Upgrades & Price Adjustments....how do they work?

[dtownjbrown]

I just booked my first cruise (on the Carnival Sensation ship) and was able to get a "resident" discount because of the state I live in. I was planning to purchase a oceanview on the lowest deck but was able to get a oceanview three decks higher. I think that equates to a "6A-to-6D" upgrade but it wasnt actually an upgrade, just a discount. After reading a couple threads on here, Im wondering what type of upgrade, if any, would I get if an upgrade does becomes available? I havent read about any "6D-to-11" upgrades, do they even exist? Should I go ahead and change my room to the lower deck at a cheaper price and wait it out? Im about 100 days away from departure so I wasnt sure if the price would drop any lower.....any suggestions?

[firefly333]

I just booked my first cruise (on the Carnival Sensation ship) and was able to get a "resident" discount because of the state I live in. I was planning to purchase a oceanview on the lowest deck but was able to get a oceanview three decks higher. I think that equates to a "6A-to-6D" upgrade but it wasnt actually an upgrade, just a discount. After reading a couple threads on here, Im wondering what type of upgrade, if any, would I get if an upgrade does becomes available? I havent read about any "6D-to-11" upgrades, do they even exist? Should I go ahead and change my room to the lower deck at a cheaper price and wait it out? Im about 100 days away from departure so I wasnt sure if the price would drop any lower.....any suggestions?

 

Very rarely, when someone books a guarantee, they get upgraded out of their category. Almost never happens. Whatever category you are now in, Im a little confused what you said, you got a discount for not taking the free 6A to 6D upgrade? then watch that price (if you are in a 6D then watch that price) and if it drops below what you paid, you can call your booking agent and ask for a adjustment. If its past final payment, they you would get a OBC not a refund.

 

If you are already assigned to a particular cabin, free upgrades are few and far between. I have heard of Carnival doing some upsells where they call you and say for merely $500 (or whatever price) we will upgrade you to a suite, if they have unsold suites last minute on a cruise. The upsells are not free.

[dtownjbrown]

Very rarely, when someone books a guarantee, they get upgraded out of their category. Almost never happens. Whatever category you are now in, Im a little confused what you said, you got a discount for not taking the free 6A to 6D upgrade?

 

Sorry about the confusion (I dont know correct cruise "lingo" yet). Actually, there were NO upgrades available but because I live in Ohio the PVP said I could get a discount on any room I booked. I had a choice of either booking the "previously priced" 6A oceanview at a cheaper rate or go up to a 6D oceanview for only ten more bucks per person.....I took the 6D option.

 

watch that price (if you are in a 6D then watch that price) and if it drops below what you paid, you can call your booking agent and ask for a adjustment. If its past final payment, they you would get a OBC not a refund.

 

Yes, Im in a 6D (E147 on the Sensation, to be exact).....this is what got me to "thinking". Since I already got the 6D at 20% less than what its currently advertised for, Im figuring that its not very likely that the price will drop low enough to be a real benefit to me (seeing as I got such a great deal in the first place). So now, Im wondering if I should go ahead and book the 6A as I originally planned, get the "resident" discount, and hope for a free upgrade......unless that's just as unlikely.

[firefly333]

So now, Im wondering if I should go ahead and book the 6A as I originally planned, get the "resident" discount, and hope for a free upgrade......unless that's just as unlikely.

 

Im having trouble understanding why you would give up the upgrade you already have hoping for a better deal. You already have a upgrade 3 decks. 95% of the upgrades are inside to inside, higher deck, OV to OV or balcony to balcony, just a higher deck. Taking a 6A assigned cabin your chances are no greater than before of getting upgraded. A 6A guarantee you have a chance for a upgrade, but you almost certainly at best will still have a OV, not a new category. Its very rare you would go from a OV up to a balcony. If you have your heart set on a balcony, Id pay for it now.

 

If prices drop then you can get the reduction, but its very rare to take someone's assigned cabin and upgrade them. They have if you took a handicapped cabin and are not HC, or you have a connecting cabin they need, or they seem to try to upgrade those in lovely 9A wraps into suites on Conquest class. Your chances of randomly being selected for a upgrade are not that great, keep what you got if you like the location.

 

I think people see a post from that rare person who got a upgrade and think it happens all the time. My only upgrade out of category was a last minute (4 days before the cruise), I booked a inside guarantee and there were only 2 inside cabins left unbooked and they bumped me up to a bottom deck OV. They were trying to fill the ship.

[dtownjbrown]

Im having trouble understanding why you would give up the upgrade you already have hoping for a better deal. You already have a upgrade 3 decks.

 

I think I might be getting the "terms" mixed up but I dont actually have an upgrade (I just paid less than advertised for the cabin I have).....What I mean is the "upgrades may apply" icon was not showing up online, next to the category I chose, when I booked my cruise....doesnt that mean I didnt get an "upgrade", or am I mistaken?

 

Ive read that some people actually "watch" the prices and upgrade availability, then call their TA or PVP for the adjustment. For instance, "Bob" paid $199 for 4A cabin and then 45 days before departure the cruiseline offered a 4A-to-4D upgrade. Since "Bob" was already assigned a 4A cabin....he just called in and got his room changed to a 4D cabin with no extra charge. So if, "Julie" (that would be me ;) ) paid $309 for a 6D cabin instead of paying $219 for a 6A cabin and then 45 days before departure, the cruiseline offered a 6A-to-6D upgrade....wouldnt "Julie" have overpaid?

 

Taking a 6A assigned cabin your chances are no greater than before of getting upgraded. A 6A guarantee you have a chance for a upgrade, but you almost certainly at best will still have a OV, not a new category. Its very rare you would go from a OV up to a balcony. If you have your heart set on a balcony, Id pay for it now.

 

Okay, I think Im definitely getting the "terms" mixed up. What is a guarantee? Is that where you let the cruiseline assign you a room based on where they need to put you? If so, then that's not what I have. I actually picked my own room. That being said, if you "pick" your own room does that mean you wont get a free upgrade if one becomes available in the category you have? I currently have the "highest" deck in the OV category and I dont really have my heart set on a balcony so the only "perk" I could get would be a discount or an OBC.....is that right?

[kitty9]

A guarantee is when you book a cabin CATEGORY rather than an actual cabin number. You won't know where your cabin is until you receive your cruise documents. The bad thing with a guarantee is that you have to accept whatever cabin they give you, even one that might be considered a bad cabin. So, what I mean is, you book and pay for an inside category, and that's just what you'll wind up getting. An upgrade for that would just be another inside cabin, but in what they consider a better location. You won't see an upgrade from an inside to a balcony and rarely will you see an upgrade from an inside to a window cabin.

 

No, you didn't get an upgrade when you booked. Actually, every cruise line has a published price and then there's the price everyone pays, so in reality, you really didn't get a "deal" per se.

 

The "upgrades may apply" icon really doesn't mean much, so ignore it. Just because it says it may apply doesn't mean everyone who books that category will get one--that rarely happens. Free upgrades don't happen much anymore, as ships sail full.

 

You really seem to be concerned with this whole upgrade things. Don't get all taken up with this upgrade business. If the price of your cabin goes down, you'll get a price adjustment, but you probably won't see an upgrade offered--like I said, that rarely happens.

[dtownjbrown]

I think people see a post from that rare person who got a upgrade and think it happens all the time.

 

You really seem to be concerned with this whole upgrade things. Don't get all taken up with this upgrade business. If the price of your cabin goes down, you'll get a price adjustment, but you probably won't see an upgrade offered--like I said, that rarely happens.

 

Thanks for the explanation....as Firefly33 pointed out, I'm one of those people who thought upgrades happened all the time.:cool:

[Hamburg Avon Lady]

It's nice to dream though !! ;)

[Chacooe]

dtownjbrown, don't worry, it took me a long time to figure all of this out to. I have come to realize the cruise industry has their own little language and after awhile you wil be a pro at it. I to am a first timer and I am still learning. Just keep asking questions because this is the best forum to get your answers from.

[dtownjbrown]

dtownjbrown, don't worry, it took me a long time to figure all of this out to. I have come to realize the cruise industry has their own little language and after awhile you wil be a pro at it. I to am a first timer and I am still learning. Just keep asking questions because this is the best forum to get your answers from.

 

Yes...it is most definitely a learning experience. Im just glad I found this place before I boarded a ship :-)

 

I went ahead and changed my cabin to the Riviera deck. Not only did it chop our finaly payment in half but someone told me "low & midship" is better if you're prone to seasickness. Im not sure if I get seasick at all (since Ive never sailed before) but I dont I want to chance having a "better" location just so I can be sick in it...LOL :-)

[dtownjbrown]

OMG - I just got my room discounted even further!!!:eek:

 

On a whim, I went to the carnival.com website to see what rooms might be available in the 6D category that might be a little more "seasick" friendly. Well, the price for Empress deck was showing at $70 cheaper than what I booked it at four days ago (counting my Ohio resident discount, of course). I phoned my PVP by phone to see if she could honor the lower rate for me but wasnt able to reach here.

 

Luckily, I just recently read somewhere on this forum that you can modify your own bookings if you sign up for an online user account (which I did with the quickness). So now, Im in a 6D room for less than $250 per person....."we dont need no stinkin' upgrades" LOL :D I know this is my first booking and all, and I dont really know much of anything yet, but this sure seems like a helluva deal to me !!!

[CGIACOMO]

I would like to be able to track any price change in my cabin (and see if it actually drops). Ignorance is not blessed in this case! Will I be able to get a refund for that portion? someone in this forum says to open an online user account to modify your information. Where do we open the account for this? We have a 9 Inside stateroom guarantee in a Celebrity Century for April 2-09. Any words of wisdom for this cruise? How does this price drop changes work? I just want to make the best out of this trip but I'm new in all this, so I really will appreciate your help... Thanks!

[kitty9]

You just have to call Celebrity yourself or have your TA call if you used one, and see if prices are lower. What you need to be careful of with Celebrity is that they tend to offer lower prices for "new bookings only", which means the lower price doesn't apply to anyone who's already booked. And you're right, ignorance is not bliss when it comes to cruise prices.

 

If you want to see for yourself if your cruise price has dropped, all you need to do is go to Celebrity's website, find your cruise on Century for the date you're sailing, and look at what they're charging for your stateroom category.

[rimau]

We recently got our first cat upgrade, on Holland, inside to outside. It was a last minute upgrade and we did not know it until we got to our room and our key did not work. I had to go to the desk and then they told me, oh no, you are in 791, not 782.

[fun2cruiseny]

I am cruising on Holland Oosterdam to Alaska, and the prices went down after I booked. My agent said I'd be better staying w my 6th level inner, rather then being thrown to any cabin. Do u think I should keep my upper inner or save $200 and switch?

[karelet]

If you're going to cruise, you have to learn the game to get the best deals and upgrades.

 

I'm going on the April 14 Transatlantic on Celebrity Solstice, and there are MANY people with $550 on board credit (OBC), and free upgrades.

 

I myself, started out paying a "guarantee" price for an obstructed balcony, and got upgraded to 2D. Celebrity then had a "0ne day sale" which I was watching for. I then upgraded for $150p/p to Concierge Class. The room I got was the first room at the front. When I called to see if I could get a room somewhere closer to the middle of the ship, I was told I couldn't do that, but since Celebrity was running a special "Happy Hour" price on Aqua Class rooms, they would upgrade me to Aqua for free. No brainer!

 

The point is, you have to have the time to keep an eye on your ship's prices, and you have to be persistent in asking for upgrades when you see price changes.

 

To see price changes, google cruise fish dot net.

 

To get free upgrades and the maximum OBC, check out future cruises while on board your cruise. Celebrity gives you $300 OBC for just putting $100 down, and not even specifying a future cruise; and you can then use a Travel Agent to complete the arrangements, who may give you additional OBC. WOW! What a deal!

 

In addition, if you own Celebrity (RCCL) stock, you get $250 OBC.

 

Of course, after your first cruise, you should join the cruise line's loyalty program, if nothing else than to be able to talk to "a friendly ear" to be able to ask for all these upgrades! LOL

 

Know the game....