Uniworld: Should I bid on an upgrade?

[CruisinKikster]

I'm sailing on a Christmas Market cruise down the Rhine on the SS Antoinette. Currently booked in a French Balcony and wondering if any of the upgrades are "worth it." 

 

For a little context, I usually like a balcony on ocean cruises and pretty much book nothing lower than that. When we originally booked this cruise, it seemed the Deluxe Balcony was the exact same as a French Balcony, but we lost space for the balcony. And since we won't be sitting out there a lot (hello winter), it didn't seem worth it to give up that space. 

 

Now I've reviewed some more videos about the rooms, and it seems the Deluxe is actually an enclosed balcony that we can open if wanted. I haven't seen anything about the French Balcony to know if it does the same thing, but I believe it does. 

 

Anyway, I digress... here are the upgrade minimum bids I was sent: 

 

Deluxe Balcony - $100 pp

Suite - $800 pp

Grand Suite - $1600 pp

 

Would you bid on any of these? (I'd likely do the minimum knowing that it's a low chance of succeeding because I booked a room I knew I'd be happy with. Just wondering if it's worth a minimal attempt for any of the others.) 

 

Edited September 12 by CruisinKikster

[Mrs. Claypool]

I have sailed on Uniworld over the years in the French, Deluxe and Suite cabins.

 

Compared to ocean cruise ships, the rooms on the river ships can seem small and so any extra square footage makes a pleasant difference.

 

I myself would certainly bid on an upgrade to Deluxe at those prices.  The Uniworld Suites are very nice, so depending on the circumstances (is it a special occasion, do I feel expansive finance-wise), I might bid on a Suite.

[mozfoz]

We sailed Uniworld down the Rhine on the SS Antoinette with a FB. It was not a Christmas Cruise but we got the FB through a minimal bid. You do not get to choose location in a bid, but ours turned out to be great. Keeping as you mentioned the weather will be on the chillier side, it will get dark very early. Personally, we do not use a balcony, and the FB with the glass panel that lowers provided all the balcony feeling we needed. A FB may not be what you want, it will be warmer and provide a larger cabin.

[CruisinKikster]

Thank you! This is helpful for the decision-making process. I know we don't get to choose the location for the room (if accepted), but as this is a small boat, I'm less concerned about location. 

 

I definitely agree about the rooms seeming small, and I'm trying to remember that we won't be in it all too much. But still it's nice not to have to dodge each other to get dressed. 🙂

[Host Jazzbeau]

19 minutes ago, CruisinKikster said:

I definitely agree about the rooms seeming small, and I'm trying to remember that we won't be in it all too much. But still it's nice not to have to dodge each other to get dressed. 🙂

I like being able to walk past the end of the bed without banging any body parts on the wall, or furniture that has been strategically placed there to find my pinky toe!  😱

[Canal archive]

Jumps out at you does it? Happens to my DH wherever he is - tall man ongoing, I’d say challenge. I’ve got used to holding his hand whilst he hops, ouching around a room, occupational hazard.

[UDChE89]

I won a bid for a suite on the Maria Theresa last year.  When cruising on the Bon Voyage this year, I declined to bid.  The value of the suite wasn’t there for me compared to the suite I had on Viva for a Danube cruise in 2022.  There is no outdoor space in the suite.  The “balcony” was just a curtained off area of the cabin in my Uniworld suite.  It actually made the room feel smaller and the “balcony” area cramped.  I’m more of a self-service type so the Butler wasn’t of much use to me.