RoyalUP? (Bid for stateroom upgrade)

[bradski]

I was upgraded from interior on this 2/18 navigator to a spacious ocean view for the minimum $30 bid.   I know suites are harder to get upgraded but the basic upgrades seem to be happening. 

[imola]

29 minutes ago, bradski said:

I was upgraded from interior on this 2/18 navigator to a spacious ocean view for the minimum $30 bid.   I know suites are harder to get upgraded but the basic upgrades seem to be happening. 

Congrats  We were on her in January and really liked the ship and the staff were incredible.  Enjoy your sailing.

[orville99]

6 hours ago, Deb1953 said:

Harmony Feb 20 Sailing - has anyone heard about their bid-up?  I keep checking and it says Pending.  Guess that is better than sorry LOL

The last time we scored an upgrade on Harmony, we got the confirmation about 6 days before the sail date.

[binro01]

4 hours ago, seasidemama said:

Quick question on Oasis out of NJ - anyone remember what the minimum bid was for OV balcony to JS/GS etc. I searched the board but didn't find any info. Thanks!

I'm on Allure OTS, I booked a GTY OV balcony, (have been assigned to my cabin already). These are my min bids for suites:
JS: 135.00 pp
GS: 225.00 pp
GS2BR: 270.00 pp
OS: 360.00 pp

 

Mind you this is with the current 50% off min bid promo they are running on my sailing. 

[Starry Eyes]

1 hour ago, seasidemama said:

Sure but my limit for what I would pay for a JS is much less than what upgrade costs the usual way. If I get it great. If not, I already love the room I'm in so no loss really.

I can certainly understand that.  That may be the most frequent reason people use RoyalUp.  Nevertheless, other people’s remembrances of minimum bids from other cruises from their specific cabin category are not particularly material.  You will compare the minimum bid you are offered on your cruise to your personal option of the upgrade’s value on that cruise…either you bid or you do not.  Minimums on other cruises are immaterial.  With lower passenger censuses right now (plus some covid cancellations and/or reschedule), people are getting more RoyalUp acceptances than in ordinary times.  Of course, there are far more balcony cabins and below than JS or full suites, so there probably are numerically more upgrades at the former than later.

[seasidemama]

15 hours ago, binro01 said:

I'm on Allure OTS, I booked a GTY OV balcony, (have been assigned to my cabin already). These are my min bids for suites:
JS: 135.00 pp
GS: 225.00 pp
GS2BR: 270.00 pp
OS: 360.00 pp

 

Mind you this is with the current 50% off min bid promo they are running on my sailing. 

 

Thanks

[bucfan2]

19 hours ago, Starry Eyes said:

OK, but minimum bids do not mean much.  

They don't mean much, until they do.  We moved from balcony to 2br GS on Ovation at min bid.  Probably a fluke, but never know...we were willing to play the protocol games, and it was a nice upgrade.

[megs193]

I got an email this morning for our 2/25 Independence cruise. We won our bid for a spacious ocean view balcony cabin from an obstructed ocean view. We were assigned a cabin that is mid-ship on the 9th floor so we are very happy!

[jrapps]

Quick question on the upgrades...if you score an upgrade to a suite (star or sky class) that includes Voom, does everyone (even minors) get their own voom login? How does that work for minors that don't have a royal login?

 

I have the 4-device Wi-Fi booked but trying to decide if I get my upgrade, can I/should I cancel my 4-device package?

[Starry Eyes]

On 2/14/2022 at 10:57 AM, Deb1953 said:

Harmony Feb 20 Sailing - has anyone heard about their bid-up?  I keep checking and it says Pending.  Guess that is better than sorry LOL

I just received an upgrade for Harmony 2/20 sailing.  Boardwalk balcony to OV balcony for $40 pp.  We were assigned a perfectly nice cabin on deck 11, but I swapped to a nice one on deck 8 as I like the proximity to Central Park.  Have you heard anything?

[Gopher1934]

On 2/14/2022 at 12:25 PM, Starry Eyes said:

My bids are pending as well.  We are booked in a Boardwalk balcony now.  We are fine with that, but certainly would be happy to snag an upgrade.  From what category are you starting? I have not seen an RoyalUp successes mentioned on the roll call last I checked.  There seem to be a wide bar of cabins available to book, leading me to believe RoyalUp has not completed it’s work.  I believe Biker’s post slides to the fact that if we get “sorry” emails they will come late in the process.  Acceptances can happen anytime.

Our daughter this morning got a royal up from Boardwalk to Ocean mid ship deck 7 for $4o per person.

I put in a bid for a Junior suite still pending

 

[Starry Eyes]

17 minutes ago, Gopher1934 said:

Our daughter this morning got a royal up from Boardwalk to Ocean mid ship deck 7 for $4o per person.

I put in a bid for a Junior suite still pending

 

Deck 7 can be a bit frustrating if one exits the aft elevator on the incorrect side.  Here’s a thread with pic.  

 Does your daughter want to swap to a different cabin in the same category before they all disappear? I selected 8.

[Deb1953]

A friend we are sailing with got her bidup from regular balcony to a spacious one.  My bid on the Owners Suite now says Expired, but my bid for the Grand Suite still says pending. 

 

Edited February 15, 2022 by Deb1953

[Gopher1934]

2 minutes ago, Starry Eyes said:

Deck 7 can be a bit frustrating if one exits the aft elevator on the incorrect side.  Here’s a thread with pic.  

 Does your daughter want to swap to a different cabin in the same category before they all disappear? I selected 8.

I dont' think she cares but will check with her. I have been on deck 8 before and agree with you.

[Vera/Lee]

6 minutes ago, Deb1953 said:

A friend we are sailing with got her bidup from regular balcony to a spacious one.  My bid on the Owners Suite now says Expired, but my bid for the Grand Suite still says pending. 

 

When is your cruise? 

[Deb1953]

Just now, Vera/Lee said:

When is your cruise? 

Sunday Feb 20th.  I didn't know some bids could expire... that seemed odd to me.  Anyone ever have luck asking at the port?

 

[Vera/Lee]

9 minutes ago, Deb1953 said:

A friend we are sailing with got her bidup from regular balcony to a spacious one.  My bid on the Owners Suite now says Expired, but my bid for the Grand Suite still says pending. 

 

 OS expired and GS pending sounds like good news to me. That's just a guess.

[binro01]

3 minutes ago, Deb1953 said:

Sunday Feb 20th.  I didn't know some bids could expire... that seemed odd to me.  Anyone ever have luck asking at the port?

 

You can try for last minute cancellations because of COVID positive tests or flight/travel issues at the guest services desk. Some people like to go right away and get on a list, some like to go after sail away once a final passenger manifest is complete. YMMV depending on the ship and their policies. If they have any, they will let you know of the upgrade charge. Please note, if upgrading from a non-suite class, to a suite class via a ship upgrade, you will not be eligible for the extra suite points for C&A

[Starry Eyes]

25 minutes ago, Deb1953 said:

Sunday Feb 20th.  I didn't know some bids could expire... that seemed odd to me.  Anyone ever have luck asking at the port?

 

Sometimes times one bid is locked (can’t be modified or canceled) and all others are marked expired.  Often (not always) the locked bid is accepted.  It happened that way for us in December.  Our Aquatheater bid was locked one day and accepted the next.  Keep watching and hope for good news.

[sford75]

1 hour ago, binro01 said:

You can try for last minute cancellations because of COVID positive tests or flight/travel issues at the guest services desk. Some people like to go right away and get on a list, some like to go after sail away once a final passenger manifest is complete. YMMV depending on the ship and their policies. If they have any, they will let you know of the upgrade charge. Please note, if upgrading from a non-suite class, to a suite class via a ship upgrade, you will not be eligible for the extra suite points for C&A

Not anymore. They are changing RoyalUp to go until Embarkation Day and you can bid up to 3 hours before the ship leaves port. Final notices aren't being sent out until AFTER the ship leaves port. If you go to Guest Services, they will give you a card telling you to place a bid for RoyalUp. It was rolled out on the Odyssey this sailing and is rolling out fleetwide now.

[binro01]

6 minutes ago, sford75 said:

Not anymore. They are changing RoyalUp to go until Embarkation Day and you can bid up to 3 hours before the ship leaves port. Final notices aren't being sent out until AFTER the ship leaves port. If you go to Guest Services, they will give you a card telling you to place a bid for RoyalUp. It was rolled out on the Odyssey this sailing and is rolling out fleetwide now.

This is quite amazing to see. I like this process better than the line up at guest services. I do have a quick question though. Are they making access to the RoyalUp site free for everyone, even without a VOOM package? What about notification if you have won your bid? Usually you need access to email for that.

Edited February 15, 2022 by binro01

[Starry Eyes]

27 minutes ago, binro01 said:

This is quite amazing to see. I like this process better than the line up at guest services. I do have a quick question though. Are they making access to the RoyalUp site free for everyone, even without a VOOM package? What about notification if you have won your bid? Usually you need access to email for that.

Hmm, so if RoyalUp really manages to give upgrades after checkin begins, somebody’s notification of a cabin change might occur when your key card doesn’t open the cabin door any longer, LOL.  If the unknowing steward opens the door for the confused guest, they’l l potentially meet the people who won the RoyalUp upgrade to their old cabin.  Hope they are not celebrating at that moment😊

All joking aside, giving the upgrades to the highest bidder is better in my opinion as a bidder and a shareholder.

Edited February 15, 2022 by Starry Eyes

[why2klisa]

I’ve never done RoyalUp before. Three of my four bids still say pending. The fourth says unavailable. We sail Friday. Is that normal? I only bid the minimum. 

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, why2klisa said:

Is that normal?

There are a lot of status permutations -the only thing that counts is the charge on your credit card and the assignment of a new cabin.

[cruiselvr04]

Are you saying on Odyssey that you might not know if your bid won until 2 or 3 in the afternoon of embarkation day?