Rmar2023 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Hi All- I booked a Euro cruise almost 10 months ago. We are really excited. However much to my dismay, Royal Caribbean didn't honor their 0% obstruction guarantee. I got a room assigned this week and a bit upset. My group was split up to different ends of the ship. Not great, but part of the nuisance of booking a guarantee. However, the thing I am upset about is that I booked a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction and I was given a obstructed view. Seeing as I paid $5k for this cruise, I find this very upsetting. No one knows anything at Royal Caribbean and can't do anything for me. Evidently booking a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction means nothing. I paid extra to make sure I was given 0% obstruction. Am I pretty much screwed at this point? Sailing is less than 25 days out. I have called, emailed, tweeted, everything you can think off. TessFromFlorida 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 What ship and what is the obstruction? If you booked a GTY, then you didn't exactly pay extra for 0% obstruction. tjcruisers, Srp431, Baked Alaska and 6 others 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rmar2023 Posted May 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Have you ever seen a guaranteed booking with 0% obstruction on the invoicing? Thats what I have and really unable to clarification as to what that means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjcruisers Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 That’s one reason I never book a gty. To confirm I just tried gty and it specifically states it could be obstructed, twice Room preference page Just prior to cruising, we’ll assign you a room in your selected category. The room may have an obstructed view. If you need connecting rooms, please select your room instead. Passenger page You selected a Guaranteed Stateroom Your room is guaranteed at a minimum to be in the category you selected and will be assigned just prior to sailing. The exact stateroom, number, and location on the ship will be at our discretion. Staterooms may have an obstructed view. Neesa, TXCoastPatriot, DDaley and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 2 hours ago, Rmar2023 said: Hi All- I booked a Euro cruise almost 10 months ago. We are really excited. However much to my dismay, Royal Caribbean didn't honor their 0% obstruction guarantee. I got a room assigned this week and a bit upset. My group was split up to different ends of the ship. Not great, but part of the nuisance of booking a guarantee. However, the thing I am upset about is that I booked a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction and I was given a obstructed view. Seeing as I paid $5k for this cruise, I find this very upsetting. No one knows anything at Royal Caribbean and can't do anything for me. Evidently booking a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction means nothing. I paid extra to make sure I was given 0% obstruction. Am I pretty much screwed at this point? Sailing is less than 25 days out. I have called, emailed, tweeted, everything you can think off. What is the exact booking category code you booked and what is the room number and category you received? I'm not convinced a 0% obstruction guarantee exists. I think it's far more likely you got what you booked and didn't understand what you booked. tjcruisers, Ryan79, Baked Alaska and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 26 minutes ago, Atlantix2000 said: What is the exact booking category code you booked and what is the room number and category you received? I'm not convinced a 0% obstruction guarantee exists. I think it's far more likely you got what you booked and didn't understand what you booked. That's what I was thinking. Ryan79 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rmar2023 Posted May 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Copy of original booking, states 0% obstructed view. How else should I interpret this? No mention the room could be obstructed. I get its guaranteed, but when I book it, there was an option of a obstruction guarantee or ocean view balcony guarantee. I obviously chose the ocean view balcony guarantee. I booked almost a year ago, but all my documents state 0% obstruction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan79 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Who made this promise? RC or a TA? Can you please provide a screenshot of this 0% obstruction guarantee so we can see the language? I don’t think such a thing exists, but I was wrong once in 1986 so it’s bound to happen again! TessFromFlorida, tjcruisers, baltodave and 1 other 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rmar2023 Posted May 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 18 minutes ago, Ryan79 said: Can you please provide a screenshot of this 0% obstruction guarantee so we can see the language? I don’t think such a thing exists, but I was wrong once in 1986 so it’s bound to happen again! see above post, I included a copy. It may be pending approval Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanHardlyWait Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Go over to CC. It's all been done and dusted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rmar2023 Posted May 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 16 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said: Go over to CC. It's all been done and dusted. What does that mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveling Mike Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 Sounds like a Travel Agent supplied the guarantee. I have booked lots of GTY cabins and have never seen a 0% obstruction guarantee. Most of the time you will get an obstruction on a full ship because very few people want them. Neesa, DDaley and Ryan79 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 3 hours ago, Rmar2023 said: What does that mean. It means you've got a longer thread going on a website with the initials CC where you've gotten plenty of feedback. CanHardlyWait, DDaley and Carlos A. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan79 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 4 hours ago, Rmar2023 said: see above post, I included a copy. It may be pending approval That 0% isn’t a promise. That’s just a field that needed a value. They can’t put an actual % there since your room was not assigned at the time of your booking. Do I see your point of confusion? Yes, however GTY simply means you are guaranteed at least a balcony cabin. Period. End of Story. There is no such thing as a GTY with a promise of no obstruction. If you go and read the terms of what a GTY entails,(do a mock booking) you will see that the only thing you are promised is that your room will not be lower than a balcony classification. The GTY is Royals (and every other cruise line) way to fill the less desirable cabin locations for a discount. The obstructed balcony cabins are the #1 cabins that GTY get assigned from. Linda R, TXCoastPatriot, DDaley and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesKinetic Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 @Ryan79 is correct. That is an unfortunate wrinkle in the online booking system. That is a standard line on all invoices and, when you book a GTY room, it puts that in there as a placeholder but it is not a guarantee. For example, I'm looking at a future cruise I have coming up and it says "Stateroom Obstructed View Percentage: 0%". That's in spite of the fact that I'm set to have an interior room, so I'm guessing it's pretty good odds I'll have an obstructed view. I agree that the 0% thing is at best confusing and at worst misleading. And someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm not aware of any way to guarantee a certain view or obstruction level when booking GTY. Ryan79, Linda R and CruiseGus 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter D Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 What is interesting is that right now, that sailing shows two options in the 'you select' mode and one is specifically identified as obstructed. That suggests that you can pay for additional quality of GTY to avoid obstruction. TessFromFlorida, PPPJJ-GCVAB and CrimsonCruiser 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 @Peter D in your example the obstruction balcony cost more. For the OP this could be the opposite but either way GTY doesn't guarantee you anything but the cabin category. However those obstructed rooms are usually by the lifeboat. This is usually deck 6. Ryan79 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter D Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 26 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said: @Peter D in your example the obstruction balcony cost more. For the OP this could be the opposite but either way GTY doesn't guarantee you anything but the cabin category. However those obstructed rooms are usually by the lifeboat. This is usually deck 6. It is true that the pricing makes no sense. The 'we pick' price is only $1388. More fuzzy math.... In any case, obstructions do seem possible. As a slightly off topic, I tried once to book a 'We pick' Balcony on Oasis through Next Cruise. I was informed that the published GTY was for a GTY Neighborhood view balcony. If I wanted a GTY ocean view, it was different (unpublished) price, but I could specify it. It would not have been evident just looking at the RCL web pricing system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted May 9, 2023 Report Share Posted May 9, 2023 I did an obstructed cabin on Odyssey last Nov. It was on deck 6 and about $500 cheaper than a regular OV balcony. I did pick my room and it was okay....... about 50% obstruction and they were the lifeboats. Sitting down it was a bit of a burden but I'm also only 5'3". My brother is over 6 feet and said his room was fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted May 10, 2023 Report Share Posted May 10, 2023 That invoice says you'll get a new invoice once your room is assigned. Ryan79 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted May 10, 2023 Report Share Posted May 10, 2023 I think Royal realizes it is misleading so they appear to have updated invoice verbiage. This is how my balcony guarantee appears that I booked a few weeks ago. RCM and WesKinetic 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reigert2008 Posted May 10, 2023 Report Share Posted May 10, 2023 3 hours ago, twangster said: I think Royal realizes it is misleading so they appear to have updated invoice verbiage. This is how my balcony guarantee appears that I booked a few weeks ago. Same here, we have an Inside GTY and it say the obstruction is pending. hopefully it’s 100%, or that means we have a hole in the wall. Ryan79, WAAAYTOOO, CruzOnBye and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloom424 Posted July 15, 2023 Report Share Posted July 15, 2023 I completely understand where you are coming from. My very first invoice after I booked the GTY balcony also said 0% obstruction. Which is why we went with it. After my second payment it said pending for the obstruction. My TA looked into it and RC told her it was a glitch in their invoicing system. She felt awful and told them "I can't tell my client that!" ... We are not blaming anyone and hope we still get a decent view even if it is obstructed. Hopefully not one of the ones with two lifeboats and a metal rod, but even if it is, I'm going to make the most of it but i hope it worked/works out for you! Safe travels! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruin Steve Posted July 15, 2023 Report Share Posted July 15, 2023 They DO have different codes for different guarantees. Yes, those DO exist. For my Quantum cruise next month, we booked three cabins in what is termed on our invoice as a "4D Ocean View Balcony Guarantee"...Meaning they could not (or should not) assign us any of the "E" (Obstructed) categories. What we were eventually assigned were three midship Deck 13 cabins, all labeled "Category 1D"... Royal does NOT consider them as "Obstructed"--even though some of us might...they have the issues of that overly large overhang and the support poles. Obviously nowhere near as bad as Deck 6 cabins with large lifeboats and support structures smack in front of the balcony. As far as Rpyal is concerned, the 1D cabin is an "upgrade" over our 4D guarantee. The only way to avoid tht issue is to book where you csn choose your own particular cabin. Unfortunately, that is not always possible. But, if available and the price differential is not great, I would recommend doing that--especially on certan ships. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCIfan1912 Posted July 15, 2023 Report Share Posted July 15, 2023 We booked our first GTY balcony for this October. My invoice says % obstructed view pending. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jo123 Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 I came up with the same situation. We booked a cruise on an earlier cruise and we were repeatedly promised by the sales lady on the ship that we would be allocated a balcony cabin with non obstructed view. It is clearly said that 0% obstructed in the confirmation invoice after we paid deposit. However, we checked in a few days ago and found the 0% obstructed was removed from the invoice that was issued after we checked in. We rang RC customer service and were told that most likely we would be assigned a cabin with obstructed view. If we wanted a non obstructed view cabin, we have to pay a quite significant amount of fee to have an upgrade to a non obstructed view cabin. I believe we were misled by the sales lady and it is a cheating behaviour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mturk Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 Just took a look at the cruise vacation receipt from our January Oasis cruise which we booked as a suite GTY. Under obstructed view, it showed as pending. RCIfan1912 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 9 hours ago, Mturk said: Just took a look at the cruise vacation receipt from our January Oasis cruise which we booked as a suite GTY. Under obstructed view, it showed as pending. They recently changed the confirmations to show "pending" b/c there were a number of issues with peoples' original confirmations showing 0% and then later being assigned some degree of obstructed view. RCIfan1912 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCIfan1912 Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 I'd have to do look again but I'm pretty sure on our next cruise in a spacious promenade view it says obstruction. They most put that there as a default? Indeed it says obstruction view 0%. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 I think it has to do with the GTY categories. If they know for sure that there's an obstruction, they will note it but if the room hasn't been assigned yet and there's still a chance that your GTY will be an obstructed or partially obstructed room, they now show "pending". RCIfan1912 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolly Ogre Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 On 5/9/2023 at 9:43 AM, Rmar2023 said: Hi All- I booked a Euro cruise almost 10 months ago. We are really excited. However much to my dismay, Royal Caribbean didn't honor their 0% obstruction guarantee. I got a room assigned this week and a bit upset. My group was split up to different ends of the ship. Not great, but part of the nuisance of booking a guarantee. However, the thing I am upset about is that I booked a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction and I was given a obstructed view. Seeing as I paid $5k for this cruise, I find this very upsetting. No one knows anything at Royal Caribbean and can't do anything for me. Evidently booking a balcony guarantee with 0% obstruction means nothing. I paid extra to make sure I was given 0% obstruction. Am I pretty much screwed at this point? Sailing is less than 25 days out. I have called, emailed, tweeted, everything you can think off. So how much was it obstructed? How was the cruise? Did this ruin the cruise? RCIfan1912 and TXCoastPatriot 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCIfan1912 Posted April 3 Report Share Posted April 3 17 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said: I think it to do with the GTY categories. If they know for sure that there's an obstruction, they will note it but if the room hasn't been assigned yet and there's still a chance that your GTY will be an obstructed or partially obstructed room, they now show "pending". Right, that's the part I forgot about. We don't have a GTY. We chose our cabin. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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