Guilty conscience about accessible room

Soooo. My boyfriend surprised me by booking us a cruise on Bliss in January. I am an excessive planner, and especially so with a new ship. I was looking at deck plans and he booked an accessible aft balcony. I asked if he realized the cabin he picked, he said no and that he didn’t look at the deck plan legend/key (surprising [emoji23]). I recommend he call NCL and see what their policy is on this. But, he says that during the booking process handicap verification never came up, and it’s not listed anywhere on the confirmation. He says that he booked it for the bigger room and balcony space.

The other post I was able to find was about people getting upgraded or assigned via guaranteed rates. Will NCL change our room if needed or do I need to call and make the switch?

What is wrong with you???

Why would you keep the bad BF Karma on a Disabled Room???

:loudcry:

Soooo. My boyfriend surprised me by booking us a cruise on Bliss in January. I am an excessive planner, and especially so with a new ship. I was looking at deck plans and he booked an accessible aft balcony. I asked if he realized the cabin he picked, he said no and that he didn’t look at the deck plan legend/key (surprising [emoji23]). I recommend he call NCL and see what their policy is on this. But, he says that during the booking process handicap verification never came up, and it’s not listed anywhere on the confirmation. He says that he booked it for the bigger room and balcony space.

 

The other post I was able to find was about people getting upgraded or assigned via guaranteed rates. Will NCL change our room if needed or do I need to call and make the switch?

Don't listen to the grouches. One thing people need to realize wether they like it or not, is the rooms are handicap "accessible" not handicap exclusive. Once the rooms are in open inventory they can be booked by anyone. No bad karma involved.

Having said that, there is the very rare case that if someone booked in the same class of rooms needs a handicap room they may move you or ask you to move. They can move you up a category but are not supposed to move you down.

I have been in a handicap room booked once the room was released into general inventory. No guilt involved.

Don't listen to the grouches. One thing people need to realize wether they like it or not, is the rooms are handicap "accessible" not handicap exclusive. Once the rooms are in open inventory they can be booked by anyone. No bad karma involved.

Having said that, there is the very rare case that if someone booked in the same class of rooms needs a handicap room they may move you or ask you to move. They can move you up a category but are not supposed to move you down.

I have been in a handicap room booked once the room was released into general inventory. No guilt involved.

Not sure your No Guilt logic adds up.

Your trying to say, go ahead nobody is watching.

Book a handicap accessible room a Year Out,,,,, IF you're NOT handicap??

"Just Because It's a Great Deal"?

Soooo. My boyfriend surprised me by booking us a cruise on Bliss in January. I am an excessive planner, and especially so with a new ship. I was looking at deck plans and he booked an accessible aft balcony. I asked if he realized the cabin he picked, he said no and that he didn’t look at the deck plan legend/key (surprising [emoji23]). I recommend he call NCL and see what their policy is on this. But, he says that during the booking process handicap verification never came up, and it’s not listed anywhere on the confirmation. He says that he booked it for the bigger room and balcony space.

 

The other post I was able to find was about people getting upgraded or assigned via guaranteed rates. Will NCL change our room if needed or do I need to call and make the switch?

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The other post I was able to find was about people getting upgraded or assigned via guaranteed rates. Will NCL change our room if needed or do I need to call and make the switch?

From a frequent cruiser: Don’t Call. Keep the Room. Be Happy. Enjoy Your Bigger Room. Ignore Anyone Who Says the Otherwise.

For me, personally, I would never book an accessable room. While I would love the extra space, I wouldn't want to deprive someone who really needs it.

OP,keep what you have and enjoy as a few others have suggested. And, yes, if they end up needing that cabin NCL may very well find you something comparable and ask you to change. So relax, everything is fine.

My husband has mobility issues, so we called to get an accessible room and we were told all the accessible rooms were sold out for our sailing and we would have to take a regular room or pick another sailing date. This was 80 days out from the sailing. I would hate to think the rooms were sold out because people wanted the extra space while we needed the bathroom in the accessible for my husband.

OP,keep what you have and enjoy as a few others have suggested. And, yes, if they end up needing that cabin NCL may very well find you something comparable and ask you to change. So relax, everything is fine.

How would NCL know that they aren't handicapped themselves? Why would they ask them to switch rooms? and when it comes time to bid for upgrades, might they not get the offer because there are only so many accessible rooms?

Are there other aft balconies of the same category left? If yes, then you should call and switch. Yes, very bad karma to book an accessible room when there are non accessible options left.

But, if he was permitted to book it without being asked about being handicap, most likely it was the last cabin left of that category. They will open up handicap cabins to general bookings when it’s the last of a category. In that case, cruise guilt free. Categories sell out, no different than if you are able bodied, handicap, or a cabin with higher occupancy.

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On one of our early cruises I booked a guarantee, and we were given a handicap accessible cabin. I, too, felt very guilty, since both my husband and I are obviously not handicapped. What was worse was that the cabin next to us was also handicap accessible and the two ladies who occupied it were obviously handicapped. I found myself having to explain to them and our steward that we had not booked this cabin on purpose.

The other thing about this particular cabin was that there was no couch or chairs, presumably so that a wheelchair would be able to maneuver.

Not to worry, if NCL wants the room for someone who needs it, they will move you to an equivalent (or better) cabin.

On another cruise line, their policy was to hold the assessible cabins until the very end of inventory and then they would release them to the general queue and these very favored due to their larger size.

We were in an assessible cabin as a result of the cruiseline's management of these cabins. (So guilt free)

I didn't like the cabin. The room configuation was not the same as 'the pictures', and while the size was nice I would not do it again. Its a different look and feel to me.

I have looked at some You Tube videos on some NCL cabins that are assessible in case I won a bid and was put into one, and I will not bid on a category that has an assessible option, that's how much I don't want to do it again.

To the OP, you can call and change your cabin if you like, dig in though to see what pictures or videos are available online on other NCL ships assessible cabins and compare them with a standard cabin, and decide if that is what what you are picturing in your mind that you want your cabin to look and feel like while you are on board. You may decide its somehting that will work for you even though it did not for me.

How would NCL know that they aren't handicapped themselves? Why would they ask them to switch rooms? and when it comes time to bid for upgrades, might they not get the offer because there are only so many accessible rooms?

Because when you book a handicapped room, they send you documentation that you need to fill out. I assume if you don't, or indicate that you don't need those services, they will know.

I think if they really didn’t want people booking those rooms they’d have a way to block the rooms from displaying unless you indicated you needed a handicap accessible room in the same way they block rooms for two displaying when a party needs a four person room. Relying on people to track down and decipher a key describing all the flashing symbols isn’t a good way to reserve handicap rooms for people who need them.

Absolutely no reason to feel bad. If they didn't ask they are obviously working with a history that suggests they won't need it for a handicapped person. You are not depriving anyone of anything. I'd be willing to bet my next cruise fare that all handicapped rooms available invariably exceed the handicapped need. The cruise line would lose money if it didn't attempt to fill all the rooms based on a cruise history and handicapped need.

My husband has mobility issues, so we called to get an accessible room and we were told all the accessible rooms were sold out for our sailing and we would have to take a regular room or pick another sailing date. This was 80 days out from the sailing. I would hate to think the rooms were sold out because people wanted the extra space while we needed the bathroom in the accessible for my husband.

I would think that all of them would’ve been made available to everyone that close to the sailing. We book over a year out cause we get connecting cabins, and tbey are limited as well.

Aft balconies are typically sold out months if not years in advance. My October, 2019 sailing is already sold out of all aft balconies.

Ncl does hold out the accessible staterooms from the general booking pool until the availability is gone from the non accessible pool of rooms. That’s why when you’re booking a gt stateroom you’ll often be assigned an accessible room.

I’ve been assigned a handicap accessible stateroom on a gt rate. In fact on the Jewel class, the obstructed ov sideways staterooms on deck 8 have an entire section of assessible staterooms and I didn’t see anyone but outwardly physically fit perfectly capable occupants when I was assigned to a room in this section. That’s really strange that another poster was asked by their neighbors and room steward to explain why they were in an assessible stateroom. We certainly were never asked any questions.

One way to see how sold out a category is is to actually look and see if the accessible staterooms are in the general booking pool. Once they are put out for the general pool that means they are almost sold out of the category.

If you’re wanting an aft balcony regardless of your accessibility needs, booking way out is about the only way to get one.

The other thing about this particular cabin was that there was no couch or chairs, presumably so that a wheelchair would be able to maneuver.

As a disabled person who relies on the very limited availability of accessible cabins, I have posted my thoughts on this topic on many similar threads. However, everyone has their own moral compass, and nothing I say or do is going to change how people choose to live their lives and treat others.

What I will say though is that, as others have posted, anyone booking an accessible room needs to be aware of the differences in these rooms from photo depictions on the NCL site. These cabins are NOT the same - particularly in the case of furniture. Since the Bliss is similar to the Escape, I can tell you that there is NO couch in the accessible aft balcony cabins. There is a single chair. The cabin is HUGE - and mostly all EMPTY floor space (to allow for wheelchair/walker/scooter maneuverability.) The bathroom is very "hospital-like". There is NO shelving at all, no fancy wood(like) finishings, etc. The plus side for mobility-impaired folks is that there is a shower bench and lots of handrails. But while HUGE and functional for a wheelchair user, it is in no way "pretty." (Bring a door hanging toiletry bag.)

If I was able-bodied, I would MUCH rather cruise in a regular cabin. Even in the Haven, the accessible rooms are just NOT as visually pretty or luxurious. :( That said, I am grateful I can still cruise at all.

For example:

Regular Balcony Bathroom:

Accessible Balcony Bathroom:

I am always surprised by the number of people in scooters and wheelchairs on any given cruise I’ve been on. If you keep this room, every time you walk past someone on a scooter or a wheelchair, you will probably ask yourself whether or not they had the opportunity to choose an accessible cabin. For the sake of your sanity during the cruise, change cabins. You’ll be happy you did the right thing in the end.

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What would be a fair amount of days in advance of the cruising date for NCL (or any cruise line) to release those cabins to the general public? Persons with disabilities undoubtedly have first dibs on those cabins but NCL doesn't want to sail with empty cabins so what would be a fair compromise?

What would be a fair amount of days in advance of the cruising date for NCL (or any cruise line) to release those cabins to the general public?

IMHO, once final payment date is reached, everything should be up for grabs. Before that, only those who need should book HC staterooms.

I have a good friend who we cruise with that is wheelchair bound. If I did not, then I might have a different impression or opinion. But seeing how hard it is to do things when you HAVE to be in a wheelchair has made me see clearly.

But, having said that, no one, ever, ever, ever who is not limited in mobility should book an accessible cabin. Being able to shower, use the bathroom are all 100 X more difficult when you are wheel chair bound and thus means you HAVE to have an accessible cabin or not cruise.

There have been several times we have communicated about a cruise we are going on, would they like to join us, even a year out, and there are no accessible cabins. It's just not fair, if you have MS and cannot walk, but still like to see the world (which cruising does make it easier) why should someone who can walk take a cabin made for the needs of someone who can't or has a hard time?

I agree that if it is close to sail, or you are placed there by the cruise line, all okay. But, to knowingly book a cabin and hope to get away with it..............nope.

What would be a fair amount of days in advance of the cruising date for NCL (or any cruise line) to release those cabins to the general public?