Almost every day, I see ads from travel agents touting ”free upgrades” as a terrific deal.   This is obviously an effective lure, because cruisers are always eager to get the reward of a better cabin than they’re paying for. “How do I get upgraded?” is one of the most frequent questions I’m asked.

During the past 15 years, many cruise lines have built vessels with cookie-cutter cabins that are identical in size and amenities. With a few exceptions, the only difference between any standard inside, outside and balcony cabin on a given ship is its location.

Normally, a passenger who is upgraded will get a higher-category cabin, but of the same type as the stateroom originally booked. For example, if you bought an outside cabin and get upgraded, you’ll wind up with an identical outside cabin in another area or deck. What’s unlikely is being moved from an inside to outside cabin, or a standard outside to a balcony stateroom.

Personally, it doesn’t matter to me if I’m on Deck nine, 10 or 11. If my cabin is far forward or aft, there will always be a great deal of walking to public rooms in the opposite end of the ship. And the big irony of ship construction is that the most stable cabins are on the lowest decks and the least expensive. The priciest cabins are on the top passenger decks, where passengers will experience the most pitching or rolling in rough seas.

While storms are unpredictable these days, most cruisers can look forward to smooth sailing in calm areas like the Caribbean or Mediterranean. Those sailing in any ocean of the world should have their sea legs, or consult a physician about the patch or other remedies. And look forward to the cabin you’ve booked — it will likely be identical to the one you’d get in an upgrade.

Have you’ve been upgraded?  Was the stateroom identical to what you purchased or did you get bumped to another category?

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