Time limit to transfer cruise to TA

[lady_cruiser]

This really isn't that new. It happened to us last year when after 62 days :rolleyes: I decided to transfer my RCL cruise to a local travel agent. I was told by RCL that too many days had passed and I couldn't transfer my booking.

 

It sounds like this agency lost lots of business because of this policy and is making sure all their clients knows about the rules.

[matj2000]

Hardly "Breaking News". Must be a slow day at the office....

[nubeetom]

This might be a dumb question but I booked a two br suite on radiance last week through RC, can I change it to a TA? What are the benefits? I booked for spring break, and every time I looked at rooms they were taken 30 mins later so I just booked to get the sailing I wanted.

Tom

[PattyG12]

We transfer for many reasons. First one is that she gives us pre-paid gratuities. Also I don't have to deal with things that arise. Just make sure you find a travel agent you trust if you decide to transfer it.

[silentbob007]

Tom ...yes you can, but evidently you have 60 days to do it.

[cruisenfever]

FYI

 

BREAKING NEWS! New Cruise Line Policy

 

This makes the 4th thread in the last 10 days.:eek: But thanks for letting us know........you can never have too much information.:)

 

Time limit to transfer cruise to TA

 

Royal's new rule, no booking transfers to TA after 60 days

 

My be important info for someone

[BND]

I also don't see why this is an issue. Either book through a TA or book through the cruiseline when you find a good deal and just transfer it within a few days. Why on earth would anyone need that much time? Is some OBC really worth it? We always use our friends who are TA's but they don't give us OBC, usually wine and strawberries, but we also get good service which is all we're interested in.

[Rockfordcruiser]

This makes the 4th thread in the last 3 days.:eek:

LoL.. Header should have read "Broke news" This page and one page over the other threads lol...

[crusinmama06]

Hey, easy there people. :p I didn't catch this one. So its news to me. ;) I didn't see the other three threads, so thank you Joe.

 

I only have time to catch up on the "breaking news" on the weekends. :D

[Virginia Zees]

Hardly "Breaking News". Must be a slow day at the office....

 

Here is the statement that was on the old form (dated 6/6/2006)

Please Note: This form is to be submitted and signed ONLY by a guest listed on the reservation number referenced above. Once a reservation is paid in full or it is within the final payment period we are unable to transfer reservations to your travel agency.

 

And here is the statement on the NEW form (dated 10/06/2010)

Bookings may be transferred to a Travel Agent up until 60 days from creation if the request is made outside of Final Payment period and the booking is not paid in full. If a booking has a ChoiceAir ticket and the transfer request involves a change in currency we cannot accommodate a transfer. If you would like to transfer your reservation to a Travel Agent, please complete this form and return to us via fax.

[cruisenfever]

Here is the statement that was on the old form (dated 6/6/2006)

Please Note: This form is to be submitted and signed ONLY by a guest listed on the reservation number referenced above. Once a reservation is paid in full or it is within the final payment period we are unable to transfer reservations to your travel agency.

 

And here is the statement on the NEW form (dated 10/06/2010)

Bookings may be transferred to a Travel Agent up until 60 days from creation if the request is made outside of Final Payment period and the booking is not paid in full. If a booking has a ChoiceAir ticket and the transfer request involves a change in currency we cannot accommodate a transfer. If you would like to transfer your reservation to a Travel Agent, please complete this form and return to us via fax.

The new transfer policy goes into effect with any/all cruises book on/after October 18, 2010. Any cruise booked prior to that date can still transfer up until final payment.

[CoachT]

They have been fairly good at grandfathering new policies. Yes, you may have to call a few reps, and it may be (no, will be!) aggravating, but I have never had a problem with eventually getting the correct result (yet ;) )

I don't think you mean correct result, you mean the result you want.

 

People are going to find that tranfers are sent to an entirely different department than reservations or the C&A department. IF the booking was created more than 60 days before the transfer request, it will be denied. People are going to find this out when they try to transfer.

[marci22]

I don't think you mean correct result, you mean the result you want.

 

People are going to find that tranfers are sent to an entirely different department than reservations or the C&A department. IF the booking was created more than 60 days before the transfer request, it will be denied. People are going to find this out when they try to transfer.

 

No, that's not what I meant. In the past, when Royal has had a policy that grandfathered in some people, it has been honored. One may have to go through some reps that didn't understand, but persistence would get you the correct result in the end.

 

Why are you so convinced it will be different in regards to TA transfers? Because of the department? Maybe initially but I would expect them to get up to speed after people start complaining.

[mpbmark]

This makes the 4th thread in the last 10 days.:eek: But thanks for letting us know........you can never have too much information.:)

[/url]

Royal's new rule, no booking transfers to TA after 60 days

 

 

So, what happened to this thread. Seems CC has pulled it for some reason.

[CoachT]

Why are you so convinced it will be different in regards to TA transfers? Because of the department? Maybe initially but I would expect them to get up to speed after people start complaining.

 

I can tell you I sat in on a meeting when this idea was first brought up. RCI did not implement the policy of TA transfers so that passengers could get the most on board credit. It was done as a convenience for those times when an agent was traveling, closed, etc. Too many passengers are getting the benefit of the work of the res agents and doing constant changes finding that perfect stateroom or price only to have RCI have to pay a commission.

 

RCI frankly does not care if passengers loses out on a TA offered onboard credit and sees no reason to grandfather this policy. There is nothing unfair about this at all as really this is between a passenger and their agent. People can complain all they want, but they will find out that the policy will not be grandfathered and the 60 days started on October 6. It will not matter when the booking was created if created before that date. People are going to find out when they try to transfer the booking.

[mpbmark]

I can tell you I sat in on a meeting when this idea was first brought up. . . . .

 

Really? In what capacity??

[cruisenfever]

So, what happened to this thread. Seems CC has pulled it for some reason.

No, all the threads have been combined.

[marci22]

I can tell you I sat in on a meeting when this idea was first brought up. RCI did not implement the policy of TA transfers so that passengers could get the most on board credit. It was done as a convenience for those times when an agent was traveling, closed, etc. Too many passengers are getting the benefit of the work of the res agents and doing constant changes finding that perfect stateroom or price only to have RCI have to pay a commission.

 

RCI frankly does not care if passengers loses out on a TA offered onboard credit and sees no reason to grandfather this policy. There is nothing unfair about this at all as really this is between a passenger and their agent. People can complain all they want, but they will find out that the policy will not be grandfathered and the 60 days started on October 6. It will not matter when the booking was created if created before that date. People are going to find out when they try to transfer the booking.

 

I don't disagree with Royal's reason for doing it. Several people have mentioned old bookings will be grandfathered in and my guess is that it could go either way.

[Bridge Maven]

What work? I book my cruises online then transfer to an agency right before final, so that I earn the frequent flyer miles. If anyone has done any work it has been me.

 

Thank goodness I did mine on October 4th...

 

MikeW, Let me give you and example of "what work".

 

My husband and I were booked on the June 3 Radiance of the Seas cruise to Alaska that was cancelled, and have good friends who had also booked the same cruise directly with RCCL.

 

When it was cancelled RCCL re-booked our friends on the same cruise tour two weeks later. My friend called me as soon as she made that change so my husband and I could re-book the same cruise that they did when RCCL called us. At that time there were only two junior suites left for that cruise and I was concerned that if I waited for RCCL's call those junior suites would no longer be available. So I called RCCL's deployment department to explain the situation and they arranged for my husband and I to have a junior suite on the same cruise that our friends had re-booked.

 

This is one time that I was very grateful to have booked that cruise tour directly with the cruise line because RCCL would not have been able to deal with me directly if I had booked it with a TA and time was of the essence in that situation. If we had booked it with a TA we probably would have not been able to re-book on the same cruise where we will be celebrating our 35th anniversary with the same couple that we celebrated our 30th anniversary on a Baltic Cruise to Russia, as well as our wedding day many years ago.

[mpbmark]

No, all the threads have been combined.

 

Aha.:o

[suzyluvs2cruise]

People can complain all they want, but they will find out that the policy will not be grandfathered and the 60 days started on October 6. It will not matter when the booking was created if created before that date. People are going to find out when they try to transfer the booking.

 

I don't disagree with Royal's reason for doing it. Several people have mentioned old bookings will be grandfathered in and my guess is that it could go either way.

 

Here's my experience with an "old booking" with a booking date of Feb 10, 2010.

 

On Monday, Oct 18, I faxed the TA transfer form to 305-603-0036, the phone number on the transfer form. The next day my TA had the reservation. :)

[cruisenfever]

Here's my experience with an "old booking" with a booking date of Feb 10, 2010.

 

On Monday, Oct 18, I faxed the TA transfer form to 305-603-0036, the phone number on the transfer form. The next day my TA had the reservation. :)

Great example of what happens when transferring a booking that was booked prior to October 18!:D

[InsideCruiser]

Here's my experience with an "old booking" with a booking date of Feb 10, 2010.

 

On Monday, Oct 18, I faxed the TA transfer form to 305-603-0036, the phone number on the transfer form. The next day my TA had the reservation. :)

 

I hope that they will at least transfer all bookings until 60 days past Oct 18th which brings us to Dec 17th. After that all old bookings will have had 60 days to transfer and we'll see what happens after that.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

I hope that they will at least transfer all bookings until 60 days past Oct 18th which brings us to Dec 17th. After that all old bookings will have had 60 days to transfer and we'll see what happens after that.

 

It's my understanding (from Crown & Anchor) that any reservation booked before Oct. 18 can be transferred, at any time, to a TA. The original booking date is on your booking invoice in the upper right hand corner. Reservations booked after Oct 18 are under the new policy and need to be transferred within 60 days of booking.

[bob278]

FYI

 

BREAKING NEWS! New Cruise Line Policy

 

Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, and Azamara Club Cruises have just come out with a NEW POLICY which states that:

 

Bookings made directly with the cruise lines whether the client booked online, onboard,

or thru a Royal Caribbean International Certified Vacation Planner,

INCLUDING open deposit bookings (i.e. Celebrity Passages and Next Cruise Bookings) can NOT be transferred to their Travel Agent of choice after 60 days from their creation.

 

Bookings that are PAID IN FULL or have CHOICE AIR are not eligible

to be transferred once created.

Here is the statement that was on the old form (dated 6/6/2006)

Please Note: This form is to be submitted and signed ONLY by a guest listed on the reservation number referenced above. Once a reservation is paid in full or it is within the final payment period we are unable to transfer reservations to your travel agency.

 

And here is the statement on the NEW form (dated 10/06/2010)

Bookings may be transferred to a Travel Agent up until 60 days from creation if the request is made outside of Final Payment period and the booking is not paid in full. If a booking has a ChoiceAir ticket and the transfer request involves a change in currency we cannot accommodate a transfer. If you would like to transfer your reservation to a Travel Agent, please complete this form and return to us via fax.

 

The new transfer policy goes into effect with any/all cruises book on/after October 18, 2010. Any cruise booked prior to that date can still transfer up until final payment.

This thread is a great example of the result of RCL being so inconsistent (and vague) with new policies.

 

There have been some posts that state with absolute certainty what will be but I don't think I would accept anything as gospel until a significant number of examples have played out.

 

But there is one statement about Next Cruise certificates being included and I have to take exception to that. The purpose of those was for people with uncertain plans to take advantage of booking on board and I would bet less than 10% of them ever have a cruise defined within 60 days. If they don't treat those as having 60 days from booking an actual cruise, then advance sales will drop to darn near zero (and they are already risking a significant reduction with the recent changes). I know I am already reluctant to book onboard and it takes an unusual (for us) set of circumstances to make me even consider it.

 

Patti, what's your take on this?