Upgrade room at port w military rate San Juan

[racheltatt]

We r sailing on the 4/23 cruise from San Juan. I booked relatively late in the game when DCL dropped a military rate for the cruise. I booked an ocean view bc of price and the short notice, but am now wondering if I should upgrade to a verandah. We have had one on our past cruises without a kiddo, and wondering how that we have a 3 year old if we wouldn't appreciate it even more for adult time (after she's asleep). My question is if i can upgrade at port will it be w a military rate or regular? Can I upgrade now beforehand at military rate? And do I need to? We've never had anything but a verandah, but I've become more frugal since having a kid lol. Any input appreciated. Thanks so much...

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We r sailing on the 4/23 cruise from San Juan. I booked relatively late in the game when DCL dropped a military rate for the cruise. I booked an ocean view bc of price and the short notice, but am now wondering if I should upgrade to a verandah. We have had one on our past cruises without a kiddo, and wondering how that we have a 3 year old if we wouldn't appreciate it even more for adult time (after she's asleep). My question is if i can upgrade at port will it be w a military rate or regular? Can I upgrade now beforehand at military rate? And do I need to? We've never had anything but a verandah, but I've become more frugal since having a kid lol. Any input appreciated. Thanks so much...

Upgrades at the port are on a chart. They have a given cost for the room, and you pay the difference from what you've already paid to what that price is. One note, the price at the port is less than that room would have been the day before the cruise.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

You may want to call and just see what the price difference is now with the military rate. If you wait until you are at the port, there is the risk that no upgrades will be available.

 

[MunFam]

Military rates are very specific and limited to 50 rooms (or less). I just checked and that sailing does indeed have military rate verandah rooms available still. I am not sure how it works to do an upgrade after the PIF date. Give them a call. I would not wait until you get to the port. The military offer may be gone by then.

 

[jrabbit]

on the other hand, if you keep your OceanView room, you will still be able to see the ocean from your room. We've been very happy with out Ocean View Rooms. But we also never had a little one with us that needed naps - and therefor be "stuck" in the room for long periods of time.

 

[houseofduck]

I have not done an upgrade at the port personally, but I thought I had read that it doesn't matter how you book the room. The chart that they use looks at your booked category and the upgraded category and you pay the port upgrade price which is supposed to be better than you can get by paying the difference before the cruise date.

There is a thread here where people report on their port upgrades and the costs.
https://www.disboards.com/threads/lets-use-this-thread-to-track-port-upgrades.3009010/
You could see if the difference between the military discount categories would be better or similar to the typical upgrade pricing.

ETA: I forgot to mention that our family loves the oceanviews on deck 2 of the classics. I may even like them better than the verandahs.

 

[Macprincess]

I can't speak from experience with Military rate upgrades but I have upgraded at the port from a Florida Resident in a verandah cabin to 1 bed room in concierges. The chart just showed the price from a cat 5 upgrade to the one bedroom cabin. I'm pretty certain the cast member handling my request for a paid for at the port upgrade had no idea what rate I booked under. The only info the chart followed was my original category booking and my requested upgrade category. It appeared to be the same price regardless of what rate I originally booked under.

 

[swimfin]

We r sailing on the 4/23 cruise from San Juan. I booked relatively late in the game when DCL dropped a military rate for the cruise. I booked an ocean view bc of price and the short notice, but am now wondering if I should upgrade to a verandah. We have had one on our past cruises without a kiddo, and wondering how that we have a 3 year old if we wouldn't appreciate it even more for adult time (after she's asleep). My question is if i can upgrade at port will it be w a military rate or regular? Can I upgrade now beforehand at military rate? And do I need to? We've never had anything but a verandah, but I've become more frugal since having a kid lol. Any input appreciated. Thanks so much...

The military rate should be a "flat rate" no matter the category. For my cruise (not the San Juan cruise) I went from a 5B to a 4B for the same price. I would call NOW instead of waiting Cheers and happy sailing!

 

[houseofduck]

The military rate should be a "flat rate" no matter the category. For my cruise (not the San Juan cruise) I went from a 5B to a 4B for the same price. I would call NOW instead of waiting Cheers and happy sailing!

The military rate is "flat rate" within the inside categories, oceanview categories, and verandah categories, but are not the same from one to the other. On your cruise, you went from one verandah category to another verandah category. They want to go from oceanview to verandah. The rates will not be the same. For the 4/23 cruise, the difference between military rates for oceanview and verandah for two people is a little over $800. I'm not sure what the difference is for the third person.

 

[swimfin]

The military rate is "flat rate" within the inside categories, oceanview categories, and verandah categories, but are not the same from one to the other. On your cruise, you went from one verandah category to another verandah category. They want to go from oceanview to verandah. The rates will not be the same. For the 4/23 cruise, the difference between military rates for oceanview and verandah for two people is a little over $800. I'm not sure what the difference is for the third person.

Ahhhh! Makes sense!!! THANK YOU!! Good to know!

 

[coloradocutie]

As many wise folks here on disboards have said, book what you will be happy in. We personally have loved having a verandah when cruising with little ones. It gives us a place to hang out while they nap. I have brought my baby monitor just to have while my little ones slept in the stateroom and DH and I are enjoying the verandah (+/-) a drink in hand.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[lanejudy]

My question is if i can upgrade at port will it be w a military rate or regular? Can I upgrade now beforehand at military rate?

If you upgrade at the port, it will be based on embarkation day port prices. That is an entirely different list of prices than anyone can find before the cruise. It should be based on booked category vs upgrade category. It is usually a much better deal than upgrading in advance, but depending on how "good" was the military discount you'd have to decide if it's best for you.

If you upgrade now, I don't know if you can upgrade to an MIL rate for a verandah unless one is currently offered -- and since the MIL rates typically require a "new" booking, I don't know if they would allow you to upgrade or cancel and rebook (potentially incurring penalty).

I suggest you call DCL (or your TA) and ask 1) what would be the charge to upgrade now and 2) will an MIL rate be honored for the upgrade. I also agree with others to book the category where you'll be happy because you can't count on port upgrades being available.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[MissMet]

Just a thought if you end up unable to upgrade. Personally, we prefer booking a lesser room & using the money saved to pay for nursery time... especially during nap time & late nights. We hate being confined to the room/verandah and much prefer to enjoy the ship. The nursery does a fantastic job & we get to enjoy all the adult only options. (nursery takes 3 & under) Good luck!

 

[racheltatt]

Thanks everyone for all the great info. Sorry for the delay, we were on spring break and unplugged from media for a wonderful week lol. Much appreciate all the great input!