"Manual" Upgrade after booking

[matterdog919]

Hello All,

 

I am booked in a "Large Balcony Stateroom" - Attached a photo of  the option I chose when booking. Right now the minimum bid to upgrade to a Club Balcony is $75, which I would be fine with but I just know I'll end up in one of the rooms literally right by the elevators and would have to listen to them dinging all night. I keep  tracking every day the price to just "buy into" one of these rooms as it bounces up and down. I'm curious if anyone knows how NCL choses which rate you are buying into. I.E. right  now the sail-away is $1,299 ($50 more than I paid) and the Free-At-See version is $1,442. My guess is I would have to move into the $1,442 price. Is that the right way to think about it? Do I lose the ability to do that if the promotions have changed? I.E. Do I need to pull the trigger before the air-fare option drops off here in a couple weeks - or will they let me buy into the better cabin up until I check in irrelevant of which "Free At See" options are still being offered?

 

Thank you for the help!

 

 

[SeaShark]

One...this can only be done prior to your final payment date.

Two...the way they do this is to (at the same time) cancel your existing reservation and rebook a new reservation. You will lose any perks that came with the original booking and you will have to accept the perks available at the time of re-booking.

[ggTexasGal]

You will need to call NCL directly and ask about possibly upgrading your current booking.

They will be able to answer your questions and tell you what options are currently available for your cruise. 

Hopefully, you do realize that a CLUB BALCONY SUITE, is a just slightly large balcony room with a bigger bathroom, but very little else (meaning it does NOT receive any "Suite Perks)!

[matterdog919]

1 hour ago, SeaShark said:

One...this can only be done prior to your final payment date.

Two...the way they do this is to (at the same time) cancel your existing reservation and rebook a new reservation. You will lose any perks that came with the original booking and you will have to accept the perks available at the time of re-booking.

 

Interesting - I've always heard if you are "paying them more money" they are usually willing to upgrade you. Even if after final payment date. Normally I feel like folks due this when the price drops after their final payment date and they "upgrade" to a better cabin at current rates to prevent just a total loss on the price drop.

 

45 minutes ago, ggTexasGal said:

You will need to call NCL directly and ask about possibly upgrading your current booking.

They will be able to answer your questions and tell you what options are currently available for your cruise. 

Hopefully, you do realize that a CLUB BALCONY SUITE, is a just slightly large balcony room with a bigger bathroom, but very little else (meaning it does NOT receive any "Suite Perks)!

 

Agreed! I know it's not much different. On the epic it looks like the rooms are a chunk large and just looks a lot cleaner (has a lot more storage compartments, etc.) ... but, yes fully aware other than I think they said "Snacks Delivered to your room" at some point in the cruise. I am not expecting anything. However, for Mediterranean cruises this summer - Haven's seems to be holding their prices (and even selling out). I guess the days of extremely discounts Haven may be over. 

[TrumpyNor]

1 hour ago, matterdog919 said:

 

Interesting - I've always heard if you are "paying them more money" they are usually willing to upgrade you. Even if after final payment date. Normally I feel like folks due this when the price drops after their final payment date and they "upgrade" to a better cabin at current rates to prevent just a total loss on the price drop.

 

 

I have actually done this several times in the past - PURCHASED an upgrade after final payment, and only paying the difference between what I originally paid and the current price - and I have done great bargains on upgrades doing it that way in the past. And just paid a few dollars for the upgrade... 

I have however always gone through my regular PCC at NCL when doing this, and she is always very helpful. Just be aware that the promotional perks may be currently different than on your original booking, so you also have to count that in on the total price to do purchase a "manual" upgrade.

[coastcat]

2 hours ago, matterdog919 said:

Hello All,

 

I am booked in a "Large Balcony Stateroom" - Attached a photo of  the option I chose when booking. Right now the minimum bid to upgrade to a Club Balcony is $75, which I would be fine with but I just know I'll end up in one of the rooms literally right by the elevators and would have to listen to them dinging all night. I keep  tracking every day the price to just "buy into" one of these rooms as it bounces up and down. I'm curious if anyone knows how NCL choses which rate you are buying into. I.E. right  now the sail-away is $1,299 ($50 more than I paid) and the Free-At-See version is $1,442. My guess is I would have to move into the $1,442 price. Is that the right way to think about it? Do I lose the ability to do that if the promotions have changed? I.E. Do I need to pull the trigger before the air-fare option drops off here in a couple weeks - or will they let me buy into the better cabin up until I check in irrelevant of which "Free At See" options are still being offered?

 

Thank you for the help!

 

 

1. If you're past final payment date, you can usually buy your way into another cabin type if the new cabin's fare is more expensive than what you already paid. My last two cruises were originally booked into Studios; when the fares dropped after the final payment date, I paid to move into something with a balcony. You buy into whatever you want to buy into, as long as the fare is higher.

 

2. If you do so, you lose the perks attached to your original booking and get the current perks, for better or worse.

 

3. But... if I recall correctly you cannot buy your way upward if you used the NCL Air promo, and it sounds like you did? If so, the question is moot.

 

A Club Balcony gets two deliveries of treats (nothing spectacular), a free bag of laundry, ability to book restaurants/shows 5 days earlier, and a bottle of inexpensive sparkling wine. The shower is really nice but otherwise... I'd rather have that large balcony!

 

Another caveat is that, at least from what I'm seeing in photos of Epic, it looks like all Club Balconies have tub/showers (that look pretty deep) rather than walk-in showers. If you're petite or have knee issues, this could be less than fun. 

[BirdTravels]

2 hours ago, matterdog919 said:

.Agreed! I know it's not much different. On the epic it looks like the rooms are a chunk large and just looks a lot cleaner (has a lot more storage compartments, etc.) ... but, yes fully aware other than I think they said "Snacks Delivered to your room" at some point in the cruise. I am not expecting anything. However, for Mediterranean cruises this summer - Haven's seems to be holding their prices (and even selling out). I guess the days of extremely discounts Haven may be over. 

Snacks = a plate of cookies from the buffet. Which get moved from the desktop to trash after a few days. 

[matterdog919]

Thanks All, I did do the airfare (and NCL is currently quoting airfare for ~$400 more than when I originally booked). So sounds like it's all out of the question and I need to stick with normal upgrade bidding.

 

... that being said ...

 

I think you all convinced me I may actually be in a better situation currently anyway. With the large balcony, and my desired midship location. Although some stale cookies sound awesome, my waist is probably for the better if I have to hike up the stairs for some snacks. I'll keep my eye on the bid prices for Haven, but I'm probably staying put (for some reason the cheapest Haven to bid into is the 2 bedroom. Even though it's the most expensive to buy 🙃 can't keep up with that logic)

[Sailing12Away]

The 2 bedroom Haven rooms tend to not sell out, so they'll be available at steeper discounts. We went from an MA to one of those on the Epic and it was mind blowing the difference. That was after final payment date, and we had flights through NCL, and ended up paying about $100/person/day for the upgrade. Still had our drink package and specialty dining, so if the perks changed it didn't affect the things that mattered to us.

 

For our upcoming sailing on the Star, we've been watching prices. We're past final payment as we sail in just under a month, but prices for the suites kept dropping. Again, we originally booked an MA (no flights this time), and we had bids in for most of the suites. I called my PCC to ask what the price would be to just outright upgrade expecting her to quote me the difference in current price for the room we wanted minus what we've already paid. The price she gave us was about half of what I was expecting. Again, perks ended up being either the same or close enough for us to not notice, and we're now booked in a forward suite for less than what I was planning on bidding on it.

 

Point being - call them and ask. There's nothing that says you have to say yes and go though with it. Confirm your flights won't be affected, confirm what the final price will be - see if it's what you expected or are comfortable with, and confirm what perks you get with the new booking to make sure the ones important to you are still there.

 

Both times my reservation number never changed, so I don't think they forced me into a new booking. But as with all things NCL it all depends on who you talk to.

[NW Pacific]

We always want to be close to the elevators, they are not in the cabin hallways and don' t "ding". such a much shorter walk to our cabin,  Just my opinion

[matterdog919]

9 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

The 2 bedroom Haven rooms tend to not sell out, so they'll be available at steeper discounts. We went from an MA to one of those on the Epic and it was mind blowing the difference. That was after final payment date, and we had flights through NCL, and ended up paying about $100/person/day for the upgrade. Still had our drink package and specialty

Super Thorough and Helpful,  Thank You! Haven right now is still like $2k/person more on the web vs Bidding at like $600. I'll definitely try calling though, never know what you might get 🙂

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

I have been trying to locate on the NCL website what perks come with a "suite" outside the Haven as opposed to in the Haven.  Even tried the Q&A area.  I have not been successful.  Can anyone point me in the correct direction?  Looking at the Dawn, which has "club balcony suite" and "family suite".  Since the Haven on Dawn doesn't have the restaurant and bar, trying to figure out the differences.....TY!

[The Shrike]

IIRC, you get butler/concierge service and breakfast/lunch in either Cagney's or Moderno.

[Sailing12Away]

45 minutes ago, Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin said:

I have been trying to locate on the NCL website what perks come with a "suite" outside the Haven as opposed to in the Haven.  Even tried the Q&A area.  I have not been successful.  Can anyone point me in the correct direction?  Looking at the Dawn, which has "club balcony suite" and "family suite".  Since the Haven on Dawn doesn't have the restaurant and bar, trying to figure out the differences.....TY!

Club balcony suite is a misnomer. It is not a suite at all. It used to be called a mini-suite and they changed it to sound more misleading. On RCC they call them 'junior suites' - so you get a slightly bigger room but no perks of being in suite.

 

The rules keep changing with what is/is not included, but with the club balcony suite you get snacks in the room I think twice, free bag of laundry, and the bathroom is a bit bigger than on regular balcony rooms. You can make reservations a bit earlier than other folks for dining, and there may be a concierge to help with stuff on board - but that's about it.

 

Non-Haven suites used to get all the same perks as Haven, but with no access to the Haven courtyard area. Butler, concierge, priority boarding, dedicated place for breakfast and lunch outside of the main dining room. It is the same as the Haven perks, but you are not allowed into the Haven pool area or Haven restaurant (if the ship has one). I think some of this has changed recently on some ships, Joy in particular.

 

Haven rooms, whether they're outside the Haven area (like an aft room, or some of the forward facing cabins, or now Joy has some mid-ship) or if they're steps away from the Haven 'complex' are identical. The only difference is that folks within the courtyard area are steps away from the bar, restaurant, lounge, pool.... the folks outside of the Haven have a further walk but have the exact same access and perks as the other folks. Haven is Haven, regardless of where your cabin is located.

[The Traveling Man]

4 hours ago, matterdog919 said:

Super Thorough and Helpful,  Thank You! Haven right now is still like $2k/person more on the web vs Bidding at like $600. I'll definitely try calling though, never know what you might get 🙂

Keep in mind that when you bid, NCL gets to pick your room.  Since you are considering the Haven, there probably aren't any truly undesirable room locations.  On the other hand, bidding on a Balcony when your reservation is for an Inside or Ocean View means that NCL might assign you to a room with an obstructed view, one above the theater or other source of noise, or a room under the pool deck or other unwanted area.  When you re-book directly, you get to choose the room you want and you always can decline to move if they can't get you the room you want.  Once you win a bid, though, you have no choice.  You must accept your new room assignment.

[karmamule]

Like some others on this thread we were able to upgrade after final payment. Our benefits stayed the same too. We went from Haven 2 bedroom to Haven Owner's Suite.

 

The interesting thing is when I first priced it out and seeing how little extra $ it would be, I called my PCC and she was NOT able to get the same price I just priced out, so didn't do it. I called back a day later and talked to someone from the general # and they WERE able to match that price, so I went ahead and did the upgrade then. It ended up being just about the same as an upgrade bid we had in so canceled that once we just directly upgraded to the OS.

 

The thing this taught me was if you don't get the answer you want on your first call, it may be worth trying again and who knows, the next person you talk to may give you a better answer. 🙂