How often can you get an upgrade at a resort?

[4mountains]

My family will be traveling to DW on Sept 19 for 7 nights at CBR. I was wondering how easy or how often it is to get an upgrade. We got a standard room and my grandmother will be traveling with us and I understand there is a lot of walking, say to the food court and bus stops. She has no problem walking, its just the distance that I am concerned about. I was hoping that we could get a room closer to the food court for her sake. Will the upgrade be free or a few dollars more? Any suggestions or comments?

 

[wdwmomof3]

I would call and request a preferred room, on the lower level. It's a little more, but it is so worth it. I wouldn't count on an upgrade, but be thrilled if you get one.

With that said, I have only had one upgrade in all of our trips, and it was not much of one. I went from a standard room to a water front at Port Orleans Riverside. We never set foot in the pool. :ROFLOL:

 

[tigsmom]

In over 20 trips we have received a free upgrade once and they are not as prevalent as they once were. My advice would be to book and pay for what you need/want and not rely on a what might be.

 

[enoe01]

WE have gotten 2 upgrades in all the times we have gone. Our first upgrade was from a standard room to a waterview/perferred room at a moderate. Then the second upgrade we got was the 2 time we ever booked at a value resort. WE got to pop century and were informed that we have been upgraded to CBR. We were happy with that one.

 

[BoardwalkGlenn]

I've stayed on property 4 times and have been upgraded once.

We got a surprise Preferred Room last September at CBR. I requested a room just across the bridge in Aruba, and when we checked in, we were told we've been upgraded to a room in Trinidad North.

 

[foreverbelle]

I have never received an upgrade myself but like PP's I would call reservations and see if they can get you into a preferred room, that way you guys are set and don't have to worry about the possibility of having to walk a great distance.

 

[Master Yoda]

Free upgrades are only give due to operational needs of the resorts. It is an absolute crap shoot as to whether you will get one or not. You can however pay for an upgrade to a preferred room if it is available. The cost will depend on the length of stay and the time or year but the average cost difference between a standard room and preferred room is around $30/night at CBR.

 

[BigRedDad]

Don't plan on an upgrade unless you are willing to pay for it. The only upgrade I received in all my times was due to a massive screw up on WDW's fault after 9/11 and our honeymoon. They "lost" our reservation for the Contemporary, although it had been paid in full. They could not accommodate us at any Deluxe resort on the lake. They moved us to Animal Kingdom Lodge standard view. When we arrived we had a Savannah room on the 2nd floor.

I doubt we would have had an upgrade if they hadn't screwed up our reservation. They did many great things for us and I think we would have gotten similar service had they not screwed up.

 

[copper]

I received a free upgrade (2 nights) 8/18/10 from Pop Century to Coronado Springs due to Pop being over booked. I checked in after 9:00PM. I was more then thrilled and now I love Coronado Springs. I am definately booking my next trip there!!

 

[007mickey]

Upgrades have to be the most random things in the world. We have been many times and never received one.

On our last trip down in the spring we were checking in the same day as some good friends of ours (same size families). We had both booked garden wing rooms at the Contemporary. When we arrived (about 11 am), our friends were coming out of the lobby as we were walking in. We talked for a minute and then they informed us that they had been "bumped up" to a tower room! But had to wait till later for the room to be cleaned. We were very excited for them since this was only their 2nd visit to the world and told them how lucky they were. We anxiously went inside to check in (a little excited that it could happen to us) and they give us our keys to our garden wing room already prepared for us. It was a slight let down but we quickly got over it after unpacking and walking over to the MK. I'll never figure out how the upgrades are determined.

 

[wvdisneyfamily]

Twice in 5 stays. We got courtyard view when paying for standard and woods views at the WL.

 

[Lynne M]

If you know you want a preferred room, why not call and reserve it now? By the time you arrive, there may not be any available.

 

[slappy magoo]

The surest way to pay for an upgrade is to request it, now, and pay for it, now.

If the person checking you in "gives" you an upgrade, then it would most likely be free. But that would depend on a: that upgraded room not being booked in the first place and b: rooms in your category being overbooked.

If you want to enjoy the possibility that you may get a free upgrade, then I wish you luck, but I also hope you're not disappointed if you don't get it, which is most likely to the point of being 99 44/100ths pure.

 

[dclick4968]

I would recommend you call and request a certain village/building number. I've never been denied my requested areas (I usually ask for 2-3 different preferences - in the order of my preference).

Here is a map to help you decide: http://willcad.org/maps/wdw/resorts/resort_cbr.jpg

The "preffered buildings are ($15 extra per night): Martinique: buildings 24, 25, 26. Trinidad North buildings 31,32,33. Of course, any room facing water is consider "water view" and is an upgraded/extra charge.