Upgrade bidding questions

[travelgip]

I just received an email from NCL that I can bid on an upgrade from my studio room to ocean view or balcony.  Cruise is just over 100 days out.  Does this mean there will be a price drop?  If so, and I bid and it's accepted will I no longer be eligible for credit?

Also, is there an expiration date for the bid offer?  Couldn't find it anywhere.  

If anyone has any tips/tricks to win a bare minimum bid or is it pure luck?

Thank you

[MotownVoice]

Interesting that you got an email before you noticed it on the app.

That's informative for us NCL newcomers.

[Karaboudjan]

21 minutes ago, travelgip said:

I just received an email from NCL that I can bid on an upgrade from my studio room to ocean view or balcony.  Cruise is just over 100 days out.  Does this mean there will be a price drop?  If so, and I bid and it's accepted will I no longer be eligible for credit?

Also, is there an expiration date for the bid offer?  Couldn't find it anywhere.  

If anyone has any tips/tricks to win a bare minimum bid or is it pure luck?

Thank you

 

Bids don't expire.  They will be processed about a week before the sailing, so you'll probably have time to react to any price drop and cancel your bid if necessary by then.  

 

Getting an upgrade with a minimum bid will all depend on supply and demand.  You can probably get an idea of how things are going in general now from this thread:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2799311-any-upgrade-bids-accepted-recently

 

It's long so you probably only need to pay attention to what is happening recently, although if you read more of it you will also find a lot more information about the upgrade process in general.

[Nclgetawaymenhoney]

53 minutes ago, travelgip said:

I just received an email from NCL that I can bid on an upgrade from my studio room to ocean view or balcony.  Cruise is just over 100 days out.  Does this mean there will be a price drop?  If so, and I bid and it's accepted will I no longer be eligible for credit?

Also, is there an expiration date for the bid offer?  Couldn't find it anywhere.  

If anyone has any tips/tricks to win a bare minimum bid or is it pure luck?

Thank you

One more thing even though your solo, the bid is always based on double occupancy whether it’s 1, 3, 4 per cabin so if minimum bid is 100 per person your cost to bid is 200.  Happy Sailing!

[travelgip]

1 hour ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

Bids don't expire.  They will be processed about a week before the sailing, so you'll probably have time to react to any price drop and cancel your bid if necessary by then.  

 

Getting an upgrade with a minimum bid will all depend on supply and demand.  You can probably get an idea of how things are going in general now from this thread:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2799311-any-upgrade-bids-accepted-recently

 

It's long so you probably only need to pay attention to what is happening recently, although if you read more of it you will also find a lot more information about the upgrade process in general.

Sorry I should have been more clear.  I was asking when the invitation to upgrade email expires.

[krittykat]

We are just a little over a week out (Sat will be 7 days) from our cruise.  Daughter has her own cabin, currently inside, across the hall from ours.  She put in a bid for a club balcony.  I know it is a long shot but it appears there are plenty available still.  It is nice to have dreams.

 

[Grampy M]

I generally bid low for these upgrades, which correlates to I don't get many accepted. 

We did get an (yup one) excellent upgrade in 2017 on the GEM, from midship balcony to aft facing penthouse suite.. IT WAS AMAZING / FANTASTIC.  We knew about 2 weeks before that cruise we got the upgrade.. The email they send out just prior to the cruise indicates upgrades are still being performed upto 1 hour prior to departure.. I always joke with the wife as we are about to board.. will our bags find us if we get an upgrade now?  Then comically a day later I get the email, telling us we were NOT upgraded.
I think their formula includes  how they can make the most $$$.. For us we were in a midship balcony, which I assume other folks (interior) would bid on.. therefore us freeing up that cabin may have added to the likely-hood we got what we bid on.. That said, out of ALL the upgrades we bid on, it is the only1 we got.

Also for ME / US, we select the cabin I want so when I bid on an upgrade I send time considering potential locations, some upgrade choices would not meet where I want to be on the ship.

Edited October 5, 2022 by Grampy M
spelling

[CherWolf]

9 minutes ago, Grampy M said:

We did get an (yup one) excellent upgrade in 2017 on the GEM, from midship balcony to aft facing penthouse suite.

Ahhhhh, the good old days.  😊

[CherWolf]

1 hour ago, travelgip said:

Sorry I should have been more clear.  I was asking when the invitation to upgrade email expires.

It doesn't.  Just keep the message with the link so you can access it.

[dobiemom]

Or try this link:  https://upgrade.plusgrade.com/offer/NCL/

[MotownVoice]

3 minutes ago, dobiemom said:

Or try this link:  https://upgrade.plusgrade.com/offer/NCL/

“We’re sorry, we have no space available.”

 Bah!!!   It’s like rolling craps.  

[dobiemom]

Some travel companies opt out of the bid process (e.g., big box store).  Contact your agent for info on this. 

[CherWolf]

9 minutes ago, dobiemom said:

Or try this link:  https://upgrade.plusgrade.com/offer/NCL/

Thank you!  I just learned something. Will definitely save this link.

[dbrown84]

9 minutes ago, CherWolf said:

Thank you!  I just learned something. Will definitely save this link.

you can also bring up your reservation when you login to the NCL website (or the NCL app on your phone).  There is a link to bid on the first page