Only Guarantee Deluxe Balcony Cabins - Enchanted

[Daniel A]

When I tried a mock booking for three this past weekend where the sailing had 3rd and 4th guest free, they were showing the fare for three passengers which would have been more costly by about $200.  Maybe they were including the port fees for #3 as @bjkTX wrote, but I didn't dig that far into the booking.   I hope Princess isn't starting to discriminate against couples now.

 

Oh well,  the Haven on NCL is nice too.    

[Wishing on a star]

Yes, I think if you got out the old calculator, you would find that the difference IS the port charges.

 

No..  this has been going on for quite some time.

Not intended 'discrimination'.   But this IS discriminatory.

I believe it is some 'suit' in some cubicle, trying to insure that as many people as possible, to max capacity, are booked on that ship in the available cabins.

Used to be Travel Agents could request that a couple could request to book a cabin like this...  And it seems that this possibly goes to some office in 'Revenue'.

We tried that once. And our Travel Agent told us 'no'.

It is a problem.

 

In fact, for example, during some High Season cruises for families, like the Holidays, they actually have to limit the number of kids. They have to go by regulations as far as the number of berths for each lifeboat muster station.  And,  the kids clubs can only handle so many.   

[Daniel A]

11 hours ago, Wishing on a star said:

Yes, I think if you got out the old calculator, you would find that the difference IS the port charges.

 

No..  this has been going on for quite some time.

Not intended 'discrimination'.   But this IS discriminatory.

I believe it is some 'suit' in some cubicle, trying to insure that as many people as possible, to max capacity, are booked on that ship in the available cabins.

Used to be Travel Agents could request that a couple could request to book a cabin like this...  And it seems that this possibly goes to some office in 'Revenue'.

We tried that once. And our Travel Agent told us 'no'.

It is a problem.

 

In fact, for example, during some High Season cruises for families, like the Holidays, they actually have to limit the number of kids. They have to go by regulations as far as the number of berths for each lifeboat muster station.  And,  the kids clubs can only handle so many.   

I could understand if they were only doing this for sailings when schools are usually out for vacations, but the cruise I was looking at was not when any schools would be out.  I don't book any cruises during those weeks.

 

I can't help but believe that when they have this category closed to specific bookings and are only accepting guarantees that they are discouraging customers from considering making a booking.  On the other hand, they did end up funneling me into a more expensive minisuite instead.  Maybe that's the goal in the first place.  The excuse that these deluxe cabins can accommodate 3 or 4 passengers doesn't wash when one considers that minisuites can also handle the same numbers.

[bandp407]

In my opinion I believe Princess is loosing bookings with this guarantee, no matter how far out the sailing. Yes, while there is potential for an upgrade , that is not always the case. We are seasoned cruisers new to Princess and will only book if we can get an assigned cabin in our preferred location. Interestingly when we were onboard the Enchanted in May and discussed this with the future cruise desk, they were able to confirm specific cabins. Celebrity May hold a few cabins for 3or4 people, but not all are blocked. The majority are open. Hopefully Princess will revisit this issue! 
 

 

[Wishing on a star]

I beleive you are correct about Princess leaning towards GTY bookings.

They did not charge a higher fare to choose your cabin until fairly recently.

And, it seems that many 'promos' that show these low 'starting at' fares ONLY apply to a GTY in the lowest subcategory of each category.

I might not have that completely correct.  But, something along these lines.

Princess is very much aware of what they are doing here.

[Daniel A]

When I wrote: "The excuse that these deluxe cabins can accommodate 3 or 4 passengers doesn't wash when one considers that minisuites can also handle the same numbers."

 

I wanted to make the point that one can still see available minisuites for only 2 passengers, but not for the smaller deluxe balconies.  It really doesn't make sense other than they're steering people to the more costly minis.

[BazingAu]

1 hour ago, Daniel A said:

When I wrote: "The excuse that these deluxe cabins can accommodate 3 or 4 passengers doesn't wash when one considers that minisuites can also handle the same numbers."

 

I wanted to make the point that one can still see available minisuites for only 2 passengers, but not for the smaller deluxe balconies.  It really doesn't make sense other than they're steering people to the more costly minis.

I actually think they're trying to drive people to the regular balconies. I think regular balconies are harder to sell because they lack the extra seating. I was looking to book a last minute sailing on Princess earlier this summer and the ONLY cabins available were the regular balconies.

[Daniel A]

7 minutes ago, BazingAu said:

I actually think they're trying to drive people to the regular balconies. I think regular balconies are harder to sell because they lack the extra seating. I was looking to book a last minute sailing on Princess earlier this summer and the ONLY cabins available were the regular balconies.

I don't understand why they did away with the barrel chairs but that topic was discussed to death in prior years.   

[susancruzs]

I was surprised when I recently booked a TA + British Isles cruise Majestic for Spring 2026.  I was able to see then tell my TA to book obstr. view balcony mid-ship on Emerald deck.  In the past I could not see cabin availability and booking it as a single not an easy task.

Edited Wednesday at 05:34 PM by susancruzs

[Daniel A]

That's what I love about the cruise industry: Consistency!!