Upgrade question

[tab1220]

Hi,

I was just told that sometimes if a cruise ship isn't full that they will allow you to upgrade your room for free.

 

Is this true..and if so, how would i find out???

 

Thanks,

[klfrodo]

partially true.

 

1. Your ship WILL be full. Even if they have to discount pricing to local residents 1 month prior.

2. IF you booked a "Guarantee" room, rather than a selected cabin, they MAY upgrade you. Most "upgrades" are same catagory of cabin just a higher level in the ship. Rarely will they upgrade from an inside cabin to a balcony or such. It does happen, but rarely.

[tab1220]

k, I see.

 

We do have a GUAR room...a balcony, but was just curious. We leave on Sunday on Carnival Triumph.

 

Thanks for the quick response!

 

partially true.

 

1. Your ship WILL be full. Even if they have to discount pricing to local residents 1 month prior.

2. IF you booked a "Guarantee" room, rather than a selected cabin, they MAY upgrade you. Most "upgrades" are same catagory of cabin just a higher level in the ship. Rarely will they upgrade from an inside cabin to a balcony or such. It does happen, but rarely.

[firefly333]

k, I see.

 

We do have a GUAR room...a balcony, but was just curious. We leave on Sunday on Carnival Triumph.

 

Thanks for the quick response!

 

Carnival sometimes does upsells, not free. They call folks in some of the higher category cabins if they have unbooked suites often. For a fee you can upgrade to a better cabin.

 

RCL doesnt do this, but after you check in for your cruise, there is someone at the dock that you can pay to upgrade, for less than the going rate, still not free.

 

Different lines handle upgrades differently, but I dont know of any you can call or ask for a upgrade and get one. (not a free upgrade anyway, as thats what I assume you want)

[tab1220]

Well, we have a balcony right now, but if they would allow us to upgrade at no cost I'd do it.

 

Just wanted to be sure this was true.

 

Thanks for the info!

Carnival sometimes does upsells, not free. They call folks in some of the higher category cabins if they have unbooked suites often. For a fee you can upgrade to a better cabin.

 

RCL doesnt do this, but after you check in for your cruise, there is someone at the dock that you can pay to upgrade, for less than the going rate, still not free.

 

Different lines handle upgrades differently, but I dont know of any you can call or ask for a upgrade and get one. (not a free upgrade anyway, as thats what I assume you want)

[firefly333]

Well, we have a balcony right now, but if they would allow us to upgrade at no cost I'd do it.

 

Just wanted to be sure this was true.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

lololol .... wouldn't we all. That's probably why it doesnt work, they don't want to be flooded with requests for free upgrades. If they gave it for one, everyone would requst it, word would get around. Im not even sure how effective it is getting your TA to request a upsell price.

 

Once onboard Carnival will have a sign out saying cabins all full to stop you from asking for a free upgrade. They always put up that sign.

[cherylandtk]

We do have a GUAR room...a balcony, but was just curious. We leave on Sunday on Carnival Triumph.

Hmm, maybe I am not following the conversation well, but if you booked a GTY balcony, have you been assigned a room yet? If it was higher than an 8A, then you were upgraded already. IF you have not been assigned a room yet, you will have one by the time you get to the pier, and in general, the later the assignment, the better the chances for a real upgrade.

[Nebr.cruiser]

Maybe they are rare, but free upgrades do happen. Our first upgrade was last year on the Carnival Spirit. We were upgraded free from a regular balcony(not a guarantee) to a Cat.11 suite (mini-suite) in a nice location. That cabin was going for $600 pp more at the time.

[tab1220]

I'm in 8D ...so that's good? Sorry I'm a cruise virgin...my first...lol

 

Hmm, maybe I am not following the conversation well, but if you booked a GTY balcony, have you been assigned a room yet? If it was higher than an 8A, then you were upgraded already. IF you have not been assigned a room yet, you will have one by the time you get to the pier, and in general, the later the assignment, the better the chances for a real upgrade.

[firefly333]

I'm in 8D ...so that's good? Sorry I'm a cruise virgin...my first...lol

 

Yes, you paid for a 8A, so you have what Carnival calls a 4 category upgrade, even though it might just be 4 decks higher, its a more expensive cabin if you go pretend to book.

 

Maybe they are rare, but free upgrades do happen. Our first upgrade was last year on the Carnival Spirit. We were upgraded free from a regular balcony(not a guarantee) to a Cat.11 suite (mini-suite) in a nice location. That cabin was going for $600 pp more at the time.

 

I was assuming the OP meant they wanted to call and ask for a free upgrade, not one that the upgrade fairy bestowed which is up to chance. You cant call in and increase your chances.

[tab1220]

How exciting ! So I did get a free upgrade and didn't know it.

I'll be sure to act like the snooty ladies on Titanic, then after my first nite of drinkn, they'll find out that I'm a fake....LOL

 

Yes, you paid for a 8A, so you have what Carnival calls a 4 category upgrade, even though it might just be 4 decks higher, its a more expensive cabin if you go pretend to book.

 

 

 

I was assuming the OP meant they wanted to call and ask for a free upgrade, not one that the upgrade fairy bestowed which is up to chance. You cant call in and increase your chances.

[Aunty Pat]

If a specific cabin isn’t important to you, have your travel agent has the option of indicating on your reservation that you would be willing to move for an upgrade.

 

Aunty Pat

 

 

Barefoot Windjammer - Phantom ‘81

K&D German Rhine Line ‘84

NCL - Norway ’85, Pride of America ’05, Southward ’87, Star ’97 & ‘05, Starward ’92, Sun ’02 & Windward ’93

RCC - Song of America ‘89

American Hawaiian - Independence ‘98

HAL - Volendam ’99, Noordam ’06, Oosterdam ’07 & ‘09, Statendam ’02 & ‘08, Prinsendam ’03 & ’06, Westerdam ’09 & Zuiderdam ’04, ’06 & ‘07

Carnival - Spirit ‘05

Celebrity – Summit ‘05

Cruise West - Yorktown Clipper ‘06

Princess - Golden Princess ‘07

A & K - East Queen ‘07

Cunard - QM2 ’08

[G'ma]

k, I see.

 

We do have a GUAR room...a balcony, but was just curious. We leave on Sunday on Carnival Triumph.

 

Thanks for the quick response!

 

As a longtime Carnival cruiser (62), your chances of getting upgraded at the pier is slim to none.

 

Carnival maintains 105-115% occupancy rate year round.

 

I was on the Triumph Dec 14. The ship holds about 28-2900 passengers if all lower berths are sold. There were 3343 souls onboard on the 14th.

 

They sometimes have 1 or 2 less desirable inside cabins that are empty...these are normally used in case of emergency...such as a plumbing problem in someones cabin and they have to move them out for a night or so. There premium cabins will be gone.

[aubriee]

Carnival sometimes does upsells, not free. They call folks in some of the higher category cabins if they have unbooked suites often. For a fee you can upgrade to a better cabin.

 

RCL doesnt do this, but after you check in for your cruise, there is someone at the dock that you can pay to upgrade, for less than the going rate, still not free.

 

Different lines handle upgrades differently, but I dont know of any you can call or ask for a upgrade and get one. (not a free upgrade anyway, as thats what I assume you want)

 

This happened to us. We had booked the cheapest balcony guarantee. When the cabin assignments came out, we had been upgraded to a balcony on the Lido deck. A couple of weeks ago, I got a call from Carnival saying they had 'a few empty suites' and were letting them go for the employee discount price. We upgraded to a category 11 suite for $600.00 ($300/person). We probably would not have taken it, except the cabin was only a few cabins down from the people we are traveling with. The Carnival rep knew exactly what he was offering and how to sweeten the pot. He had all of our information in front of him when he called, knew exactly how much we had paid when we booked our guarantee balcony last January for this January, and knew exactly where the offered suite was in relation to our traveling companions cabins. I went online a few days later and no suites were available. He apparently managed to fill them all that day with upsells.

[IflyRC]

IMO an inside cabin is still an inside cabin. whether your on the deck 1 or deck 10. A 4A to 4E is not an upgrade like they say it is.

 

A 4A to 4(F) (G) or (5A) is an upgrade because it has an obstructed veiw like a lifeboat out the window or door.