C&A Coupon not applicable

[marcotiel]

After two cruises we decided this year to look for another one leaving Florida and cruising the Caribbean. We are big fans of the voyagerclass ships so the itinerary west caribbean on the the Navigator of the Seas leaving miami on september 16th was very interesting for us.

 

We booked through the RCCL website and as we are living in The Netherlands we were informed to contact the dutch representative AMCA so that they are able to take care of our payment. Being C&A members we presented our coupon received in the magazine this year and valid for this particular sailing. Reading the voucher we are entitled to a discount of 95 euros (116 dollars) on our stateroom. To cut a long story short, according to the agent we were not entitled to this discount as we booked a cabine with a discount already (balcony D2):mad: which was not staed on the website. After a long arguement I decided to book it anyway as the cabin was the one we really wanted on deck 9 but I still feel as if I was not treated right. There was no sign on the website that this was a cabin where possible discounts through c&a coupons were not valid.

 

My question: do any of you experienced cruisers think that I will have any chance to get a refund when i contact RCCL directly by phone. My point is that I think they refused the coupon as it might be deducted from their commission and I think that they should state in the advert on rccl's website that with that "special"rate coupons are not valid.

 

Any input would be appreciated.

 

Kind regards from The Netherlands

[Merion_Mom]

Marco: What kind of discount are you getting on the cabin? I would be highly suspicious of his response also.

 

Are you able, in the Netherlands, to book directly with Royal Caribbean, either by phone or on their website? If the price is the same for you, I would switch the booking directly to RC. I've been doing that, and it has worked out very well. I have control of the booking, and can change and do things with the reservation whenever I want to.

 

Hang in there.........push this up the chain of command, until you get a satisfactory response.

[marcotiel]

The discount is 95 euros for the stateroom for two persons. This is in us dollars about 116 big ones. For me enough money to call them directly today and see what the reaction of rccl is. Unfortunately have to wait now because of the 6 hour time difference.

Thank you for your response.

[Nitra]

I would not believe it either. Im a TA and even if you are getting a discount price the coupon applies. It would not apply if you had one already applied but then it can be swapped if you have one with a bigger discount.

 

I have someone going in Oct that had a 500 off certificate using their RCCL points, they also had a CnA coupon from the magazine, we were able to apply both discounts since one is a 500 off certificate and one was the CnA coupon.

 

On my cabin next month, I applied my coupon from the magazine and called CnA and got my status discount so that is also a double discount.

 

Im only telling you these things so you know the TA might be clueless. You can email the booking ID, the CnA coupon code, your CnA number and I would include names and sailing date, to crownandanchor@rccl.com or fax them a copy - front and back - to 305-373-4394. If you email them and they are unable to apply the discount, they usually email you back, not always but sometimes.

[frudutx]

If it were me, I'd fax the coupon directly to RCCL and see what happens. I too am suspicious.

[marcotiel]

Thank you all for your replies. i will call crown & anchor later on in the day to ask them about it. I will keep you informed.

 

I was wondering that as I am from The Netherlands the conditions may be different then your conditions as you are living in the US

[sas80]

The TA is lying. You are allowed to use your coupon. It doesnt matter where you live.

 

Call RCI and ask them if you can email your coupon information in directly and have them apply it. Cut out the TA as a middleman.

 

Be sure to write down who you spoke with at RCI and what department they are in.

 

If RCI wont let you fax/email/mail in the coupon for application because you booked through a TA, but says you can apply it, call your TA back and demand that they apply it.

 

If they still refuse to apply it then transfer the booking to RCI from your TA.

 

TA's do this because the more $$ you spend the higher their comission is.

[marcotiel]

The strange thing is that I booked the cruise directly through the rccl officail website. In the email rccl sent me they stated that this agent takes care of the payment and is the official agent of rccl in The Netherlands. When i announced that I would call rccl direct they said that they were the official agent of rccl in The Netherlands and that they had no problem with me calling them directly as their reaction would be the same (they said..........)

[TravelBugz]

Hi Marcotiel

 

Hope you get your discount. Just wanted to say that I am in Canada (originally from South Africa) and have got the discount from C&A, even with the discount and other promotions. We are actually on the September 16 NOS cruise later this year and had to mail our original discount in ... So being outside the US, your discount should still apply. Sometimes it helps just speaking to someone else. We also received the price drop after we booked. Wishing you get your discount. :)

 

take care, Michelle ;)

[surfpa]

I didn't realize that I could transfer my booking from my TA to RCCL!

 

I saw a coupon notice with a code on one of these threads and emailed it to my TA a few weeks ago, and she has not responded yet. We are sailing this Sunday. We have been emailing back and forth about an offer from another agent...they would have given us $100 credit for the balcony cabin and 5 bottles of wine or free travel insurance. My TA only wanted to give us $25 onboard credit, period. I knew at the time of our booking that this didn't sound like enough for 3rd time users with them, but I went ahead and booked since it was getting close to the sailing. When I questioned the agent about the other's offer, my agent said that they couldn't make any changes now with RCCL since it was already paid. I have a hard time believing that. I thought we would have gotten more support from them. In questioning RCCL, they said that we would have to work it out with the agent. I will not use this particular agent in the future. I'll do more homework next time in searching for the best deal, but I thought loyalty to this agent would mean something. :mad:

[pollux]

Marcotiel, you can use your coupon with a discount.

I got a senior discount on my crossing coming in April and a 100 off since I had a coupon.

Send the coupon to Miami office and the discount will be taken off your cruise fare.

Mine was paid with credit card and the 100 dollar showed up on the next statement.

Jongen laat je niet uitkleden door het reis bureau.

[sas80]

Marcotiel, you can use your coupon with a discount.

I got a senior discount on my crossing coming in April and a 100 off since I had a coupon.

Send the coupon to Miami office and the discount will be taken off your cruise fare.

Mine was paid with credit card and the 100 dollar showed up on the next statement.

Jongen laat je niet uitkleden door het reis bureau.

 

Yes! If all else fails then mail your coupon, with all info filled out, to RCCL in Florida.

An address should appear on the back of your coupon.

Photocopy it first, after you fill it out, so you will have a record of it.

 

You deserve your credit!

 

Yes, you can transfer bookings to RCCL from TA's.

Dont listen to your TA - they are going to say/do what they can to keep the booking. Tell RCI you are not happy with the TA and would like to transfer the booking. RCI will be more than happyto do it - but you do give up any TA perks.

[marcotiel]

Jongen laat je niet uitkleden door het reis bureau.

 

 

Dat gaan we zeker niet laten doen. ben niet achterlijk!!:)

[marcotiel]

Well, here go.

 

After being on hold 40 minutes I finally got someone to talk to and explain the situation. apparently I booked a category that had a special price for international guests. The coupon is apparently not applicable for cruisers from outside the USA:mad:

So there you go. You look at the prices. Decide to book it because you can get a good discount and in the end you have to pay more. Why does rccl not state on their website that at that price the coupon is not valid?

 

After discussing whether the coupon is valid or not they asked me to fax it to the office and they would look in to it. If it is they would let the travelagent know and I am able to contact them to deduct the 95 euros.

Yeah right.......:mad: :mad: :mad:

 

Easy way to get rid of me. Customer service of the highest level.

 

I am not letting go. They will get a fax from me within an hour and if they dont reply as promised they will get another call from me.

 

In other words: for a non us crown & anchor member there is no use being a member when you book through rccl directly

[sas80]

Well, here go.

 

After being on hold 40 minutes I finally got someone to talk to and explain the situation. apparently I booked a category that had a special price for international guests. The coupon is apparently not applicable for cruisers from outside the USA:mad:

So there you go. You look at the prices. Decide to book it because you can get a good discount and in the end you have to pay more. Why does rccl not state on their website that at that price the coupon is not valid?

 

After discussing whether the coupon is valid or not they asked me to fax it to the office and they would look in to it. If it is they would let the travelagent know and I am able to contact them to deduct the 95 euros.

Yeah right.......:mad: :mad: :mad:

 

Easy way to get rid of me. Customer service of the highest level.

 

I am not letting go. They will get a fax from me within an hour and if they dont reply as promised they will get another call from me.

 

In other words: for a non us crown & anchor member there is no use being a member when you book through rccl directly

 

Dont let it go! Dont take it laying down. Make them prove that the booking restrictions were supplied to you before you booked! Tell them that your choice would ahve been different had you known that you could not apply the coupon! Keep talking about how you feel VERY mislead about the whole situation and find their policies unjust! Keep pressing to get the coupon applied!

If this is your first RCL cruise explain how you were planning to make the move from cruiseline XXXX to RCCL but are now hesitant because of their undisclosed pricing policies.

 

Ask to talk to a supervisor!

 

Make noise & you'll get your discount

[Sheik]

I'm from Holland too and have the same problem. My TA says that the C&A coupons are not valid when booking outside the US/Canada.

[marcotiel]

The fax has been sent and I am waiting for their reply. Got the idea it will be a long wait. I will call them again tomorrow. I will probably spend morethan the 95 euros on the phone calling from The Netherlands to the US but i will not let go

[jenrie]

I'm from Holland too and have the same problem. My TA says that the C&A coupons are not valid when booking outside the US/Canada.

C&A coupons ARE VALID OUTSIDE US/CANADA we use them in the U.K. all the time

. phone no for U.K.C&A desk 01733865434 ask to speak to someone in the EUROPEAN SALES AND MARKETING OFFICE. It's best to phone in the afternoon as they don't always answer the phone in the mornings.

hope this helps

[marcotiel]

As expected no reply from RCCL so I send them an email today. So far I got the customary email that they received it and that they will answer within the next few days.

[marcotiel]

Their answer. Not very surprising

 

Dear Mr.

 

Thank you for your e-mail. We sincerely apologize for any unfair treatment that you feel you have received. It is certainly not the intent of Royal Caribbean International to deny Crown and Anchor privileges to our European guests. We will honor any coupon sent to that guest as long as the reservation meets the terms and conditions listed on the back of the coupon.

 

Unfortunately, the reservation you hold was book at one of our restricted fares. You were able to receive a fare lower then residents of the United States as incentive to our international guests. The rate that you received is a deeply discounted rate, much lower then if you would have been a US resident. Therefore, the fare is restricted from allowing coupons to be applied. We regret any inconvenience this may have caused.

 

However, you will still enjoy all of your Gold Crown and Anchor membership benefits while on board the Navigator of the Seas this September.

 

Mr. xxxx, we look forward to welcoming you onboard again soon. Get out there (sm).

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Chelle Rankin

Crown & Anchor Society

[Nitra]

So you are already getting a deep discount? Go in as if you are from the US, look up the same category, see what rate we would pay, then subtract your coupon and see if the savings is there or ask them, if you wanted to use your coupon, what rate would you have to pay, then subtract your coupon and see which is a better deal. Unfortunately, all companies, even grocery stores, reserve the right to refuse to use a coupon, especially on something already discounted.

[b&wcruiser]

I have the same kind of problems with AMCA ( the representative from RCCL in the Neterlands).

The last 2 cruises I wanted to upgrade from a inside to a balcony and they always start with: "that is not possible, you have to cancel (with a fine) and book a new one" (I don´t want to do that because of my on board credit). After some talking they ask your phone number and call you back later and than saying that it is possible after all.

Now I´m having a issue over my diamond-discount for a balcony.

The same thing happend as I wrote above, and after they called me back they were saying that I can't have my diamond discount because I already have send a savings certificate in for €100,- that I recieved because I reached the Diamond-membership.

I booked this cruise on my last one with the C&A society (OBC), who told me that I could do this (I´m waiting for the price to go down, what is happening now). It seems that they don't want to spent time on excisting bookings, but only want to make money out of new ones

Maybe I start a new threat about AMCA to see if more people in the Netherlands have this kind of problems with them.