luckyinpa

4 minutes ago, MisterBill99 said:

 

Thanks, not showing for me, so I will ask the TA. They're giving me over 10% OBC on their own, which is very generous for MSC (who none of my regular TA's wanted to deal with because they apparently don't pay much in commissions), so even without the $100 from MSC I'm doing OK, but I would like to get it.

i always wondered how much commission they do get since my TA gives me 10 percent ish across most suites i've booked on a few different cruise lines. i just assumed he gets at least 20 and gives me half.

2 hours ago, MisterBill99 said:

 

When does your OBC show up online? I just booked and am supposed to get $100 from MSC for their current promotion and $350 from my TA. I'm sure that the latter won't show up until very close to the cruise, or even not until I am on board. But should I see the $100 from MSC? I just paid the deposit today. I figured I'd ask here before asking my TA to investigate.

my 100 msc money showed up as soon as my TA booked my cruise. matter of fact i didnt even know i was getting any from msc

had to email oasis a few weeks after our may cruise. lotta people in the forum didnt get one

introduce pandemic. wait for sailing to open. then book. i got a haven 2 br for 2100 pp. those prices today are a tad higher!

14 minutes ago, sixpackeddie said:

Was a great experience. Perks in Edge Villa were:

-priority boarding was met by our butler and escorted on the ship

-dedicated butler

- 2 complimentary bottles of alcohol in suite

- fruit and cheese platter delivered daily

-monogrammed Retreat PJ’s

-unlimited dry cleaning, pressing and laundry

-mini fridge stocked with complimentary alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages

- unlimited specialty complimentary specialty resteraunt dining

If I missed anything I will let you know!

 

 

 

great to know. thanks. i do have high expectations in a year for my retirement cruise.  also i hope le voyage and the rest of the dining experiences continue to be free.

On 8/18/2023 at 3:35 PM, sixpackeddie said:

Will let you know regarding the perks in an edge villa as we are sailing in one at the end of this month. 

curious about any first hand villa experiences

did a princess cruise in 'normal weather' that missed halifax. maine and newport. casino got rich that trip. but one time in st john had so much fun renting a car and spending hours in the caves area. you must get there at low tide and get out or you WILL be trapped but thats part of the excitement

book a car and drive to st martins caves after looking at the tide charts. go during low tide and you can walk out to the third 'alcove' and have tons of fun!

i wonder if an infrequent traveler would have as much luck. also wondering if screenshots from a phone saying delay would be accepted.

liberty cruise

never been on MSC but on my upcoming cruise my TA called MSC and they specifically told him that his gift to me was NOT refundable so he's mailing me a check after the cruise. unsure what your origination of your credit is but i know id never take a chance on losing money

ive been researching flight cancellation situations and i see insurance requires proof of the airline delay . so if you are at the airport does the person at the desk give you a letter saying your flight was delayed or cancelled? just curious the exact information people need to prove a flight was cancelled or delayed for X hours .

also how do you prove no other flights were available?

On 9/27/2023 at 9:59 AM, Debde said:

Thank you so much Jamie for taking the time to do that.

Enjoy your cruise and keep up the information. It is so helpful for those of us getting ready to board for our cruises!

i see nick for sponge bob and hgtv for home shows. im happy  🙂

on NCL they had 2 movies channels and one tv channel that played totally random stuff like star trek. original batman but then stuff like friends or other sit coms .. it was all commercial free but if the show ended at 22 after. you had 8 minutes of time till the next show was on . very strange

for me my source was TA calling MSC and they said his gift to me was NOT refundable on the ship so he's mailing me a check after the cruise.

royal , princess and NCL always had put it back on my credit card so this is something new to me and ill be checking for every new cruise line in the future.

matter of fact i forget which line but one now demands you go to guest services to get cash or they wont let you off the ship!

speaking of PPV. are they free in YC?

like debde, i spend time in my cabin sometimes. i know it's weird to be in a room you pay for, but thats me! 

i just noticed on my TA invoice it says 500 non refundable OBC so i wrote to him and his accounting dept will change it to a check

he also told me MSC made it against the rules to discount cruises so he cannot just discount my pricing. has anyone else gotten a discount price up front recently?

17 hours ago, ajoneen said:

It boggles my mind that someone would get more in OBC then cover the gratuities.  I must be doing something wrong-  I got $50 for my next cruise. 

takes time to find a decent TA. i got lucky and got one on a compete site and he generally gives me shy of 10% on my suites and the cruise lines usually toss in a bit. but a balcony room will never get as much as a suite.  also depends on lines. sometimes my TA takes the discount right off the price. but mostly it's listed as Gift OBC.

for example one time i just got a mini suite on princess and it was a a small discount directly off the princess price then princess tossed in just 50 bucks.  but on my once in a lifetime retirement cruise my TA offered to mail me 2300 after the cruise but the 800 that celebrity is giving me is not refundable so ill have to take it out through the slot machine

1 hour ago, EllieinNJ said:

I learned my lesson on Carnival.  I had a $600 OBC from Carnival which I used up $500 on excursions.  I also had $300 from my TA.  I used $50 in the casino.   When they told me all OBC is not refundable I was furious.  I guess I could have cashed it all out in the casino.  What we did was buy gift cards at Cherry on Top, the candy store. 

until reading on this forum, i had no idea that auto refund to CC was such a luxury that ive gotten on royal. i definitely see that as a perk now vs MSC.  im glad i read , read. read. ive been teased for researching too much but this vindicates me for sure!!!!

on my retirement cruise im getting 2300 from TA and 800 from X and i cant imagine if i was on msc and not aware that they were keeping that all from me! i'm also shocked that there hasnt been consumer uprising over this issue to change the msc rule that no one gets their money back. i also wonder what their 'theory' is that they get to keep the TA OBC.

i was reading the T and C for the drinks package and shocked to see you cannot bring drinks obtained on the ship, to anywhere else on the ship. are the specialty restaurants all owned by outside parties?

1 hour ago, EllieinNJ said:

My TA gives me a choice of OBC on the ship or cash back which is sending me a check after the cruise. 

my TA had offered this on a very large amount of OBC for a cruise but i didnt know he could do it for lower prices cruises as well. but after booking today he called MSC and they told him NO OBC is ever given back so he will mail me a check. so glad i asked. people must be furious when they find out they lost OBC!

im kinda shocked you cannot use OBC in retail places:

The following exclusions apply: Tobacco, souvenir glasses, ice cream menu, retail items, minibar, room service, promotions and signature venues (Venchi 1878 establishments, Lavazza Coffee Shops, Jean Philippe Chocolate, Coffee, Crepes & Gelato, Starship Club, Hola! Tacos & Cantina), regardless of beverage price. 

i wrote to TA and he said :

I spoke with MSC and yes the OBC would be Nonrefundable so if you prefer a rebate I can do that.

whew id be mad as heck if i lost 500. turns out msc gave me 100 as well so that will go toward tips

On 9/20/2023 at 7:26 PM, Best Cat Mom said:

We use up "extra" OBC by turning it into cash in the casino. Choose a slot machine, follow the instructions to load money from your cruise card to the slot machine, then cash out. Take the paper receipt from the cash out to the cashier and they will give you cash. Spend the cash however you wish. 🙂

is there a fee for this? and do you have to play through at all? ive read on some lines if you load  your machine you have to play through some amount to get it to print out and in some cases people have gotten locked out from drawing down any money for their cruise

i always check invoices and glad i did. he booked us on the other cruise we asked for pricing for. wrote back to get it corrected and he called and got it changed. no clue if fees etc on his end but not my problem. my email and VM was clear on the cabin and date. it also explains why he saw another open cabin than i did. was looking at the wrong one lol.

we got 500 obc from him but since booze and internet is included, unsure what ill spent it on besides a model ship. probly will just let it be refunded to my CC. i hope that do that and dont make you get cash the last night

On 6/15/2023 at 11:05 AM, ravensrockdc said:

Excellent, I board Mera in a couple of weeks in 16002 - Was worried about the lounge.. Thanks

 would love an update of your experience in 02 as i just booked it. looking forward to no noise and yet quick lounge access. seems like a premium room to me!