should I book gty if hoping for upgrade?

[CajunGirl2]

I'm looking to book our first cruise in 2006... we're newbies to the whole cruise thing. Oldest DD will be in 1st grade by then so we're looking to go while school is not in session. Should I book a gty cat 8 or 9 in hopes of being upgraded to a cat 5 or 6? Or will I have just as much of a chance of being upgraded if I select a specific cabin? I'm looking to book in the next week or so to take advantage of cheaper rates.

I really want a balcony but DH doesn't think we need to spend the extra $. I know that he's right but I dream of sitting on the balcony enjoying a beautiful sunrise/sunset.

I guess another question is ... how much time will we actually spend in the cabin. DDs will be 5.5 & 3.5 at the time of sailing.

I've been learning so much from these boards!

 

[crisi]

Book the cabin you will be happy staying in.

Upgrades on DCL are rare, no matter how you book it.

If you can only book inside, some people think your chances of getting an upgrade go up if you book GTY. Your chances of having a room under the dance clubs also go up (which most people don't report problems with, they just wouldn't have chosen those rooms).

If you book inside, don't set your expectations to an upgrade. You can carry a secret hope, but don't set yourself up for disappointment.

We spent quite a bit of time in our cabin. With little kids and earlier bedtimes, plus later mornings....we were often reading in our cabin or sitting on the veranda while the kids were sleeping.

 

[moocow35]

My only upgrade in 5 Disney cruises was when I had selected my stateroom 18 months in advance. I was upgraded from CAT 7 to CAT 5 one week before sailing. I wouldn't count on an upgrade. Book the stateroom you will be happy with. I spent a good amount of time in my stateroom, but then I always have booked a veranda room

Robin

 

[inkkognito]

I would NOT book a guarantee Cat. 9. If you end up being assigned late in the game, you could wind up under the nightclubs and it would probably be too late to get moved. Not worth the risk, in my opinion. At least with 8, you know you will be in a decent location if you are not upgraded.

Barb

 

[kcashner]

I agree that you should book a cabin that you'll be happy in. Especially during school vacations, upgrades don't often happen--the ship tends to fill early for those cruises.

As to how much time you spend in the cabin, it depends on your family. We sleep and change in the cabin. If your children are of an age where they take naps, you might want to be on the verandah while they are napping. If you and DH are romantically inclined, breakfast on the verandah could be nice. In reality, we had one on our first cruise and haven't booked one since. If the kids go to bed early, an adult will be in the cabin with them. However, they can sack out in the Oceaneer's club and you can be out enjoying yourselves.

There's way more to do on the ship than you can possibly do...but each family is different.

 

[twinglez]

Originally posted by inkkognito
I would NOT book a guarantee Cat. 9. If you end up being assigned late in the game, you could wind up under the nightclubs and it would probably be too late to get moved. Not worth the risk, in my opinion. At least with 8, you know you will be in a decent location if you are not upgraded.

Barb

Which rooms are located UNDER the nightclubs. I amgraid we are at risk for that kind of upgrade since dh is deaf, however my kids seem to have supersonic hearing...YIKES!

Thanks

 

[ncmouselover]

We stayed in 2017 and 2019 which are cat. 12 below the night clubs and we heard nothing. It was so quiet all I could hear was the creaking of the wood trim. I would stay there again.

 

[erikthewise]

The only GTY which is reasonably likely to result in an upgrade is a cat 12 GTY. Because there are only 13 such cabins, you are likely to be upgraded to cat 11 (no big deal) or cat 10 (a reasonably good deal). But there are LOTS of cat 9 cabins, and they are sometimes among the last to sell out, so if you book it you'll almost certainly end up there.

 

[smchan]

Being under the nightclubs doesn't automatically mean you have a noisy room. I was directly under Diversions in room 2518 and never heard a thing from above. (A little girl next door was a different story.)

I did walk a few doors down the hall and could hear noise coming from Rockin' Bar D in the evening. It wasn't overbearing but I could see where it could bother someone sensitive to noise.

A buddy of mine reported noise while staying in a cat 8 room, 5200, on the Wonder. The room is over the Walt Disney Theater. He said the crew was apparently rehearsing a show and he could hear the music in his room. The noise bothered his kid and went on until midnight despite several calls to guest services to complain. And he said it was the same song over and over again which led him to believe it was a rehersal.

I wouldn't sweat being under the far forward nightclubs, but I wouldn't want to be under Rockin' Bar D/Wavebands personally. I like deck 2 forward and will continue to book my rooms in that area of the ship - as long as I'm not under Rockin' Bar D. I don't think the premium to cat 8 is worth it. JMHO, of course.

Sam

 

[CarolAnnC]

Guaranteed categories are only offered when the specific categories are already sold out for those cruises. I would think it highly unlikely that a guaranty ressie would be available for a 2006 cruise at this early date. Good luck!!

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

We were in 2520 (but our baby was not the one pissing off Sam, I swear!), and we heard nothing from the clubs. However, we did hear things from underneath us, which we assume was the loading door. Lots of scraping and pushing, but only on the first and last days.

However, we specifically booked an aft cabin for our next cruise so that we wouldn't have the scraping noises.

 

[smchan]

Originally posted by MarcyIn Florida
We were in 2520 (but our baby was not the one pissing off Sam, I swear!)

LOL! The baby didn't piss me off. She was just loud. Katie was her name if I recall correctly. The fact that 2518 and 2520 are adjoining rooms probably didn't help.

It's really, really hard to upset me on a cruise. It's too darn relaxing!

Sam

 

[luckeylasvegas]

We booked a CAT 12 GTY for next years Halloween cruise ( MAGIC). I find it hard to beleive that the category was sold out over a year in advanced. We're hoping for an upgrade but we have stayed in several inside cabins on other ships which have been fine. A shower and a bed is pretty much all I need.

 

[CarolAnnC]

We booked a CAT 12 GTY for next years Halloween cruise ( MAGIC). I find it hard to beleive that the category was sold out over a year in advanced.

Not hard to believe at all since there are only a handful of category 12 cabins and you are sailing during Halloween! Besides, if you reserved one, then it must be believable! LOL!!

 

[luckeylasvegas]

I guess you know best since this will be our first cruise. I hope that means we will get an upgrade of some sort!

 

[logan1_2000]

I have stayed in 7004 on the Wonder, 7014 on the Magic, and am booked into 7012 on the Magic for the next cruise, and we have enjoyed the room every time. DS was 6 on the Wonder and -- oh my gosh, still 6 when we stayed in 7014 (that was a pretty good year in the life of a 6 year old, wasn't it?), and we spent a fair amount of time in the room and were quite comfortable w/o the veranda. Easy walk up to deck and the pools and drink station and the buffets, and just a couple of floors down to Oceaneer's Club and the restaurants. Not much hallway noise when you are forward like that, we never had any motion sickness, and no noise. Might the veranda have been nice? Yes, sure, but DCL is already a premium priced product, so we have to work the budget somewhere. If booking for 2006, get a Disney VISA and start accumulating rewards dollars now--I have used nearly 800 rewards dollars toward the next cruise and got a $100 rebate from this board's sponsor, Dreams Unlimited. And since your younger child is not in school yet, there is only one school calendar to consider--and a week of first grade is not that big of a deal (we pulled DS from 1st Grade for the Magic and his teacher was so happy for him, she even made snorkeling recommendations for excursions)--going when school is in session (but NOT during Hurricane Season!) can make a huge difference on the fare.

Good luck, and enjoy.

 

[ericamanda01]

The best advice I have seen on this board reguarding gty rooms is this, only book it if you can live with the room you book. IF you get an upgrade then that's the bonus, otherwise you'll be dissapointed with the lower cat.