Cruise Upgrades and money saving tips??

Question

I am a first time cruiser and I was wondering if cruises give free upgrades for rooms if they are not all booked up. I know hotels do this if you just ask, do cruises?

Also, any money saving tips would be GREATLY APPRECIATED! Thanks :)

Answer 1

Cruise lines do not usually do that, especially for first time cruisers.  I have cruised about 20 times and am at the top level of RC's cruise club and we don't get free upgrades when we cruise with them.  In addition, all cruises tend to sell out, even the one we did this past December was sold out.  There is generally no such things as a low season when cabins are available.

I have gotten upgrades using a cruise line upgrade certificate but what I have found is that the upgrade is not really that much of an upgrade.  We were moved from a balcony cabin on a lower floor to a balcony cabin the same size a deck higher up (whoop-de-doo).  Sometimes cruise lines will advertise free upgrades within the same category. So if you have an inside cabin they will give you another inside cabin in a better location.  Of if you have an outside they may give you the lowest category of a balcony.  But you will not go from an inside or outside to a suite.

The best way to save on your cruise is to book it very early and that means 9 to 12 months or more in advance.  All of the cruise lines give early booking discounts.  Also, look on the cruise line web sites for their specials or deals.  I have found that Carnival and Royal Caribbean have the best web sites for finding specials.  But all of the cruise lines generally have a link to their special deals.  You can actually go to the cruise line web sites and sign up for email specials.  The third thing to remember is to shop for the best date for the cruise that you want.  Many times the exact same cruise ship and itinerary will be hundreds of dollars cheaper on certain dates.    For example, last year we found a RC cruise out of Puerto Rico to Aruba, Caracao, and St Thomas for less than $1K for a balcony cabin.  Other weeks the exact same cruise was $1200.

Answer 2

Go directly through the cruise line and call, we do and they will give you a vacation planner. We use Carnival and we love out vacation planner, ever the first year we booked, years ago, we booked the lowest guaranteed room and were only expecting the Riviera deck and he got us on the Empress deck! That was a good start, since then we have always got upgrades to higher decks going through him and the lowest prices too, and we still look and compare before we book too. He will also keep tabs on the reservation and if an upgrade or sale shows up that is better he will call and adjust it accordingly

also the time to go with the lowest prices is Sept - Dec, (excluding holiday weeks) we go in dec and the weather is very nice summer like to most, in the 80 and over,

oh and as one who lives in Florida I can honestly say I would not go in the summer, it is already too hot where I am, I am not going further south to get closer to the equator where it is hotter, out last cruise was in Sept and it was 100F in Cozumel

Answer 3

Usually they give the best free upgrades to people who have cruised with them before, then they get to the first timers, so you never know. Let the cruise company or your travel agent that you would be interested in any free upgrades. That will at least give them a heads up. A good money saving tip is to watch how much you drink. That can really increase your bill at the end of the cruise. Also consider going on your own in a couple of the ports. The shore excursions can be pricey, so pick your favorite and book just those. have a great cruise.

Answer 4

There's a "Money Saving Tips" board at CruiseCritic.com.  [Click on "Boards" at the top of the page.]  You might also be interested in "First Time Cruisers" and "Ports of Call", as well as the board for your cruiseline.

Upgrades aren't as common as you might think, and they usually go to frequent cruisers.  Most ship sail with a full passenger load, too.