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Fares are based on Promo(s) VV*. Featured fares are per person based on double occupancy and available for 1st/2nd guests only. Taxes, Fees & Port Expenses are additional. Offer is applicable on select 2024 and 2025 departures and excludes Grand Voyages and any cruise lasting 5 days or less.

Signature Beverage Package has a daily limit of 15 beverages, which includes all beverages priced at US$11 or less and beverage service charges. Beverage packages include non-alcoholic beverages such as sodas and specialty coffees. Guests must order beverages one at a time and be 21 years of age or older for alcoholic beverages. Sharing is not permitted. Beverage management reserves the right to revoke the package if misused and refuse service for any reason, including service of alcoholic beverages to intoxicated guests. Package excludes purchases made in The Shops, from the mini-bar, or through 24-hour room service and beverages on Half Moon Cay. US$1200 beverage package value is based on a 7-Day Cruise and includes up to 15 beverages per day priced at US$11 or less. Value varies based on length of cruise. Beverage package value is in USD, is neither refundable nor transferable, has no cash value and expires at the end of the Eligible Cruise.

Specialty Dining is based on cruise duration and ship type. For 6- to 9-day cruises, guests will receive one night at Pinnacle Grill, Canaletto or Tamarind. For ships without Tamarind, guests will receive one night at Pinnacle Grill or Canaletto. For 10- to 20-day cruises, guests will receive two nights: one night at Pinnacle Grill and one night at Canaletto or Tamarind. For ships without Tamarind, guests will receive two nights: one night at Pinnacle Grill and one night at Canaletto. For 21+ day cruises (excluding Grand Voyages), guests will receive three nights: one night at Pinnacle Grill, one night at Tamarind and one night at Canaletto. For ships without Tamarind, guests will receive three nights: two nights at Pinnacle Grill and one night at Canaletto. Offer excludes Specialty Dining Events at Pinnacle Grill such as Sel de Mer, A Taste of De Librije and Cellar Master Dinner. Reservations and dining times will be available to pre-reserve.

Shore Excursion offer is based on cruise duration and is per person, not per stateroom. For Alaska cruisetours and 6- to 9-day cruises, eligible guests will receive US$100 credit per person to apply toward their shore excursion purchase(s). For 10- to 20-day cruises, eligible guests will receive US$200 credit per person to apply toward their shore excursion purchase(s). For 21+ day cruises (excluding Grand Voyages), eligible guests will receive US$300 credit per person to apply toward their shore excursion purchase(s). Shore Excursion Credit must be used pre-cruise when applied toward an Alaska Cruisetour Land Excursion purchase. Shore Excursion Credit must be used on corresponding cruise and is non-refundable. Shore Excursion Credit can neither be redeemed for cash value or airport transfers nor applied to a non–shore excursion item.

Wi-Fi Surf Package: Surf your favorite sites, including email, sports, news and general browsing. All onboard Internet usage is subject to Holland America Line standard policies, which may limit browsing of some sites due to network security and bandwidth usage. Applications that use high bandwidth may be blocked and offerings are subject to change with or without notice. The plan can be activated on any device, but only one device can be actively connected at a time. Upgrades are available once on board for a single day, the remaining duration of the voyage or adding more devices. Offer applies to 1st/2nd guests in a stateroom only. 

Wave Offer: Unless otherwise noted, all elements of the Wave Offer (“Offer”) are available only on Summer 2024–Winter/Spring 2025 cruises/cruisetours and exclude Grand Voyages and any cruise lasting 5 days or less (“Eligible Cruises”) booked between December 14, 2023, and March 14, 2024 (“Booking Period”). Stateroom upgrades are available in select stateroom categories and ships and subject to the availability of the staterooms in the next highest category. Entire Wave Offer has no cash value, is subject to availability, is capacity controlled, may be modified or withdrawn at any time, is available for new bookings only, is not combinable with any other discounts, and is neither transferable nor refundable. Guests who make an eligible booking through this Offer will receive up to 40% off their cruise fare. Up to 40% off discount is based on standard launch fare and excludes Alaska Cruisetours. The percentage off discount will not apply to Taxes, Fees & Port Expenses. Offer ends March 14, 2024. Kids Cruise Free: Guests ages 18 and under (“children”) are eligible to travel free (Taxes, Fees & Port Expenses are additional) when booked as a 3rd and/or 4th guest on select 2024 and 2025 cruises. Limit up to two free children per eligible booking. Kids Cruise Free rates are available only when booked with promotion code Z3* with a 1st/2nd guest booking with promotion code VV*. Reduced Deposit is a reduced per-person booking deposit available only for 1st/2nd guests in a stateroom on new bookings for select cruises and cruisetours booked outside of the final payment date. Balance is due on final payment of the booking. Offer is available only on select cruises and cruisetours unless sold out or otherwise withdrawn. Standard refund and cancellation conditions apply. A deposit is required for all stateroom guests and the amount of deposit varies, even if deposit is reduced per Offer. Onboard Credit Kicker through this offer is available in the following amounts: US$100 per person (US$200 per stateroom) for guests booked on a 6- to 9-day cruise; US$150 per person (US$300 per stateroom) for guests booked on an Alaska cruisetour or 10- to 20-day cruise; US$200 per person (US$400 per stateroom) for guests booked on a 21+ day cruise; US$250 per person (US$500 per stateroom) for guests booked on a Legendary Voyage. Limit: One (1) Onboard Credit per guest. Onboard Credit is in USD, is neither refundable nor transferable, and has no cash value. Onboard Credit expires at the end of the Eligible Cruise and may not be used in the Casino or on any other specified fees or items. Onboard Credit Kicker offer ends on March 14, 2024. Ships’ Registry: The Netherlands.

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10 Secrets on How to Get a Free Balcony Upgrade on a Cruise

February 8, 2023 By John Widmer 28 Comments

It sure is nice to have a balcony stateroom on a cruise. You gotta love those mesmerizing ocean swells, the warm sea breeze, those beautiful island vistas on the horizon, the occasional seagull flying by, and the soothing sound of the surf.

But balcony cabins on cruises can also be very expensive! Splurging on a veranda stateroom can be difficult to justify for those who are traveling on a budget. That’s why we have deeply investigated the many different ways of how to get a free balcony cabin upgrade on a cruise ship.

As we’ve taken dozens of cruises all around the world totaling over a half year at sea, we’ve been quite successful with these tactics used to score a free balcony upgrade. So we’re now revealing all our tips in this post to show what works to actually achieve a free cruise cabin upgrade.

In the earlier days of cruising, it was fairly commonplace to be able to walk onto a ship and ask Guest Relations if there were any free room upgrades on the cruise. Often you would actually get a positive response and be immediately switched to a coveted balcony cabin, with an upgraded room free of charge. Unfortunately, in today’s world of cruising, free cruise cabin upgrades at the port or when walking onto the ship have become nearly impossible to finagle.

But we’re here to show you that cruise cabin upgrades are absolutely possible. In fact, we’re living proof as we managed to score a free balcony upgrade on about half the cruises we take! It can just take a little work, know-how, and sometimes a bit of luck.

We’ve been fortunate to receive cruise cabin upgrades to balcony staterooms that were five times the cost of the little interior cabin we booked, for absolutely free! But it doesn’t always work. We’ve been denied upgrades in a fair share of instances too. Yet having been successful in scoring free balcony upgrades on about half of the many cruises we’ve taken – that’s pretty good odds!

Some may claim that free balcony upgrades on a cruise are impossible nowadays. But we’re here to show that cruise upgrades are still a very possible reality. In this post, we reveal our proven tactics detailing how to get these free balcony upgrades on a cruise!

Understand: Why It’s Difficult to Get a Free Cruise Cabin Upgrade

Before we go into all the details of our tips to get a free balcony cabin upgrade, first understand what’s going on behind the scenes to make getting a free cruise upgrade so difficult to accomplish.

Cruise lines are aggressively and strategically pricing their itineraries in attempts to fill every single cabin on their ship. Cruise lines are particularly interested in filling those higher-margin balcony staterooms. Inventory of staterooms on cruises is closely monitored, as sophisticated financial algorithms are utilized to adjust prices to lure passengers.

This is all done in a grand attempt to fill the ships to capacity. Often cruise lines are successful in filling their ships. As a result, sometimes there simply are no available balcony rooms to offer when the cruise ship is sailing away. So in many instances, these balcony staterooms may be completely occupied. Hence a cabin upgrade on a cruise is just not possible, whether free or paid.

Also, the cruise lines have gotten wise to passengers’ attempts to upgrade their staterooms for free. So if there are some balcony rooms available, and you inquire after boarding, you’ll likely be offered that balcony upgrade for an upcharge, not as a complimentary stateroom upgrade.

If there are any balcony staterooms still available in the weeks before embarking, many cruise lines will try to entice guests with special balcony upgrade deals that you can buy at discounted rates or bid for after you’ve already purchased a lesser stateroom. It’s a big attempt by the cruise lines to fill those balcony staterooms before you even step foot on the boat.

These can sometimes be decent deals that are certainly worth considering a nominal fee to ensure your upgrade. We’ll discuss that a bit more later. But we’re really here to show you how to score a cruise balcony upgrade, not for a fee, but for F-R-E-E!

Decide: Are Cruise Balconies Worth It?

Before divulging our 10 tactics on how to score a free cruise upgrade, each prospective cruise passenger reading this article should decide for themselves what a balcony stateroom is worth to them.

Is it worth your time while on vacation to attempt to seek out a free stateroom upgrade? Is it worth an extra hundred dollars to pay out of pocket to guarantee an upgrade before you sail? Only you can decide this for yourself.

After all, cruise passengers with interior staterooms can head up to the lido deck and enjoy the same views that others are enjoying from their balcony rooms. But by enjoying those views in public spaces, you don’t have the immediate access or the privacy that a balcony stateroom offers. You won’t be able to wake up to those fresh views and relax from the privacy of your stateroom balcony. It is nice to have a balcony stateroom on a cruise. But at what cost?

Is it worth a thousand dollars more to have a balcony stateroom? For some passengers, it’s worth the splurge. For us, the answer is “no.”

Yet it is absolutely worth our time to try to score a free balcony upgrade. And it may even be worth splurging on if we can score a cruise upgrade offer for a few hundred dollars more.

Here are some considerations to help you decide whether a balcony room may be worth it for your upcoming cruise.

Consider booking a balcony stateroom or paying to upgrade when:

• You’re cruising scenic areas (e.g., Alaska cruise , Panama Canal , etc.)
• This is a romantic trip (e.g., anniversary, honeymoon)
• You plan to spend lots of time in your stateroom
• Your itinerary includes many days at sea
• You are claustrophobic or agoraphobic
• You like to sunbathe
• You have mobility issues that prevent you from easily going to a public deck
• The price of a balcony room isn’t much more than an interior or oceanview cabin

Consider forgoing a balcony stateroom  and trying for a free cruise upgrade when:

• You have a port-intensive itinerary with little time on the ship
• You spend little time in your stateroom
• You frequently use the ship’s amenities (pool, gym, bars, shows, games, lectures, movies, etc.)
• You’re the type of person who simply uses a hotel room to sleep at night
• Balcony prices are simply not within your travel budget

If you can’t justify spending for that balcony stateroom, then read on. With a bit of strategy and a little luck, a free cruise balcony upgrade could become a reality.

Our biggest piece of advice is this : be sure that you’ll be comfortable with whatever cabin class you book on your cruise. Then go ahead and use some of these tactics to attempt to score that free balcony upgrade.

How To Get a Free Cruise Stateroom Upgrade

1) get a free balcony upgrade promotion and how to find them.

Occasionally cruise lines will run special promotions on particular ships, itineraries, and/or destinations offering balcony staterooms at the same price as an outside or inside cabin. You can attempt to find these deals throughout the year but they can be common during “Wave Season” (around February – April) when cruise lines tend to be most aggressive with pricing and promotions.

Most commonly you’ll see one-category stateroom upgrades. This means you can book an oceanview stateroom for the price of an inside cabin, or book a balcony for the price of an oceanview. When such a promotion is coupled with an additional perk like a drink package, free gratuities, or a generous onboard credit – these can be fantastic deals to take advantage of.

Occasionally we see really good limited-time promotions in which inside cabins, outside cabins, and balcony staterooms are all at the same price. Of course, you choose the balcony! This is another way cruise lines use promotions to offer free balcony upgrades.

So how exactly do you find these balcony upgrade promotions?

If you happen to know a really good travel agent who specializes in cruises, they may already be aware of free room upgrade promotions right off the top of their head.

But cruise room upgrade promotions do change frequently and can often be complicated. Free upgrades on cruises often contain lots of asterisks since certain deals only apply to certain ships, dates, itineraries, etc. So you may just want to take a gander at exactly what each line’s current promotions are. Each major cruise line has a web page that is dedicated to listing their deals, potentially including free balcony stateroom upgrades.

Image courtesy of Celebrity Cruise Lines, as retrieved on their Deals page.

Here are links to all of the major cruise lines’ promotion pages to check if they are currently offering any free balcony upgrade promotions:

• Carnival Cruise Line cruise deals
• Celebrity Cruises cruise deals
• Disney Cruise Line special offers
• Holland America Line cruise deals
• MSC cruise deals
• Norwegian Cruise Line cruise deals
• Princess Cruise Line cruise deals
• Royal Caribbean cruise deals

2) Monitor Price Drops After Purchase to Get a Free Balcony Upgrade

Even after purchasing a cruise, always be sure to continue monitoring that cruise’s prices. Unlike airline tickets, if the price of the cruise drops, you can actually make changes to your booking to upgrade your cruise cabin if there are price changes that are in your favor. Or you can even cancel your booking and re-book for any better deal you find.

For example, let’s say you booked a 7-day Caribbean cruise in which inside cabins were running $1,000 per person, and balcony staterooms were $1,800 per person. So you book the inside cabin because you don’t want to shell out the extra cash to have a balcony.

Even though you’ve already booked your cruise, keep watching those prices. If the price of a balcony stateroom was to suddenly drop to $1,000, then call your booking agent immediately! If you make this phone call before the final payment date, you should be able to switch to that balcony completely free!

Instances like this happen more often than you may realize. The cruise lines themselves will NOT notify you of these price drops. So it’s completely up to you to be vigilant of price fluctuations after purchasing your cruise cabin.

It is important to note that free balcony upgrades using this method are only available if you make the switch before the cruise’s cancelation period, which tends to be around 60-90 days prior to the embarkation date. But this varies by the cruise line and itinerary.

Yet even if you notice the room prices change after the cancelation period, it is still absolutely worth calling your booking agent to inquire about. There’s a decent chance you still may be able to lock in that free balcony upgrade. This free upgrade is simply not a sure thing like it is prior to the cancelation date.

Yet we’ve successfully gotten a free cruise upgrade with this tactic! Balcony prices were slashed a few weeks before our sail date. Because we were already locked in to the cruise since the cancelation period had passed, there was no way to cancel and rebook. Furthermore, the cruise line had absolutely no obligation to honor an upgrade. But we called, were very nice, explained the situation, and pointed out that balcony cabins were now priced at the same price as our inside cabin. So the cruise line switched us to the balcony room, for free!

Another consideration is if the price of a balcony stateroom drops to within a reasonable range in which you are willing to pay the difference.

Continuing with the earlier example, let’s say those balcony staterooms dropped from $1,800 to a price of $1,100, which is now only $100 more than the $1,000 you initially paid for your inside cabin. In this case, you can usually pay that difference – $100 per person – and secure a balcony stateroom. Sure, it’s not free but it may be worth the extra $100 per person. Again, the cruise line may even permit you to make such changes after the cancelation period. So if you notice an instance like this, call your booking agent to inquire about the possibility.

You can check your cruise’s prices regularly to stay abreast of pricing drops. After booking a cruise, I recommend bookmarking a pricing page. Then take 10 seconds each day to monitor it for any price changes.

Alternatively, you can also consider using free cruise price monitoring services , which will alert you when prices change. There are a few different sites that offer free cruise price tracking and will alert you when prices change. Here are two you can try:

• CruiseWatch : The website allows you to select cruises to monitor and will send you email alerts on price changes based on the criteria you select.
• Cruiseline : Search and select your cruise, then set up a price alert. You will be emailed when prices change. Alternatively, you can also do this using Cruiseline’s Ship Mate Cruise App .

3) Use Credit Card Points To Get a Free Balcony Upgrade on a Cruise

There are so many great travel reward credit cards out there in which you can use points towards travel. And while it can be difficult and time-consuming to rack up enough points to pay for an entire cruise, it can be relatively quick and easy to accumulate enough points/miles to apply them towards the difference between your inside/outside cabin and a balcony stateroom.

Allow me to explain exactly how we did that to get a free balcony upgrade for free, paid for with points.

One of our favorite travel rewards credit cards is the Capital One Venture Card in which you get 2% cash back miles on all purchases to use towards any travel expenses. This includes cruise expenses. So you can redeem Capital One points to get balcony upgrades!

For example, months after booking an inside cabin on the Celebrity Eclipse for a transatlantic sailing, we noticed that the price between an inside and a balcony had dropped to only a $200 difference total ($100 per person).

So we called our booking agent to make this change to a balcony stateroom. This upgrade initially came with a $200 charge. We paid that $200 using our Venture Card. We then simply erased that charge off of our statement using 20,000 miles we had accumulated just from everyday spending. So ultimately, this gave us a balcony upgrade at absolutely no out-of-pocket cost to us.

We again successfully used this technique on our Norwegian Star cruise in which we had booked an inside cabin. The price for an outside cabin later dropped to a mere $20 per person ($40 total) more than the price of the inside we booked. So, again, we paid that meager difference but then used our miles to refund that amount, essentially giving us a free cruise cabin upgrade from an inside to an outside stateroom. (See screenshot of transaction below.)

This is perhaps the best surefire way to achieve a free balcony upgrade on a cruise and guarantee it, rather than rely on luck or chance.

At the last update to this article, Capital One is offering a new card member signup bonus offer of 75,000 miles with a referral offer. After qualifying for the offer, you can redeem those miles to cover $750 worth of cruise expenses, such as a balcony upgrade. So feel free to use our referral link here to get this Capital One Venture Card offer and see if you qualify for the card. It could be the key to unlocking a balcony upgrade for free!

Important Note : it only makes sense financially to accumulate credit card points to apply towards cruise upgrades if you can pay off your balance in full every month. Otherwise, this tactic is not for you, as the high-interest rates you’ll be incurring will likely exceed the benefit.

4) Wait Until After the First Port to Ask for a Free Cruise Cabin Upgrade

As already discussed, it is nearly impossible these days to walk onto a cruise ship and get a free cruise cabin upgrade by inquiring with Guest Services at the port or soon after boarding the ship. But it may still be worth trying. There is a simple strategy you can use to increase your odds of getting an affirmative response from Guest Relations.

Simply wait until after leaving the first port of call before asking for a free room upgrade.

Instead of being one of the hundreds of passengers queuing up at Guest Relations on the first day to address an issue or inquire about a free balcony upgrade, just be patient. You must understand that the guest relations desk is extremely busy on the first day of every cruise. They simply won’t have time to cater to your desire for free cruise cabin upgrades.

Even more importantly, cruises don’t really know their exact occupancy until after the first port of call. This is because of:

• possible no-shows and
• passengers who unexpectedly disembark early.

At embarkation, there are often prospective cruise passengers with delayed flights, illness, and other unfortunate circumstances who didn’t make it on the ship before it set sail. Sometimes these unlucky vacationers will try to fly to the ship’s first port to join the cruise. Or they may have decided to just abandon the cruise completely.

The ship won’t know what those prospective passengers ultimately chose to do until after leaving the first port. So their empty room will be held for them in the instance they were able to get a flight to join the ship at the first port.

Meanwhile, there may be other passengers who got on the cruise but had to disembark the ship at the first port due to medical issues, family emergencies, or other personal reasons.

These aforementioned circumstances all make for available staterooms that were not available on Day 1 of the cruise itinerary. So just wait until after leaving the first port of call before asking Guest Services if any free cabin upgrades on the cruise are available.

By waiting, there will be no line to wait in and your chances of actually scoring that balcony stateroom upgrade will be greatly improved. And because a day or two of the cruise has already ticked by, you likely won’t be charged for the cabin upgrade as you would on Day 1.

Whenever we inquire about a free cabin upgrade on a cruise, we always wait until after the first port .

And it works. We’ve been successful with this free balcony upgrade tactic three times. Most recently, on the Norwegian Bliss, we spent the first few nights in our small, inexpensive interior cabin. Then after we departed the beautiful Azore Islands, we simply asked Guest Relations if it would be possible to switch to a balcony cabin. Without any hesitation, he happily fulfilled our request and immediately showed us to our big new veranda stateroom located midship! No charge, no questions asked.

This method is still far from a sure thing, but it doesn’t hurt much to take five minutes out of your day to ask about this possibility. Remember to smile and be polite. You may even get to sail away from that first port in your upgraded balcony stateroom!

5) Why Book a “Guaranteed Stateroom” on a Cruise

Booking a guaranteed stateroom is a gamble. But it’s a gamble in which the cruiser has everything to gain and nothing to lose . When booking a guaranteed stateroom on a cruise you are “guaranteed” a room within the cabin designation you booked: inside, outside, balcony, or suite. By booking these staterooms you get the absolute lowest price for that category.

The gamble is that you could either end up in a very convenient location on the ship or find yourself in a less desirable cabin location like somewhere up in the bow or underneath a noisy area. Either way, you’ll be paying the lowest price. And since your specific cabin has not been assigned, there’s a small yet realistic chance of getting bumped up to a higher category. It’s happened to us!

During a Panama Canal Cruise on the Celebrity Infinity , we booked a cheap last-minute inside guaranteed cabin. We were instead assigned a big beautiful veranda stateroom on the Penthouse level. Really!

There was no congratulatory email (e.g., “You’ve been upgraded!”) When our stateroom was assigned, we simply noticed that it was a balcony rather than the interior room we booked. We were thrilled!

But this didn’t just happen to us. We spoke to a few other lucky cruisers on this voyage who reported the same circumstance.

It’s our theory that this is a pricing strategy that cruise lines use to fill the ship without publically lowering the value of their balcony staterooms. So go ahead and book that inside guaranteed room and you could get lucky. You can’t get any lower than an inside cabin, so you only stand to gain in this situation.

To try to seek out situations like this, look for cruises that have inside or outside guaranteed staterooms available but show no inventory of assigned rooms within those particular categories . This likely means that all of those interior and porthole rooms have been assigned, which means you may actually get an elusive upgrade when it comes to assigning your specific cabin.

It can be a time-consuming task to sleuth out by clicking through several cruise listings and pretending to go through the purchase process to see their cabin inventory. But your thorough detective work may pay off in the form of a free balcony upgrade.

However, if using this tactic, just be sure that you are still comfortable with the stateroom category you book because it is still not a sure thing that you’ll get the free balcony upgrade. An upgrade may go to someone else in an assigned cabin, and then you’ll be assigned to the cabin that received the upgrade. But don’t lose hope. It is possible and we’re living proof of that.

6) Complain If You Have a Legitimate Reason

If you have a legitimate complaint, particularly with your cabin, it doesn’t hurt to see how the cruise may be able to help make up for the issue .

During a Carnival cruise, we had friends who unbeknownst to them were assigned a stateroom adjacent to the ship’s lively nightclub. After the DJ provided for a few sleepless nights on the fun ship, the passengers kindly addressed the issue with Guest Relations.

To help compensate for their misfortune, Guest Relations gave them a free cruise cabin upgrade to a suite with a balcony, that was far away from the thumping nightclub. Undoubtedly, they slept better.

Note: we do not condone or recommend coming up with false complaints to try to better your cruise stateroom situation. We were once at the Guest Relations desk and overheard a crabby lady who was making a huge stink about a little bit of dust on the top of her phone and some other very petty issues. It felt like she was trying to find complaints to get some sort of compensation for free. She was grasping at straws and being very rude about it. Don’t be that person.

But if you do have a genuine issue, be sure to address the problem. Don’t be afraid to speak up if you unexpectedly find your cabin to be in a noisy position. You could get a free upgrade to a balcony. Be kind and polite when explaining the issue to Guest Relations.

7) Celebrate Something!  

Are you cruising as part of a honeymoon, anniversary, birthday, or something else special? Sometimes there’s a place for you to mention this when filling out the online check-in forms. Or perhaps just work it into conversation with a crew member. They’re always looking for ways to make passengers happy.

Although we’ve scored some choice tables in the main dining room using this method, we have never been successful at getting a free balcony upgrade on a cruise by name-dropping a celebration. Yet it’s not completely unheard of. You’ve got nothin’ to lose. So go ahead and put on that party hat – celebrate that special occasion and be sure to let the entire ship know! 😉

8) Apply Onboard Credit Toward a Balcony Upgrade

Many cruises have been generous lately in offering substantial sums of onboard credits during promotional cruise sales. Unfortunately, you cannot use that onboard credit to apply toward an upgrade before you set sail. But once you’re on the ship, onboard credit is fair game to use on a stateroom upgrade .

So if you have a large sum of onboard credit that you may not spend during your cruise, it’s worthwhile to inquire with guest relations how much a balcony upgrade would cost. Be clear in letting Guest Relations personnel know you’re willing to pay for the cruise cabin upgrade, even though you’ll ultimately be applying your free onboard credit to do so.

If there are balcony staterooms available, this upgrade while already on the ship may come at a reduced cost than what the difference was before the sailing. And now onboard the ship, your onboard credit absolutely can be applied to this upgrade. So if your onboard credit can cover the cost of the balcony upgrade, go for it! You will have just gone a roundabout way at nabbing a free balcony upgrade!

Score Onboard Credit during Your Cruise to Apply Toward a Balcony Upgrade

If you don’t have enough onboard credit to apply towards an upgrade, you can usually take advantage of a generous onboard credit offer for your current cruise by simply booking another cruise while on the ship.

For those who aren’t sure what future cruise or dates you may want to go on, just book a cruise at a date far enough out since you can always change it to something else later without penalty.

You will likely need to put down a deposit to capitalize on this free onboard credit. Yet if you’re planning to take another cruise on the same cruise line, sometime in the future – booking a cruise while on the ship is an excellent workaround to score onboard credit that you can then possibly turn into a free stateroom upgrade.

9) Increase Your Odds of a Free Cruise Cabin Upgrade

To achieve a free cruise cabin upgrade, you’ll need a bit of luck. But there are a few factors you can look for when booking a cruise that may increase your chances of actually landing the elusive balcony upgrade.

• Book an outside cabin – You may have a greater chance of getting a free balcony upgrade on a cruise by booking an outside cabin. Going from an interior stateroom to a balcony is a double upgrade. If balcony upgrades are available, chances are that outside staterooms will be considered for an upgrade before an interior cabin. Plus, if you really want to have a balcony that bad, ensuring that you’ll at least have a window is a decent consolation.
• Book unpopular itineraries & dates : Less attractive dates for cruising will likely have a higher number of unoccupied balcony staterooms, which will certainly increase your chances. Book cruises when kids are in school and a week or two before or after major holidays. Also, oft-snubbed routes like repositioning cruises , which contain a higher number of sea days, tend to have a much higher chance of getting the upgrade. The low price of the repositioning cruise itself is an indication that there are many unsold rooms still available. We’ve been most successful with free balcony upgrades on repositioning cruises. (Read more about repo cruises here: Repositioning Cruises: Your Ultimate Guide to Cruising One-Way .)
• Book a ship with more balconies – Many of the newest megaships are going balcony crazy with a very high percentage of their cabin inventory consisting of balcony staterooms. These ships with higher balcony ratios simply have a greater number of balconies to fill. Hence a balcony upgrade can be more likely.
• Be loyal – Loyalty tends to pay off in dividends when cruising. If a certain category of staterooms is full, a cruise line may just decide to reward some of their more frequent passengers rather than a complete newbie. While we certainly wouldn’t recommend being loyal to a cruise line for this reason, it could be helpful to know that you may be at the top of the pecking order. Also, always be sure to join the cruise line’s loyalty program even if it’s your first time. It costs nothing and you get rewarded with benefits.

10) Get Lucky!

When it comes to cruise cabin upgrades, sometimes you just need some luck on your side.

Once, a few days into a Royal Caribbean transatlantic cruise, we received a phone call notifying us that there was an electrical repair that needed to be made to the lighting of our inside stateroom. For the trouble of asking us to change rooms, they reassigned us to a complimentary balcony stateroom.

We almost couldn’t believe it. Without even trying, we had just got completely lucky and scored a free balcony upgrade!

Every once in a while, luck may just be on your side for a free balcony upgrade on a cruise. Don’t count on this to happen, but know that strange instances like a repair issue are possible. Are you feeling lucky?

Bonus Tip) Bid on a Stateroom Upgrade Before Your Cruise

Most major cruise lines have begun offering a silent bidding process to allow cruise passengers to make an offer to upgrade their stateroom in the month leading up to their cruise embarkation day.

If your specific cruise is eligible for an upgrade, you will typically get emailed within 30-60 days of your sailing. You can then put in a bid for how much you’re willing to spend to get upgraded to your desired room. Don’t worry, you only pay if your bid is accepted.

Select the minimum bid if that’s within an affordable amount for you. Selecting a higher amount will increase the chances of your bid being accepted. But you’re paying for it, so only bid what you can afford and what it’s worth to you.

Pro tip : use a cruise booking website to do a mock booking simply to see the availability of balcony staterooms on your exact sailing. If there are loads of balcony cabins left, bidding the minimum amount could likely prove to be a winning bid. You stand a good chance of scoring a great deal by bidding the minimum amount allowed. But if you see that your sailing is nearly booked full, then you may want to consider bidding higher than the minimum amount.

While these cruise room upgrades by bidding aren’t free, they can prove to be excellent value if a minimum bid is accepted. You can ultimately get these paid upgrades for free by using credit card points, as we outlined in tip #3.

Here is a list of how to make a paid upgrade for each of the major cruise lines:

• Carnival – no upgrade bidding program but you can purchase a cabin upgrade ( more info )
• Celebrity MoveUp – bid on an upgrade within 30 days of the cruise ( official info )
• Disney – no bidding program but you can pay for upgrades before you sail ( official info )
• Holland America – no bidding program but HAL has been known to email upgrade offers as an upsell
• Norwegian Upgrade Advantage Program – bid on an upgrade ( program FAQs and full terms )
• Princess Upgrade – bid on an upgrade ( official info )
• MSC Bid Upgrade Program – bid on an upgrade
• Royal Caribbean RoyalUp – bid of an upgrade ( official info )

Recap: How to Get a Free Balcony Upgrade on a Cruise

The free cruise upgrade tips we’ve listed have worked for us or we’ve witnessed firsthand. So give them a try! With a little effort combined with a fair amount of luck, you may be sailing away with the wind in your face on a beautiful veranda stateroom. Keep an eye out for dolphins!

We wish you the best of luck in your search for a free cruise cabin upgrade and hope one of these methods may work out to get you out of that small inside cabin and into that sought-after balcony stateroom.

If it’s worked for you or you have your own tips to get a free balcony upgrade on a cruise, do let us know in the comments below.

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Publishing note: this article on How to Get a Free Balcony Upgrade on a Cruise was last updated November 2023.

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November 21, 2023 at 1:37 PM

I booked a solo room – ocean view, friends booked a balcony (a huge price difference with Regent). When I checked in I noticed this cabin number was different than the number on my itinerary. Regent had upgraded me to a balcony beside my travelling companions. What a treat. I am now a loyal Regent guest.

December 11, 2019 at 12:07 AM

Sometimes you just have to be lucky(note also a VIP member), only second cruise – Carnival Spirit, booked Balcony Quad 12mths out from date, 2 weeks before, upgraded to Ocean Suite Quad, 1 week before upgraded to Grand Suite…

November 18, 2019 at 1:41 PM

Even though our cruise was already paid in full, I called my travel agent to let her know that I noticed that balcony rooms were now cheaper than what we had paid for our oceanview room. She said she didn’t think we could upgrade, but she would call. They upgraded us to a balcony room at no extra cost with no issue! Thanks for all these tips!

September 30, 2019 at 1:26 PM

Thank you for the great information. We just got off of Norwegian for the first time and loved it. We’re looking into booking another Norwegian next year for Europe. Any advice? Should we book early or do you think we should wait?

October 3, 2019 at 11:57 PM

Booking early or waiting simply depends on so many factors. Typically it can be best to book as early as possible to secure a good rate on a cruise you really want to take. Then, if prices do drop, you can either upgrade or rebook, so long as it’s before the cancellation period. Waiting until last minute can be a good strategy for cheap last minute rates only under a special set of circumstances (it’s low season in the area, you live near the cruise port or can get there inexpensively, you don’t have a preference on the ship/itinerary, you won’t be disappointed if prices do rise).

September 12, 2019 at 4:27 PM

Wow this is awesome advice. I recently booked a cruise with carnival and its a surprise for my wife for our anniversary and if I can get a free room upgrade it will make it that much better 🙂

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences and what has worked for you guys!

September 1, 2019 at 3:55 AM

what is the latest you guys have booked a cruise? I am stalking the celebrity millennium for oct 12 of this year and having trouble deciding when to pull the trigger! thanks!

September 7, 2019 at 9:54 PM

We’re on the Millennium right now actually, heading over Japan! 🙂 It’s always a gamble on pulling the trigger. Sometimes it’s really tough to be able to predict what prices are going to do. It all comes down to supply and demand of that particular sailing. Probably that latest we’ve done so is 3-4 weeks out. Usually, we book 1-3 months in advance.

February 10, 2023 at 9:44 PM

that was interesting, when my mum book a cruise of pacific encounter for 7th june this year, i found a deal 2 people pay + 2 free deal and immedately told mum to check this deal out and we giot it booked and save $900 which is what we want, paid half the fares and still waiting for the cabin number, is this a good chance we may have an upgraded cabin later on?

June 1, 2019 at 2:40 PM

We were scheduled on Oceana for a cruise in the Carribean. We were notified if we change the dates, and the ship we would have a penthouse withy a butler. And we did!!!!!!

June 2, 2019 at 5:21 PM

That’s awesome! That would be a tough offer to refuse. 🙂 Interesting to hear about that. It sounds like they may have oversold that itinerary, so gave an enticing upgrade offer to switch dates. Enjoy your penthouse with butler – woohoo!

April 29, 2019 at 1:46 PM

In your experience have you been offered upgraded rooms even if you book through an agent or do you have to book through the cruise line?

May 4, 2019 at 5:00 PM

We usually tend to book with a third-party agent simply because we’ve found they tend to be able to offer better deals and perks. And we have indeed received when doing so. Am unaware that booking direct could potentially increase the odds of an upgrade.

August 9, 2019 at 8:39 AM

How do you find a reputable third-party agent? Thanks.

August 13, 2019 at 12:14 PM

We often book cruises online using websites like CruiseDirect and Priceline (both reputable and trustworthy). VacationsToGo is another site we use, but ultimately to book over the phone. Having a good local travel agent can also be a good third-party to use.

December 1, 2018 at 2:05 AM

Your advice and explanations were very clear and made sense. Thank you

September 22, 2018 at 9:04 PM

Loyalty really does work. We got a call 3 days ago offering us a free balcony stateroom upgrade from an inside cabin. We sail tomorrow. Carnival is great for offering upgrades once they recognize your loyalty.

September 25, 2018 at 2:21 PM

Woohoo! Love it when travel brands reward their loyal customers. Good on Carnival for doing so! That’s pretty amazing to be able to go from an interior to a balcony. Enjoy your upcoming cruise and those ocean breezes from your veranda! 🙂

September 13, 2018 at 1:49 AM

Those balcony are looking wonderful! I try it very soon. What a delightful post!. I appreciate your work and your trying to give me better articles. Excellent explanation all point like an expert writer. You figure out a real story. That’s an awesome work i get from you.

September 11, 2018 at 6:00 AM

thank you,your advice seem very practical and i will try those that match our needs.

July 23, 2018 at 1:09 AM

We got lucky ….in April 2018 , we booked balcony with Royal Caribbean cruise for July 8th and paid all at once … three days before the cruise we got upgraded to junior suite. It was awesome and so glad we did guaranteed cabin. It was worth it doing it. Love the trip and the room was amazing and big.

July 25, 2018 at 5:14 PM

That’s awesome! Love booking guarenteed cabins – there’s really not much of a downside. Amazing you got upgraded to a suite. We’ve yet to pull off a suite upgrade ourselves, but hopefully one day! Glad to hear you got lucky – what a great surprise!

June 24, 2018 at 3:27 AM

It works quite well for me

April 14, 2017 at 12:24 AM

We booked a last minute cruise in an inside stateroom. Since it was in the front of the ship it had a window with an obstructed view. The day before the cruise they upgraded us to a balcony room. It turns out that our original booking was a handicapped accessible room and they needed it for a person in a wheelchair.

April 17, 2017 at 6:15 PM

Hey Mary, thanks for the comment and sharing your good fortune with the room upgrade!

January 25, 2016 at 5:33 PM

Just to let you know that we booked a cruise on QE2 in the lowest category in November 2014. In July 2015 we found that a firm was advertising the same cruise at about £1000 less per person. On approaching Cunard we were offered an upgrade to Premium. As we could find no details of this grade, we emailed Cunard to be informed that there was no difference but it may be on a different deck! We were shocked and cancelled losing a deposit of £700.

January 27, 2016 at 3:43 PM

Ouch! We’re sorry to hear about that experience. Like airfare, cruise prices always fluctuate. It can be a gamble at knowing when to buy. Sometimes prices go up, sometimes they drop. To make matters more complicated, often times agencies will sell cruises at different rates than the cruise lines themselves. Because of this, we always recommend checking at least 6 or more agencies for pricing and always be familiar with cancelation policies before booking. Many cruise lines will allow you to cancel within 60-90 with no penalty at all. Therefore if you do find a better deal, you can book it with no penalty. It sounds like the Queen Mary’s policy wasn’t as kind with their policy. Am sorry to hear that, as that can always be an unsettling feeling.

We wrote a detailed post with our strategies for booking low-price cruise that you may find helpful. It’s tailored to repositioning cruises but you can apply the strategies to any cruises, really. http://www.roamingaroundtheworld.com/how-to-get-a-repositioning-cruise-deal-for-less-than-50-per-day/

November 9, 2015 at 11:54 AM

Those are some SICK balconies! You two and you cruises….

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Bidding for the room you want and getting your upgrade couldn’t be easier. Here’s everything you need to know about the RoyalUp program.

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Unsold Cabins, Free Cruise Upgrades

Tips on how to get unsold cruise cabins at a huge discount, why stateroom upgrades are so very special deals, and how to get a free upgrade on a cruise - all these secrets are revealed here.

Cruise upgrades deals = unsold staterooms at a huge discount

All cruise upgrades are discount deals - simply because you get more for less. Great prices are not all you can get from travel deals. To travel by a cruise ship means exotic adventures to most interesting places, gourmet cuisine, huge variety of onboard activities, accommodations (as categories, types, and amenities), unique experiences on city tours, exciting shore excursions, meeting new people, making new friends. For many travelers, it's the overall value that counts, and not the price alone. For many, but definitely not for all.

The main reasons for free cruise upgrades to be offered are two - the worldwide recession and huge overcapacity in the travel industry. With late deals, you can book a cabin for up to 80% off list prices. But if you're booked already, there's a real chance for you to get a cabin upgrade for absolutely free or at a hugely discounted price - because there are still some unsold cabins on your ship.

Unsold cruise cabins on big-cheap shipping companies

The "really big players" on the travel market are large travel agency from the category of "wholeseller - megaseller". They buy more cabins - to buy cheap cabins and resell them at a huge profit. Advance booking, volume discounts and not paying commissions means getting the cheapest prices possible. In most cases, travel agencies have the option to return unsold staterooms to the line/operator by a certain date. However, some of the cabins are bought in bulk - and are non-refundable. These deals offer the biggest discounts from the cruise lines. Generally, whole-sellers sell cabins to travel agencies/agents. But often they also sell to end consumers - thus avoiding paying a commission to the travel agency.

The free cabin upgrade is often more luck than anything else - meaning to be at the right voyage at the right time. But several tips can significantly improve the chances of getting an upgrade - for free or at a huge discount. Some of the best promo specials offer bonuses and perks, but free cabin upgrades are probably the best gift you can get from them. Cheap prices for luxury and style is a great perk! The place that you use mainly for sleeping isn't the Achilles' heel of your sea vacation. However, if you insist on both paying like Cinderella and sailing like the prince, a cabin upgrade is the option you should definitely look for.

10 tips on how to get a free upgrade on a cruise

The world's best passenger ships have accommodations in many categories (the main types are Inside-Oceanview-Balcony-Suite) featuring different interiors, amenities, locations - and booking prices. A cabin upgrade for free is only a chance, but several tips may push your luck in the right direction:

• To get a free cabin upgrade means you're relocated to a stateroom in a better category/deck location than the one you booked. Generally, it offers a room with a better location (on a higher deck, mid-ship, replacing your "obstructed view" cabin, etc). An upgrade at absolutely no additional cost is more like a happy dream - the better word for this kind of deal is "upsell" - an upgrade for a reduced cost.
• Early booking - lines sell both the cheapest and the most expensive accommodations first. If later on there's high demand for your category, a chance for a tempting cabin upgrade may appear.
• Last-minute offers - do not include cabin upgrades, but are a great discount option. For a sea voyage with less time at sea, and more ports of call and/or land tours, the importance of the stateroom category is rather lesser.
• Lower rates by loyalty programs, i.e. - for regular customers of a particular brand/company. In such a case, a cabin upgrade may be one of the bonus amenities (depending on the number of days you've sailed with the line).
• Book a free cabin upgrade promotion - lines occasionally offer special promos in which 2 different grades are priced equally - so if you book the usually more expensive room at the lower-room cost, you're basically getting a free upgrade (as an example - an oceanview at inside cabin rates or a balcony for oceanview prices).
• Cabin upgrade deals may be used as a hook-tactic to improve your first impressions - either of the particular line or for the ship experience in general.
• Skilled travel agent - a travel agency, as a rule, book whole blocks of cabins, and if a higher category is left unsold they may offer you a free upgrade. Be careful with the "new cabin" location - an upgrade that puts you right under the Main Dining Room, or near the disco, lifts and other noisy places on the ship is actually a downgrade.
• Cheap deals by added value - book not a cabin with a specific location on the ship, but a stateroom category (the so-called "guaranteed cabins"). This option promises accommodation in the desired category OR HIGHER - great chances for a free upgrade.
• Pick the right destination - in its low season. Alaska, Caribbean, and other popular sea ship vacation destinations offer good chances for free cabin upgrades and hugely discounted rates during their low and off-seasons. If your off-peak sailing isn't full and the line decreases fares to boost bookings, that's a very good time for a free upgrade. Note: for some destinations, low seasons include the months of May and September (Alaska), September through November (Caribbean), early January and May (Mexico Riviera).
• Always ask about it - it's a gambling chance, but what do you have to lose?

If the size of your stateroom affects seriously your sailing style, you should consider the option of booking a "serious" category and lowering the overall expenses by walking some of the trudged paths: group booking, relocation deals, member discount programs, less onboard spending, less attractive itineraries, limited or no land tours/shore excursions, and/or the solo traveling option.

NCL cabin upgrades

In February 2017, NCL-Norwegian started a new (industry's first) cabin upgrade program that allows already booked passengers to bid for upgrades to higher-category staterooms.

• "Norwegian Upgrade Advantage" program was tested and approved by top travel agencies. The entire system is automated and doesn't require travel agent intervention and pays commissions on the enhanced fare.
• After final payment, NCL's customers could bid on an upgrade and there was a little dial that would show them in red, yellow or green the likelihood their bid was going to be accepted. When NCL offered the cabin upgrade to the guest, they emailed the travel agency of record, so they saw the guest had been offered the ability to upgrade. If the bid was accepted NCL notified the agency. The agency had to do absolutely nothing.

Once the passengers' bids are accepted, they are assigned to an available higher-level stateroom - interior to oceanview, oceanview to a balcony, balcony to a suite or to The Haven accommodation. However, they can't choose the exact stateroom (number) to which they are assigned.

Royal Caribbean cabin upgrades

Since November 2018, RCI-Royal Caribbean International offers a bid-based cabin upgrade program called "RoyalUp". Booked customers receive an email if their voyage is eligible. They can browse through available for booking higher-grade staterooms on that voyage. Then select their bidding price for a particular cabin upgrade and submit the bid.

RoyalUp upgrades are offered fleetwide, priced per person, for the entire voyage, based on twin share. Only the first and second passengers in the cabin are charged the extra - regardless of the room's grade and max occupancy. These upgrades are based on availability. The cabin location can't be specified.

Group bookings are also included for bidding, but without a guarantee that all reservations will be upgraded. If all reservations are upgraded, RCI doesn't guarantee that all upgraded staterooms will be located close together.

Booked customers are allowed to bid on multiple cabin categories. Travel agents are also allowed to bid for their clients. Upgrade bids are accepted until 2 days prior departure. Passengers with accepted RoyalUp biddings are notified via email. They are allowed also to modify or cancel the upgrade (until 2 days prior departure) if the offer is not been accepted by RCI and their credit card is not been charged.

Princess Cruises FREE Balcony Upgrade!

Wake up to a new view.

FREE BALCONY UPGRADES for limited time on sailings March - Dec 2023

Princess have FREE Balcony Upgrades to Australia, Caribbean, California, Fiji, the Mediterranean & New Zealand.

There is no better way to cruise than in a Balcony!

All these offers are bookable on line available on the following ships Caribbean Princess , Crown Princess , Discovery Princess , Enchanted Princess , Emerald Princess, Grand Princess, Majestic Princess , Regal Princess, Royal Princess & Sapphire Princess . Don't forget you can also add Princess Plus for only £50pp per day and Get Plus Beverage Package, Wifi & Gratuities.

Why it pays to upgrade your cruise ship cabin

Cruise ship cabins have improved since the days when you bumped into walls on your way to your bathroom. However, there is still a difference between staying in a small, windowless interior space versus a room with its own balcony or even a lavish suite. For many people, it makes sense to upgrade to the best cabin they can afford.

Consider a cruise cabin your hotel room for the week, and start with a deep think about how much time you will actually be in your room (or rooms). If you plan to do every shipboard activity, party until the wee hours and use your cabin only to sleep, shower and shave a lower-priced cabin with or without a window or porthole might better suit your needs — especially if you're on a tight budget.

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If, on the other hand, you want your own private place to escape from the crowds and the frenetic pace of cruise activities without missing any ocean and coastal views, you're likely better off upgrading to a balcony cabin or a suite with a balcony — even if it adds hundreds or thousands of dollars to your cruise vacation budget. You'll have more private space to lounge around reading a book, watching movies or ordering room service.

Here are several reasons why it pays to upgrade your cruise ship cabin.

Access to suite perks

At the top end of cruise accommodations are suites. Be aware that "suite" is a flexible term on cruise ships. It could mean only a 250-square-foot room, with or without a curtain separating a bed and sofa area. With a bigger budget, you might be able to book a multi-room, multi-bathroom apartment — or even a spectacular suite that's a house-sized oasis.

Space is reason enough to upgrade to a suite, but other perks come with the experience. On some big ships, suites are located in a separate complex with a private restaurant, sun deck, swimming pool and a lounge open only to guests in the fancy accommodations.

RELATED: 7 reasons to splurge on a suite on your next cruise

If you want a coveted king-sized bed, you are most likely to find one in a suite. Bathtubs and whirlpool tubs, also cruise rarities (most cabins just come with showers) are other typical suite perks.

Suites tend to come with larger balconies than you'll find in standard balcony cabins. In top suites, these spaces are huge, complete with outdoor living rooms, dining areas and hot tubs.

Depending on your ship, additional perks might include everything from cushy robes and designer soaps to free drinks and specialty dining. Your suite accommodations will likely come with the services of a special concierge desk to help you book shore excursions, spa treatments and dining reservations. You might even have a butler at your beck and call.

If you are thinking of upgrading to a suite, carefully read how much space you'll actually get, and evaluate whether the perks are something you will actually use.

spa amenities in your cabin

Spa cabins have decor designed to inspire Zen and even romantic moments. These extra-fee cabins are usually located near the spa and fitness facilities — no need to traipse through the whole ship in your bathrobe or gym shorts. Spa cabins typically are balcony cabins or suites with more space than standard cabins.

Cabin amenities might include a bathtub and special soothing bath products, upgraded bathrobes, designer water and even beautiful scents. You will have complimentary access to the spa's thermal suite, where you will find an array of wet and dry experiences such as a sauna, steam room, hydrotherapy pool and aromatherapy showers.

You'll enjoy priority access in terms of booking massages, and discounted spa treatments might also be included. The same goes for fitness classes; you'll be able to sign up fee-free before the classes are open to others on the ship. You might also have small fitness items like yoga mats available to you for in-cabin use.

If you are a big spa fan or gym rat, these suites are worth the upgrade.

Related: The 6 best cruise ship spas

Balcony cabins — standard cabins with a step-out space for sitting — are among the most popular accommodations on cruise ships both for views and the fact that you can open your door to let in the sea breezes and hear the waves. (A recent innovation are balcony cabins featuring large windows that open the the push of a button, rather than doors leading to actual outdoor space.)

If you have a standard step-out balcony, it will be furnished with chairs and a small table for drinks. Some larger balconies have loungers and an actual dining table where you can enjoy a private meal.

RELATED: 6 reasons to book a balcony cabin

Some cruisers consider a balcony an unnecessary upgrade. They are just as content to book a cheaper cabin and don't mind jockeying for a lounge chair on the open decks. However, others relish having the option of being able to head outdoors directly from their cabins, even in their bathrobes, to enjoy the sea.

On itineraries where stunning coastal scenery — such as the glaciers in Alaska and fjords in Iceland and Norway — is a particular focus, a balcony is worth the upgrade.

Be aware when considering an upgrade to a balcony that not all of these accommodations are spacious. They might even be the same size as standard windowed cabins, and the balconies they offer aren't always all that big. On the smallest ships, your knees could be up against the railing when you sit. Aft cabins with views of the wake and, often, larger balconies, are some of the most sought-after cabins on the ship.

More space when traveling with kids

With space a commodity on cruise ships, a mistake some families make is cramming everyone into the tight quarters of standard accommodations — the kids on bunks that drop down from the ceiling or sofa beds, with parents (or grandparents) sleeping on the regular bed. Such closeness may not be conducive to family harmony, particularly when you are sharing one bathroom and limited closet and drawer space.

A better choice, if your ship has them, are family cabins that are designed to sleep five or six and provide more room to spread out. On some ships, these accommodations have the bonus of a half bathroom in addition to a full bathroom. These cabins are sometimes located near children's facilities, so you can send the kids right down the hall to participate in camp-like activities.

Related: The 8 best cruise ships for kids

Families also might consider booking two adjoining cabins, which gives older kids and adults some privacy and delivers two full baths. If you need the space, check the price of family suites, which might be only a few hundred dollars more than basic family cabins and include perks reserved for suite guests.

Bottom line

An upgraded cabin is almost always better than the most basic room on board. The only thing stopping you from splurging on a larger space, a private balcony and extra perks is your budget.

If you change your mind once you've booked, you'll find several ways to upgrade your cabin to a higher-category room. However, there are times when you should just say no to that cabin upgrade offer , especially if what the cruise line thinks is a nicer room is not what you'd consider better accommodation.

If you think you'd be happier in an upper-category cabin, it's always a good idea to book it right away so you have control over which type of room you'll have and the exact ship location you will most enjoy on your vacation.

Planning a cruise? Start with these stories:

• The 5 most desirable cabin locations on any cruise ship
• The 8 worst cabin locations on any cruise ship
• A quick guide to the most popular cruise lines
• 21 tips and tricks that will make your cruise go smoothly
• 15 ways cruisers waste money
• 12 best cruises for people who never want to grow up
• What to pack for your first cruise

• Cruise Deals
• Cruise Sale

Cruise.com Labor Day Cruise Sale Event

Limited time offer.

Book your cruise now to get the best cruise deals during Cruise.com's Labor Day Sale event. Cruise deals are being offered on cruises including exclusive onboard credits, free gratuities, free upgrades, onboard savings and more.

Cruise Search

FREE Upgrade + Up to 75% OFF 2nd Guest + 3rd-5th Guests Sail FREE

+ FREE Amenities: FREE Beverage Package + Basic Wi-Fi

• Up to $1,700 Onboard Credit
• Galapagos Cruises: Save 20% + FREE Airfare
• Back to Back: Save up to $200

Up to $400 Onboard Credit + Up to 40% OFF + 3rd & 4th Guest FREE + $99 Deposit

Early Booking: Up to $2,000 Airfare Credit + Up to $500 to Onboard Credit

• Up to $1,785 Onboard Credit
• Reduced Single Supplement Rates
• Princess Premier Upgrade
• Military: Up to $250 FREE Onboard Spending

60% OFF 2nd Guest + 30% OFF 3rd/4th Guests + Instant Savings

+ Kids Sail FREE + Specialty Dining for 2

• Up to $1,700 Onboard Credit or FREE Gratuities
• AMEX Cardholders Benefits
• AMEX Cardholders: Up to $300 Onboard Credit + Bottle of Champagne
• Special Resident Rates
• Military, Police & Firefighter Rates

Cruises from $229 + Kids Sail FREE

Flash Sale: Cruises from $199 from Miami, Port Canaveral (Orlando), and New York City

• Exclusive Rates - Call to Book!
• Military, Civil & Interline Rates

70% OFF 2nd Guest + FREE at Sea

FREE Open Bar + Wi-Fi + Shore Excursion Credit + FREE Specialty Dining + 3/4 Guest Sail FREE + BOGO Airfare

• Up to $1,700 Cash Back
• 50% Reduced Deposit
• Reduced Rates for Singles
• Past Guests: Extra Latitude Points

Fares from $899 + Up to $400 Onboard Credit

Up to $600 Shipboard Credit (Balcony and above) + Grill Suites: Drinks Package, Hotel & Dining Service Charges are included

• Military: FREE Onboard Spending
• Military: Up to $250 in FREE Onboard Spending
• AMEX Cardholder Benefits

Up to 40% OFF FREE Gratuities + FREE 3rd & 4th Guest + $25 Deposit

Alaska Early Booking Perks

• Early Booking Bonus
• Up to $150 Onboard Credit

Up to $5,500 Savings per suite

FREE Land Programs

• Kids Sail FREE or REDUCED
• Reduced Single Supplements
• Up to $250 Shipboard Credit
• Air Specials Available
• FREE Gratuities
• FREE Unlimited Shore Excursions
• FREE Beverages

Up to a 4 Category Upgrade

+ 2 for 1 Cruise Fares + FREE Shore Excursions + Specialty Dining + FREE Champagne, Wine + FREE Unlimited Wi-Fi

• Special Solo Fares
• Past Guests: 10% Savings

$500 Onboard Credit + Choice of Wi-Fi or Drinks (Veranda & above)

• Reduced Single Supplement
• Dine at the Chef's Table
• FREE AzAmazing Evening Event
• Beverage Package

FREE International Airfare + FREE Sliver Spirits + $25 Deposit

• FREE Shore Excursions
• FREE Wi-Fi, FREE Beer & Wine with lunch and dinner
• 24-hour room service

Up to $2,800 OFF compliments of Cruise.com Limited Time: Save up to 25%

• Limited Time: Special Military Rates
• Private Island - Castaway Cay
• Offers may be combinable with your Castaway Club Rewards Benefits. Call for details.

Up to $2,200 Shipboard Credit

Up to $2,000 Air Credit

• Seabourn Club: 5% Discount
• Complimentary Beverages
• Welcome Champagne

Book Now and Save: Exclusive Rates

• My Drink Packages included on all sailings and select categories
• CostaClub Benefits Available

Up to 50% Savings + 30% OFF 3rd/ 4th guests

Upgrade Packages: FREE Wi-Fi, Specialty Dining, Premium Drink Package & more

• Complimentary Gratuities
• Select Shore Excursions
• Onboard Entertainment

70% OFF 2nd Sailor

+ FREE Balcony Upgrades

• Unlimited Wi-Fi
• Group Fitness Classes
• All on board restaurants are complimentary
• Still/Sparkling Water, Drip Coffee, Teas, Non Pressed Juices & Soda

FREE 2-Category Upgrade

Great Reduced Rates

• Australia Sale: Up to $400 AUD Onboard Credit
• Special Military Rates
• Senior Rates

FREE Upgrade to All-Inclusive Fares

+ $200 Onboard Credit

• Reduced Rates on ALL Destinations
• Reduced Single Fares
• 24 hour in room service
• Welcome cocktails at reception

2 for 1 Fares + FREE Airfare

Yacht: Up to $2,000 Savings, River: Up to $1,750 Savings

• Unlimited Drinks
• Complimentary Shore Excursions
• Complimentary Wi-Fi
• Complimentary Transfers
• Personal Butler

Up to $1,00 Bonus Savings

• FREE Drinks at lunch & dinner
• Complimentary Airport Transfers
• Complimentary Onboard Meals

Save up to $3,000 + 15% Reduced Deposit

Venetian Society Savings: Additional 5% Savings

• 25% Single Supplement
• Welcome Bottle of Champagne

Save up to 20% + Reduced Airfare

Save up to $4,000 + FREE Upgrade + $100 Onboard Credit

• Mekong: 2-For-1 Land Package
• Christmas: Save up to $2,000
• FREE Wi-Fi & Beverages

FREE Panorama Suite Upgrade

• FREE Pre-paid Gratuities
• Mekong: Save up to $2,000
• Galapagos: Save up to $1,500
• $599 Air from select U.S. Cities
• Single Supplement Waived
• Complimentary Wine

Up to €300 Onboard Credit

Save up to 50% OFF for kids & additional guests

• Single Supplement from only 25%
• Unlimited Fine Beverages
• Culinary Experiences

Save up to $5,000 per stateroom

FREE Stateroom Upgrade

• Limited Time: 2nd Guest Sails FREE + Save up to $2,000
• FREE Cultural Immersion
• FREE Dining Venues
• FREE Unlimited Beverages
• FREE Open bars and lounges, including 24-hour bar service

Complimentary AirFare + Up to $2,000 Savings

• Complimentary Wi-Fi & Beverages
• Complimentary cocktail hour held each evening
• Afternoon tea service in the Sky Lounge
• Breakfast room service
• Culinary program featuring locally sourced ingredients

Save 25% on select Expeditions

• National Geographic Partnership
• FREE Gratuities & Wi-Fi
• All meals Included
• 24-hour access to snacks, premium coffees, teas, non-alcoholic beverages and filtered water
• Complimentary reusable water bottle

Save up to $1,500 per cabin

FREE Drinks Package

• Complimentary Room Service
• Complimentary use of bicycles during port visits

Save up to $3,000 + No single supplement

• 1-Night pre-cruise hotel accommodation with breakfast

EARLY BOOKING SAVINGS

Save up to 10% on select 2023 departures

• Unlimited Beverages
• Complimentary Internet & Wi-F
• Complimentary Culinary Experiences

Save up to 50% on select sailings, Buy One Get Half OFF 2nd Guest

Single Supplement Waived or Reduced

• Wild Savings: Save up to $3,500 on select Expedition Voyages
• Norwegian Coastal Voyages: Save up to 20%
• Northern Lights Promise

EXCLUSIVE MEMBER SAVINGS

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Often cruise lines offer special rates that cannot be displayed to the general public. By registering with Cruise.com you will be able to view these special rates and offers.

Register with Cruise.com to get access to:

• Exclusive Rates
• Special Amenities

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Cruise From $199 From Miami, Orlando, or NYC on Select Sailings

Book a cruise from $199 from Miami, Orlando (Port Canaveral), or New York City (Brooklyn) on select sailings. Cruise to The Bahamas with stops at Ocean Cay, our private island marine reserve, the Caribbean, or Bermuda. From beautiful beaches to stunning scenery, look forward to a world of beauty both on board and onshore. This sale is extended and ends September 3.

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MSC Cruises

WE’RE CELEBRATING 65 YEARS IN TRAVEL! Book your cruise by 30th September to enter a prize draw to win a £650 travel voucher!

02380 658 386

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Home  >  Princess Cruises > Princess Cruise Deals > Balcony Upgrade Sailings

Princess Cruises Balcony Upgrade

Princess Cruises offer itineraries that will inspire your soul. With a free balcony upgrade, you can explore destinations from Mexico to Australia, and Mediterranean to the tropical Caribbean. Onboard you can tantalise your taste buds with creations from celebrity chef Curtis Stone and master chocolatier Norman Love. And thrill your senses with theatrical productions from Broadway legend Stephen Schwartz and more. You’ll come back renewed with wonderful memories, and see the world in a whole new way.

Set sail on a Princess Cruise and experience vistas like no other from your very own balcony. In this incredible limited-time deal, you can receive a FREE balcony upgrade from an inside cabin! Plus, secure your booking with us today for a low deposit of £50pp.

The “Princess Standard” option is a full board cruise that includes all the core Princess experiences: accommodations, dining, entertainment and your Medallion wearable that enables a truly effortless holiday.

Upgrade to Princess Plus for £50pp per day for all passengers which includes Princess dining, accommodations and entertainment. Enjoy the MedallionClass® experience, a beverage package, WiFi and crew appreciation.

Upgrade to Princess Premier for £65pp per day for all passengers which includes 2 speciality dining meals per guest, a photo package and Princess prizes, alongside the same benefits as Princess Plus.

View more Princess Cruise Deals or call us on 02380 658 386 for more information

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