1. Add Cruise from Cruise Library
If you add a cruise from the Cruise Library to the itinerary, you can select and add cabins from the ship using the "Lodging" component.
2. Drag a "New Lodging" item into the itinerary
Once you add the "New Lodging" item, you can click on it to add rooms and provide multiple cabin options.
3. Click on "Rooms"
You can add a title and then select "Rooms".
4. Click on "Search Cabins"
5. Click "Add Room" to add more room options
6. Click on "Convert to Options"
Once you have added all of the room options, click "Convert to Options" and then "Confirm".
After converting rooms to options, you must set pricing for each cabin type. Go to the Booking & Pricing tab on the lodging activity, select Per Room pricing, and enter the price for each cabin option. Without pricing, travelers will not see rates when choosing their room during signup.
7. Click on "Full Itinerary" in the top left
8. Preview the option experience by clicking "Preview" in the top right
Group trip signup flow: When a traveler clicks "Sign Up Today" on the landing page, they first see an add-ons screen where they choose which activities to include (such as the cruise cabin). After confirming their selections, the next screen presents all available cabin types to choose from. The single-item view on the first screen is expected — room selection happens on the second screen.
9. Options appear on the full itinerary
On the "Full Itinerary" view, clients will be able to click "Select Rooms".
10. You can see how your option blocks show up to clients
After clicking "Select Rooms", clients will be able to view their cabin details, select their preference, as well as add the number of cabins they would like.
Cabin Options and Packages on a Cruise Trip
How to decide when to keep cabin options as a standalone lodging item versus moving them into a cruise package, and what changes when you do.
When you're building a cruise itinerary, you'll typically add a lodging item for the cabin, then decide whether it belongs inside your cruise package or should remain as its own line item. The right choice depends on whether your client has made a selection yet.
How it works
A package in Tern represents a single charge to a single supplier. Your cruise package covers the cruise line payment — the cabin, gratuities, a dining package, and any other components your client is paying to that supplier as one transaction.
A booking (or activity) is an individual item on the itinerary. A lodging item with multiple cabin options is a booking. It can live on its own or be moved into a package.
Moving a booking into a package transfers its pricing to the package level. Any pricing you entered directly on the booking will be cleared. The package then becomes the single price point for authorization.
The decision: before or after the client chooses
If your client hasn't chosen a cabin yet:
Keep the lodging item as a standalone line item. Use Convert to Options on the lodging booking to add multiple cabin types with their individual prices. Your client sees the options, selects one, and the trip updates.
Once your client has selected a cabin and you're ready to collect authorization, you can move the lodging item into your cruise package. At that point, set the full package price (cabin + gratuities + any other inclusions) at the package level.
If your client already knows exactly which cabin they want:
You can move the lodging item directly into the package from the start and enter the full trip price at the package level.
What happens when you move a booking into a package
When you select a booking and click Change Package, Tern shows this warning:
"Booking details, commission, payments, and currency will be managed at the package level. Any existing entries—including booked status, authorizations, and payments—will be cleared."
This means:
Any price you entered directly on the booking will be removed. Enter the full price on the package instead.
The package becomes the authorization point. Your client authorizes the total package amount, not the individual booking amount.
Authorizations already collected on the booking are not lost when you move the item. If your client already authorized the cabin as a standalone booking, that authorization stays on record in the Documents tab.
Note: This behavior changed. Earlier versions of Tern did clear existing authorizations when a booking was moved into a package. That is no longer the case.
How advisors typically handle this
One approach: create your cabin option block, leave it as a standalone line item, and set up pricing on the options. Once your client picks their cabin, move the lodging item into the cruise package and enter the full package price there. This avoids any risk of pricing being cleared before you're ready.
Another approach: if the client already knows their cabin, add the lodging item directly to the package and skip the standalone step entirely.
Both workflows are valid. The key is not to enter pricing at the booking level if you plan to move the item into a package, since that pricing will be cleared.
If you used the standalone booking to collect authorization before moving to the package
The authorization you collected is preserved in the Documents tab. Even if the authorization line is no longer visible on the active booking, the PDF record is there and it documents that your client agreed to the charge, the supplier, and the cancellation terms. You do not need to re-collect authorization solely because the item moved to a package.