Booking while on a cruise

What are the perks if we book another cruise while sailing. I thought I read had 2 years to use it. Are you locking in your rate. What is the deposit and do you get any onboard credit. We booked through Disney now I see travel agents that offer free upgrades and on board credit. How can they do it and make money does Disney see them a block of cabins cheaper than to us

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DCL is different than most other lines in how they deal with agent. NO agent can discount the rate on a DCL cruise, and DCL does not sell blocks of cabins and allow agents to re-sell them. No TA can offer you an upgrade unless they are paying for that upgrade out of their own pocket. DCL does randomly award free upgrades SOMETIMES when a cruise is not full. We've cruised DCL 30 times and have received some upgrades.

You can either book a cruise while on a ship or buy a future cruise certificate. The difference is that if you book a cruise, you lock in that particular date and rate. You receive 10% off the current cruise rate, an OBC based on the length of the cruise, and you pay a 10% deposit rather than the standard 20%. If you book while on board, you have 30 days during which you can transfer the reservation to a TA and get whatever additional benefits they might give. With the future cruise certificate, you must sail within 2 years of the purchase. NOTE--some other lines allow you to book within a certain window. DCL requires that you embark on the cruise within that 2 year window.

Many TAs offer an OBC based on the cost of the cruise, length of the cruise, or other deciding factor. Hopefully you'll choose a TA who offers both excellent service and a nice OBC.

The certificate (or placeholder) for a future cruise is fully refundable if you decide within the 2-yr window that you won't be taking another cruise. There are some blackout dates for getting the 10% onboard discount. When in doubt, get the placeholder. You can always cash it out later if necessary. If your family is in two cabins, then you can pay for an extra placeholder ($500 instead of $250) to get the onboard booking for two cabins for your future cruise.

You've received good advice so far. I also wanted to note that I had booked a May 27, 2019 Alaska cruise the day it opened up. During my June 2 Mediterranean cruise I thought I likely couldn't get a better price on board for the Alaska cruise because the prices would have gone up since I booked. However, I went ahead and checked and thankfully the price for my date hadn't changed so I was able to re-book the Alaska cruise getting the 10% discount, on board credit, and reduced deposit. I'm also transferring it to my TA for an additional on board credit. I then just canceled my original booking. So it's always worth checking if you're ever in this type of situation.

Totally agree--you never know whether a cruise price has increased or whether you can get a better deal by canceling and rebooking on board until you check.

BUT that's why it is a good idea to book when you know what you want and then "re-shop" while on board.