Carnival Early Saver Deposit Penalty if Changed

[BrandFam4]

Hi, we are looking to book Mardi Gras in March of 2021. There is VIFP rate with OBC, reduced deposit, and upgrade eligibility. Appears to be a good deal. However, it says in the fine print that Carnival MAY charge us a penalty if we have to cancel it. Now our spring break is always the same week every year, but if Murphy's Law strikes and its a different week, will Carnival allow us to move that deposit to a different week without the penalty? It's been a good 15 years since we've been on Carnival and can't remember all the rules. 

 

Thanks!

 

Erin

[Anyislandwilldo]

You may want to call a PVP at Carnival to protect your deposit.

[StolidCruiser]

Unless you are booking Early Saver (which it sounds like you are not) the cancellation penalties kick in according to the cancellation schedule which typically starts at/after final payment due date. 

 

It will also will likely not be a “move over” as you will essentially be cancelling and rebooking at whatever current promo is being offered (which might not be with a reduced deposit).

Edited April 17, 2019 by StolidCruiser

[shof515]

that penalty  is because it is a early saver rate. all early saver booking have that fee

 

the other day i submitted a price drop and the VIFP rate said something like VIFP Excursive early saver rate..so make sure you read the fare codes correctly. 

 

Edited April 17, 2019 by shof515

[tytanbri]

We had to do this very thing. My daughter's college always had spring break the same week so we went ahead and booked a 7 night cruise from Miami. When the school schedule came out the moved spring break back one week. We did book early saver. We called our PVP and we changed the week accordingly. The only charge we had was $50 per person administrative fee. So for our family of 5 we paid a total of $250 to change it. Well worth it to us. 

[cellfree]

My PVP only puts one name on any reservation I make. That way if we have to cancel it is only a $50 loss. 

[crzndeb]

I have found that if a reduced deposit is offered, it is usually tied to Early Saver. It may not specifically say that, but it’s a way to get people booked. 

 

You will not not be able to change it without a $50pp fee.

Edited April 17, 2019 by crzndeb

[BrandFam4]

Yes it does say it is an exclusive VIFP early saver rate. The $50 per person isn’t terrible. I keep getting calls from a PVP, but have never booked through one. I’ll give him a call back and see what he can do. Thank you everyone!

[cellfree]

Again get the PVP to only put one name on per cabin until you are absolutely sure - $50 loss for one person is better than $50 times however many names are on the cabin. 

[ARcruisin2]

1 hour ago, cellfree said:

Again get the PVP to only put one name on per cabin until you are absolutely sure - $50 loss for one person is better than $50 times however many names are on the cabin. 

 

Hmmm.... so you can book a room for 2+ people, and only reserve it under 1 name?

[cellfree]

Yes my Carnival PVP does it for me all the time. The price will show as a Cabin for two but only show taxes for one. Then when you add the second name anytime before final payment the taxes for that person will be added into total. Hope that makes sense. That way you only risk losing $50. 

[Athankfulheart]

33 minutes ago, cellfree said:

Yes my Carnival PVP does it for me all the time. The price will show as a Cabin for two but only show taxes for one. Then when you add the second name anytime before final payment the taxes for that person will be added into total. Hope that makes sense. That way you only risk losing $50. 

This will only work for a double cabin, since they allow singles to book these cabins. I don't see a way to make it work for a triple or quad. Also, you need to put the second person in reasonably far ahead of time so that your ship doesn't run out of space for 2nd passenger. Depending upon the ship and the week that it sails, this can even happen before final payment, although it isn't highly likely. If you stay on top of how sold your sailing is, then you shouldn't have an issue. 

Edited April 17, 2019 by Athankfulheart

[ray98]

Yup....no way I would try that game on a spring break cruise.

[Organized Chaos]

On 4/17/2019 at 9:25 AM, BrandFam4 said:

Hi, we are looking to book Mardi Gras in March of 2021. There is VIFP rate with OBC, reduced deposit, and upgrade eligibility. Appears to be a good deal. However, it says in the fine print that Carnival MAY charge us a penalty if we have to cancel it. Now our spring break is always the same week every year, but if Murphy's Law strikes and its a different week, will Carnival allow us to move that deposit to a different week without the penalty? It's been a good 15 years since we've been on Carnival and can't remember all the rules. 

 

Thanks!

 

Erin

 

You kind of have to weigh the pros and cons. Early Saver gives you a cheaper rate, but comes with penalties and stipulations; like the $50/person fees and no name changes in a cabin. So some people prefer to pay for one of the other (non-Early Saver) rates to avoid any of that if they have to make changes later. When booking so far in advance, like so many of us do, there's always the chance of something coming up to throw a wrench in things. On the other hand, booking Early Saver offers price protection. If the price of your cabin category goes down before your cruise, you can submit a claim and they adjust the price to the lower rate (if you haven't paid in full yet) or give you OBC equal to the price difference (if you are paid in full).

[BrandFam4]

2 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

You kind of have to weigh the pros and cons. Early Saver gives you a cheaper rate, but comes with penalties and stipulations; like the $50/person fees and no name changes in a cabin. So some people prefer to pay for one of the other (non-Early Saver) rates to avoid any of that if they have to make changes later. When booking so far in advance, like so many of us do, there's always the chance of something coming up to throw a wrench in things. On the other hand, booking Early Saver offers price protection. If the price of your cabin category goes down before your cruise, you can submit a claim and they adjust the price to the lower rate (if you haven't paid in full yet) or give you OBC equal to the price difference (if you are paid in full).

Yes we did end up booking it! We figured the reward was greater than the risk. Fingers crossed the school board doesn’t go rogue for 2021! Lol

[Keys2Heaven]

On 4/17/2019 at 9:25 AM, BrandFam4 said:

Hi, we are looking to book Mardi Gras in March of 2021. There is VIFP rate with OBC, reduced deposit, and upgrade eligibility. Appears to be a good deal. However, it says in the fine print that Carnival MAY charge us a penalty if we have to cancel it. Now our spring break is always the same week every year, but if Murphy's Law strikes and its a different week, will Carnival allow us to move that deposit to a different week without the penalty? It's been a good 15 years since we've been on Carnival and can't remember all the rules. 

 

Thanks!

 

Erin

 

$50/pp penalty for changing with early saver rates. My TA asked for something called a NIC rate and we got the same rate as early saver but with cancellation penalty protection. Had to pay double the normal deposit though.