On the fence about final payment for December cruise

[chiguypaul]

So bummed about the ongoing covid situation. At this point, I just don't see cruises going in December and even if they do, I don't think I want to take a chance with my family. Maybe things get better, the CDC will give the OK and policies and practices will be solid. But that being said, I don't want to put down my final payment next week, have the cruise go and then decide I'm not comfortable going. I don't want to be stuck with the thousands of dollars of future cruise credits.....  And we so excited about having the Unlimited Dining plan this year. 🙂

[Biker19]

4 minutes ago, chiguypaul said:

I don't want to be stuck with the thousands of dollars of future cruise credits.

Try to downgrade to the cheapest cabin available, so you have less tied up, if you decide to make final payment with a likely refund coming - otherwise, cancel now for the FCC.

[BirdTravels]

Or cancel and rebook as a last minute cruise if it looks like it will sail with some level of safety. 

[chiguypaul]

Just now, BirdTravels said:

Or cancel and rebook as a last minute cruise if it looks like it will sail with some level of safety. 

 

Agree. That's what we were thinking. Even if we have to pay a little more...that would be the cost of having the flexibility.

[Coralc]

I totally understand. Lesser cabins were closed on our November 1 cruise so we couldn't downgrade. We knew we weren't going. We cancelled for a FCC on the deposit and the cruise line cancelled 2 days later. Oh Well.

 

Is there anything that looks enticing to you for a Lift & Shift to next year? There wasn't anything for us, but there might be for you. 

Edited September 14, 2020 by Coralc

[chiguypaul]

Just now, Coralc said:

I totally understand. Lesser cabins were closed on our November 1 cruise so we couldn't downgrade. We new we weren't going. We cancelled for a FCC on the deposit and the cruise line cancelled 2 days later. Oh Well.

 

Is there anything that looks enticing to you for a Lift & Shift to next year? There wasn't anything for us, but there might be for you. 

 

We have a $1000 deposit. So with L&S can we move that deposit to 2021? I was going to call RCL this week to discuss these types of options.

[Coralc]

3 minutes ago, chiguypaul said:

 

We have a $1000 deposit. So with L&S can we move that deposit to 2021? I was going to call RCL this week to discuss these types of options.

 

Oh certainly and take a look at your L&S options on the website. It is a great deal and you are price protected. 

 

Here is the webpage, go to Lift&Shift and you can see your options without completing the process. : https://cancellation.royalcaribbean.com/?brand=R&_ga=2.147020465.701578395.1600055267-1312727294.1579913490

Edited September 14, 2020 by Coralc

[Ashland]

2 hours ago, chiguypaul said:

 

We have a $1000 deposit. So with L&S can we move that deposit to 2021? I was going to call RCL this week to discuss these types of options.

Yes...do a L/S.

Just look on their website so you can see the options you have. I knew exactly what I wanted (same cabins) and the policy that applied which made the call quick and easy.

We did the L/S for 3 cabins we have booked for extended family from May 2021 to April 2022. Our price protection worked out great for us as the pricing for our GS category was much higher for 2022.

[Mapleleafforever]

10 hours ago, chiguypaul said:

So bummed about the ongoing covid situation. At this point, I just don't see cruises going in December and even if they do, I don't think I want to take a chance with my family. Maybe things get better, the CDC will give the OK and policies and practices will be solid. But that being said, I don't want to put down my final payment next week, have the cruise go and then decide I'm not comfortable going. I don't want to be stuck with the thousands of dollars of future cruise credits.....  And we so excited about having the Unlimited Dining plan this year. 🙂

I feel for you because we are in the same boat regarding our January Indy cruise. Even if it goes on as planned we don't want to be onboard if we have to wear masks and social distance and the lot.....we can wait to cruise until things go back to normal. It will go back to normal one day. 

 

Not even sure we want to L&S to 2022 just in case precautions are still in place. At this point we're leaning towards making final payment and hoping for a cancellation and refund.

[firefly333]

10 hours ago, chiguypaul said:

 

We have a $1000 deposit. So with L&S can we move that deposit to 2021? I was going to call RCL this week to discuss these types of options.

Yes do it yourself online, it's easy.

 

I lifted one to dec 2021 and hope to enjoy Christmas decorations in a year. I always enjoy xmas time to cruise. If you arent booked a holiday week you cant lift and shift to a holiday week, the week before. 

 

I'll cruise dec 12 to 19 2021. 

[The Critical Cruiser]

I had a cruise booked on Royal for this December, but only put down the initial down payment (of which I requested a refund for due to the pandemic and received a future cruise credit).  After what happened earlier this year with trying to get a refund back from Carnival, there was no way I was going to pay everything again upfront.  As of right now, that cruise is still scheduled to take place.  Like most people, if I rebook it, it’ll be a last minute thing, which is fine.  I really would like to go, but don’t want to book something that might yet still be cancelled.

[A&L_Ont]

58 minutes ago, Mapleleafforever said:

I feel for you because we are in the same boat regarding our January Indy cruise. Even if it goes on as planned we don't want to be onboard if we have to wear masks and social distance and the lot.....we can wait to cruise until things go back to normal. It will go back to normal one day. 

 

We cancelled our suite NRD for Freedom in January already. L&S isn't an option, as we already have cruises booked for our "usual times" of the year, being January, March and October for the next couple of years.  

 

For us the border still be closed is one factor as well the possibility of quarantine upon the return to Canada.  Over and above that, the current unknown factors of what cruising will look like for the future. I am not a fan of paying for a cabin and not get the full experience.

 

We took the FCC and plan to apply it to our October 2021 sailing.  I hope that we will have a better idea to the unknown by the time we have to made our December payment for March of 2021.

Edited September 14, 2020 by A&L_Ont

[cltnccruisers]

We're back and forth about payment due Nov 15 for a Feb cruise.  Someone suggested cancelling then rebooking if things look better.  The concern I'd have with that is if one of the conditions to sail again is limited capacity will the lines jack up rates to make up some of the difference?  I've seen some comments that they are already doing so with 2021 and 2022 sailings.

[firefly333]

2 minutes ago, cltnccruisers said:

We're back and forth about payment due Nov 15 for a Feb cruise.  Someone suggested cancelling then rebooking if things look better.  The concern I'd have with that is if one of the conditions to sail again is limited capacity will the lines jack up rates to make up some of the difference?  I've seen some comments that they are already doing so with 2021 and 2022 sailings.

I think your February cruise has a good chance of sailing. If you arent ready to sail you can lift and shift to a year later and not have to make the final payment. Lift and shift ends sept 30 and might not get extended. 

 

If you cancel and get a fcc, I dont see what you gain. Still has to be used for a cruise.

[LuCruise]

Back when cruises were cancelled in March we re-booked the same cruise for Christmas time for Dec (first time ever for Christmas time).  But as things went on and less hope (plus we are in Canada so travelling to the US isn't even an option at this time), we did a lift and shift to next Christmas.  Saved us over $3500 compared with booking next Dec straight out.  So if next Dec is an option, I"d check the current pricing and lift and sift if it's a savings.

[cruisefoodie1946]

In have a cruise booked for dec 23, 2020, and only have payed the deposit, I’m thinking to use Lift and Shift

for nex year.

can I move my deposit to next year, or do I have first to pay the full amount of the Cruise and then move my reservation

to next year

 

 

[firefly333]

1 minute ago, cruisefoodie1946 said:

In have a cruise booked for dec 23, 2020, and only have payed the deposit, I’m thinking to use Lift and Shift

for nex year.

can I move my deposit to next year, or do I have first to pay the full amount of the Cruise and then move my reservation

to next year

 

 

Can just move the deposit. Just use the form. Have your TA check it if you use a TA and cant see price. I did it myself and got the same cabin.

[Ashland]

I could have used the online form to do my L/S but since I was dealing with 3 cabins that all had FCC's on them and wanted the same cabins I wanted it done by a live person so there would be no mix up. A better option for me at the time 

[cltnccruisers]

13 minutes ago, Ashland said:

I could have used the online form to do my L/S but since I was dealing with 3 cabins that all had FCC's on them and wanted the same cabins I wanted it done by a live person so there would be no mix up. A better option for me at the time 

We did the same with a family Princess cruise we rebooked.  7 family members in 3 cabins with FCC tagged to them all plus we were upgrading to mini-suites and shuffling occupants.  No way was I going to try to do that without professional help.  🙂

[johnjen]

15 hours ago, chiguypaul said:

So bummed about the ongoing covid situation. At this point, I just don't see cruises going in December and even if they do, I don't think I want to take a chance with my family. Maybe things get better, the CDC will give the OK and policies and practices will be solid. But that being said, I don't want to put down my final payment next week, have the cruise go and then decide I'm not comfortable going. I don't want to be stuck with the thousands of dollars of future cruise credits.....  And we so excited about having the Unlimited Dining plan this year. 🙂

Not literally "in the same boat" but I think this is how all of us feel. Ours is next June. Even if it sails, it sounds as if we will get policed and monitored to death if this covid crap is still around. We are on vacation, not going to some prison camp under constant direction. TBH, would really just want to get a full refund and not bother going.

[Mapleleafforever]

3 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

We cancelled our suite NRD for Freedom in January already. L&S isn't an option, as we already have cruises booked for our "usual times" of the year, being January, March and October for the next couple of years.  

 

For us the border still be closed is one factor as well the possibility of quarantine upon the return to Canada.  Over and above that, the current unknown factors of what cruising will look like for the future. I am not a fan of paying for a cabin and not get the full experience.

 

We took the FCC and plan to apply it to our October 2021 sailing.  I hope that we will have a better idea to the unknown by the time we have to made our December payment for March of 2021.

The border is also a major concern for us and I don't see how it will be open any time soon for non essential travel....especially with our numbers climbing again and flu season upon us. 

 

I agree 100% with paying for a cabin and not getting the full experience. When I'm on vacation I like to leave all the other baggage at home....and now this includes masks and social distancing. We are patient and can wait until these precautions  are no longer necessary.

 

We could do a L&S to Odyssey for 2022 but once again we're not interested in being on a cruise ship if the precautions are still in place and they will probably be in place on cruise ships for a few years.

 

And we can't really do 2 big trips in one year.......

 

 We have plans to visit Ireland in 2022 so we don't really want an FCC that has to be used by the end of that year and we can just take our refund from this cruise and apply it to our Ireland trip (if it can happen by then). Sadly we already booked flights from ChoiceAir on Westjet and those are non refundable but that we are ok with taking a future flight credit for and using for Ireland. 

 

 

[acstall]

We had no L&S option for our December 2020 cruise. We unknowingly had a group price which was not eligible so our only option would have been to cancel and rebook next year at a much higher price. Like many of you I prefer to get my NRD back versus FCC. We made final payment and hoping it is canceled. If not, we’ll have a bigger FCC!

[doubledown13]

On 9/14/2020 at 2:11 AM, Ashland said:

Yes...do a L/S.

Just look on their website so you can see the options you have. I knew exactly what I wanted (same cabins) and the policy that applied which made the call quick and easy.

We did the L/S for 3 cabins we have booked for extended family from May 2021 to April 2022. Our price protection worked out great for us as the pricing for our GS category was much higher for 2022.

They let you move a May 2021 sailing already?  I didn't think that was possible that far out.

[firefly333]

1 hour ago, doubledown13 said:

They let you move a May 2021 sailing already?  I didn't think that was possible that far out.

April 2022 is open, so since you can book 4 weeks before it's possible he booked a april 2022 date.

 

That's how I got my week before Christmas cruise, from a booked January 2021 cruise. 

[NthernLgts]

On 9/13/2020 at 10:15 PM, Biker19 said:

Try to downgrade to the cheapest cabin available, so you have less tied up, if you decide to make final payment with a likely refund coming - otherwise, cancel now for the FCC.

I did this on my upcoming 12/4 cruise (which I have no intent of going on).  I had my refund of the difference in about a week.  I also made final payment & will wait it out with RCI.  I booked the same cruise for next year (no L&S, I just got a better price).  If they dont cancel I will just take the FCC.  If they do, which is highly likely, I still may take the 125% credit for next years cruise and basically have it paid off..