Frequent cruisers…do you book future cruises onboard?

[Cruiser1862]

I know you get OBC but are prices the same otherwise?  Or are there better prices onboard? Thanks

[smokeybandit]

Prices are generally the same.  You book on board for the OBC and reduced deposit, not for prices.

[Cruiser1862]

7 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

Prices are generally the same.  You book on board for the OBC and reduced deposit, not for prices.

Thank you. Most important to me is refundable deposit. 

[Hogbay]

21 minutes ago, Cruiser1862 said:

I know you get OBC but are prices the same otherwise?  Or are there better prices onboard? Thanks

You still can take your booking to a TA if they are offering a better price .

[smokeybandit]

5 minutes ago, Cruiser1862 said:

Thank you. Most important to me is refundable deposit. 

It's not a refundable deposit, just reduced.

[island lady]

About a third of my bookings are from Next Cruise, but only if it is convenient and we already know what ship, itinerary, and even cabin number we want.  

 

OBC is the only benefit I can think of...plus the convenience.  

 

I will most times research online while on the ship, then go to the department to do the actual booking. 

[twinmommy08]

We book on board for the reduced deposit and OBC. This month I’ll book two cruises for 2023. I’d rather lose $400 than $1,000 if our plans change. Royal automatically sends our booking to our TA and about week later I get an updated invoice form her with more OBC 🙂 

 

The agent we worked with on Adventure to book our Alaskan cruise this year was fantastic. We wanted a family JS (Ovation) and it appeared none were available. She educated us that other TAs hold them for their clients but they drop off after 24 hours if they don’t book. She watched the system like a hawk for a few days to grab us one. We were so thankful! 

Edited March 5, 2022 by twinmommy08

[binro01]

I like purchasing the certificate for 200 as an open booking where we have 60 days to decide what we want to book. It works well for us and for my insane research I do. 

[molly361]

I have not booked onboard since they started NRD.  I mostly book refundable and there is no incentive to do so onboard

[firefly333]

I havent booked onboard. Have to use the certificate on a new booking within 12 months and I keep thinking I'm done. Everything booked within a year i want to book .. then a good deal has popped up and i book again like grandeur.

[nelblu]

As a solo it's very convenient for me for both the OBC and the $100pp de[posit.  However, whether you book on board or thru a TA, the downside is that any changes to your booking will incur a $100pp fee.

[Cruiser1862]

Doesn’t sound worth it to me. My TA was running a special and I had to cancel my booking and rebook. Lower price and free gratuities. Thankful for the refundable deposit. 

[molly361]

1 hour ago, nelblu said:

As a solo it's very convenient for me for both the OBC and the $100pp de[posit.  However, whether you book on board or thru a TA, the downside is that any changes to your booking will incur a $100pp fee.

Not if you book refundable thru a TA or better yet book a cruise that they TA has group space on, better than Royal pricing AND refundable and sometimes OBC

[nelblu]

11 minutes ago, molly361 said:

Not if you book refundable thru a TA or better yet book a cruise that they TA has group space on, better than Royal pricing AND refundable and sometimes OBC

Big difference in pricing.  I'm not concerned about the $100 since I'm a solo, but if you have a group of Paxs it can be burdensome.  Also, if there's a legitimate reason my CC will cover the fee.

[Tree_skier]

I never use NextCruise. I prefer refundable deposits.  Too much in life can change unexpectedly. I want to know that the change isn't going to cost anything.

[nelblu]

35 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

I never use NextCruise. I prefer refundable deposits.  Too much in life can change unexpectedly. I want to know that the change isn't going to cost anything.

I'll risk the fare difference benefit compared to losing deposit of $100pp.

[Tree_skier]

Just now, nelblu said:

I'll risk the fare difference benefit compared to losing deposit of $100pp.

My TA's group space is refundable and almost always less the Royal's NRD price when booked direct with Royal.  Also comes with a small amount of OBC. To me that vastly outweighs the reduced deposit and OBC Royal is offering. 

[island lady]

2 hours ago, binro01 said:

I like purchasing the certificate for 200 as an open booking where we have 60 days to decide what we want to book. It works well for us and for my insane research I do. 

 

Used to collect them to use them when I was ready to book, but those were the old original type I bought....had no expiration date, and was before Next Cruise came into existence.  When is the last time you bought one of those?  Are they still selling those?

[nelblu]

4 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Used to collect them to use them when I was ready to book, but those were the old original type I bought....had no expiration date, and was before Next Cruise came into existence.  When is the last time you bought one of those?  Are they still selling those?

I still have 1 of those suckers.  I don't believe they sell those.

Edited March 5, 2022 by nelblu

[FionaMG]

I sometimes book on board. I did this past September on Harmony because I was looking at a 12 night cruise. Booking on board meant $100 pp deposit instead of $450, so that was a big consideration. And $200 OBC was more than sufficient to cover the cost of my Voom package. I had done my homework beforehand and was ready to book, so took advantage of the perks. 

[island lady]

12 minutes ago, nelblu said:

I still have 1 of those suckers.  I don't believe they sell those.

 

I wish I still had a dozen of them.  😉 

[kokopelli-az]

We have booked many future cruises while on board and will probably do it again while we're on the Jewel the end of this month.    Note that you can also book a future cruise on Celebrity while on board Royal Caribbean (and get whatever incentives Celebrity is offering).   

 

Here is what Royal Caribbean is offering right now for booking a future cruise while on board:   

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/next-cruise-onboard-future-booking

 

We always have 2-3 cruises picked out ahead of time (that way we pretty much know the pricing and what staterooms are available and can eliminate one of our choices if need be) and then make the future booking once on board.  

[PhillyFan33579]

I almost always book another cruise(s) during a cruise. I always research cruises prior to the cruise, so it’s a pretty quick process onboard since I know exactly what cruise(s) I am booking. I never use a TA because I like having total control of my bookings. Based on that the OBC and lower deposits they offer onboard make it worthwhile to me. The lower deposits may not seem like much, but when you always have 15-20 future cruises booked, the money you don’t have to pay until the deadline adds up. I would rather have my money making more money for me. 

[nelblu]

I had a situation in that I booked a future cruise on Board the Allure and in addition to the $100 obc, got an add'l $50 obc promo.  I was instructed that I would lose the $50 promo if I got a future price adjustment. 

 

So after completion of this sail, I reached D+ 340 nights.  I call RCL CS  to adjust my fare as I'm sailing solo and get a solo price adjustment.  These folks did not know what I was talking about.  In addition, I also had a Casino credit of $100 and they were quick with the transfer to the Casino desk.

 

Luckily, the first agent that I spoke to was knowledgeable and adjusted not only the cruise fare but also applied the Casino credit.

 

Get the adjusted invoice and the obc is for only $38.  I call again and tell the agent that I can see the elimination of the $50 promo, but not the on board booking credit.  Agent tells me that he will adjust the obc by $62.  However, when I get the adjusted/adjusted invoice it's for $38X2.  Call again and new agent tells me that she sees the notation, but the $62 was not processed.  After some 20 minutes she tells me that it has to be approved by some group.  Spent so much time on the phone (thank God for speaker phones) and asked her to call me back when resolved.

 

3  hours later get the news that it ahs been adjusted and for me to look for the new invoice.

Get the invoice and finally everything looks kosher.

 

 

[2chiefs]

21 hours ago, nelblu said:

I'll risk the fare difference benefit compared to losing deposit of $100pp.

I agree. The refundable fares are quite high and the $100 pp risk is minimal for us. We always book on board. If we lose a deposit here and there, we still make out in the long with the lower fares.

 

Edited March 6, 2022 by 2chiefs