Changing stateroom inside to balcony

[SoshiFluff]

First post here. This our 2nd cruise( 1st was Diney cruise with kids 9 yrs ago). We are going on NCL Encore for Feb 25 7 night Caribbean with in laws (2 other couples and mother in law). They all changed from inside to balcony but trying to contact orginal NCL cruise consultant who did booking and she is not returning my calls.  So tried a 2nd NCL agent who had contacted me 3 weeks ago and no call back either.  
 

Starting to get frustrated and wondering if we should even move to balcony.  Last cruise we barely used it as there is so much to do on boat.  So 2 questions, is it worth it on this ship?  And would it be possible to wait and bid on upgrade later(not sure how this works yet but will continue reading up)?

 

Thank you. 

[BirdTravels]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

I would not be shy to call the general reservation number to make the change. Don't wait around for people who don't return your calls. 

 

If you booked directly with NCL or booked through a participating Travel Agent, you may be allowed to bid on an upgrade. Your success with the upgrade will depend on how full the ship is. Feb 25 is getting close to spring break time when the cruises get busy. 

 

In December 2022, we bid $100 USD per person ($200 total) to get an upgrade from an inside to a balcony. That is just one data point and I don't know how often a low-ball bid wins. 

 

If you want to see some photos of the Encore and see their Dailies to check out the types of things available onboard, main dining room menus, specialty dining menus, see my live post from the Encore to Alaska last month. 

 

Edited October 27, 2023 by BirdTravels

[cruiser2015]

15 hours ago, SoshiFluff said:

First post here. This our 2nd cruise( 1st was Diney cruise with kids 9 yrs ago). We are going on NCL Encore for Feb 25 7 night Caribbean with in laws (2 other couples and mother in law). They all changed from inside to balcony but trying to contact orginal NCL cruise consultant who did booking and she is not returning my calls.  So tried a 2nd NCL agent who had contacted me 3 weeks ago and no call back either.  
 

Starting to get frustrated and wondering if we should even move to balcony.  Last cruise we barely used it as there is so much to do on boat.  So 2 questions, is it worth it on this ship?  And would it be possible to wait and bid on upgrade later(not sure how this works yet but will continue reading up)?

 

Thank you. 

If you haven't already, you can do a mock booking online to check the current pricing for the balcony upgrade you are considering. Only you can decide if it's worth it. 

Then call, as Bird suggested, the NCL main number. Speak to whatever agent answers about changing your reservation. If you don't want to bother checking online first, just make the call and ask the agent for the pricing.

[SoshiFluff]

Just did and our original price is a bit better so I called direct and everything was taken care of real quick.  Thanks. 

[cruiser2015]

2 hours ago, SoshiFluff said:

Just did and our original price is a bit better so I called direct and everything was taken care of real quick.  Thanks. 

Just a second - kindly tell us what it is you finally did. 

Not sure what original price a bit better means - of course it's most likely lower than the balcony.

Did you upgrade?

[SoshiFluff]

3 hours ago, cruiser2015 said:

Just a second - kindly tell us what it is you finally did. 

Not sure what original price a bit better means - of course it's most likely lower than the balcony.

Did you upgrade?

Yes we upgraded.  We had quoted balcony and inside at time of booking.  I checked online price today which was higher than what I was quoted when I called today. So I am relatively happy(happy wife, happy life lol). Seriously I believe it will be nice to take a break once in awhile and have coffee in morning and fresh air if needed. 

[cruiser2015]

5 hours ago, SoshiFluff said:

Yes we upgraded.  We had quoted balcony and inside at time of booking.  I checked online price today which was higher than what I was quoted when I called today. So I am relatively happy(happy wife, happy life lol). Seriously I believe it will be nice to take a break once in awhile and have coffee in morning and fresh air if needed. 

My wife would NEVER sail in an inside cabin. Just hates it.

I probably wouldn't either unless the budget was too tight to allow for it.

 

The price difference you ran in to might be due to a different balcony type; or, a guarantee without a cabin assignment (usually cheaper than even the lowest balcony fare).

 

Anyway, congrats on getting what you wanted and ENJOY your cruise!