CAUTION: NCL category guarantee

[osprey101]

Hi ChalkerGuy, we booked a category guarantee that was on deck 6 and we go "upgraded" to deck 8 also (with an O/V). Just tell your friends to look us up. We'll be in 881. Any word on a meet and greet yet? Sherry

[Chalker Guy]

Hi ChalkerGuy, we booked a category guarantee that was on deck 6 and we go "upgraded" to deck 8 also (with an O/V). Just tell your friends to look us up. We'll be in 881. Any word on a meet and greet yet? Sherry

 

Osprey 101, got word today that the M & G is booked. Check the Roll Call.

 

Maybe I was too strong on my first statement that I am VERY upset. We booked category hh guarantee, which to NCL means category hh or better. I don't define obstructed view as better, but NCL does. I realized that the possibility existed, but thought the risk was low. We accept the result, and will have a wonderful time on our cruise. This thread had educated some people about what a guarantee is, so was worth the effort.

[Chalker Guy]

Follow up: Category HH on this ship is tiny cabins (108 square feet- think of it as about the size of a large bathroom), but they have nice rectangular windows, not portholes. Deck 8 OV cabins are same size, same windows, but obstructed. Also note that lower deck center has less motion due to being closer to axis of pitch and yaw rotation.

[CruisnGram]

Just FYI, according to cruisedeckplans.com, "HH" is obstructed also. What category did they move them to?

 

CG

[travelingraysgirl]

We just received our room assignments for a group of 14 people. 7 cabins in total. I am happy with our room assignments and we are all on deck 5 unobstructed ocean views. We booked G guarantee which is obstructed ocean views and received 2 and 3 category upgrades.

 

Part of our group are very close to the front of the ship in cat. E while the other few cabins are in Cat. D. cabins more mid ship. All cabins are very close to the others and only one is on the opposite side of the ship but same vicinity. All cabins are full windows with the exception of one cabin which is port hole. All of us are happy as we will have great views instead of viewing life boats. Thinking NCL did excellent job in keeping our group together, which by the way our travel agent said he would request we stay in the same area but told us this could not be guaranteed. We were all aware we could have been spread out throughout the ship.

 

Like everyone has said guarantees are a gamble and you have to be willing to accept the worst case scenerio. I also told the rest of our group to expect the worst than they would not be disappointed.

 

Pleased with NCL and looking forward to a great cruise:)

[rickechambers1@aol.com]

I am VERY leaving us behind on deck 3. THIS IS NOT AN UPGDRADE!

 

I think GTY cabins are not for you...choose your cabin and then you can only be VERY upset with yourself. The only reason I can think of to choose a GTY cabin is because it's the only choice left in that type of room, the cost is less, you hope for a free upgrade, or both. If you can't take a the good with the bad...you should sway the odds in your favor by deciding for yourself.

[Chalker Guy]

Just FYI, according to cruisedeckplans.com, "HH" is obstructed also. What category did they move them to?

 

CG

What ship are you referring to? Category HH is on Deck 3 on Majesty. Lifeboats (obstructed view) hang in front of deck 8. The reason we chose a guarantee was that assigned cabins were not offered in this category. And yes, we will accept the result and have a great cruise. The commtute between cabins is only a few feet plus a 5 story elevator ride.

[Eeyoregon]

Gty cabin means you save money and get put where they put you.

 

If you want a specific cabin/category/deck then you have to pay the higher price for that privelage.

 

Consider it a learning curve and enjoy your cruise.

[CruisnGram]

What ship are you referring to? Category HH is on Deck 3 on Majesty. Lifeboats (obstructed view) hang in front of deck 8. The reason we chose a guarantee was that assigned cabins were not offered in this category. And yes, we will accept the result and have a great cruise. The commtute between cabins is only a few feet plus a 5 story elevator ride.

 

The Majesty. According to cruisedeckplans.com, catagories H, HH & G are obstructed view. They are on deck 8........which is the Viking Deck and are 108 sq. feet. You should certainly know better then I as you've actually booked them, so I suppose the website is wrong. Maybe it has old information...before the Majesty was redone.

 

Hope it all works out for you and you have a good time.

 

CG

[beachchick]

I'm a little confused. How can you book a certain category yet still call it a guarantee? You don't get to pick a specific category if you truly booked a guaranteed cabin. So, there are two scenario's here;

 

1) If you truly booked them in Category H, there's no way NCL can upgrade them to another cabin unless they give their permission. They selected a specific cabin in a specific category, and that's their cabin. So, if that's the case, you need to call NCL and tell them they don't want the upgrade.

 

2) You actually booked a guaranteed cabin and NCL assigned them to Category H. In that case, you cannot control anything that NCL does with moving them around. That's why they offer the guaranteed cabin bookings at lower rates...it's within their control to move those people anywhere they want on the ship. And, since you booked a specific cabin, in a specific category, they won't move you, even though you booked together. As I said in #1, you booked a specific room and they can't move you without your permission.

 

As far as your comment about NCL putting you in OV if they can...of course they will. OV's are less popular and if they need unobstructed for those who are paying more to book a specific category, they are going to do it. I fail to see why you are so upset (or surprised) at this. That's what happens when you book guaranteed. You can't pay the lesser guaranteed price and expect to have the same control as you do when you pay more and select a cabin.

 

CG

 

Sure they can. NCL and the other cruise lines do precisely that. The elusive and rare free upgrade (bestowed by the upgrade fairy) is very often a surprise to the people who've been upgraded. Sometimes members here who've booked specific cabins will post that a cruise line upgraded them to a cabin they can't stand. The advice I see most often is that if you absolutely do not want to be moved from your specifically chosen (not GTY) cabin, then have a note placed on your booking "NO UPGRADES" so that doesn't happen. The other advice I've often read is to call the cruise line and tell them that you appreciate the thought (giving you what they consider an upgrade), but you want to be moved back to the originally reserved cabin.

 

beachchick

[mp8shnt]

When does NCL assign rooms in the GTY category? I have a Mini-Suite GTY on the May 31, 2009 BCN to BCN on the Gem.

[blindrid]

I'm a little confused. How can you book a certain category yet still call it a guarantee? You don't get to pick a specific category if you truly booked a guaranteed cabin. So, there are two scenario's here;

 

1) If you truly booked them in Category H, there's no way NCL can upgrade them to another cabin unless they give their permission. They selected a specific cabin in a specific category, and that's their cabin. So, if that's the case, you need to call NCL and tell them they don't want the upgrade.

 

2) You actually booked a guaranteed cabin and NCL assigned them to Category H. In that case, you cannot control anything that NCL does with moving them around. That's why they offer the guaranteed cabin bookings at lower rates...it's within their control to move those people anywhere they want on the ship. And, since you booked a specific cabin, in a specific category, they won't move you, even though you booked together. As I said in #1, you booked a specific room and they can't move you without your permission.

 

As far as your comment about NCL putting you in OV if they can...of course they will. OV's are less popular and if they need unobstructed for those who are paying more to book a specific category, they are going to do it. I fail to see why you are so upset (or surprised) at this. That's what happens when you book guaranteed. You can't pay the lesser guaranteed price and expect to have the same control as you do when you pay more and select a cabin.

 

CG

 

I believe you're wrong on most counts above as I mostly book GTD:

-- You do select category but not cabin.

-- Most GTD are not cheaper - you typically do it for the slightly greater chance of a category upgrade.

-- They have yet to "ask my permission" for an upgrade

-- When you book with NCL, most times they have an area where you select your actual cabin where you can check "No, I do not want an upgrade" or something like that.

-- When you book a GTY, you are booking a category and the only thing you are assured of is you will get that category at a minimum.

 

I have found when the actual cruise is getting full, the chances of an upgrade increase. In saying that, one should understand that a cruiseline's upgrade is not necessarily viewed as an upgrade in my eyes.

 

Anyway, I am suggesting you received what you paid for and really don't have much to complain about. As Cruisngram mentioned, you selected the GTY and really don't have anyone to blame but yourself. When I book GTY, I go with the flow - if there are friends along there are plenty of places to hang out or we select one of our cabins that are inducive to gatherings.

[tgptmp]

I NEVER EVER book without knowing my room number at the time of booking. I would rather book down a catagory to know the room number than do the crap shoot of a guarantee. Chalk it up to lesson learned!!!

[smeyer418]

When does NCL assign rooms in the GTY category? I have a Mini-Suite GTY on the May 31, 2009 BCN to BCN on the Gem.

normally they would have assigned them by now(normally when the final payment is due or earlier) although the assignment can take place as late as when you board the ship. If you sign in with your booking number normally the assigned room will show up...have you done that?

[ZoneHPH]

I am VERY unhappy with NCL about now. Party of 3 couples, we are Latitudes, other two are first timers on limited budget. Booked them guarantees on Majesty category HH, deck 3 ocean view (non-obstructed). Cabins are only 108 sf, so booked us on deck 3 category D (145 sf) so we would have enough room to get together. The cabins were booked by an agent as a group. NCL "upgraded" them to deck 8 fully obstructed view cabins, leaving us behind on deck 3. THIS IS NOT AN UPGDRADE!

 

Yes, I knew the possiblility existed, but I thought it was unlikely and that NCL would exercise just a bit of reason. If they can dump you into an obstructed view, they will!

 

i'm sorry...but the "Game of GTY" takes far more skill and cunning than simply invoking the phrase "we'd like to book a GTY". for free, i will share my basics (no i did not read the entire thread).

 

- when booking GTY, if your budget allows it. book the category higher than (in this case) Oceanview (obstructed).

- if budget is teh driving force, you are better off booking a room directly.

- however, if cost really drives it to the point that the category you choose is ONLY available as a GTY...i don't know what to tell you other than...your fate is in NCL's hands.

 

furthermore, you can have the highest category of inside cabin...say deck 10...then get "upgraded" to an oceanview (porthole) back down to deck 5. it's an upgrade because you can "see outside".

[mp8shnt]

normally they would have assigned them by now(normally when the final payment is due or earlier) although the assignment can take place as late as when you board the ship. If you sign in with your booking number normally the assigned room will show up...have you done that?

 

Smeyer-

 

Thank you for the response. I have been back a few times and this mornging looking for the room number assignment - nothing yet.

 

When looking at the ship diagram - it looks like all the mini's are on deck 11 - I will be fine with any one of them - although it might be cool to get one on the back of the ship.

[Mooder]

Just wanted to add to the mix here that you can be moved even if you are not a GTY. When cruising with my brother's family a couple of years back, we chose OV cabins side by side for obvious reasons. When we checked in they had been moved to the other side of the ship. We were disappointed at first, but they were on the same deck and it worked out fine. They cited balancing the ship concerns as the reason.

[billie5]

Balancing the ship?? Were you perhaps in a canoe?

 

I suspect balancing the lifeboat assignments is more likely. Perhaps the staff call it balancing the ship because they do not like to refer to lifeboats. Too reminiscent of the Titanic!

 

Bill

[Mooder]

Balancing the ship?? Were you perhaps in a canoe?

 

I suspect balancing the lifeboat assignments is more likely. Perhaps the staff call it balancing the ship because they do not like to refer to lifeboats. Too reminiscent of the Titanic!

 

Bill

 

I believe that's exactly right.

[Arwenmark]

Just wanted to add to the mix here that you can be moved even if you are not a GTY. When cruising with my brother's family a couple of years back, we chose OV cabins side by side for obvious reasons. When we checked in they had been moved to the other side of the ship. We were disappointed at first, but they were on the same deck and it worked out fine. They cited balancing the ship concerns as the reason.

 

 

What cruise line was that? Some lines are notorious for upgrading you without asking, [their idea of upgrades] and you need to put no upgrades when it is important to keep what you have.

But moving people not in guarantee cabins, [that is where they should be doing their "balancing act"] That would NOT sit well with most cruisers.

Especially if done without asking first.

[ZoneHPH]

Just wanted to add to the mix here that you can be moved even if you are not a GTY. When cruising with my brother's family a couple of years back, we chose OV cabins side by side for obvious reasons. When we checked in they had been moved to the other side of the ship. We were disappointed at first, but they were on the same deck and it worked out fine. They cited balancing the ship concerns as the reason.

 

Well perhaps some were a bit more robust. However, I don't recall cruising with you on this one...hehehehehe. :eek:

[Mooder]

What cruise line was that? Some lines are notorious for upgrading you without asking, [their idea of upgrades] and you need to put no upgrades when it is important to keep what you have.

But moving people not in guarantee cabins, [that is where they should be doing their "balancing act"] That would NOT sit well with most cruisers.

Especially if done without asking first.

 

It was NCL - the Pearl if I remember correctly, definitely not GTY, a lateral move within the same category. They picked the right family to do it to in that we didn't complaint. They said it was a safety issue and didn't make a huge difference.

[Mooder]

Well perhaps some were a bit more robust. However, I don't recall cruising with you on this one...hehehehehe. :eek:

 

No shortage of us in the robust category. ;)

[ZoneHPH]

No shortage of us in the robust category. ;)

 

if i keep at the buffet or ordering multiple entrees...omg...they make me sail in my own dingy.

[fridaythe13th]

When does NCL assign rooms in the GTY category? I have a Mini-Suite GTY on the May 31, 2009 BCN to BCN on the Gem.

 

I had originally booked an inside and changed to a BF GTY on Saturday. The BF was the only balcony they offered the GTY for. I was assigned a BC today. If I were you I would be calling as I could not stand the suspense! You did say you checked your online documents right? If you haven't been on the Gem you are going to love her!