Princess Introduces Bidding For Upgrades

[sonomaphil]

On 8/20/2022 at 6:58 AM, Roberto256 said:

I think a lot of the comments in this thread are really over thinking this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cruise Critic motto. 

[caribill]

11 minutes ago, abbydancer said:

Actually, lines that have bidding do offer sales.

Princess expects that about 50% of bookings will be with the Plus package pricing and about 25% of bookings will be with Premier package pricing. That leaves about 25% of bookings with standard pricing.

 

So Princess sales will not include, as they did in various sales in the past, various "free" gratuities, beverage package, etc. as that would cut into the lucrative bookings with one of the packages.

 

In the past Princess has resisted sales that actually significantly cut the basic cabin price as they wanted to preserve what they term "price integrity." So offerings of free gratuities or a beverage package cut the cost for the passenger while maintaining cabin pricing.

 

Yes, there is the current sale of 3rd/4th passengers sale free. That will attract bookings from those who want 3 or 4 in a cabin, but is not at all a factor in attracting those who book 2 or less people in a cabin.

 

So going forward, what kind of meaningful sales will Princess have is the big unknown.

[abbydancer2003]

2 minutes ago, caribill said:

Princess expects that about 50% of bookings will be with the Plus package pricing and about 25% of bookings will be with Premier package pricing. That leaves about 25% of bookings with standard pricing.

 

So Princess sales will not include, as they did in various sales in the past, various "free" gratuities, beverage package, etc. as that would cut into the lucrative bookings with one of the packages.

 

In the past Princess has resisted sales that actually significantly cut the basic cabin price as they wanted to preserve what they term "price integrity." So offerings of free gratuities or a beverage package cut the cost for the passenger while maintaining cabin pricing.

 

Yes, there is the current sale of 3rd/4th passengers sale free. That will attract bookings from those who want 3 or 4 in a cabin, but is not at all a factor in attracting those who book 2 or less people in a cabin.

 

So going forward, what kind of meaningful sales will Princess have is the big unknown.

I've seen some offering OBC.  And of course reduced deposit, which to me, is nothing, since pay now, pay later, pay the same.  I think after they did "the best sale ever" they realized they could offer it all the time.

[caribill]

19 minutes ago, abbydancer said:

I've seen some offering OBC.  And of course reduced deposit, which to me, is nothing, since pay now, pay later, pay the same.  I think after they did "the best sale ever" they realized they could offer it all the time.

 

Princess has done that also which has been at best about $50/person unless in a full suite. Not sure if that is a meaningful sale.

 

Princess has also had sales with free upgrades within a type cabin, but not to the highest level within that type. Also worth about $50/person at best.

 

Booking with a discount TA gives more savings than either of those "sales" plus when booking with a TA those same Princess sales incentives still apply.

[cruisequeen4ever]

I see some good and some potential downside. The good is that it’ll be fun to bid and possibly get to experience a room

category we’ve never had, while saving money. My worry though is that the upgrade fairy won’t be working as much.

[Steelers36]

2 minutes ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

I see some good and some potential downside. The good is that it’ll be fun to bid and possibly get to experience a room

category we’ve never had, while saving money. My worry though is that the upgrade fairy won’t be working as much.

It looks like she is being retired.

[Buckeye10640]

It was just a matter of time before Princess picked this up. NCL has been doing it for several years. We have placed upgrade bids on NCL when we had free casino inside rooms.  I am not necessary opposed to the practice.....I already book what I want (or what I am willing to pay) with no expectation of an upgrade. 

[abbydancer2003]

I've done a few moveup bids on Celebrity - weak bids with no expectation of getting them.

 

The one I did get was from a concierge balcony to an Aqua balcony.  Room is same as regular balcony.  Concierge gives you a lunch in the dining room on Embarkation day and Aqua gives you a restaurant with a fabulous window (on the ship we were on).  I paid 300.00 total - it was a weak bid, but there were a lot of Aqua available when I did it.

 

On my October sailing, we're in a minisuite.  I did 2 weak bids on full suites, but I expect they'll both be rejected.

[Mike07]

24 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

It looks like she is being retired.

 

 

Won't really miss her, tbh.  Seems like the upgrade fairy had more failures than successes (at least from the times I've seen her brought up on CC).  Personally, I prefer to stay in the cabin I book. Every time I book with my TA, I have to request no cabin upgrade as Princess defaults new bookings to prefer upgrades (if available).

 

The Celebrity upgrade fairy gave me an awesome stateroom, so I have seen her work magic.

Edited August 21, 2022 by Mike07

[AnyMajorCruiseDude]

What's the harm in the program?  You might get the opportunity to upgrade if you so choose, and Princess might make a few extra bucks.  Since we all want to cruise, we should all want cruise lines to return to profitability.  We have received upgrade offers over the years, and even accepted some, but now simply book what we really want.

[Lou33]

On 8/21/2022 at 6:36 AM, njkate said:

We won't know until it's launched but if they use the same outside company I'm sure there will be a minimum bid

And if they use that outside company, there is a minimum and maximum bid.  And there is a success meter that shows if your bid is in the poor, fair, good, very good, or excellent range.  But that success meter means nothing.  Depending on the circumstances and what's available, many bids in the poor category can be accepted, and on another cruise or category, an excellent bid may not be accepted.  It's best to ignore the success meter and just bid what the upgrade is worth to you.  For us, many times it's not worth it to bid even the minimum.  

 

They will let you bid on multiple categories.  But if you do that, and there is an upgrade category that you really want, it's possible that you may end up with your 2nd or 3rd choice.  And you may have got your 1st choice if you placed only that one bid.  

[OC SeaPA]

On 8/21/2022 at 1:39 PM, AnyMajorCruiseDude said:

What's the harm in the program?  You might get the opportunity to upgrade if you so choose, and Princess might make a few extra bucks.  Since we all want to cruise, we should all want cruise lines to return to profitability.  We have received upgrade offers over the years, and even accepted some, but now simply book what we really want.

We got cancelled from a Diamond Princess cruise.  We never book a guarantee because we like to choose our location.  We were we told we would get a guarantee because balconies were sold out, and probably get an upgrade.  Now we need to pay for an upgrade, or get whatever is left.  The days of booking a guarantee and hoping for an upgrade are also long over (not that we ever did it).  I am really upset that Princess is making me pay more.  Don't know what I'll get if I  don't bid, and don't know what I'll get if I do bid!  If you read other Princess posts there are alot of "currently not available".  Are they holding them hoping for additional revenue, or are they really sold out, or just being cancelled (like my last 6 cruises on Princess!) 

[Bwana Tom]

It is very likely that no one on the CC board has a working knowledge of the internal programming and algorithms to be used in the new bidding program, but I will ask my question anyway. Let’s say you have purchased an ocean view cabin when they were priced very low. For example you may have paid around $65/person/day and you decide to place a bid for an upgrade to a balcony cabin. Another person wanting to bid on the same upgrade may have paid $100/person/day for the same ocean view category cabin.  My question is: Does the programming/algorithms consider the amount paid on the original booking, thereby favoring the person that paid the higher price originally, or are both of these individuals on an even keel when it comes to winning the bid?

Just something to think about and thanks for listening.

[cr8tiv1]

1 hour ago, OC SeaPA said:

We got cancelled from a Diamond Princess cruise.  We never book a guarantee because we like to choose our location.  We were we told we would get a guarantee because balconies were sold out, and probably get an upgrade.  Now we need to pay for an upgrade, or get whatever is left.  The days of booking a guarantee and hoping for an upgrade are also long over (not that we ever did it).  I am really upset that Princess is making me pay more.  Don't know what I'll get if I  don't bid, and don't know what I'll get if I do bid!  If you read other Princess posts there are alot of "currently not available".  Are they holding them hoping for additional revenue, or are they really sold out, or just being cancelled (like my last 6 cruises on Princess!) 

 

IF, your booking was a move over (transferred to an offered cruise), then you will not be charged any more than your original fare.  

 

Princess cancelled.  Princess will find you a cabin.  But you had to have accepted their offers.  If you cancelled and rebooked, then you are on your own.  Guarantees categories should not cost you more.

Edited August 23, 2022 by cr8tiv1

[jagoffee]

On 8/20/2022 at 12:12 PM, NavyVeteran said:

This is a much better deal for Princess than offering a sale. With this method, they can get money for unsold cabins without losing anything. If they offer a sale, then people who have already booked will be asking to reprice - thereby costing them money. With this method, they can sell some cabins for less without repricing any already sold.

 

On 8/21/2022 at 10:59 AM, Cruise Raider said:

You nailed it!  

I agree with you.  This is a significant advantage for the cruise line.  

2 hours ago, Bwana Tom said:

It is very likely that no one on the CC board has a working knowledge of the internal programming and algorithms to be used in the new bidding program, but I will ask my question anyway. Let’s say you have purchased an ocean view cabin when they were priced very low. For example you may have paid around $65/person/day and you decide to place a bid for an upgrade to a balcony cabin. Another person wanting to bid on the same upgrade may have paid $100/person/day for the same ocean view category cabin.  My question is: Does the programming/algorithms consider the amount paid on the original booking, thereby favoring the person that paid the higher price originally, or are both of these individuals on an even keel when it comes to winning the bid?

Just something to think about and thanks for listening.

I have a lot of experience with this process on Celebrity.  You are correct that we probably cannot know for sure.  I would say what you paid for your original cabin does not matter.  How much Princess can get for your vacated cabin would be a factor.  All bids are not created equal.  If you have a higher level cabin, you can win a bid with a lower bid amount.  Also not all current cabin levels  cannot necessarily bid on all higher categories. For instance an inside cabin may nit be able to bid on a suite/mini suite.

This is based on my Celebrity experiences with this program.  
 

An optional improvement for Princess IMO.  

[AZjohn]

3 hours ago, Bwana Tom said:

It is very likely that no one on the CC board has a working knowledge of the internal programming and algorithms to be used in the new bidding program, but I will ask my question anyway. Let’s say you have purchased an ocean view cabin when they were priced very low. For example you may have paid around $65/person/day and you decide to place a bid for an upgrade to a balcony cabin. Another person wanting to bid on the same upgrade may have paid $100/person/day for the same ocean view category cabin.  My question is: Does the programming/algorithms consider the amount paid on the original booking, thereby favoring the person that paid the higher price originally, or are both of these individuals on an even keel when it comes to winning the bid?

Just something to think about and thanks for listening.

Obviously nobody knows (or will never know) but, I think it would not matter what so ever the original price that was paid for original cabin (for same category). I would think the only factor will be how much more $ will Princess gain with the bid up. My two cents 🙂

Cheers,

John

[Guest ldtr]

4 hours ago, OC SeaPA said:

We got cancelled from a Diamond Princess cruise.  We never book a guarantee because we like to choose our location.  We were we told we would get a guarantee because balconies were sold out, and probably get an upgrade.  Now we need to pay for an upgrade, or get whatever is left.  The days of booking a guarantee and hoping for an upgrade are also long over (not that we ever did it).  I am really upset that Princess is making me pay more.  Don't know what I'll get if I  don't bid, and don't know what I'll get if I do bid!  If you read other Princess posts there are alot of "currently not available".  Are they holding them hoping for additional revenue, or are they really sold out, or just being cancelled (like my last 6 cruises on Princess!) 

Not sure your complaint.

 

You decided to book guarantee instead of taking the refund.

 

You are guaranteed to get at least the class of room you booked.  So at a minimum you get what you paid for and Princess is not requiring you to pay anything extra.  If they do not have the class of cabin you booked available then they will upgrade you.

 

So it sounds like you are upset because with the new program your chances for an upgrade might be lower?

[Guest ldtr]

29 minutes ago, AZjohn said:

Obviously nobody knows (or will never know) but, I think it would not matter what so ever the original price that was paid for original cabin (for same category). I would think the only factor will be how much more $ will Princess gain with the bid up. My two cents 🙂

Cheers,

John

The only reason why someone that paid more would get an advantage is if they are a higher grade cabin. Their bid might get preference over  someone in a lower grade cabin is that if they upgrade the lowest grade cabin, they cannot turn around and upgrade someone else into it and receive another bid.  If they upgrade a mid grade cabin there is the possibility that there is a bid list for that grade and they can get another fee.

 

Otherwise it would depend upon the higher bid even if someone paid more. So think booked cabin grades, not amount paid.

 

The only thing we can count out is that it will be set to maximize revenue for both the company running the program (they probably will get a percentage of bid revenue received) and Princess.

[villauk]

3 hours ago, ldtr said:

The only thing we can count out is that it will be set to maximize revenue for both the company running the program (they probably will get a percentage of bid revenue received) and Princess.

 

Correct. The algorithms will work on that basis from bids made and cabins available.

[voljeep]

our next cruise is on CB in November - we have a deluxe (true aft) balcony on Baja that our price is currently below the website price (those cabins come and go as available, guarantee, or sold out).

 

we have no desire to upgrade/bid on a mini or cc mini (don't like the shower/tub) combo.  There are currently no suites showing as available, so, as for now we are set.  If a suite 'did' become available, we would have to decide what that 'value' would be to us over a 5 day cruise.  Our one and only, so far, suite was an 'upsell' which now looks like those may be a thing of the past.

[njkate]

10 hours ago, jagoffee said:

 

I agree with you.  This is a significant advantage for the cruise line.  

I have a lot of experience with this process on Celebrity.  You are correct that we probably cannot know for sure.  I would say what you paid for your original cabin does not matter.  How much Princess can get for your vacated cabin would be a factor.  All bids are not created equal.  If you have a higher level cabin, you can win a bid with a lower bid amount.  Also not all current cabin levels  cannot necessarily bid on all higher categories. For instance an inside cabin may nit be able to bid on a suite/mini suite.

This is based on my Celebrity experiences with this program.  
 

An optional improvement for Princess IMO.  

On NCL you can only bid two categories above, an inside would only be able to bid on ocean view or basic balcony nothing higher 

Edited August 23, 2022 by njkate

[jagoffee]

10 minutes ago, njkate said:

On NCL you can only bid two categories above, an inside would only be able to bid on ocean view or basic balcony nothing higher 

It is different on Celebrity, no limitation of two categories, although I am fairly certain an inside cabin will not have an opportunity to bid on a suite.  So obviously the processes are not exactly the same.  It will be interesting to see how they design the Princess version.  

Edited August 23, 2022 by jagoffee

[Roberto256]

On 8/21/2022 at 3:50 PM, Steelers36 said:

It looks like she is being retired.

Has anyone ever seen the upgrade fairy, and fortuna luck at the same time?

 

Coincidence?

 

[Level six]

1 hour ago, Roberto256 said:

Has anyone ever seen the upgrade fairy, and fortuna luck at the same time?

 

Coincidence?

 

poof.......mind blowing. 

[1cruiselvr]

On 8/22/2022 at 5:16 PM, Bwana Tom said:

It is very likely that no one on the CC board has a working knowledge of the internal programming and algorithms to be used in the new bidding program, but I will ask my question anyway. Let’s say you have purchased an ocean view cabin when they were priced very low. For example you may have paid around $65/person/day and you decide to place a bid for an upgrade to a balcony cabin. Another person wanting to bid on the same upgrade may have paid $100/person/day for the same ocean view category cabin.  My question is: Does the programming/algorithms consider the amount paid on the original booking, thereby favoring the person that paid the higher price originally, or are both of these individuals on an even keel when it comes to winning the bid?

Just something to think about and thanks for listening.

As you said, nobody knows how it works but I see a lot of assumptions on this thread written like it’s fact. It’s like booking a guarantee, you take your chances or not bid and be satisfied with what you booked.