Complimentary cabin upgrade question ....

[YWW]

We have done many cruises especially with Princess but we've always been too chicken to opt for "cabin upgrade" for fear we may end up with a worse cabin or location. What are your experiences with this option? Has it been always better cabin and or better location? Also, once a free cabin is offered, do we have the option to turn it down? Or is the cabin upgrade done automatically?

[moki'smommy]

What YOU consider an upgrade and what Princess considers an upgrade can be two very different things. They consider an upgrade to be any cabin that costs more than what you originally booked, not counting any price increases (a higher category). The problem is that some of those higher categories may have less than optimal locations.

 

An upgrade can be a different location of the same type cabin (a midship balcony rather than a forward balcony) or it can be a different type of cabin (oceanview to balcony.) This is called a meta upgrade. There can be problems with both kinds. For instance, if you have a caribe deck premium balcony, would you rather have that or a mini-suite with a standard balcony? There is no right answer--we are all different. If you had a big aft balcony, would you want that or would you want a midship cabin? Some people very carefully choose a cabin with other cabins above and below them for noise control, near something or away from something etc. Would they want a "better" location but below the pool deck? Most people would take an upgrade from one cabin type to another, but not always. The good news...if you check your reservation daily and see an "upgrade" that you don't want, you can call Princess and if your original cabin is available, you can get it back. You can also see if there are other cabins available in the category your were upgraded to and ask to move to one of the other open cabins.

 

And...after all that, free upgrades are few and far between. If you get an upsell offer, you can know exactly which cabin you are moving into.

Edited June 5, 2018 by moki'smommy

[MCC retired]

You will not always receive notification of the upgrade from Princess .

If you do . you may be able to turn it down if you respond fast.

We have only been disappointed once when we were upgraded to a handicap cabin (larger yes , we just don't like the bathroom or furnishings ), which we swapped for another cabin in the same upgraded category .

When we book Guarantee's with any cruise line , we have always received at least a 1 category better than what we paid for .

[cdngrl]

i agree with moki's mommy, however i seem to be booking more last minute trips lately (within 2 months) and my only option is a guarantee. i am usually upgraded and as i book the cheapest cabin (forward interior) it is also usually a better room. i like forward so if i end up where i booked, i'm okay with that.

 

my daughter was in a mid-ship interior and was upgraded to the farthest forward ocean view. they were happy and i would be but if you don't like the motion, it would be a bad upgrade for you.

 

if you are upgraded and don't like it, the email says you can call and change but chances are they've already moved someone to your cabin. i'm not sure how easy it would be to get back what you had.

[EleanorNoway]

After reading various posts on "cabin upgrades" I have concluded you have to check a box for a cabin upgrade, correct me if I am wrong. My question is I booked a cruise for Dec 2018 last Oct 2017, I have no idea if I checked the box or not! I most certainly do NOT want to change our cabin, as we spent a bit of time deciding on the perfect one for us. How and where do I go to see if many months ago I checked the box, and if so can I undo it now? Much thanks for any help on this matter. Sorry not trying to hijack the OP.

E

[moki'smommy]

After reading various posts on "cabin upgrades" I have concluded you have to check a box for a cabin upgrade, correct me if I am wrong. My question is I booked a cruise for Dec 2018 last Oct 2017, I have no idea if I checked the box or not! I most certainly do NOT want to change our cabin, as we spent a bit of time deciding on the perfect one for us. How and where do I go to see if many months ago I checked the box, and if so can I undo it now? Much thanks for any help on this matter. Sorry not trying to hijack the OP.

E

Call Princess (or your TA if you used one). Tell them how you WANT your reservation to read and they will change it for you. You can change almost anything this way!

[cdngrl]

eleanor, you can't check a box, a princess rep has to do it. all bookings are automatically checked for an upgrade. if you don't want one, you have to call them or your travel agent.

[geocruiser]

After reading various posts on "cabin upgrades" I have concluded you have to check a box for a cabin upgrade, correct me if I am wrong. My question is I booked a cruise for Dec 2018 last Oct 2017, I have no idea if I checked the box or not! I most certainly do NOT want to change our cabin, as we spent a bit of time deciding on the perfect one for us. How and where do I go to see if many months ago I checked the box, and if so can I undo it now? Much thanks for any help on this matter. Sorry not trying to hijack the OP.

E

You could call Princess and ask. Maybe they can make the change for you if needed.

[geoherb]

We took a guarantee for our upcoming cruise--just like we have for most of our other cruises. Sometimes we win. Only once did we lose big time, getting "upgraded" from an obstructed view guarantee to the tiniest possible cabin (P203 on the CB) that somehow Princess considers an unobstructed view. In reality, it has a deeply set porthole that limits the view more than some obstructed view cabins.

[moki'smommy]

They CAN change virtually anything, it is a matter of getting to the right person.

 

Example, we recently did a cruise which changed our Captain's Circle status. Prior to that cruise, we booked two additional cruises. After the recent cruise, when I went into the personalizer, it showed my status for the upcoming cruise as the old status. I knew why and I knew that I could have it changed by the Captain's Circle rep on the ship, but I'd prefer to do it in advance and have it right. I got a very sweet rep on the phone, and she was able to change the first cruise for both of us...but she couldn't change the second one (???? I don't ask). She put me on hold and "reached out to her help desk," and it ultimately got done. She explained that for security reasons, more than one change had to go thru a supervisor! As I said, I don't explain it; I just cruise. But it is fixed.

[EleanorNoway]

Just want to thank all of you for your help. I just got off the phone with Princess and did get my "cabin upgrade box" coded to "do NOT upgrade". The rep I spoke with, Zachary, was very knowledgeable, professional, and friendly. He noted I booked through the Princess website,which I had, and then went on to explained if I had booked with a Princess rep by phone they would have asked me if I wanted to opt in for a "complimentary upgrade" should one become available or opt out. He advised that if you book through their website you do NOT have this option available, and yes you automatically get coded for the upgrade. So again, thank you all for your advise! Feeling great knowing the cabin we picked will be there waiting with our name on it when we set sail!

 

E

[Pam in CA]

They CAN change virtually anything' date=' it is a matter of getting to the right person.[/quote']Absolutely correct. Even if your booking is marked “no upgrade.”

 

This was a few years ago and my sister and BIL were booked in one cabin, I was booked next door on Emerald deck aft. Our bookings were linked and we both had “do not upgrade.” I was moved by Princess without notification to Dolphin deck far forward as that was considered by Princess to be an upgrade. Err... no. My TA managed to get my cabin back but it wasn’t easy. Apparently, someone really wanted my cabin.

[XBGuy]

I have read the above posts with interest. Most of what I have read is consistent with my personal experience with the exception of reports of not being advised of an upgrade.

 

I have received two upgrades in the past and was advised of them immediately by e-mail. In both cases Mrs. XBGuy did not like the "upgrade." In both cases I called Princess and was able to get us back into our original cabin.

 

The next two paragraphs are total speculation.

 

I suspect that the reason I received these quick notifications, whereas others do not get notified, is that I've booked all my Princess cruises myself from the Princess web site. I have not used a travel agent. I would not be surprised that the posters reporting that there is no notification have used travel agents. In that case, the travel agent receives notification of the upgrade. If the travel agent is conscientious, he/she will forward that advice immediately to the passenger. However, it is easy to see something going wrong,

 

We've noticed that all notifications from Princess about our bookings are sent only to me--not to Mrs. XBGuy, I asked a Princess telephone agent about that a few months ago, and was told that they send such notices to a single point of contact. It may also be that the people who do not receive these upgrade notices are not the single point of contact for that cabin.

[shepp]

The ultimate non-notified comp upgrade:

 

We'd booked the lowliest inside cabin on the Royal's inaugural trans-Atlantic. After we boarded we went looking for our cabin, only to finally realize it was across the hallway and we were now in a balcony. Surprise!

[voljeep]

you didn't notice that when you printed your boarding passes and luggage tags?

[FLCruise7]

On one of our cruises (can't remember which one) - we had booked a balcony. When we arrived, we got our S&S cards & the folder with our cabin number. Found out we'd been moved to a mini suite (same deck, close to same location on the ship) - that was a nice surprise.

[pompeii]

We took a guarantee for our upcoming cruise--just like we have for most of our other cruises. Sometimes we win. Only once did we lose big time, getting "upgraded" from an obstructed view guarantee to the tiniest possible cabin (P203 on the CB) that somehow Princess considers an unobstructed view. In reality, it has a deeply set porthole that limits the view more than some obstructed view cabins.

 

Ditto this. We wound up in P205 on the Ruby and it is the only cabin we've ever had that we hated. Not only the deeply set window but also only one nightstand and one side of the bed up against the wall, which is not reflected on the deck plans. Smaller than the other oceanviews also. We would never book one of these unless at a rock bottom price.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

last year we got upgraded from an inside cabin all the way in the back of the ship to a mid-forward deluxe obstructed balcony on Emerald deck. I now want that cabin!

My parents were traveling at the same time, and I booked an inside cabin in the back as well. They were offered an upsell for $99pp to a balcony. Balconies at that point in time were priced lower than what we paid for their interior room, so when I called Princess, my parents got a free upgrade to the last available regular obstructed balcony on Emerald.

I think Princess was giving away a lot of free stuff at that time (and OBC) because of the Medallion launch fiasco on Regal last November. But I am not complaining! They got me hooked on a balcony! I bet that was their ploy to begin with. :)

[shepp]

you didn't notice that when you printed your boarding passes and luggage tags?

 

Assuming that was directed to me:

I just double-checked. The tags and boarding pass show the inside cabin.

[Cruise Raider]

Princess will more likely sell an upgrade (referred to as an upsell) than to automatically upgrade you for no charge to a better cabin. I've not had very good luck with booking guaranteed cabins on Princess so now I will only request a meta upgrade. The one time I've gotten a really nice complimentary upgrade on Princess was when I marked my reservation to a meta upgrade. I guess it could have gone either way, but it went the right way on this one. That upgrade was offered to me the day before the sailing when someone canceled last minute.

All guarantee bookings have landed me in a not so desirable cabin on Princess. Again, I suppose it could go either way, but it hasn't worked out well for me on this line so I just won't book a cabin that way anymore on Princess. I choose my rooms carefully now.

[Mary Ann 2]

We were offered an upsell on our cruise in March to a mini-suite from a balcony. First time we ever got an offer in 20+ cruises, but we had an aft balcony, so we turned it down. We love the aft balconies.

[FLCruise7]

Princess will more likely sell an upgrade (referred to as an upsell) than to automatically upgrade you for no charge to a better cabin. I've not had very good luck with booking guaranteed cabins on Princess so now I will only request a meta upgrade. The one time I've gotten a really nice complimentary upgrade on Princess was when I marked my reservation to a meta upgrade. I guess it could have gone either way, but it went the right way on this one. That upgrade was offered to me the day before the sailing when someone canceled last minute.

All guarantee bookings have landed me in a not so desirable cabin on Princess. Again, I suppose it could go either way, but it hasn't worked out well for me on this line so I just won't book a cabin that way anymore on Princess. I choose my rooms carefully now.

 

Just out of curiosity - that last minute upgrade wasn't on the Regal for the TA this April, was it? We had to cancel our cruise two days prior to sailing. Somebody probably got to enjoy our mini suite! :)

[geoherb]

All guarantee bookings have landed me in a not so desirable cabin on Princess. Again, I suppose it could go either way, but it hasn't worked out well for me on this line so I just won't book a cabin that way anymore on Princess. I choose my rooms carefully now.

Going with a guarantee cabin isn't for everyone. We had a great cruise in spite of the bad cabin we had on the CB. And many times we've been extraordinarily lucky to get great cabins through booking guarantees. My favorite was getting upgraded to a cabin with a balcony on our Sapphire Princes cruise to Alaska. Other times we have lucked out and been assigned to Caribe Deck balcony cabins on Grand class ships. We even had an accessible cabin once. It was assigned just a couple of weeks before sailing.

 

We've also received cabins that some would not like--such as above the theater. But the noise did not bother us since we were usually at the second show each night and eating dinner during the first one.

 

I usually book our cruises after the final payment date, and frequently going with a guarantee is the only way to get the lowest price.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

we got a guarantee cabin a couple of times on RCCL, and one of those times was awful. The cabin was right next to some venue which started its operations at 4 am every day. Loud banging noises, rolling carts, dragged furniture could be heard even though the ear plugs. It was far from enjoyable.

[Sea Hag]

My "downgraded upgrade" story was on a cruise on the old Regal Princess. We'd booked an OV on a lower deck. They "upgraded" us to an OV at the back of Aloha deck. The window washer was right in front of our window all the time except when the ship was in port and they were washing the windows. Plus, to make it even better, we were under an outside deck with a lot of seating. Every morning very early, they were out there moving chairs around. Not so good. When we went to complain, we got a lot of attitude from some guy who told us that "after all, you were upgraded from an inside cabin." Fortunately, I had my printout showing the cabin that we'd booked. Took care of his attitude!