Cancelling a Cruise before Final Payment

[Jim_Iain]

Would love to hear of any experiences with Cancelling a Cruise prior to Final Payment Date.    While I have no intention of cancelling a  cruise we are looking at a booking a cruise in 2025.    We have yet to cruise on Cunard and have a Queens Grill Suite booked for October of this year.  

 

Our only qualms of booking the late 2025 cruise is -   What if after our first cruise we find Cunard is not a match>

 

Searching CC it appears if you cancel prior to final payment (non-World or Long Cruise) the deposit is 100% refundable.  

[bluemarble]

It depends on whether you book a fare with a refundable or a non-refundable deposit. Cunard offers both type of fares. It used to be that virtually all Cunard fares offered in the US had refundable deposits. Then Cunard started introducing fares with non-refundable deposits on a regular basis a few years ago.

 

On the Cunard US website you may notice a fare called "Our Lowest Fare". Elsewhere that fare is known as their "Value Fare". That fare has a non-refundable deposit. Occasionally other special limited time promotions are offered in the US that have non-refundable deposits.

 

Now having said that, if you are also considering a Queens Grill suite for your 2025 booking, that might not factor into the situation. As far as I know, Cunard does not offer "Our Lowest Fare" on grill suite bookings. I can't speak to whether that's always the case on all their various promotions though. Do check the terms and conditions on the fare you are considering booking for 2025 to verify that the deposit is refundable.

 

Edit to add: If you are booking through a travel agent, you may also want to check to see if that agent charges any non-refundable service fees. The agent I book with does not, but again, I can't speak to all travel agent policies.

Edited January 31 by bluemarble

[MCC retired]

As previously stated , deposits may or may not be refundable depending on the Rate Code you are booked at.

If you wait until you get onboard to book the next Cunard sailing , you can take advantage of reduced deposits and OBC offered for a Future Cruise.

[Jim_Iain]

Thanks for the replies.   I confirmed with my agent and the fare he is quoting is 100% refundable until final payment date.   

 

I had him go ahead and book it as there are only 3 Queen Grill  room remaining for the 2025 cruise.    I guess if there are rooms available when we sail October 2024 we could always cancel and re-book.  

BTW - do they offer Future Booking Certificates like many lines that you can book and get the onboard perks by booking withing XX months?

[Covepointcruiser]

Lucky they had some QG suites available.   We are on a wait list for B2B transatlantics in December of 2025.

[Jim_Iain]

16 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

Lucky they had some QG suites available.   We are on a wait list for B2B transatlantics in December of 2025.

 

I was surprised they were selling so quickly, I'm happy we have it booked.    I'm sure we will take it.    The one we booked merged perfectly with a cruse we have booked 3 days after arrival in Southampton,  which will give us plenty of time to fly to Istanbul. 

[Wagtail adventures]

I am experiencing something a little different - I have booked a Cunard fare (instead of saver), and I see now with the latest Valentine offer it is 10% cheaper. When I rang Cunard to refund my deposit and rebook at the lower fare they said they could only do this if the new booking was the same price or more expensive. So basically people are stopped from taking advantage of better deals which may arise after booking without losing their deposit.

 

So I am confused when I hear about refundable fares. Is this the US vs UK market? Or travel agent vs booking direct? Please enlighten me!

[D&N]

@Wagtail adventures

 

Not certain from your posting history but imagine you have a UK booking.

UK bookings do not have refundable deposits.

 

US bookings equivalent to Cunard Fare do have refundable deposits. Their equivalent to a saver fare is not refundable.

Several studies have shown US fares are normally more expensive.

Edited February 2 by D&N

[Winifred 22]

Refundable deposits are a U S scheme. U K pricing is the price you book at and it doesn’t change however many other offers come along. You can cancel, loose your deposit and rebook if the new price is so attractive to make that worth while. In U K you can also only, on a Cunard fare, move your booking once to a cruise of equal or greater value to be taken within 12 months of original sailing date. Unfortunately US customers do seem to get more flexible T and C s then we get in U K 

[Wagtail adventures]

Yes, UK booking.  Thank you both, most helpful.

[esrs]

1 hour ago, Winifred 22 said:

 Unfortunately US customers do seem to get more flexible T and C s then we get in U K 

Though not because Cunard chooses to grant more flexibility, it is a difference in the way consumer protection laws are written.  

[DWhit]

With you guys being frequent Celebrity passengers (we are too), I feel confident you will enjoy Cunard.  I’d have to say we would pick Cunard over Celebrity, but Cunard has very few Caribbean cruises, which we love, so we end up on Celebrity.  We think both lines are very good.  Plus Queens Grill should be extra special!

 

[bluemarble]

11 minutes ago, DWhit said:

With you guys being frequent Celebrity passengers (we are too), I feel confident you will enjoy Cunard.  I’d have to say we would pick Cunard over Celebrity, but Cunard has very few Caribbean cruises, which we love, so we end up on Celebrity.  We think both lines are very good.  Plus Queens Grill should be extra special!

 

Cunard have said Queen Elizabeth will be doing Caribbean cruises out of Florida during the winter 2025/2026 season so you have that to look forward to since you love Caribbean cruises. I anticipate an official announcement of those itineraries sometime this month. The information I've found so far is that QE will be sailing Caribbean itineraries out of Miami from October 2025 into April 2026.

[King Amo]

On 2/2/2024 at 6:56 PM, Wagtail adventures said:

I am experiencing something a little different - I have booked a Cunard fare (instead of saver), and I see now with the latest Valentine offer it is 10% cheaper. When I rang Cunard to refund my deposit and rebook at the lower fare they said they could only do this if the new booking was the same price or more expensive. So basically people are stopped from taking advantage of better deals which may arise after booking without losing their deposit.

 

So I am confused when I hear about refundable fares. Is this the US vs UK market? Or travel agent vs booking direct? Please enlighten me!

Hi Wagtail

 

I have just dealt with a similar issue. I had booked a saver fare a while ago (booked very early to ensure space for my son, as availability for kids is always a nightmare). Given the new deal my travel agent contacted Cunard to see if we could turn it into a Cunard fare and get the onboard credit, and was quoted over £2k to do so. He then looked up the cost of simply cancelling and rebooking at the new rate and even allowing for the writing off of the original deposit, I would end up saving money, plus getting the onboard credit. Cunard agreed with him that the best way forward for me was to cancel and rebook (as they couldn't/wouldn't change their policy on switching), so that's what I ended up doing. Totally mad, but I ended up not far short of £1k to the good by doing so. 

 

It may be worth contacting your travel agent and seeing if similar shenanigans would be worthwhile in your case. 

[DWhit]

1 hour ago, bluemarble said:

 

Cunard have said Queen Elizabeth will be doing Caribbean cruises out of Florida during the winter 2025/2026 season so you have that to look forward to since you love Caribbean cruises. I anticipate an official announcement of those itineraries sometime this month. The information I've found so far is that QE will be sailing Caribbean itineraries out of Miami from October 2025 into April 2026.

Thanks for the heads up!  That would be perfect for us.  We are on Queen Elizabeth this August to Alaska, maybe we could do some future booking onboard that trip.  I have also notified my travel agent to be on the lookout.  Any guess as to when the bookings would first open?  

 

[bluemarble]

19 minutes ago, DWhit said:

Thanks for the heads up!  That would be perfect for us.  We are on Queen Elizabeth this August to Alaska, maybe we could do some future booking onboard that trip.  I have also notified my travel agent to be on the lookout.  Any guess as to when the bookings would first open?  

 

My apologies to the OP for veering so far off topic. Here's what Cunard posted on their facebook page about a week ago.

 

"Discover over 300 awe inspiring new voyages with our Cunard Queens. Norwegian Fjords, epic World Voyages, Caribbean escapes and so much more await. Whether your ideal adventure involves a visit to a bustling metropolis, warm Mediterranean sun or spellbinding glaciers and valleys.

 

With our biggest launch ever coming up soon, you’re sure to find the voyage that makes your dream holiday a reality. Look out for more information coming February 2024."

 

So I'm anticipating the announcement sometime this month. The voyages generally go on sale one to two weeks after the announcement date, so it could be into March when bookings open if they wait until the end of February for the announcement.