Future Booking Question

[cruiselover1123]

I tried to search for this but the search engine isn't working.

 

Can someone please tell me if Carnival has onboard booking and what the deposit/benefits are?

 

I purchased a 7 day booking on Princess last year for $100 deposit each for a total of $200 and I get $100 on board credit.

[tef43]

There is zero upside to doing this. The so-called "benefits" can easily be beaten once you return home and can research.

 

This is a cashflow ploy on the part of the cruiselines in order to separate you from your cash earlier than you might want to.

 

Eleven cruises so far. Up next:

Carnival Valor 10/30/05 CC Group

Perhaps something else as well. Watch this space.

 

Dance like it hurts, love like you need money, and work when somebody's watching.

[cruiselover1123]

I'm not sure about Carnival, but with Princess you have up to 4 years to use the cruise with any travel agent that you want and you get whatever deal you find after you get home. The advantage is the low deposit and the cabin credit. If you book with an agent that gets you cabin credit then you get double the credit. I do see an advantage in purchasing a future cruise.

[tef43]

Why on earth would you give them a deposit if you don't even know what ship or date you want? Exactly *why* are you depositing then? It's *not* as if you were reserving a specific cabin on a specific ship for a specific sailing.

 

Just to get OBC? No thanks.

 

Makes no sense.

 

Smoke and mirrors designed to separate you from your money.

[cruzrdi]

I just booked a cruise for the Miracle sailing in May of 2005 while on my Triumph cruise a couple weeks ago. I got a better price than I have found anywhere else, plus shipboard credit and I can change dates, ships, etc until the end of March, 2005. It was a good deal for me.

[imlulu]

Tef,

It is actually a good deal that Princess has going on. You can use that booking deposit with any TA for most part even group cruises. Therefore say you book through a group which often gives cabin credit you then also get that credit on it and your deposit is already paid. For someone like myself who takes their kids, my deposit with Princess on a cabin is 400 vs 1000 on Carnival. I don't know if you udnerstadn how it works through my post. Maybe someone with more Princess know how can explain.

 

No longer cruiseless...donations still accepted! Miracle 2/2005

 

Last cruise

Sensation 2/17/03

[jerseygirl3]

Tef, the reason people (including myself) do this is because of the low deposit required ($100/pp regardless of whatever cruise length you ultimately select). Let's say you are doing a 10 day sailing that requires a $400 pp deposit. It's a lot easier for people to shell out $200 instead of $800. If you don't know who you might be sailing with, you can just put down $100 for yourself, and add the other person for $100 down the road when you decide.

 

If you know what cruise you want and the sailing date, etc., you can simply turn it over to your TA for whatever price he/she offers you upon returning home from your cruise. But if you don't know what you plan on booking, you simply put down the $100 pp, and you have up to 4 years to make a decision. It is good for whatever TA and for whatever price you ultimately get. You can use it for group bookings, website bookings, etc. So whatever deal you find that suits you, you simply give the agency the booking number and they now handle it. If you opt not to use it, it is fully refundable up until four years from the date of the initial deposit. You don't even have to cruise within four years, just book something within four years. When you ultimately do use it, you get up to a $200 shipboard credit.

 

It's really a win-win situation.

 

Carnival doesn't offer anything like this. As far as I know, Princess is the only cruiseline that has this type of thing. Royal Caribbean offers something similar, but not as good a deal as the one Princess offers.

 

caribbeanqueen3@comcast.net