Upgrades

Hi everyone! My husband and I have been on 12 or so Oceania cruises; we've never relied upon the chance of an upgrade due to having strong preferences to be midship on trips with multiple sea days. As we consider some cruises that are not as sea day intensive, I've been thinking of booking in the lowest category acceptable to us and seeing if we score an upgrade. I know upgrades are never a sure thing, but I am wondering if any of you use a similar strategy? Thanks for sharing any experiences you may have had 😊

I usually book the Cabin I will be happy with

If I get an upgrade I ask where it is on the ship ..not all upgrades are better ;)

You will probably get an upsell offer before an upgrade

Unless you are sailing on an inland waterway there is always a chance of bumpy seas

Upgrades are not unheard of on Oceania, but an Up-sell is far more common.

The trouble is, folks who desire upgrades have to sit through the up-selling process first, and that requires nerves of steel, unless one really would be just as happy in that base level cabin.

Beyond that, it is matter of where you "buy in". Cabins usually get offered deals for moving into more desirable cabins, while Suites get deals to move up into larger, more desireable Suites

If you use a Travel Agent, Upsell AND Upgrade offers are made through them, and the offers are extremely time sensitive. It is important to keep the Agent "in the loop" as regards what type of deal you are hoping for and what your budget is.

Something along the lines of, "If they offer us an A for $200pp or less, accept it immediately".

On a personal, purely antidotal note, while having received numerous upsell offers, I have never received an upgrade offer on the same cruise. The only upgrade offers I have ever received involved taking a completely different cruise from which I was originally booked on.

We just received an offer to downsell our veranda on next week's cruise.

It was for an obscene amount of money.

We declined.

We had the same in June but we accepted ... we won't do so again, however! That's because we immediately regretted accepting the bribe ... still, we have to say that while we are used to suites, the B1 we were in worked out quite well. Yes, we gave up some privileges we are used to ... but we survived!

That obscene amount of money we accepted pretty much paid for a Vista on our next cruise ...

Mura

There is m to be blunt, no strategy its all pretty much random luck...

For an Upgrade ...free !!!! Not likely

For an up sell within, usually the same catagory ( rarely will you see an up sell like from a oceanview to a Penthouse.. Because, if you notice when cruises are listed the top catagories PH and above get booked almost instantly... Your chance of getting one is slim to none

Pick the cabin you like and dont look back if it happens great it not no big deal Remember as was said its your agent that will get the offer not you. No agent booked direct? Forget any deal in that case.

As far as accepting a down grade... well consider the goal is to be on a ship traveling to fun places, and a cabin is really only needed for a bed and a bathroom... space is relative The passenger in the cheapest inside sleeps just as well as the passenger in the owners suite, use the same water for a shower and have the same size toilet... If the amount offered will pay for another cruise you want.... take it

Just got more obscene, we took it.

How obscene?

I'm just curious as to whether you got more than we did!

Send me an email ... or don't ...

Based on our experience, depending on where you end up ... it isn't so bad!

Mura

Lucky you, Marsha and Lou!!!

Never heard of a down sell--so is it a cash offer to downgrade, or OBC? How FAR is the downgrade? Since the usual bookings start showing sold out on suites and insides, do they offer just a one-level downgrade or much more? Fascinating stuff!

And, can you tell tour TA you would accept a downgrade for, say, $500pp?

I can't speak for Lou and Marsha but in our case we downgraded from a PH2 to a B2 on a 21 day cruise (CPH to Southampton on Nautica) for $20,700. This amount was returned to our credit card that we'd used for final payment.

In the end they upgraded us up to a B1 for no additional payment. Probably the difference was $100pp for that change.

Most people don't announce what they have received in such situations, but a few people that I've seen posting here have mentioned similar amounts to what we accepted. But probably more usually it's for less.

I would think that the length of the cruise is a factor ... Not to mention how many guarantees have to be given a cabin.

Since common advice is to tell your TA what you would accept for an upsell, I don't see why you couldn't do the same regarding a downsell!

Mura

I can't speak for Lou and Marsha but in our case we downgraded from a PH2 to a B2 on a 21 day cruise (CPH to Southampton on Nautica) for $20,700. This amount was returned to our credit card that we'd used for final payment.

 

In the end they upgraded us up to a B1 for no additional payment. Probably the difference was $100pp for that change.

 

Most people don't announce what they have received in such situations, but a few people that I've seen posting here have mentioned similar amounts to what we accepted. But probably more usually it's for less.

 

I would think that the length of the cruise is a factor ... Not to mention how many guarantees have to be given a cabin.

 

Since common advice is to tell your TA what you would accept for an upsell, I don't see why you couldn't do the same regarding a downsell!

 

Mura

Without knowing what you paid originally and how much the B2 was when you took the offer it's hard to really know how good that was.

True enough. We ended up paying $4K with the refund.

We checked what the original fares were when we booked and while I don't recall exactly what we found, it was more like $11K for that B2 to begin with.

We booked our PH a day after final payment ... at that time the prices between the PH and the B2 were not far apart at all.

I think we did well ...

Mura

Still, your point is well taken! Before you accept such an offer you need to figure out the real differences!

True enough. We ended up paying $4K with the refund.

 

We checked what the original fares were when we booked and while I don't recall exactly what we found, it was more like $11K for that B2 to begin with.

 

We booked our PH a day after final payment ... at that time the prices between the PH and the B2 were not far apart at all.

 

I think we did well ...

 

Mura

 

 

Still, your point is well taken! Before you accept such an offer you need to figure out the real differences!

I'd of been all over that offer.

Hi Mura -

That is a deal I wouldn't need to think twice about...

Joe

We also had a lucrative down sell on a cruise. 14000 plus. Brought our per diem down to 125 pp per day. And we had our ta negotiate vigorously. If they really need your cabin you call the shots

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

As a number of people frequently say, be sure that you'll be happy with the cabin you end up with. We actually thought we wouldn't be happy in a B1 largely because when we first sailed on Renaissance we were in standard veranda cabins and mostly were bothered by the bathroom. The room itself was okay, just not as roomy as we would like. In the end, we found it just fine. Especially when we counted our shekels.

Back to Orv's comment regarding the difference between the original price and the final price, just as it's important to know how valuable an upsell will be, likewise with the downsell. It's a good idea to keep track of those prices when you book just so you will know if you get an offer. (Unless, of course, you know you're never going to accept such an offer!)

It's also good to let your TA know what you'd be willing to accept in a downsell, just as you should let the TA know if you're interested in an upsell.

Had never heard of downsells before reviewing this thread. We just received an upgrade on our upcoming 28 day Amazon river cruise on Sirena. This cruise has been slow filling up probably due to Zika concerns and initial poor reviews of the Sirena. I have been keeping a close watch on prices on both Oceania's web site and other travel sites. As soon as I saw the expected drop in price I called our TA to see if she could negotiate an upgrade. Within 24 hours we were upgraded from an outside cabin to an A1 concierge stateroom with an additional $1000 OBC. A first for us. I was a little concerned about how we would spend the additional $1000 but my wife assures me that it will not be a problem.

I'd of been all over that offer.

Funny, because I just got an obscene e-mail offering me almost 5 figures to give up my PH on insignia.... and get a veranda too!!!

After figuring the fares getting the cash AND veranda both in the offer..... The cruise for 17 days really only is costing me about $680.00 total !!!

or $340pp thats $20 pp a day..... for a 17 day cruise, that includes prepaid gratuities,$544+ about $600 obc,+ 5 shore excursions. worth $1350.. and internet... which actually means I turn a profit...and not a small one.

This is the first cruise where I actually am getting paid to take the cruise ..... wonder if I will get a 1099 ???

Our cruise is about 3 weeks away and we received a down-sell offer today. We are in a PH3 on the Marina and they offered us $5,022 to take a concierge. Deciding what to do but I am inclined to keep the PH.

All I can say is that we accepted a similar downgrade for our June cruise on Nautica (CPH-Southampton) but it was for MUCH MORE $$$. (That was a 21 day cruise.)

We didn't mind the downgrade, but I would advise you to wait for a better offer!

Only you can decide if the offer made is worth it to you for the smaller space. In our case, we went from a PH to a B2 (upgraded later at no cost to a B1) but we didn't have the concierge benefits. Now, many people will say the concierge benefits aren't worth that much, especially not when compared to the PH benefits!

We had never been in a Deck 6 veranda although when we took our first Renaissance cruise we were in a Deck 7 veranda. The same room. I remembered being frustrated with the small shower back then, which is one reason why more recently we've been in suites. This time -- I anticipated frustration with the shower -- but the shower didn't bother me. Trying to dry off in a miniscule space after my shower DID.

Actually, I concluded that the bathroom in the Deck 6/7 verandas (and I assume the lower level cabins) is really the size of a nice walk-in shower. Unfortunately, you need more than just the shower in your bathroom!

But I reiterate: neither of us was unhappy with the space that we had (contrary to our expectations since we immediately had sellers' remorse) and although we decided not to take a future offer ... the money we saved is paying for our Vista on Sirena's BCN-NYC cruise in October.

Then again, I think that as with upsell offers, you need to respond quickly to downsell offers. (I'm remembering I recommended that you hold off!)

The minute we accepted the offer our PH was gone ...

Hope this helps!

Mura

P.S. One last comment ... Sitatraveler mentioned they had turned down a similar offer, and then a better one came in that they did accept. I don't know the details (!) but suspect that their experience confirms that I suggested at the outset that you can wait to accept until a better offer comes by. Will the $5K satisfy you? Then take it.

This has been an eye-opening thread. I'd never heard of downsells before.

If there is a strategy it would be book a PH3 as a guarantee and with a waitlist active....

Be careful what you joke about, Dan, that type of "strategizing" can get a person banned for life from Oceania Cruises. :eek:

Of the five people that I know of who made the persona non grata list, three got caught trying to play the revenue game.

I had a mentor, very early in my life, who always said, "If you want to get cut off at the knees, mess with peoples' money".

Be careful what you joke about, Dan, that type of "strategizing" can get a person banned for life from Oceania Cruises. :eek:

 

Of the five people that I know of who made the persona non grata list, three got caught trying to play the revenue game.

 

I had a mentor, very early in my life, who always said, "If you want to get cut off at the knees, mess with peoples' money".

I dont play to tilt the system...Thanks for cluing me in on possible misinterpretation.

What happened to me, I am still trying to figure out... because I had no warning or indication or premonition ...

The whole thing happened like a bolt of lightning.... and I am still amazed it even happened

. Have my next 3 cruises paid for....assigned cabin... all is well .low profile..

Hey O has been very good to me and intend to respect and support whatever they do or how they do it....Just happy to be on board