We won but the location was crap...so we haven't tried lately. You gotta be happy with where they put you. As in most things in life...location location location!
Great information Shannon. I upgraded our cabin to a Junior Suite and wondered why the Royal Up options didn't update. It is very helpful that you had a similar experience and found that it might take up to six days for the data transfer between RCCL and the contractor to occur.
Really 6 days!???? I got a new job so we had to move our july cruise to this month. We leave in 5 days. I rebooked yesterday so does that mean i will not have the opportunity to royal up?!? I have been checking royal up and it is still showing my july sail date.
@@LittleNicky558 Yes 6 days, but i changed on Friday night so that included the weekend. Just keep checking. Bids don’t close until 2:30 the day of sailing
Thank you for this informative video. I put in a bid for a JS on the Harmony a month ago, and I noticed the minimum bid is now $100 more than before. As a matter of fact, the minimum bid went up for all the other categories as well!
I bid for an upgrade on RCCL for my last 6 cruises and never got the upgrade. Got an email yesterday that my bid for May 31 was accepted. I only bid $100 per person for myself and my husband. So we are being upgraded from a Junior suite to a Grand Suite for $200. I am amazed. You never know...... give it a shot. Inside rooms and not safe. Always get a balcony room in case there is an emergency you will have a second way out.
@@vishnu2699 our upgrade was amazing. I could not believe we got the Grand Suite upgrade for $100 per person. Going on a cruise next month. The minimum bid they are taking for the upgrades is $300 per person. Not worth spending $600 more for a 5 day. We will have a junior suite and that will be nice.
@@KS-kr4ok Yeah, I'm thinking about it. Mine is on Wonder of the Seas for Xmas. Right now, I have a perfect spot/location. Might take the chance to upgrade.
Pretty sure the algorithm is designed to make RCI the most money. i.e., IF you book an interior cabin and max your “Royal up” bid for a grand suite that provides Royal more than a smaller bid from an existing “balcony” bid-you will get the upgrade.
Actually if you have an interior cabin, you typically can only bid up to a balcony. Also, the most money would likely be made by filling multiple bids with 1 empty cabin. Ex. RS from OS, then OS from GS, the GS from JS and so on. They could fill 5-6 or more bids with one empty suite.
@@ShannonFord Do you think this is influenced by “Diamond” or above status? My wife and I are Diamond status and our Royal Up offer for Radiance (Alaska in June 22) an interior cabin, included six difference upgrades INCLUDING the option to bid on a “grand suite.” I thought the same that as interior, we would be offered ONLY to bid on balconies. Not so…. Your thoughts?
Love this! I have never got one. I just bid on 3 different cabins a few days ago. Just went and checked them and all 3 had disappeared like I never bid on any of them. So, just rebid the same numbers again....lol. We will see what happens. Thanks for this video.
Did you enter in your credit card info? I find people miss this step and never bid. You should receive a confirmation email immediately after it is submitted.
We got our Royal up notification at 75 days. According to RC web site only inside. Ocean view and some balconies are available. We have a 2 bedroom grand suite with aft balcony so are staying there.
We are booked in an owners suite, I got the royal up email two days ago, we bid $250 each for the Royal Suite. The fine print did say we may not know until hours before sailing. Either suite is fine! The piano is not a make or break. We booked the April 5th sailing on a flash sale got 30% off so we are happy regardless!
Speak with your travel agent before bidding for they may be able to get you an upgrade for less than Royal UP. Also, they can tell you the cabin you will be in were as with the UP, you are assigned a random cabin in that class.
i just got our royal up email today - 73 days before our cruise!!! i bid on the royal suite. i doubt i'll get it, since i bid the minimum, but it's ok since i like the grand suite i booked. anyway, perfect timing that i'd just watched your video!!
Great advice. Thanks! I just wish there was a time-certain they tell you. I hope for my early May Royal Caribbean sail they dont wait until a day before.. lol
@@ShannonFord We launch May 7th on Allure out of Galveston. I'm eager because my bids were almost as much as our original tickets in the hopes we nail it (we're in a Loft suite) and trying for an Owners Panoramic or Grand Panoramic or Star Loft and they're all Star class and so it's a bit deflating (especially at what we're offering) to think they'd let us know so late - around boarding - so crossing our fingers. You made a very relevant point about an outsourced contractor not researching nor going off a computerized matrix and system, so we won't hold our breath on getting anyting. I'll let you know. Appreciate your hard work on the channel.
Question...so we bid on a Grand suite 1 bedroom and it shows my bid but when i go to the website to see how many grand suite cabins are left on our cruise it shows none zero. Any idea if that means someone bought that suite or if were getting awarded it? Still shows submitted on the royal app page.
Great video. We got our Royal Up for our January sailing on Symphony of the Seas from a balcony to a Jr. Suite and we did get our double points added, so I'm hoping this will apply IF we get our bid for our Oct sailing. Fingers crossed!
I did try this on our cruise last December but never heard anything. I knew it was not a guarantee though I just figured I would try a low bid and see if we got upgraded LOL.
Technical question: Lets say you and I are on the same cruise. I have a junior suite. You have a grand suite. We both get RoyalUp offers and both want the top suite - the Royal Suite. Is our bidding range the same? Or is my min and max bid HIGHER than yours because I am in a one tier lower suite than yours?
No bidding range is different. The person with the lower category will likely have a higher minimum bid. With that said, my belief is that the person with the higher booked category will likely get the room. The reason being, if I am in a GS and get the RS, that now frees up a GS for bidding. This is why you are most likely to win the category on one category up, rather than the highest category you can bid on.
Thanks for the tip! I was really curious about Royal Up because the offer we got was so ridiculously expensive that I felt that if I wanted that category, it's cheaper to book them directly! After talking to many experienced cruisers, I am convinced even more that I think I was the only one who got offered a royal up bid starting anywhere from $2000 and above! I booked a JS on Anthem on Dec'21 sailing and got offered for higher suites anywhere around $2000 so of course I didn't bid. Then around 2-3 weeks prior to sailing, they lowered to $400. I am still curious. What did we do wrong in our reservation that royal up was so ridiculously high (we reserved directly on RC website)? This Anthem sailing ended up somewhere below 40% capacity. p.s. FYI, We had some plumbing issues in our bathroom but they didn't bat an eye for changing our suite. We had to call plumber several times.
That is odd. Could have been a glitch. I know there are people on my sailing who got the same category cabin for free through the casino and the minimum bids were the same as mine. Hope you had a great sailing despite the plumbing issues
Thank you for this information. I have a question about prices… how do you track price fluctuations? If a lower price is found, how do you take advantage of a lower price? Do you need to book a new reservation and cancel the more expensive reservation?
That depends on the sale. The best way to do it, is to have a good Travel Agent who automatically tracks them. My travel agent has notified me of rate drops, even if it’s not in the same category. On an upcoming DCL cruise, a GTY rate was offered and we were able to save $800 by moving to a GTY. I would have known if she hadn’t notified me. If you don’t have a travel agent, I encourage you to check out TouringPlans Travel. tinyurl.com/TouringPlansShannon FYI, I am now a travel partner with them, but they have been my agency since they opened
Thank you so much for the video; it's a great tip. I was going to book the Symphony of the Seas rt from Barcelona on 6/18/23 through a travel agency to receive couple hundred dollars shipboard credit....but i'm glad to to watch your video first. Do you know if I book a family balcony room, what the possible upgrade would be?
Always make you min bid a few dollars about the even dollar amount. For example if you bid 100.00 dollars, make that bid 103.00 or 108.00 dollars, I cant explain it but it works more often than not.
My sail date is September 9th. I booked my room about 2 weeks ago. Others in my fb group said they got a Royal Up email 3 weeks ago. I haven’t received anything. When I put in my reservation number and name on the Royal Up page it says it has to be 30 days out from sailing. Why are some people able to bid already who are on the same ship? I called Royal Caribbean and they said not everyone is chosen to bid? However, I booked through them and that is not what I have heard in the past?
Hi Shannon, thanks for all the great break down on these perks! I do have a question! Do you still get double points when you move up into a junior suite by bidding or the royal up way doesn't let you get the double points ?
Great video! I read that someone called and asked royal to upgrade their room but there weren't anymore left because they "sent" the rooms to royalup plusgrade so that they could give the rooms to people that bed. They send the leftover rooms about 2 weeks before sailing apparently
I have heard this rumor too, but unless they work for Royal or Plusgrade, treat it as a rumor. When we got our Grand Suite, our cabin was showing available on the website literally an hour before we got the official confirmation we won our bid. So not sure how true it is.
You can ask guest services on board. Before the sailing, you can just start a mock booking and see how many categories/staterooms are available. This is easier the more the sailing is sold out.
Great video, one question, you say if you get a suite you get the perks that that room offers. does this include the drinks packages and restaurants. thanks Anne x
@@ShannonFord i should make it clear that my cruise is as most 50 procent capacity from what i heard so it might just be a one of thing that i could royal up to suite :)
@@pierrenivelt2586 makes sense. That’s when we won our bid for a Grand Suite. Our March Spring Break sailing, we got nothing even though we bid the max
Never had any luck with Royal up. I've tried twice and nothing. In my most recent time trying my bid was rejected so just for curiosity when I got on board I asked guest services if there was any upgrades available in the category I had originally requested for Royal Up. Guess what. They had a several rooms left. All very baffling because the cruise was only 50% full. So just cos you bid doesn't mean you'll get it, because evidently they hold rooms for guests requesting upgrades on board. Yes and I agree there is risk to getting a Royal Up - because the room you are assigned is hand picked by Royal, not you.
So I talk about going to Guest Services. Reports are that has been stopped as of last week. They are extending the length for RoyalUp and if you go to Guest Services, they are telling you to bid
@@ShannonFord guests services was glad to upgrade me but wanted 750$ for the panoramic ocean view room I bid 190 for. It would have been cheaper to book it beforehand.
@@ducheau100 not sure when you cruised, but reports are they aren’t doing it anymore. Many reports of little cards with QR codes for RoyalUp being handed out when people go to Guest Services: literally just started happening in the last week or so.
If we bid on the Royal up but all the suites are sold out. is it unlikely that there will be and changes to room? Panoramic ocean view suite bid on 2bedroom grand suite
@user-lg7es5gr3w 0 seconds ago We have two connecting inside staterooms. I assume the connecting door is where the sofa is supposed to be. When you say the connecting cabin has a chair instead of a sofa, do you mean an armchair or an actual chair as in a chair like the chair you sit on at the kitchen table?
How do you check on or change your Royal Up bid? Once I make my initial bid, I didn't know you could check on or change your bid. How do you see whether any bid is pending?
We are sailing on Harmony April 10 and currently have a neighborhood balcony guarantee. Our room hasn’t been assigned yet. We got a Royal up email to bid up to a Jr Suite at first, but later when I modified my bids I could bid up to aqua suite. Our lowest categories available to bid on are oceanview balcony (our balcony gty is a neighborhood one) at $40 pp and the Jr suite is $300 pp. I think the large balcony is $175 pp and spacious balcony which sleeps 6 is $250 pp. These seem quite a bit higher than the minimums you mentioned, so I wonder if it depends on the ship?
Depends on the ship and the length of the sailing. I would bid on what you can afford. Just know that once you win, you can’t bid again. So if you really want more space, I wouldn’t bid if an Oceanview balcony. I just looked at your sailing and there are a lot of JS available and 5 GS.
@@ShannonFord Thank you! I actually want an oceanview balcony the most, we had that for our late April sailing but had to move it up a week ago and we opted for a neighborhood balcony guarantee as that was already a few hundred more than our original room. We are ok with a Central Park room for example, but would love actual oceanview cabin. I thought if we make a few bids this increases our chances of winning one. Jr suite is the highest we want to bid right now & that would be near the min. amount. Only because this cruise is already costing us more. The oceanview balcony I could bid double of the min. at $80 pp. Oh what to do. Lol Thank you for your reply, love the video and will check out the other one you mention!
@@ShannonFord JR suite would also be great! I know there is no guarantee but do you think we should bid more than the min for the balcony leaving the Jr suite at the min?
It depends on whether or not your TA participated in the program. If you booked directly through Royal, you should be allowed to bid. I know Costco Travel opts out. Most TAs participate though
How did you join a facebook group for your sailing? I have never heard of this and have no idea how to go about joining? We are sailing on Freedom of the Seas Oct 17, 2022
We currently are in a suite (sky class category), and we received a Royal up email….if we bid on a different suite and it takes us to the star suite category (which includes drink packages)--will I be able to get refunded on the drink packages we’ve already purchased if they don’t tell us we win the bid until the day before or the day of sailing? Hope this makes sense. Thank you!
Hi! im really excited for my next cruise. i did switch from a 14 day cruise junior suite to a 7 day in a 1 bedroom aquatheater suite! i wonder , since im in a sky class suite would I have an opportunity to upgrade to a room with star class. preferably the aquatheatre group for 2 bedroom. deck 8 ( i just watched your last video) I just dont know if I'll be eligible. we sail on harmony of the seas may 6 th leaving miami
I'm trying my first Royal up bid. I have only a Platinum status and we are on the Navigator of the Seas with a GTY balcony booked. I have bid a "strong bid". But do you think it's likely to get since I'm bidding from a GTY balcony to the Grand Suite?
We are on the Allure on April 2. We booked a gty ov. Today we got our room and it is 10500. What should we bid for a ov balcony? Do you have to start with the lowest royal up amount or can you bid lower?
I would. The downside of the cabin you were assigned is that it is all the way forward. Allure is a big ship, so you will be walking. Minimum bids vary with each sailing, but the minimum bid is the minimum
No. It really depends on availability and what other bids are (I think), but no one really knows. I think it’s more like to get one level up, but that’s just my guess. However, I have won bids for the highest category I bid on and then won no bids at all.
I just submitted my bids and I don’t see a “ pending” I only see “modify/cancel” when does it go to “pending” ? Can you modify bid up until they make their decision?
Sorry, one last question...In your opinion, if I currently have a great price for a GTY balcony, would the 3rd party company prefer to Royal Up me so they could now get more money for the balcony I have? Our cruise looks very full and I have a strong bid in now, but I was just thinking that may help my chances. From your experience, what do you think?
If I'm booked in an accessible Junior Suite, if I get approved for RoyalUp will they guarantee my upgraded cabin (i.e., Royal, Owner or Grand Suite) will also be accessible?
@@ShannonFord Thank you so much for replying. I've tried reaching out to RCL for an answer on this and once I watched your video and you mention that the RoyalUP program is managed by a third party I started to wonder and you've answered my question. Thank you so much for the information and the extremely quick reply to my question. YOU ROCK!!
We have 2 rooms (2 reservations) as a connecting balcony ocean view with 2 people in each room. We received the Royal up to bid on a grand suite 2 bedroom. If we bid & get it, can we cancel the the other room so that all four of us are now in one room & get those funds from the cancelled room as on board credit (as both rooms are paid in full)?
Nope. You can’t add anyone to the new room. You can keep the extra room and have everyone stay in the room, but the other 2 wouldn’t get access to suite perks like Coastal Kitchen or the Suite Lounge
Shannon, I’m in a similar situation. I have 2 rooms connecting and placed a bid on a 2 bedroom grand suite. We are a family of 6 with 4 young kids. If the bid is accepted can we all stay in the grand suite 2 br and then not get the perks? I don’t really care about the perks, it’s more about more space. Thanks!
@@edj559 you should be able to stay in one room as it has the capacity. though you do have to keep the 2nd room. I’ve heard of people being able to get keys made for everyone, but you would have to ask guest services. Only those officially assigned in the room would get the perks. But I’m with you, I’d go for it just for the space. Use the extra room to escape the kids 😂😂😂
Thank you so much for the reply! I’ve been getting so many different responses. In having such a large family we just wanted space. Haha. Our status is pending as of now and we can cancel still. Does it say that until they accept or deny it?
Hi Shannon, So we're on Indy of the Seas in May. We have a spacious Oceanview room booked. Do you think it worth it to try for a grand suite? I know you said you are spending $500, but do you think that is what it will take to win?
You can bid up until 2:30pm the day of sailing. However, upgrades can be awarded at any time, so if you wait, you may miss out. They tend to happen in groups
I can’t afford to book the stateroom that I want. I didn’t know anything about Royal Up but I did get an email a few weeks later. I bid on all three since anything is better than the sardine can we’re in now. So if we don’t get a room upgrade it’s going to be a huge let down on my first ever cruise. Also I have no idea the difference between being in the back vs the middle or front. I have this bad feeling we’re going to be in a sardine can in the way back.
So for the poshies really.. people that can afford to throw extra money towards an upgrade.. will always be outbidded by someone who can throw more money at it
Actually I think this is for the non-poshies who don't want to pay full price for a larger room, balcony or even a window. People are often upgraded with a minimum bid especially from the lower categories.
Not a good idea AUCTION ---property are sold to the highest bidder often enough during the process / proceeding emotion overcome the rationale one would pay more than the reasonable price tend to happen to the Senior and the vulnerable never attend the Art Auctions onboard ship some passengers looking for free Champagne which entice attendance from the auctioneer who rent a piece of space from the ship again this is straightly BUYER Beware
