Booking next cruise onboard

[aprilfool7999]

Hi all you lovely cruisers,

 

First time poster here. Sorry in advance if I am not doing this right but hope to get some help on booking my next next holiday :p.

 

I will be on RC Explorer of the Seas in Feb 16, heading to wonderful NZ (can't wait) and greedy little me spotted a good deal for the re position cruise for the Ovation of the Seas (Jan 17) and now can't decide if I should take advantage of the deal now or wait til I am onboard. Can some kind soul who have recently been on RC in AUS/NZ let me know what the perks are for booking on board please? I vaguely recall on my last cruise on Radiance they have BOGOHO AND OBC for next cruise AND OBC (think it was $100) for use on current cruise, is this deal still available?

 

The deal I spotted online today is BOGOHO and $300 OBC.

 

Do you think I can book it now and if I spot a better deal onboard, call my TA to cancel and then rebook onboard? (Very sneaky of me but every penny counts, no?)

 

Thank you for any assistance.

 

Happy New Year :)

 

Shirley

[ozziepost]

You have got to be a bit careful with this. If you book a trip before you go and then find a better deal for the same trip on board you need to be aware of the cancellation policy of both the cruise line and your travel agent. If you find a better deal when you board the ship and can cancel the trip you have already booked without any penalty then that's fine.

 

With a recent trip we booked I thought I had a fair deal whereas if I had waited another week and booked the same trip I would have saved myself quite a few hundred dollars. If I had cancelled and rebooked the trip I would have faced a 75% cancellation fee. As it turns out I still feel I got a reasonable deal and in the end that's just the luck of the draw.

 

With Princess we are in the habit of buying a future cruise deposit which includes on board credit. This credit can be combined with any other incentive the cruise line or travel may offer as well.

 

 

 

It pays to be aware of the market value of the trip and its really a case of if you think you have got a good deal go for it.

[aprilfool7999]

Oh, good point. Thanks ozziepost ☺

[lilly4350]

Hi all you lovely cruisers,

 

First time poster here. Sorry in advance if I am not doing this right but hope to get some help on booking my next next holiday :p.

 

I will be on RC Explorer of the Seas in Feb 16, heading to wonderful NZ (can't wait) and greedy little me spotted a good deal for the re position cruise for the Ovation of the Seas (Jan 17) and now can't decide if I should take advantage of the deal now or wait til I am onboard. Can some kind soul who have recently been on RC in AUS/NZ let me know what the perks are for booking on board please? I vaguely recall on my last cruise on Radiance they have BOGOHO AND OBC for next cruise AND OBC (think it was $100) for use on current cruise, is this deal still available?

 

The deal I spotted online today is BOGOHO and $300 OBC.

 

Do you think I can book it now and if I spot a better deal onboard, call my TA to cancel and then rebook onboard? (Very sneaky of me but every penny counts, no?)

 

Thank you for any assistance.

 

Happy New Year :)

 

Shirley

 

Most travel agents and cruise lines in Australia have severe cancellation fees. The only advantages to booking while on a cruise with RCL are less deposit (usually $100) and possibly OBC. Having said the "less deposit" our TA charges us an extra couple of hundred $$ when we transfer the booking to them.

[rkmw]

Most travel agents and cruise lines in Australia have severe cancellation fees. The only advantages to booking while on a cruise with RCL are less deposit (usually $100) and possibly OBC. Having said the "less deposit" our TA charges us an extra couple of hundred $$ when we transfer the booking to them.

 

if you book onboard are you allowed to cancel out before final payment has been made and not be penalised

 

i'm comparing it with princess because if you buy an FCC (future cruise credit) for $100 that is your deposit for your cruise up to 49 days plus the perks you get that go with it but your allowed to cancel out for any reason as long as final payment has not been made

 

you dont have to book onboard to get the FCC so you can go home and get different quotes and book with who you like but they are only good for 2 years but can be extended another 2 years

[lilly4350]

if you book onboard are you allowed to cancel out before final payment has been made and not be penalised

 

i'm comparing it with princess because if you buy an FCC (future cruise credit) for $100 that is your deposit for your cruise up to 49 days plus the perks you get that go with it but your allowed to cancel out for any reason as long as final payment has not been made

 

you dont have to book onboard to get the FCC so you can go home and get different quotes and book with who you like but they are only good for 2 years but can be extended another 2 years

 

On RCL you can do an "open" future booking. That is, you pay the $100 deposit but not actually book a specific cruise. Then when you see the cruise and price you like, you use your FCC to book it.

 

Technically, if you paid $100 deposit on a specific cruise and then cancelled it later, you would only be out of pocket the $100. Unless there is a cancellation clause and penalty. They should be able to tell you when you are on board regarding this.

[wotaripper]

Hi all you lovely cruisers,

 

First time poster here. Sorry in advance if I am not doing this right but hope to get some help on booking my next next holiday :p.

 

I will be on RC Explorer of the Seas in Feb 16, heading to wonderful NZ (can't wait) and greedy little me spotted a good deal for the re position cruise for the Ovation of the Seas (Jan 17) and now can't decide if I should take advantage of the deal now or wait til I am onboard. Can some kind soul who have recently been on RC in AUS/NZ let me know what the perks are for booking on board please? I vaguely recall on my last cruise on Radiance they have BOGOHO AND OBC for next cruise AND OBC (think it was $100) for use on current cruise, is this deal still available?

 

The deal I spotted online today is BOGOHO and $300 OBC.

 

Do you think I can book it now and if I spot a better deal onboard, call my TA to cancel and then rebook onboard? (Very sneaky of me but every penny counts, no?)

 

Thank you for any assistance.

 

Happy New Year :)

 

Shirley

We where on voyager two weeks ago and booked a cruise on board we got reduced deposit of $250 for a balcony on 18 night cruise to Hawaii $300 onboard credit for new cruise and $250 onboard credit on the cruise we where on it was automatically transferred to our TA no charge and we can change cruises at any time with no penalty and the price was cheaper than what was offered online and by our TA.

[aprilfool7999]

We where on voyager two weeks ago and booked a cruise on board we got reduced deposit of $250 for a balcony on 18 night cruise to Hawaii $300 onboard credit for new cruise and $250 onboard credit on the cruise we where on it was automatically transferred to our TA no charge and we can change cruises at any time with no penalty and the price was cheaper than what was offered online and by our TA.

 

Thanks to everyone who replied and in particular to wotaripper :) What a great deal you got.

 

I checked with my TA (who I think is the most awesome TA in the world) and she checked with RC that I can cancel my booking with her at anytime with full refund. She is totally cool with me booking the New Year Deal with her now and get the $300 OBC but if the deal is better on board, she will cancel it for us so we can rebook onboard. I will be forwarding my booking to her anyway so it is a Win-Win for all. I guess it will depend if the BOGOHO is still running when we board EOTS, if so a few hundred dollars to spend on EOTS would be great as we didn't get any with this trip.

 

I have booked several holiday through her and I trust her completely so I have went ahead and book it, so Ovation of the Seas, I will see you in Jan 17. Woohoo!!! :D