Has anyone who booked a Secret Porthole or Secret Verandah have it changed ?

[Cynth]

I'm wondering if Disney ever changes your cabin number before sailing? Is there a risk that someone who booked a secret porthole or verandah gets put in a regular cabin of the category they paid for?

So, I guess I'm asking if it is similar to the OGT, IGT situation. Don't book it if you can't live with the least favorable outcome.

 

[clten]

It is possible that DCL can upgrade you even if you select a cabin number. It is very rare (in our 49 cruises, it happened once - on a very underbooked Trans Atlantic). But if you've selected a cabin # and want to make sure you aren't moved, you can ask the res agent to add a comment "Do not upgrade". (When they upgraded us, they did call and ask if we wanted to be upgraded.) This will make it less likely that they will move your cabin.

That being said, if they "upgrade" you because they need to do maintenance in the cabin you selected, they will upgrade you regardless of any notes you've added.

 

[disdel]

Exactly our experience. We chose a specific 5C on the Eastbound Transatlantic in 2010. We got a call asking if we'd like to be upgraded, which we were, to a 4B. At our first night dinner, we met and learned our tablemates had done a last-minute booking for a 10C, and arrived at check-in finding out they had been upgraded to, ta-dah, OUR original 5C. That kind of pixie dust is long gone.

(BTW, having met them on that cruise, we still travel with and remain friends with them)

 

[Primeval Princess]

I've sailed 6 cruises with DCL within the past 5 years and have never had them change a specific stateroom that I had selected. They know that guests choose specific cabins for specific reasons, and they respect that. They know that the secret porthole and secret verandah rooms are highly desirable, and after you select a stateroom, they aren't going to upgrade you or otherwise change your stateroom without:

1. Contacting you and getting your consent, or
2. The stateroom having some problem (plumbing, bedbugs, etc.) that makes it uninhabitable for your cruise.

Some other cruise lines automatically upgrade certain customers to higher categories. DCL doesn't. They're big on making people pay for what they get.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

they aren't going to upgrade you or otherwise change your stateroom without:

1. Contacting you and getting your consent

You can be upgraded or moved without notification.

 

[Cynth]

You can be upgraded or moved without notification.

That's what I assumed.

Thank you. I kind of made up my mind. I won't risk getting an inside room, but I may try for a secret verandah, even if I get a navigator's verandah that would be fine with me.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

That's what I assumed.

Thank you. I kind of made up my mind. I won't risk getting an inside room, but I may try for a secret verandah, even if I get a navigator's verandah that would be fine with me.

As noted, you can place the comment "do not upgrade" on your reservation. If you do, most of the time they will not, unless the move is due to maintenance issues.

 

[ArielRae]

We booked a specific inside stateroom cabin on our last cruise and they upgraded us to a verandah stateroom. We did not get an email or a call before they changed us. We didn’t know until a few days before we cruised when we went to look online to check that everything was in order before sailing and happen to see the change.

 

[Cynth]

We booked a specific inside stateroom cabin on our last cruise and they upgraded us to a verandah stateroom. We did not get an email or a call before they changed us. We didn’t know until a few days before we cruised when we went to look online to check that everything was in order before sailing and happen to see the change.

That's a nice surprise!

 

[99Wendy]

I booked a secret porthole room on opening silver day (for our now canceled cruise )
The next day they called and wanted me to switch to a “better” room with a view on 1st deck because someone else wanted my room!, I told them I wasn’t interested because I knew what kind of room I had. I would only switch if it was a porthole room on deck 5 or higher. CM was super sweet and said she had my back and would make a note. It was super strange, I never heard back, and now I will never know if they would upgrade in the end (but I certainly wasn’t expecting it)

 

[Cynth]

I booked a secret porthole room on opening silver day (for our now canceled cruise )
The next day they called and wanted me to switch to a “better” room with a view on 1st deck because someone else wanted my room!, I told them I wasn’t interested because I knew what kind of room I had. I would only switch if it was a porthole room on deck 5 or higher. CM was super sweet and said she had my back and would make a note. It was super strange, I never heard back, and now I will never know if they would upgrade in the end (but I certainly wasn’t expecting it)

Thank you for sharing your experience. It sounds strange indeed.
I hope that whenever you reshedule, you are lucky enough to get the same room again.

 

[Quellman]

I booked a secret porthole room on opening silver day (for our now canceled cruise )
The next day they called and wanted me to switch to a “better” room with a view on 1st deck because someone else wanted my room!, I told them I wasn’t interested because I knew what kind of room I had. I would only switch if it was a porthole room on deck 5 or higher. CM was super sweet and said she had my back and would make a note. It was super strange, I never heard back, and now I will never know if they would upgrade in the end (but I certainly wasn’t expecting it)

That seems so wild. I mean I have certain rooms that I prefer, but I wouldn't expect Disney to call someone and be like, hey this guy wants your room, would you like to move?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

That seems so wild. I mean I have certain rooms that I prefer, but I wouldn't expect Disney to call someone and be like, hey this guy wants your room, would you like to move?

Well, they could do it, if the person requesting the room is part of a group reservation and they were able to get the other rooms around it, but not that one.

 

[SnowWhite2]

A room on deck 1 with an unobstructed view is much cheaper than the secret porthole rooms on deck 5. Deck 5 secret porthole rooms are usually a few hundred dollars cheaper than the Deck 5 unobstructed port hole rooms. They even have their own category. I usually sail in the secret port hole rooms all of the time. The savings is off of the unobstructed views on deck 5, not the unobstructed views on deck 1 or 2.

 

[alieila]

We were in 6134 on Magic in November 2018, and still was in that cabin! Was going to be in 6506 for June for Wonder, well you know what happen. :-(

 

[Jacq7414]

Ok so I have to ask - what’s a secret porthole or secret verandah roomv

 

[Cynth]

Secret verandah room, you book and pay a 7A navigator's verandah, but you get a normal verandah with some minor obstruction.


Secret porthole cabins are six rooms located on deck 5 which are categorized as Category 10 inside staterooms, but actually have portholes, albeit with obstructed views.

 

[ajo]

These rooms are on the Wonder and Magic.

The secret porthole rooms have an obstructed window view, so they are sold as a category 10 instead of a category 9. They are 5520, 5522, 5524, 5020, 5022, and 5024. They are near the front of the shop and the windows are blocked by the "barrels".

The secret verandah staterooms have an obstructed view, so they are sold as a category 7 instead of a category 6. They are 6134, 6634, 7120, and 7620. They are on the curvature of the ship at the back of the ship so the veranda has the regular clear railing but a whitewall blocking the top corners of the verandah.

And by the way, these rooms are usually booked on the Platinum reservations day as they are very popular!

 

[alieila]

It's very minor obstruction for the Verandah! I loved it but prefer forward over aft!

We were supposed to have our first 6506 adventure in 2 weeks, **sigh**

 

[alieila]

"And by the way, these rooms are usually booked on the Platinum reservations day as they are very popular!"

Not really, we got off of the Nov 2017 without a "placeholder" and in December 2017 booked room 6134 Magic for November 2018 Thanksgiving Cruise. We were still Silver and (with a placeholder we got in May 2018) for June 2019 for room 6506, but decided to do Fantasy for March 2019 and moved our June 2019 Alaska to March 2019, and once June 2020 was released we booked at Silver room 6506 for Alaska. At Gold we were able to book room 6506 for June 2021 for Italy/Greece.