Need help with upgrade from inside to balcony cabin.

[cruiseagona]

We're sailing on the Star on a 14 day Panama Canal full crossing from L.A. to Miami. I've never been offered an upgrade before. Please help me figure out what offer I should put in. Thanks in advance.

[Georgia_Peaches]

I suspect you will have a lot of people weighing in on this to say there is really no rhyme or reason to the bidding process and who "wins" an upgrade.  My advice is to bid what you are comfortable with or pay for the upgrade outright so that you don't have to worry about not having your bid accepted.  If I was about to travel on this itinerary, I would definitely want a balcony if I could swing it.

[cruiseagona]

Couldn't I end up with a balcony with no view? I think they call it the "Sail Away Balcony. I wouldn't want to take a chance on that. It would be ridiculous to me to have a balcony with no view.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 minute ago, cruiseagona said:

Couldn't I end up with a balcony with no view? I think they call it the "Sail Away Balcony. I wouldn't want to take a chance on that. It would be ridiculous to me to have a balcony with no view.

I don't have experience with that as I was under the impression that even obstructed view balcony cabins have a view.  If you decide to upgrade yourself without going through the bidding process, you can most likely pick your own cabin location.

[mking8288]

Been on the Jewel, Star, Dawn & Gem - all similarly mid-sized ships in the fleet, some of the balcony might be hull balcony (semi-enclosed) - almost if not all on deck 9, 10 & 11 - could get a midship one assigned, or, get an extreme Fwd or Aft location - all of them could risk being noisy, whether it's gallery, lounge/club or from buffet/pool deck above, etc. 

It's important to some but not to all, thus, in exchange for a non-changeable GTY cabin assignment, you saved $$ - if you are successful with your bid offer. AFAIK, there aren't any obstructed balcony (look up hull balcony & reviews on YT) & regardless, it's nice to sit on the balcony & smell the fresh air, feel the ocean breeze & especially during the PC passage thru the series of "locks"   Bid with an amount of what you are comfortable with, cross your fingers & be patience. Good luck ! 

[Nola26]

You have to decide the importance and value to you. I bid the minimum on a Dawn cruise last Thanksgiving and received the upgrade. I was indifferent so win or lose I would have been happy with my inside, but I did enjoy the balcony. On a 14 day cruise I'm sure I'd appreciate being able to enjoy the sea in private from my balcony.

We have an inside for our family cruise. We prefer a bigger cabin so we'll bid, perhaps a bit higher as the ship seems to be full. If we don't get it we'll figure out the inside for the week.

I wouldn't really worry about the location unless  you have a particular aversion. With a Panama Canal cruise a balcony cabin would likely be really special, kind of like an Alaskan cruise.

Good luck with your decision and know that either cabin will likely allow you to have a wonderful cruise.

[danak13]

Echoing what another post said-if it does not matter to you either way, put in a bid you are comfortable with and just see what happens.  If you definitely know you want the balcony experience, watch the pricing of your sailing and call in to upgrade your room if a balcony prices at something you are happy with.  That's what I just did for my Thanksgiving sailing.  The price to upgrade was only $100 more than my bid so I thought it was worth it.  Little did I know, I would also get the promotions that came with it so I ended up with the dining package and $200 OBC.  I did not get to pick my balcony (so you have to be okay with taking that chance) but ended up getting assigned a great midship balcony (which was technically an upgrade from what I bought because I should have had a forward hull balcony) 

[misstamster]

wow, you also got the promotions...I want in on that deal!!!!

 

[danak13]

Just now, misstamster said:

wow, you also got the promotions...I want in on that deal!!!!

 

I know! I was really surprised. I was just planning on paying so my SO could experience a balcony for the first time and then the rep came back on the line with all of these offers! 

[sanger727]

The first thing I would do is check NCLs current prices to see what the difference is between what they are charging for a balcony guarantee now and what you paid. That will give you a starting point of what ‘value’ NCL puts in the upgrade. And if it’s a price you are willing to pay you may want to bid close to it to guarantee your upgrade. If it’s way too much, then as others said; only you can evaluate what the upgrade is worth to you and how you will feel if you lose the bid and stay in the inside, just make sure you know what the going rate for a paid upgrade is because people have bid and ended up paying more than the full price cost of the upgrade.