Level Upgrade - bidding for a room upgrade.

[-The-True-North-]

Hey All,

 

A total Newbie to VV, so any help would be appreciated. We are eligible to bid for an upgrade, but we don't know the best practice to do so.  Should we apply for EVERY room we would like, or start one by one from the top down. Only reapplying if our bid was not successful.  Also how much is a realistic bid? $100 for a $2500 room probably isn't realistic, right. Also, when would we know if the bid as accepted or not? We saw 48 hours, but that must have been 48 before sailing right, not placing a bid. I'm sure they are still trying to sell these rooms.

 

Any assistance navigating these waters 😉, would be greatly appreciated. We are only interested in bidding for a suite.

 

Thanks 

 

Welcome to Level Upgrade. Let's get you upgraded in three short steps.

 

Here's how it works:

 

1. Browse the cabin & suite options below and select the amount you want to bid.

2. We'll notify you via email if your request for an upgrade has been approved.

 

If your offer is accepted, you'll be billed for the upgrade. If not, you pay nothing and keep the stateroom you have.

 

Note: The bid offered for the upgrade is in addition to the price of your original cruise ticket.

 

Gorgeous Suite

From $4575 USD per cabin

 

Brilliant Suite

From $2625 USD per cabin

 

Cheeky Corner Suite- Biggest Terrace

From $2600 USD per cabin

 

Cheeky Corner Suite - Even Bigger Terrace

From $2375 USD per cabin

 

Cheeky Corner Suite - Pretty Big Terrace

From $2200 USD per cabin

 

Seriously Suite

From $1350 USD per cabin

 

Sweet AFT Suite Biggest Terrace

From $1750 USD per cabin

 

Sweet AFT Suite- Even Bigger Terrace

From $1550 USD per cabin

 

Sweet AFT Suite Pretty big Terrace

From $1400 USD per cabin

 

XL Sea Terrace

From $350 USD per cabin

 

Central Sea Terrace

From $50 USD per cabin

Edited June 4, 2023 by -The-True-North-

[Fogcityca13]

One issue with bidding on suites is availability, they’ll offer the bidding even if all the suites are booked. For my December and March trips all the suites are booked, this July’s trip still has suites available. There is a minimum bid you can put in, that’s the from amount they have listed. In order to bid on the Sweet Aft, your minimum bid would be $1,400. I sent in a bid a few hundred over the minimum on a the sweet aft and seriously suite. We’ll find out 48hrs before we sail. The best way to get a suite is to book as soon as the sailing becomes available, after that the price goes up really fast. 

[aqlollipop]

So you bid on anything you are interested in all at the same time. If any of your bids clear only one will, and the rest will be denied. As the previous poster said, there is a minimum bid for each room category, and also the issue of availability for suites. I've only done the bidding once, from a LVT to a Central Sea Terrace, and I think I bid very near the bare minimum for that and got it. 

[-The-True-North-]

Thanks all.

 

Didn't know the "from" was a minimum bid.

 

For the Central and XL options above, these "from" prices are the difference it was going to cost me at the original booking price.

 

Will pass this time around.

 

Thanks for the clarity all.

[_tacocat_]

It seems to be a complicated algorithm with a bunch of levers hah.  It all hinges on availability first, and then I believe they start upgrading chains of rooms that would maximize ancillary revenue.

 

A maximum of 1 of your bids will be accepted, and that would be the 1 that fit into that upgrade chain.

 

could you get an upgraded room for cheaper than booking it outright? Maybe.  Is it likely at this point as voyages get more full? Probably not.

[jon81uk]

We booked lock it in limited view and then got an upgrade to central sea terrace at the minimum bid of £185. Saved around £800 compared to booking the regular terrace upfront.

[cantgetin]

The first rule is to always book a cabin where you will be happy.  Yes, people do get upgrades from bidding, but getting a suite is very unlikely as they are normally sold out. People typically hear whether their bid was accepted 2-7 days before embarkation.  People who did "Lock it in" are sometimes notified that they've been upgraded (free) before those bidding!

Step 1--it all depends on availability.  Suites are usually sold out, but there is always the possibility of a last minute cancelation.

 

Step 2--they have a weird algorithm that takes into account what you originally paid for your room and what you bid as well as what your current room is.   VV's goal is to maximize the revenue they can get on any cruise. THey list only the upgrades that you are eligible to bid for and the minimum bid.  These are per cabin, not per person.  The reason they care what you are currently assigned to is that they may be able to move someone else to your currently assigned room if you are upgraded.

Step 3--how much to bid.  This is a mystery, but a general rule is to NOT bid the minimum as a lot of people do that. Go a little higher with a "strange" number.  For instance, the minimum bid for the XL is $350.  Decide what you max bid is, and then make it "weird."  If your max is $400, bit $403 or $407.  People tend to pick numbers that end with 0 or 5.  Make your bid that little bit different.  

Step 4--at embarkation, there is a desk on the check in floor that sometimes is selling upgrades at a set price.  They have a chart of the type of room you are in and what it would cost to upgrade.  You can always check there if you are still interested.  

[GE65]

Hi, just had the email about upgrading for our August cruise.

When I go through the process to upgrade, choose a price on the slider, enter card details, the system spins for a bit and the I get this message:

 

"We are unable to process your request at this time. If you've only recently made your reservation, please try back again in 24 hours."

 

I booked months ago so it can't be because of a recentbooking, anyone else getting this issue?

Thanks

 

[Cloud9 Bob]

I tried ot about a week after I booked and got an immediate confirmation reply that I was in the running.

[LMaxwell]

If you booked through a 3rd party agent they can go into the booking engine and tell you what inventory is still available. That's not to say others are not bidding to upgrade from currently occupied cabins, but will give you an idea of what you *may* get if you bid, and if the location is acceptable to you or not.  

[GE65]

I contacted Virgin Cruises through their Chat service today, this the answer I finally had:

"I recommend giving it another try later because it looks like its a glitch on the website."

[-The-True-North-]

Seems like virgin voyages has 2 experiences.

 

Onboard and offboard.

 

Onboard apps and Customer Service seems great and egar to help.

 

Offboard, the technology and customer service experience are extremely lacking.

 

I have sent 1 email and 3 follow ups and haven't heard back from anyone.  Have called in too using long distance, which has netted 0 help.

[cantgetin]

19 minutes ago, -The-True-North- said:

Seems like virgin voyages has 2 experiences.

 

Onboard and offboard.

 

Onboard apps and Customer Service seems great and egar to help.

 

Offboard, the technology and customer service experience are extremely lacking.

 

I have sent 1 email and 3 follow ups and haven't heard back from anyone.  Have called in too using long distance, which has netted 0 help.

I've gotten the best results when I use the prompt for IT issues (when that is my problem).  The land based Sailor Services people have improved over the last 18 months, but the often don't have a clue how to handle situations (are you able to hold for a few minutes while I contact my supervisor?).  That's the good.  If you ever get Raoul, he is amazing.  The others.....friendly, polite, but not generally helpful.  I use a "first mate" who gives great customer service and let her deal with VV for me most of the time.

[CruisingWalter]

On 6/4/2023 at 12:25 PM, Fogcityca13 said:

One issue with bidding on suites is availability, they’ll offer the bidding even if all the suites are booked.

 

Not necessarily. I don't know if VV's doing it but some cruise lines are now purposely holding back some suites and cabins specifically for the bidding process. It's getting to be nuts. I miss the old days when you might be surprised at the Terminal with "We have a suite available, would you like us to move you into that cabin?" and that's all there was to it. 🙂

[cantgetin]

4 minutes ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

Not necessarily. I don't know if VV's doing it but some cruise lines are now purposely holding back some suites and cabins specifically for the bidding process. It's getting to be nuts. I miss the old days when you might be surprised at the Terminal with "We have a suite available, would you like us to move you into that cabin?" and that's all there was to it. 🙂

I never got anything that good, even  25 years ago.  We were once informed that the Roy suite was available on our DCL cruise,  as a paid upgrade at the terminal. (I asked how this happened as those suites are booked thru a different system than normal cabins and typically have a waiting list.  The CM said that there had been a medical emergency in the family and the entire family decided to cancel the cruise "just in case."). I couldn't justify the price for a suite that sleeps 7 when there were only 2 of us. 

The days of free upgrades of any sort seem to be decreasing unless you have a "gty" booking.  But then, the lines exist to make a profit, and if they can sell someone a nicer cabin for even $100, it makes sense to do that rather than "give" it away.   If they don't do bidding upgrades or if there aren't enough people bidding, many lines also sell upgrades at the terminal.

I was made aware a few days ago that a suite had opened up on our upcoming cruise; it was gone within minutes!  

[CruisingWalter]

8 minutes ago, cantgetin said:

I was made aware a few days ago that a suite had opened up on our upcoming cruise; it was gone within minutes!  

 

I was talking to the Future Cruise Desk folks on our last Scarlet sailing asking how the Cheeky Corner Suites seem to disappear in minutes every time they release their new bookings. We loved ours on the original Scarlet Lady cruise, but it can be near impossible to book them sometimes.

 

He said some TAs are putting together Circles (Groups) to hold blocks of cabins as soon as the sailings come up. They can do that for 30 days. When those 30 days are up, if 10 cabins have not been sold in the Circle, the unsold cabins get released back into the inventory. This can include the Rockstar Suites so it's possible that's why that suite popped up for you. 

Edited June 18, 2023 by CruisingWalter

[cantgetin]

33 minutes ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

 

He said some TAs are putting together Circles (Groups) to hold blocks of cabins as soon as the sailings come up. They can do that for 30 days. When those 30 days are up, if 10 cabins have not been sold in the Circle, the unsold cabins get released back into the inventory. This can include the Rockstar Suites so it's possible that's why that suite popped up for you. 

That's exactly what I've been told by a couple of "first mates."  And if a suite returns to inventory, there is nothing to stop another TA from grabbing it within minutes.  They always seem to be occupied on my cruises.  No worries, I'm very happy with my Sea Terrace.

[Gretchendz]

3 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

Not necessarily. I don't know if VV's doing it but some cruise lines are now purposely holding back some suites and cabins specifically for the bidding process. It's getting to be nuts. I miss the old days when you might be surprised at the Terminal with "We have a suite available, would you like us to move you into that cabin?" and that's all there was to it. 🙂

 

Ah the good old days of the much desired Upgrade Fairy....we miss her!

[GE65]

On 6/18/2023 at 11:31 AM, GE65 said:

I contacted Virgin Cruises through their Chat service today, this the answer I finally had:

"I recommend giving it another try later because it looks like its a glitch on the website."

Replying to my own post - it seems that the problem is Apple's safari web browser. Everything went through first time using Firefox. Might be a tip for others.

 

[Fogcityca13]

22 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

 

Not necessarily. I don't know if VV's doing it but some cruise lines are now purposely holding back some suites and cabins specifically for the bidding process. It's getting to be nuts. I miss the old days when you might be surprised at the Terminal with "We have a suite available, would you like us to move you into that cabin?" and that's all there was to it. 🙂

Appreciate the insight, it makes sense from the cruise lines perspective, kind of to bummer for us. I was able to snag a Cheeky Corner for $1300 over the cost of an XL on Brilliant when they released itineraries. Was going for a Seriously Suite, but they all booked up by the next morning. Virgin is not have an issue selling the Rockstar cabins. 

[_tacocat_]

22 hours ago, CruisingWalter said:

He said some TAs are putting together Circles (Groups) to hold blocks of cabins as soon as the sailings come up. They can do that for 30 days. When those 30 days are up, if 10 cabins have not been sold in the Circle, the unsold cabins get released back into the inventory. This can include the Rockstar Suites so it's possible that's why that suite popped up for you. 

This is pretty annoying, and it’s been going on for quite some time.  I’ve had a few voyages where all suites were “sold out” for months, only to flood inventory a few weeks before the voyage.  I can’t imagine it helps VV in the long run either, as there are people who would be willing to book the suite up front at a higher all-in rate than the upgrade bidders.

 

Circles should need names associated with the rooms to book an actual cabin, or they should only allow the placeholder rooms to be sea terrace (largest quantity of rooms in that category!) by default if there is no specific guest associated, then allow the booking of another category once a guest is identified.

[_tacocat_]

41 minutes ago, Fogcityca13 said:

Virgin is not have an issue selling the Rockstar cabins. 

The problem is TAs grab them in their “circles,” but don’t end up booking them, so they get released, then scooped up quickly by another circle.  There were a ton of people on my January/February voyages on valiant and scarlet who got cheap upgrades at the end because a ton of suites ended up back in inventory, after having been “sold out” for months.

 

VV could sell them outright for more than they’re getting via bids (demand is clearly there!!), so I’m not sure why they let those TA games continue.

[cantgetin]

Totally agree that "First Mates" should not be able to hold suites without a name attached.  I've worked with agents who keep a "wait list" of people who want suites.  When the sailings are released, they can grab something on a 24 hour hold, allowing time to get in contact with the client regarding price and any other specifics....the client then pays the downpayment or releases the cabin.  And if released, all the other "first mates" as well as those people booking on their own have a chance at the cabin.  

Pricing is an interesting consideration.  I have 2 cruises booked on VV (sea terrace) which have doubled in price since I booked them.  Yes, I booked early and it seems they have become quite popular.  It would seem that even an early booking, potentially at a lower fare, in a suite would still result in more profit than a bid later on.  Suites are popular and VV doesn't seem to have any trouble filling them.

[CruisingWalter]

On 6/19/2023 at 1:17 PM, cantgetin said:

Pricing is an interesting consideration.  I have 2 cruises booked on VV (sea terrace) which have doubled in price since I booked them.

 

Same here, we booked our Valiant Lady Thanksgiving cruise a while ago around $2500 for a Sea Terrace, now over $5000 for the same cabin category. That cruise must be selling well. 🙂 

[CruisingWalter]

On 6/19/2023 at 10:43 AM, GE65 said:

Replying to my own post - it seems that the problem is Apple's safari web browser. Everything went through first time using Firefox. Might be a tip for others.

 

 

Google Chrome is recommended by most every cruise line site for browser choice. Apple seems to put a LOT of security 'safeguards' in place that end up disrupting your workflow in some sites.