Category B Guarantee Question

#1 (**permalink**) May 17th, 2003, 01:49 PM

We're booked on the Veendam for June 15 with a Category B guarantee. Our travel documents arrived and they still have not assigned a cabin. The customer service people said not to worry but were clueless as to whether "Guarantee" cabins are blocked out. The website shows no cabins in our category or higher available. Should I be worried? What are the chances that we will get to the ship on the 15th to find that all the cabins in our category and above are already taken? Suggestions appreciated.
--MJ Rubinstein

peaches · #2 (**permalink**) May 17th, 2003, 03:26 PM

Go to the HAL website tp shore excursions and do the procedure for booking an excursion (without actually booking). Your Cabin # should at some point be shown on the shore excursion screen when it is assigned, up until 10 days before June 15th when you can no longer book excursions online.. You also can do you online immigration form on the HAL website. When your cabin is assigned it will show up on the immigration form. I wouldn't worry. Undoubtedly the guaranteed cabins are blocked out and held and just not assigned yet. You are still 4 weeks away and guaranteed cabins are usually assigned much closer to sail date from what I read on here.

Chuck Palm · #3 (**permalink**) May 17th, 2003, 03:34 PM

Don't worry, there will be a cabin for you. They always make it work, somehow.

#4 (**permalink**) May 18th, 2003, 10:23 AM

We are also booked on a Cat. B guarantee for the 9/27/3 sailing. We've used the guarantee format for most of our cruises, and have always been satisfied. Most of the time it will be in the category you booked, but once in a while you get bumped up. On several cruises our docs said "TBA" and we didn't know what we had till the luggage was checked. Then we opened the brochure to find our cabin for the first time.

All part of the adventure of cruising for us!

Mark T.

sail7seas · #5 (**permalink**) May 18th, 2003, 10:03 PM

Even if you do not have your cabin number when you arrive at the dock, the stevedores in front of the terminal building have a manifest and will look on their list to tell you what cabin number to enter on your luggage tags.

Don't worry....you will be assigned to "at least" a category "B" if that is the guarantee you booked. You might get lucky and get a higher category....can always hope.