Using FCC to pay for plus upgrade?

[trinitygirl]

Hi everyone, I have searched but the FCC posts are long! and I haven’t found an answer.

My account has just been credited with nearly $3000 in future cruise credits for my five days in isolation on the Enchanted in August.  It has to be used (booked AND travelled) by September 2024.  Unfortunately my current trip ends in January (and is all planned out so I can’t shove in another cruise) and I won’t be able to fit in another holiday until the end of 2024 so i can’t use it for another cruise.  I have an upcoming Transatlantic cruise but it is 100% paid for already.  I made upgrade bids for that cruise which gave me the option to use FCC if accepted, but obviously that might not work.
 

 I was wondering if anyone knows if I could use some of it to upgrade my basic cruise fare to plus or premium?  On my personaliser, it does not give me the option to use FCC to pay for it, and I can’t phone to ask as I normally would as I am overseas, so wondering if its worth trying to email?

 

thanks for any advice.

Edited September 27, 2023 by trinitygirl

[Coral]

I wonder if your TA or Princess can re-fare your cruise and re-fare it to a fare with PLUS. You will have to go with who you booked to do this but I think it could be done. You could also probably upgrade your room also. You don't have to wait for your bid to win to upgrade.

 

There are a lot of variables here such as did the price go down, did the price go up, etc..... New bookings only, etc.... 

 

I would check with who you booked with. I would think you could but it would have to be a re-fare.

Edited September 28, 2023 by Coral

[NavyVeteran]

11 minutes ago, trinitygirl said:

Hi everyone, I have searched but the FCC posts are long! and I haven’t found an answer.

My account has just been credited with nearly $3000 in future cruise credits for my five days in isolation on the Enchanted in August.  It has to be used (booked AND travelled) by September 2024.  Unfortunately my current trip ends in January (and is all planned out so I can’t shove in another cruise) and I won’t be able to fit in another holiday until the end of 2024 so i can’t use it for another cruise.  I have an upcoming Transatlantic cruise but it is 100% paid for already.  I made upgrade bids for that cruise which gave me the option to use FCC if accepted, but obviously that might not work.
 

 I was wondering if anyone knows if I could use some of it to upgrade my basic cruise fare to plus or premium?  On my personaliser, it does not give me the option to use FCC to pay for it, and I can’t phone to ask as I normally would as I am overseas, so wondering if its worth trying to email?

 

thanks for any advice.

FCC can be used for cruise fare increases. An upgrade to Plus or Premier is a fare increase - it is not an add-on package. Therefore FCC should be usable for the fare increase.

Another option that may be worth trying: Ask Princess to apply the FCC to your upcoming transatlantic cruise, causing an overpayment. Then request they refund the overpayment to your credit card. They definitely will not refund more than you paid by credit card, but they might refund up to that amount. I don't know if this would work, but I think it is definitely worth trying.

[NavyVeteran]

2 minutes ago, Coral said:

I wonder if your TA or Princess can re-fare your cruise and re-fare it to a fare with PLUS. You will have to go with who you booked to do this but I think it could be done. You could also probably upgrade your room also. You don't have to wait for your bid to win to upgrade.

 

There are a lot of variables here such as did the price go down, did the price go up, etc..... New bookings only, etc.... 

 

I would check with who you booked with. I would think you could but it would have to be a re-fare.

Good point. Do not rely on a bid. Check on refaring to a more expensive cabin paying the full current price difference - not a discounted bid price.

[Coral]

28 minutes ago, NavyVeteran said:

Good point. Do not rely on a bid. Check on refaring to a more expensive cabin paying the full current price difference - not a discounted bid price.

Weirdly - the last two times I have booked, it has been cheaper to re-fare to a higher category than bid on the same type of cabin. I would encourage everyone to check re-faring instead. It maybe cheaper and you can pick your cabin.

 

And probably half the time, it is cheaper to bid. Just check your options.

Edited September 28, 2023 by Coral

[trinitygirl]

Thanks for these ideas!  Unfortunately I am already in a mini suite and Princess has put a restriction on solo cruisers booking full suites or I would definitely upgrade - I have tried (and the future cruise staff on the Enchanted tried in August) but for some reason they just won’t allow it.  I didn’t know you could overpay and refund - if that would work, it would be quite a solution. 

[Coral]

15 minutes ago, trinitygirl said:

Thanks for these ideas!  Unfortunately I am already in a mini suite and Princess has put a restriction on solo cruisers booking full suites or I would definitely upgrade - I have tried (and the future cruise staff on the Enchanted tried in August) but for some reason they just won’t allow it.  I didn’t know you could overpay and refund - if that would work, it would be quite a solution. 

Try re-faring your current cabin then with Plus or Premier.

 

I have no clue if an over payment would work. I currently have an overpayment because my cruise went down in price after final payment and Princess has yet to refund me. I wonder if they ever will. Or if I have to ask for payment. It is all of $70.

Edited September 28, 2023 by Coral

[trinitygirl]

I am currently in the online chat queue, waiting to ask!

[PacnGoNow]

8 hours ago, trinitygirl said:

I am currently in the online chat queue, waiting to ask!

Do you have a TA or CVP that you could email for help?

Since you’re from Australia, IDK if this would affect the answer for you.  
Good luck on the chat line.

[trinitygirl]

The online chat people confirmed that I can use the FCC to upgrade but they couldn’t do it for me.  They wouldn’t answer the question about if i could use the FCC to overpay my account.  So i got in touch with the new Australian PVP person (long story short: princess closed the excellent Australian VP department in January, then someone new started emailing in June so it seems they reopened it) and explained what i wanted to do.  Instead of answering my question he sent an updated booking moving me to a suite and asking for an additional $3000 on top of the FCC I wanted to use!  I have not heard back to my Hell No reply but hopefully he will undo whatever he did and actually answer my question about upgrading to Plus and transferring the whole FCC to the cruise so I can eventually be refunded the balance post cruise.

[PacnGoNow]

1 hour ago, trinitygirl said:

The online chat people confirmed that I can use the FCC to upgrade but they couldn’t do it for me.  They wouldn’t answer the question about if i could use the FCC to overpay my account.  So i got in touch with the new Australian PVP person (long story short: princess closed the excellent Australian VP department in January, then someone new started emailing in June so it seems they reopened it) and explained what i wanted to do.  Instead of answering my question he sent an updated booking moving me to a suite and asking for an additional $3000 on top of the FCC I wanted to use!  I have not heard back to my Hell No reply but hopefully he will undo whatever he did and actually answer my question about upgrading to Plus and transferring the whole FCC to the cruise so I can eventually be refunded the balance post cruise.

Unbelievable!  I tell them to get back to me immediately or call the CVP line and ask for a supervisor.

 

Is your original cabin showing available?  
 

I hope this person was a real CVP and not a third party sales person.

Edited September 28, 2023 by PacnGoNow

[Bizziecruzer]

Not sure if you get any discount for being solo. If not, look at booking a suite with 2 people being booked, with second person being a no show on sail day. 

[startedwithamouse]

3 hours ago, Bizziecruzer said:

Not sure if you get any discount for being solo. If not, look at booking a suite with 2 people being booked, with second person being a no show on sail day. 

No, no no.

 

Deceptive booking?  

[trinitygirl]

An update; my booking was restored to my original mini suite guarantee and upgraded to the plus package (which used $975 of my FCC).  the agent was unable to credit the entire FCC because my account is paid in full, but he has sent a request to the accounts team to see if they can override the system.  Fingers crossed...

[PacnGoNow]

4 hours ago, trinitygirl said:

An update; my booking was restored to my original mini suite guarantee and upgraded to the plus package (which used $975 of my FCC).  the agent was unable to credit the entire FCC because my account is paid in full, but he has sent a request to the accounts team to see if they can override the system.  Fingers crossed...

Glad they recovered the original. Who fixed it? The agent that screwed it up, or another agent on chat?

 

[trinitygirl]

an update...  was just notified that my bid for a suite was accepted (yay) but instead of using the FCC to pay for it, they have charged my card.  i am in the live chat queue hoping it can be fixed...

[trinitygirl]

the consultant has sent a refund request so hopefully this will not drag on for months...