Another voucher question

[Twitchly]

Well, between Israel still being closed and the world’s current reactions to Omicron, we’re crying uncle and canceling our January 17 cruise. Thanks to info from this group, I’ve already canceled our excursions. At least we’ll get that money back. The rest is unfortunately ending up in a voucher. 

 

Those of you who have been down this road, after you put a voucher toward another cruise, what was the cancellation policy at that point? Under what circumstances could you postpone again? 
 

By the way, word to the wise: extensions have to be canceled 30 days in advance in order to get a refund. I thought I’d read all the fine print, but I somehow missed that point.

[Peregrina651]

2 hours ago, Twitchly said:

By the way, word to the wise: extensions have to be canceled 30 days in advance in order to get a refund. I thought I’d read all the fine print, but I somehow missed that point.

 

Thanks.  I've never come across that bit of information before.  

[Heidi13]

14 hours ago, Twitchly said:

Well, between Israel still being closed and the world’s current reactions to Omicron, we’re crying uncle and canceling our January 17 cruise. Thanks to info from this group, I’ve already canceled our excursions. At least we’ll get that money back. The rest is unfortunately ending up in a voucher. 

 

Those of you who have been down this road, after you put a voucher toward another cruise, what was the cancellation policy at that point? Under what circumstances could you postpone again? 
 

By the way, word to the wise: extensions have to be canceled 30 days in advance in order to get a refund. I thought I’d read all the fine print, but I somehow missed that point.

 

I attach the verbage from the FCV's were received in October. If we cancel the Trans-Atlantic we booked with these vouchers, then I do not expect that Viking will re-issue them. We would have to claim against our traval insurance.

 

However, if Viking cancels, I fully expect new vouchers to be issued.

 

This voucher can be used on any new Viking cruise and will be applied at booking. This voucher is transferable, cannot be used as payment for a Travel Protection Plan, and the voucher must be redeemed by the expiration date prior to final payment. Once redeemed, it cannot be re-issued or used towards another cruise, and any unused balance of the voucher is lost and has no cash value.

If you have purchased the Viking Travel Protection Plan and you believe that you have a covered reason under the plan, you have the option to file a claim. If you file a claim, this voucher will be voided. Other restrictions may apply; please call for details.

[Twitchly]

Thanks, that’s helpful. For some reason I thought I’d heard of folks canceling and rebooking multiple times with vouchers. I must’ve misunderstood. 
 

Sounds like our best bet in these uncertain times is to wait until close to the departure date of a cruise that interests us before booking (and take whatever we can get at that point). Our insurance only covers cancelation for health reasons or family death. 

Edited December 31, 2021 by Twitchly

[anaco_angler]

Short answer to the OP's question, it's complicated. It depends on what cancellation policy applies to your rebooked cruise. We just transferred our Jan '22 Northern Lights cruise to the same itinerary in Jan '23, but since there will be no Risk Free Guarantee on cruises in 2023, we would have to make any changes before the 120 day window in order to transfer to another cruise should we decide not to take the Jan '23 cruise. If we are within 120 days and have to cancel, say for medical reasons, we would lose everything. And the FCV's are not insurable.

[jonthomas]

Yes watching the 120 before date, is now really important. The vouchers could then be moved to another cruise.

 

But this year, the 120 days fell in the summer time for us, when all was relatively well. Then Jan hit. Without the risk free guarantee we would have lost everything.

 

Very difficult to decide when all is well in the summer time. 

[cruiselvr04]

So my understanding is if we cancel and get a FCC you can’t divide it for multiple cruises?  We are about to put down 18k for a cruise for 2023. Deposit is paid.  If we cancel the 18k cruise, cancel and get FCC and use it for another trip we’d have to use it all for that one trip or lose what was left right?  

 

We book out 2 years in advance on other lines too but final payments are usually never more then 120 days out.  15 months out just just seems uncomfortable especially during a pandemic and has me second guessing. 

[anaco_angler]

cruiselvr04, you are correct. But the FCC will be divided in half so presumably one FCC could be used on one cruise and the other on a different cruise as long as the FCC has not expired, but I would double check on that. (It seems logical but that isn't always the way it goes.) The one aspect I am certain of is if you don't use the entire FCC on whatever cruise you've  booked, you don't get the remainder. Once you're on board, anything remaining is your "gift" to Viking.

[Twitchly]

As an update, here’s what our TA just told me after she talked to Viking:

——

So you have 24 months to reuse your vouchers.  They aren’t in your file as yet.
Your voucher is also TRANSFERABLE.  This one can be cancelled with the same time frame as the one you just cancelled. At 14 days prior.

Once you rebook you can cancel again but then you have only one year to use it.  And you have to cancel that one, if need be 60 days prior to departure.

——

So that’s the scoop for us, at least. 

[Heidi13]

9 hours ago, cruiselvr04 said:

So my understanding is if we cancel and get a FCC you can’t divide it for multiple cruises?  We are about to put down 18k for a cruise for 2023. Deposit is paid.  If we cancel the 18k cruise, cancel and get FCC and use it for another trip we’d have to use it all for that one trip or lose what was left right?  

 

We book out 2 years in advance on other lines too but final payments are usually never more then 120 days out.  15 months out just just seems uncomfortable especially during a pandemic and has me second guessing. 

 

When you cancel a cruise and opt for the FCV terms, rather than the cancellation terms, you will receive a FCV in the name of each passenger. Our last FCV's issued in October, were valid for 2-years, were transferable and must be used on a new booking.

 

The FCV must be used on a single cruise and the value remains accessible until boarding the vessel, so can be used for flights, SSBP, tips, cabin upgrade, shore-ex, pre/post extensions, etc. Upon boarding, any unused balance is lost. They cannot be used for the travel insurance.

 

You cannot use the FCV for 1 pax to pay for a new cruise for 2 pax. Therefore, we could not use the FCV in my name to pay for a new cruise for both of us, and then use DW's FCV to book an additional cruise. Yes, I did try that once.

 

I noted above Twichly's report from their TA. While I hope Viking  would action a subsequent RFG cancellation in this manner, I note the statement on our FCV  "Once used they would not be re-issued", so I would request that info from a supervisor, and in writing.

 

With respect to early payment dates, Viking is not a member of CLIA, so they march to their own drummer. Nobody likes it, but if we want to sail with Viking, we accept it. Once you get aboard, hassles like early PIF are quickly forgotten.

 

I also just booked FLL to YVR flights for Neptune's arrival after the Trans-Atlantic on 22nd December. Had to pay in full, but with the flights so close to Christmas, I didn't want to wait, but still wasn't happy paying in full almost 1-year ahead.

[Insanityx4]

It totally depends on your voucher. I have called Viking to inquire if we cancel our March 17 cruise if the voucher can be used again for another cruise. They did a deep dive and got a supervisor involved but the answer was yes, but had to be used within a year. I was told there are several types of vouchers and it all depends on what you have and when it was issued.

[Twitchly]

9 minutes ago, Insanityx4 said:

It totally depends on your voucher. I have called Viking to inquire if we cancel our March 17 cruise if the voucher can be used again for another cruise. They did a deep dive and got a supervisor involved but the answer was yes, but had to be used within a year. I was told there are several types of vouchers and it all depends on what you have and when it was issued.

I’m going to have to read the fine print when we get our vouchers. And then I’m going to request clarification in writing from Viking before we schedule another cruise.

[jonthomas]

17 hours ago, Twitchly said:

As an update, here’s what our TA just told me after she talked to Viking:

——

So you have 24 months to reuse your vouchers.  They aren’t in your file as yet.
Your voucher is also TRANSFERABLE.  This one can be cancelled with the same time frame as the one you just cancelled. At 14 days prior.

Once you rebook you can cancel again but then you have only one year to use it.  And you have to cancel that one, if need be 60 days prior to departure.

——

So that’s the scoop for us, at least. 

 

reading this hurts my brain....

[anaco_angler]

21 hours ago, anaco_angler said:

cruiselvr04, you are correct. But the FCC will be divided in half so presumably one FCC could be used on one cruise and the other on a different cruise as long as the FCC has not expired, but I would double check on that. (It seems logical but that isn't always the way it goes.) The one aspect I am certain of is if you don't use the entire FCC on whatever cruise you've  booked, you don't get the remainder. Once you're on board, anything remaining is your "gift" to Viking.

See Heidi13's explanation of the FCV below. It negates my erroneous assumption that since the FCV is split per passenger, that it could be used on two separate cruises. As Heidi13 explains, "you cannot use the  FCV for 1 pax to pay for a new cruise for 2 pax." I wonder what the policy is if FCV is received by two unrelated individuals who are not able to travel together on a new cruise. But let's not complicate an already complicated issue.

Thank you, Heidi13, for the clarification.

[Squawkman]

1 hour ago, anaco_angler said:

See Heidi13's explanation of the FCV below. It negates my erroneous assumption that since the FCV is split per passenger, that it could be used on two separate cruises. As Heidi13 explains, "you cannot use the  FCV for 1 pax to pay for a new cruise for 2 pax." I wonder what the policy is if FCV is received by two unrelated individuals who are not able to travel together on a new cruise. But let's not complicate an already complicated issue.

Thank you, Heidi13, for the clarification.

In your example, it shouldn't make any difference. Each person can use their voucher regardless of relationship or whether or not they will sail on the same cruise. Each single person has to use the voucher on a single cruise. If they room with another person, their portion of the total fare would be reduced by the voucher amount. If they go alone, they would have to add the single supplement assuming the voucher doesn't have enough to cover it.

[anaco_angler]

Thanks, Squawkman. It can be a confusing topic.

[cruiselvr04]

Thanks for all your replies.  It’s so much harder then normal to make travel plans.  We never used to give it a thought but covid and cancer has changed that.   I’m thinking we will end up canceling and getting back at least some of our deposit in a voucher.  We will still go but will take what cabin is left closer to the date.  We’ve booked with Viking before this way but it’s a risk.  I’ve heard you can waitlist for extensions so we might get lucky that way.  Worse case we book later, get a less desired cabin and end up doing the land portion on our own.  If it should ever happen what we wanted is sold out we can try other dates.

[slewis7]

On 12/30/2021 at 9:27 PM, Twitchly said:

By the way, word to the wise: extensions have to be canceled 30 days in advance in order to get a refund. I thought I’d read all the fine print, but I somehow missed that point.

Can you tell me where to look for this condition?  
 

I have a February 28th cruise I am planning to cancel (but hoping and waiting to see if Viking cancels it) that has a post cruise extension.  My understanding is with the risk free guarantee I can wait until just a few days before departure to cancel, but it is very helpful to confirm if different conditions apply to the extension as you have suggested.

[Twitchly]

1 hour ago, slewis7 said:

Can you tell me where to look for this condition?  
 

I have a February 28th cruise I am planning to cancel (but hoping and waiting to see if Viking cancels it) that has a post cruise extension.  My understanding is with the risk free guarantee I can wait until just a few days before departure to cancel, but it is very helpful to confirm if different conditions apply to the extension as you have suggested.

Our extensions got rolled into our vouchers. If you cancel them now, you may get a refund instead since you’re more than 30 days out. 

 

As for where to find this information, all I can tell you is that we got it from our travel agent. Unfortunately, she’s been wrong about a number of things, so who knows. In your shoes, if you’re going to cancel your cruise, I would first cancel your extension and any excursions you’ve signed up for. Then I would wait a couple days before canceling the cruise. You might get a refund for the extensions and excursions that way. That’s assuming you paid for them with cash rather than vouchers. 
 

Our TA unfortunately didn’t do this, so everything rolled into vouchers.