Can someone please confirm RC's UK price drop policy

[drey_p]

I thought I'd pop back and give an update on the price match. After a very long wait, the escalations team have come back and honoured the prices we found online. We literally got an email from them about an hour ago. I'm happy - we saved about £230 pp which is quite a lot of money!

[londongal796]

I thought I'd pop back and give an update on the price match. After a very long wait, the escalations team have come back and honoured the prices we found online. We literally got an email from them about an hour ago. I'm happy - we saved about £230 pp which is quite a lot of money!

 

Wow I am sooo pleased to hear that!!! I think we saved £210pp so definitely worth the effort...!!! Woohoo!!!

[drey_p]

Thanks! I really didn't think it was going to happen, especially as the price was no longer in the system. The irony is that Royal will probably get the money back in on board spend! LOL

 

I still think it may be worth us looking at a US Travel agent or dealing with RCI in the USA.

Edited April 1, 2014 by drey_p

[Folk Singer]

Thanks! I really didn't think it was going to happen, especially as the price was no longer in the system. The irony is that Royal will probably get the money back in on board spend! LOL

 

I still think it may be worth us looking at a US Travel agent or dealing with RCI in the USA.

 

We always go through RCCL site in the States and save on the CDN. taxes' and fee's.

Edited April 2, 2014 by Folk Singer

[drey_p]

We always go through RCCL site in the States and save on the CDN. taxes' and fee's.

 

The only problem that we, in the UK, have is that Royal have blocked us from accessing the USA site. I am currently working on a way to get past this!

[Andrew9999]

The only problem that we, in the UK, have is that Royal have blocked us from accessing the USA site. I am currently working on a way to get past this!

 

Try this:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/home.do?wuc=USA

 

Andrew.

[kcms4]

i booked my two week cruise one day the next it had gone down £1000 i know we got free parking,soda package and $200 obc but a £1000 that massive money and i have tried everything ta has contacted them (or so she says) and they said tuff luck i have also emailed which was useless sometimes they never even answer you back and i was left on the phone for ages never even getting to speak to anyone so i sent a hand written letter got a reply the other day again saying as you have booked though the uk office, our terms and conditions are applicable.please accept our apologies for any disappointment. i am confident that despite this situation, you will have a thoroughly enjoyable cruise with us, we look forward to welcome you and your family onboard.

yeh right ahhhhhhhhhhhh

[ctcontrol]

i booked my two week cruise one day the next it had gone down £1000 i know we got free parking,soda package and $200 obc but a £1000 that massive money and i have tried everything ta has contacted them (or so she says) and they said tuff luck i have also emailed which was useless sometimes they never even answer you back and i was left on the phone for ages never even getting to speak to anyone so i sent a hand written letter got a reply the other day again saying as you have booked though the uk office, our terms and conditions are applicable.please accept our apologies for any disappointment. i am confident that despite this situation, you will have a thoroughly enjoyable cruise with us, we look forward to welcome you and your family onboard.

yeh right ahhhhhhhhhhhh

 

Can't you cancel and rebook? Yes you would lose your deposit but even so you'll still be saving some money.

[kcms4]

i keep thinking thats the way to go about it but if you take the price it is now and add the free stuff and the deposit you will lose it will be a little over £200 its the deposit money thats stopping me from doing it.

[villauk]

The only problem that we, in the UK, have is that Royal have blocked us from accessing the USA site. I am currently working on a way to get past this!

 

If you have problems after trying the above link from Andrew9999, just go onto any US TA's website and enter the cruises that you are interested in booking. It will give you the exact pricing as they all have to charge the same in the States - no one is allowed to undercut Royal unless it's a TA group booking. The only thing that will be different is the perks they offer, however if it's only pricing you want, you can obtain that easily. Remember, taxes and fees are additional costs (not shown in the price like in the UK).

 

There is also a website that we can't name on here that lists prices of every cruise for comparison purposes. You can see instantly the difference in pricing from the UK to USA; on many sailings, it will be exactly the same amount e.g. £600 and $600 (obviously, the dollars being the better deal ;)).

 

 

kcms4,

 

Have you tried asking for an upgrade? It may be worth a try if you don't want to cancel and re-book. You'll need to go through your UK TA (request a conference call so that you can also be on the telephone at the same time as your TA - no misunderstandings then ;)).

[Essexlass2]

i keep thinking thats the way to go about it but if you take the price it is now and add the free stuff and the deposit you will lose it will be a little over £200 its the deposit money thats stopping me from doing it.

 

We are in a similar position and they wouldn't even offer us an upgrade on the accommodation, absolutely nothing. We will be booking through a US TA in future that's for sure.

[PORT ROYAL]

The only problem that we, in the UK, have is that Royal have blocked us from accessing the USA site. I am currently working on a way to get past this!

 

Download TUNNELBEAR. - http://www.tunnelbear.com

Switch to USA and your destination is tricked into accepting your computer is in the USA:D

[kcms4]

this cruise is only my third all with rci if i book next time i will try through a ta in the usa why things have to be so different i don't know it just causes people to think they are getting ripped off. when cruising it costs a lot for the average family of four to afford especially as we have to go in the school holidays so all i wont is to feel like we are getting value for money.

[drey_p]

Try this:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/home.do?wuc=USA

 

Andrew.

 

Thanks very much for that Andrew - I can now view the Royal USA website... but the moment I try to book it takes me back to the UK site. I really wish that they just let us book wherever we wanted instead of forcing us to use the UK site. If I was able to deal with a UK call centre, it probably wouldn't be such an issue.

 

 

If you have problems after trying the above link from Andrew9999, just go onto any US TA's website and enter the cruises that you are interested in booking. It will give you the exact pricing as they all have to charge the same in the States - no one is allowed to undercut Royal unless it's a TA group booking. The only thing that will be different is the perks they offer, however if it's only pricing you want, you can obtain that easily. Remember, taxes and fees are additional costs (not shown in the price like in the UK).

 

There is also a website that we can't name on here that lists prices of every cruise for comparison purposes. You can see instantly the difference in pricing from the UK to USA; on many sailings, it will be exactly the same amount e.g. £600 and $600 (obviously, the dollars being the better deal ;)).

 

Thanks very much for all those tips. It's a real pity that you can't provide the name of the site! What I did find interesting is that, based on the quick look I did, the RCI USA worked out more expensive than the UK site. Interesting....

 

Download TUNNELBEAR. - www.tunnelbear.com

Switch to USA and your destination is tricked into accepting your computer is in the USA:D

 

I was looking up VPN options - but that is great - it's free!! I like free stuff. It works brilliantly! Thanks very much

[drey_p]

i sent a hand written letter got a reply the other day again saying as you have booked though the uk office, our terms and conditions are applicable.please accept our apologies for any disappointment. i am confident that despite this situation, you will have a thoroughly enjoyable cruise with us, we look forward to welcome you and your family onboard.

yeh right ahhhhhhhhhhhh

 

I am not sure if it will apply going through a travel agent, but the Royal Caribbean UK booking T&Cs do state that they will honour price drops.

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.co.uk/_images/WW16_114-129_TCs_UK_tcm16-11237.pdf

 

1.9 WILL THE PRICE CHANGE?

We reserve the right to increase or decrease the prices of unsold holidays at any time. The price of your chosen holiday will be confirmed

in accordance with section 1.2 above. Once the price of your chosen holiday has been confirmed at the time of booking, then subject to the

correction of errors, we will only increase or decrease the price in the following circumstances: Price increases or decreases after booking will be passed on by way of a surcharge or refund. A surcharge or refund (as applicable) will be payable, subject to the conditions set out in this clause, if transportation costs or dues, taxes or fees payable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports or airports increase or decrease or our costs increase or decrease as a result of any adverse or favourable changes in the exchange rates which have been used to calculate the cost of your holiday. Even in the above cases, only if the amount of the increase in our costs exceeds 2% of the total cost of your holiday (excluding any amendment charges), will we levy a surcharge. If any surcharge is greater than 10% of the cost of your holiday (excluding any amendment charges), you will be entitled to choose one of options (a), (b) and © as set out in section 5.5. You have 14 days from the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice to tell us if you want to choose option (b) or © as set out in section 5.5. If you do not tell us that you wish to choose either of these options within this period of time, we are entitled to assume that you do not wish to do so and will pay the surcharge. Any surcharge must be paid with the balance of the cost of the holiday or within 14 days of the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice, whichever is the later. We promise not to levy a surcharge within 30 days of the start of your holiday.

Please note: that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of

your holiday travel due to contractual and other protection in place. A refund will only be payable if the decrease in our costs exceeds 2% as

set out above. Where a refund is due, we will pay you the full amount of the decrease in our costs. We reserve the right to correct errors in both

advertised and confirmed prices. We will do so as soon as we become aware of the error. Please note: changes and errors occasionally occur. You

must check the price of your chosen holiday at the time of booking. Please note: any changes you make to your booking may result in a change in

price explained in section 1.11 below.

 

I copied and pasted the entire section and highlighted in red the bit I think applies to your case. I am sure that someone will correct me if I am barking up the wrong tree.

[londongal796]

I am not sure if it will apply going through a travel agent, but the Royal Caribbean UK booking T&Cs do state that they will honour price drops.

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.co.uk/_images/WW16_114-129_TCs_UK_tcm16-11237.pdf

 

1.9 WILL THE PRICE CHANGE?

We reserve the right to increase or decrease the prices of unsold holidays at any time. The price of your chosen holiday will be confirmed

in accordance with section 1.2 above. Once the price of your chosen holiday has been confirmed at the time of booking, then subject to the

correction of errors, we will only increase or decrease the price in the following circumstances: Price increases or decreases after booking will be passed on by way of a surcharge or refund. A surcharge or refund (as applicable) will be payable, subject to the conditions set out in this clause, if transportation costs or dues, taxes or fees payable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports or airports increase or decrease or our costs increase or decrease as a result of any adverse or favourable changes in the exchange rates which have been used to calculate the cost of your holiday. Even in the above cases, only if the amount of the increase in our costs exceeds 2% of the total cost of your holiday (excluding any amendment charges), will we levy a surcharge. If any surcharge is greater than 10% of the cost of your holiday (excluding any amendment charges), you will be entitled to choose one of options (a), (b) and © as set out in section 5.5. You have 14 days from the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice to tell us if you want to choose option (b) or © as set out in section 5.5. If you do not tell us that you wish to choose either of these options within this period of time, we are entitled to assume that you do not wish to do so and will pay the surcharge. Any surcharge must be paid with the balance of the cost of the holiday or within 14 days of the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice, whichever is the later. We promise not to levy a surcharge within 30 days of the start of your holiday.

Please note: that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of

your holiday travel due to contractual and other protection in place. A refund will only be payable if the decrease in our costs exceeds 2% as

set out above. Where a refund is due, we will pay you the full amount of the decrease in our costs. We reserve the right to correct errors in both

advertised and confirmed prices. We will do so as soon as we become aware of the error. Please note: changes and errors occasionally occur. You

must check the price of your chosen holiday at the time of booking. Please note: any changes you make to your booking may result in a change in

price explained in section 1.11 below.

 

I copied and pasted the entire section and highlighted in red the bit I think applies to your case. I am sure that someone will correct me if I am barking up the wrong tree.

 

This is the information which I used to insist that a price drop be honoured on my booking. That was the 'magic line' that got them to agree to 'look into it', and about 10minutes later the price drop had been applied to my cruise booking and we saved just over £200pp.

 

I then used that information to (attempt) to argue that I should not have lost my OBC booking bonus as this was due to the fact we booked early, and was not related to the rate we paid. I did this by email. I wasn't successful but again I quoted the above, and this is part of their response from RC:

The policy that is detailed in our booking terms and conditions 1.9, refers to refunds or surcharges of taxes and other services, not the cruise fare on a reservation.

 

I honestly do not agree that their application of this policy is correct in this instance, as it does NOT state that these increases OR refunds are only applicable on taxes or surcharges, it clearly states that these are BOOKING terms and conditions and regard the "prices of unsold holidays".

 

It worked for me, whether it will work for others, it's hard to say!

Edited April 3, 2014 by londongal796

[nomad098]

A refund will only be payable if the decrease in our costs exceeds 2% as[/i]

set out above. Where a refund is due, we will pay you the full amount of the decrease in our costs.

 

I copied and pasted the entire section and highlighted in red the bit I think applies to your case. I am sure that someone will correct me if I am barking up the wrong tree.

[/font][/font]

 

Unfortunately you are barking up the wrong tree

 

This quote is an explanation of the "package holiday regulations"

 

What RCI and any other holiday company will say is "their costs have not reduced but they have re-priced the holiday to meet market demands"

 

Perfectly legal the UK

 

Damon

[drey_p]

Unfortunately you are barking up the wrong tree

 

This quote is an explanation of the "package holiday regulations"

 

What RCI and any other holiday company will say is "their costs have not reduced but they have re-priced the holiday to meet market demands"

 

Perfectly legal the UK

 

Damon

 

Cool - thanks for clarifying that - I was really hoping it was something we would be able to use.

 

So, open question to everyone. RCI says that the UK T&Cs don't allow them to honour price drops. Could anyone actually point out where is says that they don't?

[abo]

Cool - thanks for clarifying that - I was really hoping it was something we would be able to use.

 

So, open question to everyone. RCI says that the UK T&Cs don't allow them to honour price drops. Could anyone actually point out where is says that they don't?

 

 

Unfortunately you need to consider this the other way around. There is no clause in the T&Cs that compels them to honour price drops, and cancellations/changes all incur costs/penalties stated in the T&Cs, so it at RCI's discretion whether to honour price drops, waive cancellation fees, etc, hence why we see inconsistency in the success of UK cruisers getting price drops.

 

If you look at Disney (as an example only) their UK T&Cs specifically state you can cancel without penalty, make changes, etc. I haven't seen the RCI US T&Cs but I'd hazard a guess that similar clauses are included. These conditions are missing from RCI UK T&Cs

[champagnebarfly]

We booked our upcoming cruise last April and at first the prices seemed to increase but recently has dropped dramatically. Some people on our Roll call were mentioning it to each other but they were obviously not in the UK. I took a look at the price yesterday and it was almost £800 less than we paid for the same cabin category. So I called (and was put through to Guatemala) and asked if they would honour the price drop. The answer was no, so I asked if I could cancel and re-book. The answer was yes. So that's what I did, we lost the £300 deposit but gained almost £500.We weren't able to combine the C&A balcony discount with the $200 on-board credit that is being offered now which was a shame but we are still in pocket.

[Folk Singer]

We booked our upcoming cruise last April and at first the prices seemed to increase but recently has dropped dramatically. Some people on our Roll call were mentioning it to each other but they were obviously not in the UK. I took a look at the price yesterday and it was almost £800 less than we paid for the same cabin category. So I called (and was put through to Guatemala) and asked if they would honour the price drop. The answer was no, so I asked if I could cancel and re-book. The answer was yes. So that's what I did, we lost the £300 deposit but gained almost £500.We weren't able to combine the C&A balcony discount with the $200 on-board credit that is being offered now which was a shame but we are still in pocket.

 

 

good for you.

[Essexlass2]

This is the information which I used to insist that a price drop be honoured on my booking. That was the 'magic line' that got them to agree to 'look into it', and about 10minutes later the price drop had been applied to my cruise booking and we saved just over £200pp.

 

I then used that information to (attempt) to argue that I should not have lost my OBC booking bonus as this was due to the fact we booked early, and was not related to the rate we paid. I did this by email. I wasn't successful but again I quoted the above, and this is part of their response from RC:

 

 

I honestly do not agree that their application of this policy is correct in this instance, as it does NOT state that these increases OR refunds are only applicable on taxes or surcharges, it clearly states that these are BOOKING terms and conditions and regard the "prices of unsold holidays".

 

It worked for me, whether it will work for others, it's hard to say!

 

 

I found this same info in the RCI T&Cs last night and if the customer services in Guatemala are as inefficient as has been said here on CC, quoting the 2% and being very confident just might work. Its worth a try for sure. Either that or we will cancel and rebook at the lower price.

[yolanda1]

We booked our upcoming cruise last April and at first the prices seemed to increase but recently has dropped dramatically. Some people on our Roll call were mentioning it to each other but they were obviously not in the UK. I took a look at the price yesterday and it was almost £800 less than we paid for the same cabin category. So I called (and was put through to Guatemala) and asked if they would honour the price drop. The answer was no, so I asked if I could cancel and re-book. The answer was yes. So that's what I did, we lost the £300 deposit but gained almost £500.We weren't able to combine the C&A balcony discount with the $200 on-board credit that is being offered now which was a shame but we are still in pocket.

 

 

 

We had a similar experience a few years back when our price for a 7 day cruise dropped by a whopping great £1,100. We had booked via a Travel Agent (lesson learned there, we always book direct now to maintain control over our booking and any resulting problems or concerns), therefore RCI refused to discuss anything with us.

 

The TA was reluctant to push hard for the Price Drop as they hadn't even heard of the RCI Price Promise until we gave them a printed copy of it, and obviously didn't want to rock the boat, so to speak. We eventually had no alternative but to cancel and re-book immediately to ensure we still had the same Suite. We lost the $300 deposit, but still saved £800. In my experience, the Price Promise is worth nothing in the UK.

[abo]

We had a similar experience a few years back when our price for a 7 day cruise dropped by a whopping great £1,100. We had booked via a Travel Agent (lesson learned there, we always book direct now to maintain control over our booking and any resulting problems or concerns), therefore RCI refused to discuss anything with us.

 

The TA was reluctant to push hard for the Price Drop as they hadn't even heard of the RCI Price Promise until we gave them a printed copy of it, and obviously didn't want to rock the boat, so to speak. We eventually had no alternative but to cancel and re-book immediately to ensure we still had the same Suite. We lost the $300 deposit, but still saved £800. In my experience, the Price Promise is worth nothing in the UK.

 

 

Please don't take this the wrong way as I'm really not being argumentative, but what is the 'Price Promise' you are referring to?

 

I can see that some UK cruisers have had some success quoting the 2% clause in the T&Cs, and kudos to them for getting a price drop using this, but I suspect that is more due them striking lucky by getting a person at RCI who doesn't understand the clause agreeing the drop. (This, of course, could still make it worthwhile having a go if you see the price falling).

 

However, the wording doesn't mention matching a price drop at all, it states that if RCI's costs (note they carefully use "our costs" not "our cruise price") fall (or rise!) by 2% or more, this can be passed on to the customer. So, for example, if port charges incurred by RCI change, these will be passed on (assuming the 2% threshold has been passed). This is very different to the US style price match.

[drey_p]

Any ideas why, in the UK, we don't have a price drop policy like our fellow cruisers in the USA?