Cancelling and rebooking

[hammo]

Hope to get some for advice please.

We are from Australia and have booked an Alaskan Cruise on Celebrity Millenium for May 28 with a USA agent that we have used previously and are happy with. We paid in full months ago and see now the cruise is discounted substantially ( on our agents website )and that Celebrity are also offering drinks packages in their promotions.It looks like we are outside the cancellation time for any financioal loss for cancellation ( 75 days+ out no cancellation fees ) so we were thinking we should cancel and rebook . We have an ordinary inside cabin on Continental deck so there is no loss there ! What do you think ?:confused:

[Orator]

Hope to get some for advice please.

We are from Australia and have booked an Alaskan Cruise on Celebrity Millenium for May 28 with a USA agent that we have used previously and are happy with. We paid in full months ago and see now the cruise is discounted substantially ( on our agents website )and that Celebrity are also offering drinks packages in their promotions.It looks like we are outside the cancellation time for any financioal loss for cancellation ( 75 days+ out no cancellation fees ) so we were thinking we should cancel and rebook . We have an ordinary inside cabin on Continental deck so there is no loss there ! What do you think ?:confused:

 

Did you contact your TA? They should be able to give you the best answer. Perhaps they can do something for you that other agents can't.

[hammo]

Thanks for the reply - most appreciated. Yes , I have emailed the TA and await their reply . Obviously we want to keep the cruise , but feel we should have waited to book I guess as it feels like we have not received the best deal availableto us. . Hopefully we can cancel and rebook as this will save several hundred dollars each - and the drink package would also be a saving . Has anyone had success with this sort of thing ? As I said , we are happy with the TA and are sailing on Solstice in March here in Australia which we also booked with them . I will let you know what they say when they hopefully reply .

[LetsGoDutch]

You can cancel & rebook but it may be at a higher rate.

[Christine Frances]

Thanks for the reply - most appreciated. Yes , I have emailed the TA and await their reply . Obviously we want to keep the cruise , but feel we should have waited to book I guess as it feels like we have not received the best deal availableto us. . Hopefully we can cancel and rebook as this will save several hundred dollars each - and the drink package would also be a saving . Has anyone had success with this sort of thing ? As I said , we are happy with the TA and are sailing on Solstice in March here in Australia which we also booked with them . I will let you know what they say when they hopefully reply .

 

If the price has dropped you should be able to get the reduction and/or the special promotion. TA's do not normally monitor price changes - a lot of us check our cruise on a daily or at least weekly basis for specials and/or price changes. We have not yet been disappointed in booking early:D

[BrusselsGirl07]

When we have booked direct with Celebrity through the Sydney office, we have always had success getting any price drops I see on the Celebrity site. As you have booked through an agent, it is up to them to see what they can do for you, but I can not imagine there would be any problem. Good luck!

[kitty9]

If you are happy with the cabin you booked, there is a very good possibility that you will lose that cabin if you cancel and rebook. Once you cancel, hundreds of travel agents and people who book online will get immediate access to your cancelled cabin.

[Lsimon]

You should be able to get your TA to adjust your existing booking to the current price and promotion. We've done that on a crusie in 2014, which for us involved a small price increase but then the free beverage package was added. In the past we've gotten our TA to adjust our booking for any price decreases as long as were before the final payment date.

 

You should have no problem keeping your existing cabin and booking number but any other existing promotions or OBC might be lost or adjusted.

[MicCanberra]

You should be able to get your TA to adjust your existing booking to the current price and promotion. We've done that on a crusie in 2014, which for us involved a small price increase but then the free beverage package was added. In the past we've gotten our TA to adjust our booking for any price decreases as long as were before the final payment date.

 

You should have no problem keeping your existing cabin and booking number but any other existing promotions or OBC might be lost or adjusted.

Agree with Lsimon,

I have been able to cancel and rebook 2 cruises to get the package. However, with one cruise, we lost our OBC and had to pay an extra $10 each, still worth it for us but it may not be with other cruises.:D

[pkw]

When we have booked direct with Celebrity through the Sydney office, we have always had success getting any price drops I see on the Celebrity site. As you have booked through an agent, it is up to them to see what they can do for you, but I can not imagine there would be any problem. Good luck!

 

Hi there

 

Could you please tell me how you have been able to get the price drop through Celebrity Australia?

 

When I have spoken to them they have told me that you can only do that in the USA it doesn't apply to Australia.

 

We have just had to cancel one cruise & book a different one in order to take advantage of the drinks package promo as they wouldn't allow us to do it on our original booking - it was just lucky for us that we had used an open passage booking do we're able to transfer it to another sailing without losing our deposit.

 

I would really appreciate some tips on how you manage to get the price drops -we are booked directly with celebrity.

 

Thanks very much.

 

Paula

[hammo]

Received a phone call - yes a phone call , remembering that we are Aussies - from our TA in the USA yesterday , so that was much appreciated.

The drinks package promotion is for ocean view cabins + , so we were able to pay an extra $130ea for the cruise and then receive the drinks package as included . I guess we now have a "better" cabin ( sadly still on Continental deck ) with a window , but the drinks package is a big saving for us . Apparently it can be upgraded to the premium package for an extra $10 per day + gratuity ?? We still keep our TA cabin credit also so thats nice. Seems its worthwhile to keep checking for the special offerings and there is no disadvantage booking early . We remain very happy with our TA and will continue to book our cruises through him whenever we can . Thanks D.J.:D

[MicCanberra]

Received a phone call - yes a phone call , remembering that we are Aussies - from our TA in the USA yesterday , so that was much appreciated.

The drinks package promotion is for ocean view cabins + , so we were able to pay an extra $130ea for the cruise and then receive the drinks package as included . I guess we now have a "better" cabin ( sadly still on Continental deck ) with a window , but the drinks package is a big saving for us . Apparently it can be upgraded to the premium package for an extra $10 per day + gratuity ?? We still keep our TA cabin credit also so thats nice. Seems its worthwhile to keep checking for the special offerings and there is no disadvantage booking early . We remain very happy with our TA and will continue to book our cruises through him whenever we can . Thanks D.J.:D

Great stuff. The cost to upgrade the package to Premium will be $11.50 per day per person (15% gratuity). I agree with booking early expecially for those who need to book their leave in advance.:D

[BrusselsGirl07]

Hi there

 

Could you please tell me how you have been able to get the price drop through Celebrity Australia?

 

When I have spoken to them they have told me that you can only do that in the USA it doesn't apply to Australia.

 

We have just had to cancel one cruise & book a different one in order to take advantage of the drinks package promo as they wouldn't allow us to do it on our original booking - it was just lucky for us that we had used an open passage booking do we're able to transfer it to another sailing without losing our deposit.

 

I would really appreciate some tips on how you manage to get the price drops -we are booked directly with celebrity.

 

Thanks very much.

 

Paula

 

Hi Paula - the more I read, the more I think it depends on the rep that you get on the phone and their supervisor. Up until recently, they had a call centre in Australia with Australian operators. But recently all of my calls have gone through to the Miami office and you speak with American operators. In the past when I have gotten price drops with Celebrity, I simply called Sydney and told them I would like my booking to reflect the new price that I had seen on the website. It was always done without any problems. I have also called when a higher level of room became cheaper than my room - I would grab the room I wanted at the higher category but the lower price using the 24 hour hold, then call and have my booking transferred to the better cabin at the lower price. We gradually moved from an inside to a balcony this way on one cruise.

 

I am sailing on Royal Caribbean next, and as they own Celebrity, it is the same call centre that you are put through to. I saw my cruise for $700 less (not associated with new bookings only deals or anything, just a proce drop I noticed). I called the Sydney number, was diverted through to Miami, and after a lot of talking and the rep going back and forth to their supervisor, I ended up having to cancel the cruise, make a new booking at the lower price, pay the deposit again and have my deposit that I had already paid transferred across to the new booking. So I got what I wanted, but it was just a lot more work for them! At the beginning of the phone call they had said that I could not get the price drop, and if I cancelled and booked at the new price I would lose my deposit. But none of that happened, I kept my deposit, I got the cheaper price - I guess the only downside was that I had to pay another deposit, but that means less to pay in the end.

 

I don't really know how to always get a good outcome - it would be nice if the rules applied fairly to everyone. I only knew about getting price drops from reading how those in the US did it. That made me feel confident enough to do it the frist time I did. These days with so much information so freely available on the internet, they need to make one rule for all bookings, no matter where you live. I have seen lots of dicussions about the new Celebrity 1,2,3 offer - some people are having success having it applied to their booking, and some are not.

[davwen81]

Hi. Hammo, glad this all worked out for you. We also love Celebrity/Azanara but have never had any luck getting price drops or changes to bookings here in Australia. Would you mind emailing me your TA in US as I have been looking for some time for this information and now know lots on these boards in Ozz use USA TA'S so would appreciate your help with this. My email is wendya495@gmail.com Many thanks for your help, cheers Wendy and Davud

[pkw]

Hi Paula - the more I read, the more I think it depends on the rep that you get on the phone and their supervisor. Up until recently, they had a call centre in Australia with Australian operators. But recently all of my calls have gone through to the Miami office and you speak with American operators. In the past when I have gotten price drops with Celebrity, I simply called Sydney and told them I would like my booking to reflect the new price that I had seen on the website. It was always done without any problems. I have also called when a higher level of room became cheaper than my room - I would grab the room I wanted at the higher category but the lower price using the 24 hour hold, then call and have my booking transferred to the better cabin at the lower price. We gradually moved from an inside to a balcony this way on one cruise.

 

I am sailing on Royal Caribbean next, and as they own Celebrity, it is the same call centre that you are put through to. I saw my cruise for $700 less (not associated with new bookings only deals or anything, just a proce drop I noticed). I called the Sydney number, was diverted through to Miami, and after a lot of talking and the rep going back and forth to their supervisor, I ended up having to cancel the cruise, make a new booking at the lower price, pay the deposit again and have my deposit that I had already paid transferred across to the new booking. So I got what I wanted, but it was just a lot more work for them! At the beginning of the phone call they had said that I could not get the price drop, and if I cancelled and booked at the new price I would lose my deposit. But none of that happened, I kept my deposit, I got the cheaper price - I guess the only downside was that I had to pay another deposit, but that means less to pay in the end.

 

I don't really know how to always get a good outcome - it would be nice if the rules applied fairly to everyone. I only knew about getting price drops from reading how those in the US did it. That made me feel confident enough to do it the frist time I did. These days with so much information so freely available on the internet, they need to make one rule for all bookings, no matter where you live. I have seen lots of dicussions about the new Celebrity 1,2,3 offer - some people are having success having it applied to their booking, and some are not.

 

Thanks very much for letting me know - maybe I will give it a go when I see a price drop and if I am not successful call back the next day and hope to get a different rep!!

[rjf56]

Hi Folks,

We are booked on Solstice Auckland to Sydney 16 March. Booked about 18 months in advance on a package with a well known Adelaide based TA. Noticed late last year on our roll call that Celebrity were offering a substantial discount if one or other of us was over 55. Rang the TA who was not aware of it but was able to get us the discount but had to cancel and rebook to do so. Lost our forward facing hump cabin but got an aft facing one same deck. Was worth the discount.