This question is directed at Paul and any other travel agent who would like to comment.<BR><BR>I have a guar. cabin and there will be 3 of us in the cabin. Last year, I got lucky and was upgraded from an inside to an outside.<BR><BR>I am assuming upgrades are based on how early you booked and what you paid for the cabin. If the price of cabins drop, they will fill up the "cheap" cabins first, and you will "move up" if you don't take advantage of the discount. <BR>I know each cruise line may do this differently. How does Carnival upgrade?

I am not a travel agent, but I recently sailed on the Carnival Pride in a guarentee cat 1a cabin (about $650 for the 7 day cruise). On the day of sailing we found out our cabin number was on the 5th floor (still interior). I am aware of another couple who also had a category 1a cabin and ended up on the 6th floor (also interior cabin).<BR><BR>It has always been my experience that if you pay for an interior cabin, you will never get upgraded to an oceanview cabin. Obviously you have experienced something different.<BR><BR>I don't know how the 3rd person in the cabin may affect the whole upgrade feature.

I know you directed your question to Paul and other TA's but if you feel capable of going to the following link, you will be able to read for yourself exactly how Carnival does upgrades: http://www.cruisenewsdaily.com/nf20206.html<BR><BR>If, however, you aren't "travel savey" as the TA's like to say, just stay tuned and I'm sure Paul and company will answer your question. Might be interesting to see if they're all the same.

3 in a cabin makes an upgrade very unlikely, as there aren`t that many of them.

I tried posting this last night and there were techinical difficulties.<BR><BR>Gale, we booked in a catagory higher than a 1a, so maybe we will get a better upgrade. I booked inside on both the Voyager and the Destiny and ended up with outside cabins, but I didn't book in the 1a catagory. You went up by 2 catagories!<BR><BR>Pat, from what I can see on the deck layout in the Carnival book, the Pride has lots of triples and quads. The little dots in the cabin indicate how many uppers are there.<BR><BR>Any travel agent insight into this would be appreciated.

Seldom, but it does occur where one will be upgraded from an inside to an outside. Most upgrades are givin at time of booking unless it is an accross-the-board upgrade.<BR><BR>I know of a couple that was upgraded from an outside to a suite because the ship was not filling. Rare.<BR><BR>A guarantee is dangerous if you are booking a triple or quad cabin. You just may receive a cabin with rollaways. This happens often. Once you receive your assignment (last minute) you can not refuse the upgrade.<BR><BR>Hint: Most people do not realize that an outside cabin on the lowest deck is better than those on the upper deck since you do not have to stand up to see the water or buildings in port. If you are on an upper deck all you will see is sky. You will have to get up and look down to see anything.<BR><BR>Paul

The problem with low cabins is that there are closer to the machinery and it can be noisie.

Cathy - again be careful of the advice from Paul. He tells you to be careful booking a gaurentee triple or quad. The cruise lines will not let you book a gaurentee triple or quad for the very reason he cautions you. Triples and quads ALWAYS get a specific cabin assignment at booking. You'd think being a travel agent extaordinare, he'd know that.

We too require cabins for four and my TA told me we couldn't use a gaurantee category. I know this because we never get considered for upgrades because of this.

We booked the cheapest room possible on RCCL's Sovereign last June. Travel agent told me she put it as guarantee and we were upgraded to a room with a window, not a port hole, a whole window! So guess it does happen.

If you booked through a travel agent, the upgrades will be based on their revenue- the more they book with that cruise line, the better the upgrades.<BR><BR>However, it is also based on the time of year you are sailing. Which ship are you going on? Carnival says they NEVER upgrade from inside to outside, but flooks have been known to happen, however, I would not expect one.<BR><BR>And if there are limited 3rd/4th cabins on that ship, upgrades to great cabins are highly unlikely.<BR><BR>

Ginger, you've got me curious now, can you book a cabin for four as a gaurantee?

<BR>Again my dear Peter. Some cruise lines will not allow guarantee triples and quads and some will.<BR><BR>Paul<BR><BR>

What about if you have an assigned cabin at a group rate? If you are a repeater, is there any chance for upgrade?

Well my dear Paul, specifically which cruise lines will let you book a gaurantee for a triple or quad? Is one of them Carnival (the line Cathy was asking about)?<BR><BR>P.A.P. - maybe all of you guys have an opinion on this subject or do you just collectively bash. Got ANY information?

Hi everyone! Thanks for the input.<BR><BR>Ginger, we did book a cabin as a triple AND as a guarentee on the Carnival Pride. We leave in less than a week (7/27 sailing). I always sail in the summer, because I teach.<BR>I know many of the older Carnival ships don't have that many triples, but if you have a copy of the Carnival Cruise book for 2002-2003, there is a detailed deck layout with cabins. Cabins are marked with dots, stars, boxes, etc. The cabins with a single dot have twin beds and one upper (triple), while the ones with two dots have two uppers, so they can fit 4 people.<BR>When I looked at the layout, I saw several triples and quads. This makes sense, since Carnival caters to families, this would make it easy for families to be in the same cabin.<BR><BR>Like I stated before,I was upgraded to an outside cabin last year on the Destiny, while I booked an inside. I did book 8 months in advance and I was wondering if the earlier you book, the more likely you are to get an upgrade, particularily if you paid a certain amount for a cabin and the prices go down before you sail.<BR><BR>Even if Carnival doesn't say it, I think that if they have a sale, they will make the sale cabins their cheapest inside cabins and move people up who have booked ahead and/or paid more.<BR><BR>Please continue to post. I would love to hear about upgrade experiences.

Again, upgrades are given at the time of booking and it does not matter whether you are a repeat passenger or not. Once you receive a cabin assignment that will be your cabin, unless, as I said, there is an across-the-board upgrade due to a ship not filling.<BR><BR>99% of the time a "guarantee" will get you an upgrade. Not necessarily to a better cabin but it will be an upgrage to a higher category. Again, "guarantees" are offered at the time of booking and for a limited time. If a "guarantee" is offered later, you are paying extra for the privelege since the guy that booked before you got the better price for that particular category.<BR><BR>Keep in mind what I said about the lower outside cabins being better than the higher ones. Now about noise: The engine room is well below the lowest passenger deck. Therefore, if you hear the engines on the first passenger deck you will also hear them on the second and third. It also means you are on a very old ship.<BR><BR>Good luck,<BR><BR>Paul

Hi everyone, I have enjoyed reading your comments. My husband and I are scheduled to go on the Carnival Pride in September 2002. We booked a guar. cabin, category 4A, my concern is that we will end up in a cabin with separate bunks. I did read, however, that all cabins have beds which can be converted to a king. Is this true? Thank you!

So Winston, let me see if I understand what you said. All the books say book with a cruise only travel agency (like yours). This is the best way to get an upgrade. <BR><BR>Wouldn't it make more sense that booking directly with Carnival would imply they would take better care of you than if you booked thru an agent?<BR><BR>But, then again, I don't read all the books that you do.

Why would anyone want to call Winston ... a jerk with no scruples.<BR><BR>He is a black mark on MyTravel and Cruiseonly agencies.<BR><BR>Paul