Beverage Package (ineligible due to age)

[SNJCruisers]

7 hours ago, FPP777 said:

I was referring to the 18 dollar glitch a few years ago. 

Familiar with it, but the recent prices are in the 75 range after gratuities are included.

[SNJCruisers]

6 hours ago, Ferry_Watcher said:

As someone who has check-in cruise passengers I am advising you that it is not worth the risk

If the correction is made four days prior to the cruise after she turns 21, please explain what the problem would be? With the correction made, the date would line up with her passport and there should not be a problem.

[lfreda]

I had a similar experience with the dining package last week.  My son is 12 and I wanted him to have the adult package.  After several calls and emails, the ONLY way to fix it was onboard and when I did fix it, they honored the price that I had paid pre cruise for the other adult UDP's.  

 

I would go to guest services as soon as you board and let them know that you have a daughter that will be 21 years old and that you want the drink package at the price you paid before the cruise for the number of days she will be drinking.  I would be shocked if they weren't accommodating. 

[rudeney]

11 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

Familiar with it, but the recent prices are in the 75 range after gratuities are included.

 

On our October VotS cruise, it is currently $75 PLUS 18% gratuity.

[SNJCruisers]

18 hours ago, lfreda said:

I would be shocked if they weren't accommodating. 

How's this for customer service.  Am currently booked on the Oasis for next month on a five day to Canada followed up with a seven day to the Bahamas.  Because the UBP was so expensive, decided to go with the refreshment package.  Bought it on Cyber Monday at 50% off at 17.00 per day plus gratuity, so about 20 per day for both legs of the B2B. 

Booked the two cruises through two different agencies.  Had the second one paid off.  Got an email from my TA about final payment being due on the first one at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I pulled the email and paid the balance about 1045 pm, six hours late.  Got an email from Royal cancelling our refreshment package at 1105 pm.  They also cancelled the cruise.  My TA was able to get the cruise reinstated, but the package is lost, they will not honor the price and I still have not gotten back the 200 I paid last November.

My TA dropped the ball, but Royal did nothing when it comes to customer service.  I couldn't talk to a supervisor and the CSR I spoke to point blank said they would not honor the 50% off price.  

 

 

[Biker19]

6 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

My TA dropped the ball, but Royal did nothing when it comes to customer service. 

It seems some folks around here have way too high expectations on what RCI is willing to do.

[BekkaW]

6 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

How's this for customer service.  Am currently booked on the Oasis for next month on a five day to Canada followed up with a seven day to the Bahamas.  Because the UBP was so expensive, decided to go with the refreshment package.  Bought it on Cyber Monday at 50% off at 17.00 per day plus gratuity, so about 20 per day for both legs of the B2B. 

Booked the two cruises through two different agencies.  Had the second one paid off.  Got an email from my TA about final payment being due on the first one at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I pulled the email and paid the balance about 1045 pm, six hours late.  Got an email from Royal cancelling our refreshment package at 1105 pm.  They also cancelled the cruise.  My TA was able to get the cruise reinstated, but the package is lost, they will not honor the price and I still have not gotten back the 200 I paid last November.

My TA dropped the ball, but Royal did nothing when it comes to customer service.  I couldn't talk to a supervisor and the CSR I spoke to point blank said they would not honor the 50% off price.  

 

 

Your TA should be compensating you for that loss by giving you OBC. As you said yourself it was their error, why would RCI pay for it?

 

 

[not-enough-cruising]

7 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

How's this for customer service.  Am currently booked on the Oasis for next month on a five day to Canada followed up with a seven day to the Bahamas.  Because the UBP was so expensive, decided to go with the refreshment package.  Bought it on Cyber Monday at 50% off at 17.00 per day plus gratuity, so about 20 per day for both legs of the B2B. 

Booked the two cruises through two different agencies.  Had the second one paid off.  Got an email from my TA about final payment being due on the first one at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I pulled the email and paid the balance about 1045 pm, six hours late.  Got an email from Royal cancelling our refreshment package at 1105 pm.  They also cancelled the cruise.  My TA was able to get the cruise reinstated, but the package is lost, they will not honor the price and I still have not gotten back the 200 I paid last November.

My TA dropped the ball, but Royal did nothing when it comes to customer service.  I couldn't talk to a supervisor and the CSR I spoke to point blank said they would not honor the 50% off price.  

 

 

Your issue is with your TA, not Royal. 
Once the booking is cancelled, it’s game over. 
 

Side note-find another TA, missing final

payment is inexcusable 

[FamilyCruiserUK]

Wonder how it works on european cruises as its 18 to be able to drink in europe. Well the UK anyway.

Edited May 2, 2022 by FamilyCruiserUK

[not-enough-cruising]

2 minutes ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

Wonder gow it works on european cruises as its 18 to be able to drink. 

Age to drink (and purchase DBP) is based on drinking age at embarkation point (with the notable exception of San Juan PR)

[SNJCruisers]

6 hours ago, BekkaW said:

Your TA should be compensating you for that loss by giving you OBC. As you said yourself it was their error, why would RCI pay for it?

 

 

If RCI decided to reinstate my reservation after a six hour late payment, then they also should have reinstated the refreshment package.  If they didn't have their asinine Dynamic Pricing policy, then I wouldn't be behind the 8 ball right now.

[SNJCruisers]

5 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Your issue is with your TA, not Royal. 
Once the booking is cancelled, it’s game over. 
 

Side note-find another TA, missing final

payment is inexcusable 

It's not game over because the booking was reinstated and we still have the same cabin on the front end of the B2B.  If Royal did not have their Dynamic Pricing policy with the wild fluctuation of prices, then everything would be fine.  Royal reinstated the reservation because it was a minor glitch.  They still got their money on the same day, just at 1045 instead of 500.  The refreshment package should have also been reinstated.  

I fully realize my TA dropped the ball, but Royal did as well. They bled millions over the lockdown.  You would think they would bend over backwards to satisfy customers, but obviously they could care less.  One more reason to spend my retirement vacation dollars elsewhere.

[Biker19]

3 minutes ago, SNJCruisers said:

The refreshment package should have also been reinstated. 

They main way some folks were made whole is by providing OBC to make up for the higher cost - I don't think anyone has reported being able to get a planner item reinstated at their old price. As has been mentioned, ask the TA who screwed up for OBC to make up for the price diff between your old price and current price. Not sure why you think RCI should reinstate something that wasn't their fault - for a change.

[SNJCruisers]

4 hours ago, Biker19 said:

They main way some folks were made whole is by providing OBC to make up for the higher cost - I don't think anyone has reported being able to get a planner item reinstated at their old price. As has been mentioned, ask the TA who screwed up for OBC to make up for the price diff between your old price and current price. Not sure why you think RCI should reinstate something that wasn't their fault - for a change.

RCI never should have cancelled it.  They got paid on the day the final invoice was due.  The monies were transferred the following day.  The six hour difference did not come into play.  

Because of the ultimate greed of the dynamic pricing policy, the price difference between 50% at Cyber Monday and 10% today in OBC would wipe out all profit and then some for my TA.  

I put some of the blame for this at the foot of my TA but more of it with RCI.  They got their money transferred to them on the day it was due and the CSR I spoke to put me on hold for show and then came back and said nothing could be done. 

It makes zero sense that RCI had the common sense to reinstate the reservation, but not the refreshment package.  If they were looking for pure profit they could have denied both and resold the cabin at a higher price.

[Biker19]

18 minutes ago, SNJCruisers said:

 

It makes zero sense that RCI had the common sense to reinstate the reservation, but not the refreshment package

It might not make sense to you but again, planner purchases are handled totally differently than cabin bookings. Their IT system allows for cabin cancellation reinstatements but not planner ones. Refunds for one are also different than the other. 

[FPP777]

I called back. I followed the prompts that you would normally follow to purchase the package. I was told no, that I couldn’t book until the birthday. I’m now holding to speak to the next level. 
 

is there another number I should call for a possible better outcome? C&A?

[not-enough-cruising]

2 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

RCI never should have cancelled it.  They got paid on the day the final invoice was due.  The monies were transferred the following day.  The six hour difference did not come into play.  

Because of the ultimate greed of the dynamic pricing policy, the price difference between 50% at Cyber Monday and 10% today in OBC would wipe out all profit and then some for my TA.  

I put some of the blame for this at the foot of my TA but more of it with RCI.  They got their money transferred to them on the day it was due and the CSR I spoke to put me on hold for show and then came back and said nothing could be done. 

It makes zero sense that RCI had the common sense to reinstate the reservation, but not the refreshment package.  If they were looking for pure profit they could have denied both and resold the cabin at a higher price.

Wait, earlier you said your TA messed up and missed final payment; now you are saying Royal should not have cancelled because payment was made properly.

 

Which is it?

[SNJCruisers]

4 hours ago, Biker19 said:

It might not make sense to you but again, planner purchases are handled totally differently than cabin bookings. Their IT system allows for cabin cancellation reinstatements but not planner ones. Refunds for one are also different than the other. 

Not customer service friendly at all.  Par for the course regarding the planner.  Dynamic pricing policy of RCI is the worst thing in the cruise industry.  No other line does things that way.  A price for "A" should be the same across the board and not be determined by when you cruise and on which ship.  

[SNJCruisers]

1 hour ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Wait, earlier you said your TA messed up and missed final payment; now you are saying Royal should not have cancelled because payment was made properly.

 

Which is it?

My TA sent me the reminder email late, at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I made the payment at 1045 pm.  Either way, the monies were being transferred the following day.  Royal got their money. They reinstated the reservation, but screwed me on the planner purchase from last November.  They still have not paid me and more than likely won't until after my cruise, adding more salt to the wound.

[Ourusualbeach]

45 minutes ago, SNJCruisers said:

My TA sent me the reminder email late, at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I made the payment at 1045 pm.  Either way, the monies were being transferred the following day.  Royal got their money. They reinstated the reservation, but screwed me on the planner purchase from last November.  They still have not paid me and more than likely won't until after my cruise, adding more salt to the wound.

Quite frankly you are lucky that Royal re instated your reservstion.  You should be thankful for that and instead of blaming the big bad company for not wavering from their policies blame your TA.  It was your TA that screwed up, no one else is to blame but them and yourself for not keeping track of your own bookings.  Your TA needs to own this and take responsibility for their inaction instead of trying to get others to fix their mistakes.  

[Biker19]

9 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

No other line does things that way.  A price for "A" should be the same across the board and not be determined by when you cruise and on which ship.  

RCI decided to use dynamic pricing a long time ago - I'm sure the chorus of complaints like yours has not changed their ways and it seems that they won't for the foreseeable future. It works for them - there are lots of choices in the cruising industry.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

11 hours ago, SNJCruisers said:

My TA sent me the reminder email late, at 830 pm when final payment was due at 500 pm.  I made the payment at 1045 pm.  Either way, the monies were being transferred the following day.  Royal got their money. They reinstated the reservation, but screwed me on the planner purchase from last November.  They still have not paid me and more than likely won't until after my cruise, adding more salt to the wound.

So you willingly admit you missed the deadline.  Sorry, to me, that's partially on the TA, more on you, and NONE on Royal.  It seems responsible, when you book a cruise with a future final payment date to mark that on your calendar AND even pay it a couple days if not a week before in case there's an issue.  

 

Guessing if you paid your mortgage or credit card bill even a minute late (12:00 am the day after it's due) you'd get hit with a late payment charge at minimum.  

 

Royal did you a FAVOR by reinstating the cruise.  By no means were they required to do so (without you paying the going rate).  Berating them because they won't "fix" YOUR mistake is putting the blame where it doesn't belong. 

[dcgrumpy]

18 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

So you willingly admit you missed the deadline.  Sorry, to me, that's partially on the TA, more on you, and NONE on Royal.  It seems responsible, when you book a cruise with a future final payment date to mark that on your calendar AND even pay it a couple days if not a week before in case there's an issue.  

 

Guessing if you paid your mortgage or credit card bill even a minute late (12:00 am the day after it's due) you'd get hit with a late payment charge at minimum.  

 

Royal did you a FAVOR by reinstating the cruise.  By no means were they required to do so (without you paying the going rate).  Berating them because they won't "fix" YOUR mistake is putting the blame where it doesn't belong. 

 

 

MTE

 

I don't see how this could be Royal's fault. The TA should have reminded the OP, but the OP should have known when it was due. It doesn't matter if it was 6 hours or 1 minute, it was past due. 

 

I have a credit card that is due at 6pm on the due date. I think it's annoying and stupid, but if I forget and pay it at 6:05pm I'm going to get a late charge. 

 

 

[whitsmom]

I never rely on TA to remind me of final payment.  I have an alert on my phone to remind me (i always pay mine usually 10 days before final payment).  Your TA messed up so I would think they should give you some OBC to compensate for their mistake; however, emails don't always get delivered when they should for whatever reason.  RCI has 5 pm as the latest to pay and it is clearly printed on your invoice copy.  You alone are responsible for your bills and you should have been proactive in paying the final payment.

[SNJCruisers]

7 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

 

Royal did you a FAVOR by reinstating the cruise.  By no means were they required to do so (without you paying the going rate).  Berating them because they won't "fix" YOUR mistake is putting the blame where it doesn't belong. 

Royal did me no favor at all by reinstating the cruise.  They got paid on the date the final payment was due.  No other cruise line puts a 500 pm time on the due date, just like no other cruise line charges varying amounts for their drink packages depending upon sail date and ship.  They reinstated the reservation, but then they say they will not reinstate the planner purchase.  Either do both or do neither.  I'm still bitter because I lost out on 57/day UBP and 65/pp Coco Cay Beach Club on a cancelled August 2020 Oasis cruise.

All of the Loyal Royal's will never admit that Royal does no wrong even regarding the asinine dynamic pricing policy.

I made no mistake.  Royal got their money on the date it was due.  Within a day, the reservation was reinstated.  Since planner purchases are a different department and I keep getting stonewalled, I fully realize that the best I can hope for is a 30% discount.  It'll end up costing me 50-60 extra when all is said and done.  Chalk it up to experience and one more reason that Royal is at the bottom when deciding on future cruises.