Did we really get a guarantee??

[fischymom]

We booked our next cruise through an online site, but by contacting the person by phone. I specifically requested a guarantee cabin. He assured me that is what he gave us. Now I have to question if he did or not. First suspicion- price was the same as if I had booked a specific room on RCCI website; Second suspicion- we had room # right away. I am ok with it because we got rooms like we wanted, good areas, etc. but I just wonder if he really did what he stated.

[bibbysnow]

I booked a guarantee through a TA (same price as the RCCL website) and got my room assignment the next day.

[megr1125]

if there was no "guarantee" category open then you did not get a "guarantee"...those categories are not always open and they are usually not the same price..

 

go on line and do a mock booking...if you see that it's open, then maybe it was....but if it doesn't show up you probably didn't get a true GTY category.

 

I only did it once and it was about a week til i got my room assignment...

 

 

and as an aside...not all TAs have a clue about what "guarantee" means...

 

note: i am NOT TA bashing...just stating a fact...which is not at all dissimilar from what happens when you call Royal 10 times and get 20 different answers...

[fischymom]

I think the thing that made me question it the most was the fact that the price was the same as if I had went to book it myself. I did not find a guarantee for that cruise when I looked (August 12, 2012, Freedom) so when he assured me he got it I took him at his word. My understanding was by booking guarantee you should save money from what it cost to book a specific cabin, the advantage was cost and the CHANCE of getting a better cabin.

Not sure that when I book again I will use a TA, I have prior to this because of being new to cruising, but I think I am comfortable enough now to do it on my own. All the info here on CC really has been irreplaceable.

[megr1125]

generally the price a TA charges will be the same as if booking direct..there are SOME exceptions..

 

BUT...a true "Guarantee category" cabin SHOULD be less than booking an actual one..(say a balc GTY as opposed to a balc, just to be simple...) [i suppose taht may not always be true...]

 

HOWEVER, as i said before..no one can sell what does not exist...thus, i DOUBT that you got an actual guarantee category cabin....since you said you looked and it was not there..

 

and this person probably has no clue...and they probably don't know the difference between DIRECT and NON STOP flights....:eek::p

 

in any event...enjoy....

[fischymom]

Without a question I will have an amazing time because I choose to have an amazing time ! I am not a person to let a minor thing totally ruin my vacation. Like I tell my kids...if blood is not involved and you can still walk it is NOT a crisis, LOL :D

[njmomof2]

I can tell you for certain that there are currently no guarantee categories available on the August 12, 2012 sailing of Freedom. Perhaps that might pop up in the future, but right now, nope. So your agent may not have understood what you were asking.

 

If you have cabins you like, and you have a fare that you are comfortable paying, you're okay. Just keep watching to see if anything comes up before final, or in a higher category after final and see if you can move.

[efields2]

Did you get a copy of your invoice?

 

The last time I booked a QTY it had this code on the invoice - Stateroom:

Q-GTY Not Applicable

[nycruiser80]

generally the price a TA charges will be the same as if booking direct..there are SOME exceptions..

 

BUT...a true "Guarantee category" cabin SHOULD be less than booking an actual one..(say a balc GTY as opposed to a balc, just to be simple...) [i suppose taht may not always be true...]

 

HOWEVER, as i said before..no one can sell what does not exist...thus, i DOUBT that you got an actual guarantee category cabin....since you said you looked and it was not there..

 

and this person probably has no clue...and they probably don't know the difference between DIRECT and NON STOP flights....:eek::p

 

in any event...enjoy....

 

 

I was a TA for 10 years. A gty room doesn't necessarily mean a lower fare. I know you said that it should be a lowerr rate but that may not always be the case. In my 10 years I had many instances where the lowest interior room and an inside gty room was the same rate. NCL is noted for this as is Princess. Last year I booked an oceanview gty which was the same rate as the obstructed view oceanview room. I was assigned a cabin that was obstructed in the end.

 

As for TA prices being lower then cruise line that is rare these days unless the TA you book through has a group. Otherwise most mass market lines do not allow TAs to sell a cruise lower then the advertised rate. The exception to this is Princess Cruises. But then again I left travel in 2007 so things may have changed.

[emilygrace]

I'm thinking this TA interpreted "guarantee" as meaning you are guaranteed to get that particular cabin. Which is not what the rest of us on CC understand it to mean. Especially since there wasn't even a GTY offered on this particular cruise.

[Sequim88]

not all TAs have a clue about what "guarantee" means...

 

I would be thinking the above. I have heard people interpret the term as being "gaurantied a specific cabin" instead of "guarantied only a specifc cabin class." Especially since assignment was made so fast and so far in advance. Typically the X categories are not open until after final payment time. On out last Transatlantic we switched from an inside to a balcon gaurnanty for $80/pp more (for 12 nights) when balconies were running $900/pp more. We did not care where we got put as long as we got a balcony (and ended up in location were were happy with).

[fischymom]

I have came to that same conclusion, that his understanding of guarantee and mine were not the same.I got a room that I am fine with and we booked far enough out we got the lowest price so far (I keep checking though).

[fischymom]

On out last Transatlantic we switched from an inside to a balcon gaurnanty for $80/pp more (for 12 nights) when balconies were running $900/pp more. We did not care where we got put as long as we got a balcony (and ended up in location were were happy with).

 

I think I will try this too, if a guarantee opens after final payment is due for a higher catagory of cabin I will have him switch us ASAP.

[megr1125]

I was a TA for 10 years. A gty room doesn't necessarily mean a lower fare. I know you said that it should be a lowerr rate but that may not always be the case. In my 10 years I had many instances where the lowest interior room and an inside gty room was the same rate. NCL is noted for this as is Princess. Last year I booked an oceanview gty which was the same rate as the obstructed view oceanview room. I was assigned a cabin that was obstructed in the end.

 

As for TA prices being lower then cruise line that is rare these days unless the TA you book through has a group. Otherwise most mass market lines do not allow TAs to sell a cruise lower then the advertised rate. The exception to this is Princess Cruises. But then again I left travel in 2007 so things may have changed.

 

i know..and i also said, parenthetically that a lower price may not always be the case.....;)

 

and i understand about groups too...just didn't want to clog up the works too much....:p

[ranger66]

I just changed from an already booked D2 superior balcony room to a guarantee balcony room and saved $1340. They credited back my visa the $1300 and assigned me to a D1 superior balcony room As a D1 is more expensive than a D2 I think we did fantastic! Pure luck I saw the guarantee offer on the RCI site. It was gone 20 min. later!