Stock Obc Not Combinable Anymore

[ruskatab]

This is what I just got off a link from RC about shareholder benefits.

[B]Can this benefit be combined with other offers, onboard credits and coupons?[/B]

[B]Shareholder Onboard Credit is not combinable with other onboard credit offers, general loyalty offers, “dollars off” promotions and savings certificates. Guests have the option to choose between the shareholder benefit or the other offer. The benefit is NOT available to company employees, travel agents, tour conductors and/or others utilizing complimentary or reduced-rate cruise fares.

[B]I am assuming that the loyalty offers they are talking about is the C&A balcony discounts. Wow...I set up an account today to buy the stock but was swamped at work and couldnt buy it today. Maybe it was sign. [/B][/B]

[gagirl7143]

[quote name='Gonzo70']I am not 100% sure, but I think Future Cruise Credits are discounts off a future cruise awarded when something goes wrong on your cruise (i.e. they are compensation given to you by Royal Caribbean for some type of mistake or problem on one of your cruises).[/quote]


You are right. We had a water problem ( only HOT water in both shower and sink) and were given a future Cruise certificate to use within 1 year.

[crazy 4 cruising]

[quote name='ruskatab']So what your saying is I can either use my stockholders OBC or use the C&A saving certificate and not both. My understanding is that you can use the saving certificate if your are platinum or above. You get a discount on balconys and above if your platinum and I thought thats what the saving certificate is for and its the same thing. The certificate is basically a coupon. I will not be happy if I cant use the saving certificate and the stockholder OBC.[/quote]

my understanding is that the balcony discounts are NOT the same as savings certificates. the savings certificates are the ones that are listed on the web-site and change quarterly, the balony discount is the same on every ship, depending on C&A level & length of sailing.

[cruiserbryce]

huh...so really not that much incentive to book on board if you're a stockholder

[beachbuddy]

[quote name='crazy 4 cruising']my understanding is that the balcony discounts are NOT the same as savings certificates. the savings certificates are the ones that are listed on the web-site and change quarterly, the balony discount is the same on every ship, depending on C&A level & length of sailing.[/QUOTE]

[B][SIZE="3"][COLOR="Green"]I agree with you........the balcony discount is an automatic discount for our level in C&A. You get it regardless of what else you use.

Patty[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B]

[beachbuddy]

huh...so really not that much incentive to book on board if you're a stockholder

 

Exactly!!

I think that RCCL should honor any certificates purchased before the date that this becomes effective. We should be able to use the certificate OBC and stockholder OBC since that's how it was conveyed to us.

[ruskatab]

I just called C&A and you can use the platinum balcony and above discount and the shareholder OBC. I feel better because the savings certificate I wanted to use was for an 11 night cruise for 225 off but the platinum balcony discount is 200. Close enough!

[bigboffs]

It is pretty clear that RCCL wants our loyalty, they are not willing to give us theirs. They have changed the rules "mid-game".

 

Had they imposed the change after a certain date, we know ahead of time. Those of us holding Next Cruise Certificates are being given less than what was agreed to at the time of purchase. Bottom line is no one who has stock should ever book on board or purchase Next Cruise Certificates.

 

The Florida Attorney General did not take kindly to this type of action by RCCL with the fuel surcharge and may look unfavorably on this action as well.

[crazy 4 cruising]

huh...so really not that much incentive to book on board if you're a stockholder

 

that's kind of how I see it too. I feel sorry for the Loyalty Ambassadors. They have a quota that they have to meet, sure hope they lower their quota.

[hmsdos]

that's kind of how I see it too. I feel sorry for the Loyalty Ambassadors. They have a quota that they have to meet, sure hope they lower their quota.

and I believe they had their salary adjusted to encourage them to sell for "commission"....

 

Agreed.... there is something wrong with "their" logic... seems to be a number of decisions made lately that reflect a very different focus....know they have hired some "higher ups" from competing lines.... but had hoped they would not infect the RCCL customer orientation. It would be a lot better to be a "brand new" cruiser than a "loyal" one at this point.

[beachbuddy]

Cruising with the same line solely because they provide the most discounts and then trashing them and avoiding them when they limit you to one discount per cruise does not constitute being "loyal." You were simply being a fair weather friend and trying to squeeze out of them whatever you could.

 

Gonzo,

 

I don't see it that way. People are loyal because the loyalty is returned. It's just like working somewhere for years........you have loyal employees until the company starts treating them like crap.........that's what turns loyalty to non-loyalty. I do own stock and I am Diamond. All Diamond's get the balcony discount so now people who have bought stock get nothing extra according to what I'm reading? I still have a next cruise certificate to use but honestly I won't be buying any more next cruise certificates because I do have stock and if it's one or the other, the stock benefit is better. When I purchased my next cruise certificate I was told it's $200 for 9 nights or longer - well, now they changed it to 10 nights or longer, however, the stock benefit is still $200 for 9 nights. And I know what the statement about stock implies but I don't think it works that way. During my last conversation with RCCL reps I was told that the Platinum and Diamond balcony discounts are combinable with next cruise and stockholder benefits, but coupons on-ine or mailed to you are not combinable. They have a very funny way of not clearly defining what a Benefit is and what an Offer is.

 

I definitely am not for the building of the hugh ships they are building - I'm not sure they are going to appeal to a lot of avid cruisers, however, I hope that they draw in new cruisers for RCCL's sake and for the sake of my stocks. I also think they are not selling cabins the way they were. Most people I know have been not cruising because of airfare - maybe RCCL should think about spreading their ships out a little more just till we get threw this economic crisis that we're in. There are great deals on ships out of Florida and San Juan, but the issue is there are not many flights that will get us to those places.

[beachbuddy]

You likely had good timing last week and got the request in a few days before they began enforcing the new policy. I am not sure if they will immediately begin enforcing the policy on a consistent basis or if it will take some time, but at least as of now there is a report that someone was denied Shareholder OBC along with Next Cruise OBC (see post #295 in this thread).

 

My suggestion to this person would be call again and talk to someone else........I think that's what makes people so mad is that RCCL isn't even consistent. They upped my surcharge when I moved my booking and people on these boards told me that they did not up theirs when they moved a booking. People on this board also told me they are getting $200 OBC for a 9 night crusie because their certificate was purchased when it was still $200. My certificate was purchased when it was still $200, but they were only giving me $100. This is the stuff that annoys people!!! They need to get their act together.

[beachbuddy]

The shareholder credit does not appear on your invoice from RCI is that not correct?

 

The other discounts/credits do.

 

So if you have written confirmation that the Shareholder is applied you will really not be sure until you get on the ship and view your account. I will be checking this all out in November.

 

Hope to hear back from those you will be sailing soon to see how it plays out

 

Emmy,

 

Actually, my stockholder OBC and my next cruise certificate OBC are both on the invoice that they sent me............I had asked them to put the stockholder one on when I booked our next 12 nighter. I also have the confirmation email.

 

Patty

[cruisegirl1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cruiserbryce

huh...so really not that much incentive to book on board if you're a stockholder

 

 

Exactly

 

Further - I you don't book a balcony or better, the C/A Plat or diamond discount is worthless.

 

M

[cruisegirl1]

Received this response when I noted the stock ownership should have no relationship to the on board activities (like booking on board) or C/A society benefits.

 

 

Dear Ms. XXXXXXXXX:

 

Thank you for your email. We apologize for the delay in our response.

 

We appreciate the time you have taken to communicate this issue to us and have forwarded to the appropriate department for review.

 

Ms. XXXXXXXX we hope that concerns mentioned in your correspondence have not

caused you to lose faith in our company and what it stands for. We hope there

will be an opportunity to welcome you and your family back onboard one of our

ships in the near future.

 

Sincerely,

 

Lisa Webster

Customer Service Representative

[ChevyCruiser]

I sent the following in to RCCL and am waiting on a reply.

 

"I have been informed that shareholder OBC benefits ARE combinable with Future Cruise Certificates - but then told that the OBC for a Future Cruise, issued by the on-board Future Cruise Consultant, after the Compass urged me to make an appointment with the Future Cruise Consultant are NOT COMBINABLE. Why do you have a Future Cruise Consultant if they are not issuing Future Cruise Certificates for Cruises booked for the Future? Clarity is needed!"

 

 

:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

 

Still waiting on a reply, but a cruise friend who lives nearby was booking cruise today so as not to lose his "Next Cruise" benefit and voice his concern about the sudden change in the rules. The RCCL rep told him there was a management meeting scheduled next week to take up this issue since so many people are complaining about it. DUHHH, like they thought everyone would welcome having the rug pulled out from under them?????:rolleyes:

 

Unless we all agree with losing a benefit, we'd better make some noise with RCCL now!

[crazy 4 cruising]

Still waiting on a reply, but a cruise friend who lives nearby was booking cruise today so as not to lose his "Next Cruise" benefit and voice his concern about the sudden change in the rules. The RCCL rep told him there was a management meeting scheduled next week to take up this issue since so many people are complaining about it. DUHHH, like they thought everyone would welcome having the rug pulled out from under them?????:rolleyes:

 

Unless we all agree with losing a benefit, we'd better make some noise with RCCL now!

 

interesting, keep us posted

[beachbuddy]

Definitely no on board booking for us either. I'll go with stock OBC or C&A discount coupons. They might as well find a new position for the loyalty ambassadors. Might I suggest restroom cleaners.

 

LOL........I agree! I won't be buying any next cruise certificates either.......I'll use the stock OBC instead. As a matter of fact, I had 2 next cruise certificates and used one for a March 09 cruise and the other one I had on a Bermuda cruise for Sept 08 but had to cancel because of a foot surgery and I didn't want to lose the booking # because of the OBC so I moved it to a 9 night cruise, however, foot still isn't healed and I didn't want to make final payment in the event I can't go so I told them to move the booking to anytime next fall. I figured this way I would still be able to keep my OBC. Well, as of right now, they have had my $100 since last November and now they have my $500 as a deposit and have had it since May so I will be calling them and cancelling completely and getting my $500 back. No sense keeping the booking number now if they're not going to give me my OBC that I was promised when I purchased the certificate. I'll get my money back and if I find a deal and want to cruise with them, that's when they'll get my deposit again, but they're not keeping it now.

[Retired LEO]

I have 2 next cruise certificates that I purchased in August. When I do convert them into an actual booking they'll have an arguement on their hands. Of course I'll lose but oh well.....

 

Last onboard booking for me.

[beachbuddy]

Just recieved word that my OBC for Nov 09 has been applied along with my Future Booking Credit, also recieved the following Statement.

 

**Please note** For new bookings made on or after October 15, 2008, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has implemented some changes to our shareholder benefits program. The shareholder benefit is combinable with Crown & Anchor Platinum and Diamond balcony/suite discounts, Royal Caribbean International or Celebrity Cruises Credit Card Reward Points redeemed for onboard credit or discounts, Senior/Military/Resident rates, Gift Certificates and Future Cruise Certificates. The shareholder benefit is not combinable with promotions or offers that include onboard credit.

 

In the event that two onboard credits are available on any one reservation, you may choose which onboard credit you prefer. Unless you specify otherwise, Royal Caribbean will issue the onboard credit with the higher value. This applies to Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Cruises.

 

Hope this helps to clear things up.

 

Hey Tom,

How ya doing? I see your still doing lots of cruising! This whole stock thing stinks!! I already have it applied to my March 09 cruise so I'm okay with that one. No sense buying those next cruise things anymore since now there's no benefit at all to do so.

 

Patty

[beachbuddy]

Count me as confused now too... according to that email you can get OBC from stock AND a next cruise booking...and it doesn't say anything about not being able to use a C&A coupon like some had said before cound not be combined...

 

LOl.......okay, now you count me in as being confused too! After reading it 3 times I still don't understand what it's saying. Sounds like you can use them both but then if you read the last sentence or 2 they're saying that if 2 OBC's are credited they will only use the higher of the 2..........:confused: They are notorius for confusing the He!! out of everyone! Seems to me they enjoy confusing everyone.........this way there's no correct answer and that's why when you call 5 reps, you will get 5 different answers!

[beachbuddy]

Just spoke with the D+ desk today and they said :

 

You can have an onboard credit from booking onboard OR a stockholder onboard credit OR a C&A coupon from any source published such as the Crown And Anchor booklet...... any one of these can be used with a plat- D balcony discount and RCCL credit card onboard credit and a travel agent onboard credit. She said that the Next Cruise Certificate after 14 Oct will apply as any other booking meaning the the credit that is the largest will apply.

 

Personally, I think they they should honor any next cruise certificates that were purchased prior to the date of 10/15. Those certificates were sold with the intention of getting OBC and now after they sold them to us they're worthless to those of us that have stock and they have our money. I really think if they want to keep their customers they have to stop pulling this stuff.

[ShuswapCruisers]

Watch the market Today?

RCCL went under $13

Since Feb 08 it has had a steady drop from $42 - not just the last month or so.

In comparison, Carnival has dropped from $42 to $28 but just in the last month.

Although I own a whack of RCL and having all my trust in my financial guy, I would assume that CCL is a little healthier.

All that being said... I think we will buy another block if RCCL hits $11:eek:

 

Lotta people dumpin - lotta people buying...:)

[Coralc]

OK. I wrote to shareholder benefits...I feel funny about writing to CEO's and Presidents, but I did ask that it be forwarded.

 

"Thank You xxxxx, you do a great job! But I am very unhappy with the decision that the onboard credit provided by Royal Caribbean stock ownership is no longer combinable with onboard or Next Cruise onboard booking credit.

 

I don’t own any RCL stock. My husband does. We have separate charge cards, banking and investment accounts, both onboard Royal Caribbean ships and at home. My husband receives the shareholder onboard credit, because he chose to buy your stocks. I receive the onboard booking credit because I am the vacation planner for our small family. If we are unable to have both of the onboard credits, my husband will probably lose out. More likely, Royal Caribbean will lose out, because we will seek out other vacation destinations instead of arguing about who gets the credit.

 

The two credits really have nothing to do with each other, other than the fact that we enjoy cruising with Royal Caribbean and chose different venues to support the cruise line in anticipation of our future vacations. On the one hand the stock is not doing much, and on the other…you have had my Next Cruise deposit for X number of months.

 

Will you please share my comments with whoever makes these sorts of decisions? Thanks."

[crazy 4 cruising]

LOL........I agree! I won't be buying any next cruise certificates either.......I'll use the stock OBC instead. As a matter of fact, I had 2 next cruise certificates and used one for a March 09 cruise and the other one I had on a Bermuda cruise for Sept 08 but had to cancel because of a foot surgery and I didn't want to lose the booking # because of the OBC so I moved it to a 9 night cruise, however, foot still isn't healed and I didn't want to make final payment in the event I can't go so I told them to move the booking to anytime next fall. I figured this way I would still be able to keep my OBC. Well, as of right now, they have had my $100 since last November and now they have my $500 as a deposit and have had it since May so I will be calling them and cancelling completely and getting my $500 back. No sense keeping the booking number now if they're not going to give me my OBC that I was promised when I purchased the certificate. I'll get my money back and if I find a deal and want to cruise with them, that's when they'll get my deposit again, but they're not keeping it now.

 

well said, have you written this to "them"?

Personally, I think they they should honor any next cruise certificates that were purchased prior to the date of 10/15. Those certificates were sold with the intention of getting OBC and now after they sold them to us they're worthless to those of us that have stock and they have our money. I really think if they want to keep their customers they have to stop pulling this stuff.

 

yeah, what she said!!!

 

OK. I wrote to shareholder benefits...I feel funny about writing to CEO's and Presidents, but I did ask that it be forwarded.

 

"Thank You xxxxx, you do a great job! But I am very unhappy with the decision that the onboard credit provided by Royal Caribbean stock ownership is no longer combinable with onboard or Next Cruise onboard booking credit.

 

I don’t own any RCL stock. My husband does. We have separate charge cards, banking and investment accounts, both onboard Royal Caribbean ships and at home. My husband receives the shareholder onboard credit, because he chose to buy your stocks. I receive the onboard booking credit because I am the vacation planner for our small family. If we are unable to have both of the onboard credits, my husband will probably lose out. More likely, Royal Caribbean will lose out, because we will seek out other vacation destinations instead of arguing about who gets the credit.

 

The two credits really have nothing to do with each other, other than the fact that we enjoy cruising with Royal Caribbean and chose different venues to support the cruise line in anticipation of our future vacations. On the one hand the stock is not doing much, and on the other…you have had my Next Cruise deposit for X number of months.

 

Will you please share my comments with whoever makes these sorts of decisions? Thanks."

 

BRAVO, well said