Thread: Do you always have to have 8 cabins to do a group?

I have been told in some cases that you can do a group cruise with as little as 5 cabins is this true? Or does it have to be 8?

It could depend on a few things.
One being the ratio needed. Some Cruise lines have accelerated TC's on right now. Where you would need 1/10 meaning 5 cabins double occupancy.

Different companies work that differently too.
1 for 10 means the 6th cabin booked earns the free berth.
Amenity points, if available can also be used to bring down the number of full fare berths required to earn a free berth. I say full fare meaning 1st and 2nd in the cabin. 3rd and 4th or upper berth passengers as they are sometimes referred to, are not counted toward the TC.

In general, the cruiselines request 8 cabins minimum. BUT! Most will honor the group rate even if there aren't 8 cabins booked at final payment, but they won't honor the amenities.

Carnival is currently having a huge group special, where the ratio is much lower! If you are planning a group...make sure your TA checks the special TC list for your date...or maybe alter your date.

Also, most cruiselines let you earn more than one "free berth" per group...

Actually the group amenities that are assigned to the passenger will be protected even if the minimum number of cabins are not achieved. For instance if the amenity points are used for an on board credit, champagne, upgrades or other amenities assigned to the passenger, they will be protected. If the amenity points are used for a bonus commission, marketing fund or other amenity that is assigned to the travel agent, they would not be protected.

Keep in mind that you really don't get a 'free cruise' or a 'free berth'. This is a misconception and really not explained properly.

The cruise line will give you a Tour Credit (TC), which is equivalent of the cruise portion only - this does not count the port fees, taxes, or fuel supplement. (The advertised rate includes the cruise fare and port fees, whereas the TC is based on cruise fare only.) This Tour Credit is also calculated based on the largest number of cabins purchased. For example; if you booked 2 balcony cabins, 2 oceanview cabins, and 3 inside cabins, then the Tour Credit would be the cruise fare equal to an inside cabin. You can use this TC and apply it towards your cruise, thereby reducing your rate, or apply it across the board and let everyone in the group get a piece of the action.

But the 1 for 8, or 1 for 5 does vary depending on the cruise line, ship, itinerary, and dates. Obviously, the peak season will provide the least possibilities and the slow season will afford the best options.

It's always best to book something like this through your agent, as they can assist you with all the possibilities and options.

Pete

And also with Carnival, the TC, if more than 1, will be given in sometimes more than 1 category. On my Spirit CLF group, since we had a wide variety of cabins categories, they were given in 2 different categories. Some of the cruise lines will assign multiple TC's to the single category that has the most cabins booked, others like Carnival won't. That's another reason that calculating the value of a TC is so hard to do prior to finalizing the group.

Reggie

To answer the original question....

You need to have the TA open up the group space with a minimum request of 8 cabins...some of the cruise lines will honor the gifts and group amenities with as little as 5 booked cabins...some will actually honor this with 2 cabins...but if you are also wanting your TC, there must be a minimum of 8 double occupancy cabins...the 3rd and 4th passengers don't count for the calculation...there are occasions when a cruise line will lower this...The most typical is a 1 for 15...then they will sometimes do a 1 for 12 or 1 for 10...

It is best to speak with a TA that specializes in groups as there is much more involved with the organization of groups than individual reservations...

Most large agencies will secure group space on many sailings and often you can get into this space irregardless of how many people you have in your group. Thus, you get all the advantages, pricing, and amenities of being in a group without having to create one on your own from scratch. This is especially helpful if you have a small group of people (4, 6, 8) and you don't have enough to form a full-size group.

Also, you need to know that sometimes you will not be able to get group benefits on certain high-demand sailings. During peak seasons, cruise lines don't need to offer group amenities because they know they can sell all the cabins at higher prices without offering group perks. Conversely, if you travel with your group during low seasons, cruise lines will offer much better pricing and perks to encourage groups.

So, if you're considering putting a group together, you need to work with a Travel Agent or Cruise Specialist that is also a group specialist because there are many facets involved. And you do not want to try and put a group together through an online site or the cruise lines directly; there are just too many questions, problems, and details that require personal attention.

Pete