Upgrade Fairy on Disney vs. other lines

[Moonlady]

We will be departing tomorrow on 3 day wonder. We have already received a Florida resident discount. On our other cruises we not only received discounts after booking but received category (sp?) upgrades but we had to keep asking.

I have not asked our agent to check with Disney for category (sp?) upgrade yet (may be too late at this point anyway,) but would it be a waste of time for sure to call anyway?

I don't see much discussion on upgrades on Disney compared to other lines.

 

[AnnMorin]

We have gone on four cruises and have never been upgraded. That said the wonder does tend to upgrade more often than the magic. It certainly could not hurt to inquire however the rule of thumb is to book what you will be happy with and be delighted if you are somehow surprised. Have a great trip.

 

[The4OfUs]

My TA just emailed me about this as we were wondering, and having booked through DCL for airfare and everything, we have yet to receive our docs for our 1/31 cruise.

She just told me that we are not currently scheduled for an upgrade - and that they do upgrades based on booking date order - so apparently it's along the lines of "first come first served"? We booked VERY recently - mid December - so compared to people who book a year in advance, we have had a relatively short wait for the cruise. And when we booked, there was only one other cat. 9 stateroom open to choose from, so I think this is a pretty full cruise...

Anyhow...she said that DCL advised me to inquire upon checking in for the cruise if there were any last minute upgrades available, with all sorts of caveats - "make sure it's someplace on the ship you want to be" (ie. bow/midship, etc) "make sure it's a free upgrade, or if it's not exactly HOW much and is it worth it". She also noted that if we check in early, I could ask to be informed if, during later check ins, a better cabin becomes available during the normal "shuffling" that occurs on embarkation day.

I'm glad I like our category (9) and location (2506, deck 2, near the front). It makes finding this out a little less disappointing, I guess. And who knows what happens if I ask on the 31st, right?

 

[kcashner]

We've been on 9 DCL cruises and been upgraded twice. There appears to be no logic to the upgrades...one time we booked early, another only a few months ahead. The one thing that seems to happen is that lower categories are upgraded more often, and especially as cruise date nears. In both cases, the upgrade occurred after we had documents, and was about 1-2 weeks before the cruise.

If the ship is not full, there are upgrades available at check in...but sometimes there is a sign up that says "no upgrades." Even if the sign is up, it doesn't hurt to ask. Usually these upgrades come with a fee, but it is less than it would have cost to book the higher cabin originally.

Bottom line, book a cabin that you'll be happy in. If you get a free upgrade, consider it a bonus.