Using OBC

[Erekosse]

We have a booking for our first HAL cruise on the Rotterdam for summer of 2025, so the trip is a good ways out. We have quite a bit of stacked onboard credit already showing on our account, and at some point, I plan to submit the claim for the shareholder benefit to pick up some more.

 

We've booked one HAL excursion using our shore excursion credits that came with the booking. Is there a way to use OBC to book excursions at this point? If not, has anyone had success prebooking HAL excursions out of pocket, requesting a refund onboard, and rebooking using OBC?

 

I have a similar question with respect to specialty dining. I expect I'm likely a year out from making any reservations given what I've read in other posts on this board, and we have two specialty dining included in the booking. I'll book those two when reservations open, but I'd like to book at least one more. So, I have the same questions regarding use of OBC or refund/rebook onboard.

 

Thanks!

[Mary229]

I always book my excursions ahead of time and head to the shore excursions desk once onboard to have them do the exchange.  I don’t know about dining but I never have an issue reserving onboard

[sambamama]

There is usually no issue getting dining refunded.  But depending on the cruise, there is no need to prebook as there may be plenty of space.  It also depends what time you want to dine.  If you like the later times, there usually seems to be plenty of room.

[Crew News]

Since I usually have a good bit of OBC but like to make Specialty Restaurant reservations to secure a preferred date/tame, I do the following:

• Prepay for Specialty Restaurant dining as soon as reservations open on the HAL website.
• Once onboard, ask Guest Services to refund my prepayments (Guest Services is not able to cancel reservations only refund).
• Dine at my reserved time.
• Pay with OBC.

Refunded prepayments will go to your "refundable" shipboard account and if not used, will be returned to the credit card on file with the ship.

[Haljo1935]

No, you cannot use OBC in advance of boarding.

No experience asking for dining charges to be moved from CC to OBC, although I've seen it said several times that GS can do it once onboard.

I always pre-pay excursions and have them moved to OBC on Day-1. You must have Shore Exc Desk do this, not GS (GS is not able).