Never Again on RCCL! Poor Customer Service!

[FanofMinnie]

Sorry this happened. We booked with a TA and she asked us if we wanted refundable or non-refundable. We did receive a confirmation that stated our dining time and the deposit type. We also purchased trip cancellation insurance and I read it over to see what is covered. I am surprised Royal did not send you a confirmation with this information, or advise you on the phone when you booked. 

[snaefell]

Here in the UK we have only lknown non refundable deposits when booking our cruises(I believe some UK customers have gotten around it by using US Travel Agents),we are about to lose our deposit with RCI as we had booked Anthems repo TA in April  2020,starting in New York,calling at Halifax,Ponta Delgada,Cobh,Le Havre & Southampton,only for RCI to remove Halifax from the cruise as,as they put it,the Atlantic can be rough in Winter,such a stupid reason IMO,& have refused to give any sort of compensation,or be helpful in any way,so rather than give them even more money we are cancelling.

I recently read that RCI consider their passengers to be sheep,they are there to be fleeced!

[Thorben-Hendrik]

15 minutes ago, snaefell said:

I recently read that RCI consider their passengers to be sheep,they are there to be fleeced!

👍🙄🤑

[jean87510]

Great thread to drink my coffee and read this am. I still cannot comprehend throwing $2000 away for spite. I dont understand why son could not ask for time off for a pre planned vacation. I have no idea why one wouldn't change cruise date. But my biggest disbelief reaction is from a diamond cruiser who not only called to make a booking (why not the website or a travel agent) and did not check their invoice. I will be diamond after my cruise in November and I knew to do this booking cruise #1 in 2009.  Just a question- how many people go over documents for airline tickets, cruise, hotels...?  I always check them. Yesterday I was booking a quick getaway to Pensacola for my husband and I using frontier air and I had to call and book because of a frontier credit situation (long story). The whole process reminded me of why I hate using CSR in travel and prefer website. The rep, despite me telling her one checked bag 3x, proceeded to give me one carryon. I caught it when I opened email from them and of course had already hung up. I was able to call and get them to fix it (couldn't do it online). My point is, there is no excuse in 2019 not to check documents especially for an expensive trip. I sympathize but the OP has to take the responsibility of not checking the documents directly after booking.  

[lovesthebeach2]

15 hours ago, island lady said:

When I book with Next Cruise on board, they make me sign a paper that states non-refundable.  Was this missed with your booking?  

 

weve had to sign that paper too. Did they have you sign it? 

[Clarea]

2 minutes ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

 

weve had to sign that paper too. Did they have you sign it? 

 

No paper to sign when making a reservation over the phone like the OP did.

[xcell]

How about blaming your son for taking a job that doesn't allow him to cruise with you?

 

My friends just recently switch employers and part of the negotiation was them letting them know that they had a cruised booked and needed that time off.  

 

Or maybe go without your son and take them another time, so you don't lose out (as much)?

 

 

[msmayor]

15 hours ago, gooselover said:

If a deposit is NONREFUNDABLE, it should CLEARLY state so on the website - this did not state this....and when I called the rep to book, he never mentioned it.  It's very clear with Carnival if nonrefundable or not!

 

 

I had no trouble seeing "Non-Refundable Deposit" on every single page of a mock-booking (shown at the bottom of the page) and then again when I got to the page that showed all the pricing details.  Pretty obvious, IMO

[Joseph2017China]

I hate to say this, but I'm Diamond.  LOL.  But I think this thread warrants me making this claim.  So as a Diamond, and as an experienced cruiser like the OP, I fully am aware that RCCL offers non-refundable deposits, and the rate for the non-refundable deposit cruise is less money than the refundable cruise.  So to book a cruise on the phone, you must spend an hour of your time on the phone.  Being frustrated with how long it takes, and having a CSR in a matter of seconds, say non-refundable, deposit, and take your credit card, I can easily see how this has become a upper Tiered person, not know how to book, and not understand the difference, and only notice the difference when it mattered to them.  They were more than happy with the lower non-refundable rate, but not, they want RCCL to give them special treatment.  This is nothing more than he said, she said argument. 

[Milwaukee Eight]

6 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

October 3, 2013  🤣🤣🤣

I thought October was in the Fall?

[Iamcruzin]

2 hours ago, snaefell said:

 

I recently read that RCI consider their passengers to be sheep,they are there to be fleeced!

That's been pointed out many times on this board. 

[KmomChicago]

15 hours ago, ONECRUISER said:

Some Cruises I booked are high as $700 more for Refundable. And that was for just me sailing Solo

 

So in other words the rate of the refundable would have been as much or more than the change fees. So it’s a relatively moot argument either way.

[PMGS247]

18 minutes ago, KmomChicago said:

 

So in other words the rate of the refundable would have been as much or more than the change fees. So it’s a relatively moot argument either way.

 

This is a good point for OP's situation.  Transfer cost is offset by the savings received due to non-refundable.

 

Having said that when I recently booked my cruise I did find it a little concerning that it defaulted to non-refundable.  I was just intending to set up up a shell booking so I could have a live one to be able to click around the cruise planner (new to RCI), and almost fired off $500 non-refundable.  They didn't hide it per se but it was the default and it wasn't that obvious.

 

If this was done over the phone and the agent didn't mention it, or, more likely, is trained to sneak it in the over the phone version of "fine print", designed to make sure people are likely to not catch it, then I'm not a fan.

[island lady]

17 hours ago, bouhunter said:

I think all the phone rep's quote now is non-refundable, and they should be more up front about it.  You have to ask for refundable deposit/pricing since they came out with non-refundable deposits. 

 

Confusing where and with whom OP actually booked the cruise.  First post stated booked while on Allure...now after several other comments.  Not really sure where they booked it?  

Going back to re-read...it looks like it was on the phone?  

 

When I book on the phone, or direct online...I always carefully read my confirmation.  Have several times found mistakes.  I get that confirmation quite quickly, within an hour or so.  Simple to call to have them correct anything.  

Edited July 11, 2019 by island lady

[HBE4]

10 hours ago, arabrab said:

 

I'm sorry for the OP.  We've cruised RC, Princess, HAL, and (long ago) Epirotiki.  I hadn't heard of non-refundable deposits, and I appreciate the info as we will now be warned.  I believe that quite a few of the posters here are being unduly harsh with the OP. When you're not expecting non-refundable deposits, it is easy to miss the note -- which isn't exactly in large print on the confirmation.  It might be well known for those who cruise RC all the time, but that leaves a lot of people out. 

 

I do agree with the OP on the original premise that the rep should have disclosed the rate was Non-Refundable when booking over the phone. How anybody can argue otherwise is beyond me, unless they have really low/no standards for customer service. Yes, they should have 100% double checked the invoice before committing thousands of dollars and no, they should not get special treatment (i.e. full refund)  but that does not take away from the original premise. 

 

However, the combative tone & angry title was sure to provoke a negative reaction from the usual crowd.

 

Oh, and the facts are somewhat.....fluid.....of just how experienced of a cruiser the OP really is will have many questioning the facts. It's easier to feel sorry if they only had a couple of cruises and none in recent years but not so much if they are high up the loyalty chain and should know better by now.

 

As someone else pointed out, its become a he-said / she-said situation.

 

 

 

[gooselover]

In all my years of cruising, only Carnival had the easy saver option, a nonrefundable deposit.  In all the times I have booked with RCL, a nonrefundable deposit was not even an option at the time!  I haven't booked a cruise in about 4 years, so things have changed I guess.  I never thought for one minute that the deposit was nonrefundable as it had never been in the past.  I booked the cruise over the phone after looking it up on line.  I prefer to speak with an agent really, so that's the way I booked it.  Again, with no clue that things had changed, I never thought RCL was doing the nonrefundable.  The agent never spoke of it...not once, I gave him the credit card and made the deposit.  It was after that that I received my documents via email.  Again, everything looked normal.  I never suspected this was nonrefundable.  No, I didn't read the cruise documentation...again thinking all was the same as it was years ago.  No mention from the rep.  I had no idea.  Yes, this was a lesson learned.  However, with RCL refusing to pull the tape to prove the rep never mentioned it to me, I thought this is no way to treat your customers.  With our business, and I will reiterate this again, we have booked many cruises but had to cancel.  Our business is unpredictable as to when we can get away, so yes, I have booked and cancelled....always with a full refund.  I just didn't know anything had changed I didn't see anything different, the rep never mentioned it, and the cruise documentation that I got  looked the same.  Never did I suspect this was nonrefundable.  I can't say that enough.  You all who mock me for cancelling and losing the deposit, I was not going to pay another $600.  My son and his family could not go.  This was a lesson, an expensive lesson learned.

[FLACRUISER99]

3 minutes ago, gooselover said:

In all my years of cruising, only Carnival had the easy saver option, a nonrefundable deposit.  In all the times I have booked with RCL, a nonrefundable deposit was not even an option at the time!  I haven't booked a cruise in about 4 years, so things have changed I guess.  I never thought for one minute that the deposit was nonrefundable as it had never been in the past.  I booked the cruise over the phone after looking it up on line.  I prefer to speak with an agent really, so that's the way I booked it.  Again, with no clue that things had changed, I never thought RCL was doing the nonrefundable.  The agent never spoke of it...not once, I gave him the credit card and made the deposit.  It was after that that I received my documents via email.  Again, everything looked normal.  I never suspected this was nonrefundable.  No, I didn't read the cruise documentation...again thinking all was the same as it was years ago.  No mention from the rep.  I had no idea.  Yes, this was a lesson learned.  However, with RCL refusing to pull the tape to prove the rep never mentioned it to me, I thought this is no way to treat your customers.  With our business, and I will reiterate this again, we have booked many cruises but had to cancel.  Our business is unpredictable as to when we can get away, so yes, I have booked and cancelled....always with a full refund.  I just didn't know anything had changed I didn't see anything different, the rep never mentioned it, and the cruise documentation that I got  looked the same.  Never did I suspect this was nonrefundable.  I can't say that enough.  You all who mock me for cancelling and losing the deposit, I was not going to pay another $600.  My son and his family could not go.  This was a lesson, an expensive lesson learned.

From Post #1 "I booked a cruise for October 20, 2019 on Allure of the Seas last October". 

[island lady]

2 hours ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

 

weve had to sign that paper too. Did they have you sign it? 

 

Yes, and have had Next Cruise agents make a point to mention it.  

 

But I think I understand the OP booked over the phone.  

 

I just figure the rate I book is always non-refundable...so if I want refundable, I have to make sure to ask for it and pick it from the options at the end of when I book online.  

[lr657]

16 minutes ago, gooselover said:

You all who mock me for cancelling and losing the deposit, I was not going to pay another $600.  My son and his family could not go.  This was a lesson, an expensive lesson learned.

 

Still don't understand why you are cancelling instead of just booking another date. If you book another date you will loose $600, but still have a cruise. By cancelling you loose $2000 and forfeit any cruise. Doesn't seem rational to me. $600 is an expensive lesson, but loosing $2000 and having nothing to show for it is even worse and unnecessary.

[lovesthebeach2]

7 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Yes, and have had Next Cruise agents make a point to mention it.  

 

But I think I understand the OP booked over the phone.  

 

I just figure the rate I book is always non-refundable...so if I want refundable, I have to make sure to ask for it and pick it from the options at the end of when I book online.  

 

When I read the OPs post, I read it like when she was on Allure last October she booked a cruise for this October. 😜

 

[nascarcruiser]

8 minutes ago, lr657 said:

 

Still don't understand why you are cancelling instead of just booking another date. If you book another date you will loose $600, but still have a cruise. By cancelling you loose $2000 and forfeit any cruise. Doesn't seem rational to me. $600 is an expensive lesson, but loosing $2000 and having nothing to show for it is even worse and unnecessary.

Same here.  Or why not go without the son?  I understand the OP is mad but this doesn't sound like a financially responsible decision 

[ONECRUISER]

1 hour ago, KmomChicago said:

 

So in other words the rate of the refundable would have been as much or more than the change fees. So it’s a relatively moot argument either way.

Agree, just putting out weird Royal facts. Though have twice seen the refundable slightly cheaper, which was really strange

[SteelMagnolia9]

1 hour ago, nascarcruiser said:

Same here.  Or why not go without the son?  I understand the OP is mad but this doesn't sound like a financially responsible decision 

I agree. Go without the son and have a great time!

 

[HBE4]

1 hour ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

 

When I read the OPs post, I read it like when she was on Allure last October she booked a cruise for this October. 😜

 

 

It can be read both ways. I read it as the cruise she booked for Oct 2019 is on the Allure but it is also easy to read it as she was on the Allure when booking the Oct 2019 cruise.

 

The first line from post#1: "I booked a cruise for October 20, 2019 on Allure of the Seas last October"

[Husky1987]

15 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Some of us see that there is a significant difference between how we are treated by Miami management and how we are treated by the ship's crew.

That's absolutely a fair point, and I understand the difference (as someone whose job entails dealing with the same corporate vs. local plant differences).

 

I just am constantly amused by the folks who never waste a chance to say how bad Royal (or any of the other cruise lines on these boards, as I'm sure it's the same everywhere) is, but somehow seem to keep giving Royal their hard-earned money. I get the feeling sometimes it's a "Royal does their best to steal my money, but for three drinks a night in the Diamond Lounge I'll put up with it" mentality.