Is Upgrade Worth It?

[danny8826]

 

We will be sailing on the MSC Euribia on Sept 29th from Copenhagen.

We are currently in the Deluxe Balcony and MSC has sent us an email regarding upgrades.

We have never done this before with any cruise lines actually.  

It looks like we only have 2 choices to choose from to upgrade

 

--Suite Aurea with Terrace and Whirlpool

OR

--Premium Suite Aurea

 

Has anyone ever have any success of getting either one of these cabins?  Would you mind sharing how much did you bid for?  Is it worth upgrading?

 

 

Appreciate your feedback and input.

Danny

[notley-cruise]

An Aurea cabin also gives you the Aurea experience, so are those benefits important to you ? Or a larger cabin, balcony and whirlpool ?

Are they worth ~USD400 per person to you ?

https://www.msccruises.co.uk/cruises/msc-experiences-cabins

 

Edited August 11 by notley-cruise

[MonsterJoe]

In my opinion, yes...depending on the pp rate.

 

If I didn't book it straight out, I would be careful to not bid more than what I would have paid otherwise...that's how they get ya!

[danny8826]

15 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

In my opinion, yes...depending on the pp rate.

 

If I didn't book it straight out, I would be careful to not bid more than what I would have paid otherwise...that's how they get ya!

 

We pay $1000 each for our cabin for a 7 night Norway cruise.

I just check and I don't see any of the suite available at all so I don't know how they can offer this to us.  

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

21 hours ago, danny8826 said:

I just check and I don't see any of the suite available at all so I don't know how they can offer this to us.

 

Just because you can bid on it, doesn't mean it's available. But it could become available if someone there upgrades to something even better.

 

Also, keep in mind that CruiseCritic is heavy on the wealthy people who must be in Yacht Club at any cost or they won't sail. You might be one too but most of us average Joe's not needing that. IMO, you already have a beautiful balcony cabin; enjoy it and spend the extra money in the ports.

[danny8826]

2 hours ago, KINGBOBOFTHENORTH said:

Just because you can bid on it, doesn't mean it's available. But it could become available if someone there upgrades to something even better.

 

Also, keep in mind that CruiseCritic is heavy on the wealthy people who must be in Yacht Club at any cost or they won't sail. You might be one too but most of us average Joe's not needing that. IMO, you already have a beautiful balcony cabin; enjoy it and spend the extra money in the ports.

 

I am definitely not what you think I am.  That's very judgmental without knowing who I am.

Honestly, we are average Joe's too.  We hardly book a balcony unless at certain places like Alaska and in this case, Norway because of the fjords. In Caribbean or Europe, we book Oceanview and inside.  6.  

[morpheusofthesea]

8 hours ago, KINGBOBOFTHENORTH said:

IMO, you already have a beautiful balcony cabin; enjoy it and spend the extra money in the ports.

"That's very judgmental without knowing who I am." @danny8826

 

"Nowadays, saying what you really think can be a serious error since one risks being misunderstood."

Oscar Wilde

P.S. I don't advise we try to give advice to the lovelorn, either.

Edited August 13 by morpheusofthesea

[RBrowny]

I've put an offer in for an upcoming cruise with the Whirl Pool room, but I've seen the ship is completely full. We've gone a bit overboard with the price we're paying, however, I don't think it's going to be accepted. 

 

We just seen it was full, but wanted some space if we wanted to escape from the crowds. Fingers crossed!

 

Hopefully you get an upgrade!

[morpheusofthesea]

6 hours ago, danny8826 said:

6. 

What does 6 mean ? Is it something like the Van Buren Boys  8 ?

[dexddd]

The bids are third party.  Likely data mining if not available or if a cancel.  I've never seen good upgrade prices on MSC except for one poster which was the last year.

[morpheusofthesea]

Don't know exactly but here is a post from another social media poster. "They accepted our offer and put us in the YC Deluxe balcony! So for the price of ONE YC person my wife and I are getting in (total cost $2600, the "rack rate" for that room is $5300)! Happy birthday to me!" Under title "Bidding upgrade to Yacht Club." This was 2 weeks before the sailing. During our disembarkation, we were escorted to the gangway by our butler. In the elevator he told us that the Yacht Club was almost sold out on the next cruise. There were 2 cabins available and one was the Royal Suite. So it appears everyone that bid got upgraded to the YC with only 2 left on embarkation day. So perhaps it is not too wise to nibble too early on those upgrade emails until 2 weeks before the sailing date ?

" Will be cruising on the World Europa from Barcelona on 27th of this month. First time in YC. Won a bid from a Bella interior cabin to a YC interior but have ended up with a deluxe cabin suite! Paying around $1300 per person in total, such great value." (another poster)

   While we were on board the head concierge told us in conversation that on her watch the Royal suite went for $5000 for one week cruise, which on average the regular fare is $10,000. So the staff know exactly how much each of us pays for our cabins. So we can draw our own conclusions.

[RandomUser123]

A couple weeks ago i got my upgrade bid email for a cruise i am taking in October. The minimum bid prices offered were way too high to be worth it. The question on if something is worth it is different for each person. You need to look at the cost of the upgrade and if you think it is worth it then go for it. If it is not for you then don’t go for it. It is your vacation you should know how much is worth it for you.

[MonsterJoe]

On 8/12/2024 at 12:03 AM, danny8826 said:

 

We pay $1000 each for our cabin for a 7 night Norway cruise.

I just check and I don't see any of the suite available at all so I don't know how they can offer this to us.  

 

What they show on the website is not necessarily what is available on the ship, but it is what they want people to book (for whatever their reasons).  If you are getting upgrade emails, I would assume the rooms shown are available.

Also - even if those rooms are not available on the website, other people that booked those room, may have upgraded themselves, making theirs available as an upgrade.

Edited August 13 by MonsterJoe

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

On 8/13/2024 at 5:55 AM, morpheusofthesea said:

"That's very judgmental without knowing who I am."

I said "you might be one too". I didn't say you were.

[morpheusofthesea]

8 hours ago, KINGBOBOFTHENORTH said:

I said "you might be one too". I didn't say you were.

No flies on me, mate.

 The original quoter  is @danny8826.

[SirJackDaniels]

We bid on a Premium Suite Aurea from a Fantastica balcony in May 23 on a Fjords cruise and got it for an extra £225.00 per person

 

It was on the Virtuosa - the recessed bunks were great and really made the cabin feel so much more spacious, the balcony was huge in comparison to an aft or starboard one - plus the views of the wake, it was well worth the extra £££'s 😉

Edited August 16 by SirJackDaniels

[danny8826]

On 8/16/2024 at 2:57 PM, SirJackDaniels said:

We bid on a Premium Suite Aurea from a Fantastica balcony in May 23 on a Fjords cruise and got it for an extra £225.00 per person

 

It was on the Virtuosa - the recessed bunks were great and really made the cabin feel so much more spacious, the balcony was huge in comparison to an aft or starboard one - plus the views of the wake, it was well worth the extra £££'s 😉

 

Thank you for sharing.

 

[Nunagoras]

Permit me to give my 2 cents? And yay: Those are only my 2 cent ones, nothing more, nothing less. TBHH; unless it is for "that" over the top suite at a reasonable price that really never happens other than for a very late withdrawal or if they need to upgrade the original payers elsewhere because there is any physical damage they're not ready to work out in a timely manner, and those occasions are very rare these days, I feel that Aurea is not worth the extra money from Fantastica. The little extra space wont matter actually and the added perks are now a fraction of what they used to be. If I were you, I'd to stick with what you have now and spend the extra money either way at ports or at some of those little nothings that would make really my experience memorable. Want an ice cream Sunday from the third party vendor? Of course!...

[DorothyB]

My comment worth about one cent - Aurea is worth it to me because I value anytime dining and the ability to dine alone.

[Best Cat Mom]

5 minutes ago, DorothyB said:

Aurea is worth it to me because I value anytime dining and the ability to dine alone.

We wholeheartedly agree! When we first cruised, we chose NCL because of their "anytime dining." We go on holiday to spend time together, not to eat with strangers. And we usually dine leisurely, so why be subject to others in a hurry?

 

When I traveled for business, my best dining companion was my reading material. I had no desire to converse with others, just to recharge and get ready to face the next day.

[danny8826]

On 8/18/2024 at 8:21 AM, Nunagoras said:

Permit me to give my 2 cents? And yay: Those are only my 2 cent ones, nothing more, nothing less. TBHH; unless it is for "that" over the top suite at a reasonable price that really never happens other than for a very late withdrawal or if they need to upgrade the original payers elsewhere because there is any physical damage they're not ready to work out in a timely manner, and those occasions are very rare these days, I feel that Aurea is not worth the extra money from Fantastica. The little extra space wont matter actually and the added perks are now a fraction of what they used to be. If I were you, I'd to stick with what you have now and spend the extra money either way at ports or at some of those little nothings that would make really my experience memorable. Want an ice cream Sunday from the third party vendor? Of course!...

 

I agree.  We talked and decided to stay with what we have.

 

[danny8826]

16 hours ago, DorothyB said:

My comment worth about one cent - Aurea is worth it to me because I value anytime dining and the ability to dine alone.

 

Thank you.