New gotcha regarding re-faring for a lower price

[Packman1000]

This morning I found one of our future cruises for next summer had a reduced price of over $500 from the price we booked.  So I called our TA and asked him to re-fare the cruise at the lower price.  He wrote back and said that Princess could not re-fare the cruise because I received a "discount" on air fare through EZ Air.  When I booked the air on EZ Air it was about $30 per person HIGHER than booking directly with the airline.  But I used EZ Air since I could wait to pay later.

 

If I want to get the lower cruise price now, I would have to cancel and rebook everything, including air.  However I apparently can't see what the current price for the air will be using EZ Air until I rebook.  I looked at the airlines current price and it is higher today than months ago when I first booked, which is probably normal as prices do rise.  This is an international booking and the airfare is over $5,000.

 

Anyone else ever see this kind of thing.  Any suggestions or do I just forget about it.

[racj846]

Do a mock booking  I.e. don't sign into your booking, for your cruise then you can see the airfare.

[SCX22]

Sounds like the offer code to get the lower fare is valid on new bookings only.  If you want to refare, you'd have to cancel the original booking, effectively canceling the EZAir booking, and start a new booking for the same cruise.  Some CVPs know how to lift the air from cancelled bookings to new bookings in the case of refares that require new bookings.

[cr8tiv1]

I refared for a cruise this summer (before final payment).  Kept EZ Air fare.  TA sent new invoice with new fare and same EZ Air.

[Packman1000]

23 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

I refared for a cruise this summer (before final payment).  Kept EZ Air fare.  TA sent new invoice with new fare and same EZ Air.

Hmm, according to my TA, they cannot do that now.  I may have to push him a bit harder.

[Ombud]

Push harder. My CVP just did a lift & shift on everything including Shareholder OBC. I cannot imagine how CVPs can do it but TAs cannot

Edited January 11 by Ombud

[Thrak]

9 minutes ago, Ombud said:

Push harder. My CVP just did a lift & shift on everything including Shareholder OBC. I cannot imagine how CVPs can do it but TAs cannot

 

Many lazy or unknowledgable TAs out there...

[LAX]

5 minutes ago, wallyj said:

FYI, you are not supposed to name specific travel agents/agencies on this forum.

 

For most cases as long as you are before final payment and are eligible, your agency should be able to refare. Obstacles can be new bookings only, deposit non refundable/transferable, category sold out and others.

Thanks. Are there promotions where a deposit is nonrefundable outside of last-minute bookings? I suspect if a category is sold out (or near sold out), the fare would increase rather than decrease and the chance of needing to refare would be low, right?

 

LAX

 

[wallyj]

2 minutes ago, LAX said:

Thanks. Are there promotions where a deposit is nonrefundable outside of last-minute bookings? I suspect if a category is sold out (or near sold out), the fare would increase rather than decrease and the chance of needing to refare would be low, right?

 

LAX

 

Most last minute booking would occur AFTER final payment date, so if you were to book, you would be required to pay in full at time of booking.

 

Princess within the last year has introduce non refundable deposits, most notably on the lowest lead In category of each cabin type(interior, oceanview, balcony, etc.) Some other promos May state non refundable deposits.

 

Some other cruise lines also charge a lot higher cruise fare if you want to book with a refundable deposit. Princess sort of does as you usually need to book NOT the lowest sub category to get a refundable deposit. Princess like most other cruiselines have many sub categories usually depending on the location of the cabin. So more mid ship interiors are higher priced than those located all the way forward or aft.

 

Cruiselines also offer promos where the deposit is non refundable even when the cruise is months before final payment.

 

When booking, ask if your deposit is refundable and are you eligible for re fare if the price drops before final payment. Because of so many variables,  there is no one size fits all or always true.

[phabric]

My Canadian agent was able to refare and keep my EzAir price.

My sister’s USA agent is saying that she can not refare and keep the same EzAir price.

We are on the same cruise.

[dickinson]

I refared my cruise a couple of months ago.  My TA (a top agent with Princess) had no problem keeping my EZAir but for some reason lost my OBC for shareholder.  Now that it goes through stock perks  and they won't do it beyond July 1 (my cruise is in August) I now have to wait til Carnival renews the perk in May!  Not pleased as I would use the OBC to help pay for excursions.  Oh well.  

[skynight]

My T.A. re-fared my 2025 four b2bs when the fare was lowered significantly. She did this while I was sitting with her.

Whatever the promo you have to read all the fine print. Some promos do have non-refundable deposits. Some are new bookings only. Some can not technically be re-fared. The original booking has to be cancelled and then a new booking made. It's all in the fine print.

[jagoffee]

On 1/11/2024 at 3:55 PM, Packman1000 said:

This morning I found one of our future cruises for next summer had a reduced price of over $500 from the price we booked.  So I called our TA and asked him to re-fare the cruise at the lower price.  He wrote back and said that Princess could not re-fare the cruise because I received a "discount" on air fare through EZ Air.  When I booked the air on EZ Air it was about $30 per person HIGHER than booking directly with the airline.  But I used EZ Air since I could wait to pay later.

 

If I want to get the lower cruise price now, I would have to cancel and rebook everything, including air.  However I apparently can't see what the current price for the air will be using EZ Air until I rebook.  I looked at the airlines current price and it is higher today than months ago when I first booked, which is probably normal as prices do rise.  This is an international booking and the airfare is over $5,000.

 

Anyone else ever see this kind of thing.  Any suggestions or do I just forget about it.

 

On 1/11/2024 at 3:59 PM, racj846 said:

Do a mock booking  I.e. don't sign into your booking, for your cruise then you can see the airfare.

Packman, A lot of good suggestions.  
 

You said-   “However I apparently can't see what the current price for the air will be using EZ Air until I rebook.”

Although it may seem that this statement  is true, it is not from my experience.  Racj846 suggestion always works for me to see the current airfare.

 

Good luck.

 

[loanshark]

Log into the EZ Air section of your current booking and do a mock "change of flights"...  If you see the same flights available with a +$0 cost, then the air fare is currently the same as your original booking.  

 

Even if you see a "+ $10 or $20 p/p", you would still save money by cancelling your booking entirely, saving the $500 on the cruise, and spending $20 or $40 extra on the air than the price you originally booked.

[nini]

We also use a big box TA and have never had a problem with re-faring or anything else. They are just your go-between between you and Princess.

[PescadoAmarillo]

I don’t think this is a “gotcha”. You booked under a fare code that offered an airfare promotion. If you change that fare code, you’re going to lose that promotion. This happens all the time, sometimes with additional OBC, sometimes with premium dining…whatever. As others have said, you can easily check the current EZ air fare by searching for your cruise on the Princess website and choosing CRUISE DETAILS and FLIGHT QUOTES. Then you can decide if it’s worth asking your TA to refare. 

[Packman1000]

On 1/14/2024 at 1:05 PM, PescadoAmarillo said:

I don’t think this is a “gotcha”. You booked under a fare code that offered an airfare promotion. If you change that fare code, you’re going to lose that promotion. This happens all the time, sometimes with additional OBC, sometimes with premium dining…whatever. As others have said, you can easily check the current EZ air fare by searching for your cruise on the Princess website and choosing CRUISE DETAILS and FLIGHT QUOTES. Then you can decide if it’s worth asking your TA to refare. 

Thanks for the information which was helpful for me to look up current flight quotes on EZ Air.  When I originally booked the cruise, I was never made aware of any type of air promotion.  In fact, I looked at airfare directly with the airline at that time and the price was about $30 less than EZ Air, but used EZ Air instead to allow me to delay paying.  In hindsight,  that will cost me about $500 since I could refare the cruise had I not used EZ Air.

 

The moral of this confusing story is that I will think twice about using EZ Air again, especially on international bookings.

[phabric]

On 1/14/2024 at 9:49 AM, phabric said:

My Canadian agent was able to refare and keep my EzAir price.

My sister’s USA agent is saying that she can not refare and keep the same EzAir price.

We are on the same cruise.

My sister’s USA agent went back to Princess and talked to a different agent who knew what to do and was able to refare and not loose her EzAir price.