Booking a Cruise while onboard...

[doghog]

Any perks/benefits for booking a cruise while onboard? Reduced deposit? OBC?  Does Princess offer a discount per leg if booking a B2B cruise? 

[memoak]

I will never again even talk to the so called future cruise department on board since it was moved to a 3rd party company. They have no idea what they are doing. The last time I used them they totally screws up a booking and I spent hours of my cruise getting things straightened out

[doghog]

2 minutes ago, memoak said:

I will never again even talk to the so called future cruise department on board since it was moved to a 3rd party company. They have no idea what they are doing. The last time I used them they totally screws up a booking and I spent hours of my cruise getting things straightened out

OK. Bummer for you. But you didn't answer my questions. Who is the 3rd party? 

[memoak]

Just now, doghog said:

OK. Bummer for you. But you didn't answer my questions. Who is the 3rd party? 

I believe they are called ONE. They are those same people running the so called Princess Promotions “deals”. I won’t go near them with a 10 foot pole. I will stick with dealing with my CVP

[Rick&Jeannie]

If you feel like you will be cruising Princess again, just buy FCDs while on board. Don't waste your cruise time researching *another* cruise. The FCD serves as your deposit and will offer you some extra OBC. $100 each, if traveling with a partner you need 2.

[Stosh68]

I booked a Hawaiian retirement cruise while on the Regal last November.   Other people I talked to during an excursion said booking on the ship would get me access to deals and OBC.

 

There was no benefit whatsoever, no OBC, no price deal, same price I could have gotten using the Princess website.   I booked it anyway, with the intention of finding a TA to take over the booking.

 

In January, I saw the fare had dropped by over $800, so I called my CVP and re-fared the trip through her.

 

If you're likely to book on Princess again, buy the future cruise credit while on board.

 

Since other people claimed to have gotten better deals while on the ship, perhaps they are available for certain cruises, but that wasn't my experience.

 

 

[skynight]

2 hours ago, doghog said:

Any perks/benefits for booking a cruise while onboard? Reduced deposit? OBC?  Does Princess offer a discount per leg if booking a B2B cruise? 

Usually no different fares from booking at home. No special pricing for b2bs. Deposit should be $100/pp/booking number with OBC amount depending on length of voyage and cabin category.

Now that your questions have been addressed here is my strong suggestion. Purchase as many Future Cruise Deposits (FCDs) as you think you will require. They are individual. Each person needs to have them in their name. They cost $100 each and are charged directly to your credit card on file with passenger services. The terms require that you book, not sail, within one year. If you do not book they are fully refundable. You can book any cruise (world cruises excepted, a reduced deposit is provided) using an FCD, one per person. The deposit will be the $100 value of the FCD and you will receive the same OBC as you would if booked on board. In my way of thinking it's best to return home and when you are down from your cruise high you can search and make better decisions.

Since Princess has placed a 3rd party on board to book cruises and sell the FCDs the 3rd party many times gives a hard sell. They also push future cruise packages which in my opinion are not worth putting out large sums of money for cruises and hotel packages. 

 

[doghog]

5 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

If you feel like you will be cruising Princess again, just buy FCDs while on board. Don't waste your cruise time researching *another* cruise. The FCD serves as your deposit and will offer you some extra OBC. $100 each, if traveling with a partner you need 2.

Thanks but I prefer booking a cruise. Not a waste of my time as I do all my research pre-cruise and tell the future cruise person on the ship what we want as far as itinerary, ship, cabin category, etc.. Very familiar with booking cruises. 

[doghog]

2 hours ago, skynight said:

Usually no different fares from booking at home. No special pricing for b2bs. Deposit should be $100/pp/booking number with OBC amount depending on length of voyage and cabin category.

Now that your questions have been addressed here is my strong suggestion. Purchase as many Future Cruise Deposits (FCDs) as you think you will require. They are individual. Each person needs to have them in their name. They cost $100 each and are charged directly to your credit card on file with passenger services. The terms require that you book, not sail, within one year. If you do not book they are fully refundable. You can book any cruise (world cruises excepted, a reduced deposit is provided) using an FCD, one per person. The deposit will be the $100 value of the FCD and you will receive the same OBC as you would if booked on board. In my way of thinking it's best to return home and when you are down from your cruise high you can search and make better decisions.

Since Princess has placed a 3rd party on board to book cruises and sell the FCDs the 3rd party many times gives a hard sell. They also push future cruise packages which in my opinion are not worth putting out large sums of money for cruises and hotel packages. 

 

Thanks but I prefer booking a cruise. 

[memoak]

9 minutes ago, doghog said:

Thanks but I prefer booking a cruise. Not a waste of my time as I do all my research pre-cruise and tell the future cruise person on the ship what we want as far as itinerary, ship, cabin category, etc.. Very familiar with booking cruises. 

Yeah but with FCD’s you get some OBC also. Good deal

[Rick&Jeannie]

9 minutes ago, doghog said:

Thanks but I prefer booking a cruise. Not a waste of my time as I do all my research pre-cruise and tell the future cruise person on the ship what we want as far as itinerary, ship, cabin category, etc.. Very familiar with booking cruises. 

Everybody has their own method!  Just make sure that you get the same benefits as booking with an FCD.  You don't want to turn away "free" OBC.

[doghog]

@skynight, @Rick&Jeannie, and @memoak thanks for the FCD suggestions. I appreciate it. I will consider doing that. I guess I need to step outside of the box. 😁

Edited February 17 by doghog

[skynight]

You have to really be aware of the hard sell on board with the 3rd party now in place. 

[doghog]

14 minutes ago, skynight said:

You have to really be aware of the hard sell on board with the 3rd party now in place. 

Thanks. But I have no problem holding my ground. Not my first rodeo. 😉 I haven't bought a timeshare yet. 😁

Edited February 17 by doghog

[Raisinette]

If you know which future cruise you are interested in prior to boarding, buy a minimum of one Future Cruise Deposit per person the first day of your current cruise, wait for the email advising the transaction has been processed (usually within a day or so), then have the chat with the future cruise rep on board.  Assuming the price is the same as you'd researched, you may decide to use one of your new FCD's (each) to book the new cruise and receive the FCD OBC, and then transfer the booking to your preferred TA when back home.  For possibly more OBC or a better price or other benefit(s)...

Just my 2 cents worth!

[lx200gps]

We did this just last week while on the Discovery, booked with the on-board Future Cruise rep a single trip I had been researching.  She was great to deal with, absolutely NO up/hard selling of any type. We even spent time reminiscing about our mutual favourite ship, the Royal, on which she had spent three years serving, so she knew Princess wel. She booked exactly the cabin we requested, confirmed that our usual TA would immediately get the booking transferred to her (which was confirmed the day we got home). Pricing was identical to what I had received off the Princess website, so no deal there. Because we booked it on-board, and purchased two pairs of FCDs, one was immediately applied to this new booking and the other one sits in our account to be applied in a few months when we book our mid-2025 trip. We also received the $50/pp OBC for the mini-suite booking. Great experience, no issues whatsoever.

[trbarton]

Just realize that if you buy any FCD’s while onboard & don’t plan on using them while onboard, they expire in 1 year, although they’re refundable if not used. 
 

I like the idea of buying while onboard & using them once you have them. 
 

Tom😀

[leck57]

1 hour ago, doghog said:

@skynight, @Rick&Jeannie, and @memoak thanks for the FCD suggestions. I appreciate it. I will consider doing that. I guess I need to step outside of the box. 😁

 

Yep, I think you do. In answer to the questions you raised in the initial post, in my experience the answer is no.

[akaCruiser]

When I was on Crown Princess last Aug 2023, I initially got FCD, but I asked about cruises in Europe Aug 2025 and got a good deal which we then immediately used the FCD for the booking.

 

Every once in a while, I would do a trial booking for the cruise on the Princess website and the cost has increased. The best thing was that when I booked I added the Plus package and it was discounted by 20% with the third and fourth passengers sailing for free. I wasn't pressured on what I picked and in fact they were very helpful in checking various cruise options in Aug 2025.

[sunviking90]

Our experience with them was fine. No better or worse than previously when they were Princess agents. Last year they had sale sheets of selected cruises at 50% off, with the packages also at 50% off. There were some great deals. I think I read here they don’t have those anymore though.

Aside from that, HAL and Celebrity have better incentives for booking onboard.

Edited February 17 by sunviking90

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, doghog said:

@skynight, @Rick&Jeannie, and @memoak thanks for the FCD suggestions. I appreciate it. I will consider doing that. I guess I need to step outside of the box. 😁

When booking on board, it should be the same as when buying a FCD.  You get $100/pp deposit and the same OBC as with FCDs.  In effect, you are buying a FCD and immediately using it.  No way should an on board rep not post the appropriate OBC.

[Scirocco Breeze]

Can I buy a FCD for a person not currently on the cruise with me? I'm sailing with my daughter in a couple of months but would like to get FCD for myself and my partner ideally 🤔

[fpsphil]

I always do reprices with them. Have actually saved quite a bit of money. Every cruise I reprice everything coming up

[wallyj]

1 hour ago, Scirocco Breeze said:

Can I buy a FCD for a person not currently on the cruise with me? I'm sailing with my daughter in a couple of months but would like to get FCD for myself and my partner ideally 🤔

Yes, a passenger currently on board a Princess ship is eligible to purchase FCD’s for any other person who has a Captain’s Circle account. You need to keep in mind the acquisition date of the FCD must be before the ‘booking’ date of any cruise you plan on sailing. The FCD will be charged to the person on board, so you want to only do this for individuals you know/trust  will repay you, unless you are gifting it. Also if that person does not use within a year, it will be credited back to the person charged, not the person it was bought for.

[wallyj]

12 hours ago, doghog said:

Any perks/benefits for booking a cruise while onboard? Reduced deposit? OBC?  Does Princess offer a discount per leg if booking a B2B cruise? 

Currently on the Discovery Princess. Future cruise currently says most sailings within the next 3 months are discounted anywhere from 20-70%. You need to ask which particular sailing you want pricing and they will tell you how much discount is available.

 

With these on board bookings, you can not use a FCD and since sailing is within 3 months, you are in final payment period so it must be paid in full. You can use Princess gift cards to pay if you have or can purchase before you book.

 

The previous on board discounts promo was also discounting the packages, now the Future cruise agent will remove any package from the pricing so only the cruisefare will be discounted.