NCL Dawn - Inside or Balcony?

[johnnydeo]

Leaving from San Juan in 5 weeks... Currently have Cabin 9613 which looks like it's in a good location. I submitted a bid of $50pp for a balcony upgrade but haven't heard anything from NCL... Should I cancel my bid and just stay where I am? Has anyone had a bid upgrade approved and end up in a room worse than they originally booked?

[Nola26]

I did the exact same thing in late 2017. My bid was accepted and I retained a mid ship location. For that itinerary I was happy to have the balcony, but wouldn't have been upset with the inside. No one can guarantee a cabin/location with bidding, so you have to decide the risk you're willing to take.

 

I bid on an OV last cruise pretty much knowing my location would be worse because of the decks for OVs. I'd never sailed in an OV so for the low bid price I was willing to take the chance and even if I didn't like the room, it was a one week experiment in the Caribbean in December. I'd learn whether to never book one again or to always book one. My bid wasn't accepted and I had a great time with my mid-ship inside.

[don't-use-real-name]

3 hours ago, johnnydeo said:

Leaving from San Juan in 5 weeks... Currently have Cabin 9613 which looks like it's in a good location. I submitted a bid of $50pp for a balcony upgrade but haven't heard anything from NCL... Should I cancel my bid and just stay where I am? Has anyone had a bid upgrade approved and end up in a room worse than they originally booked?

It is too early to tell if and when your upgrade bid will be awarded - sometime between 80 days and 2 days before sailing.

Bid awarding for your cruise will be probably be at about 2 weeks before sailing but that is just a guess.

We don't have a crystal *8* ball ouija board to predict and get a positive answer for you. 

Patience stick with it - the quality $ dollar amount of your bid is anyone's guess.

That 9613 an Inside Cabin mid-ship port side is a good location and going to a balcony for a few dollars more no matter

where it is located is a deal.

[newmexicoNita]

you may not hear until a few days before sailing and your bid is at the very bottom. It is up to you to decide if you can live with your inside cabin. We are on the Dawn in 10 days and haven't heard about our upgrade yet. We have resigned ourselves to accepting we probably will not get upgraded If we do we will be super happy, if not it will not affect our cruise. Right now we have the lowest priced OV cabin on the ship. w 

[johnnydeo]

I understand the bidding process, but what I'm really looking for is someone that has won an upgrade with their bid and disappointed in the cabin they received and why......

Location... Noise... etc

[Beachiekeen]

We upgraded from an inside (I think on the deck 10) to a balcony on deck 9 and I will say we loved that location.  It was very convenient, right by the elevator, and we could easily take the stairs anywhere if we needed.  There is also a quiet lounge on deck 9 that I think alot of people don't know about.  So you are in a great spot already.

 

We loved our balcony room however it was very noisy at night--odd creaking noises, etc.  We were docked 2 nights of the cruise and I couldn't wait to get there so I could get some sleep!  We paid $150 pp and didn't find out until very close to the cruise--maybe 2 weeks out.  You just have to weigh do you want to give up the location for a balcony, however that bid is low so I agree that having a balcony for so little price might make up for any location issues.  Plus you might still end up in a great location so it's a win-win either way really.

Edited January 28, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Luv Cruising Land or Sea]

5 hours ago, johnnydeo said:

I understand the bidding process, but what I'm really looking for is someone that has won an upgrade with their bid and disappointed in the cabin they received and why......

Location... Noise... etc

YES!  We  had booked an Obstructed Ocean-view- midship on Deck 8 (cat OK) - we bid on a balcony and didn't win but our complimentary "upgrade" put us in a Porthole Cabin on DECK 4 FWD (cat OA)!  We were just above storage areas and across from Crew Only Access - we weren't happy but the TA we used at the time kept saying " it's an upgrade to an ocean-view unobstructed" - yeah - when the waves weren't slapping against the porthole we could see the ocean  LOL  We learned our lesson - make sure you don't check the box that says " will accept upgrades"!

Edited January 28, 2019 by cinbol

[newmexicoNita]

7 minutes ago, cinbol said:

YES!  We  had booked an Obstructed Ocean-view- midship on Deck 8 (cat OK) - we bid on a balcony and didn't win but our complimentary "upgrade" put us in a Porthole Cabin on DECK 4 FWD (cat OA)!  We were just above storage areas and across from Crew Only Access - we weren't happy but the TA we used at the time kept saying " it's an upgrade to an ocean-view unobstructed" - yeah - when the waves weren't slapping against the porthole we could see the ocean  LOL  We learned our lesson - make sure you don't check the box that says " will accept upgrades"!

agree with you: we are pretty concerned as we are in a cabin that appears was your upgrade. At least we have bid on the upgrade so still have our fingers crossed. And yes, make sure you understand before you bid for an upgrade or agree to a gty cabin you understand the location may not be as good as what you had before the upgrade. 

[Luv Cruising Land or Sea]

3 minutes ago, newmexicoNita said:

agree with you: we are pretty concerned as we are in a cabin that appears was your upgrade. At least we have bid on the upgrade so still have our fingers crossed. And yes, make sure you understand before you bid for an upgrade or agree to a gty cabin you understand the location may not be as good as what you had before the upgrade. 

The good news is you are already in the Caribbean so you should not have any rough waters.  We were crossing from Boston to Bermuda and hit some rough seas in the Atlantic.  The waves slapping against the porthole made quite a noise at night!  We did hear noise from across the hall ( some kind of storage/access area for crew) but not all the time - the worst was the night before we docked when they were moving luggage around down in the cargo hold well into the "wee" hours.  It wasn't the worst place we have been, but our OB View would have been better ( we had been there before)

[newmexicoNita]

18 minutes ago, cinbol said:

The good news is you are already in the Caribbean so you should not have any rough waters.  We were crossing from Boston to Bermuda and hit some rough seas in the Atlantic.  The waves slapping against the porthole made quite a noise at night!  We did hear noise from across the hall ( some kind of storage/access area for crew) but not all the time - the worst was the night before we docked when they were moving luggage around down in the cargo hold well into the "wee" hours.  It wasn't the worst place we have been, but our OB View would have been better ( we had been there before)

We had a similar  cabin on the Jewel coming across from London on her first cruise. We booked late, only after cancellations and took what was left. In some ways we sorta enjoy the cabin. It was fun to be almost right at the water level, but yes, as you said the waves hitting the window can be a bit annoying. I also wonder about the noise the night before we dock. Whatever, it is still a cruise, a great one and we are just thankful we can still cruise at our age. 

[Luv Cruising Land or Sea]

11 minutes ago, newmexicoNita said:

We had a similar  cabin on the Jewel coming across from London on her first cruise. We booked late, only after cancellations and took what was left. In some ways we sorta enjoy the cabin. It was fun to be almost right at the water level, but yes, as you said the waves hitting the window can be a bit annoying. I also wonder about the noise the night before we dock. Whatever, it is still a cruise, a great one and we are just thankful we can still cruise at our age. 

Same here - we set our travel budget for the year and booking low and inside helps us to go more often!  It's all in your attitude, and you have a great one - have a great cruise!