i need to be 100% sure this can be done on-board

[CanuckOnaBoat]

This is the situation:

• traveling with DH, DS (1), DD (3) + my parents and adult brother
• GTY cabin 1 - me, DH, DS, DD; GTY cabin 2: parents and brother
• cabin 2 wants to split into 2 cabins.
• to help manage costs - we want to add someone from cabin 1 into the new cabin (my mother + DH) - I was advised to put DH in there instead of a child. this is to avoid creating problems over the legal control of the kids on the ship in kids club, port debarkation etc... BUT this doesn't allow my husband to have legal control if he's not in our cabin.
• I was advised that we can EASILY - no problem - request to move my husband back to our cabin once on-board. is this true? he can't just sleep in our cabin - he must be assigned there legally.

I have heard conflicting and confusing things about how cabin assignments work. For example - that muster station assignments can control if people can move cabins (they only can have a max amount assigned to muster station and therefore this impacts cabin assignments)? And if they can switch cabins - how to they re-do is KTTW card once we're on-board?

i want to double and triple check that this is possible because this affects our family in terms of safety on board etc... (i have reach out to the TA .. but i've learned my lesson before about double checking info).

I would like to hear from other cruisers - if they have direct experience with this (not anecdotal). Thanks in advance.

I really want to keep my parents/brother happy - but i must make sure i understand the implications it has for my family on this cruise.

 

[TestingH2O]

I have never heard of anyone actually changing room assignments once on board. I have heard of people actually staying in different cabins. Because of this, I've only heard of extra KTYW cards being made for a specific room not brand new ones.

All that being said, your husband can still have legal control of the kids in terms of clubs and debarkation even if he's assigned to a different room. You may designate any adult to have sign in/sign out privileges for the clubs. In terms of getting off the ship, there is a form available at online checkin that would entitle any designated adult not in the stateroom to take the kids ashore.

 

[Otimon]

Call DCL direct to have your questions answered as to what can, and cannot, be done regarding your request.

Good luck and Bon Voyage.

 

[Hundredacre]

We always assign dad and mom in separate cabins and once on board the kids sleep in one cabin (usually). Dcl told us we had to do it this way and that it is legal. We have been told (most recently by a room host) that we could get the key cards redone but we have never bothered. I have no experience with the cabin splitting? Are you saying you want an additional cabin?

 

[Hundredacre]

I have never heard of anyone actually changing room assignments once on board. I have heard of people actually staying in different cabins. Because of this, I've only heard of extra KTYW cards being made for a specific room not brand new ones.

All that being said, your husband can still have legal control of the kids in terms of clubs and debarkation even if he's assigned to a different room. You may designate any adult to have sign in/sign out privileges for the clubs. In terms of getting off the ship, there is a form available at online checkin that would entitle any designated adult not in the stateroom to take the kids ashore.

You are right. You have to fill out forms to take kids off the ship if they are not assigned to your room, regardless of whether or not you are the legal parent. This is not a big deal and just takes a minute. You can also on the same form give privileges for teens to get off alone at ports etc. We used this at castaway cay as we had two that wanted to meet us later on the beach.

 

[lanejudy]

This is the situation:

• traveling with DH, DS (1), DD (3) + my parents and adult brother
• GTY cabin 1 - me, DH, DS, DD; GTY cabin 2: parents and brother
• cabin 2 wants to split into 2 cabins.
• to help manage costs - we want to add someone from cabin 1 into the new cabin (my mother + DH) - I was advised to put DH in there instead of a child. this is to avoid creating problems over the legal control of the kids on the ship in kids club, port debarkation etc... BUT this doesn't allow my husband to have legal control if he's not in our cabin.
• I was advised that we can EASILY - no problem - request to move my husband back to our cabin once on-board. is this true? he can't just sleep in our cabin - he must be assigned there legally.

I have heard conflicting and confusing things about how cabin assignments work. For example - that muster station assignments can control if people can move cabins (they only can have a max amount assigned to muster station and therefore this impacts cabin assignments)? And if they can switch cabins - how to they re-do is KTTW card once we're on-board?

i want to double and triple check that this is possible because this affects our family in terms of safety on board etc... (i have reach out to the TA .. but i've learned my lesson before about double checking info).

I would like to hear from other cruisers - if they have direct experience with this (not anecdotal). Thanks in advance.

I really want to keep my parents/brother happy - but i must make sure i understand the implications it has for my family on this cruise.

You actually have a variety of questions going on here.

The most easily answered... yes, your DH (or any passenger) may sleep in any cabin regardless of where he is actually booked. He will need to attend the muster drill for his assigned cabin as well as in the event of any real emergency. But he can certainly be booked to one cabin and sleep in another. As for the kids, you just sign a form allowing him to bring the kids off/on the ship without you, and you can designate any adult (including the grandparents and/or uncle) to pick them up from the Nursery and Club/Lab. You cannot technically move him but he can sleep in a different cabin and get a room key for your cabin. His onboard charges (tips, excursions, drinks, etc.) will go to the cabin where he is assigned, but each adult may put down their own credit card to make that an easy split.

The question that can't really be answered online here... splitting cabin 2. It sounds like your full party wants to have 3 cabins instead of the currently booked 2. I would not wait until you get onboard to deal with that. You should do that in advance. The 3rd cabin will be at the current fares, regardless of the fact that you are simply moving 2 current passengers into it. They'll pay the going rate at the time you add the 3rd cabin, which likely are higher than what you originally paid. The original 2 cabins will then have slightly lower fares (cabin 1 will no longer have fare associated with the 2nd child as one child moves to the full fare position of second passenger, cabin 2 will not longer have fare associated with the 3rd passenger). I would not wait to try and do this onboard.

Good luck and enjoy your cruise!

 

[GatorMomInNC]

I think the confusion is "assigning" someone versus just have the sleeping arrangements be whatever you want them to be. I am not sure you can actually have your room assignment changed, but your DH can just sleep in your room, of course.

The only problem I see is that with a GTY room you never know exactly which room you're going to get. And I'm not sure which ship your sailing on, but don't think all of the rooms sleep four people. Meaning not all rooms have the second pull down bunkbed. If you book a room for three people it's possible you might be assigned a room that only sleeps three people. So this becomes a problem when you want to have two bunkbeds in the room for your two kids.

And then also keep in mind the room steward

 

[GatorMomInNC]

Continuing, as I posted too soon sorry!

If three different rooms have three different rooms stewards the tips will be posted to whatever room you were booked in. But if one room steward only assists one person but getting tipped for 2, and then your room steward actually is taking care of 4 people but getting tipped for 3...I think the tip situation gets a little wonky

 

[RedSox68]

You can all switch yourselves around any way you want once onboard, but you cannot book a statement with kids only -- there has to be one adult on the reservation. Once onboard, you can move your family around any way you want between the two rooms. I would most definitely check with Disney though about the comment that you can switch your husband back to your room at check in -- I do not know if Disney can make those concessions once a cruise is paid in full. Better check to be safe than sorry.

 

[cedricandsophie]

We resrrsnge people all the time. We often take family and have two or three cabins. Four of us are platinum. So when we make reservations we arrange people in the cabins so that one platinum is in each cabin so everyone gets platinum benefits. Then once onboard we go to the service desk, ask for extra Keys for all the rooms and the family rearranges itself how they want to sleep. Since we pay all the bills it doesn't really matter how charges are billed to the rooms. On a few occasions we have had to have an extra form filled out to allow our grandkids to go off the ship with other adults. Not a big deal. But we have always had rooms next to or across from each other so we are always in same place for safety drill. I would not want a kid assigned to a room that wasn't in the same area.

 

[MPS516]

Lots of conflicting responses, I can speak to our experience. Yes they will reassign at service desk, place a passenger from one stateroom into another and switch someone from there to mine. The biggest concern is the muster station, you need to be comfortable knowing that in the event of an emergency the person you moved may not be at or even near your muster station. That means you may not see them for several hours after the Captain signals you to the muster.

 

[ldo]

also rearranged 9 persons in 3 cabins with 3 under 16. What above said. You have to go to assigned muster. Otherwise, no issue, as long as there is an adult in each cabin.

 

[CanuckOnaBoat]

Thank you. Yes- I will call Disney directly - and not go through my TA so that i hear it from the horse's mouth. All of our cruise is paid in full and have already made 1 room change with no problem. after all...they are making even more money with these changes...
as i mentioned I have a 1 year old- we don't need a bed for him. he sleeps with us or in the pack n play.

I especially appreciate those who shared their first hand experiences about how it worked for them.

 

[DHSbutcher]

Since you already have a TA she will have to call for you, you can't make changes that involve $$ to your own reservation. Just a heads up.

 

[CanuckOnaBoat]

Thanks - I've already spoken to the TA who did say it is possible. She called Disney about it. And we've already made a change after full payment to 2 other cabins in our group.

Since you already have a TA she will have to call for you, you can't make changes that involve $$ to your own reservation. Just a heads up.

 

[cdoc29]

Custody of your kids is not an issue no matter what you assigned room is. On our last cruise it was myself, wife and two kids plus Grandparents in another cabin and My two brother (both adults) in another cabin for three cabins altogether. We gave every adult privileges for our kids. They had to present thier Ship Card when collecting the kids (Which is matched to the photo on the ships computer) and give the secret password. Every kid has a secret password that the parents come up with and even if the Adult is on file they can’t collect the kid if they don’t know the secret password. I know because my brother called me when trying to collect my son because he forget the password and they wouldn’t release my child to him despite being on the approved list.

 

[Prose]

Here's another option....book a room for 4 for your family, give mom and dad a cabin, and have adult son bring a friend, cousin, etc. to share a cabin with and avoid the single supplement.

 

[aidtrismommy]

We did something similar. We had two staterooms, 4 adults and 2 children. We broke it up on booking and had two adults and one child in each room (for cost reasons which is irrelevant). I planned on sharing with my two children and the other three adults were sharing. The staterooms were connecting and had the same muster station. We changed my sister out of my room and put my son in it, I believe at guest services and got new keys made. I wanted it done "legally", I didn't just want to have my son "sleeping" in my room. It was not a problem.