Rustic23

You miss my pointn each leg up the latter demonstrates a loyalty from the customer to the company. It us a trust. When that trust is violated the repercussions are not good.  I could have used gold, emerald pentacle etc. Rcl’s immediate problem may be cash, but in the long run it customer retention. Think back to a cruise show when the cruise director ask for first time cruisers. About a quarter of the audience, meaning the rest are most likely loyalty members. 

51 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

How many cruises does it take to reach “Pentacle?”

700 days, about two years however we encounter severalPe tackle cruisers on just about every cruise.  So it’s more folks than you would think. Diamond plus is 175.

5 hours ago, parrotfeathers said:

Tried to edit my comment but too much time had passed.

 

Edited version:  

I don't think loyalty level will be a deciding factor on how RCL treats refunds or FCCs. RCL may decide this is a wonderful way to shed itself of loyalty programs.   Wasn't meaning to imply Rustic was using status as a reason to get faster refund.

There best chance of coming out of this is Loyalty.   It is a well know adage that it is not what happens but how you treat the customer after it happens that brings. Customers back.  If you take a hard look at RCL’s loyalty program you will see it cost them very little.  A cooks tray on sailing, a couple drinks, until you get to diamond or higher,  very little expense involved.  But the return is huge.  
 

There is a reason there phone bank is so pleasant.  I suspect this business like any other is about the cost to obtain and cost to retain customers.  If RCL does go chapter 11, how many pentacle members will stick around if there rewards are cancelled?

So, my point is they should be concerned about there loyal customers!

On 4/12/2020 at 11:51 AM, orville99 said:

How much of the $1600 was port fees and taxes?  Also, was any of the $1600 for onboard activities like dining/drinks/excursions? The FCC amount should be for the cost of the cruise less those fees and charges. Port fees, taxes and pre-purchased onboard stuff will eventually be refunded to your original form of payment. I say eventually, because those fees for the cruises we cancelled on March 10, showed up in my CC account on 4/8.

I don’t have the port fee but I suspect a couple hundred.  The rest was cruise, and prepaid gratuity.   O excursions,   O restaurant O other expenses.  Also the way they choose to decide it is stupid! The customer loyalty being lost will far exceed the current monetary loss.   I paid one total fee, for my wife and myself, yet the refund is twice as much for me than her.  If we rebook, there is a good chance there will be excess credit for me, and.  Not enough to cover her cruise!  I do. Ot rember seeing this in the email they sent out.   Terms kept secret are going to bring class action law suits.  The money amount I not that much, but the lost trust in RCL, for us is enormously!  
 

We take one or two cruises a year,  and have no troubles with that. However if this is how RCL treats Diamond members I predict hard times for them!

We had a March 29 cruise. Paid in full $1,600 for two.  We got ou FCC yesterday.  $1,000 for me, $400 For the wife.  So our $1,600 paid equals a refund less, not 25% more!   Thanks RCL!  My guess they have a real problem!  However, my guess is it won’t matter, as they will file chapter 11 sometime in the next. Couple of months.   Will be interesting as they are nor a US Corp.

Total, paid in full

We were to sail out of Galveston on March 29.  Received credit today and I do not get RCL's math.  I thought the deal was 125% of what you paid.  Well, my cruise cost $1,600. My cruise credit for me was $1,053, and  $401 for my Wife.  for a total of $1,454.  Here are their explanations.

• Please know, your credit is based on the amount paid on your cancelled reservation. If you see a lower value, you may have had a rate that lowered your cruise fare, like our Kids Sail Free promotion, BOGO or other offers.
• Valid on bookings created on or after March 6, 2020 and existing bookings not yet paid to full.
• Any booking made using the Cruise with Confidence FCC must be used for a sailing that commences on or before December 31, 2021.
• If the FCC is not redeemed and sailed on or before December 31, 2021, the certificate will automatically expire and have no value.
• Future Cruise Credits are per person, per booking, and valid only for the person noted above. FCCs are redeemable towards cruise fare only and are not valid on Complimentary cruises, Incentive bookings, and Charter sailings.
• All guests are responsible for taxes and fees, where applicable.
• Royal Caribbean International reserves the right to void the FCC Savings amount if the guest named above receives another form of compensation which includes claims through our travel protection or requesting a refund.
• If there is a remaining balance once you redeem your FCC, you'll receive the balance in a new FCC after you complete the sailing it is used to sail on.
• FCCs are only valid for the cruises on Royal Caribbean International ships, are not transferable, and may not be redeemed for cash.
• Additional terms and conditions apply.

So I don't see how $1,660 paid in full comes down to $1,454 and that is what I paid plus 25%