Question about Royal up and gty

[katstat]

I have a gty balcony reserved. In my royal up offer there is an option for a large balcony room. Wondering if I bid on this and got it if it would guarantee that I wouldn’t have an obstructed view. I guess the question is, Are there large balcony rooms with an obstructed view? 
 

on Odyssey of the Seas. 

Edited July 10 by katstat

[firefly333]

I havent seen any myself but if people knew what ship they  might have more input.

[Biker19]

18 minutes ago, katstat said:

Are there large balcony rooms with an obstructed view? 

No, but you should wait till your original GTY cabin assignment happens (should become apparent after check in at 45 days out) before considering a bid. 

[Signet]

I am attaching my question to this thread..hope you don’t mind

 

I just received an e-mail to bid via the Royal up program. I clicked the link to find out more about this program.
The minimum bid for the upgraded suite I really want is $95.00 more than if I just booked the suite out right. Is this normal? Where the minimum bid is more than the price on the web site. (What I paid already for the cruise plus the minimum bid) 

Does not seem like an offer that anyone would take. Is Royal just hoping people do not compare, and just get excited for an upgrade opportunity?

[smokeybandit]

I would think it's rare for a royal up to be more expensive than a straight upgrade. But it certainly happens.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, Signet said:

Is Royal just hoping people do not compare, and just get excited for an upgrade opportunity?

Yes. RCI is counting on that and other marketing gimmicks to separate folks from their money. 

[MaryBCruisin]

Do you need to wait for an email or is there a place to check for available royal up bids?

[Biker19]

12 hours ago, MaryBCruisin said:

Do you need to wait for an email or is there a place to check for available royal up bids?

You are much less likely to be eligible if you don't get the email (the email usually is sent to the first person on the booking).

You can check on this site: Cruise Room Upgrades - Royal Up | Royal Caribbean Cruises

 

[twangster]

GTY balcony on this class is usually a good gamble.

 

Sometimes the deck 6 obstructed balconies sell out.  This may seem counterintuitive.   Since they are the least expensive balconies they often get heavily booked.  Consequently don't assume you will get a deck 6 obstructed balcony from a GTY.

 

That's not to say you won't get a deck 6 obstructed balcony, it all depends on timing and if folks cancel or move to another ship and sail date.  I have done fairly well playing the GTY game on this class since there are so many balcony cabins and by percentage not many are obstructed.

 

If you will be disappointed should you get a deck 6 obstructed balcony from a GTY you may want to consider paying upfront now to ensure you get a balcony that won't disappoint.

[Starry Eyes]

16 hours ago, Signet said:

I am attaching my question to this thread..hope you don’t mind

 

I just received an e-mail to bid via the Royal up program. I clicked the link to find out more about this program.
The minimum bid for the upgraded suite I really want is $95.00 more than if I just booked the suite out right. Is this normal? Where the minimum bid is more than the price on the web site. (What I paid already for the cruise plus the minimum bid) 

Does not seem like an offer that anyone would take. Is Royal just hoping people do not compare, and just get excited for an upgrade opportunity?

Posters on CruiseCritic frequently suggest people look at the cost of a traditionally purchased upgrade vs the bid amount.  Good that you did.

 

Another couple points to keep in mind: other people in your cabin category are getting that same minimum bid amount, even though they paid cruise fares for their cabins.  Hypothetically, some people your category might have paid less than you (maybe even a free cruise), and that minimum bid for the upgrade might make sense to them.  
Also, the math can look different for parties of different sizes because RoyalUp always charges based on two guests; so if they are in the same cabin type a solo’s minimum bids are the same as a party four’s minimum.  Of course, they probably paid different fares and would probably have different costs if they purchased a traditional upgrade.  Each booking needs to do the math for their personal situation; it likely differs from yours.

 

[Biker19]

3 minutes ago, Starry Eyes said:

 Of course, they probably paid different fares and would probably have different costs if they purchased a traditional upgrade.

What people paid for their existing cabin makes no difference - the only issue here is whether the RU cost is more or less than a paid upgrade.

[Hoopster95]

16 hours ago, Signet said:

The minimum bid for the upgraded suite I really want is $95.00 more than if I just booked the suite out right. Is this normal?

 

16 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I would think it's rare for a royal up to be more expensive than a straight upgrade.

 

I've seen it several times and RC counts on us to not bother checking

 

15 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Yes. RCI is counting on that and other marketing gimmicks to separate folks from their money. 

 

21 minutes ago, Starry Eyes said:

Posters on CruiseCritic frequently suggest people look at the cost of a traditionally p

 

 

Yes to both the above. I already have in previous posts/threads as well

Edited July 11 by Hoopster95

[Jetdriver787]

19 hours ago, Signet said:

I am attaching my question to this thread..hope you don’t mind

 

I just received an e-mail to bid via the Royal up program. I clicked the link to find out more about this program.
The minimum bid for the upgraded suite I really want is $95.00 more than if I just booked the suite out right. Is this normal? Where the minimum bid is more than the price on the web site. (What I paid already for the cruise plus the minimum bid) 

Does not seem like an offer that anyone would take. Is Royal just hoping people do not compare, and just get excited for an upgrade opportunity?

Yes, perfectly normal. “Royal up” is a speculative bid on something that may or may not exist at a later date. It is run by a separate company called “plusgrade” who work with a whole host of hospitality companies, (cruise lines, hotels, airlines and even railway companies,) mainly in order to maximise ancillary revenue from returned or unsold inventory prior to it perishing. 
 

Unsold inventory will continue to be offered by the hospitality company through all of its normal channels with a view that ideally it will never be handed to the programme. That includes, direct sales, agency sales including interline sales. To that end, I have regularly been able to hard purchase available upgrades at a significant reduction on even the lowest bid from a “Royal up” punt.

 

I think the aspect that is often overlooked is that it really isn’t an auction or a competition in the true sense, since there is no tangible product being offered. What is being offered is a speculative bid in the event that item might be available, either at the end of the realistic sales windows, or sometimes to balance blocks of capacity that are not following expected sales profiles at other unspecified dates and from time to time.

[Starry Eyes]

3 hours ago, Biker19 said:

What people paid for their existing cabin makes no difference - the only issue here is whether the RU cost is more or less than a paid upgrade.

Ah, but the two are connected; the less one paid for the original cabin, the more they must shell out for that paid upgrade at current pricing.  Imagine passengers A paid a fare $2000 for a balcony and  passengers B paid $2500 for a balcony on the same sailing.  The current booking price for a JS is $ 3000.  The RoyalUp minimum bid offered for those in a balcony to a JS is $200x2=$400.  Passengers A with their lower initial fare can pay $1000 for a JS upgrade or bid from a $400 minimum… a $600 decision.  Passengers B with a higher initial fare can pay $500 for a JS upgrade or bid from the same $400 minimum…a $100 decision.  The PP wondered why the PP’s choices are close in price.  My message to the PP was that the bidding math may differ depending upon initial cruise fare and party size.

Edited July 11 by Starry Eyes

[Jetdriver787]

3 minutes ago, Starry Eyes said:

Ah, but the two are connected; the less one paid for the original cabin, the more they must shell out for that paid upgrade at current pricing.  Imagine passengers A paid a fare $2000 for a balcony and  passengers B paid $2500 for a balcony on the same sailing.  The current booking price for a JS is $ 3000.  The RoyalUp minimum bid offered for those in a balcony to a JS is $200x2=$400.  Passengers A with their lower initial fare can pay $1000 for a JS upgrade or bid from a $400 minimum… a $600 decision.  Passengers B with a higher initial fare can pay $500 for a JS upgrade or bid from the same $400 minimum…a $100 decision.  The OP wondered why the OP’s choices are close in price.  My message to the OP was that the bidding math may differ depending upon initial cruise fare and party size.

The bidding range will only depend on the category you are bidding from and to. What you actually paid is irrelevant (may even have been complimentary!) plusgrade (not Royal Caribbean) are constructing revenue chains from the totality of returned and unsold stock. What was already sold is money in the bank and irrelevant to the generation of ancillary revenue to their customer.