Price drop--check your prices!

[cravingthis]

3 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

You might find that someone at the same travel agency has weekend hours.

Thank you.  I called and another agent did call me back a few hours later.

She said the price adjustment would affect the perks I already have, so I can't get any price adjustments unless I forfeit the perks 😥

 

2 hours ago, LuCruise said:

I called 3 times in the past week and a half.  First time, they offered kids sale free so that saved us (our younger one is under 12).  Then last week they switched to this 30% off and it saved us more.  Then two days later, they added a 'flash sale' ontop of that that saved us a few dollars too.  I have no issue calling each time (we book with Royal directly).  However, if you are concerned that your TA might get annoyed and not respond, then sounds like you need a new TA.

 

Current deal says it ends tomorrow night.  Don't know, but I've noticed from Royal that they rarely have a new sale on Monday...but don't quote me on that.

Thanks for the info.  Glad you were able to get some discounts!

[dep]

WOW  I have three cabins booked on the ovation July 24, 2020. I saved $725 on one cabin, $1125 on another cabin, and $1508 on the third cabin. Can’t thank you enough for the tip 

[The Fun Researcher]

35 minutes ago, dep said:

WOW  I have three cabins booked on the ovation July 24, 2020. I saved $725 on one cabin, $1125 on another cabin, and $1508 on the third cabin. Can’t thank you enough for the tip 

 

Holy moly!!!  Nice

 

Dan

[cured]

Just wondering if this is a glitch:

 

Just got off the phone with RC. Repriced yet again.

On our CL suite, it went down $800, but we lost the $300 OBC. But still a $500 net savings

 

I was completely prepared to also lose the OBC on our suite guarantee cabin. In fact, I was retrieving my cc to pay the stuff we had already purchased with the OBC  when the agent said, "wait, the OBC is staying."  She ran it two more times because even she was confused. The reservation went down $400, but it kept the $300 OBC even though OBC was no longer one of the sale perks.

 

The only difference between the 2 cabins was that on the first cabin we had not used any of the OBC.  On the second cabin we had used half of it.  I logged into my cruise planner and it does still say I have half the OBC left to spend.

 

Do some cabins keep the OBC even though it is no longer a promo or is there a glitch that if you use part of the OBC, you get to keep it?  I am not complaining nor am I going to question it! 😁  Perhaps the moral of the story is to use some OBC before you rebook?

[Biker19]

2 hours ago, cured said:

 

Do some cabins keep the OBC even though it is no longer a promo or is there a glitch that if you use part of the OBC, you get to keep it? 

No, you should get a bill for the items bought with the OBC you lost. 

[cured]

1 hour ago, Biker19 said:

No, you should get a bill for the items bought with the OBC you lost. 

The thing is, I didn't lose it.  When I go into my cruise planner, it still shows I have $148 in credit left after my purchase of beach club access.  The agent also confirmed that the updated reservation did not take away my OBC and that it was staying. She was surprised enough that she ran the reservation 3 times thinking she put something in wrong.

 

I just now tried to purchase something else and the cruise planner offered up the rest of the OBC for the purchase.

 

Edited October 5, 2019 by cured

[luv2sailAgain]

3 hours ago, cured said:

 

 

Do some cabins keep the OBC even though it is no longer a promo or is there a glitch that if you use part of the OBC, you get to keep it?  I am not complaining nor am I going to question it! 😁  Perhaps the moral of the story is to use some OBC before you rebook?

As with so many things Royal Caribbean, I think it is wonky sometimes.  For our HOTS sailing last July, I was able to get two price drops.  My family had 4 separate bookings and all cabins were right in a row.  On the last price drop, I was able to keep my OBC which I had not used yet. However, another family member did not reprice because she was told that she would have lost the OBC credit when she called.  We had the same online travel agent, but we spoke with different people. 

[Clarea]

6 hours ago, red-dragon said:

Thank you.  I called and another agent did call me back a few hours later.

She said the price adjustment would affect the perks I already have, so I can't get any price adjustments unless I forfeit the perks 😥 ...

 

Yep, that is always something to ask before booking with a travel agent.

[Biker19]

11 hours ago, cured said:

The thing is, I didn't lose it. 

If it was a glitch, RCI is pretty good at getting their money when the glitch means they are losing money.

 

Biker, who would never touch such a booking again to avoid RCI ever looking at it and perhaps seeing the glitch.

Edited October 6, 2019 by Biker19

[pthjudy]

21 hours ago, LuCruise said:

I called 3 times in the past week and a half.  First time, they offered kids sale free so that saved us (our younger one is under 12).  Then last week they switched to this 30% off and it saved us more.  Then two days later, they added a 'flash sale' ontop of that that saved us a few dollars too.  I have no issue calling each time (we book with Royal directly).  However, if you are concerned that your TA might get annoyed and not respond, then sounds like you need a new TA.

 

Current deal says it ends tomorrow night.  Don't know, but I've noticed from Royal that they rarely have a new sale on Monday...but don't quote me on that.

Checking prices of any booked cruise is part of my daily routine. Since I usually use a TA, I am often in contact with mine about price drops. I have actually had a TA that I had used multiple times tell me NOT to use her again due to my frequent requests! One aside, I have been able to speak directly with the cruise line where I have had a few dozen cruises by using that status and requesting a supervisor. Although I’m told they will do it just THIS time, it’s been more than once with a successful price drop, OBC, or upgrade. So don’t take a “no” without trying to get a “yes”. I have yet to have a TA who will work as hard as I do. 

 

[marci22]

49 minutes ago, pthjudy said:

One aside, I have been able to speak directly with the cruise line where I have had a few dozen cruises by using that status and requesting a supervisor. Although I’m told they will do it just THIS time, it’s been more than once with a successful price drop, OBC, or upgrade. So don’t take a “no” without trying to get a “yes”. I have yet to have a TA who will work as hard as I do. 

 

I'm surprised they would process a price drop without the TA. If it affected their commission, TA would probably adjust your perks; mine always have.

[pthjudy]

19 minutes ago, marci22 said:

I'm surprised they would process a price drop without the TA. If it affected their commission, TA would probably adjust your perks; mine always have.

Often it is a move to a higher category. After final payment the price paid rarely changes. I know flash sales are for new bookings only but with a little effort and a good past passenger record, sometimes you might get something to your advantage. But it has to be with a supervisor. 

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, pthjudy said:

After final payment the price paid rarely changes.

That's not a good generalization - you can have lots of price swings inside final payment and not be limited to new bookings.

[cravingthis]

13 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Yep, that is always something to ask before booking with a travel agent.

Thanks again.  

Edited October 6, 2019 by red-dragon

[pthjudy]

29 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

That's not a good generalization - you can have lots of price swings inside final payment and not be limited to new bookings.

 

29 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

That's not a good generalization - you can have lots of price swings inside final payment and not be limited to new bookings.

I meant that a price adjustment is usually not an option once final payment has been made. Before final payment anything is up for grabs. Each promotion is different and it’s up to your particular needs and wishes as to whether to change or not. Some people would prefer a drink package while to others OBC is more welcome. My point was simply that sometimes you need to advocate for yourself and with some effort and persistence, you can do better than a TA is able to do. Last year the TA we were using failed to send us a balcony upgrade offer. When I saw through my roll call others had received the offer, I called the cruise line and spoke to a supervisor who promised to put us on a waiting list. Being sure nothing would happen, I was pleasantly surprised that a few days before leaving I did get a call there was an available balcony. A good TA does provide a service with price and perks but I work alongside too. 

[Rahi]

Thank you all so much for this thread! I just saved 340.00!!! I love this site! 😊

[JTBCruiser]

Thx for the heads up, I did save $60 on Rhapsody cruise.  Every little bit helps.

[lisa6191]

On 10/6/2019 at 9:54 AM, pthjudy said:

 

I meant that a price adjustment is usually not an option once final payment has been made. Before final payment anything is up for grabs. Each promotion is different and it’s up to your particular needs and wishes as to whether to change or not. Some people would prefer a drink package while to others OBC is more welcome. My point was simply that sometimes you need to advocate for yourself and with some effort and persistence, you can do better than a TA is able to do. Last year the TA we were using failed to send us a balcony upgrade offer. When I saw through my roll call others had received the offer, I called the cruise line and spoke to a supervisor who promised to put us on a waiting list. Being sure nothing would happen, I was pleasantly surprised that a few days before leaving I did get a call there was an available balcony. A good TA does provide a service with price and perks but I work alongside too. 

You seem knowledgeable about TA's and OBC. We have a reservation through a TA that includes 235 OBC per cabin (2 cabins). The sale going on right now will save us $180, but the TA is telling me that our OBC will then go down to 200 per cabin. I understand that the perks can change, but that seems like a lot to change for just a $90 adjustment per cabin. I will still do it because I come out ahead, but does that seem normal to you? I can't imagine she is losing that much commission on a $90 price drop (original prices $2700+).

[kcbookworm]

Our cruise is Nov 19th so of course we have made final payment.  Our cruise price dropped drastically.  There is nothing we can do at this point - correct?

[rhuntington3]

17 minutes ago, kcbookworm said:

Our cruise is Nov 19th so of course we have made final payment.  Our cruise price dropped drastically.  There is nothing we can do at this point - correct?

 

If your already past final payment date, there's nothing you can do.

[Clarea]

4 hours ago, kcbookworm said:

Our cruise is Nov 19th so of course we have made final payment.  Our cruise price dropped drastically.  There is nothing we can do at this point - correct?

 

Unless you booked within 48 hours of the price drop, there are no credits of any kind.

 

However, you can still upgrade if the numbers work.  Sometimes a better category has also dropped in price and you may be able to upgrade for little or no extra cost.

[Biker19]

6 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

I will still do it because I come out ahead, but does that seem normal to you? I can't imagine she is losing that much commission on a $90 price drop (original prices $2700+).

The commission might not be linear but a stair step affair and perhaps there was some threshold at which they lose out and therefore you lose out.

[mugtech]

On 10/2/2019 at 6:45 PM, mugtech said:

If you are on the Quantum on 2/24/20 Check the prices, we saved $1080 on our balcony.  The current price is $884pp for insides and $969pp for a balcony, good chance for a very cheap upgrade, final payment 6 weeks away. 

The price of insides is now $849 pp and the balconies have dropped another $100 to $869 pp.  Guessing few people want to board in February in Hong Kong. 

[pthjudy]

8 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

You seem knowledgeable about TA's and OBC. We have a reservation through a TA that includes 235 OBC per cabin (2 cabins). The sale going on right now will save us $180, but the TA is telling me that our OBC will then go down to 200 per cabin. I understand that the perks can change, but that seems like a lot to change for just a $90 adjustment per cabin. I will still do it because I come out ahead, but does that seem normal to you? I can't imagine she is losing that much commission on a $90 price drop (original prices $2700+).

From my experience, a TA will most probably reduce your OBC if you receive a price reduction. Interestingly, if you should pay more once booked to upgrade to a higher category, your OBC will NOT go up. (I once lost some OBC when the price for my cabin dropped, but a month later when we paid several hundred more for an upsell, the TA would not return the lost OBC). I have tried to fight this “unfair” policy with no success. I do use a TA when I book a cruise, but it is strictly for the OBC and reduced price. I don’t use the TA to advocate for me. That is MY job and if it means an extra step having to call the TA to make the call, it’s still worth the savings. On some cruises, once I book no other actions are necessary. On others, several may be. I check prices and availability and of course Cruise Critic daily. To me it’s a game and a challenge. Others find it a chore. So to answer your question, the TA will adjust the OBC or take away perks if you get a lower priced cabin. You are the final judge as to the value of the change. 

[loltastic]

I checked this week on my cruise and saved $300 between the two rooms!