom?”

Answer: NO and maybe.  The only obligation you receive is to have a stateroom in the category you booked on your Guarantee.  We booked a PH3 Guarantee. Yes, it is possible to gain an upgrade, but it is not a given.  On the Booked PH3 Guarantee I had, we were assigned a PH2.  Some would say that is an upgrade, I do. Don’t ever expect an upgrade from a PH to an Oceania, Vista, or Owners Suite.  That is rarer than gaining an extra tax refund.

4. “Can I change my stateroom selected by the brand at no expense when I get a Guarantee Stateroom?”

Answer: Most likely NO.  The rules say No.  Is it possible you get lucky with a kind soul helping you, sure.  It is likely it will happen, NO. We need to have realistic expectations so don’t hold your breath. The higher cabins usually go to a Paid Client Upgrade by someone that wants an upper-end suite or higher class of stateroom then they have, for less than retail. That is usually only when the cruise line cannot book them because the sailing is too close. 

 

Our results on the PH3 was a PH2 so that was a lucky upgrade.  The stateroom was assigned 7 days before departure.  Hope that helps. 

 

"Cruise well and enjoy every moment."