Carnival doesn't honor early saver fares

[Sweetsforjay]

[quote name='Herbaltees']I thought once early saver,you are always early saver.
So if you were booked in a 4b, you couldn't upgrade to an ocean view gty? And then price match to gty fares?


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This is what was explained to me. Once ES always ES. I started in my sisters cabin in a 4A ES, then thought better of it and added my own cabin, then noticed 72hr sale price drop of $100, was denied through online submission, then approved by calling and assured if any other price drops occur I would still be eligible.


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[Out to sea!]

[quote name='Herbaltees']I thought once early saver,you are always early saver.
So if you were booked in a 4b, you couldn't upgrade to an ocean view gty? And then price match to gty fares?


Sent from my iPad using Forums[/QUOTE]

Not to my knowledge (I believe with ES you have to upgrade from a dedicated 4B say to a dedicated 6A, not an OV GTY) but I must admit, I've only been on 7 Carnival cruises so I don't know every possible scenario that can be tried. But I can say, with the initial booking, there is no such thing as ES GTY. Edited September 10, 2014 by Out to sea!

[ChrisinOrl]

[quote name='ChrisinOrl']Early Saver is not always Early Saver - I am so confused about the Early Saver program.

According to the ticket contract, the cruise fare [COLOR="Red"]does not[/COLOR] include Fees and Taxes. If that is the case, then why are fees and taxes included when determining eligibility for the early saver price protection?

According to the Carnival website, "[COLOR="red"]in the unlikely event that you do find a lower Carnival-advertised rate after booking your cruise, we will honor it and adjust your cruise rate accordingly[/COLOR] " Additionally, the website clearly states that "[COLOR="red"]price protection applies to new Early Saver bookings only and . . . applies to cruise fare only[/COLOR]."

I have seem my rate go down on two separate occasions, but each time I have been denied the early saver because the taxes and fees are higher.[/QUOTE]


I finally found what I was looking for. According to the Carnival website, "The price protection policy applies only to the category booked; no downgrades allowed. . .Price protection will be subject to the prevailing Taxes, Fees and Port Expenses and/or fuel supplement if applicable."

Although disappointed, I fully understand.

[fanda120608]

[quote name='ahwahoo2006']Tried to ES price match on Monday to the Past Guest sale, but was denied because it is for "new bookings" only.[/QUOTE]

They must not be enforcing their policy evenly across the board then. Someone on my roll-call was just able to get obc using the past guest sale rate. I'm still waiting to hear back myself.

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[travelerblue]

[quote name='pai1762']I would love to see the paper work on this one from carnival BECAUSE I DON'T THINK SOOOOOOOO[/QUOTE]

This just happened to our cruise friends. They switched to the balcony guaranty and between the obc for pack and go and the resident discounts and past guest discounts, they are now up to just under $1000 in obc! And they got a spa balcony assignment on top of that. So it does definitely happen. Surely didn't happen to us We booked a spa inside and apparently those prices just go up.

[BigRed93]

[quote name='fanda120608']They must not be enforcing their policy evenly across the board then. Someone on my roll-call was just able to get obc using the past guest sale rate. I'm still waiting to hear back myself.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Forums mobile app[/QUOTE]


From just a glance the details of every rate shows that it is for new bookings only. That is not an acceptable answer to me. And I was able to get the past guest rates for the last few days on my booking. The higher past guest rate for choosing you cabin, not the gty one.
Without ES people would be canceling and rebooking. Or not booking until late. ES is an overlay and you should be able to price match to any product you are eligible for, where you choose your room.


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[tkportersat]

I will never book Early Saver, too many stipulations. I booked Casino Rate, I picked exactly the room I wanted on the Lido deck and I am fine with the price. Always see folks griping about Early Saver, surprised they haven't pulled the plug on it.

[quote name='CanWeGoYet?']I wish Carnival honored price drops up to sailing, like they did years ago. But it isn't worth it to me to book ES, too restrictive & if I need to cancel I just want my $ back, period, if it's before final payment.

[Out to sea!]

[quote name='tkportersat']I will never book Early Saver, too many stipulations. I booked Casino Rate, I picked exactly the room I wanted on the Lido deck and I am fine with the price. Always see folks griping about Early Saver, surprised they haven't pulled the plug on it. [/QUOTE]

The only people I see griping about Early Saver are the ones who book it without reading the restrictions or the ones trying do something that you are not supposed to do with ES and then getting upset about it. I've used ES for every Carnival cruise I've taken and I love the program. I understand the restrictions and I work within those restrictions. Hope they never pull the plug on Early Saver.

[OnePsychLynne]

Since this is clear as mud, I booked ES. The cruise is 5 months away so ES is no longer available. But there is a Super Saver rate that is $50/pp less than what I originally paid for my balcony cabin. If I complete the form will I then be in the Super Saver rate and no longer eligible for future price drops? TIA!

Sent from my Galaxy S4. Typos inevitable.

[pearose]

I booked an ES for February 2015. I noticed the balcony cabin price dropped quite a bit in one day, so I called. I was totally embarrassed. I did not realize that the price showing for a balcony was for category 8A, when we had booked an 8C. So it was not less than what we paid, so it was denied. The Carnival rep was extremely nice and helpful and explained where I had been mistaken and told me exactly how to check the next time and said if I noticed a price drop that way to be sure and call again.

It makes total sense to me now. I have sailed on Carnival 4 previous times and still never really understood the differences in cabin categories. I understand much better now, thanks to the rep who answered all my questions and not once made me feel stupid or like I was wasting her time at all.

[angela12345]

[quote name='OnePsychLynne']Since this is clear as mud, I booked ES. The cruise is 5 months away so ES is no longer available. But there is a Super Saver rate that is $50/pp less than what I originally paid for my balcony cabin. If I complete the form will I then be in the Super Saver rate and no longer eligible for future price drops? TIA!

Sent from my Galaxy S4. Typos inevitable.[/QUOTE]
The Super Saver rate is not an eligible rate for a price drop with Early Saver. You can only get drops with Early Saver for rates where you can pick your own room. Super Saver is a "guarantee" cabin, which means you cannot pick your own room ... you are guaranteed to get at least that type/level of cabin (inside, ocean view, balcony, suite).

You can not price match to a "guarantee" rate because there is no category to match to. i.e. If you purchase an ocean view guarantee, you know you will get at least a 6A, but you could possibly get anything from a 6A to a 9C or maybe even a suite (very rare!), so there is not a specific cabin category to 'match' to.

There are two best ways to check for price drops.
1. fare viewer - [url]http://www.carnival.com/BookingEngine/FareViewer/[/url]
You need to compare your base fare before taxes to the same category (8A or 8B or 8C etc)
2. mock booking - go all the way up until the point where you pick your room number
If your room is balcony, midship, Upper deck, then that is the same rate you need to be comparing to. This will compare the total fare including taxes.

Lots more detail in this thread . . . Early Saver -- "Dumb" it down for me
[url]http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2104489[/url]

[angela12345]

[quote name='OnePsychLynne']Since this is clear as mud, I booked ES. The cruise is 5 months away so ES is no longer available. But there is a Super Saver rate that is $50/pp less than what I originally paid for my balcony cabin. If I complete the form will I then be in the Super Saver rate and no longer eligible for future price drops? TIA!

Sent from my Galaxy S4. Typos inevitable.[/QUOTE]
Oops, I forgot to add ... when you get price drops with Early Saver, yes you are still eligible for future price drops.

[OnePsychLynne]

[quote name='angela12345']The Super Saver rate is not an eligible rate for a price drop with Early Saver. You can only get drops with Early Saver for rates where you can pick your own room. Super Saver is a "guarantee" cabin, which means you cannot pick your own room ... you are guaranteed to get at least that type/level of cabin (inside, ocean view, balcony, suite).

You can not price match to a "guarantee" rate because there is no category to match to. i.e. If you purchase an ocean view guarantee, you know you will get at least a 6A, but you could possibly get anything from a 6A to a 9C or maybe even a suite (very rare!), so there is not a specific cabin category to 'match' to.

There are two best ways to check for price drops.
1. fare viewer - [url]http://www.carnival.com/BookingEngine/FareViewer/[/url]
You need to compare your base fare before taxes to the same category (8A or 8B or 8C etc)
2. mock booking - go all the way up until the point where you pick your room number
If your room is balcony, midship, Upper deck, then that is the same rate you need to be comparing to. This will compare the total fare including taxes.

Lots more detail in this thread . . . Early Saver -- "Dumb" it down for me
[url]http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2104489[/url][/QUOTE]
Thank you so much! Honestly, you'd think I'd know more with as many cruises as I've taken, but for some reason I just went blank when I looked at the choices yesterday :( I really appreciate your help <3

Sent from my Galaxy S4. Typos inevitable.

[travler27]

It seems to me that a good solution would be for Carnival to simply automatically apply any price drops to those with ES. Why does it have to be a treasure hunt with convoluted rules that their own employees have a hard time understanding. Writing the code to track it should be a simple matter for any high school programmer and they would save a ton of money on dealing with all the claims, complaints and unhappy folks who don't know all the rules.

[BigRed93]

I think they rely on people not filing for the drop. Sometimes the price drops for just a few hours, unless you are fanatical about checking, you wouldn't even know. Why would they want to just automatically give money away?


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[crusinpsychRN]

[quote name='firefly333']I also think carnival is to blame .. as you see above .. lambie got to match the rates and give up here cabin.. carnival is inconsistent, and some people get it and some dont, so I understand their frustration.

carnival needs to make a rule and enforce it.. not give it to just some people.

carnival is too inconsistent in enforcing their own rules.[/QUOTE]

Wouldn't she have had to cancel, and pay the $50 fee? If the rate was so much better and was worth doing so--she didn't say--she still didn't get to chose cabin.

Never mind. Response was to the 2011 thread. Edited September 27, 2014 by crusinpsychRN

[crusinpsychRN]

[quote name='ChrisinOrl']Early Saver is not always Early Saver - I am so confused about the Early Saver program.

According to the ticket contract, the cruise fare [COLOR="Red"]does not[/COLOR] include Fees and Taxes. If that is the case, then why are fees and taxes included when determining eligibility for the early saver price protection?

According to the Carnival website, "[COLOR="red"]in the unlikely event that you do find a lower Carnival-advertised rate after booking your cruise, we will honor it and adjust your cruise rate accordingly[/COLOR] " Additionally, the website clearly states that "[COLOR="red"]price protection applies to new Early Saver bookings only and . . . applies to cruise fare only[/COLOR]."

I have seem my rate go down on two separate occasions, but each time I have been denied the early saver because the taxes and fees are higher.[/QUOTE]

Did the taxes and fees increase the final cost so the savings wouldn't be worth it? If so, the denial saved you money.....This happens a lot when the fare difference is only about $40, T&F can negate that.

[LitchfieldParkCruisers]

IMHO...no business is perfect..and sometimes how well a business appears to run is subject to the difference between is best and worst employees on any given day.
I think the issue here was that instead of doing a little more leg work on getting a different resolution to the problem, or instead of asking for any assistance or recommendations from experienced cruisers, the OP stormed into the thread with fists in the air complaining that Carnival is unfair and I'll teach them a lesson. That will usually rub most of us Carnival lovers the wrong way.
And although it never feels good to be disagreed with, or to be told you might be wrong, I don't really take any of the comments I saw (and maybe I missed one or two) as being mean.

Carry on....

LPC

[Out to sea!]

[quote name='travler27']It seems to me that a good solution would be for Carnival to simply automatically apply any price drops to those with ES. Why does it have to be a treasure hunt with convoluted rules that their own employees have a hard time understanding. Writing the code to track it should be a simple matter for any high school programmer and they would save a ton of money on dealing with all the claims, complaints and unhappy folks who don't know all the rules.[/QUOTE]

While that may be good for the customer, it would be bad for the company. Why give thousands of cruisers who don't spend time checking the rates a free discount. It would be bad for business and Carnival is in business to make money. For those who are diligent, they MAY get a reward. For those who don't care, Carnival makes more money. I see no problem with having to earn the reward. Edited September 27, 2014 by Out to sea!