Ncl's "invitation to bid program" is a joke!

[jannyflo2]

My TA seems to be participating, but my biggest gripe is that I can't pick the cabin I want. I always could with the Upsell dept. If I didn't care about the cabin, I'd just book a last minute guaranteed. No way am I paying extra for a mystery cabin.

 

 

I love the idea. It works out well if you want Haven suites and are already booked in the Haven.

 

 

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[Letsgo 2]

Let me first say I have been on over 11 cruise's in the last 9 years and have enjoyed them all. Recently booked a ncl getaway in july 2016 and had a great time.wonderful ship very impressed. We booked another cruise for feb 2017 and we have heard about there "invitation to bid program" .seen on forums here where people were bidding and getting fantastic upgrades for a nominal fair. I had not received any word so called out travel agent who said she did not know anything about it and would check it out. Well I just took the matter on myself and contacted NCL today to be told that the travel agencys are not part of that program and was told in a round about way we should have booked directly thru them. VERY DISAPPOINTED!

I have booked cruises with competitors and always got a call at some point to upgrade if cabins were available even though I booked thru travel agency.I guess they dont think that the travel agents are thier friends anymore and I hope the agencies start recommending other linee. I know I sure will so much for my Latitudes points thats a JOKE.

Its a shame that my money is not the same as someone elses and this is the last time we book with NCL. Back to Royal and carnival for us.:mad:

 

You should probably ask your TA why he or she does not want to involved with the upgrade program ? enjoy your cruises on RC and C, sometime you just cant always get what you want .

[jannyflo2]

You should probably ask your TA why he or she does not want to involved with the upgrade program ? enjoy your cruises on RC and C, sometime you just cant always get what you want .

 

 

It seems as though your TA is the one who you should be mad at. There are tons of folks on here who have had successful bids using TAs. It is a great program, your TA is the one ruining it for you.

 

 

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[Love.II.Cruise]

Hmmm... When I book a cruise, I book the best room I can afford, anything after that's a bonus. NCL isn't to blame for this. Get what you want the first time and don't depend on an upgrade or freebie.

 

Agree!!

[AlbertaCruisers]

This thread was posted during the pilot program period. Since that time, NCL has moved bidding totally online, no longer requiring TA to handle upgrade emails. 80 days before cruise, you get a banner on your MyNCL page to bid (note, all ships are still not part of the bidding program and you still have to call the upsell dept if you want an upsel).

 

Where about should the banner appear on your MyNCL page?

 

Thanks for any help.

 

Sue

[ps4125]

You didn't miss anything. It's NOT nominal. You basically Have to bid what you would have paid if you would have booked the Haven to start with if you expect to "win."

[jannyflo2]

You didn't miss anything. It's NOT nominal. You basically Have to bid what you would have paid if you would have booked the Haven to start with if you expect to "win."

 

 

That is not true. I just booked and saved thousands on my upgrade. Haven suite.

 

 

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[Love.II.Cruise]

You didn't miss anything. It's NOT nominal. You basically Have to bid what you would have paid if you would have booked the Haven to start with if you expect to "win."

 

I will admit that for our cruise that is true! We bid for the Haven on a Transatlantic and got it last year. This year, we booked it out right for the same price, but got all the perks! I think someone could easily overbid rather than booking out right if not careful.

[jannyflo2]

I will admit that for our cruise that is true! We bid for the Haven on a Transatlantic and got it last year. This year, we booked it out right for the same price, but got all the perks! I think someone could easily overbid rather than booking out right if not careful.

 

 

We booked in the Haven initially so we got all perks and literally saved a few thousand off of our H3.

 

 

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[BirdTravels]

Where about should the banner appear on your MyNCL page?

 

Thanks for any help.

 

Sue

 

Sue, as soon as you log on to your cruise, where the top of the screen say give you "advertisements" to Time to Book Your Dining, Time to Book your Shore Excursion, Time to Book your Drinks Packages, you would see the ad shown in Post #41 where it is Time to Get you Upgraded.

[AlbertaCruisers]

Sue, as soon as you log on to your cruise, where the top of the screen say give you "advertisements" to Time to Book Your Dining, Time to Book your Shore Excursion, Time to Book your Drinks Packages, you would see the ad shown in Post #41 where it is Time to Get you Upgraded.

 

Thanks!

[tcrandal]

I played the lottery last night and didn't win. I'm really pissed, they said if I had a dollar and a dream..

[Love.II.Cruise]

Book the room you want and can afford, anything afterwards is a dream.

[jannyflo2]

Book the room you want and can afford, anything afterwards is a dream.

 

 

True.

 

 

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[Jaynepf]

I upsold to Garden Villa 2 months ago on Dawn 2k first 2 guests 3 and 4 free. Total cost for six 1k each. Best deal and cruise of a life time

 

 

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Hi CRAustin,

 

I'm on the Dawn to Bermuda in July and just received the upgrade email. I'm currently in the Owner's Suite with two balconies (SB) which I've stayed in previously and enjoy. The email said "here are some upgrade options" and it only listed the Garden Villa.

 

I have a very silly question, I just want to confirm that's the suite I would be bidding on and not a Deluxe Owner's Suite (SA) which doesn't have a balcony? I assume that's the case since the (SA) wasn't listed as an option in the email and I actually think the SA is a less desirable suite than what I'm currently in (no balcony).

 

Also, the website says the Garden Villa is sold out....however would they offer the bidding if it is indeed sold out? Lists the Minimum bid $1000 per first two guests....that's what you did and got it!!! amazing!!!

 

Thanks for any info you can provide -I can only imagine how amazing it is....any negatives you'd report about the garden villa?

 

Thx!

Jayne

[hawkeyetlse]

I have a very silly question, I just want to confirm that's the suite I would be bidding on and not a Deluxe Owner's Suite (SA) which doesn't have a balcony? I assume that's the case since the (SA) wasn't listed as an option in the email and I actually think the SA is a less desirable suite than what I'm currently in (no balcony).

If you actually make a bid, it will be for a specific category. They won't accept your bid for the GV and then give you a lesser category like a DOS.

 

As for whether or not the GV is actually available on your sailing for someone to upgrade into, who knows. NCL knows more than anyone else, but even they can be surprised by a late cancellation. So they could be taking bids just in case. Or even just to collect market data about what people are willing to bid… They make no promise that anyone will actually win the bidding.

[dexddd]

Hi CRAustin,

 

I'm on the Dawn to Bermuda in July and just received the upgrade email. I'm currently in the Owner's Suite with two balconies (SB) which I've stayed in previously and enjoy. The email said "here are some upgrade options" and it only listed the Garden Villa.

 

I have a very silly question, I just want to confirm that's the suite I would be bidding on and not a Deluxe Owner's Suite (SA) which doesn't have a balcony? I assume that's the case since the (SA) wasn't listed as an option in the email and I actually think the SA is a less desirable suite than what I'm currently in (no balcony).

 

Also, the website says the Garden Villa is sold out....however would they offer the bidding if it is indeed sold out? Lists the Minimum bid $1000 per first two guests....that's what you did and got it!!! amazing!!!

 

Thanks for any info you can provide -I can only imagine how amazing it is....any negatives you'd report about the garden villa?

 

Thx!

Jayne

 

The DOS on Star and Dawn are kind of weird - they added those a few years ago after taking out the Spinnaker lounge. NCL in their wisdom figured out why not add them as DOS despite not having a balcony as a category better than OS.

 

They are nice rooms as we've stayed in them as well as the OS on Dawn but yes, they do typically sell for less than the OS and often around or less than the S4.

 

But as said, if you are bidding on a set category, they won't downgrade you and others have reported being offered to bid on categories currently sold out.

[garycarla]

....I have booked cruises with competitors and always got a call at some point to upgrade ...

 

We have been on 20 cruises and never got a call to upgrade. I am not mad or upset.

 

 

Poster is being unreasonable and crying over nothing. He got the cabin be booked.

[lundsie]

I booked my upcoming cruise through a travel agent and was giving the option to upgrade. They emailed me directly before my travel agent could even tell me about it.

[dd likes to cruise]

Thanks for this explanation. I don't know how many bids are actually made and accepted, but it seems like a losing deal for the TA most of the time…

 

Why is a losing deal? They got their commision. All they have to do is forward the email to the passengers.

[hawkeyetlse]

Why is a losing deal? They got their commision. All they have to do is forward the email to the passengers.

I was responding to the information from Loonbeam, who seemed to say that in order to participate in the program, a TA has to accept a lower commission rate on NCL bookings. So unless a lot of their customers bid for upgrades and actually have their bids accepted, the TA earns less than before. (Depends on the actual numbers, probably different for different TAs, they don't all have the same agreement with NCL) Edited May 15, 2017 by hawkeyetlse

[alexgtp]

I received an invitation to "upgrade" and I purchased thru a TA. So I am not disappointed :-)

[Cruise_4_All]

As a TA for a niche market agency, I have to say that the NCL bid program is fine for us. Upgrades can be had closer in for less than the price when initially booked. I have booked approx. 50 cabins year to date on NCL - no complaints from those who were contacted for the upgrade bid. A word of advice - complete pre-reg early to get in on the action.

 

And for those that book directly with a cruiseline, thinking that they are getting better service or pricing - time for you to find a new TA...We work for you - cruiseline reps work for the cruiseline. Agencies get the same offers from the lines - and more based on specific suppliers. There is not one offer you can get from a cruiseline that a TA cannot get as well.

[Maraprince]

Don't mind paying the difference to upgrade but I want to pick my exact cabin and not let NCL choose it. Not an option under the new bidding program.

 

MARAPRINCE

[uneamie]

Does anyone actually read through the post? I usually read a good portion of them so that I don't give advice or an answer that was already given. Why are so many people telling this OP that it's their TA's fault, not NCL? One or 2 responses to that are sufficient, aren't they? ugh!