Onboard Credit / General Questions

Hi, We are leaving in just over a week and are a bit disappointed about booking advance drink packages and reservations.

We have the RCCL Visa Card and earned many points which we traded in for nice credit on board, we thought this would be great for drink packages and specialty dining reservations onboard. The only problem, is that when you try to book anything in advance you have to already pay for it, I thought it would be billed against your onboard account onboard and not against your CC card. Very disappointed since we have been earning points for years and feel you cannot fully utilize it if you book these things in advance.

So basically if we book our drinks and specialty dining in advance we can't use our onboard credit. Sort of defeats the point for us, anyone have experience with this, can they refund your CC and then deduct from your credit onboard if you buy in advance?

Same for the specialty restaurants, we wanted reservations in advance for whole family, which includes 1 child that should be free and the other who should be a reduced charge. Again the problem is that with advance booking it wants to charge the full price on all family members. It does not recognize the two children should not pay the full price.

Anyone have similar experiences and could share some tips? Is there any advantage to buying the drink packages in advance versus onboard? I know one previous time we bought it onboard and they snickered your card which often faded and came off making us go to guest relations several times for a new one. If its booked in advance is it permanently on the card?

Hi, We are leaving in just over a week and are a bit disappointed about booking advance drink packages and reservations.

 

We have the RCCL Visa Card and earned many points which we traded in for nice credit on board, we thought this would be great for drink packages and specialty dining reservations onboard. The only problem, is that when you try to book anything in advance you have to already pay for it, I thought it would be billed against your onboard account onboard and not against your CC card. Very disappointed since we have been earning points for years and feel you cannot fully utilize it if you book these things in advance.

 

So basically if we book our drinks and specialty dining in advance we can't use our onboard credit. Sort of defeats the point for us, anyone have experience with this, can they refund your CC and then deduct from your credit onboard if you buy in advance?

 

Same for the specialty restaurants, we wanted reservations in advance for whole family, which includes 1 child that should be free and the other who should be a reduced charge. Again the problem is that with advance booking it wants to charge the full price on all family members. It does not recognize the two children should not pay the full price.

 

Anyone have similar experiences and could share some tips? Is there any advantage to buying the drink packages in advance versus onboard? I know one previous time we bought it onboard and they snickered your card which often faded and came off making us go to guest relations several times for a new one. If its booked in advance is it permanently on the card?

Anytime you purchase anything prior to embarkation, you must pay for it in the form of a credit card. It has always been this way.

OBC is to be used onboard. OBC from Visa Points is totally refundable and can be obtained in the form of cash from Guest Services the day prior to debarkation.

I believe that you could still cancel your drink packages and purchase them on board

Hi, We are leaving in just over a week and are a bit disappointed about booking advance drink packages and reservations.

 

We have the RCCL Visa Card and earned many points which we traded in for nice credit on board, we thought this would be great for drink packages and specialty dining reservations onboard. The only problem, is that when you try to book anything in advance you have to already pay for it, I thought it would be billed against your onboard account onboard and not against your CC card. Very disappointed since we have been earning points for years and feel you cannot fully utilize it if you book these things in advance.

 

So basically if we book our drinks and specialty dining in advance we can't use our onboard credit. Sort of defeats the point for us, anyone have experience with this, can they refund your CC and then deduct from your credit onboard if you buy in advance?

 

Same for the specialty restaurants, we wanted reservations in advance for whole family, which includes 1 child that should be free and the other who should be a reduced charge. Again the problem is that with advance booking it wants to charge the full price on all family members. It does not recognize the two children should not pay the full price.

 

Anyone have similar experiences and could share some tips? Is there any advantage to buying the drink packages in advance versus onboard? I know one previous time we bought it onboard and they snickered your card which often faded and came off making us go to guest relations several times for a new one. If its booked in advance is it permanently on the card?

book those things on board. Simple

We too get OBC thru my RCCK credit card. As others have indicated, you can't use for pre-sailing purchases. Last year my OBC's did not show on my acct till I inquired w/ quest services.....3 days into the sailing. This year my hope was to book drink pkg when getting on the ship, using OBC, but concerned that again they would not reflect on my acct for a few days. I will wait to see how it goes for our October sailing. If a delay again, this is a discussion I will have to have w/ the credit card company....or would it be royal?? :-)

Happy sailing!!

Anytime you purchase anything prior to embarkation, you must pay for it in the form of a credit card. It has always been this way.

 

OBC is to be used onboard. OBC from Visa Points is totally refundable and can be obtained in the form of cash from Guest Services the day prior to debarkation.

Good to know!!!!!!!!! :)

OBC = On Board Credit = Credit that is applied to your account while ON BOARD the ship. Not 2 weeks before or 2 months before.

Everything thing that you want to purchase today will still be available when you board the ship.

Basically you have pre-paid for all these items.

When I make these exact same purchases on line 2 months before the cruise,,, I'm just pre-paying for these purchases.

We too get OBC thru my RCCK credit card. As others have indicated, you can't use for pre-sailing purchases. Last year my OBC's did not show on my acct till I inquired w/ quest services.....3 days into the sailing. This year my hope was to book drink pkg when getting on the ship, using OBC, but concerned that again they would not reflect on my acct for a few days. I will wait to see how it goes for our October sailing. If a delay again, this is a discussion I will have to have w/ the credit card company....or would it be royal?? :-)

 

Happy sailing!!

OBC never gets posted until at least a day after the start of your cruise. That's the way it has always been. You have no gripe with anyone. Also it doesn't matter when your OBC gets posted. I goes toward everything you purchased from day one

The easiest way to understand the OBC from the RC Visa is by focusing on the words...ONBOARD CREDIT. Your Visa points can be used to buy OBC, and the amount of OBC you buy is the amount of credit which will appear after you board the ship in your ONBOARD account. It does not work for anything you buy before you board the ship because it's ONBOARD credit.

Your OBC actually appears in your onboard account on day 2 or day 3 of your cruise, but all charges made to your account will be charged against your OBC when the final accounting is done at the end of the cruise. It doesn't matter if you make purchases against your OBC on day 1 or day 6, the credit applies to anything you've charged during the cruise.

If you've used 50,000 Visa points to buy $500 worth of OBC and you only charge $400 to your onboard account during the cruise, you will receive the extra $100 back at the end, either in cash from Guest Services or as a credit to the credit card you've used to guarantee your account. The OBC from the RC Visa is "refundable" which means if you don't use all of it on your cruise, you'll get it back.

Thus, if you want to maximize your use of your OBC on the ship and have a small bill (or no bill) when you disembark, do not prepay things before your cruise. Your gratuities will be charged to your account and your OBC will offset them. Get your drink packages or dining packages on day 1 and your OBC will offset the charges when the credit is applied to your account.

Judy

There is NO NEED to book drink packages in advance...they don't run out! OBC (onboard credit) if only for use ONBOARD.....so if you wish to use it, you have to be ON the ship! You can't specify what it's used on...it's simply a credit against any charges you make once you're on the ship.

I believe the point was that it's cheaper to purchase in advance with cash which sort of defeats the point of accumulating a large Onboard Credit. Costs you most to make the same purchases with Onboard Credit.

Thanks to the poster that noted Onboard Credits can effectively be "cashed out".

Cheers!

 

If you've used 50,000 Visa points to buy $500 worth of OBC and you only charge $400 to your onboard account during the cruise, you will receive the extra $100 back at the end, either in cash from Guest Services or as a credit to the credit card you've used to guarantee your account. The OBC from the RC Visa is "refundable" which means if you don't use all of it on your cruise, you'll get it back.

 

Judy

thanks for the tip, I did not know that OBC was refundable at the end of the cruise. I would assume we go to guest relations and they can refund it back to the CC card or do they give cash? If this is the case, then I think it would make sense to book the dining and drink packages in advance, take advantage of any pre-cruise discounts and then any unused OBC would be refunded back anyway which we then use to pay the CC bill.

Is there anywhere that this policy to refund OBC is posted? I have seen other threads where people say they struggle to use up their OBC so they don't lose it, if there is a policy posted somewhere it would help. I haven't seen it anywhere.

Also, does anyone know why it charges full price in advance for kids with specialty restaurants, will they refund this back to us on the cruise since one child would be free and the other a reduced price.

Thanks a lot for the help

Judy, you explained that very well! We always give ourselves OBC with Visa points and then take the cash at the end of the cruise. It is like a cash-back card for us.

Judy, you explained that very well! We always give ourselves OBC with Visa points and then take the cash at the end of the cruise. It is like a cash-back card for us.

If you want a cash back card, there are plenty that offer a whole lot better return than Royal's card does

I'm aware of that, but we sometimes use the points to pay for cruises too. It's cash back only when we want it to be...and there is no annual fee.

FWIW, we have used RCCL visa points OBC on 2 cruises. On the first it was listed as NON refundable credit and on the second cruise it was listed as refundable. So check your onboard statement!

Will be sailing on the Anthem this winter, our 1st Royal Caribbean voyage. In reading this post I'm confused. Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package? Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about specialty restaurant reservations now.

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

:confused:

RCI is discounting the top 2 beverage package only. All other packages are the same price when purchased onboard.

However, they did not offer any dining package for sale onboard the Harmony. So, if you are interested in the dining packages, purchase them ahead.

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PS: to my earlier comment (below).

We have Dynamic Choice Dining

 

Will be sailing on the Anthem this winter, our 1st Royal Caribbean voyage. In reading this post I'm confused. Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package? Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about specialty restaurant reservations now.

 

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

 

:confused:

 

 

thanks for the tip, I did not know that OBC was refundable at the end of the cruise. I would assume we go to guest relations and they can refund it back to the CC card or do they give cash? If this is the case, then I think it would make sense to book the dining and drink packages in advance, take advantage of any pre-cruise discounts and then any unused OBC would be refunded back anyway which we then use to pay the CC bill.

 

Is there anywhere that this policy to refund OBC is posted? I have seen other threads where people say they struggle to use up their OBC so they don't lose it, if there is a policy posted somewhere it would help. I haven't seen it anywhere.

 

Also, does anyone know why it charges full price in advance for kids with specialty restaurants, will they refund this back to us on the cruise since one child would be free and the other a reduced price.

 

Thanks a lot for the help

Please remember that I'm only talking about RC Visa points OBC here, which is refundable. So if you want cash, just go to GS on the last day and cash out. If you don't cash out, and your account has a negative balance at the end, it will automatically be credited to your credit card on file. (the one you checked in with) It usually takes a few business days after the cruise for the credit to show up on your CC.

BUT remember that not all OBC is refundable as there are different types. If you get OBC from a travel agent, that is usually refundable just like the Visa points OBC. But if you get OBC from Royal due to a promotion or sale, that is usually NOT REFUNDABLE.

It can get complicated if you have more than one type of OBC applied to your account. One thing that's good is that Royal applies the non-refundable OBC to your charges before applying the refundable OBC. Just be sure to use all of your non-refundable OBC, and you're good for a refund on the other if you have a negative balance at the end.

Judy, you explained that very well! We always give ourselves OBC with Visa points and then take the cash at the end of the cruise. It is like a cash-back card for us.

Thanks!...;)...I've developed some expertise on using the RC Visa OBC after many years of using it. Sounds like you know how to work the system too!:D

Judy

PS: to my earlier comment (below).

 

We have Dynamic Choice Dining

 

nothing that can't be reserved on the ship

I understand that, but still have the question:

In reading this post I'm confused.

(Question) - Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package???

Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about (online) specialty restaurant reservations now.

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

Can anyone answer? Thank you so much in advance.

I understand that, but still have the question:

 

In reading this post I'm confused.

 

(Question) - Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package???

 

Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about (online) specialty restaurant reservations now.

 

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

 

Can anyone answer? Thank you so much in advance.

 

 

If you reserve a specialty restaurant or a dining package it must be paid in full when you book it.

I understand that, but still have the question:

 

In reading this post I'm confused.

 

(Question) - Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package???

 

Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about (online) specialty restaurant reservations now.

 

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

 

Can anyone answer? Thank you so much in advance.

 

 

 

Will be sailing on the Anthem this winter, our 1st Royal Caribbean voyage. In reading this post I'm confused. Do you have to pay in advance when reservering a speciality restaurant online prior to sailing? Or just when choosing a speciality restaurant dining package? Will be setting up a cash account online. Confused about specialty restaurant reservations now.

 

I don't want to select a dining package, just want to make speciality reservations on my own along with the complementary restaurants reservations.

 

:confused:

 

 

If you make reservations for any specialty restaurant before your cruise, you will have to put it on your credit card or the website won't even take your reservation.

In other words, you pay when you book, not when you eat.

:)

RCI is discounting the top 2 beverage package only. All other packages are the same price when purchased onboard.

 

However, they did not offer any dining package for sale onboard the Harmony. So, if you are interested in the dining packages, purchase them ahead.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It depends on the cruise. Some have discounts on all three alcoholic drink packages, not just premium and ultimate. Any discounts will appear in your Cruise Planner.