The Unwanted Upgrade

[Dodger Blue]

Had to deal today with an unwanted upgrade. We made a reservation in March for a Transatlantic cruise in April 2015, over a year in advance. We specifically wanted to make an early reservation so we could get our desired location, mid-ship, mid-deck...a balcony stateroom. I carefully monitor prices just to check if there has been a price decrease and discovered there was. So I called my TA who in turned called Princess who told my TA that the new price was only good for new bookings. I wasn't entirely satisfied with this so I called Princess directly. After being told basically the same thing my TA told me, the Princess rep told me that I had already received an upgrade to a deluxe balcony in August! I indicated that that was news to me, and that I didn't ask for nor did I want the upgrade that had put us from mid-deck to a far aft location. I demanded my old stateroom back but was told my TA had to contact them. I called the TA who knew nothing about the upgrade but eventually was successful in getting our old stateroom back (not sure where the people that were in it now are going...probably to get that great upgrade we got!!). I subsequently found out that Princess sent an email to our old TA (she left the organization and my account was transferred to the new one) and it had been buried in a dormant mailbox.

 

First, I will acknowledge that part of the screw up was the lack of communication between my old and new TA and that they should have had some procedure in place so that emails of that kind were forwarded to the new TA so they could keep me informed. However, I'm not letting Princess off the hook either. First, I'm not sure how they can give someone an upgrade without confirming that the person wants it! (I've since found out that they can unless the customer specifically says they won't accept an upgrade...which makes no sense to me!). Secondly, I would think that Princess should wait for some acknowledgement either from the TA or the customer that they've received this information. Had I not taken it upon myself to call Princess on a different matter I might not have discovered this until I was literally on the ship! Not a question of whether they can or not, this is a question of whether it is right or not. I submit that they should not change cabins that someone specifically reserved unless they get permission from the TA or the customer.

 

All's well that ends well, but it might not have.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Dodger Blue

[Working 2 Cruise]

In the passage contract, it specifically states that Princess reserves the right to change your cabin... Also, you should pay more attention to your personalizer. Had you checked it, you would have seen the upgrade.

 

As for the upgrade itself, on this particular ship, aft is a much better location due to the lack of a central staircase. That means overcrowding of elevators.

 

I would have jumped on that upgrade!

[Dodger Blue]

I do know that now that Princess has the ability to change cabins on customers. However, it seems good PR to let the patron acknowledge that they are aware of it! It shouldn't be a surprise.

 

Also, I would question whether this is an upgrade. With the cabin we have we had an extra large balcony because it was an angled one. We wanted mid ship because we like a steadier ride. Getting 11 square feet more is not that big a deal for what you get in return...a poorer location in MHO. And, we're not concerned about the lack of staircase in the central area. We take the elevator on most occasions. We're not in a hurry...we're on a cruise!

Edited November 6, 2014 by Dodger Blue

[Dodger Blue]

P.S. It's still several months until our cruise. I shouldn't have to continually check the cruise personalizer to make sure Princess hasn't pulled a fast one on us!!!

[elliair]

P.S. It's still several months until our cruise. I shouldn't have to continually check the cruise personalizer to make sure Princess hasn't pulled a fast one on us!!!

 

Call your TA and tell him/her that you do not want to be upgraded unless it's to the Owner's Suite. Not all "upgrades" are upgrades. I learned a hard lesson a while back on so called upgrades. We had 15 days of noise coming from MUTS, people clomping above us, chairs scraping the floor. Never again!

[paul929207]

Was or is your reservation marked "Do Not Upgrade"?

[RickEk]

Well, in Princess' defense, they did notify the TA. That's what they are obligated to do. If the OP had booked direct, he would have gotten that email, but since he used a TA, all correspondence goes to them. The TA is in charge of the booking. That's the way it works.

 

And, if they don't hear back, it is assumed that the upgrade was accepted. Too many cabins on too many ships to be running down every upgrade to see if the passenger wanted it or not. I can see why they wouldn't do it that way.

Edited November 7, 2014 by RickEk

[whatcruiseisnext]

I do know that now that Princess has the ability to change cabins on customers. However, it seems good PR to let the patron acknowledge that they are aware of it! It shouldn't be a surprise.

 

Also, I would question whether this is an upgrade. With the cabin we have we had an extra large balcony because it was an angled one. We wanted mid ship because we like a steadier ride. Getting 11 square feet more is not that big a deal for what you get in return...a poorer location in MHO. And, we're not concerned about the lack of staircase in the central area. We take the elevator on most occasions. We're not in a hurry...we're on a cruise!

 

We just got off the Royal on Tuesday and we stood on the Seawalk or by the Seaview bar and looked down at all those midship cabins and said that no way no how would we ever want one of them. No privacy when using your balcony and some of the cabins you can actually see right into the cabin. I think the upgrade you were given would have been MUCH better! Having a little larger balcony is not worth sacrificing privacy.

Edited November 7, 2014 by whatcruiseisnext

[icat2000]

Princess did their job. They notified your TA. How would they know that your original TA agent had left the company, did they notify Princess. Seems like if you want to pass blame with anyone it solely belongs at the foot of your Travel Agency. Anyway, you got your old cabin back so happy ending.

[Pam in CA]

Unless your booking is marked "Do not upgrade," every booking is set at "Will accept an upgrade" as the default. In other words, you give Princess permission to move you to any cabin as long as it's a higher category. They have no obligation to notify you since your booking is already marked that you would accept one. Even if you have the booking marked "Do not upgrade," Princess can still upgrade you with or without notification. :( Right or wrong, that's the way it works.

 

As for price reductions, a good deal of the time there's the restriction that it's for new bookings only. If that's the promotion, you have no option other than to cancel and rebook. As a solo cruiser, I often come up against price reductions based only on double occupancy. I'm out of luck. :(

 

Since you're not close to final payment, you have the option to cancel and re-book in the category you want, depending on availability, at the new price. Your TA can do this for you.

[KruzPrincess]

I guess this is a good learning experience for you. I always mark my reservations "no upgrade". Sometimes I mark it that I'll take a "meta" upgrade to the next category. That means that if I book a mini I'll only be upgraded to a full suite. Technically, an upgrade is when you get a cabin category higher than what you booked. You may not like the new location, but it's still an upgrade. Princess spells out the possibility of an upgrade in the terms and conditions. Princess notified your TA. I don't understand your disappointment. Fortunately, you got your cabin back. Hopefully, your TA had them mark your reservation as "no upgrade" now. As another person mentioned, I'd be hesitant to book any cabin under the skywalk. I prefer cabins in the aft area for the most part and that's what I would have booked. We all have different preferences.

Edited November 7, 2014 by KruzPrincess

[Dodger Blue]

Was or is your reservation marked "Do Not Upgrade"?

 

It is now!

[Dodger Blue]

Was or is your reservation marked "Do Not Upgrade"?

 

We just got off the Royal on Tuesday and we stood on the Seawalk or by the Seaview bar and looked down at all those midship cabins and said that no way no how would we ever want one of them. No privacy when using your balcony and some of the cabins you can actually see right into the cabin. I think the upgrade you were given would have been MUCH better! Having a little larger balcony is not worth sacrificing privacy.

 

As I said earlier. It was about location. The size of the balcony was a plus. Won't be sunbathing in the nude (not a pretty picture) so "privacy" is not an overwhelming concern.

[Dodger Blue]

Princess did their job. They notified your TA. How would they know that your original TA agent had left the company, did they notify Princess. Seems like if you want to pass blame with anyone it solely belongs at the foot of your Travel Agency. Anyway, you got your old cabin back so happy ending.

 

It never ceases to amaze me that there are some people who believe that Princess can never do any wrong. If you read my post, I conceded that technically the TA bears the responsibility. However, I also said that in the interest of good PR that Princess ought to wait for an acknowledgement from someone before making the switch. The didn't. I simply feel this is a bad policy.

[Dodger Blue]

I'm not sure people read the OP before they respond. I said that the TA ultimately was responsible. I simply said that Princess ought to be more considerate of their customers. Yes they have the right to change cabins. Does that make it right? In my opinion NO. In my situation it was a comedy of errors. If my original TA had not left the firm she would have informed me immediately. She has done so in the past. Unfortunately it didn't happen. If Princess had a practice of letting the customer know they are switching them before it's done it would be a better policy in my opinion and there would be less angry customers. They need to treat their customers with more consideration. Sometimes people simply ought to do the right thing...not do things simply because they can!

[cruiseclues]

Very interesting thread...thank you for it. :):):):)

[paul929207]

OP,

 

Glad there is a happy ending for you. Have a great cruise

[icat2000]

It never ceases to amaze me that there are some people who believe that Princess can never do any wrong. If you read my post, I conceded that technically the TA bears the responsibility. However, I also said that in the interest of good PR that Princess ought to wait for an acknowledgement from someone before making the switch. The didn't. I simply feel this is a bad policy.

I simply said that Princess had informed the relevant person. In my opinion, I believe this is sufficient, you on the other hand, don't.

 

I also considered how it could be potentially be a lot of administration (for Princess) to follow up on whether you have a) received the notification b) happy with the switch. I guess they play the law of averages and think well the ones who are not happy will simply phone up or mark at the time of booking "No Upgrade".

 

Also would it be in the terms of Booking Conditions about the right to make the upgrade which you would have agreed to by confirming the cruise booking and paying a deposit.

 

Maybe drop Princess an email outlining your suggestions on how that might improve their policies re upgrade notifications.

Edited November 7, 2014 by icat2000

[maggie.1008]

In the last 2 months I have received upgrades on 2 different Princess ships. I did not consider either an upgrade. Had a bit of a hassle getting my original cabins back. Both time I found the change on my own. Princess did not notify.

[Bucky3]

Happy to know the OP was able to get their cabin back.

 

My daughter had a similar experience. She booked a MIDSHIP MINI for her family of three and had it marked "no upgrade." She was upgraded to a full AFT SUITE but did not realize it until it was almost cruise time. She had booked through a TA, but she called Princess and asked what other suites in the same category as the upgrade were available. There were midship suites available and she had no problem switching to one of those. NOW SHE IS SPOILED !!

 

Point being: If you get an unwanted upgrade, find out where other cabins in that same ugraded category might be available and ask for one of those. It can't hurt to try!

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Post deleted.

Edited November 7, 2014 by Ryndam2002

[RickEk]

In the last 2 months I have received upgrades on 2 different Princess ships. I did not consider either an upgrade. Had a bit of a hassle getting my original cabins back. Both time I found the change on my own. Princess did not notify.

 

On my upcoming cruise in December, I have been upgraded twice. Both times I declined (I am happy where I'm at). Both times I received an email informing me of the upgrade.

[caribill]

On my upcoming cruise in December, I have been upgraded twice. Both times I declined (I am happy where I'm at). Both times I received an email informing me of the upgrade.

 

I assume your booking was with Princess, not with a TA. Correct?

[Gold_Coaster]

I'm not sure people read the OP before they respond. I said that the TA ultimately was responsible. I simply said that Princess ought to be more considerate of their customers. Yes they have the right to change cabins. Does that make it right? In my opinion NO. In my situation it was a comedy of errors. If my original TA had not left the firm she would have informed me immediately. She has done so in the past. Unfortunately it didn't happen. If Princess had a practice of letting the customer know they are switching them before it's done it would be a better policy in my opinion and there would be less angry customers. They need to treat their customers with more consideration. Sometimes people simply ought to do the right thing...not do things simply because they can!

The problems you have had with a Travel Agent seems to be a very common Problem,Since we have given up on dealing with them, and now do all our Bookings ourselves direct,eg. Airlines,Hotels,tours and Cruise Lines direct ,we have never since had a Problem.We now feel we are back in control,not controlled by any incompetent TA's. Also as others have mentioned, dont forget to state "NO UPGRADES" Enjoy your chosen Cabin.

[Direwolves]

Yet another reason to not use a TA if you don't have to. I am a firm believer that if you want something done right, do it yourself (if you have the skills to do it).

 

 

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