Wondering if MCS ever upgrades one reservation to make money on another...

[Georgia_Peaches]

So we are booked on the Meraviglia 4 night cruise departing from Port Canaveral on November 13th in a YC inside suite.  I specifically chose this category because A) it's in the YC and that's where we prefer, B) it was the only inside suite left and I'm hoping (maybe irrationally) that an inside suite will be cooler at night than a balcony suite, and C) it's only 4 nights so paying the extra for a balcony given my fears of it being hot did not seem practical.

 

In the past month I've received two upgrade offer e-mails.  In both opportunities I can upgrade to a YC deluxe for $415 pp or a YC duplex with whirlpool for $1440 pp.  (Note in the first offer, the pp minimum bid for the YC duplex with whirlpool was going for $1800pp.)

 

There are 15 deluxe balcony suites currently available.  I didn't bother to check the number of duplex bc I'm just not interested.

 

If I'm still receiving upgrade e-mails then I am assuming that others booked outside the YC are as well.  So here's my wondering...

 

If, let's say, an Aurea booking is offered a bid on a YC category...even if one isn't currently available like.... my interior suite.  The owner of that (Aurea) booking decides to bid on an interior suite.  Let's say that bid tips over a series of dominoes where the Aurea gets my interior, another gets the Aurea, and so on.  This seems like a money maker for MSC.  Would they see the potential for these bids and "upgrade" our booking to a deluxe balcony even though we didn't place a bid?  In there eyes, they would see it as giving us a better category while making money off the other bids.  Should this happen, we wouldn't argue but I'm wondering if this HAS ever happened.  And if so, then it might be a good strategy to book the entry level category of the YC going forward since the interiors are fewer in quantity and getting upgraded w/o the bid is a possibility?  

 

Just musing here...thoughts?

[JT1962]

I’m not sure you can apply logic to anything that MSC does prior to boarding, lol. From what I understand, the bidding upgrades are handled by a 3rd party and not directly by MSC. I’m sure they have things programmed to maximize the revenue with the bidding process, but no one probably knows the actual details.
 

I did speak with two people on my recent cruise on the Divina that were upgraded to a regular balcony cabin from an interior without requesting it. I asked about an option to upgrade to a balcony at check-in and was quoted a price difference that was more than I paid for the original booking, including port charges / taxes. Later in the cruise I noticed they had a sign at Guest Services that said “this sailing is fully booked and there are no options for upgrades”. The Cruise Director announced there were 2200 people on board, so unless most people had a room to themselves, there were plenty of empty cabins.

[Two Wheels Only]

It's usually easier for cruise lines to fill less expensive staterooms than to fill more expensive staterooms.  

 

Let's say that the Owner's Suite was not booked. Rather than have that stateroom sail empty, MSC will bump someone up (even for free) to clear space for something less expensive. Making a few bucks here, a few bucks there while upgrading people is more money for the cruise line. 

 

As those people move up, last minute bargain hunters will swoop in and fill the gaps. Again, more money than the cruise line would have had if those staterooms were filled. The guest either feels special for the free upgrade or feels like they got a great deal. Those are just side effects as the main objective is for the cruise line to bring in more money per sailing. 

[styles27]

The way MSC sells multiple length itineraries it’s almost impossible to know exactly how many rooms are available. 
 

We were upgraded for free to the YC on our first MSC cruise.
Speaking to the folks in the room next to us they told us they were only on for 3 nights….we were on for 7 our other neighbors were on for 10.
I feel bad for the butlers and room attendants. 

 

I think everything MSC does is to maximize revenue and that includes the upgrade program.

 

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

9 minutes ago, styles27 said:

The way MSC sells multiple length itineraries it’s almost impossible to know exactly how many rooms are available. 

Totally agree there!  But if someone on my 4 nighter was on board for the 3 nighter before and were in one of those available rooms, wouldn't it show as unavailable?  Assuming they remain in the same cabin, I guess...whew!  You're right...impossible to know.

[Georgia_Peaches]

25 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

It's usually easier for cruise lines to fill less expensive staterooms than to fill more expensive staterooms. 

My thoughts as well.  Why book the most expensive if you can potentially upgrade or get upgraded?  I don't play the upgrade game in favor of just booking what I want outright but it is interesting to ponder.  I have also noticed that the minimum bid amounts aren't a savings from booking outright or upgrading via a TA.  At least with a TA, there's potential for more OBC.

[styles27]

20 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Totally agree there!  But if someone on my 4 nighter was on board for the 3 nighter before and were in one of those available rooms, wouldn't it show as unavailable?  Assuming they remain in the same cabin, I guess...whew!  You're right...impossible to know.

LOL I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you that you get bumped up! 
 

To confuse things even more…the MSC reps show entirely different available rooms on their computers when you call. 

When booking this last cruise for December I originally had a partial view balcony room on deck 8.  I wasn’t happy with it and noticed an aft facing balcony on deck 10 became available and for about $275 less than our original. 
It was before final payment so I phoned MSC and the lady told me she would change it if she could but the room I was showing as available wasn’t showing on her screen.

The room numbers she rambled off to me as being available on her end were showing as being taken on my screen. At the very same time!!

 

So I cancelled the original booking and booked the aft balcony I wanted that she claimed wasn’t available. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 

 

So as someone said, it’s MSC so nothing makes sense. lol

[AerynSun_JohnCrighton]

We got the bid email. We booked Balcony, Fantastic. It had Aurea Balcony, suites and YC we could bid on. I was curious. I looked and plenty... probably 1/3 or more Aurea balconies available for our cruise. I didn't check the suites or YC but I was curious as well. I know YC is more demanding that Aurea balcony or maybe even suites. I figure they about to upgrade or accept bids so they can fill those higher cost cabins and sell more of the reg ones, I would think they want a new ship to sail mostly if not all full. Definitely intriguing to ponder how they make the decisions 

[BernardMcbride]

I saw your post about your upcoming cruise and your thoughts on how cruise lines like MSC might upgrade reservations to make more money. It's definitely an interesting theory, and it's always fascinating to try and figure out how these companies make their decisions.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 hour ago, BernardMcbride said:

I saw your post about your upcoming cruise and your thoughts on how cruise lines like MSC might upgrade reservations to make more money. It's definitely an interesting theory, and it's always fascinating to try and figure out how these companies make their decisions.

LOL...well my "musings" didn't parlay us into an upgrade to a YC balcony.  We boarded Meraviglia and went starlight to our YIN cabin which we found to be blissfully cool the entire voyage.  We have since booked another YIN for an early June cruise on Seaside.  I am not seeking an upgrade to a balcony as I am convinced the YIN is the category for me...very cool, very dark.

 

However, since my original post, I have learned that many people ask about upgrades when they board the ship and are not only successful, but often for less money than going through the bidding process itself.

[Morecruisesplz]

Yes. We booked an inside guarantee and were quickly assigned a balcony on deck 13, mid to aft.

[Essiesmom]

When I booked Seaside for 2019, it was before bidding for upgrades.  I looked at the deck plans and saw there were 80 OV cabins, equally divided between Bella and Fantastica.  And 1315 balconies.  I figured if I booked a Fantastica OV gty I had a pretty good chance of getting a balcony.  And I did.  EM

[Morecruisesplz]

10 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

LOL...well my "musings" didn't parlay us into an upgrade to a YC balcony.  We boarded Meraviglia and went starlight to our YIN cabin which we found to be blissfully cool the entire voyage.  We have since booked another YIN for an early June cruise on Seaside.  I am not seeking an upgrade to a balcony as I am convinced the YIN is the category for me...very cool, very dark.

 

However, since my original post, I have learned that many people ask about upgrades when they board the ship and are not only successful, but often for less money than going through the bidding process itself.

Hence the signs... "This ship is fully booked."