Looked around, but couldn't find the answer to this one

[Sparky2]

VERY long story, but the short answer is we used credit from a previously cancelled cruise that my sister and ner husband had cancelled. It covered her entire cruise with $17 to spare. This was after the huge hassle of getting the credit transferred into my niece's name.

 

Did the amount from the canceled cruise cover only your niece's booking? Your sister had to pay for her share of the booking? Does she have the $17 as OBC?

[Jeafl]

Did the amount from the canceled cruise cover only your niece's booking? Your sister had to pay for her share of the booking? Does she have the $17 as OBC?

 

You cannot imagine the hassle it was to get the $600 credit transferred over to my niece's name. My sister originally had booked early saver which complicated things even more. I talked to four people at Carnival who gave me four completely different answers. I finally lost it with one of the customer service reps and she transferred me to someone fairly high up at Carnival who finally handled everything personally for me. She could not have been nicer, and had everything taken care of within 15 minites of our phone call.

 

Anyway, there was a $20 service fee for transferring the credit, which left $580. My niece's fare was $563. The woman who helped me in the end said that cruise credits can only be used toward the cruise fare, and that the remaining $17 would essentially be lost. At that point I didn't care. I just wanted it taken care of because we were so close to our final payment date and I didn't want the room cancelled for non-payment.

Edited January 2, 2014 by Jeafl

[RuthlessBoss]

I do believe that serious talk is in order. Maybe tell your sister you'll need $500 up front. Does she really expect you to pay for everything outside the cruise? Ugh...family! Best of luck and I hope it all works out for you. If your sister balks, you might mention leaving the niece behind. Of course, that would create a whole lot of drama. OK, nevermind. Take her with you!

 

I don't agree about taking her and forking out all the extra money for all the extra expenses. If it was agreed upon from the start, that's a lot different than getting backed into it involuntarily.

What we don't know, is how much the niece is truly looking forward to this. She's old enough to understand what her mom is doing.

[Terre]

Perhaps you can make you nieces on board account a cash account. Have her mother give you a certain amount upfront and put that on her sign and sail account. This way she can only spend what her mother gives her.

 

This is what I was thinking. Good luck.

[cynt]

Setup a cash account for her when you board.

 

Definitely have a talk w/your sister ASAP! Have a bullet point list of expenses you know your niece will incur - tips, excursions, soda card, souvies, etc. Tell her you need this money 2 weeks before the cruise in cash. Have your niece sit in on this conversation. She's 16 so I think she can handle it. So there's no misunderstandings and when the niece is not able to do something on the cruise she will understand her mom gave her a certain amount of $$ and she has to budget it.

 

Tell the niece to take up a couple of part time jobs if she doesn't already have one so she can save her money for the cruise. Babysitting, pet watching, watering plants, collecting cans, cash in coins, etc. Nothing major but something so she can save a couple of hundred dollars before the cruise.

 

Also she might not be able to afford those expensive excursions. Have a plan B if she can't go or pay for her to go. Our 16 yr old would have been fine on the ship for the day w/out parent supervision. She would have read on the balcony for the day but only you know your niece. You can always come back early from excursion and take her to the local shops/beaches that are free around the port so she won't feel like she missed a port.

 

We had 3 teens on our cruise and they really didn't spend much money. They had a set amount for the cruise. They might have spent $50 on board excluding tips for a 4 day cruise. They decided not to get a soda card and drink the lemonade. After a couple of rounds of laser tag they were fine. They mostly just hung out on the ship with their new friends by the pool and sports activities.

 

It will be fine. And if all else fails when the rubber meets the road all your niece needs is tip money. I've taken cruises and besides tips have only spent less than $20 and I had a fabulous time. So it can be done.

Edited January 2, 2014 by cynt

[zoncom]

Common sense dictates calling the cruise line to get precise answer.

[RuthlessBoss]

Common sense dictates calling the cruise line to get precise answer.

 

Carnival has the answer?:D Guess we aren't needed any:(more

[Jeafl]

Common sense dictates calling the cruise line to get precise answer.

 

True. However, I don't have a lot of faith in anything the Carnival customer service reps tell me anymore. I've been given the flat-out wrong information many times. I have found that the people here on the Carnival boards have a better average of correct answers. :)

[Jeafl]

I think we need to have more information. Were assumptions made on the part of the mom? Or was there some agree-upon cash allowance for the niece and who pays for that? Boy, what a quandary.

 

Well, truth be told, we never really invited my niece on this trip. My sister (niece's mom) was mad at Carnival for sticking her with cruise credit instead of a full refund, so when she heard we were going on this cruise she thought it would be a great way for her to use the credit. She herself says she will never sail Carnival again, so for her this was the perfect solution. My other sister was going to pay a solo premium and now she won't hVe to, so it worked out fine in the end. I have no real issues with my niece, she's a nice girl except for the fact she usually gets everything she wants. Her parents buy her everything so that is why we are all a little comcerned about her spending habits.

 

I do think her mom is assuming we will pick up the balance of her charges since she said she would rather die than give Carnival one more cent. What a mess.

Edited January 2, 2014 by Jeafl

[Jeafl]

I don't agree about taking her and forking out all the extra money for all the extra expenses. If it was agreed upon from the start, that's a lot different than getting backed into it involuntarily.

What we don't know, is how much the niece is truly looking forward to this. She's old enough to understand what her mom is doing.

 

I do think my niece is looking forward to it, but I don't think she is even remotely aware of the whole financial situation.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Carnival has the answer?:D Guess we aren't needed any:(more

 

Sure they do. Call 4 times and get 4 different answers.

 

Put all the answers in a hat and pick one and hope for the best.:)

 

Bill