Question about OBC and excursions

[RachelG]

On our upcoming Oceania cruise, we have quite a substantial OBC. I like to book our ships excursions in advance, so what I am wondering is whether I can go ahead and book them in advance, paying with my credit card, then once on board, go to the excursion desk and have them apply the onboard credit to the cost of excursions and get what I had paid with the credit card back as a refundable OBC. I regularly do this on Regent, but I have tried to search on the Oceania boards and can't find a clear answer.

I am afraid to wait until boarding to book the excursions as there are a couple which would be likely to sell out.

[ORV]

On our upcoming Oceania cruise, we have quite a substantial OBC. I like to book our ships excursions in advance, so what I am wondering is whether I can go ahead and book them in advance, paying with my credit card, then once on board, go to the excursion desk and have them apply the onboard credit to the cost of excursions and get what I had paid with the credit card back as a refundable OBC. I regularly do this on Regent, but I have tried to search on the Oceania boards and can't find a clear answer.

I am afraid to wait until boarding to book the excursions as there are a couple which would be likely to sell out.

 

From what I've read here you would have to cancel them, not sure if they go back on your card or as OBC. Then you would have to rebook, if it's sold out someone on the waitlist might get it as soon as you cancel. Which would leave you not being able to get that excursion.

 

It's a gamble. if I can't find excursions we want with our OBC we either drink a lot or get something from the shops, or do La Reserve, or a combination of the above.

[RachelG]

From what I've read here you would have to cancel them, not sure if they go back on your card or as OBC. Then you would have to rebook, if it's sold out someone on the waitlist might get it as soon as you cancel. Which would leave you not being able to get that excursion.

 

It's a gamble. if I can't find excursions we want with our OBC we either drink a lot or get something from the shops, or do La Reserve, or a combination of the above.

 

Previously (a couple of years ago) on regent, you had to cancel and rebook to be able to use the OBC so if the excursion was sold out, you couldn't do it. now they have changed that to where they just apply your OBC and then the payment from the credit card will go back in as refundable credit. They will not do a refund on the credit card.

 

Didn't know if Oceania had changed the policy as well since they are run by the same company.

[Paulchili]

Rachel,

No problem doing that - you can cancel them onboard and receive REFUNDABLE OBC and can then rebook with your OBC. If they try to resist this, stand firm as this is the current policy. As you already have space on these excursions, waitlist does not come into play AFAIK. As long as the "exchange" is exactly the same, should be no problem. If one of the tours is an O Life tour and you want to cancel that without rebooking it, that can complicate matters.

This is the policy at present - it may or may not change in the future.

PS Booked tours cancelled prior to cruise (1 week prior) will go back to the CC; those cancelled onboard turn into cash OBC.

Edited July 4, 2016 by Paulchili

[StanandJim]

As you already have space on these excursions, waitlist does not come into play AFAIK.

 

I'm not quite following you there, Paul. :confused:

 

If I've prepaid with my credit card before the cruise in order to save my space on the excursion, and then I get on the ship and cancel that reservation in order to utilize my OBC, how do they stop "my" space from going to the first person on the waitlist during the interim (however brief) before I rebook?

 

I'd love to know, because if you have found a way, it might work when I don't want to give up the Oceania Suite which I've agonized selecting, but a better offer has come down the pike. :D

[RachelG]

Rachel,

No problem doing that - you can cancel them onboard and receive REFUNDABLE OBC and can then rebook with your OBC. If they try to resist this, stand firm as this is the current policy. As you already have space on these excursions, waitlist does not come into play AFAIK. As long as the "exchange" is exactly the same, should be no problem. If one of the tours is an O Life tour and you want to cancel that without rebooking it, that can complicate matters.

This is the policy at present - it may or may not change in the future.

PS Booked tours cancelled prior to cruise (1 week prior) will go back to the CC; those cancelled onboard turn into cash OBC.

 

Awesome! So the policy is now the same as on Regent. Very good news, and I have had no issues at all doing this on Regent in recent years.

[Paulchili]

I'm not quite following you there, Paul. :confused:

 

If I've prepaid with my credit card before the cruise in order to save my space on the excursion, and then I get on the ship and cancel that reservation in order to utilize my OBC, how do they stop "my" space from going to the first person on the waitlist during the interim (however brief) before I rebook?

 

I'd love to know, because if you have found a way, it might work when I don't want to give up the Oceania Suite which I've agonized selecting, but a better offer has come down the pike. :D

 

When I have done this it always was a simple exchange - cancelled the prepaid excursions and rebooked them for OBC.

Perhaps I was just lucky that none of the excursions was sold out and waitlisted? I didn't really pay any attention to that - just assumed that this was an "exchange" rather than cancellation and rebooking.

In any case, it has always worked for me when I did this.

If any excursion is waitlisted, perhaps one needs to ask what would happen if you wanted to cancel and rebook. In case you were to lose that booking then just keep that one and exchange all the others.