Coral Princess cruise passenger Michael Psirakis was quite happy with this cabin on Deck 8 midship. That was until he was upgraded to Deck 5 right at the back of the ship.

Who wouldn’t like an upgrade. Right? But Mr Psirakis wasn’t pleased.

“Has anyone else had this done to them? Can they do that without telling us?” passenger Psirakis asked on the ship’s Facebook forum.  

“I was told by Princess Cruises that because Ozcruising did not give us the option to refuse an upgrade they had the right to change our cabin,” he posted, explaining the move would cause problems for his wife who suffers from seasickness. 

“We were on Deck 8 obstructed view midship dead in the middle,” he said. “They gave us Deck 5 midship the very last cabin next to the laundromat right at the back of the ship and because it had a window they told me we were upgraded.

“I told them I didn’t want it because my wife gets seasick. 

“They (Ozcruising) said, and I quote: ‘You can take it or don’t go on this cruise and get your wife some pills’,” he said, adding he was disappointed in the customer service.

A Princess Cruises spokesperson told Cruise Passenger as soon as the line learned of the couple’s concerns, they offered to return them to their Deck 5 cabin. However, the offer was declined on a number of occasions.

Ozcruising declined to respond to Cruise Passenger about the complaint.

Psirakis said he sent the agency two emails marked urgent regarding the matter on the day before departure but had failed to receive a reply.

“I just hope we get calm waters because 28 days is a long time,” Psirakis said. The Australia round-trip started October 25 and ends November 22, 2023.

Just say no?

The story produced a debate over whether or not an upgrade should be enforced once passengers had decided on their cabin.

The lesson, some readers point out, is that the Psirakis’ did not stipulate – and the story serves as a warning to others that if you are happy with your cabin, tick that box.

One comment suggested Psirakis should have asked the agent to stipulate “No Upgrades”, when booking the trip.

Another suggested they enjoy the upgrade from obstructed Oceanview to non-Obstructed Oceanview.

“They changed ours,” complained passenger Cat Taylor. “But they had to change it back as they upgraded a wheelchair accessible cabin to a non-wheelchair accessible cabin. Some brain work needs to go into upgrades.”

And Marie Ratterree Hickman advised: “Call them and stand firm re your original booking!!”

One reason the couple turned down being downgraded to their original cabin is the weather. Right now Coral Princess is sailing in light seas, according to Cruise Mapper.