For you upgrade pros.....Help me out.

[resetjet]

1 hour ago, orville99 said:

We sail on Harmony this Sunday, and we just received our upgrade email to a CLS for the 50% off minimum bid of $300/pp. Good thing we both tested negative this morning.😀

So you did not go to the royal up site,  you instead waited for the email????  Or was this upgrade on top of a previous royal up win???

[Vera/Lee]

12 minutes ago, orville99 said:

We put the bid on a CLS at 7:42 this morning, and received the Congratulations email and new stateroom assignment at 3:03 this afternoon. When I checked the booking engine this morning, there were still 5 CLS (all side-facing) available, so I took a flyer just for yucks to see what would happen.

Congratulations, that's a great price. 

[orville99]

7 minutes ago, resetjet said:

So you did not go to the royal up site,  you instead waited for the email????  Or was this upgrade on top of a previous royal up win???

First checked the booking engine to see what was still available, then went to the RoyalUP site and put in our bid. We submitted the bid through RoyalUP this morning and got the congrats email this afternoon.

[orville99]

7 minutes ago, Vera/Lee said:

Congratulations, that's a great price. 

Total cost for the cruise ended up ~$8,000 less than what the booking engine was quoting.

[resetjet]

3 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Total cost for the cruise ended up ~$8,000 less than what the booking engine was quoting.

Score

[orville99]

2 minutes ago, resetjet said:

Score

This is the second straight one that we have won by putting in our bid literally at the last minute. 

[resetjet]

1 hour ago, orville99 said:

This is the second straight one that we have won by putting in our bid literally at the last minute. 

We did that two weeks ago on oasis and bid strong and got nothing…..

there does not seem to be a definite pattern,  which is probably how they want it.

[orville99]

15 hours ago, resetjet said:

We did that two weeks ago on oasis and bid strong and got nothing…..

there does not seem to be a definite pattern,  which is probably how they want it.

We always look at it as a form of game theory, and we play it that way. IMHO, you are much more likely to get an upgrade if you are in currently booked in a cabin category in high demand than in a category where everyone who bids is trying to get away from. If, for example, you are in an OV large balcony cabin, and that category begins to sell out, it creates demand from the categories below it. If JS aren't selling well, upgrading from the OV balcony becomes easier because they can then turn around and sell the Balcony at rack rate. If you are in an interior or OV non-balcony, and everyone else in those categories is trying to get a Balcony cabin, you get excessive demand and limited supply - and need to bid high to have a chance.

 

We wait to bid until the category we have booked becomes scarce, and then bid on higher categories that have inventory available. In that scenario, demand exceeds supply in the category we are in, and supply exceeds demand in the categories above ours, and our lowball bids are much more likely to be accepted.

 

YMMV

Edited February 26, 2022 by orville99

[resetjet]

On 2/26/2022 at 9:21 AM, orville99 said:

We always look at it as a form of game theory, and we play it that way. IMHO, you are much more likely to get an upgrade if you are in currently booked in a cabin category in high demand than in a category where everyone who bids is trying to get away from. If, for example, you are in an OV large balcony cabin, and that category begins to sell out, it creates demand from the categories below it. If JS aren't selling well, upgrading from the OV balcony becomes easier because they can then turn around and sell the Balcony at rack rate. If you are in an interior or OV non-balcony, and everyone else in those categories is trying to get a Balcony cabin, you get excessive demand and limited supply - and need to bid high to have a chance.

 

We wait to bid until the category we have booked becomes scarce, and then bid on higher categories that have inventory available. In that scenario, demand exceeds supply in the category we are in, and supply exceeds demand in the categories above ours, and our lowball bids are much more likely to be accepted.

 

YMMV

Why not just put a bid in early.  You may miss out if you dont?  I can see the other way as well all want a royal suite,  so letting the others fill up the js and crowns and once they get it they are out of the game.  

[orville99]

3 hours ago, resetjet said:

Why not just put a bid in early.  You may miss out if you dont?  I can see the other way as well all want a royal suite,  so letting the others fill up the js and crowns and once they get it they are out of the game.  

Because we have won far more often with last minute low ball bids using this strategy than we ever won using the bid early/bid high approach. YMMV

[resetjet]

Well, I did not get another royal up chance.  Everything I have heard or experienced, is that you only get one royal up bid accepted.  Once that happens, you do not get new options.  Perhaps there is a way to trigger one, such as changing your category after the royal up bid or maybe if there was alot more time in between acceptance and sailing, that may change it also, but I would not count on it.  I am happy, I got a great OV balcony for $150PP on a free casino cruise.  $600 total with taxes for 2 ppl on an 8th floor midship balcony 7 day on symphony in march is not too shabby.  Now we can afford to lose another $500 and get another cruise this summer!!!!!!