Upgrade at Port Question

[cmclaura]

It's been really interesting reading why people go for the different levels of rooms. Thanks for sharing!

 

[Futurist]

Not all Cat 3 staterooms are the same size....true they are all much larger than the Cat 4....there are some that are smaller than others and many people feel gyped when they realize they are paying the same price as some who are getting a bigger Cat 3 cabin.

MJ

MJ's right (of course) , but generally speaking, most of the 18 category 3's are equivalent to two category 4s. There are notable exceptions. Four of the cat. 3s amidships (i.e., in the middle) are squished for depth because they are opposite the midships elevators, and are slightly wider to compensate. (These are staterooms 8032, 8034, 8532 and 8534.) However this seems to make them even more desirable as people seem to like the layout better (I've never been in one, so I wouldn't know). Then there are handicapped cat.3s near the stern, which can be remarkably bigger, in part because of the wedge shape given by the layout of the ship. I've been in one of those, and they are truly spacious, although somewhat weird in shape. These are cabins 8102 and 8602. Not sure about 8100 and 8600. Haven't been in them, and they look strangely laid out.

If you're truly interested in the category 3 rooms, it's important to look at the deck layout (deck 8), and read the stateroom reports. It's financially a big jump from category 4 to 3, so make sure you're going to get something you like! Here's where you can find the deck plans:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruise-new/cr-deckplans.htm#

And stateroom reports can be found here:

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/cruise-new/roomlist.cfm

Hope this helps!

 

[dizzi]

It's been really interesting reading why people go for the different levels of rooms. Thanks for sharing!

I used to be the same way and would take the cheaper hotel room every time. And had the same thoughts that a room was a room. I think probablly until i bought DVC and used it for our first cruise and got a balcony room.

The First time i saw the mountains coming up out of the ocean from the privacy of my balcony while seeing my children sleep I was brought to tears at the beauty.

Then we were able to stay in a balcony room in Grand Californian with some points....looking right into the park....waking up and going out to the balcony in the robes they provided and hearing hte sounds of the workers starting to do things was so relaxing in the coolest way.

A great room turns a great vacation into a dream vacation!!!!!

 

[True Romance]

So for 2011 is the Cat. 3 now a Cat. T?

Also, has anyone had luck upgrading a Cat. 4 with the KSF promo to a Cat. 3 at the port?

We are a family of 5. Currently we are holding two SPH connecting rooms for the 10 night MR in April 2011. It is not beneficial to us to do the KSF promo since we have the onboard rebooking discount and credit. However, if I thought we could get a good deal upgrading to a Cat. 3/T at the port, I would switch us to a Cat. 4 and pray we are able to upgrade. I know if we couldn't I would be a little disappointed to all be in one room, but I would be happy with the balcony.

 

[Homemom]

So for 2011 is the Cat. 3 now a Cat. T?

Also, has anyone had luck upgrading a Cat. 4 with the KSF promo to a Cat. 3 at the port?

We are a family of 5. Currently we are holding two SPH connecting rooms for the 10 night MR in April 2011. It is not beneficial to us to do the KSF promo since we have the onboard rebooking discount and credit. However, if I thought we could get a good deal upgrading to a Cat. 3/T at the port, I would switch us to a Cat. 4 and pray we are able to upgrade. I know if we couldn't I would be a little disappointed to all be in one room, but I would be happy with the balcony.

Yes, a 3 is a T in 2011. We used KSF for our cruise this Jan. and then upgraded at port from a 4 to a 3, we were first in line and they only had 2 cat 3 rooms available.

 

[True Romance]

Yes, a 3 is a T in 2011. We used KSF for our cruise this Jan. and then upgraded at port from a 4 to a 3, we were first in line and they only had 2 cat 3 rooms available.

Thanks Homemom! Now do you think you had to pay more of an upgrade price since you had the KSF promo? Or is it a straight price from what Cat. you paid for and what you are trying to get?

There are only 8 Cat. T's left for our sailing next April, 9 months away. Wondering if I should take a chance.

Any guesstimate how much to upgrade from a Cat. 4 to a Cat. T for a 10-night?

 

[Homemom]

Thanks Homemom! Now do you think you had to pay more of an upgrade price since you had the KSF promo? Or is it a straight price from what Cat. you paid for and what you are trying to get?

There are only 8 Cat. T's left for our sailing next April, 9 months away. Wondering if I should take a chance.

Any guesstimate how much to upgrade from a Cat. 4 to a Cat. T for a 10-night?

It's a straight price. Just to give you an idea, we paid $600 for a 4 night. I've seen posts of $1200-$1500 for a 7 night.

 

[Anjelica]

I have a follow up question regarding port upgrade pricing.

What do folks think it would cost to upgrade from a Category 5 to a Category 3? What about a Category 5 to a Category 4?

This would be for a 7 night Carribean cruise.

 

[Futurist]

There are only 8 Cat. T's left for our sailing next April, 9 months away. Wondering if I should take a chance.

The standard advice about booking staterooms is: be prepared to keep the stateroom you book, because there are never any guarantees that you will be able to upgrade at the port. This is especially true of suites, because there are so few of them relative to the number of passengers. So don't book a normal stateroom in the expectation that you will be able to upgrade to a suite for less money at port. Generally speaking (and no one really knows what will happen with the Dream yet, because it hasn't sailed yet), you won't be able to get a suite at the port. Book what you really want. (I think.)

Best regards,
Richard

 

[Cmbar]

We upgraded because we had the chance of a lifetime. We had two families traveling together, and we had the chance to upgrade to the Roy Suite ( 2 separate bedrooms).

Under no circumstances, in my lifetime could I ever afford to book this suite.
Most of the time I usually book a cat 6 with a Florida rate, which ends up being cheaper than a cat 11, non Florida rate.

But it was open, and with the two families combining together, affordable.

I am a room person- I'd rather be on my balcony, enjoying the open sea, the peace and quiet, and reading a good book, then out on deck (I know, I know, I'm weird!), so for me, the room is more than just a place to sleep.

The level of room service in this room, was so much more, and we really enjoyed eating at the dining room table in the room during breakfast.

Having this upgrade opened up a new level of cruising to us. We'll never have that level again, but it made our cruise that much better.

Would I do that again? In a heartbeat if it was ever available.

Any chance you would be willing to tell us how much the upgrade was?

How many people dose this suite hold? Thanks!

 

[Cmbar]

This kinda sounds lame, since you all are talking about Cat 3 and 4's. We just would like a verandah vs. a Porthole. We are booked in a Cat 9 for this October. Anyone willing to take a guess what it would be to upgrade from a Cat 9 porthole to a Cat ? that would have a verandah??

Our ship is crowded so my question is if people upgrade at the port, say to suites then their room would come available. So would it be more beneficial to keep checking about upgrades when we get to the port?

Thanks for any advice! We are happy with what we have, but would love, love, love to try a verandah one time.

 

[gonoles87]

I have no idea on the price but a verandah is ABSOLUTELY the way to go !

 

[carmie3377]

We are booked in a Cat 9 for this October. Anyone willing to take a guess what it would be to upgrade from a Cat 9 porthole to a Cat ? that would have a verandah??

We were in a Cat 9 in Dec on a 7 day. They only had cat 4 and 3 left to upgrade to. I inquired about the 4 and it was $990. Didn't ask about the 3.

 

[alexandmaddie]

Funny, DW is the exact opposite at WDW. Her rationale is that she has been to the parks so many times that she mainly looks at WDW as a resort destination. That's why her favorite hotel stay there is Club Level at the Grand Floridian. DS (5) and I go off to the parks and she hangs out at the hotel pool, lobby, tea room, restaurants, etc, loving every minute of it. On the crusie (we have done the Western 7-night in 2009 and Eastern 7-night in 2001) we opted for Cat. 11 both times. We just couldn't justify the extra expense for a balcony when most of the things you can do on your balcony, you can also do on the upper decks without causing a scene.

To the OP, I wouldn't count on an upgrade being available at the port. We were on the 10/31/09 Western Caribbean and there were no upgrades available because the ship was full. So if you really want the higher category, I'd strongly suggest booking it when you make your original ressie.

We were on this same cruise and were able to upgrade from a Cat 6 and a Cat 11 to a Cat 3 (for $1550). But we were at the port at 10:30 am.

 

[stingfancb]

This kinda sounds lame, since you all are talking about Cat 3 and 4's. We just would like a verandah vs. a Porthole. We are booked in a Cat 9 for this October. Anyone willing to take a guess what it would be to upgrade from a Cat 9 porthole to a Cat ? that would have a verandah??

Our ship is crowded so my question is if people upgrade at the port, say to suites then their room would come available. So would it be more beneficial to keep checking about upgrades when we get to the port?

Thanks for any advice! We are happy with what we have, but would love, love, love to try a verandah one time.

I realize that every cruise is different; but, we were planning the exact same thing for our July 30th 4 night (going from a 9 to a 6). I kept checking the availability and was getting worried that no upgrades would be available at the port. I called my travel agent and was able to upgrade to a Cat 6 (verandah) for a total of a little under $300.00. We're pleased because now that's one less thing we need to worry about.

 

[CherylA]

This kinda sounds lame, since you all are talking about Cat 3 and 4's. We just would like a verandah vs. a Porthole. We are booked in a Cat 9 for this October. Anyone willing to take a guess what it would be to upgrade from a Cat 9 porthole to a Cat ? that would have a verandah??

Our ship is crowded so my question is if people upgrade at the port, say to suites then their room would come available. So would it be more beneficial to keep checking about upgrades when we get to the port?

Thanks for any advice! We are happy with what we have, but would love, love, love to try a verandah one time.

On our 4 day in April we inquired about an upgrade from a cat 9 to a verandah, they only had a cat 5 available and the upgrade would have been $650. (We were also at the desk about 11am) We passed since that seemed like a lot for 4 days but maybe it's because it was to a cat 5 when we really didn't care about what cat it was, we would have preferred the cheapest verandah option. It was a fairly high priced cruise since it was at Spring Break time so thats why I asked earlier in the thread if anyone knew if the upgrades cost more on the higher priced cruise. Our next cruise is more of a "bargain cruise" and I'm hoping that the upgrade cost won't be so much per day.

 

[kbmo4444]

On our 4 day in April we inquired about an upgrade from a cat 9 to a verandah, they only had a cat 5 available and the upgrade would have been $650. (We were also at the desk about 11am) We passed since that seemed like a lot for 4 days but maybe it's because it was to a cat 5 when we really didn't care about what cat it was, we would have preferred the cheapest verandah option. It was a fairly high priced cruise since it was at Spring Break time so thats why I asked earlier in the thread if anyone knew if the upgrades cost more on the higher priced cruise. Our next cruise is more of a "bargain cruise" and I'm hoping that the upgrade cost won't be so much per day.

My understanding is the cost to upgrade is based on Cat going from(that which you paid for) and going to and number of nights for sailing. I don't think they have diff lists for diff times of the year. I could be wrong if so someone will correct me

 

[Cmbar]

I realize that every cruise is different; but, we were planning the exact same thing for our July 30th 4 night (going from a 9 to a 6). I kept checking the availability and was getting worried that no upgrades would be available at the port. I called my travel agent and was able to upgrade to a Cat 6 (verandah) for a total of a little under $300.00. We're pleased because now that's one less thing we need to worry about.

Thanks everyone for responding to my inquiry! Just curious about your travel agent being able to upgrade you for so little. Was that just the difference between a Cat 9 and Cat 6 for the four day. I would be thrilled to do this prior to the cruise. Should I contact my agent. I figure now it would be so expensive since we are close to the 90 day mark. I am trying not to think about it but I would love to surprise my husband.

Still does anyone know that if people are being upgraded from lower categories if those room them become available. Since we only want a Cat 6 I am wondering if someone with a Cat 6 would be upgrading to a higher category. It looks like they have quite a few Cat 4's left on the ship as of now. Thanks for everyone's input!

 

[stingfancb]

I don't really know the answer to your question - I was shocked at how little it was to go from a 9 to a 6. When I called Disney that day, I was told no availability at all. Then I went on my travel agency's website, and they still showed balconys available. I immediately called, and when I was told the amount, just made sure it was total and not per person then quickly told her to book it. It was a GTY 6 - later that day it showed the cabin number. It's 6650 - all the way aft, with the solid wall verandah, but open from the railing up. We're thrilled with the location - the verandahs are slightly larger back there, and I love looking at the ocean trail! I think you should call your agent - we're under 2 weeks till sailing.

 

[Wondermom1965]

I don't really know the answer to your question - I was shocked at how little it was to go from a 9 to a 6. When I called Disney that day, I was told no availability at all. Then I went on my travel agency's website, and they still showed balconys available. I immediately called, and when I was told the amount, just made sure it was total and not per person then quickly told her to book it. It was a GTY 6 - later that day it showed the cabin number. It's 6650 - all the way aft, with the solid wall verandah, but open from the railing up. We're thrilled with the location - the verandahs are slightly larger back there, and I love looking at the ocean trail! I think you should call your agent - we're under 2 weeks till sailing.

We have booked our cruises on DisneyCruise.com or calling them with the Florida Resident Discount. I thought the prices were always higher with Travel Agents, got any suggestions? We will see you in a couple weeks!