On Board Credit from Travel Agent

[Carol28]

I am very surprised that my OBC for a September cruise will not be posted until I am onboard.  This is the first time this has happened to me.  I cannot reserve specialty dinners with my OBC and by the time I sail, the restaurants will all be booked.  Have others experienced this with OBC?

[voljeep]

12 minutes ago, Carol28 said:

I am very surprised that my OBC for a September cruise will not be posted until I am onboard.  This is the first time this has happened to me.  I cannot reserve specialty dinners with my OBC and by the time I sail, the restaurants will all be booked.  Have others experienced this with OBC?

sorry, but you can't reserve specialty dinners with 'ANY' obc - posted or not

[Coral]

You can not reserve any speciality restaurants with OBC.

 

My agent give me a discount off of my cruise upfront (as opposed to OBC from her).

Edited April 10, 2023 by Coral

[neverbeenhere]

Once aboard, go to specialty dining venue and say; "when can you get us seats in your restaurant?"  Life magic, there will be a time available.

[PacnGoNow]

23 minutes ago, Carol28 said:

I am very surprised that my OBC for a September cruise will not be posted until I am onboard.  This is the first time this has happened to me.  I cannot reserve specialty dinners with my OBC and by the time I sail, the restaurants will all be booked.  Have others experienced this with OBC?

SD reserved ahead of time, do require a credit card.

 

A word of caution: check to see if your OBC is posted as soon as you

board.  We had one paid for by our TA, we have a copy of the payment from the TA to PCL.  It was never posted to our 28 night cruise. 
 

Yes, I have sent numerous emails to CS and requested they put it on our last cruise in March.  Nothing.  No call back, nothing posted.  Lost out to sea.👋

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wrongwaywatson]

29 minutes ago, neverbeenhere said:

Once aboard, go to specialty dining venue and say; "when can you get us seats in your restaurant?"  Life magic, there will be a time available.

Not necessarily.   We had 2 recent cruises that The Crown Grill was booked solid before we got onboard.  We checked after we were onboard and we still couldn't get in.  We checked halfway through and it was still sold out. 

We did get a table on our April 1 cruise, though. 

[Rick&Jeannie]

29 minutes ago, wrongwaywatson said:

Not necessarily.   We had 2 recent cruises that The Crown Grill was booked solid before we got onboard.  We checked after we were onboard and we still couldn't get in.  We checked halfway through and it was still sold out. 
 

SD restaurants are never "booked solid" pre-cruise.  They always hold seats/times back for various reasons.

[wrongwaywatson]

6 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

SD restaurants are never "booked solid" pre-cruise.  They always hold seats/times back for various reasons.

Well, it didn't work for us! LOL  But, a lot of people had booked with a promo that included a free specialty dining.   We seriously tried and couldn't get in

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, PacnGoNow said:

SD reserved ahead of time, do require a credit card.

 

A word of caution: check to see if your OBC is posted as soon as you

board.  We had one paid for by our TA, we have a copy of the payment from the TA to PCL.  It was never posted to our 28 night cruise. 
 

Yes, I have sent numerous emails to CS and requested they put it on our last cruise in March.  Nothing.  No call back, nothing posted.  Lost out to sea.👋

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, another good reason to book with a TA that gives cash discount off the cruise fare instead of OBC after-the-fact.

[SiliconCruiser]

13 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

So, another good reason to book with a TA that gives cash discount off the cruise fare instead of OBC after-the-fact.

I suspect that is one of the reasons why Costco now gives Cash cards directly to the client rather than fooling around with OBC.  Besides, it means that the amount would have to be spent at Costco rather than on board the ship 😉.  That said though, Princess' own OBC seems to be posted correctly pre-cruise.

[Thrak]

I'm amazed at the number of times someone says their TA provided OBC, Specialty Dining, WiFi, Beverage Package,  or some other perk when it actually turns out to be part of the Princess promo. I know that our Cruise Personalizer often lists perks as being "courtesy of ..." (fill in the name of the TA) when it is  part of the promo under which we booked.

 

For instance, ALL of the items listed below for an upcoming cruise are part of the Princess Plus booking but ALL of them are listed as being provided by our TA.

 

 

 

Edited April 10, 2023 by Thrak

[Coral]

12 minutes ago, Thrak said:

I'm amazed at the number of times someone says their TA provided OBC, Specialty Dining, WiFi, Beverage Package,  or some other perk when it actually turns out to be part of the Princess promo. I know that our Cruise Personalizer often lists perks as being "courtesy of ..." (fill in the name of the TA) when it is  part of the promo under which we booked.

 

For instance, ALL of the items listed below for an upcoming cruise are part of the Princess Plus booking but ALL of them are listed as being provided by our TA.

 

 

I get OBC from my agent when she has group space (different than Princess promos).

 

Others, get OBC as a rebate of commission. I get the money off of my booking when I make final payment so I pay less for the cruise. Others get a large OBC as their rebate. Different agencies do it differently.

 

Sometimes when agents provide a rebate as OBC, it isn't recorded until right before the cruise and can't be used before the cruise for shore excursions, etc...

 

So yes - agents do provide discounts and OBC. And you are right - Princess incorrectly shows promos from the agent.

Edited April 10, 2023 by Coral

[Thrak]

27 minutes ago, Coral said:

Sometimes when agents provide a rebate as OBC, it isn't recorded until right before the cruise and can't be used before the cruise for shore excursions, etc...

 

It is my understanding that, as a general rule, OBC provided by the TA doesn't show up before the cruise and, as you stated, therefore can't be used in advance.

[Steelers36]

2 hours ago, SiliconCruiser said:

I suspect that is one of the reasons why Costco now gives Cash cards directly to the client rather than fooling around with OBC.  Besides, it means that the amount would have to be spent at Costco rather than on board the ship 😉.  That said though, Princess' own OBC seems to be posted correctly pre-cruise.

We are supposed to write "Big Box" with a wink and a nod.  😎

[SiliconCruiser]

34 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

We are supposed to write "Big Box" with a wink and a nod.  😎

It's okay to me, the company was originally founded on ethical business practices and has a reputation for treating their employees fairly while providing a living wage, something that cannot be attributed to most retailers.  But I do have concerns with their new management and the path that they are pursuing, since I've seen it before with so many membership stores over the past 50+ years (none of those stores are around anymore.)

 
More recently Costco Travel has gone to bat for me twice in trying to get a refund for a transfer that I had cancelled.  They tried twice to get it refunded and it sounded like they were getting a run-around.  I finally just disputed the amount with the credit card company and it was suddenly resolved quickly.  There was also another transfer that I canceled and realized they had charged me an additionally $25, but they did actually refund the inflated amount (took 24 hours with that one.)  

[cr8tiv1]

My TA "gifted" me OBC for a cruise. It showed up under credits or payments.  I could see it.  Didn't try to use it before the cruise.  

 

Agree with @Thrak, my Princess Plus "shows up as" gift from my TA...I know better/I paid for it.

[jeromep]

I have some TA OBC.  It is currently attached to my cruise similarly to the OBC I got for the promotion I booked under and my shareholder OBC.  The three are broken out seperately, but they are totaled up as part of the total OBC I have available to me right now.  I've already used some of it to book at shore excursion.

[Steelers36]

2 hours ago, SiliconCruiser said:

It's okay to me, the company was originally founded on ethical business practices and has a reputation for treating their employees fairly while providing a living wage, something that cannot be attributed to most retailers.  But I do have concerns with their new management and the path that they are pursuing, since I've seen it before with so many membership stores over the past 50+ years (none of those stores are around anymore.)

 
More recently XXXXXXXXXX  has gone to bat for me twice in trying to get a refund for a transfer that I had cancelled.  They tried twice to get it refunded and it sounded like they were getting a run-around.  I finally just disputed the amount with the credit card company and it was suddenly resolved quickly.  There was also another transfer that I canceled and realized they had charged me an additionally $25, but they did actually refund the inflated amount (took 24 hours with that one.)  

I think you have been around long enough to know we aren't supposed/allowed to be naming TA's - individuals or agencies.  We'd have a free-for-all if that rule was relaxed.  I don't even get to hint at mine like others can.  That was the basis of my note about the "BB" store.

[Steelers36]

2 hours ago, jeromep said:

I have some TA OBC.  It is currently attached to my cruise similarly to the OBC I got for the promotion I booked under and my shareholder OBC.  The three are broken out separately, but they are totaled up as part of the total OBC I have available to me right now.  I've already used some of it to book at shore excursion.

Perhaps that is group OBC which many larger agencies have due to blocking cabin space on multiple voyages?  The OBC that shows up on sail day is the kind that agents are gifting back in lieu of a cruise fare discount by reports here.

[MTNest93]

Our OBC from our TA shows in our account and has since we paid our deposit last July.  We made 2 SD reservations a couple days after booking and paid by credit card.  We are 1st time cruisers and just assumed OBC was for use while on board, which seems that it is.  OP, if I were you, I’d just pay the SD fee now and enjoy the OBC during your trip so you don’t have to stress about getting a reservation.  

[cruisewkid]

How does one view their account before boarding?

I have looked at the "Payment & Credits" tab when logged into the website, but I sure don't see much, & certainly not all of the $$ activity r/t our trip.

[ontheweb]

17 hours ago, Thrak said:

I'm amazed at the number of times someone says their TA provided OBC, Specialty Dining, WiFi, Beverage Package,  or some other perk when it actually turns out to be part of the Princess promo. I know that our Cruise Personalizer often lists perks as being "courtesy of ..." (fill in the name of the TA) when it is  part of the promo under which we booked.

 

For instance, ALL of the items listed below for an upcoming cruise are part of the Princess Plus booking but ALL of them are listed as being provided by our TA.

 

 

 

Yes, I remember on a Princess cruise where a bottle of wine that was on a Princess promo was listed as a gift from our TA. I had had previous discussions with the TA who said he gave OBC rather than specific gifts like that as he felt the passenger should spend it in the way they best wished.

[Rick&Jeannie]

2 hours ago, cruisewkid said:

How does one view their account before boarding?

I have looked at the "Payment & Credits" tab when logged into the website, but I sure don't see much, & certainly not all of the $$ activity r/t our trip.

I have always complained about how you have to jump through hoops to see "everything" in regards to your cruise costs.  Currently (still) there is no way to do it.  That why you really have to keep every email and cruise confirmation that you receive from Princess so that you will have some chance at a paper trail.  Until you actually get on board, you cannot see a complete listing of what you've paid for...and sometimes not even then!  KEEP EVERYTHING and bring copies with you on your cruise!

[MTNest93]

3 hours ago, cruisewkid said:

How does one view their account before boarding?

I have looked at the "Payment & Credits" tab when logged into the website, but I sure don't see much, & certainly not all of the $$ activity r/t our trip.

I received a detailed receipt from my TA after booking that shows all our reservation details, payments, OBC, etc.  You can also view your OBC on the website by first logging into your account, then click on the "payments" icon as shown in the screen shot below.  Scroll down to the bottom and you will see your OBC credits.

 

Total Onboard Credits	$125.00	$25.00	$150.00
Shareholders Benefits*	$100.00	$0.00	$100.00
Travel Agent Grp Promotion*	$25.00	$25.00	$50.00

*Please enjoy using these credits onboard as they are not refundable.

 

[cruisewkid]

Thanks, We do have the detailed invoice w everything from the TA, & I did see the OBC section online, & it lists everything that I thought we got originally, but I also THOUGHT we had already used that $$ toward booking excursions??  Do they do that?  

 

I usually keep great paper trails, but I'm embarrassed that I haven't been keeping a super close eye - I have been mostly checking our itinerary to make sure things we signed up for show up after I get them.

 

I will start going through my credit card to figure out what got paid w what & keep a better record.  I appreciate the head's up & am feeling sheepish that I wasn't already doing that!  😮  

 

Again - Thank you!