FCC, how long does it take to come?

[VitaLuna]

I canceled our August 22 cruise today so that we could switch ships/itinerary, but still sticking with August departure. I had to cancel because I was outside the window to simply change the reservation. 
 

My question is.. if you’ve had to cancel, how long did the FCC code take to come? I just read online that it takes up to 45 days!!! The agent I talked to didn’t mention this, so I’m really hoping that’s the worst case scenario, because I need to get re-booked 😬 

[Biker19]

5 hours ago, VitaLuna said:

I just read online that it takes up to 45 days!

That could be about right - BTW, not sure what window to change reservation you are talking about but usually you could just move a booking to the new ship/date and avoid the FCC issue (even inside final payment).

[GJustice]

I cancelled a 9/22 cruise on 5/18 and got the FCC on 6/6. This WAS a reissued FCC that I had applied to the 9/22 cruise, so that MIGHT have reduced the turnaround time.

[GEORGIEGIRL]

That might be a "Guestimate" at best. We have had to wait 60+ days on some, less on others. 

[Husky1987]

I cancelled a cruise on May 3, got the FCC email on June 2.

[Ashland]

I've used an FCC before I ever physically received it....just ask. RCI cancelled my cruise and I used it to book a new one.

[Native Floridian 26]

My Royal Personal Vacation Planner said she would be able to hold a cruise before the FCC is issued.  I would think the general CS reps could do it too. 

[ONECRUISER]

Canceled April 9 just got it 3 days ago, only with help of going to the top. FCC's before that 10-30days

[PMGS247]

40 minutes ago, Native Floridian 26 said:

My Royal Personal Vacation Planner said she would be able to hold a cruise before the FCC is issued.  I would think the general CS reps could do it too. 

 

I had a good experience with this recently:

 

TLDR/Key Takeaway: Calling to book a new cruise and tell them I want to use FCC that was currently "in process" within the 30-45 day period lit a fire and got it done a lot faster.  They like selling new cruise bookings.

 

First week of May:

Cancel a mid-May cruise under Cruise with Confidence.  I'm told FCC can take 30-45 days to come through. No big deal, no idea when I'll be able to cruise again anyway.

 

Late May, ~2 weeks later:

Situation changes. Decide to re-book on a July cruise, but there's very few staterooms remaining this late in the game. I want to book quickly, but I don't have the FCC yet, and as close as it is to sailing, payment is effectively due immediately.

 

Called RCCI to book the new cruise and inquire about solutions to make sure I can ultimately use the FCC that is "in process".  Agent takes a payment for the difference between the cruise total and the FCC in process, notates the account, and extends the due date by a couple of weeks.  I am told she has escalated my FCC processing with the appropriate team and instructed me to call back closer to the new due date to get it applied; she was very confident it will be processed by then.

 

First Week of June: 

It's about a week before the date I'm instructed to call back, but I realize that check-in is about to open up on my sailing and I want to be able to secure an early boarding time.  To be honest as I sit here right now I still don't know if I have to be fully paid to check-in and reserve that time, but I went with the assumption that I did given how close this was to the cruise. 

 

I call up to see if the FCC had come through and while it was a little concerning at first that the new agent seemed a little lost/confused, she seemed to work it out very well while I was on hold as she was able to pull up the new FCC and get it applied to my new cruise.  I saw the remaining balance disappear in front of my eyes on the account and I was able to check-in to snag a 10am boarding time without a problem when check-in opened a day or two later. 

 

 

[Big_G]

Seem to remember ours being around 30 days which was a surprise given all the complaints on CC.

[VitaLuna]

Yiiiikes 😬 Thank you everyone for your replies. We are trying to re-book onto an August 7th cruise. I’m reassured that a couple of you have been able to use it or hold reservations in advance of receiving the final confirmation. 
 

I’m an ER nurse, this is the only extended time I’ve been able to get off in two years. I would cry if we couldn’t go!!

[georgemoe]

We cancelled our Sep 19 Odyssey sailing on April 25th waiting for the FCC's. Same day we had our TA hold a Sep 18 Voyager sailing until we got the FCC's. TA had to extend the hold twice then finally on June 6th when deposit was due again they were able to get Royal to issue the FCC's over the phone. We had a bit of credit left and booked Indy in 2023 but could not use the remaining FCC because it had to be re-issued on a new FCC. No idea how long this will take but our original FCC took over 30 days but didn't happen with the TA's help.

Edited June 11, 2022 by georgemoe
typo

[Ourusualbeach]

On 6/8/2022 at 5:28 PM, VitaLuna said:

Yiiiikes 😬 Thank you everyone for your replies. We are trying to re-book onto an August 7th cruise. I’m reassured that a couple of you have been able to use it or hold reservations in advance of receiving the final confirmation. 
 

I’m an ER nurse, this is the only extended time I’ve been able to get off in two years. I would cry if we couldn’t go!!

Call Royal or your TA to book the new cruise.  Let them know that you are waiting on FCC's yo be issued and you would like the deposit due dates extended to allow time for the FCC's to be issued.  I currently have 3 clients bookings that I have extended waiting on FCC's.  I have had due dates extended right up to a couple weeks before sailing waiting for FCC's

[ARandomTraveler]

They told me it would take 30 days and that I'd receive them via email. On the 30th day, I had not received them, so I called and they were able to look them up and apply them to another cruise I had booked. 

[ecslady]

So, I got my FCC email for a cruise I needed to cancel in early May under the CWC program 5 days ago.  But, I still have not been received the refund of the taxes/fees and a prepaid excursion to my credit card.

 

Does anyone know when I might expect that refund?   

 

I'm thinking the refunds are being done by a different department than the FCC's, but I certainly hope it's not another month or so wait for the refund.

[Biker19]

48 minutes ago, ecslady said:

Does anyone know when I might expect that refund?   

Usually within about 45 days of cancellation.

[VitaLuna]

TLDR: Customer service was amazing and we're re-booked!

 

Thank you everyone for all your help! I expected to get the whole fare back in FCC ($2300), but I ended up randomly getting two credit card refunds for $1416 total, but still hadn't seen a FCC come through. Finally called RC and told them the situation, the CS rep was amazingly polite and helpful, and he was able to re-book the cruise (48 days from sailing) and take full payment from me, minus the remaining FCC amount that hadn't been issued. He pushed the final payment date to July 7th and told me to call back if I didn't have the FCC by then. The next day, I got another confirmation email from RC showing the cruise paid in full and FCC applied. Yippee! We are SO excited. Now... fingers crossed that our flights don't turn into a sh* show, since we're flying across country and arrive at 12:50am on the day of departure. 

[Merion_Mom]

Change that flight.

[ARandomTraveler]

2 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

Change that flight.

What she said 

[VitaLuna]

On 6/22/2022 at 7:03 PM, ARandomTraveler said:

What she said 

I desperately want to, but Southwest only flies out of my local airport on that day. Ugh. I considered dumping the tickets and going with an earlier flight, but it would still have to be that day (day before the cruise) due to work and my kids' visitation with their dad. I'd also have to switch to Alaska or Delta, which I feel like have had more problems than Southwest?

 

We have a 3hr layover in Denver, and worst case scenario I'm willing to pay for another airline/flight to get out of Denver if I have to. 

 

Ugh, I'm really worried about it because of how messed up air travel is right now. 

[ARandomTraveler]

2 hours ago, VitaLuna said:

I desperately want to, but Southwest only flies out of my local airport on that day. Ugh. I considered dumping the tickets and going with an earlier flight, but it would still have to be that day (day before the cruise) due to work and my kids' visitation with their dad. I'd also have to switch to Alaska or Delta, which I feel like have had more problems than Southwest?

 

We have a 3hr layover in Denver, and worst case scenario I'm willing to pay for another airline/flight to get out of Denver if I have to. 

 

Ugh, I'm really worried about it because of how messed up air travel is right now. 

I thought your flight was arriving at 12:50 in the afternoon. 12:50am isn't as bad, BUT, I'd still be nervous.

 

In the last year I've taken about 15 southwest flights (6 flights in the last 2 months alone) and only two of them have been on time. The shortest delay has been about 30 minutes. Usually they're about an hour and 15min delayed. The longest...4 hours (and that's happened more than once)

4 flights have been cancelled completely (between November 2021 and January 2022) with no ability to reschedule for at least 3 days. I just cancelled those trips altogether. 
 

If I had to fly in on the same day as a cruise and there was only 1 flight option, I'm not sure I'd even consider taking that cruise. But if you're flying through Denver during a non-holiday time where there are likely to be open seats on other flights, and you're ok splitting the kids up onto different flights if need be, then you have a backup plan.
 

If not, make sure you have insurance that will reimburse you if you have a travel delay that causes you to miss the ship, and make sure the insurance plan has a low threshold for the trip delay (like a 3hr delay threshold).

 

I love Southwest Airlines, but they haven't been doing a very good job with being on time lately, and their planes are flying full.

 

All that being said, sometimes the only option is to take a big risk, and if things go the way they should, you should have no problem. I'm just giving you that info in order to prepare for a worst case scenario and have a backup plan.
 

Edited June 24, 2022 by ARandomTraveler