To book or not to book onboard

[Inshape]

Is it advantageous to book your next cruise while on one? Do they give you special incentives or is it like doing at home with the TA or online or anywhere--since discounts on RCCL are a thing of the past. Thanks. We are sailing the Mariner of the Seas in January 2006 and would like to know if this is the better thing to do or wait and then book soon after for our Jan 2007 cruise? Thanks for the input.

[TxKroozer]

With the change in the discounting policies, the only method to get a better break is to book onboard and get the shipboard credit. You can always switch your booking to a TA when you come home and even change it to a later or different cruise, but keep the credit.

 

We have booked onboard the last three crusies.

[Dadofsara]

I was on a cruise last week. I was waiting to book onboard for a cruisee for next summer but as I kept checking the prices on the RCCL website the price went up $400. It did not make sense to wait to book onboard for a $100 onboard credit when waiting to book on board would cost me much more than the increased prices. Book jnow, don't wait! You'll cave in the long run. I did.

[dougp26364]

I've been booking ahead while onboard. For instance, our Alaska cruise was originaly booked as one of the worst located cabins on Vision OTS for the Mexican Riviera cruise while we were onboard Monarch OTS last January. When the Alaskan itenerary came out (the cruise we really wanted) we switched the booking to that cruise, keeping the old booking number. This way we managed to keep our $100 onboard credit we got for booking onboard. We also had previously booked our Enchantment cruise while onboard and received a $50 onboard credit for that cruise.

 

I'm debating on when to book our next cruise. It will either be on our upcoming Med cruise or while we're on Enchantment. I'm not 100% sure how I'm going to do this since I'm thinking either back to back eastern/western caribbean cruises or maybe a fall east coast/ Canada cruise. Both would be for the 2007 year and I'm not sure when those schedules would come out. If they're not out until after December of 2005, and they probably won't be, then I'll book something while on the Enchantment cruise. I know that the itenrerary's will be out long before our Alaskan cruise in Sept. of 2006 so Enchantment will be our last chance to book while onboard in order to get the inroom cabin credit and first day pricing and cabin selection for whatever route I decide to go.

[kenandlaura06]

A few people have had luck with booking beforehand and talking to the ambassadors on board and trying to get the booking credit. We are planning on booking our 07 cruise (To either Alaska or Bermuda) onboard Freedom next summer, but would book it ahead of time if we saw the right price.

[Driftwoodgal]

Have already booked my b2b cruises in a JS on the Rhapsody, Jan 2007. Since we are getting a group cruise rate the ship board credit wouldn't apply anyway. It is my understanding that you can't have the best of both worlds. But for you that are booking on board, and want to transfer your booking number to a cruise that hasn't come out yet, you can book the Rhapsody and then transfer your credit. After typing that......my price might not go down...... what am I thinking....it won't go down I am in a group price.:)

[Jimbo]

I was on a cruise last week. I was waiting to book onboard for a cruisee for next summer but as I kept checking the prices on the RCCL website the price went up $400. It did not make sense to wait to book onboard for a $100 onboard credit when waiting to book on board would cost me much more than the increased prices. Book jnow, don't wait! You'll cave in the long run. I did.

 

Good Point, a very few understand this though. Book early at home when prices are at their lowest, watch the prices and then you can rebook the same cruise while you are on your cruise if the prices are the same as you booked and then you recieve the onboard credit, if prices happen to go up before you rebook the cruise you wanted just forget it, you already saved money by booking early.

 

 

People waiting to book onboard for a $100 credit is silly. If you get it great, but don't let it stop you from booking the cruise you want NOW! The way prices of everything right now are, everything shooting up, it amazing the Cruiselines even honor the original price once you book. BOOK NOW and SAVE !

 

For example, For our September 2006 14 day Hawaii Cruise, when we booked this past May we are paying about $1700 per person, if we had waited to book that cruise while we are on the Jewel of the Seas 2 weeks from now we would be paying the current price for the same category we have now would run us about $2200 per person.

What would you rather be doing, running around the ship yelling I got a $100 shipboard credit.woohoooooooo! or saving $1000 by not waiting and booking home? No brainer right?

 

Jimbo:)

[NYDee]

Good Point, a very few understand this though. Book early at home when prices are at their lowest, watch the prices and then you can rebook the same cruise while you are on your cruise if the prices are the same as you booked and then you receive the onboard credit, if prices happen to go up before you rebook the cruise you wanted just forget it, you already saved money by booking early.

 

 

 

Jimbo:)

 

Jimbo, we have done this several times, rebooked on a cruise. Or booked anything to get the shipboard credit. The Loyalty Ambassador on our recently completed Jewel of the Seas cruise refused to rebook our Brilliance Panama Canal cruise. And said he wouldn't even think of booking us on another cruise unless we were serious about it. He was arrogant and it was his last cruise with RCI. So I don't know if this was just him and he didn't want to work. Or if RCI is getting stricter.

[dougp26364]

Jimbo, we have done this several times, rebooked on a cruise. Or booked anything to get the shipboard credit. The Loyalty Ambassador on our recently completed Jewel of the Seas cruise refused to rebook our Brilliance Panama Canal cruise. And said he wouldn't even think of booking us on another cruise unless we were serious about it. He was arrogant and it was his last cruise with RCI. So I don't know if this was just him and he didn't want to work. Or if RCI is getting stricter.

 

Since there hasn't been rampent posts complaining about it, my bet is it was just this particular LA that had a bug up his......

 

Think about it, RCI would like to have your money now. In sales, you always want to close the sale now and not later, after the client has had time to think about it and decides not to spend the money. IMO it would be a mistake not to take the deposit while the client is ready to give it.

 

I'm a good example of this. RCI was slower than NCL bringing out their Alaska cruises for 2006. I had booked the Mexican Riviera cruise while onboard Monarch expeting to switch it to Alaska when they came out. I got tired of waiting and put a deposit down on an NCL cruise sailing our of Seattle. Then, RCI put Vision OTS out of Seattle. Prices were about the same BUT, I would get the C&A cruise credits with RCI, the balcony discount with RCI and I also had the $100 onboard credit for booking while onboard with RCI.

 

It was a no brainer, RCI kept my business. In part because the LA allowed me to book a cruise he knew I wasn't likely to take in order to have the onboard credit when the itenerary came out that I really wanted. If I had waited to book while onboard our next cruise, then the price would have gone up over $100 pp and waiting to book onboard would have been a stupid thing to do. I might have stuck with NCL just to try something different to compare to RCI. Instead, RCI has kept my business.