AshleyDillo Posted December 8, 2019 Report Share Posted December 8, 2019 1 hour ago, Andrea555 said: Thank you that is now the 3rd different answer I got. I was told It would go back to our original credit card and then I was told 48 hours no refunds and then I was told 72 hours ...all very confusing , but way too much money for onboard credit for us so not sure I’ll let this go longer than 1 week before we cruise .as long as it’s refundable credit I’m okay with it. Thanks The gratuities would go back to the card originally used but may not happen until after the cruise. But any cruise planner purchases that aren't canceled prior to your sailing you end up getting as refundable OBC. This goes for anything you may change your mind on..usually you have to see Guest Services but the Genie or Suite Concierge can also help you with it. Any leftover refundable OBC will post as a refund to the card you put down for your onboard account when you check in. Good luck on your RoyalUp! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mworkman Posted December 9, 2019 Report Share Posted December 9, 2019 Once again, I’ve managed to get my rejection email. It didn’t surprise me since this is a smaller ship and not as many suite are on Serenade. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FManke Posted December 9, 2019 Report Share Posted December 9, 2019 11 hours ago, mworkman said: Once again, I’ve managed to get my rejection email. It didn’t surprise me since this is a smaller ship and not as many suite are on Serenade. We'll be on Serenade next Oct. What kind of bid did you put in. I'll probably put one in when it's time. We're currently in a JS aft corner. Really looking forward to the extra large balcony, but might want to take a flyer on a GS or OS, for the right price. Whatever that is. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mworkman Posted December 9, 2019 Report Share Posted December 9, 2019 @FManke We’re in JS, $1000 per person. The problem is that there isn’t many cruises like this, 4 or less a year and that tends to sell out very quickly for the suite’s. I would suggest that you really want an upgrade and there are available rooms, it would be best to jump on them if the sailing is limited like ours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FManke Posted December 10, 2019 Report Share Posted December 10, 2019 20 hours ago, mworkman said: @FManke We’re in JS, $1000 per person. The problem is that there isn’t many cruises like this, 4 or less a year and that tends to sell out very quickly for the suite’s. I would suggest that you really want an upgrade and there are available rooms, it would be best to jump on them if the sailing is limited like ours. We're happy with what we have, being it's our first time in anything above a ocean view. We will put in a bid if it seems reasonable. Not sure on suite availability last minute. There are still a lot left, but it is still 9mo months out. We'll see. Happy cruising! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerryp Posted December 13, 2019 Report Share Posted December 13, 2019 Do they give upgrades spontaneously? I mean can you get an upgrade on the day you sail? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted December 13, 2019 Report Share Posted December 13, 2019 1 hour ago, Gerryp said: Do they give upgrades spontaneously? I mean can you get an upgrade on the day you sail? Almost unheard of these days. It has happened to us once and that was waaay back in June 2018. We had an Ocean View room booked and when we got to the ship, we had been upgraded to a JS. Exactly WHEN the upgrade happened is anyone's guess. I'm sure it was NOT at the pier but some time prior to that...I just didn't know about it until we got to the ship. Now, with the RoyalUp program, spontaneous upgrades are pretty much extinct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrea555 Posted December 15, 2019 Report Share Posted December 15, 2019 On 12/8/2019 at 4:45 PM, AshleyDillo said: The gratuities would go back to the card originally used but may not happen until after the cruise. But any cruise planner purchases that aren't canceled prior to your sailing you end up getting as refundable OBC. This goes for anything you may change your mind on..usually you have to see Guest Services but the Genie or Suite Concierge can also help you with it. Any leftover refundable OBC will post as a refund to the card you put down for your onboard account when you check in. Good luck on your RoyalUp! Thanks for the info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda, CCTX Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 My "upgrade" was from deck seven inside to deck two with a porthole. Not an upgrade in my book! And, as customer service put it, there is NOTHING RC can do for me. I've been a loyal patron of RC for 20 years. Dismond member and nothing they can do. I even suggested keeping the additional money for the 'upgrade' and switching back to my original room. I'm extremely upset. DECK 2, even with a porthole, is not an upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda, CCTX Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 Don't bid. You could find yourself in an undesirable location. I had a inside standard room on deck seven, then for $300 more, I was 'upgraded to deck 2, with a porthole. RC tells me, there is NOTHING they can do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruisinUpinLife Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 3 minutes ago, Linda, CCTX said: Don't bid. You could find yourself in an undesirable location. I had a inside standard room on deck seven, then for $300 more, I was 'upgraded to deck 2, with a porthole. RC tells me, there is NOTHING they can do. Unfortunately, what RC tells you is likely true. When you do RoyalUp, they are likely immediately booking your previous room to someone else. That is how they fill the ship-it's a logistics and money making game for Royal. We did RoyalUp because we were currently on deck 2 in an oceanview room and felt the minimum bid for the upgrade was worth it. My only concern was getting the deck below the pool but felt we would manage even if that happened. RoyalUp is a risk and you have to weigh that into your decision to make a bid. Always read the fine print and do your research before you decide to bid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruisinUpinLife Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 Also, GTY rooms are the same way-make sure you are 100% comfortable getting at least that room any where you see that room on the ship. GTY reservations are cheaper but will not be worth it if you are not ok with getting whatever you are dealt. Geoff P 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 39 minutes ago, Linda, CCTX said: My "upgrade" was from deck seven inside to deck two with a porthole. Not an upgrade in my book! And, as customer service put it, there is NOTHING RC can do for me. I've been a loyal patron of RC for 20 years. Dismond member and nothing they can do. I even suggested keeping the additional money for the 'upgrade' and switching back to my original room. I'm extremely upset. DECK 2, even with a porthole, is not an upgrade. I'm sorry that you are not happy with the location of your "upgrade" but it is, in fact, an upgrade. Going from an inside room to an ocean view room is considered an upgrade. One of the dangers of using RoyalUp is that you do not know where you will be relocated and with the basic room accommodations the locations vary widely. That is why I recommend that people in a balcony category never try and upgrade to a different balcony category b/c sometimes you end up with basically the same room you started with but in a terrible location. SpeedNoodles, Dan Curtis and Geoff P 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted December 18, 2019 Report Share Posted December 18, 2019 The vast majority of ocean view cabins are located on lower decks. If you upgrade to an ocean view cabin there is a high degree of probability you'll will be on a lower deck. Balsam, USCG Teacher and WAAAYTOOO 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pima1988 Posted December 19, 2019 Report Share Posted December 19, 2019 18 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said: That is why I recommend that people in a balcony category never try and upgrade to a different balcony category b/c sometimes you end up with basically the same room you started with but in a terrible location. +1000 times in agreement. We actually don't even do the gty unless there is a huge price variance. However, because we book sooooo far out, we have never seen a real variance. Maybe a couple of hundred, thus we opt to pick our cabin, I would rather spend that money on a cabin I choose than have them place me in a cabin under the WJ. WAAAYTOOO, Ken23 and whitsmom 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogalthorpe Haywood Posted December 19, 2019 Report Share Posted December 19, 2019 1 minute ago, Pima1988 said: +1000 times in agreement. We actually don't even do the gty unless there is a huge price variance. However, because we book sooooo far out, we have never seen a real variance. Maybe a couple of hundred, thus we opt to pick our cabin, I would rather spend that money on a cabin I choose than have them place me in a cabin under the WJ. We were right under the WJ last year on Anthem, we didn’t hear anything. We loved the convenience of being so close. I understand your rationale just disagree with the reasoning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pima1988 Posted December 19, 2019 Report Share Posted December 19, 2019 @Ogalthorpe Haywood I think you also have to look at the ship. Anthem is huge and newer compared to a ship like Enchantment. We just did Adventure in July. Looking back, I would have changed our cabin. It was an outside balcony, not far from the elevators or staircase. Theoretically it seemed perfect. No noise from the elevator/staircase. Lesson learned on that cruise. If you looked at the deck plans, there was grey area, no cabins, no marking of what it was. Just a blob. What that blob was/is where the cabin attendants keep their stuff. It is where their elevators go up and down for room service. We are early risers, 6-6:30 a.m., even on cruises. OMG, had we been late risers I would have gone nuts! All you heard was the carts rolling right passed our cabin to deliver free continental breakfast (including myself, and our family that were to the left and right of us) starting at 6:30/7:00. Seriously, think about the noise of dishes on a cart, I can still hear it my head as I type. We sailed on Anthem (deck 12 fwd). SO fwd that 1 more cabin to our left we would have been on the bridge. Never had a noise issue, but than again it took 5 minutes to walk to the elevators (exaggeration, but you get my point) I now make sure that there is no grey blob near our cabin and that I don't have to walk a half mile from the staircase to get to my cabin. Something you can't do when you do a gty or Royal Up. You have to accept what they give you. The cliché...beggars can't be choosers is what you need to realize when you go down that path. No offense intended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iluv4n6 Posted December 25, 2019 Report Share Posted December 25, 2019 We have a couple bids placed for two upcoming cruises to upgrade from balcony to JS, in part to move up the RC loyalty ladder before a Celebrity cruise in fall 2020. We didn't bid much above the "weak" bid range on the Royal-Up-O-Meter, so I would be surprised if either bid is successful. Though we would be in a different location, I would figure any JS location wouldn't be too bad... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted December 25, 2019 Report Share Posted December 25, 2019 9 minutes ago, Iluv4n6 said: We have a couple bids placed for two upcoming cruises to upgrade from balcony to JS, in part to move up the RC loyalty ladder before a Celebrity cruise in fall 2020. We didn't bid much above the "weak" bid range on the Royal-Up-O-Meter, so I would be surprised if either bid is successful. Though we would be in a different location, I would figure any JS location wouldn't be too bad... No double points for a balcony to suite upgrade obtained through RoyalUp. If you really need those extra points call now and look into the cost to upgrade conventionally outside of RoyalUp. Iluv4n6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iluv4n6 Posted December 25, 2019 Report Share Posted December 25, 2019 3 minutes ago, twangster said: No double points for a balcony to suite upgrade obtained through RoyalUp. If you really need those extra points call now and look into the cost to upgrade conventionally outside of RoyalUp. Thanks Twangster! Did not see this in the fine print. But we also have a JS booked in late spring so we will have the points covered to translate to Celebrity's loyalty program for fall 2020. Was thinking of potentially rejiggering our late spring cruise if we were successful with a RoyalUp on an earlier cruise and got double points sooner. Based on various feedback on the program, it seems that weak bids, like ours, have a low probability of being successful. Interesting that my TA didn't indicate this limitation to RoyalUp...I had mentioned RU as a means of doubling up on points with an upgrade...or I just missed the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EWall91 Posted December 25, 2019 Report Share Posted December 25, 2019 I’ve bid on upgrades through RoyalUp on my last 3 RCCL cruises with no luck. I thought it was impossible to get an upgrade. I placed a bid to upgrade from a GTY Ocean View Balcony to a Grand Suite for my trip on Symphony in February 2020 and was accepted a week later so it does happen! My bid was in the middle of the fair range. Ended up saving a few grand off the original price of the Grand Suite and was able to cancel a few of items that are included with Sky Class. Now I just need to make it another 45 days!!! Happy bidding! WAAAYTOOO, Ogilthorpe and SpeedNoodles 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRebecca Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 I bid a few weeks ago, in the mean time got a new credit card and didn't think to update the card I bid with. So yesterday I got an email saying my card is declined meaning they tried to upgrade me. They offered an option to go update my card number and I did but now I'm stressing I missed my opportunity WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salty Law Dog Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 Royal Up bid....ACCEPTED!!! We are on a back to back on Oasis starting Jan 5. We had a Grand Suite booked for both weeks, and decided to take a chance on bidding on an upgrade for the first time. After reading about it in this blog, we didn't think we had a chance, but we just got notified a few days ago that our bid was accepted. We are excited to be in one of the Ultimate Panoramic Suites the first week! It was great to find out almost 2 weeks in advance. We haven't heard about the second week yet. The Ultimate Panoramic Suite is Star Class, and we have already been contacted by Hugo, our Genie. Has anyone had him before? While I have no idea what the secret sauce is to a successful bid, I agree with what everyone else has said here, just bid what you feel is worth it to you. 11 days til boarding! USCG Teacher, WAAAYTOOO, SpeedNoodles and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRebecca Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 18 minutes ago, Salty Law Dog said: Royal Up bid....ACCEPTED!!! We are on a back to back on Oasis starting Jan 5. We had a Grand Suite booked for both weeks, and decided to take a chance on bidding on an upgrade for the first time. After reading about it in this blog, we didn't think we had a chance, but we just got notified a few days ago that our bid was accepted. We are excited to be in one of the Ultimate Panoramic Suites the first week! It was great to find out almost 2 weeks in advance. Congratulations!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Curtis Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 We booked months ago,and picked the rooms we wanted, have no interest in upbid, just got email this week about bidding for end of January cruise, my confusion is that about two months ago,we had some friends who,decided to also,go on same cruise, when they called to book a room, was told cruise was sold out, now I am getting emails about,bidding for upgrade, makes me think they hold so many rooms to make more money on them than just booking them at normal price. This seems to be a rather new practice, I don't remember getting these emails on cruises the past years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyDillo Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 1 hour ago, Dan Curtis said: We booked months ago,and picked the rooms we wanted, have no interest in upbid, just got email this week about bidding for end of January cruise, my confusion is that about two months ago,we had some friends who,decided to also,go on same cruise, when they called to book a room, was told cruise was sold out, now I am getting emails about,bidding for upgrade, makes me think they hold so many rooms to make more money on them than just booking them at normal price. This seems to be a rather new practice, I don't remember getting these emails on cruises the past years. It is a new practice and it's run by a third party. They don't necessarily hold back rooms, but by setting up a blind bidding system they are able to capitalize when there are last minute cancellations. The offer to bid has little to nothing to do with actual availability. It's also a way for them to collect even more data as to what people would be willing to pay. Iluv4n6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iluv4n6 Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said: It is a new practice and it's run by a third party. They don't necessarily hold back rooms, but by setting up a blind bidding system they are able to capitalize when there are last minute cancellations. The offer to bid has little to nothing to do with actual availability. It's also a way for them to collect even more data as to what people would be willing to pay. Thanks! Makes sense from what I can see on the website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 Just because they are sending out RoyalUp bids does not mean that there are any rooms available. It is a contingency thing in CASE someone cancels. USCG Teacher 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRebecca Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 Ours was just accepted. When I bid there were over 30 Junior Suites available to book (for more than I bid) and then a couple weeks later the entire sailing is sold out and not even showing up on the website to book so I thought I had 0 chance but it was accepted! whoo hoo! SpeedNoodles and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilthorpe Posted December 26, 2019 Report Share Posted December 26, 2019 I have a theory, lacking many use cases, that GTY bookings may work in conjunction with and influence RoyalUp. Similar to what you describe, I have seen upcoming sailings with a large number of suites available suddenly become sold out. I wonder if when the number of unassigned GTY suites meets the unsold inventory, they pull the suites and start RoyalUp? PRebecca 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted December 27, 2019 Report Share Posted December 27, 2019 22 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said: Just because they are sending out RoyalUp bids does not mean that there are any rooms available. It is a contingency thing in CASE someone cancels. This is the least known aspect of RoyalUp, and an important reminder. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jzx1103 Posted January 9, 2020 Report Share Posted January 9, 2020 What happens if you bid on multiple stateroom types on the same sailing and both get accepted? Or do they just automatically cancel your other bid once the first one gets accepted? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyDillo Posted January 9, 2020 Report Share Posted January 9, 2020 3 minutes ago, Jzx1103 said: Or do they just automatically cancel your other bid once the first one gets accepted? This is what will happen. Jzx1103 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonr Posted January 10, 2020 Report Share Posted January 10, 2020 Is this bid one time fee or per night?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilthorpe Posted January 10, 2020 Report Share Posted January 10, 2020 The bid is per person for the entire trip. The bid applies for the first 2 people on the reservation, but everyone on the reservation is upgraded to the new cabin if the bid is successful. For example, if you select a $100 bid in the upgrade tool, your bid total for that room will be $200. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajmp5 Posted January 10, 2020 Report Share Posted January 10, 2020 If you put in a bid and it gets accepted anyway to reject in case you don't like the location of the room? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilthorpe Posted January 10, 2020 Report Share Posted January 10, 2020 The terms indicate that the bid is binding and if you are successful, your card will be charged, and the transaction is final. There is no accommodation for reversing the upgrade based on the new room location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruiser1234 Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 Is the bidding open to everyone? It keeps telling me make sure sail date is within 30 days.. which it’s not yet. I’m in liberty of the seas feb 2020 and don’t want to get my hopes up on bidding if it’s not open to everyone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 1 minute ago, Cruiser1234 said: Is the bidding open to everyone? It keeps telling me make sure sail date is within 30 days.. which it’s not yet. I’m in liberty of the seas feb 2020 and don’t want to get my hopes up on bidding if it’s not open to everyone My experience has been that even when I am within 30 days, I will get the same message. I will get folks who disagree, but it is my belief that if you are not invited to participate in RoyalUp, you cannot participate in RoyalUp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogilthorpe Posted January 11, 2020 Report Share Posted January 11, 2020 The way they explained it to me was in order to receive a royalup offer you need to have opted in to communications and offers in your account profile. They don't always send royalup offers for every sailing. If you check for royalup within 30 days, the option will be in place if it is being offered even if you had not opted in. A final observation, the timing varies. I have received the royalup email was early as 78 days before and late as 58. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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