Welcome aboard, Samantha! Hooray for planning your very first sailing with
Disney Cruise Line! All of my family's cruises with Captain Mickey have been memorable and wonderful, but that first cruise brought the most magic of all because everything was new to us from the moment we stepped into the atrium lobby as the Cast Members announced our family name and applauded our arrival. What a vacation you're in for!
A Guarantee or GTY stateroom is a wonderful option and way to save on your cruise if you don't mind not choosing your exact stateroom location. You'll be guaranteed a
stateroom in the category you choose, however the exact stateroom will not be determined until just before you set sail. The great benefit to choosing a GTY stateroom is that you know you'll get at least that category of stateroom, but quite often, guests are moved to a higher category stateroom at no additional cost, meaning you get a much more expensive stateroom for only the cost you agreed to for the category you chose. Not a bad deal at all!
My family and I have booked Guarantee staterooms a couple of times when they were available on our itineraries, and have had great experiences both times. I don't mind not choosing the exact location, and one of the times we ended up with a much nicer stateroom than we chose initially, so that was great!
Go ahead and take advantage of that savings if you're open to waiting until the last minute to hear which stateroom you'll be assigned, Samantha! But, if you prefer to choose the exact location and stateroom, then book that one. It really depends what you feel comfortable with.
Have so much fun planning and please stop back with any other questions you might have as you continue to plan this voyage! We're happy to help!
Marcy