Double Check your OBC before getting on board

[SoccerMom#3]

We were on Allure of the Seas last week (great cruise but I'll put that on a another thread). We booked directly with RCCL in December and were told we would have a $300 OBC. When it didn't show up on the email with our booking confirmation I called the RCCL person I booked the cruise with and she assured me the $300 OBC would show up once I got on the cruise.

 

At the end our cruise, I asked on board about the $300 OBC and was told we didn't have OBC and I would have to contact RCCL when we got off the ship. I was told by RCCL earlier this week that no we didn't have OBC because we had a $75 Crown and Anchor credit. I said why would I take a $75 credit and turn down a $300 OBC. He said we were given misinformation but there is nothing he can do. I said we spent the $300 OBC given what we had been told prior to boarding.

 

I asked to talk to a supervisor and after saying that wasn't possible, he finally said he would give my concern to a supervisor who would call me in a day or so. That was 3 days ago. I called again and was told she is busy and has a lot of work.

 

I haven't posted on Cruise Critic till now since i hoped the situation would be resolved but that hasn't happened but I wanted to give others a heads up. I haven't even heard from customer service.

 

Today I emailed Michael Bayley, the RCCL CEO since that was the only email I could find although I did ask for the customer service email. His assistant emailed me back saying she was investigating and would get back to me.

 

So lesson learned...get everything in writing, double and triple check before getting on board, and don't assume anything. I guess i was too trusting when I was told by RCCL the OBC would show up on board but at this point I'm not giving up although I think that is what RCCL would like me to do.

 

We did have a great cruise and the staff and ship are amazing. Will I sail again on RCCL and will I recommend RCCL? I don't know.

[Cruzn Fool]

There have been a few threads on here about this in recent weeks and one of them made me check out the OBC for my cruise later this year. Sure enough, I had the exact same situation that you did, with the C&A discount overriding the OBC, but at least I had time to catch it in advance of the cruise and not while on the cruise (or after). My situation has been satisfactorily resolved. It took some time and some back and forth but I eventually got the OBC restored.

 

One thing that saved me is that I had a print screen of the page that showed the cruise fare, discounts and OBC so I definitely recommend anyone who books online print it out and save it for any future need.

 

The recommendation from other Cruise Critic members was to contact RCCL and ask them for an invoice for the cruise and that would list all financial data, including any OBC. This will let you know exactly what you have for OBC and the full breakdown of your cruise fare. That was great advice.

 

All in all it seems very sneaky on RCCL's part but I believe it is an honest mistake. The more of us that call them out on it, maybe it will help get whatever technical issue causes this to be resolved.

[SoccerMom#3]

That was smart of you to take a screen shot of the original offer regarding OBC. I've learned my lesson and will do that next time if there is a next time on RCCL.

 

I'm still waiting to hear back from RCCL customer service or the Executive for Guest Relations who emailed me last week. I'll give them a few more days to contact me before I contact them again. I figure they are busy with the customers whose travel plans were altered due to the recent snow storm.

[CntPAcruiser]

We had a fair amount of on-board credit for our most recent cruise from booking on board the prior cruise, and we were sure glad we brought along documentation, because that OBC didn't show up on our account. We were able to show receipts and e-mails detailing what OBC we had coming and it was credited to our account, but without that documentation we probably wouldn't have had a chance. They were already starting the "we'll look into it ..." speech.

 

This was on Vision, and in general the on-board account system on that ship was a mess. You have to get a printout from guest services to review your account; there is no way to view it on your in-cabin TV. We had to make multiple trips to guest services to check the account and fix problems with the way things were charged (including C&A discounts). In the end they worked it out, and the ladies at the guest services desk were kind and helpful.

[HesterMofet]

We had the same thing happen on one of our cruises. The OBC promised never showed up. We contacted them when we got home and they credited our card, but it was a pain because at the guest services desk they acted like we were liars. Oh well, lesson learned. I will always ask for documentation of OBC from now on.

[Mjoellnir]

we have an substantial amount of OBC comming from http://www.royalcaribbeanhoneymoon.com/ .

Any advice on how to double check these before boarding?

[BekkaW]

we have an substantial amount of OBC comming from http://www.royalcaribbeanhoneymoon.com/ .

Any advice on how to double check these before boarding?

 

Call up and ask to be emailed the 'guest copy' invoice. Stay on the phone until you have it. It's different to the normal invoice and has a line item for OBC

[BekkaW]

I asked to talk to a supervisor and after saying that wasn't possible, he finally said he would give my concern to a supervisor who would call me in a day or so. That was 3 days ago. I called again and was told she is busy and has a lot of work.

 

I'm having a similar issue with gratuities. Terms and conditions that I booked under says I get them included in the price, RCL customer service says I don't. Finally managed to speak to a supervisor who was supposed to look into it and call back within 48 hours. That was last Wednesday and of course I haven't had a call!

 

I am considering emailing Michael Bayley also

 

Thank goodness the onboard experience is better than the customer service!

Edited January 25, 2016 by BekkaW

[dpostman]

we have an substantial amount of OBC comming from http://www.royalcaribbeanhoneymoon.com/ .

Any advice on how to double check these before boarding?

 

Call up and ask to be emailed the 'guest copy' invoice. Stay on the phone until you have it. It's different to the normal invoice and has a line item for OBC

 

Just a heads up, If you booked your cruise through a TA, then, most likely, RCI will not send you the "Booking Confirmation - Guest Copy" directly, but your travel agent can request it. If you booked yourself, then there should be no problem.

 

dp

[nelblu]

When you see an OBC offered which is larger than the CA discount, do not mention or enter your CA no. and the OBC will not be disturbed. When you're on the ship or after your cruise, contact CA and they will credit your cruise points.

[ziggy39]

Where can I find my OBC?

[Clarea]

Where can I find my OBC?

Contact whoever booked your cruise and ask for Royal's Guest Copy of your booking confirmation. This will show Royal OBC only.

[gvgseg]

Slightly off-topic but I'm getting conflicting information from my TA about the OBC that they included with my booking.

 

He's telling me that however much of my OBC that I don't use it will just be refunded back to my bill at the end of the cruise. I've never heard of this, I was assuming that OBC is a use it or lose it kind of deal. I've never booked through a TA before so I wasn't certain whether the OBC refundability differs if it is coming from an agent rather than Royal Caribbean themselves.

[denatravels]

Slightly off-topic but I'm getting conflicting information from my TA about the OBC that they included with my booking.

 

 

 

He's telling me that however much of my OBC that I don't use it will just be refunded back to my bill at the end of the cruise. I've never heard of this, I was assuming that OBC is a use it or lose it kind of deal. I've never booked through a TA before so I wasn't certain whether the OBC refundability differs if it is coming from an agent rather than Royal Caribbean themselves.

 

 

They are, in fact, different. TA credits, as well as credit card points, are refundable.

[linkerbink]

When you see an OBC offered which is larger than the CA discount, do not mention or enter your CA no. and the OBC will not be disturbed. When you're on the ship or after your cruise, contact CA and they will credit your cruise points.

 

I think a lot of this depends on the agent you work with on the phone. I booked a balcony cabin for my sister and BIL and an outside for myself using the military discount, which gave $150 OBC per cabin. The agent ran all the numbers and determined that the balcony cabin would be over $350 less using the balcony discount, while my cabin was better with the military discount and OBC. My sister opted for the reduced cabin price, and we will share my OBC. I never expected there to be a difference so I was pleased that the agent took the time to run the numbers.

[ziggy39]

Contact whoever booked your cruise and ask for Royal's Guest Copy of your booking confirmation. This will show Royal OBC only.

 

 

Thank You

[kac0426]

I recently started a thread on this exact topic. I booked a cruise a month ago and at the time of booking, it said I would receive $100 OBC. But when I later checked my online information, no OBC was listed. I received a $47 C&A discount, but of course I'd rather have the $100 OBC. I requested a copy of the booking invoice (thanks to some suggestions here) and sure enough, no OBC listed. So many commenters told me my OBC would show up on board, but that's not the case. There is no record that I was ever given OBC since I got the discount instead. I think some people on CC are way too trusting that the OBC will just show up while on board and need to be careful about assuring others on this board that they have nothing to worry about. My problem now is that when I do a mock booking (not logged in as a C&A member), the $100 OBC offer no longer shows. So I don't think I could get them to add it even if I called them. I know it's only a $53 difference, but I think what RCCL is doing is REALLY shady.

[kac0426]

When you see an OBC offered which is larger than the CA discount, do not mention or enter your CA no. and the OBC will not be disturbed. When you're on the ship or after your cruise, contact CA and they will credit your cruise points.

 

How does this work with regard to C&A perks (free drinks, robes, etc.)? If you don't include your C&A number when booking, it seems you would miss out on the perks you've earned for achieving platinum, diamond, etc. status. Your sea pass wouldn't list the accurate level and all that. And if you get them to add the cruise points after the cruise is over, doesn't that defeat the purpose of having a status? I'm sorry, but this just seems like an unfair plan to me...

[Clarea]

How does this work with regard to C&A perks (free drinks, robes, etc.)? If you don't include your C&A number when booking, it seems you would miss out on the perks you've earned for achieving platinum, diamond, etc. status. Your sea pass wouldn't list the accurate level and all that. And if you get them to add the cruise points after the cruise is over, doesn't that defeat the purpose of having a status? I'm sorry, but this just seems like an unfair plan to me...

You can add your C&A number to the booking without affecting the price. Just don't be logged into the website when you book, otherwise you will get the C&A discount.

[goodycruising]

Screen shots are certainly one of the best suggestions we have had from CC. We had an OBC & cruise pricing issue a while back, and when we said we had a screen shot the call centre person went quiet. They hate it when you can prove what you were promised. Or maybe they were happy that we had evidence so that it would be less of a "we were told" scenario.

 

Our issue was a combination of them having issues at first with our future cruise certificate, and then because they mucked around so much with the pricing, when we went to put a credit on as part payment that we had received due to an issue on another cruise, they tried to say our cruise pricing was wrong. What was wrong was the way the original booking had the second person's fare priced down instead of showing full fare and then the bogo discount.

 

It eventually got sorted out, but we had to ring a lot of times, and in the end we were out by about $17 in their favour, but we just gave up and took that.

 

That is one of the reasons we will not book on board again. When the consultant there lies to you there is no screen shot to fall back on. :( That cost us some dollars.

[SoccerMom#3]

I talked to the Executive for Guest Relations at RCCL today. They will not give me a $300 credit since they have nothing in writing that I was told I had a $300 OBC that would show up once I was on board. Also she said the Resident and Crown & Anchor discounts they gave me negated the $300 On Board Credit. I told her I was not told over the phone that one discount negates another. I asked how I would even know to ask that. I told her I agree that the OBC does not show up on the email booking confirmation but that was why I called immediately after receiving the email and was told the OBC would show up on board.

 

The woman I talked to was nice but I told her that I understand that it is a she said she said situation and it comes down to my word vs. the booking agent's word. I told her $300 is not a lot to RCCL but it is to me. You'd think they'd know that $300 is pocket change compared to the negative comments a disgruntled customer can generate

 

I've learned my lesson...get everything in writing even when you think you can trust what someone says on the phone.

 

Also thank you to all who have posted on this thread with suggestions on how to avoid this situation as well as sharing your experience. Misery loves company. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who feels like there is a bait and switch going on with the OBC.

 

I've enjoyed sailing on RCCL but it is time to explore other cruise lines.

[cowzrul]

At the end our cruise, I asked on board about the $300 OBC and was told we didn't have OBC and I would have to contact RCCL when we got off the ship. I was told by RCCL earlier this week that no we didn't have OBC because we had a $75 Crown and Anchor credit. I said why would I take a $75 credit and turn down a $300 OBC. He said we were given misinformation but there is nothing he can do. I said we spent the $300 OBC given what we had been told prior to boarding.

 

Exact same thing happened to us. Except ours was $400 OBC and only $25 CA credit. Total screw.

 

 

Screen shots are certainly one of the best suggestions we have had from CC. We had an OBC & cruise pricing issue a while back, and when we said we had a screen shot the call centre person went quiet. They hate it when you can prove what you were promised. Or maybe they were happy that we had evidence so that it would be less of a "we were told" scenario.

 

Screen shots did nothing for me. So many calls with Royal Caribbean with no resolution. I gave up.

 

Fast forward and I just had to cancel an upcoming cruise due to immediate family member not given long to live. Called and was told I would get my money back since it was before the penalty date. Just had to call again after a week. After 47 days logged with Royal Caribbean I think we will select another cruise line. This is horrible customer service.

[FSUNole]

Cowz, what reason did they give you for not honoring the $400 with you screen shot? Was it because the entire screen isn't captured?

Exact same thing happened to us. Except ours was $400 OBC and only $25 CA credit. Total screw.

 

 

 

 

Screen shots did nothing for me. So many calls with Royal Caribbean with no resolution. I gave up.

 

Fast forward and I just had to cancel an upcoming cruise due to immediate family member not given long to live. Called and was told I would get my money back since it was before the penalty date. Just had to call again after a week. After 47 days logged with Royal Caribbean I think we will select another cruise line. This is horrible customer service.

[FSUNole]

Booked my cruise through a TA (warehouse) and have an invoice on TA letterhead with both (RC & TA) confirmation numbers, cruise details, cost etc, and under "included extras" it has the $300 OBC... Think this will be sufficient or should I have my TA get something from RC? I might have to urinate on their dock lines after disembarking if they try to cheat me out of the $300. ;)

Edited March 8, 2016 by FSUNole

[SoccerMom#3]

I'm so sorry you all are having to deal with the discrepancies with OBC like I did. It truly does make all of us think twice about booking a Royal Caribbean cruise. The sad part is the on board staff is so nice and hard working and the ships are just beautiful but the way the the customer service department treats their customers is not the way those of us spending a lot of money deserve to be treated.