Offer of free cruise from Casino Royale? Not so fast...

[copter]

Let me preface this by stating that my wife and I consider ourselves to be loyal RCCL clients and have sailed on approximately 10 cruises with them over the past decade.  Over the past few years, I have taken to gambling a fair bit on their casinos and as such, I frequently receive offers of free cruises from their Casino Royale department. 

 

On my most recent Oasis sailing on October 21, 2018 I was provided an offer for a free balcony cabin (for 2 people) on select future sailings.  On October 30, 2018, I called RCCL to book the January 28, 2019 Harmony sailing and they told me no such offer existed for me and despite giving them all the information from the offer that I had in hand, they refused to book me.  I called on several other occasions over the next month to be told the same thing.  So, given these offers typically need to be booked within 30 days of being presented to you, I was getting just a tad irritated.  As time was running tight, I ended up just booking another sailing on Celebrity for late January instead.

 

I emailed a copy of the offer to multiple employees that I spoke with in hopes they would update my file (as they said they would).  That didn't seem to help.  My request for call-backs from supervisors never happened.  That is, until about a week ago when Ashley W.B. finally called me to obtain more information.  I provided all the info to her and she subsequently has reached a decision to not honor the offer, as it had since expired (despite still having some sailings in the future I may have considered).  I emailed Mr Bayley (I think he's RCCL Executive Vice President) and supposedly that email was forwarded to Daniella in the Executive Offices as I received an email from her saying she would investigate the matter and get back to me.

 

Just today, Daniella contacted me reiterating the Company's position to stand firm on their position that the offer made to me is no longer valid (due to being expired).  She could not answer why I was never given an opportunity to book said offer, but does not dispute the fact that the offer was made to me.

 

So, I would like to seek legal recourse against RCCL and either have the offer extended to me (with a later expiration since the cruise I wanted has since passed) or monetary compensation equal to the prevailing retail rate for said cabin.  I don't think this is an unreasonable request given their agreement that the offer was in fact valid.  The only dispute is surrounding the timing of trying to book said offer.

 

I live in Canada and have no idea where to start, but figured a public forum wasn't a bad place to express my concern.  If for no other reason than to let others know that despite receiving an offer from RCCL, you may not in fact be permitted the opportunity to actually follow through with the booking.  I'm of the opinion that RCCL has been fraudulent in the way they have dealt with my situation and if others have experienced similar treatment, this may not end well for them.

 

Thoughts?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Biker19]

I thought those free offers excluded Harmony. 

[LeeW]

Good luck with that.  They do have restrictions on numbers of bookings for free offers for a particular cruise but sounds more like their system just didn't recognize your offer code as valid when associated with your particular C&A number.  Lawsuit isn't going to go anywhere but you might ask Royale and C&A to check that you don't have two different C&A numbers. 

 

Good point, Biker.  

Edited February 19, 2019 by LeeW
more

[cruisegirl1]

The free cruise offering that is received from casino play  on a cruise generally  expires 30 days  from receiving  the  certificate. ( usually the last day of the sailings)  I understand they are pretty strict for that 30 day window .  It is not any cruise but in fact one  of the cruises listed on  the back of the certificate.  

 

The only advise I can give you is to call Casino Royal  and they should have a record of your play on that cruise and  perhaps see the points and what type of certificate you had.

 

Harmony is not excluded from casino offers.  

 

Good luck

 

M

[Biker19]

48 minutes ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Harmony is not excluded from casino offers.  

I think @John&LaLa reported that his make up cruise from Casino (from 1/6 Oasis noro cruise) excluded Harmony and Symphony.

Edited February 19, 2019 by Biker19

[John&LaLa]

15 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

I think @John&LaLa reported that his make up cruise from Casino (from 1/6 Oasis noro cruise) excluded Harmony and Symphony.

 

Correct, but I dont think that was the norm. Our situation was different anyway.  We were using Laura's annual prime member cruise for Jan 6, 2019, so we just had to replace that one. 

 

Given that we also got some monetary compensation,  I never pressed the issue of Hsrmony and Symphony excluded

[cruisegirl1]

Harmony and Symphony are generally  not excluded for prime cruises or from  casino offers.

M

Edited February 19, 2019 by cruisegirl1

[MikeBTN]

2 hours ago, copter said:

Let me preface this by stating that my wife and I consider ourselves to be loyal RCCL clients and have sailed on approximately 10 cruises with them over the past decade.  Over the past few years, I have taken to gambling a fair bit on their casinos and as such, I frequently receive offers of free cruises from their Casino Royale department. 

 

On my most recent Oasis sailing on October 21, 2018 I was provided an offer for a free balcony cabin (for 2 people) on select future sailings.  On October 30, 2018, I called RCCL to book the January 28, 2019 Harmony sailing and they told me no such offer existed for me and despite giving them all the information from the offer that I had in hand, they refused to book me.  I called on several other occasions over the next month to be told the same thing.  So, given these offers typically need to be booked within 30 days of being presented to you, I was getting just a tad irritated.  As time was running tight, I ended up just booking another sailing on Celebrity for late January instead.

 

I emailed a copy of the offer to multiple employees that I spoke with in hopes they would update my file (as they said they would).  That didn't seem to help.  My request for call-backs from supervisors never happened.  That is, until about a week ago when Ashley W.B. finally called me to obtain more information.  I provided all the info to her and she subsequently has reached a decision to not honor the offer, as it had since expired (despite still having some sailings in the future I may have considered).  I emailed Mr Bayley (I think he's RCCL Executive Vice President) and supposedly that email was forwarded to Daniella in the Executive Offices as I received an email from her saying she would investigate the matter and get back to me.

 

Just today, Daniella contacted me reiterating the Company's position to stand firm on their position that the offer made to me is no longer valid (due to being expired).  She could not answer why I was never given an opportunity to book said offer, but does not dispute the fact that the offer was made to me.

 

So, I would like to seek legal recourse against RCCL and either have the offer extended to me (with a later expiration since the cruise I wanted has since passed) or monetary compensation equal to the prevailing retail rate for said cabin.  I don't think this is an unreasonable request given their agreement that the offer was in fact valid.  The only dispute is surrounding the timing of trying to book said offer.

 

I live in Canada and have no idea where to start, but figured a public forum wasn't a bad place to express my concern.  If for no other reason than to let others know that despite receiving an offer from RCCL, you may not in fact be permitted the opportunity to actually follow through with the booking.  I'm of the opinion that RCCL has been fraudulent in the way they have dealt with my situation and if others have experienced similar treatment, this may not end well for them.

 

Thoughts?

 

 

My initial thought is you're going to waste a lot of time and money trying to get a "free" cruise.

 

But if you decide this is something you want to pursue, you need to seek an attorney in Canada who works in the advertising/marketing litigation space.  Canada probably has good faith advertising laws that may have been violated here. 

But I wouldn't hold my breath on anything happening.  My suggestion is to vote with your wallet - start sailing NCL, MSC, or some other cruise line not owned by RCL.

[Wolffie89]

As someone said above.  The certificate you recieved is not for any cruise you want but for any of the cruises listed on the back of certificate. If you choose not to use on one of the cruise on the back there is a trade in value that can go toward the cruise of your choice. I know the inside certificates have a $500 trade in.  Also I dont believe a regular royal reservation agent can book this which is where the confusion probably was. You needed to call the casino royale number to book.

[lazydayz]

And sometimes the cruises listed are no longer available, even if your certificate includes that particular cruise. You just need to be flexible and pick something else. 

 

You can’t sit on your certificate for months when it has a 30 day life. It sounds like that is what Royal is trying to communicate to you. 

 

Sorry you didn’t get to use your certificate. 

[SunNFunCruzer]

Do you have any proof that you tried to claim the cruise within the 30 day window?  Not a phone record, where anything could have been said, I am referring to a text message or an email asking to redeem the certificate for xx cruise?  AND xx cruise should have been available to you OR you requested to be booked on ANY eligible cruise and they denied your request.  You need to have this information in writing.

 

Without this in writing, it will be difficult to prove; however, almost ALL calls in and out of these call centers are recorded. If you can check your home or cell phone records and tell someone in the Corporate Office EXACTLY what day and time you called to request to "cash in" the offer (WITHIN the 30 day ACTIVE window) AND during that call you were denied the booking, for a reason not explicitly excluded in the written offer you had in your hand, AND were denied the opportunity to book an alternate sailing that was available to you AND you were ready/willing/able to book, then you should be able to shake out a reasonable response (which would be an extension of the 30 days).  I do not believe it is reasonable to expect "cash back" on this offer, under these, or most, circumstances.

 

The above makes a lot of assumptions. But, if those conditions are met, I would escalate to RCCLs legal department with a scanned copy of the certificate and a description of your situation with all affirmative answers to the questions above.

 

This isn't legal advice just my opinion but I hope it helps.  Good luck!  And please keep us posted!

[Thorben-Hendrik]

15 hours ago, copter said:

Thoughts? 

Not going to fly! 🤔👎

[momofmab]

The way I read it, copter DID attempt to book the cruise on several occasions within the 30-day window, only to be given the runaround.  Eventually the 30 days did expire and then Royal used that as an excuse not to honor the offer.

 

I have no experience with Casino Royale, but my complaint would be to them (about Royal's handling of their offers).  Seems silly that they would try so hard NOT to book you on a cruise, when they're giving you the "free" cruise to entice you to spend money in the casino 

 

Unfortunately I don't think you have a legal leg to stand on.  I'm sure there's a myriad of fine print on these offers that allows Royal to book them at their discretion.  I would make a point of letting them know that you're taking your money to another line (not that they care).

[copter]

My money will be going elsewhere in the future - that goes without saying.  I'm just getting a wee bit irritated by companies treating customers like this and this instance is where I've decided to take further action.  Whether I have legal recourse or not remains to be seen, but I'm more than happy to spend the money to find out.  I don't think my demands are at all unreasonable and why they have decided to take this approach is beyond me.  I'll update you if this goes anywhere as I suspect others will benefit from it as well if things work out in my favor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Thorben-Hendrik]

RCI customer service is just bad! 🙄

[Goofyfanatic]

21 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

The free cruise offering that is received from casino play  on a cruise generally  expires 30 days  from receiving  the  certificate. ( usually the last day of the sailings)  I understand they are pretty strict for that 30 day window .  It is not any cruise but in fact one  of the cruises listed on  the back of the certificate.  

 

The only advise I can give you is to call Casino Royal  and they should have a record of your play on that cruise and  perhaps see the points and what type of certificate you had.

 

Harmony is not excluded from casino offers.  

 

Good luck

 

M

 

30 days is correct now (from what I have been told) to book the trip. They used to extend that out but no more.

 

And no ship is exempt for the offers...if you want the free cruise it needs to match the sailings listed (have done Harmony on a freebie) or you can use the corresponding credit on any cruise but need to sail within 12 months (or something like that).

[SunNFunCruzer]

1 hour ago, copter said:

Whether I have legal recourse or not remains to be seen, but I'm more than happy to spend the money to find out.

 

If you're going to pay for a professional opinion, I suggest you take a copy of my post with you.

 

Good luck!

[copter]

There has been some progress in dealing with the office of the president at RCCL.  I will update you once my booking is confirmed.  They know they made an error.  Their agents just weren't willing to do anything about it (even after I escalated it). 

 

And just fyi, I have written proof that supports my claim so those that say I have no legal recourse or think that I was sitting on the certificate are incorrect in their assumptions.  I've booked these offers before and know how they work.  The casino department recently (in the past 6 months or so) added a Jamaica call center to field some of their incoming calls and I think this is where some of the breakdown occurred in my particular case.

 

Anyway, I'm hoping to have a further update for you later this week.

 

 

 

 

 

[Texas-Mac/TV]

I had a casino certificate from Carnival for a free inside cabin.  When I went to book the sailing, Carnival  casino reservation desk did not have a record of my certificate.  I went ahead and booked my cabin and sent Carnival a copy of my certificate immediately and it was honored.  What had happened was that the onboard casino staff failed to follow through and notify the land office of my certificate.  This probably happened also in your case.

[lazydayz]

OP, any progress?  Good luck. 

[sellwingri]

On 3/3/2019 at 9:20 PM, copter said:

There has been some progress in dealing with the office of the president at RCCL.  I will update you once my booking is confirmed.  They know they made an error.  Their agents just weren't willing to do anything about it (even after I escalated it). 

 

And just fyi, I have written proof that supports my claim so those that say I have no legal recourse or think that I was sitting on the certificate are incorrect in their assumptions.  I've booked these offers before and know how they work.  The casino department recently (in the past 6 months or so) added a Jamaica call center to field some of their incoming calls and I think this is where some of the breakdown occurred in my particular case.

 

Anyway, I'm hoping to have a further update for you later this week.

 

 

 

 

 

Anytime I call and get Jamaica, I hang up and call back.  They work off a script so unless it’s a very basic straightforward question, they haven’t got a clue.  So frustrating because the casino phone staff in Oregon are so great.

[copter]

5 minutes ago, sellwingri said:

Anytime I call and get Jamaica, I hang up and call back.  They work off a script so unless it’s a very basic straightforward question, they haven’t got a clue.  So frustrating because the casino phone staff in Oregon are so great.

 

 

The problem is is they seem to have a lot more Jamaican agents right now than US ones.   I’ve called dozens of times before only to repeatedly get Jamaican agents. They are friendly enough and all, but it definitely made this issue worse than it should have been. 

[copter]

Ok, here's the long and short of it.

 

We have come to an agreement that is acceptable to both parties.  RCCL acknowledged that they should have handled things differently and have since offered me a one time exception to sail on some dates not listed on the original offer.  One such date that interested me was the September 20 sailing on Ovation (Vancouver to Hawaii).  They only offered me a complimentary oceanview stateroom for this particular cruise, but I paid extra to upgrade it to a balcony cabin.

 

They have won me back for the moment, but if their Casino Royale customer service doesn't improve in the future, I'll be looking elsewhere going forward.  I believe the introduction of the Jamaican call center resulted in much of the grief here.  I'm not sure that part will change in the future, but hopefully as their agents gain more experience they will perform at a higher level.  Only time will tell.

 

I appreciate the feedback and hope that others are having less troublesome experiences than I encountered here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[clean1owner]

Sometimes it pays to be persistent. 

[stepmor99]

I really understand copter's frustration with being given something that he could not redeem ...DH and I are casino players and usually cruise with Princess. We have spent thousands of $$ in their casino over the past decade and have never been offered a "free" cruise. Yes, we get a casino discount on cruises and are offered a nominal free play amount here and there throughout the year but our cruise choices are limited and we still have to pay for the cruise. We went on Harmony of the Seas in November, spent our usual amount in the casino and ended up with two free cruises (and counting). I guess it is the "luck of the draw", so to speak. For our last redemption (4/6 on Anthem), we were given a balcony stateroom via an email request on the last day of the offer.. This would have been unheard of with Princess (run by Carnival Corp.). Maybe try to redeem using the "on-line" request option on the Casino Royale page could result in a more satisfactory experience? I'll admit...I never dealt with the "Jamaican office" of customer service.

Edited March 10, 2019 by stepmor99
Corrections