Trifter

TBA in the cruise industry stands for To Be Assigned.    Cruise lines also use the term ‘guaranteed rate’.    It means that you book a category but no specific cabin.   At minimum you’ll get a cabin in that category but, if you are lucky, you could end up with an upgrade.

There is a very good reason why the cruise industry uses this technique. Typically, the first cabins to sell are the most expensive and the least expensive.  When all of the inexpensive cabins are sold, the remaining inventory is usually made up of the mid-priced cabins. The cruise line can have a harder time selling these as they may be competing against lower prices on other cruise lines. Enter the TBA or guaranteed rate cabin.  

By using the ‘guaranteed rate’ or ‘TBA’ method, the cruise line always has an inexpensive cabin ‘available’.

When you make a TBA reservation, you receive your cabin assignment just before sailing.   It could be a week before or two weeks before or even when you check in.  You are ‘guaranteed’ to get the category you paid for or better. This way the cruise line can sell the same inexpensive cabins over and over again.    They simply move the early bookers, or past passengers, or using any of a number of other criteria, into a higher category of cabin.

If you don’t mind what cabin you end up with or where it is located on the ship, this is a great way to purchase a cruise. But, for a good price, you give up all control as the location or type of cabin you get. (Note: If you purchase an Outside category, you will NOT be given an Inside cabin. This is the only thing you can be sure of.)

For some people this works very well. For others, it doesn’t.    The one and only time I booked a TBA cabin we were, technically, upgraded but the cabin location was right near the elevators.    It was noisy at night and noisy in the early morning.    

If you care about where your cabin is located, don’t book a TBA cabin.   If you are looking to save money and, hopefully, get upgraded, a TBA cabin can work for you