Free Upgrade - sort of

[kidlessatsea]

I noticed a few weeks ago that the prices for our cruise had dropped and I could now get a balcony room for what I paid for an inside cabin in January. I called NCL and they "no questions asked" moved us to an available balcony room at no charge. I was very impressed...

Is this a common occurrence? Will they upgrade you any time if there are cabins available if you have paid the current price? Will other cruise lines do this?

[NCLNewbie90]

That same exact thing just happened to me today from a balcony to a mini suite. It also happened on my last cruise which went from an ocean view to a balcony. I just thought I got lucky both times.

[flowers44]

Usually, before final payment is made, the cruise line will move you to the new category cabin at no charge. If there is a small difference in price, you are given the choice to pay the difference for the change. On one of the cruises I took, DH and I moved from an inside to a balcony room for about $100 total price increase. That was a pretty good deal. Most Cruise Companies follow these guidelines for upgrades.

[Karysa]

I noticed a few weeks ago that the prices for our cruise had dropped and I could now get a balcony room for what I paid for an inside cabin in January. I called NCL and they "no questions asked" moved us to an available balcony room at no charge. I was very impressed...

Is this a common occurrence? Will they upgrade you any time if there are cabins available if you have paid the current price? Will other cruise lines do this?

 

When is your sail date?

[bingo3]

I called when I saw our cabin price had dropped and it has continued to do so week after week since final payment. I was told what they do is upgrade to the next level that falls within what was paid for the cabin and if none are available, they give 25% of the difference in OBC.

 

I have elected to not upgrade yet as one of our cabins has the angled larger balcony and an "upgrade" would be to a mini-suite, but with the smaller balcony, so not really an upgrade in my opinion. It is frustrating to watch the prices drop, a risk you take when you book early, but I am NOT telling my hubby! He's not that big on crusing to start with! If he knew we could get the cabin today for 600.00 less than we paid, he'd not be too happy with me!

[allesonwonderland]

I called when I saw our cabin price had dropped and it has continued to do so week after week since final payment. I was told what they do is upgrade to the next level that falls within what was paid for the cabin and if none are available, they give 25% of the difference in OBC.

 

I have elected to not upgrade yet as one of our cabins has the angled larger balcony and an "upgrade" would be to a mini-suite, but with the smaller balcony, so not really an upgrade in my opinion. It is frustrating to watch the prices drop, a risk you take when you book early, but I am NOT telling my hubby! He's not that big on crusing to start with! If he knew we could get the cabin today for 600.00 less than we paid, he'd not be too happy with me!

 

Ours dropped too, and I declined the 'upgrade' because it didn't feel like an upgrade. It dropped more tonight, I guess I should've waited longer to make the call. (I think the rep said I'd only get one obc/upgrade offer.) I'm with you, not telling hubby prices dropped. But, here's the deal, it's doubtful we would've gotten the specific cabin we picked out at this late date, so all my research wasn't for nothing.

[WouterC]

I also contacted Norwegian after seeing a substantial price drop. And we got an upgrade from a BE to a BA balcony cabin.

 

I'm very happy with the cabin we have now and the upgrade we got!

 

But I am wondering right now how this upgrade business works exactly:

1. Can upgrade once, or can you do it multiple times? Not trying to be greedy, just that next time we book, I want to know if we should wait for the perfect moment or if we can upgrade at any price drop.

 

2. If you are before your final payment, I read you can cancel your booking and immediately rebook into a higher category. Is that only possible once, or can you do it multiple times? And somewhere I read that loose your deposit, and at another place I read you won't lose your deposit.

 

Walter

 

Usually, before final payment is made, the cruise line will move you to the new category cabin at no charge. If there is a small difference in price, you are given the choice to pay the difference for the change. On one of the cruises I took, DH and I moved from an inside to a balcony room for about $100 total price increase. That was a pretty good deal. Most Cruise Companies follow these guidelines for upgrades.

[TrumpyNor]

I also contacted Norwegian after seeing a substantial price drop. And we got an upgrade from a BE to a BA balcony cabin.

 

I'm very happy with the cabin we have now and the upgrade we got!

 

But I am wondering right now how this upgrade business works exactly:

1. Can upgrade once, or can you do it multiple times? Not trying to be greedy, just that next time we book, I want to know if we should wait for the perfect moment or if we can upgrade at any price drop.

 

2. If you are before your final payment, I read you can cancel your booking and immediately rebook into a higher category. Is that only possible once, or can you do it multiple times? And somewhere I read that loose your deposit, and at another place I read you won't lose your deposit.

 

Walter

 

I always book my cruises more than 9 months in advance, through my PCC at NCL. Up until the final payment date, I regularly check for price-drops - and if there are price-drops I just contact my PCC and asks her to change my booking to take advantage of that. I have done that numerous times - and also many times on the same booking. But be aware that if you choose to change your booking to get a better price or some promotional "perks", you probably would lose the perks you had originally - since it is considered "cancelling and re-booking", so you always have to count the pro's and con's before changing it. And AFTER the final payment date, if there were larger price-drops I have UPGRADED to a higher category cabin and just paid a few dollars per person (since you then just pay the difference between what is already paid and the new prices). You are not allowed to change your reservation after the final payment date (on some cabin categories like suites the deadline is earlier) for a cruise to a lower price without having to pay the penalties - but you can always upgrade to a higher category. Last year I was monitoring the prices on the Epic and 4 weeks before the sailing date I was able to upgrade from a aft-facing regular balcony cabin to a HAVEN Spa Suite for only $500 per person extra. Yes - that means a total of $1000, but it was for a HAVEN suite, so I still think it was a great bargain. It was the very last suite, so that is probably the reason why the price dropped significantly. Regarding penalty for late "cancellation" - the dates are specified on your cruise confirmation, and so are the size of the penalties. But my personal experience is that this is only when you re-book to get a lower price, not when you upgrade to a higher category cabin.

Edited April 15, 2014 by TrumpyNOR

[WouterC]

I always book my cruises more than 9 months in advance, through my PCC at NCL. Up until the final payment date, I regularly check for price-drops - and if there are price-drops I just contact my PCC and asks her to change my booking to take advantage of that. I have done that numerous times - and also many times on the same booking. But be aware that if you choose to change your booking to get a better price or some promotional "perks", you probably would lose the perks you had originally - since it is considered "cancelling and re-booking", so you always have to count the pro's and con's before changing it. And AFTER the final payment date, if there were larger price-drops I have UPGRADED to a higher category cabin and just paid a few dollars per person (since you then just pay the difference between what is already paid and the new prices). You are not allowed to change your reservation after the final payment date (on some cabin categories like suites the deadline is earlier) for a cruise to a lower price without having to pay the penalties - but you can always upgrade to a higher category. Last year I was monitoring the prices on the Epic and 4 weeks before the sailing date I was able to upgrade from a aft-facing regular balcony cabin to a HAVEN Spa Suite for only $500 per person extra. Yes - that means a total of $1000, but it was for a HAVEN suite, so I still think it was a great bargain. It was the very last suite, so that is probably the reason why the price dropped significantly. Regarding penalty for late "cancellation" - the dates are specified on your cruise confirmation, and so are the size of the penalties. But my personal experience is that this is only when you re-book to get a lower price, not when you upgrade to a higher category cabin.

 

Thanks TrumpyNOR, your explanation is very helpful.

 

We booked 11 months in advance, and at that point there was a discount of - I think- $200 on the total price.

 

The prices in the past couple of weeks have dropped quite a bit, however, which prompted me to ask for the possibility of an upgrade.

 

We're about 97 days away from our departure according to the MyNCL account.

 

So let's say the price drops again and we decide to re-book to a higher category, we wouldn't loose anything except probably the double latitudes points (it says when you book 9+ months in advance, you get double latitudes points, but probably not with the 'new' booking).

 

Less than 90 days out (http://www.ncl.com/about/cancellation-fee-schedule; 7 night cruise) we can rebook, but we'll loose the amount of our deposit? Or won't we lose the deposit since it's a "rebooking", rather than a cancellation?

 

I'm sorry for all my questions, but I find it difficult to get a clear understanding of the upgrade process and consequences.

Edited April 15, 2014 by WouterC

[TrumpyNor]

So let's say the price drops again and we decide to re-book to a higher category, we wouldn't loose anything except probably the double latitudes points (it says when you book 9+ months in advance, you get double latitudes points, but probably not with the 'new' booking).

 

Less than 90 days out (http://www.ncl.com/about/cancellation-fee-schedule; 7 night cruise) we can rebook, but we'll loose the amount of our deposit? Or won't we lose the deposit since it's a "rebooking", rather than a cancellation?

 

I'm sorry for all my questions, but I find it difficult to get a clear understanding of the upgrade process and consequences.

 

As long as you are upgrading (purchasing a cabin category that is higher/more expensive than the one you got now, even if it is just a few dollars or euros with "last-minute-prices" compared to what you have allready paid) - then you don't loose your deposit. At least that has been my personal experience - I have done that several times. I usually get to keep my extra Latitudes points - but if I for instance want to upgrade to a suite, then I don't get the suite OBC (on board credit) that you get when booking more than 9 months ahead. That OBC clearly states that the suite has to be booked originally, more than 9 months before sailing time.

 

Just be aware that what I have said above is regarding ONLY an UPGRADE after the final payment deadline - if you want to take advantage of other perks in addition to the price drop on the higher cabin category, then it would usually be considered cancelling and re-booking and you would have to pay the penalties (and the penalties are usually higher than the worth of any extra promotional perks anyway) - so for an upgrade you just consider if the price alone is a good deal for you. If you don't have a PCC (personal cruise consultant) at NCL, I would advice you to get one - that is much more convenient IF you are considering an upgrade. But of course you can just call NCL yourself to upgrade - but sometimes I have heard people being on hold for a very long time before getting an answer. I just send my PCC an e-mail with my requests, and then I usually get an answer within 1-2 hours. :)

Edited April 15, 2014 by TrumpyNOR

[Paddy41]

Phoned NCL yesterday and finally hung up after 20 minutes on hold.

 

Thanks for all the info. Could you tell me if it works the same way if you booked through a TA and not through NCL directly?

This is our first cruise with NCL and the first time I have not booked directly with the cruiseline. I wish I had. I do have an NCL rep who is in contact with me periodically now but when I ask a question he refers me to my TA so I guess they have to be careful what they say if you didn't book with them directly.

[TrumpyNor]

Phoned NCL yesterday and finally hung up after 20 minutes on hold.

 

Thanks for all the info. Could you tell me if it works the same way if you booked through a TA and not through NCL directly?

This is our first cruise with NCL and the first time I have not booked directly with the cruiseline. I wish I had. I do have an NCL rep who is in contact with me periodically now but when I ask a question he refers me to my TA so I guess they have to be careful what they say if you didn't book with them directly.

 

Yes, I am pretty sure a TA can do it on your behalf - NCL is not allowed to "touch" a booking that is done through a TA without involving the travel agent, therefore you can't do changes "on your own" without going through your TA.

Edited April 15, 2014 by TrumpyNOR

[DinaS]

Phoned NCL yesterday and finally hung up after 20 minutes on hold.

 

Thanks for all the info. Could you tell me if it works the same way if you booked through a TA and not through NCL directly?

This is our first cruise with NCL and the first time I have not booked directly with the cruiseline. I wish I had. I do have an NCL rep who is in contact with me periodically now but when I ask a question he refers me to my TA so I guess they have to be careful what they say if you didn't book with them directly.

 

If you booked through a TA, then don't waste your time calling NCL - they can't change your booking or your cabin anyway.

 

Call your TA - they have to contact NCL on your behalf.

 

I used a TA, and got an upgrade at no cost, from an obstructed OV to a BA Balcony when the prices dropped. My TA actually called NCL while I was on the phone with him, and the change was made almost instantly.

[kidlessatsea]

Our sail date is April 21.

 

I called on April 2nd and got that upgrade from an IB inside cabin to a BC balcony for no charge. I have no idea what the final payment date is/was because we just pay in full when we book.

 

I'm still blown away the ship is not full and that I could get an inside cabin now for $129. Crazy!

[TrumpyNor]

Our sail date is April 21.

 

I called on April 2nd and got that upgrade from an IB inside cabin to a BC balcony for no charge. I have no idea what the final payment date is/was because we just pay in full when we book.

 

I'm still blown away the ship is not full and that I could get an inside cabin now for $129. Crazy!

 

Sounds great - I am pretty sure you will enjoy your balcony. Wishing you a great cruise! :)

[Bars7816]

I called when I saw our cabin price had dropped and it has continued to do so week after week since final payment. I was told what they do is upgrade to the next level that falls within what was paid for the cabin and if none are available, they give 25% of the difference in OBC.

 

I have elected to not upgrade yet as one of our cabins has the angled larger balcony and an "upgrade" would be to a mini-suite, but with the smaller balcony, so not really an upgrade in my opinion. It is frustrating to watch the prices drop, a risk you take when you book early, but I am NOT telling my hubby! He's not that big on crusing to start with! If he knew we could get the cabin today for 600.00 less than we paid, he'd not be too happy with me!

We declined the upgrade from a BA with angled balcony to a suite (no charge) without one on the Breakaway. But now after seeing how small the angled balcony is as compared to the Epic, and how little we used it, I would consider an upgrade to a suite in future.