NextCruise - Everything you need to know

[cal516]

Martha, I would say yes. If you can book a Celebrity cruise while cruising on Royal then I would say that you could use your NextCruise booking for a future Celebrity cruise.

 

Now watch, this will be the wrong information!:o

 

Hello all ...

 

I asked about this in May of this year on Mariner and was told I could buy a Royal Caribbean or a Celebrity NextCruise booking but that the programs were not interchangeable.

 

Take this with grain of salt as I've found the info one gets onboard is only reasonably, and not always completely, accurate.

 

FYI, I used the NextCruise booking on a 2008 12-day TransLant and max'ed the OBC! :)

[cruisenfever]

Hello all ...

 

I asked about this in May of this year on Mariner and was told I could buy a Royal Caribbean or a Celebrity NextCruise booking but that the programs were not interchangeable.

 

Take this with grain of salt as I've found the info one gets onboard is only reasonably, and not always completely, accurate.

 

FYI, I used the NextCruise booking on a 2008 12-day TransLant and max'ed the OBC! :)

Well, there you have it.......I was wrong.

 

Thanks so much for posting this. Though you are right with your comment about "info onboard is only reasonably, and not always completely accurate". I guess it's who you talk to and when.

[pmshirl]

The Next Cruise can not be used on any other cruiselne. I will try to copy and paste the Next Cruise Confirmation letter. Here it is:

 

 

NextCruise Booking Confirmation Letter

Dear Valued Guest:

Thank you for creating a NextCruise account.

Attached, you will find a confirmation for the NextCruise account made recently while onboard one of our

ships.

NextCruise is a brand new addition to our future cruise sales program. With a NextCruise account, you have

now secured the ability to receive an onboard credit in the value of $50-$200 per stateroom. The actual value

of the onboard credit is determined by length of voyage and will be applied when you select a ship, sailing date

and category.

Please note, the NextCruise confirmation does not list a ship, sailing date, category, price, stateroom number,

dining preference or taxes/fees. This is a generic booking that will remain open until you decide on your

preferences. Once you select a ship, sailing date, and category, you will be subject to paying the applicable

fare(s), remaining deposit, and all taxes/fees

Cruise Charges Guest #1 Guest #2 Guest #3 Guest #4 Total

Cruise Fare

Payment deposit of $100 per person is due at time of booking and is non-refundable. Balance of full deposit will be due when actual ship, sailing date and

category is selected.

Final payment date will be assigned when actual ship, sailing date and category is selected.

REMARKS

Traveling with booking numbers(s):

· Non-refundable deposit will be applied to actual ship, sailing date and category, when selected.

· The spelling of the guest(s) name above must match their proof of identification during ship check-in formalities.

· Guest will receive an onboard credit in the value of $50 - $200. Onboard credit value is based on length of sailing and will be assigned per stateroom, when ship and sailing

date is selected. Onboard credit only applies to guest staterooms listed on this confirmation. Guest forfeits the onboard credit if booking cancels.

Royal Caribbean NextCruise Terms and Conditions

1. You can apply the value of your NextCruise account against the cost of a Royal Caribbean International cruise. A NextCruise booking is not valid on any other cruise lines,

including any other affiliates of Royal Caribbean International.

2. A minimum of one person per booking must be 21 years of age or older and all guest(s) must satisfy Royal Caribbean International's requirements for passage.

3. Pricing, availability, and dining time to be determined at time of selection of ship and sailing date, and is subject to change.

4. Final payment is due 60 days prior for 1,2, 3, 4, and 5 night sailings; 70 days prior for 6 or more night sailings, and 90 days prior for holiday sailings. (These refund dates are

subject to change without notice.) If ship and sailing date is selected within the final payment period, full balance will be due immediately.

5. Full Names are required at time of booking. Changes to the reservation may be permitted, subject to availability and any other restrictions and applicable cancellation charges.

At least one name on the original booking must remain the same.

6. This confirmation is non-refundable and has no cash value.

7. To apply your NextCruise account balance against a specific ship and sailing date contact your Travel Agent.

8. Your NextCruise account balance cannot be used for cruises chartered by third parties and may not be used for certain customized group programs (i.e. value add groups).

9. Your NextCruise account balance is not redeemable for cash.

10. If your NextCruise account balance is applied to an actual ship and sailing date, and then the booking cancels, the guest may request a refund, less the value of the initial value

NextCruise Confirmation - Guest Copy

UNITED STATES Restrictions:

11. Any tax liability, including disclosure, connected with the receipt or use of NextCruise is the recipient's responsibility.

12. Royal Caribbean International reserves the right to substitute ports, change itineraries or substitute ships on all itineraries as more specifically provided in the Royal Caribbean

International guest ticket contract and brochures.

13. Offer valid only to residents of the United States and Canada. A NextCruise account shall have no expiration date.

14. A NextCruise account may be transferred to another guest (Applicable only to Canadian Citizens).

15. The provisions of Royal Caribbean International's Cruise/CruiseTour Ticket Contract (copies of which are available online at http://www.royalcaribbean.com) are hereby incorporated

by reference. IMPORTANT NOTICE: THE CRUISE /CRUISETOUR TICKET CONTRACT CONTAINS IMPORTANT LIMITATIONS ON THE RIGHTS OF PASSENGERS. Among

other things, any disputes between you and Royal Caribbean International must take place in Miami/Dade County, Florida and must be filed within a certain period of time. By

purchasing/redeeming this certificate, the purchaser/holder agrees that prior to being allowed to board the vessel, he or she must sign Royal Caribbean Internationalss applicable

cruise/cruisetour ticket contract and be bound by all such terms and conditions.

This may help those that are still questioning things.

[cruisenfever]

shirl.........thanks for posting that letter. That definitely answers the question of using NextCruise for a Celebrity cruise.

 

Of all the NextCruise bookings that we have done, and we have done 5, we have never received a letter like that. But all of our bookings were done on Radiance.

 

Now, last month when we were onboard, I booked 2. In our confirmation letter, which is just a recap of what I filled out on our forms, we received 2 certificates for each booking that represents the OBC value determined by length of cruise and it has to be sent in to RCI after we make our real booking.

 

This just proves that there is absolutely no consistency among LA's or ships.:(

[Sunny AZ Girl]

OK - I am confused.:confused: When we were on the Monarch on April 17 we booked Next Cruise with Danny, the LA. He hand wrote on the letter "Valid for 3 Years". Now I see there is no expiration date???? We were planning on booking the Brilliance 12 night for 2009 with this. However, now we have heard through the grapevine that the Brilliance may not be doing the itinerary we like. So, we are also looking at other cruise lines. DH can only do one big cruise a year. In 2010 we plan on doing a RCI cruise, using our RCI VISA points for a free cruise. Also, our Next Cruise was automatically assigned to the TA who booked that cruise. We may not be booking with that TA again.

 

So here is my dilemma - If we do not use the certificate in 2009, will it be too late to use our certificate in May 2010? (My work is now discouraging vacation time until after April). Also, would I be able to combine the Next Cruise OBC with the free cruise fare from the RCI VISA? My 2008 cruise was already booked when we were on the Monarch in April so I couldn't use it for that! If not, would I be able to use the Next Cruise certificate for a girl's cruise even though DH's name is on the reservation? I would really rather go on the cruise with him, though!;)

 

I've already talked to RCI & I know that I have to have the TA transfer my booking back to myself. However, if you don't want the booking assigned to your T/A, make sure the certificate is NOT assigned to them!:rolleyes:

[pmshirl]

Patti: Your Welcome. I have received that letter with each one of my Next Cruise Confirmations. Also, all my Next Cruise Confirmations, or any letter regarding a Next Cruise Confirmation only ever had the $100.00 charge on it (never the amount you stated are on all of them $198,000.00).

 

Sunny Az: They have changed the 3 yr expiration date, to now a No Expiration date. As long as one original name from the cpnfirmation is booked on Next Cruise Booking (see number 5 in my report), it states the confirmation is still valid. As far as the BOA credit card free cruise, I would call 1-800-526-9723, that is the phone number that I have on one of my LA Next Cruise booking papers for reservations and question. I have received OBC on free cruises(when using my BOA points) but I upgraded my cabin and still had a balance owed for the cabin. Good Luck.

[101Jus]

Anyone know if there are any plans to extend this program to non-US citizens? Any info on this would be much appreciated :)

[cal516]

We booked our current NextCruise (our first) in May of this year. The only documentation we ever received was a print out of the computer screen the LA used showing our names, deposit amount, and booking number.

 

After reading this forum, you would think 2 people would have received the same documentation, even if by a common mistake! :rolleyes:

[cruisenfever]

Patti: Your Welcome. I have received that letter with each one of my Next Cruise Confirmations. Also, all my Next Cruise Confirmations, or any letter regarding a Next Cruise Confirmation only ever had the $100.00 charge on it (never the amount you stated are on all of them $198,000.00).

 

Sunny Az: They have changed the 3 yr expiration date, to now a No Expiration date. As long as one original name from the cpnfirmation is booked on Next Cruise Booking (see number 5 in my report), it states the confirmation is still valid. As far as the BOA credit card free cruise, I would call 1-800-526-9723, that is the phone number that I have on one of my LA Next Cruise booking papers for reservations and question. I have received OBC on free cruises(when using my BOA points) but I upgraded my cabin and still had a balance owed for the cabin. Good Luck.

I checked all 5 of my NextCruise bookings after I saw the letter you posted, and each one is different, but each one has the Gross Amount of $198,999.00 on them. It also shows the initial deposit of $100.00. It must be just on Radiance.:confused: And like I said, the last two I booked last month each came with 2 OBC certificates for each booking that I have to send in. Even our TA was a little confused on that one.

 

That letter that you got really summarizes it all up. Wish they would issue that universally to all LA's. That would sure eliminate a lot of confusion.

[cruisenfever]

Anyone know if there are any plans to extend this program to non-US citizens? Any info on this would be much appreciated :)

Unfortunately, I can not answer that. I would suggest that you go to my very first post and email the gentleman that responded to me whose email address appears at the bottom.

 

We booked our current NextCruise (our first) in May of this year. The only documentation we ever received was a print out of the computer screen the LA used showing our names, deposit amount, and booking number.

 

After reading this forum, you would think 2 people would have received the same documentation, even if by a common mistake! :rolleyes:

Our point exactly...............it doesn't take being a brain surgeon to figure this one out!

[Cruiser Steph]

We booked our current NextCruise (our first) in May of this year. The only documentation we ever received was a print out of the computer screen the LA used showing our names, deposit amount, and booking number.

 

After reading this forum, you would think 2 people would have received the same documentation, even if by a common mistake! :rolleyes:

 

 

Hey I got the computer print out screen too! Woohoo! :p

 

Also, I did book a Celebrity Next Cruise and a RCCL Next Cruise. The LA did advise us to put my hubby's name on one and my name on the other so we only had to pay $200 total for both of them.

 

I have since booked my RCCL Next Cruise and was unclear about how much the OBC would be. (I had asked the LA on the ship and she said it varied but didn't know how much) I was booked directly with RCCL on the phone and he thought it was a flat $100 OBC. I'm so glad to hear that it transfers a few days after the reservation, maybe that's why he didn't know for sure, and that it is going to be determined on length of stay - I booked a 12N Southern Caribbean! :D

 

Stephanie :cool:

[pmshirl]

Cruiser Steph: Your OBC will be $200.00 for that length.

[cruisenfever]

Hey I got the computer print out screen too! Woohoo! :p

 

Also, I did book a Celebrity Next Cruise and a RCCL Next Cruise. The LA did advise us to put my hubby's name on one and my name on the other so we only had to pay $200 total for both of them.

 

I have since booked my RCCL Next Cruise and was unclear about how much the OBC would be. (I had asked the LA on the ship and she said it varied but didn't know how much) I was booked directly with RCCL on the phone and he thought it was a flat $100 OBC. I'm so glad to hear that it transfers a few days after the reservation, maybe that's why he didn't know for sure, and that it is going to be determined on length of stay - I booked a 12N Southern Caribbean! :D

 

Stephanie :cool:

Stephanie, now that's really bad when the LA and the RCI agent doesn't even know what the OBC is per length of cruise. I mean, how difficult would it be for them to make up a sheet and keep it on their desk. I'm sure that question has been asked more than a few times during her booking hours or his phone conversations with perspective clients!

 

Enjoy your 12 night cruise and your $200 OBC.

[medfordgirl]

Tell me if I am correct......my parents have a "nextcruise booking #" that they got on their cruise last month. I was searching all the online TA's and found a great resident rate for January. Can I call this TA and give them the booking # and tell them which cruise to attach it to? And then their $200 deposit will be applied and they will get their $50 OBC (it is a 4 nite cruise)? And all they will have to pay is the rest of the cruise fare? :confused:

[cruisenfever]

Tell me if I am correct......my parents have a "nextcruise booking #" that they got on their cruise last month. I was searching all the online TA's and found a great resident rate for January. Can I call this TA and give them the booking # and tell them which cruise to attach it to? And then their $200 deposit will be applied and they will get their $50 OBC (it is a 4 nite cruise)? And all they will have to pay is the rest of the cruise fare? :confused:

If their NextCruise booking is currently being held by RCI (i.e., when they purchased it on board, they did not instruct the LA to transfer it to a specific TA), then you will have to call RCI, ask for Transfer forms, fill them out with the TA's name and address plus the booking number, send/fax that back to RCI and then they will transfer it to the TA you have requested.

 

Once all that is taken care of, then they will get their OBC and just pay the cruise fare.

[medfordgirl]

thank you, just glad that it can be done. :)

[mcfaddensfarm]

Patti, or whoever can answer this...

I've read through all of these pages and I understand how it works for the most part. (Thanks to everyone who has posted examples and explained all of it!) But I am a little unsure of one thing: If I have booked a Nextcruise with just my name on it and gave them a $100 deposit, then later decide to use that but want to take a friend or family member, do I need to make an additional $100 deposit at the time of the actual cruise booking? Or does it then revert back to the usual $500 deposit for two? Or is no additional deposit required?

[DiannaInVA]

Patti, or whoever can answer this...

I've read through all of these pages and I understand how it works for the most part. (Thanks to everyone who has posted examples and explained all of it!) But I am a little unsure of one thing: If I have booked a Nextcruise with just my name on it and gave them a $100 deposit, then later decide to use that but want to take a friend or family member, do I need to make an additional $100 deposit at the time of the actual cruise booking? Or does it then revert back to the usual $500 deposit for two? Or is no additional deposit required?

 

When you book an actual ship and date, you will have to pay the rest of the deposit. The $100 you pay for the next cruise is sort of a "deposit on the deposit". If you book a 7 day cruise, for 2, and you only paid $100 for the next cruise, when you book, you have to pay the remaining deposit for both people so you pay: $250 (your friend) + $150 (you) = $400.

 

In my case, I paid $100 for one person for a "next cruise", then scheduled a 12 night cruise. Since it was a 12 night, I had to pay $350 when I booked it since the deposit is $450 per person for 12 night cruises.

[cruisenfever]

Patti, or whoever can answer this...

I've read through all of these pages and I understand how it works for the most part. (Thanks to everyone who has posted examples and explained all of it!) But I am a little unsure of one thing: If I have booked a Nextcruise with just my name on it and gave them a $100 deposit, then later decide to use that but want to take a friend or family member, do I need to make an additional $100 deposit at the time of the actual cruise booking? Or does it then revert back to the usual $500 deposit for two? Or is no additional deposit required?

 

When you book an actual ship and date, you will have to pay the rest of the deposit. The $100 you pay for the next cruise is sort of a "deposit on the deposit". If you book a 7 day cruise, for 2, and you only paid $100 for the next cruise, when you book, you have to pay the remaining deposit for both people so you pay: $250 (your friend) + $150 (you) = $400.

 

In my case, I paid $100 for one person for a "next cruise", then scheduled a 12 night cruise. Since it was a 12 night, I had to pay $350 when I booked it since the deposit is $450 per person for 12 night cruises.

Thanks Dianna for explaining that. You are right on.:D

[mcfaddensfarm]

Thanks Dianna!:D

[beachbuzzard]

Ok... thanks to everyone with info about this in this thread. I had no idea about Nextcruise until now.

 

Here's another question for everyone and I didn't see it in the terms/conditions:

 

Because we didn't know about NextCruise, we just booked a 5 day cruise for February a few weeks ago. Can we still take advantage of NextCruise somehow? Should we cancel and rebook with a NextCruise reservation? If we cancel now, can we just book a NextCruise on the ship in a couple of weeks and then assign the cruise on the ship or after? If we try that, will there be an issue with us previously having held a reservation for that cruise?

 

Thanks in advance for any info...

 

Alex

[pmshirl]

You must 1st obtain the next cruise confirmation ( by booking a next cruise while ONBOARD a cruise, they can not be purchased any other way), after you have a confirmation, you then can book a cruise. Yes, you can cancel the already booked cruise and purchase the Next Cruise on a future cruise and then use it to book the cruise you are cancelling. If you do go that route, remember prices change on cruises( which means if you book the cruise in say 2 months the price may have increased and you now have to pay that new price and the OBC you will receive from your next cruise could be less than the increase of the new booking, a certain cabin may not be available ( thats if you want the same cabin you have now and are cancelling), so these are all things to consider before cancelling your cruise and re- booking. Good Luck.

[cruisenfever]

I thought I would pass this information along from an email that I recently received from a good friend of ours.

 

I believe that someone asked this question before as far as booking a NextCruise booking on RCI but using if for a Celebrity cruise.

 

Celebrity OBC's for NextCruise bookings are determined by the cruise fare for two passengers. The more you spend on a cruise the more OBC you get with the max being $300. I don't know if this is new or not.

 

RCI OBC's for NextCruise bookings are determined by the length of the cruise with the max OBC being $200.

[mcfaddensfarm]

One thing I would like to point out is that if you decide to have the NextCruise booking transferred to your TA immediately, upon receiving your Confirmation Letter, look it over carefully and make sure that your TA's name is indicated. If not, go back and see the LA and tell her/him that you want it faxed to them. If you wait until you get home, then you have to fill out Transfer Forms from RCI. So take a few minutes and check it over very carefully ensuring that all information is correct before you leave the ship.

 

Okay, I do have one more question regarding what you wrote here. If you make your NextCruise booking on board and do NOT put a TA down, you can still transfer just that NextCruise booking to a TA (without having a specific ship picked yet) by filling out the transfer form & sending it in, correct? Or do you have to make the actual ship/date booking with RCCL first and THEN transfer it?

[cruizinmimi]

Jane, I think I can answer this one. I had a NextCruise from May and decided I would book with a TA for my Sept. cruise. I had to get the TA to send over a Transfer Form...I signed it...and then faxed the Transfer form back to the TA where she could have the booking and I could keep my OBC.