I fiend of mine just went on Royal Caribbean and by the tme they got on the boat the excursions were already booked solid... does carnival do pre-booking of excursions or does it all have to be done on the ship?
Also, we book a Category 4A guarentee room, which means we may be upgraded... Has anyone else had this? What is the likelyhood we will be moved up (We are going on the Conquest in August)? If you do usually get upgraded, how many levels is it?
Upgrades are a crapshoot. It depends on how many available cabins are on that sailing. You cannot expect one, just be satisfied with what you have and if one comes then consider yourself lucky..
It has been our experience on our past CCL cruises that you can't pre-book shore tours. Just hit the tour desk as soon as you board if you are really interested in a certain tour. They may have changed this policy since last August, so you can always call CCL and check.
No you can not pre book excursions on the Conquest. You may do so at the tour desk or on the TV in your room. There should be sheets with the excursions and their prices in your room when you arrive.
The times we have booked a guarantee, we have always been upgraded, and its been a very pleasant surprise! You never know what you're getting until you walk down that hall, locate your room and turn the key (swipe your card)! Regal Empress, however did not upgrade anyone for FREE, and lemme tell ya, their desk was FULL of people complaining about their shoddy rooms....
In August I wouldn't expect to much of an upgrade because the ships tend to be very full during school breaks. But if you do get upgraded it usually is within the same category so you might get a 4B or 4C, just a higher up deck.
Check your shore excurision info when you get to your room it should have a time when you can start ordering the excursions on the TV funvision. They didn't turn it on right away on the Destiny, not until after dinner. We were in our cabin at that time and ordered as soon as it got turned on. We have never had a problem getting any of our first choice excursions.
At the present time CCL has you book onboard only and it is first come, first served. I know people complain about this but in a way it is much fairer than a bunch of people being able to grab up all the spots before most even know what the tours are.
As for upgrades, plan of getting a 4A in the worst possible location. That is what you paid for. Whatever you get above that is a pleasant surprise. If you look at it that way then you will always be happy. Never book less than you will be satisfied with. If your cabin doesn't matter, book lowest.If you want a outside, balcony, suite, then book it or at least that cat. cabin.
Jim
Your chances of getting upgraded I would say are pretty good. I heard on the
news the cruise ships are going half full these days, due to the economy,
the fear of sars and the war. They did not say which ships but I assumed it
all of them in general.
Contact Carnival for a copy of the Shore Excursions. They will email or fax them to you. Be prepared to submit your request as soon as you board. Recently on the Legend, the interactive TV was not working upon embarkation. The Conquest will have this system too. They were having a meeting in the lounge, so I brought the completed form directly to that spot. We got the tour and it was charged to our S&S account within 2 hours of boarding! You can check your folio on the TV too.
Always book a category that you will be happy living in for a week. If you are upgraded, that is a bonus.
We have always sailed on Royal Caribbean, but never bothered to book ahead. We always board the ship as early as possible and go straight through the process of getting our sail and sign card and all excursions done first thing. So, far we've been able to get the excursions we wanted.
As for the upgrade, I agree with much of what everyone else says. Your upgrade is normally in the same category unless you luck out. We started with a 6-A and got upgraded to a 6-D, but opted to go down one floor to a 6-C to be with family that is traveling with us.
I think the cruise ships are going out full so the chance of getting a up-grade in August is not very good since it is school break for kids. I don't think the economy will affect the
fullness of the ships because a vacation will do wonders for your mind. I think the cruise
ship industry will everything they can to protect people from Sars.
Excursion and "Guarentee" question
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