RCCL MBNA Visa bonus opportunities?

[IMNiles]

Hi there.. Just got my RCCL Visa, and the program rules note that there "may" be bonus earning or spending opportunities from time to time. Can anyone who actually has the card comment on whether this has ever happened, and what they were? (other than the standard double-points-for-rccl-charges of course).. Thanks!

[cd-tk]

I've had the card about 8 months and have never seen anything on bonus oppertunities besides double for rccl.

[cruiseseeker]

I have had my card for about three years and have not seen any bonus ops either. I have accum. enough for a 3-4 night cruise. I'm not sure if I'll try for the almight free seven nighter or not. Not sure if I could do it before the points expire. :)

[mousy56]

I've had the card for 3 years and never been offered any bonus. Got the free 7 nighter.

[cruiseseeker]

I've had the card for 3 years and never been offered any bonus. Got the free 7 nighter.

 

Any trouble with using your free cruise? Any hidden costs or fees? It was free for two correct?

[TxKroozer]

We are approaching points for the free 7 nighter and I too would like to here your process for claiming this and selecting the cruise date and room selection. I am sure it was for lowest interior rate, but those are likely always gone.

[capnlars]

Can you upgrade the free room for $$?

[Slam308]

Info on the card is on the RC website. It does state you have to book directly through RC, but the C&A rep told my TA that is not true. The coupon must be applied within 6 months (before final payment). You must have 125,000 points on your statement. Not on the account, it has to be on your monthly statement before you can call for the coupon.

You receive one point for every dollar (excluding cash advances, etc.) and you receive 2 points per dollar for any purchase that involves RC. This includes deposits, shipboard purchases and accounts and purchases from RC for other people. Example, I sent my Mom strawberries and champagne on her cruise and got double point for that purchase.

 

I'm cheating, I copied the above from a previous post I made. The free cruise is for two for an outside cabin (balcony). The coupon is basically for $2500 off your cruise, so if you want to upgrade to a suite, etc. You just pay the difference in the price.

I too have had the card for 3 years and have never seen any additional bonuses or offers. Considering that we're pairing our free cruise with another for our first back to back, I'm pretty darn happy with the card!!

[mousy56]

Hey again. You know we didn't get a balcony room..RCCL told us that we could only book an outside (window) cabin or pay extra for the balcony. We are on the 7th deck and have number 7000..right up front. Should be interesting.

I looked up what cruise I was interested in on travelocity..then called RCCL to book it. They booked the cruise and gave me the number to call to get the coupon from MBNA. When the coupon arrived..about 1 week.. I called RCCL back to give them the coupon number then mailed it to RCCL. No extra fees or hidden fees. I thought it was pretty easy.

YES, the cruise is for two! :-)

[kenandlaura06]

We have had the card for 6 months and have earned almost 15,000 points...we will cash them in for some onboard coupons for our cruise in July, and then hopefully begin earning more points toward a free cruise!

[Slam308]

Mousy,

That's really strange. Maybe because we'd booked the balcony first and then called, received and applied the coupon? If you're interested in a balcony, maybe you can call and see if they'll switch your booking. If you've never done it, balconies are awesome!!!

Hate to say it, but if it wasn't good for a balcony cabin, we'd probably just get coupons for $$ off. DH won't do anything but....

[mousy56]

Hi,

I was looking at the rules page and it says outside stateroom..meaning an outside with a window. For 25,000 points it says upgrade from outside stateroom to balcony stateroom.

Slam did you have to pay anything other than the taxes? I did call about 3 weeks ago to see about an upgrade but they are full..the gal just said to keep trying. We have had a balcony before and it was nice, but we really don't spend alot of time in our cabin.

We will be on Serenade of the Seas feb. 25th, 2006

michelle

[Slam308]

I just dropped the coupon off at the TA's yesterday, so I haven't gotten a final bill for that cruise. I've heard you only pay taxes and fees (port charges). I'll let you know when I get our new confirmation sheet.

[mousy56]

Hi again Slam. We had to pay $50.10 for taxes. Did you find out if your cabin is a balcony?

Michelle

[Slam308]

Mousy,

Well before we had the coupon we'd booked a hump balcony. 6618, to be exact. That's why I don't understand their telling you the coupon is for ocean view only. We're using our coupon (through a TA) for that cabin with no questions asked. From my understanding, the coupon is worth $2500 on our 2 person booking, regardless of cabin. They do specify ocean view(?), but we booked a balcony with no problems. Lol, I figured you can certainly view the ocean from our balcony!