Halp! The upgrade fairy came for me - should I reject the offer?

[LadySadie1]

First off, we didn't book a guarantee but specifically picked our cabin on the Caribe deck on the Emerald. I got an email from our TA that we were upgraded from our fore cabin on the Caribe deck (C222) to a mid-ship cabin on Baja (B310). I picked Caribe deck because of the larger balcony but I don't know if this is actually a better cabin or if I should pitch a fit and get our original cabin back?

 

Could people more familiar with the Emerald and the various decks please advise?

[jeep1]

Stay where you are. Love the big balcony:))))

[cherylandtk]

If you picked the Caribe because of the larger balcony, then you may not like the standard balcony on Baja. The rooms themselves are identical, just the balconies are of different sizes. But did you tell your TA that you did or did not want an upgrade? We have had both, and it really is just personal preference as to what one prefers; some people prefer the smaller, yet fully covered balcony rather than the half/half coverage on Caribe.

Edited January 21, 2015 by cherylandtk

[LadySadie1]

But did you tell your TA that you did or did not want an upgrade?

 

No, I didn't specify no upgrade because I (maybe incorrectly) assumed that my TA would not allow an upgrade that since I made my cabin preference known.

[Colo Cruiser]

Stay where you are! ;)

[Shelly97060]

if the balcony is why you picked Caribe then you should see if your TA can get your original cabin back. The only reason to take the upgrade would be if you wanted to be more midship. The larger half covered balcony on Caribe is very nice.:)

[geoherb]

I'd want the larger Caribe Deck balcony. I like the forward cabins. Being in the middle of the ship isn't important to me.

[Working 2 Cruise]

Reject the upgrade! And never assume anything about your TA. They don't always pay attention...

Edited January 21, 2015 by Working 2 Cruise

[caribill]

No, I didn't specify no upgrade because I (maybe incorrectly) assumed that my TA would not allow an upgrade that since I made my cabin preference known.

 

When a booking is made, the TA should ask if you would accept an upgrade. If this is not asked, the default is to accept an upgrade. It does not matter if you picked a specific cabin or not.

[VibeGuy]

Ask your TA to mark your reservation "meta-upgrade only" - the only upgrades you'd be offered are mini-suites and full suites.

[fishywood]

Ask your TA to mark your reservation "meta-upgrade only" - the only upgrades you'd be offered are mini-suites and full suites.

 

That option was done away with quite awhile ago. It became available sometime in 2012 and didn't last much more than a year once the mass reclassification of cabins was done, as the main motive for the reclassification was to reduce the overbooking of certain categories that forced multi-level upgrades. You can request a note on your reservation "will accept upgrade to minisuite only" but it may be ignored.

[Coral]

That option was done away with quite awhile ago. It became available sometime in 2012 and didn't last much more than a year once the mass reclassification of cabins was done, as the main motive for the reclassification was to reduce the overbooking of certain categories that forced multi-level upgrades. You can request a note on your reservation "will accept upgrade to minisuite only" but it may be ignored.

 

This option is still available. Travel Agents and Princess agents can see it and select it. The wording is different as it doesn't say "meta" but it is still the same concept.

Edited January 21, 2015 by Coral

[TracieABD]

I have stayed in both types of cabins. I would have selected the original cabin, for the larger balcony.

 

OP, please, come back and let us know what happened.:)

[LadySadie1]

The TA attached the notification from Princess which said we had 48 hrs to decline the offer, so I called her and got our original cabin back.

 

She said she would mark it "no upgrade" so we don't lose it again.

[Thrak]

The TA attached the notification from Princess which said we had 48 hrs to decline the offer, so I called her and got our original cabin back.

 

She said she would mark it "no upgrade" so we don't lose it again.

 

Very cool. Glad you got the Caribe balcony back. Mark this down as a "learning experience" and, hopefully, you won't be put in this position again.

 

Many people have been "upgraded" from their Caribe balconies and never found out about it until later. They have almost all been pretty unhappy about it. What Princess considers an upgrade doesn't always coincide with what passengers consider an upgrade. I once turned down a mini suite in order to keep my aft-facing Caribe balcony. Granted, it wasn't a "free" upgrade but they wanted very (very) little more for the mini. The aft-facing Caribe balcony has been my wife's favorite cabin so far.

[TracieABD]

The TA attached the notification from Princess which said we had 48 hrs to decline the offer, so I called her and got our original cabin back.

 

She said she would mark it "no upgrade" so we don't lose it again.

 

Whew! All is well that ends well!