Heads Up for UK Celebrity Cruisers!

[Project_gal]

Just a quick heads up for anyone cruising soon - Celebrity are offering US$25 for £14.90 at the moments. That is US$1.6778/£1. Current tourist rate [as published by BBC this morning] is US$1.4751/£1.

[sandancer]

Thanks Sue. Do you know if we can still get this if the cruise is booked this time through our American TA? Best regards, Elaine

[downsmead]

You can buy yourself on board credit irrespective of how you have booked your cruise, accessed through on board gifts on the Celebrity website. We have done this previously when we got a much better exchange rate than the bank rate. Celebrity have had this rate a long time (it was the same rate when we did the TA along with Sue). You can buy the credit in blocks of up to 9 at a time, but can then do a repeat purchase.

Thanks Sue, we are doing the Panama Canal in April :).

[gosport11]

that is a good rate,my next celeb cruise is in Dec 2016 so I will decline the offer :):)

[Guernseycruiser]

Please come back and report if it is possible having booked through a US TA. We have bought USD through the gits section when booking through a UK TA, however all the times we have tried when using a US TA, the system would not allow this. It thinks you are from the US and hence paying in USD and not GBP.

[Deely]

that sounds really good, but we have booked our first Celebrity cruise through cruiseco as I believe it's classed as a private cruise so I suspect we wouldn't be able to take this up as apparently the TA's don't pass the passenger info to Celeb until close to sail date? We sail 25th May on Eclipse from S'ton for 5nights

[Project_gal]

I believe that I have read on Cruise Critic that OBC has to be purchased in the currency used for the original booking. So, if you have a US$ booking, anyone buying you a "Gift by Celebrity" has to pay in US$. [i.e. If we bought a bottle of wine for US friends, we would have to pay in US$.] However, I do not have personal experience of this.

[Gordoncruickshank]

I have ma de good use of this. What you don't use get transferred back on to your credit card. If you have a us$ card you keep the exchange rate at $1.677

[downsmead]

Typical, I have just tried to buy some OBC having booked the cruise directly with Celebrity and it tells me my booking reference is not recognised :mad:.

I may try ringing Captains Club UK tomorrow if it still does not work. The OBC will be useful for upgrading the drinks package :D.

[ladylemondrop]

Sue, thanks for the heads up! Xxx

[hamrag]

Typical, I have just tried to buy some OBC having booked the cruise directly with Celebrity and it tells me my booking reference is not recognised :mad:.

I may try ringing Captains Club UK tomorrow if it still does not work. The OBC will be useful for upgrading the drinks package :D.

 

Ditto...please let us know how you get on calling X.

Thanks.

[downsmead]

Hamrag - I managed to purchase some OBC about 30 mins ago through the website!! If at first you don't succeed ............... :). No confirming email but that is the norm. Ensure you print out or take a screen shot of your confirmation if you manage to get some via the website.

Good luck.

[Project_gal]

I should have mentioned before [but did not realise that there would be so many new takers for OBC] - you are much better telephoning to purchase OBC. The online process is not fully automated and requires a human to intervene. At times of high demand [ie when the rate is good], orders are processed in order of date of sailing [not online purchase]. You only know the order has gone through when it appears on your credit card which may be a very long time in the future. You should still get the rate in force when you ordered but orders can get lost in the system. If you telephone, it goes through immediately.

 

Celebrity 'phone numbers are a mess these days but, on Saturday, 0844 472 5247 went straight through without going on hold but my husband thought that he got someone in the USA who had to transfer him but at least he was not on hold!

[ladylemondrop]

Yes, Sue is right, I learnt that one the hard way lol!! I didnt see my order processed so kept repeating the purchase, and ended up with quite a lot more OBC than I intended in the end, when they eventually all got processed several weeks later! Seem to recall we spent it quickly enough once onboard anyway...

Its a great rate and a good way to have your spending money sorted in advance.

[alldantia]

It thinks you are from the US and hence paying in USD and not GBP.

[hamrag]

Hamrag - I managed to purchase some OBC about 30 mins ago through the website!! If at first you don't succeed ............... :). No confirming email but that is the norm. Ensure you print out or take a screen shot of your confirmation if you manage to get some via the website.

Good luck.

 

Thank you for taking the time to come back, and well done! Still not doing with me, so will pick up the advice from Sue and call later....thanks also to Sue! What is the rate, it certainly sounds like a "no-brainer"!!

[Yorkshire-Pudding]

that sounds really good, but we have booked our first Celebrity cruise through cruiseco as I believe it's classed as a private cruise so I suspect we wouldn't be able to take this up as apparently the TA's don't pass the passenger info to Celeb until close to sail date? We sail 25th May on Eclipse from S'ton for 5nights

 

I have a booking with the same TA for July 2015 and have had access to my bookings on the Celebrity website. I managed to purchase OBC in September 2014 against my sailing and did so again today. You will have two reference numbers, one for the TA the other for you booking so would recommend that you try again to connect.

 

To Project_gal,

 

Thanks for heads up on currency. I had purchased some OBC last year and the rate is still the same so thanks for the reminder.