Interesting phone call with a X Rep

[happyscmom]

Background: I booked my late March cruise on Reflection in December during the 123Go special. I booked Veranda because I couldn't afford higher, at the prices then, so I only got the drink package. Fine. I was happy with that. A few weeks ago I noticed that the price had dropped and called to see if I could upgrade my stateroom to Concierge or Aqua. I was told that if I did I would lose my drink package because it was after the final payment. They said it would be like canceling and rebooking under the current promotion, which was cheaper prices but no package. I said, "NO" and kept my veranda. So, last week they brought back the 123, so I called back to upgrade. I was told that I could upgrade my room to Aqua (paying them a bit more money), but I would NOT get all 3 promotions, as concierge and aqua class do, because it was after the final payment and I had booked with only ONE promotion. ??? This seemed weird, but I said fine, paid the money, and upgraded.

 

Now, on to my conversation yesterday. After reading here about a lot of people moving categories and talking to a friend who is a travel agent, I called back last night. I went through the question again, and was given the same answer about not getting all three promotions. She was VERY nice, but explained that it simply could not be done. I finally said, "So, let me understand this. Anyway I upgraded, I was going to lose. When you weren't offering the promotion, I was going to lose it because you were not longer offering it. When you are offering the promotion, I can no longer get it because I didn't book it originally." She said, "Essentially, yes." She said that the best thing that I could have done was to book it through a travel agent in the beginning. She said, "I usually work on the travel agent side, and you would have been given all three had you booked through a travel agent. A travel agent is there to fight for you, and Celebrity wants to keep the TAs happy." Again, I have NO complaints about the customer service agents I have talked to on the phone, they were just doing their job, but I certainly have learned a lesson.

 

Despite this, I am happy overall with the deal that I have, and I am excited about my cruise (so no flames or sarcastic comments, please), but I think the lesson about booking through a TA is one that should be shared with others!

[OhioDogLover]

Wow -- the Celebrity booking process makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. I wish they would do something about it. I understand Princess' process fairly well, but X, it's a mystery.

 

Ohiodoglover

[rockdoctor]

That's why I use TA's. I don't get as much OBC as some posters report, but she has gotten me a lot of intangibles.

[music]

Why don't you transfer you reservation to a TA and get the 123 promo?

[happyscmom]

Why don't you transfer you reservation to a TA and get the 123 promo?

 

I would, but you can't after the final payment. Basically, if you don't use a TA, after the final payment they have you! :)

[hulamoon]

Did she just say the TA's will fight for you, but your Celebrity reps won't?

 

There are agencies that offer this frequently, but they have very big cancelation fees and switch your booking fees. It's an awesome choice for those who rarely have work or family related changes.

 

I am waiting for someone who booked on board to say they lost or kept their benefits. We were told bookimgs on board would always keep them even when moving categories or ships, as long as it is a standard rate.

[huskerc]

For reference, I have a March cruise on the reflection that we originally booked in concierge without 1-2-3 because it was a special deal. We're after final payment, but prices dropped to the point that it made sense to pay the full fare as long as we could get the 1-2-3 all-in promo.

 

Working through my TA, Celebrity OK'd this without an issue. For $125 we went from C2 to A1 and added all 1-2-3 promo perks.

 

I suspect you could get this even without having used a TA--it's just a matter of calling back enough times to get the right person at X.

[miched]

if you cancel a cruise after final payment you lose a large portion of the cost if not all.

 

If you book thru X you have 60 days to transfer it to a TA.

 

If you read the fine print it always reads for new bookings only, most times they ignore that but it is there.

 

There is also the * that reads promo applies to certain fare rates and many times a lower rate does not qualify for the promo.

 

Sometimes a TA will also have a block that still contains the perks that you can get thru them also at the old rate.. I booked the Mardi Gras cruise and all CC and above are sold out. The balcony rates are now higher than what I paid for a AQ1. My TA sent me a message saying that he had some CC cabins available at the old rate for anyone interested, he said that X is requesting them to release those cabins so they can put them back on the market at a higher rate.

 

Happy crusing 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

[Sapphire723]

Did she just say the TA's will fight for you, but your Celebrity reps won't?

 

There are agencies that offer this frequently, but they have very big cancelation fees and switch your booking fees. It's an awesome choice for those who rarely have work or family related changes.

 

I am waiting for someone who booked on board to say they lost or kept their benefits. We were told bookimgs on board would always keep them even when moving categories or ships, as long as it is a standard rate.

 

My TA doesn't charge a cancellation fee or a booking change fee, and she's often able to get things done where Celebrity might have told me no like the OP suggested.

[Sapphire723]

I suspect you could get this even without having used a TA--it's just a matter of calling back enough times to get the right person at X.

 

That's probably true. The big difference being that a TA will do the numerous calls to get you to a yes so you don't have to!

[CathyCruises]

Oooh, when the Celebrity rep reads this, heads will roll!!! But seriously I think you should call again, if you've a mind to. The more calls you make, the better chance you have of getting the answer you're looking for, as often repeated on these boards.

Edited January 22, 2015 by CathyCruises

[happyscmom]

Oooh, when the Celebrity rep reads this, heads will roll!!! But seriously I think you should call again, if you've a mind to. The more calls you make, the better chance you have of getting the answer you're looking for, as often repeated on these boards.

 

I have read this several times -- to keep calling. I have called a few times, though. Yesterday was the first time that the rep seemed to be REALLY trying to help. I was on hold for 21 minutes (she keep coming back and saying she was working on it). She finally just said that she couldn't make a change. She had asked, but was given that response.

[happyscmom]

For reference, I have a March cruise on the reflection that we originally booked in concierge without 1-2-3 because it was a special deal. We're after final payment, but prices dropped to the point that it made sense to pay the full fare as long as we could get the 1-2-3 all-in promo.

 

Working through my TA, Celebrity OK'd this without an issue. For $125 we went from C2 to A1 and added all 1-2-3 promo perks.

 

I suspect you could get this even without having used a TA--it's just a matter of calling back enough times to get the right person at X.

 

I think this proves the point about needing a TA. We were basically trying to do the same thing, but we have been told no again and again. We can keep the beverage, but can't get the other perks. The rep was super nice and she was the one who said that she usually works with TAs and they can get things like this to happen. It sucks for me that I didn't know this. I will say, I never had this problem with Princess.

[ailetoile]

I think this proves the point about needing a TA. We were basically trying to do the same thing, but we have been told no again and again. We can keep the beverage, but can't get the other perks. The rep was super nice and she was the one who said that she usually works with TAs and they can get things like this to happen. It sucks for me that I didn't know this. I will say, I never had this problem with Princess.

 

I'm very sorry to hear about your experience so far :( I don't know if this will actually help you or not, but if you'd like to give it one more shot I can tell you that we were able to adjust my mom and dad's reservation in a fashion similar to what you'd like to do by calling the Celebrity Experience Desk for Concierge Class and higher at 1-800-590-6221.

 

We had tried several times to adjust her reservation with similar results to yours, but when we called that number we were able to speak with a representative who was courteous and able to resolve ALL of our points of concern in a timely fashion. My mom and dad got the whole 123 Go deal by paying a $100/pp fare increase for Concierge Class and they even allowed her to upgrade one of the drink packages without upgrading the other, which to my understanding is a VERY hit or miss thing to attempt.

 

Like I said, I can't promise anything and I know from your previous posts that you are content with your vacation no matter what, but this was the way that we were able to get a really nice resolution to a similar situation.

[DinaS]

I'm very sorry to hear about your experience so far :( I don't know if this will actually help you or not, but if you'd like to give it one more shot I can tell you that we were able to adjust my mom and dad's reservation in a fashion similar to what you'd like to do by calling the Celebrity Experience Desk for Concierge Class and higher at 1-800-590-6221.

 

We had tried several times to adjust her reservation with similar results to yours, but when we called that number we were able to speak with a representative who was courteous and able to resolve ALL of our points of concern in a timely fashion. My mom and dad got the whole 123 Go deal by paying a $100/pp fare increase for Concierge Class and they even allowed her to upgrade one of the drink packages without upgrading the other, which to my understanding is a VERY hit or miss thing to attempt.

 

Like I said, I can't promise anything and I know from your previous posts that you are content with your vacation no matter what, but this was the way that we were able to get a really nice resolution to a similar situation.

 

Was this change accomplished before or after the final payment date? I think that's the key factor.

[ailetoile]

Was this change accomplished before or after the final payment date? I think that's the key factor.

 

This change was accomplished for a March cruise after final payment!

[chamima]

My TA doesn't charge a cancellation fee or a booking change fee, and she's often able to get things done where Celebrity might have told me no like the OP suggested.

 

I don't know if I have the same TA as you but ours also has gotten things done for us when the cruise line says no.

She also charges NO extra fees and always gives us a nice OBC when sailing (not a bottle of wine or something small like that ).

I got her name from another very frequent cruiser at a Meet and Greet years ago. She's available by phone and/or email and seems to work 25 hours a day.

 

She is constantly winning awards from the cruise lines for being a top agent .

[upwarduk]

I had a email yesterday informing me that all 3 perks can be booked on balcony cabins and above until February 1st.

[DinaS]

This change was accomplished for a March cruise after final payment!

 

It never ceases to amaze me that Celebrity reps are all over the place when it comes to getting something done over the phone.

 

You can call 3 times and get 3 completely different stories.

 

It's ridiculous.

 

It's not customer service - it's customer DISSERVICE!

[villauk]

I had a email yesterday informing me that all 3 perks can be booked on balcony cabins and above until February 1st.

 

Isn't that only for Alaska and Europe?

[Flatbush Flyer]

Background: I booked my late March cruise on Reflection in December during the 123Go special. I booked Veranda because I couldn't afford higher, at the prices then, so I only got the drink package. Fine. I was happy with that. A few weeks ago I noticed that the price had dropped and called to see if I could upgrade my stateroom to Concierge or Aqua. I was told that if I did I would lose my drink package because it was after the final payment. They said it would be like canceling and rebooking under the current promotion, which was cheaper prices but no package. I said, "NO" and kept my veranda. So, last week they brought back the 123, so I called back to upgrade. I was told that I could upgrade my room to Aqua (paying them a bit more money), but I would NOT get all 3 promotions, as concierge and aqua class do, because it was after the final payment and I had booked with only ONE promotion. ??? This seemed weird, but I said fine, paid the money, and upgraded.

 

 

 

Now, on to my conversation yesterday. After reading here about a lot of people moving categories and talking to a friend who is a travel agent, I called back last night. I went through the question again, and was given the same answer about not getting all three promotions. She was VERY nice, but explained that it simply could not be done. I finally said, "So, let me understand this. Anyway I upgraded, I was going to lose. When you weren't offering the promotion, I was going to lose it because you were not longer offering it. When you are offering the promotion, I can no longer get it because I didn't book it originally." She said, "Essentially, yes." She said that the best thing that I could have done was to book it through a travel agent in the beginning. She said, "I usually work on the travel agent side, and you would have been given all three had you booked through a travel agent. A travel agent is there to fight for you, and Celebrity wants to keep the TAs happy." Again, I have NO complaints about the customer service agents I have talked to on the phone, they were just doing their job, but I certainly have learned a lesson.

 

 

 

Despite this, I am happy overall with the deal that I have, and I am excited about my cruise (so no flames or sarcastic comments, please), but I think the lesson about booking through a TA is one that should be shared with others!

 

Adjustments after final payment is one of the most significant values using a TA. But, folks should do a little research to find out if the TA(s) they are considering is/are a top producer for the desired cruise line.

One of our preferred TAs is a top ten producer for our preferred line and got us a large refund on a special discount where it was questionable if we qualified.

Also, don't fall for the Personal Vacation Planner concept.

They work for the cruise line more than they work for you.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[happyscmom]

I'm very sorry to hear about your experience so far :( I don't know if this will actually help you or not, but if you'd like to give it one more shot I can tell you that we were able to adjust my mom and dad's reservation in a fashion similar to what you'd like to do by calling the Celebrity Experience Desk for Concierge Class and higher at 1-800-590-6221.

 

We had tried several times to adjust her reservation with similar results to yours, but when we called that number we were able to speak with a representative who was courteous and able to resolve ALL of our points of concern in a timely fashion. My mom and dad got the whole 123 Go deal by paying a $100/pp fare increase for Concierge Class and they even allowed her to upgrade one of the drink packages without upgrading the other, which to my understanding is a VERY hit or miss thing to attempt.

 

Like I said, I can't promise anything and I know from your previous posts that you are content with your vacation no matter what, but this was the way that we were able to get a really nice resolution to a similar situation.

 

So...I just called back. The first person I spoke to indicated that I could pay $100 more (total) and get all three. I said SURE! THEN another person came on the line to say that I could not. I expressed my frustration and they "escalated my call" and transferred me to a supervisor. She was VERY nice and said she would "note" my complaint, but that this was an absolute rule and they could not add the others. So....no go. Calling back didn't work. Boo hiss.... I am now moving on and just content to be excited about the cruise in general! I know it will be fun!

[need2bespoiled]

I had a email yesterday informing me that all 3 perks can be booked on balcony cabins and above until February 1st.

 

This is only Europe and Alaska.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[need2bespoiled]

I'm very sorry to hear about your experience so far :( I don't know if this will actually help you or not, but if you'd like to give it one more shot I can tell you that we were able to adjust my mom and dad's reservation in a fashion similar to what you'd like to do by calling the Celebrity Experience Desk for Concierge Class and higher at 1-800-590-6221.

 

We had tried several times to adjust her reservation with similar results to yours, but when we called that number we were able to speak with a representative who was courteous and able to resolve ALL of our points of concern in a timely fashion. My mom and dad got the whole 123 Go deal by paying a $100/pp fare increase for Concierge Class and they even allowed her to upgrade one of the drink packages without upgrading the other, which to my understanding is a VERY hit or miss thing to attempt.

 

Like I said, I can't promise anything and I know from your previous posts that you are content with your vacation no matter what, but this was the way that we were able to get a really nice resolution to a similar situation.

 

It is VERY easy to upgrade one drink package and not the other. It can be done at ANY bar onboard, guest services, etc. the fill out a slip and stick a sticker on the seapass card. $11.50 per person, per day from the day you to it until the end of the cruise. This has been the price since day one.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[Hlitner]

The OP just points out one reason (of many) why we have often suggested that folks shop around among reputable cruise/travel agents for the best deal. The only time, in recent memory, that we booked direct with any cruise line was about 2 years ago when w did a future cruise booking on a Celebrity Cruise. Our motivation was they had the 1-2-3 promotion and we had the ability to grab a "hump" balcony. When we booked we only had the choice between the amenities and opted for the drink package. We then immediately had our booking transferred to one of our favorite cruise agencies and e-mailed the agency that they were getting our booking...but we wanted pre-paid gratuities added to the mix (paid by the cruise agency). Not only did our cruise agent tack on the gratuities, but they added a few hundred additional OBCs. Bottom line is that one can almost always do a lot better by using agencies.

 

Hank