Does the 10% PIF discount continue to apply if you later refare a booking

[Ken the cruiser]

We recently took the plunge and paid off our cruise way before the final payment was due to take advantage of the current 10% discount promotion which expires Sep 30th. Now SB is offering a promotion which would make economical sense to refare the booking as long as we wouldn't lose the 10% discount that was recently applied. Has anyone encountered this issue yet and, if so, what did you learn if I might ask?

[sfvoyage]

It depends:  is the new promotion stackable with the PIF promotion?  If so, you should be able to take advantage of both the PIF and the new promotions.  Since you are within the 30Sep deadline of the PIF promotion, you can always cancel and rebook.

 

Otherwise, you'll have to decide which promotion works best for you at this point.

 

(I've come across this type of confusion before and ended up having had to choose, even though the marketing materials & wordings did not explicitly state that the old and new promotions are not stackable.)

Edited September 19, 2020 by sfvoyage

[Ken the cruiser]

11 minutes ago, sfvoyage said:

It depends:  is the new promotion stackable with the PIF promotion?  If so, you should be able to take advantage of both the PIF and the new promotions.  Since you are within the 30Sep deadline of the PIF promotion, you can always cancel and rebook.

 

Otherwise, you'll have to decide which promotion works best for you at this point.

 

(I've come across this type of confusion before and ended up having had to choose, even though the marketing materials & wordings did not explicitly state that the old and new promotions are not stackable.)

Here are the 10% off T&Cs and the new Sensational Suite Savings T&Cs.  From what we can tell, they don't say either way. We've also submitted this question to our TA, so it will be interesting to see what she finds out on Monday.

 

10% off if you pay in full by Sep 30, 2020

 

The 10% Early Bonus Savings (“Offer”) is based on promo code ZW and is only valid on select sailings booked by September 30, 2020 and departing on or after December 1, 2020. Guests must pay in full by September 30, 2020 to receive a 10% discount, which will only apply to the gross cruise-only base fare and does not apply to taxes, expenses, or port fees (TF&PE). Full payment means full balance of the booking (including, without limitation, any air, excursions, transfers, or hotels). Offer must be asked for specifically in order to be applied. Guests using a Future Cruise Credit and/or rebooking from 2020 voyages are not elgible for this Offer. Offer is subject to availability, and may be capacity controlled and may be modified or withdrawn at any time without prior notice. Discount is not valid on any optional packages including but not limited to: air, Seabourn Shield, private car transfers, or pre/post packages. Offer is not valid on World Cruises or segments thereof and sailings on Seabourn Venture. Other restrictions apply. Ships’ registry: Bahamas. ©2020 Seabourn.

 

Sensational Suite Savings

*Offers are valid through November 20, 2020 on select 2021 & 2022 sailings. Offers vary by sailing. Featured fares are per guest based on double occupancy and promo code NG. Fares are in U.S. dollars. Taxes, Fees & Port Expenses are additional and range from $140.00-$2840.00. All savings amounts are included in the fares shown. Complimentary Veranda Suite Upgrades are subject to availability at time of booking. Upgrade will be reflected in fare paid for selected Suite category. Shipboard Credit offers are in U.S. dollars and are non-refundable, non-transferable, have no cash value, expire at the end of the cruise, may not be used in the casino and are not combinable with other shipboard credit offers. Shipboard credit offer is based on promo ZE. Internet Packages of 300, 600 or 900 minutes of internet access are offered per guest and are only applicable to the 1st & 2nd guest booking in Ocean View & Veranda Suites. Unlimited Internet Package is offered on a per Suite basis and only applicable to Penthouse & Premium Suite categories PH, PS, OW, SS, WG & GR.  Internet service is not guaranteed and Seabourn is not responsible if internet service is unavailable. No credit or other compensation will be provided should internet service not be available. Internet Packages are based on promo ZI. 50% Reduced Deposit offer is valid on select sailings that are outside of standard penalty periods. Reduced Deposit amount is taken off of the standard deposit policy amounts. All offers are capacity controlled and may be modified or withdrawn at any time without prior notice. Other restrictions may apply. Ships' registry: Bahamas. ©2020 Seabourn. 

[sfvoyage]

The PIF contains the following wordings:

 

Offer is not valid on World Cruises or segments thereof and sailings on Seabourn Venture. Other restrictions apply.

 

The last 3 words are key.  Good luck, with let us know what transpires...

 

[Ken the cruiser]

5 minutes ago, sfvoyage said:

The PIF contains the following wordings:

 

Offer is not valid on World Cruises or segments thereof and sailings on Seabourn Venture. Other restrictions apply.

 

The last 3 words are key.  Good luck, with let us know what transpires...

 

Yup, those last three words are key. I'll definitely update the thread once I hear back from our TA. Funny thing is our SB PCC, before we finally transferred the booking to our TA, made it sound like we could refare without any issues with the 10% discount in place.

Edited September 19, 2020 by Ken the cruiser

[sfvoyage]

11 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Funny thing is our SB PCC, before we finally transferred the booking to our TA, made it sound like we could refare without any issues with the 10% discount in place.

 

Yes, that is true.  If it's a matter of a simple base fare reduction, you can refare with the 10% discount before any relevant deadline.

 

However, SB can play games - and protect its revenue - by packaging the lower base fare into a special "promotional package" which includes other items such as free air, suite upgrade, internet minutes, etc., in which case this is no longer a base fare repricing but a brand new promotion, and that's when a restriction such as "this promotion is not combinable with any other promotion" may kick in.

 

Edited September 19, 2020 by sfvoyage

[MightyQuinn]

2 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Here are the 10% off T&Cs and the new Sensational Suite Savings T&Cs.  From what we can tell, they don't say either way.

 

This online description of the 10% Early Bonus Savings uses the word "Plus" in bold so it appears to be combinable with the Sensational Suite Savings Event.

 

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/deals/early-bonus-savings/early-bonus-savings.html

 

 

Experience the best of extraordinary worlds on board the best at sea. We are pleased to offer a special 10% savings on select sailings for new and existing bookings when you book now and pay in full. Plan your next ultra-luxury getaway and save today. Stated pricing does not reflect discounted fares, contact your Travel Advisor or call Seabourn directly for more details.

 

Plus, when you book during our Sensational Suite Savings Event and you may receive a Complimentary Veranda for Ocean View or Up to Three Category Suite Upgrade, up to $1,000USD Shipboard Credit per Suite and up to 900-minute Internet Package per Guest.

[Ken the cruiser]

12 minutes ago, MightyQuinn said:

 

This online description of the 10% Early Bonus Savings uses the word "Plus" in bold so it appears to be combinable with the Sensational Suite Savings Event.

 

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/deals/early-bonus-savings/early-bonus-savings.html

 

 

Experience the best of extraordinary worlds on board the best at sea. We are pleased to offer a special 10% savings on select sailings for new and existing bookings when you book now and pay in full. Plan your next ultra-luxury getaway and save today. Stated pricing does not reflect discounted fares, contact your Travel Advisor or call Seabourn directly for more details.

 

Plus, when you book during our Sensational Suite Savings Event and you may receive a Complimentary Veranda for Ocean View or Up to Three Category Suite Upgrade, up to $1,000USD Shipboard Credit per Suite and up to 900-minute Internet Package per Guest.

We hope you're right and our TA tomorrow talks with SB rep that agrees with you. ☺️

[MightyQuinn]

13 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We hope you're right and our TA tomorrow talks with SB rep that agrees with you. ☺️

 

Ken, that "plus" language is straight from the SB website.  If your voyage qualifies, I can't imagine your TA would have any difficulty in getting both for you.  

Now I have a question for you.  We've done many refares when the price was reduced before final payment and our amount due was decreased accordingly.  We've also had the odd occasion when we received OBC when the base fare was reduced after we made final payment.  I'm curious how things work if you refare for a lower price after you've made early final payment far in advance.  How will Seabourn refund the difference to you?  By credit card?  By check?  By FCC?  By OBC?  Or?  Thanks!

[Ken the cruiser]

4 minutes ago, MightyQuinn said:

 

Ken, that "plus" language is straight from the SB website.  If your voyage qualifies, I can't imagine your TA would have any difficulty in getting both for you.  

Now I have a question for you.  We've done many refares when the price was reduced before final payment and our amount due was decreased accordingly.  We've also had the odd occasion when we received OBC when the base fare was reduced after we made final payment.  I'm curious how things work if you refare for a lower price after you've made early final payment far in advance.  How will Seabourn refund the difference to you?  By credit card?  By check?  By FCC?  By OBC?  Or?  Thanks!

If the refare actually happens, I'll let you know. According to our SB PCC before we transferred to our TA, he said any reduction would be refunded back to our CC, but we'll see.

[Ken the cruiser]

Update: it took our TA calling SB a second time, but we were able to get $500 in OBC and 300 free internet minutes for each of us while also being able to maintain our 10% PIF discount. Yay!

[rallydave]

Believe the isssue is two different promo codes and generally only one promo code per booking.  Glad you were able to get something.  Hopefully the 10% is better bottom line to the other promo.

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, rallydave said:

Believe the isssue is two different promo codes and generally only one promo code per booking.  Glad you were able to get something.  Hopefully the 10% is better bottom line to the other promo.

In this particular situation, we luckily got to keep the benefits of both perks, probably because the base fare didn't change. However, if and when the next promotion comes along, it's going to have to be a sizeable one, that's for sure.