Rebooking on board questions

[cpdrn7]

I am going to need 3 rooms that sleep four. I do not know all of the guests who will be coming...can some names be TBA--to be announced?
If I know I am changing to a TA, does it matter if I do not have the correct names?
Can I just book three rooms with single adults in them and add the other people later.....that way I only have to pay deposit three times and not twelve times~~I am planning on spending too much on the cruise now....LOL...and another big deposit will kill that plan. Yet, I want to get the room credits--I am not worried about the discount because when I change to the TA, I am sure it will be cheaper.
Any help would be greatly appreciated....or any other tips on how you have
handled this issue..
I am planning over a year in advance so hopefully the ship will not fill up before I plan to add others.....

 

[ivanova]

Even if you do not have the names, you'll need to list them as TBA or TBD and pay the deposits, or you'll ultimately pay MORE for the cruise fare for the additional people.

If you get three rooms with one adult each, and then try to add people later, the add-ons will be charged the "going rate" at that time, not the rate available when you originally booked. This even applies if you switch to a TA, because if the rates go up down the road, a TA cannot get you the original rate that you booked at for the people you're adding on.

So even though you'd be ponying up a chunk of money for the deposit, you'll be paying less in cruisefare in the long run.

Also, if anyone in the group might be kids, the kids' clubs can hit maximum capacity even if the ship isn't "full." So adding on kids down the road can turn out to be dicey sometimes.

 

[cpdrn7]

very good points...I didn't think about the price going up...just the thought of coming up with all that deposit and still having a great time spending...I should have thought about that much sooner...I will know for next time though.
Is there a really like a point of where early booking discounts change greatly? Or is just like daily or whenever the boat fills up? Any opinions on that?
thanks so much....

 

[ivanova]

fare changes are based on a set calendar (i.e. x number of days before sailing) it's probably based more on when the ship hits a certain capacity. More popular sailings (like this summer's repo cruises) can hit those percentages a lot faster than other cruises.