Guaranteed Staterooms on a Disney Cruise

Wondering if Guaranteed Staterooms on a Disney Cruise are the best kept secret ever? They are! Perfect for getting a cheap cruise room onboard a Disney Cruise Ship, if you can deal with a few restrictions and rules, you’ll be thrilled with what you get! Because, let’s face it, a vacation with Disney Cruise Line can be expensive. Especially when compared to other cruise lines. In truth a DCL cruise are some of the most expensive cruises you will find. It’s not impossible to save money on a Disney Cruise. You just have to know where to look. Say hello to the best kept secret on the high seas. Here’s everything to know about Guaranteed Staterooms on a Disney Cruise and how to get them. 

What is a Guaranteed Stateroom on a Disney Cruise?

Guaranteed Staterooms are a bit of a mystery to most. They’re not for everyone, but they can save you a ton of money. The way that they work is, you choose the category of your room, and then Disney chooses the room. Easy right? Well, it does get a little more complicated with that, as there are restrictions and rules that go along with it. But if you’re ok with not choosing your room, then this may be a great solution for you. Especially when it comes to booking a Disney Cruise on a budget. Think of it like booking a hotel. You don’t get to choose your room, the hotel does. It’s the same idea. 

Disney Cruise Guaranteed Staterooms Categories

So, what Guaranteed Staterooms on a Disney Cruise do you get to choose from? Keep in mind that each Disney Cruise Sailing will have different options available, as it all depends on how full the ship is, and what rooms they’ve allotted as guaranteed. That said, for the most part you can always choose a Guaranteed Stateroom from one of 3 Categories; Inside, Oceanview or Verandah. Remember, Disney cruise Guaranteed Staterooms aren’t different from any other rooms on the ship, they are simply groups of rooms allotted in each category available for Guaranteed Booking. As always Disney assigns the room. Sometimes there is an option to choose more specific room types, like a Deluxe Family Oceanview stateroom, but this isn’t always the case.  It just depends on what Disney is offering at the time!

Inside

Inside staterooms are made for 3 to 5 Guests with a queen bed, sofa bed and a drop down bed. There aren’t any windows, as it’s completely on the inside part of the ship. The bathroom includes the toilet, sink and shower together, unlike the larger rooms which separate these features. On the Disney Magic, Wonder, Fantasy and Dream, inside staterooms have a “Magic Porthole” features, which gives you digital outside views. 

Oceanview

Oceanview Rooms also sleep 3 to 5 Guests with a queen bed, sofa bed and a drop down bed. They come with a double bathroom setup that allows for a toilet and sink in one room, and a shower and sink in the other. These rooms offer either one large porthole or two smaller portholes, so you can see out to the ocean. 

Verandah 

The rooms with a verandah are made for 3 to 5 Guests with a queen bed, sofa bed and a drop down bed. Verandah rooms also have the double bathroom layout. They offer private balconies, so that you can look out on the water and come with a little table and two chairs. 

Disney Guaranteed Stateroom Cons

While we LOVE the chance to save money there may be some things in this cons list that you don’t love. Honestly, when we’ve stayed in a Guaranteed Stateroom, we’ve been happy with our room. And in one case, we were even upgraded! This is probably more rare of a situation but it can happen. That said, here are a few things to consider when booking a Guaranteed Stateroom on a Disney Cruise. 

You Don’t Get To Choose your Own Room

Generally, when booking a cruise, you get to pick your room, just like you would choose a seat on a plane. As a result lot of people like being able to choose their exact room on a Disney Cruise. Some even have a room they’ve previously stayed in that they want to return to. While every room in a certain Disney Cruise Stateroom Category will have the same layout and amenities, the location of each will be different. 

You Don’t Get to Choose Which Deck You’re On

Some people want to pick exactly what deck they’re on. This helps if you want to be near the elevators, or higher or lower on the ship, which could help with seasickness. Whether  your room is at the front or back of the ship, or near the Fitness Center. If you’re hoping to pick a room close to the action on the main decks, so you’re not walking flights of stairs, you don’t get that choice here. Things like whether you want to be on the AFT or Forward, or near the kid’s club, isn’t up to you. 

You Can’t Research the Room Beforehand

People often want to see if there are any potential issues with their room beforehand. Which is why we share so many videos of Disney Cruise Room Tours on our YouTube Channel.  The Guaranteed Stateroom rate takes all of those options away. Of course, that’s not necessarily a bad thing! And if you’re a first-time cruiser, you may or may not have any preference in the matter. 

Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom Booking

Guaranteed Staterooms are not available on every Disney Cruise. Disney actually uses this as a way to attract guests on cruises that they may be having a hard time filling. So, if you want to cruise to Alaska in May, which is considered the slower portion of the Alaska cruising season, you may be able to find a Guaranteed Stateroom.  Or maybe you’re looking for a cruise to the Caribbean during Hurricane Season, a Guaranteed Stateroom may be available. The same goes for any cruise sailing out of a port that isn’t Port Canaveral. Disney sometimes has a hard time filling these types of cruises, and so they introduce the Guaranteed Stateroom offer. 

1. To find a Guaranteed Stateroom, select the cruise you’re interested in on the Disney Cruise Line website.
2. From there, select the type of stateroom you’d like. When you reach the screen, you’ll be able to see if a Guaranteed Stateroom is available for that sailing.

How Early Can you Book a Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom?

Guaranteed Staterooms on a Disney Cruise don’t usually become available until the sailing date gets closer, but I’ve seen them pop up as early as 6 months out. Usually these are easier to find when the date gets closer to the 4-month sail date, as this usually constitutes it being a “last minute” cruise. From my experience, once that final payment date has passed for guests already booked on the Cruise, that’s when Guaranteed Staterooms start to show up. 

Who shouldn’t book a Guaranteed Stateroom Rate?

Okay, now that you have an idea of what a Guaranteed Stateroom is, let’s talk about who this kind of room may not be good for. 

• If you’re traveling with a large party and would like your rooms to be close to each other, then you’ll be better off booking specific rooms, so you can make sure they adjoin or are near each other.
• Or if you need a wheelchair accessible room, then you’ll also want to make sure you can secure that type of room without leaving it up to Disney.
• And if you have a specific thing that’s non-negotiable, like being on deck 8, or having a large verandah, then you’ll also want to skip out on this type of rate. 

Lastly, keep in mind, these rates tend to fall more on the last-minute side of things. If you need to give your job a lengthy notice for time off work, then you’re best off booking a cruise on a date you know works for you, rather than waiting to see if the sailing of your choice ends up having this type of savings available. 

Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom Restrictions

Guaranteed Staterooms aren’t for everyone. Not only do you not get to choose your room, but there are also a lot of rules. So if you’re seeing a Guaranteed Verandah Stateroom with Restrictions that is a “Guaranteed Stateroom” offer. Note in the picture above that room rate is significantly lower than those without restriction. Also be aware that some rooms are offered because of an “Obstructed View”. Note that a view that the obstructed view is disclosed, so that’s helpful. 

• Once you get assigned your room, you can’t change it.
• Full payment is due at the time of booking for Guaranteed Staterooms. You’ll also have to pay in full upfront regardless of how far ahead of time you’re planning your cruise. 
• Sail date and stateroom category changes are not permitted.
• Guaranteed Staterooms are non-refundable. Now if you get the Vacation Protection Plan, or another form of travel insurance, you may be able to be able to recoup the costs should you need to cancel.
• The Guaranteed Stateroom offer isn’t able to be combined with any other Disney Sale offers. So, if you were hoping to use your 10% off a future cruise onboard offer from a previous cruise, this type of fare isn’t eligible for that.
• Full legal names of all Guests are required at time of booking and no name changes are allowed.
• Rooms are assigned about 1-2 weeks before your cruise, so you won’t know the exact room number until then.
• Guaranteed Staterooms are only available for new bookings. So, you can’t take an existing reservation and have it switched to a Guaranteed Rate without penalty. 

Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom Savings

The biggest reason to book a Guaranteed Stateroom on a Disney Cruise is the Cost. So, how much money can you save on a Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom? It varies! You can save hundreds, and sometimes even thousands. Yes, thousands of dollars, I’m not kidding! The Guaranteed Stateroom we previously booked was over $2000 cheaper than the same category stateroom if we had chosen our room. These rooms may not be for everyone, but if you’re willing to take the risk, it can really pay off. You can see a few examples of the savings you can get with Guaranteed Rates in the photos above. 

Disney Cruise Guaranteed Stateroom Review

Overall, we’ve had good luck with Guaranteed Staterooms. If you’re not someone who needs to plan your vacations really far out then this is a good choice. Or if you don’t really care about where you stay on your Disney Cruise Vacation, then a Guaranteed Stateroom is a great option. And a great way to get onboard DCL for less. Being able to save that much on your rooms means more money for Disney port excursions. Plus extra money for onboard fun and even just more money in the bank. For some, it could even mean the difference between being able to go or not. And to that, we say book the Guaranteed Stateroom. You may be pleasantly surprised!