Tips on how to get a cabin improve on a cruise

You booked this cheap interior room but would love to sail in a big old balcony cabin. Is it possible to get a cruise ship cabin upgrade for free?

“Unfortunately there is no secret password or magic wand that guarantees an improved cabin without actually paying for it,” says Beci Mahnken, President and CEO of MEI trips, and a travel agent with inside knowledge. “Free upgrades are not very common in the current cruise climate.”

Just because a surprise free cruise cabin upgrade is unlikely, it doesn’t mean there aren’t any ways to upgrade your room cheaply. Here are 10 ways to get a free or discounted cabin upgrade on your next cruise.

1. Book during a free upgrade promotion

Instead of waiting for a cruise line to upgrade you, pick one from the start. Cruise lines are constantly making sales, and sometimes these offers include a free upgrade promotion. The cruise line offers Interiors and sea views or Sea view and balcony cabins at the same price, so you can book an upper category room for the price of a lower room.

Cruise ships also consider certain rooms in a larger category to be “better”. For example, a balcony cabin on a higher floor might be considered more desirable and more expensive than a balcony room on the lower deck. Some offers offer upgrades of the same category where you can book any room of the same type (indoor, outdoor, balcony) for the same price, so you get the best for less.

With these offers, make sure the prices haven’t been inflated immediately prior to the sale so that you think you’re getting a bargain, but that’s not the case.

2. Book a guaranteed cabin

A guaranteed cabin is a cruise ship gamble that will upgrade you to a better room than what you booked. You pay a lower rate that guarantees you at least one room in the category you booked, and the cruise line can accommodate you in any room in that category or higher.

For example, if you book an outside guarantee, you can step on board and find that you have been assigned a balcony stateroom. Or you will find yourself in the smallest, loudest outside cabin of the ship.

“If you’re picky about yours Position of the cabin, that may not be the best option, ”says Mahnken. Only play for an upgrade with a guaranteed cabin if you can sail well in a room in the category you originally booked.

3. Book with a travel agent

The cruise lines aren’t the only ones with promotions. Travel agency can be your key to a free or discounted cruise cabin upgrade.

“We have access to offers and group rates that you may not have if you book directly. So the price you would pay if you called the cruise line for a sea view can get you a balcony or other benefits for the same price, ”says Mahnken. Look for consultants who don’t charge for their services (many earn commissions from the cruise lines) so the upgraded room is really free.

4. Upgrade with points

Most travelers are familiar with credit cards with points tied to airlines and hotels, but did you know that cruise lines offer them too? If you have a credit card connected to routes such as Norwegian and Royal Caribbean, you can redeem your points for “free” cabin upgrades.

With 150,000 Royal Caribbean points, for example, you can upgrade your room for free on a four- to eight-day cruise between September and May, as long as the room difference is no more than $ 300. Of course, the offer has plenty of exclusions, but if the stars match, you can turn everyday credit card purchases into an upgraded cruise cabin.

5. Be loyal to a cruise line

“Loyalty is an important factor for the cruise line and once you have reached the higher levels of a loyalty program, you can receive free or discounted upgrades,” says Mahnken.

For example members of Celebrity’s Captain’s Club Loyalty Program can request a free category upgrade during the booking process. One category isn’t much, but it could save you a few bucks. When you reach the highest diamond level in VIFP Club of the Carnival, you will receive a one-time free cabin upgrade from one category to the next (e.g. outside on the balcony).

So sign up for the programs every time you sail a new line and make sure to include your membership number when you make your booking for every subsequent cruise you take with this company. Upgrades aren’t the only perks you get, and it won’t cost you a dime.

6. Bid to upgrade

Several shipping companies such as Norwegian and Royal Caribbean are now inviting selected cruise lines to bid for an upgrade. The upgrades are not free, but you can get a higher category cabin for less than if you paid for it directly.

However, you must be savvy in order to successfully bid for an upgraded cruise room. “You can bid for the minimum, but I recommend that you go at least a little higher in order to hopefully set your bid apart,” says Mahnken. You can always go back and change your bid, but once the shipping company accepts your credit card will be charged and there is no withdrawal.

This auction process is not for everyone. Reminder warns you if you originally booked connecting cabins or barrier-free cruise rooms, you are not guaranteed the same if your upgrade is accepted. In addition, you cannot choose your cabin location for the upgrade. That way, it’s like a guarantee room.

7. Accept an offer of the upgrade fee

When cruise lines have one or a category that is more popular than others, the revenue managers try to free up space in that category by offering targeted upgrades to booked passengers. The offers are like a magical surprise, so longtime cruisers joke that they are like visiting the upgrade fairy.

You have to pay for the upgrade but still get the nicer room at a discount.

Another version of this upgrade offer is when cruise lines try to fill unsold cruise staterooms on less popular cruises by sending free or discounted upgrade offers to their loyalty program members who have booked on those cruises. If you’re trying to be strategic about getting a cheap cruise cabin upgrade, booking off-season itineraries gives you a better chance of catching this deal.

8. Change cabins when prices drop

It can be annoying to watch cruise prices go up and down, especially if you’ve already booked a cruise. But paying attention to the prices can lead to a free upgrade.

As? If a ship is not sold out, the cruise lines can lower the price for cabin categories above yours. If you see these prices drop, perhaps to a price similar to what you paid for a lower category cabin, call your cruise line or travel agent and ask if you can move your reservation to the nicer room.

If the fine print allows, congratulations! You just got yourself a free or discounted cabin upgrade.

9. Luck on the pier

The upgrade that everyone wants but rarely gets is the free upgrade upon embarkation.

If the cruise ship isn’t sold out, cruise lines can choose to upgrade either their most loyal guests or new cruise lines to the line for free. The shipping company hopes the upgrade will keep you sticking to the larger cabin so that you can book a more expensive room on your next cruise. Or maybe they’re betting on the upgrade that will convince a newbie to sail that line again.

The only thing you can do to increase your chances of getting such an upgrade is to book special occasion trips and mark this in your reservation and sail with the same shipping company over and over again.

10. Ask for an upgrade on board

It takes chutzpah, but you can march to guest service yourself and politely inquire if the cruise line has any available Balcony cabins or mini suites You can move in for free.

This strategy won’t work most of the time. You might be lucky if you’re celebrating a special occasion and the crew member is in a good mood. In the worst case, they’ll say no – or allow you to move if you pay the difference.

I’ve read a helpful tip if you want to try this approach. Don’t make your move on embarkation day when the guest service desk is overcrowded and everyone else is asking for a free upgrade. Wait until after the first port of call. By then, the ship’s staff will know which passengers did not show up or left the ship prematurely, and it will be too late to actually book the cabin. Since the shipping company can’t make any money with the empty space and no one else is bothering them with it, the managers can just leave it to you.

It’s always worth trying to get hold of this elusive free cruise cabin upgrade!

Still confused about cruise rooms? Learn more about How to choose a cruise ship cabin.