Confused??? Price dropped and Carnival said it can't do anything about it

Hi all, I booked a cruise through my travel agent for May 25 on the Legend for 8 adults (4 balcony cabins). The other day I noticed the price dropped by $120 per person on the carnival website. So I contacted my travel agent and he said the best they (Carnival) would do is upgrade 2 of the rooms to 1 floor higher but still regular balcony rooms. This is a family vacation where half of the travelers have never been on a cruise before and are senior citizens. Being close by and accessible was a priority to me and this was mentioned. I am also confused to as why my total due was 60 days prior instead of 30 days prior. I have cruised on Carnival a few previous times before and never had to pay up so early. Should I just contact Carnival myself? If so, is there a contact person or email I should use? I would have been happy if they would have either upgraded all of the rooms, refunded the difference, or even onboard credit. Normally I wouldn't really care if it was a small difference, but this is a $960 difference. Thanks for any advice!

I'm sure you will get more specific answers after this, but just to give a start.

I have been cruising for seven years now on Carnival and three other lines. Final payment has been due on all of them 60 days or more from the date of sailing. Never less than 60. Your travel agent may have booked a rate that didn't allow for refunds on price drops. There are many categories of rates possible for booking. I don't know Carnival's policy for sure, but on another line I sail if you book through an agent only the agent can contact the cruise line.

I am guessing that you did not book the Early Saver rate?

Clearly, you are past final payment, your only option WOULD be to upgrade.

I feel your pain.

This happened to us last year on the Breeze.

Go and have fun.

I have learned to stop looking at the fares after final payment. It only makes me mad.

What fare did you book under? That does make a difference. Also there might not be enough cabins in the correct configurations to upgrade all the cabins in your party.

Are you booked under Early Saver? If not then you don't have price protection and that is why they can't give you the obc.

Price drops depend upon what your booking type is. If you are booked as Easy Saver you are entitled to price drops/adjustments up until 2 days before your sailing. If you are booked under other promotions you are entitled to price drops up until your final payment date. I have never had a final payment date 30 days before my cruise. Mine has always been at least 45 days up to 60 days depending upon the cruise line and the type cabin.

Carnival will not talk to you if you have a travel agency since the agency owns your booking. You will have to handle everything through them.

I believe 7 day cruises have an earlier final payment date. Did you book Early saver?? If you did you should be able to claim a price drop with no problem. If you did not book Early Saver you can only claim price drops prior to final payment.

WOW!! I don't know how they keep up with all the rate codes, etc.!!! You have to have an accounting degree to stay on top of them. LOL

We booked the Legend for a June sailing. Carnival was offering a deal at the time we booked.... Low Deposit, OBC, Final payment due 30 days prior to sailing. Price Protection included.

They are currently offering a balcony sail that is lower than what we paid for our balcony. We were unable to get the lower rate due to the fact that the current promotion is for a guarantee balcony. We are booked in a 8C category. If the rate goes down for our specific category they said we could get the adjustment. BUT, we would lose the OBC.

I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

I learned a lesson last year of not booking ES, and watched the prices drop by a few hundred up until sailing. Now I book ES, but no drops this years yet, but we still have plenty of time to go.

As for the final payment, unless you booked under a promo that had the final payment 30 days before sailing, all final payments are due either 60 or 75 days prior to the cruise, depending on the length of the cruise booked.

Also, you won't be able to talk to anyone at Carnival directly. Since you have booked through a travel agent, all communication must go through the TA.

For us, final payment has always been 75 days prior to sail date on a 7 day cruise.

I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

I don't see any incorrect responses in this thread. Or are you referring to the OP's travel agent?:confused:

I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

Are you talking about posts on here?? I haven't seen wrong info.

I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

I assume you are talking about op's travel agent?

I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

Would you care to answer the OP's question? You must know the correct answer, so please let us know.

I hate when people "post and run"

I hate when people "post and run"

Yeah really. Obviously they flew off at the mouth saying something they can't explain.

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I am a Carnival Criuse Addict and former travel agent. I wish that people who have no idea what they are talking about would not answer questions!!!:mad:

Seriously?

We will probably never use a TA again based on situations such as what the OP describes above. A post like yours certainly helps to confirm that decision.

Much like your post, all our experiences have been that TA= not helpful :mad:

Can I ask what city your travel agent worked? I'm having a similar situation and could like to know if it could possibly be same agent?

Seriously?

We will probably never use a TA again based on situations such as what the OP describes above. A post like yours certainly helps to confirm that decision.

Much like your post, all our experiences have been that TA= not helpful :mad:

We'll never use a TA either. Last year, prior to our first cruise we visited at travel agency that came highly recommended for cruising. The agent we spoke to didn't give us any information we didn't already know or could have found out on our own. He seemed more interested in talking about how he got free trips to Hawaii and showing off his business card (which had a picture of him, leaning against a palm tree in Hawaii) than he did helping us out.

DH and I walked out and said, "Yeah that was a total waste of time!". Then he went and booked it himself with no problem, even though the travel agent told him it would be "tricky" to do that.:rolleyes:

Seriously?

We will probably never use a TA again based on situations such as what the OP describes above. A post like yours certainly helps to confirm that decision.

Much like your post, all our experiences have been that TA= not helpful :mad:

This situation has nothing to do with booking through a TA or not.

Even if you book online, on the phone, whichever way directly with Carnival, you will not be able to bend their rules.

ONLY if OP was booked Early Saver (NOT Easy Saver) would he/she be price protected past Final Payment date.

Final Payment date is standard 75 days prior to sailing, so if they are sailing May 25th, they are within the penalty phase.

In the recent weeks there were some promos for a 30-day Final Payment, but those were promos, NOT the standard.

So, if OP did NOT book Early Saver, the only option after Final Payment is to upgrade should higher categories be cheaper and available.

My take on it is that there were no available balconies adjacent to each other elsewhere on the ship to be upgraded to and obviously that was a requirement for the OP.

So, how is it the TA's fault that the drop occurred after Final Payment, that they were not booked ES and that there aren't any 4 cabins next to each other left on the ship?:confused:

OK - so regarding price drops and such - I keep checking online and so far no drop - but I booked using my casino rate, my question is IF i notice there is a price drop PRIOR to final payment (July 1st is final payment) can I contact Carnival 1-800# and get an OBC for the price difference?

Secondly - I do mock bookings as well as fare viewer - my category is 8M (aft balcony - Triumph) and when i check - it's no longer available, so how can I accurately check price drops when my category is already sold out? Or is once your category is sold out do price drops not come into play anymore?

OK - so regarding price drops and such - I keep checking online and so far no drop - but I booked using my casino rate, my question is IF i notice there is a price drop PRIOR to final payment (July 1st is final payment) can I contact Carnival 1-800# and get an OBC for the price difference?

 

Secondly - I do mock bookings as well as fare viewer - my category is 8M (aft balcony - Triumph) and when i check - it's no longer available, so how can I accurately check price drops when my category is already sold out? Or is once your category is sold out do price drops not come into play anymore?

1. If you notice a drop prior to Final Payment you can call and get your balance adjusted. If by chance you already paid off your cruise, then you will either get the amount refunded to your card or OBC.

2. When you do a mock booking and your category doesn't appear, then it is sold out. You can keep checking to see if maybe there is a cancellation and another 8M opens up at a lower rate. Only then can you apply for the price drop.

OK - so regarding price drops and such - I keep checking online and so far no drop - but I booked using my casino rate, my question is IF i notice there is a price drop PRIOR to final payment (July 1st is final payment) can I contact Carnival 1-800# and get an OBC for the price difference?

 

Secondly - I do mock bookings as well as fare viewer - my category is 8M (aft balcony - Triumph) and when i check - it's no longer available, so how can I accurately check price drops when my category is already sold out? Or is once your category is sold out do price drops not come into play anymore?

If you're category is sold out, you can't get a price adjustment. Best you can do is try for an upgrade. That's the only negative about booking a cabin type with so few of them on the ship. They sell out fast, which means no price drops.

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