Canceling after using Visa points

[emdia43]

If I book a cruise now, for next August, Serenade of the Seas, and I redeem my Visa points, and apply them to the cost- what happens to them if I have to cancel for any reason?

[molly361]

If you cancel that cruise you will lose whatever you had used the points for, such as onboard credit or discount. What I did was keep the same booking number and then just switche it for a cruise far in the future keeping the onboard credit that I have on that booking from the VISA points.

[emdia43]

OK thanks- I'm glad I checked. :) Even if we had to cancel there would be another cruise at some future date to apply them to, so I think I will use them to discount the price..

[cruiseguy1016]

OK thanks- I'm glad I checked. :) Even if we had to cancel there would be another cruise at some future date to apply them to, so I think I will use them to discount the price..

 

 

If you are going to use them to discount the cruise, the best thing to do is wait until final payment date to use them. This way will give you more time to build up more points and you won't have to worry about losing them.

[emdia43]

If you are going to use them to discount the cruise, the best thing to do is wait until final payment date to use them. This way will give you more time to build up more points and you won't have to worry about losing them.

 

 

But lots of them are about to expire. Once they expire they're gone. If I use them now I have them saved- right?

[wwcruisers]

But lots of them are about to expire. Once they expire they're gone. If I use them now I have them saved- right?

 

We have used RC visa points for OBC, as well. They do expire, if not used within five years of accrual -- a spread sheet can help you keep track of them. Once you cash them in for a certificate, it is my understanding that the certificate must be applied to a cruise within six months of issue. Once it is applied to a cruise, I believe it can be transferred to another sailing, with no time restrictions. The trick is: don't cancel -- transfer, as it is crucial to keep your original booking number!

Of course, you should talk to your TA or the booking agents at RC before taking any action. Good luck! :)

[molly361]

But lots of them are about to expire. Once they expire they're gone. If I use them now I have them saved- right?

 

Yes

[emdia43]

I just checked the points balance and they are expiring daily, so once my deposit is credited to my CC I shall redeem them and apply them to my next cruise before even more die off... it annoys me that BOA have this policy- if my account was dormant I could understand the reason they would expire, but when you have an active account - it's not possible for me to save them for as long as I want to, for the cost of a cruise..:eek: because they keep expiring! aaaargh

[bravostar]

I just checked the points balance and they are expiring daily, so once my deposit is credited to my CC I shall redeem them and apply them to my next cruise before even more die off... it annoys me that BOA have this policy- if my account was dormant I could understand the reason they would expire, but when you have an active account - it's not possible for me to save them for as long as I want to, for the cost of a cruise..:eek: because they keep expiring! aaaargh

 

 

I agree. Also how would I check to see if my points are expiring?

[suezyq50]

I just checked the points balance and they are expiring daily, so once my deposit is credited to my CC I shall redeem them and apply them to my next cruise before even more die off... it annoys me that BOA have this policy- if my account was dormant I could understand the reason they would expire, but when you have an active account - it's not possible for me to save them for as long as I want to, for the cost of a cruise..:eek: because they keep expiring! aaaargh

It might be a long shot, but call BOA and explain to them if anything can be done. You never know.

[gaylemh]

Why don't you just start redeeming them for certificates, instead of letting them expire. You'll have 6 months to decide how you're going to use them. I only had points for $100.00 worth of certificates. I called BOA and they sent me two certificates for $50.00 each. On the back of the certificate you can decide what you want to use them for, call RCI tell them how you are using them before the 6 months are up and mail them in.

 

I think you can even use them to make a donation to a charity. That would even be better than letting them expire.

[PH8]

I agree. Also how would I check to see if my points are expiring?

I'd like to know too:)

[Slam308]

We were allowed to change reservations three times (while keeping the same booking number) before RC told us "this is it, you'll lose the points if you change again."

[kyriecat]

We were allowed to change reservations three times (while keeping the same booking number) before RC told us "this is it, you'll lose the points if you change again."

Is that a new policy? I know I've made more than 3 changes and not been told that's it. My last reservation, I changed ships 3 times, dates twice, passenger names twice, and cabins 4 times. I think we were up to rev. 12 by the time I sailed. My points were still applied.

 

If you cancel a booked cruise, you lose any points that you applied to reduce the balance. I know from experience. I had a cruise booked for April 2009 that RC chartered. They called me the day before I was scheduled to fly out for another RC cruise to let me know. The problem is the woman on the phone didn't know what cruise she was calling to tell me was cancelled. She didn't seem to know the booking number, ship, dates, or anything. All she said was my cruise had been chartered and I had 48 hours to rebook. I had the upcoming cruise on my brain and she never corrected me even though the one I was taking was a Med leaving from Rome and the one being cancelled was a Caribbean from San Juan. When I told her that I was flying to Rome the next morning for my cruise, she actually told me that she would cancel the flight if she were me. Then she told me that RC wasn't offering any compensation for flight changes. It was when she read the list of two cruises that I could book "at current rates" and receive a nominal OBC that I finally caught on that she was talking about the Caribbean cruise that was still 11 months away. I was extremely angry for the scare and because it was the second cruise in a row that had been chartered out from under me, causing me to lose my prime cabin choice (aft corner JS both times). I told her that I didn't appreciate her calling me without having the appropriate cruise details available and as far as I was concerned, RC could keep their offer. I cancelled the booking and lost the Visa points, future cruise certificate deposit and OBC, diamond balcony discount, and shareholder OBC. I filed a complaint with a supervisor and requested that her staff have appropriate details about the cruise being cancelled before calling but the supervisor didn't seem to care either that I had been upset. I didn't even get an apology but I'm not surprised.

[wwcruisers]

We were allowed to change reservations three times (while keeping the same booking number) before RC told us "this is it, you'll lose the points if you change again."

 

Slam308 -- Yikes! :eek:

Did the person at RC who told you this say whether it was from either the RC booking contract, or the Bank of America card rules? I have not seen this specific limitation in either place, but maybe I'm missing something? :o