Holiday Sale till Dec 27..read fine print NONREFUNDABLE/NONTRANSFERABLE deposits!

[remydiva]

Got an email today from Princess about a holiday sale Dec 21-27 for past passengers. There were a couple that looked interesting and since I have two FCC sitting in my file, I thought I might use one or both to book a couple of cruises for 2012.

 

Imagine my horror/surprise when I clicked on the opening page of the email and found, in somewhat smaller print than the big splashy HOLIDAY SALE this disclaimer:

 

Reservations must be made and deposited between December 21 12:01am - December 27 11:59pm PST, 2011. Deposits made under this promotion are non-refundable and non-transferable. :eek:

 

Yikes! I'm not putting down a non refundable/non transferable deposit...never have, never will.

 

I know there is a thought that people hog reservations and then cancel freeing up space that was unavailable before the full payment cut off. But who of us can predict what our life will be like one full year from now? I can't.

 

Princess...whats up?:confused:

Edited December 21, 2011 by remydiva

[toberman]

That's pretty normal - happens all the time with their "sales".

[shepp]

This has, I've noticed, been the case with other "special sales," too. Since the bonus OBCs don't outweigh losing even a couple of hundred bucks in FCCs, seems pretty Scroogelike. On the other hand, if you're the sort who insures a trip the minute you first book, Princess Platinum Protection would give you all your FFC or other deposit back...at a price.

Edited December 21, 2011 by shepp

[paul929207]

And it just reminds you that you must read everything before handing over your money

[Coral]

It seems like every other week Princess is having one of these sales. I know it is annoying to people and to travel agents.

[lovevacadays]

It does seem like Princess is running more of this type of promotion. Fortunately, I'm still getting promos where the deposit is refundable. Hopefully, that will stay the case.

[windsor26]

If you used FCC letters do they not ensure that the deposits are refundable This is the good perk that Australians and UK passengers have extra which is not normal for us

[tiyana4]

Given the success of Carnival's Early Saver program, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if Carnival Corporation decides to implement some form of this program across all their lines. It would offer great low rates and/or OBC for the cruiser who books early and a locked in deposit for Princess.

[Pam in CA]

That's pretty normal - happens all the time with their "sales".

This is a "flash" sale which sometimes happens.

[Astro Flyer]

If you used FCC letters do they not ensure that the deposits are refundable

My exerience has been that technically FCCs are non-refundable with such sales although my TA was able to get that waived because I booked another cruise & was able to reuse a non-refundable FCC deposit.

[rdsqrl]

Well, since (as usual), it doesn't apply to solo fares, it's a moot point. I checked the couple cruises I'm considering for next summer and for a single, OCV rates are actually a little higher than they were before this sale and, naturally, the balcony-for-the-price-of-oceanview is not applicable. But I, too, would be very, very wary of booking anything that's got a non-ref deposit. As in, the cruise would have to be leaving in 48 hours and I would have to be already packed. Then, I might consider it . . .

[Richie2pies]

I have never taken insurance and have never missed a cruise. (18) Even so, I would never book a cruise that was non-refundable. You never know.

[mollyanne]

My exerience has been that technically FCCs are non-refundable with such sales although my TA was able to get that waived because I booked another cruise & was able to reuse a non-refundable FCC deposit.

 

Ditto.

[Shogun]

Hi All

 

Nothing wrong with the conditions, they have made them clear so

 

we have a choice to accept or not,

 

just think they could impose the old set of UK rules to your bookings

 

yours Shogun

[hansi]

Got an email today from Princess about a holiday sale Dec 21-27 for past passengers. There were a couple that looked interesting and since I have two FCC sitting in my file, I thought I might use one or both to book a couple of cruises for 2012.

 

Imagine my horror/surprise when I clicked on the opening page of the email and found, in somewhat smaller print than the big splashy HOLIDAY SALE this disclaimer:

 

Reservations must be made and deposited between December 21 12:01am - December 27 11:59pm PST, 2011. Deposits made under this promotion are non-refundable and non-transferable. :eek:

 

Yikes! I'm not putting down a non refundable/non transferable deposit...never have, never will.

 

I know there is a thought that people hog reservations and then cancel freeing up space that was unavailable before the full payment cut off. But who of us can predict what our life will be like one full year from now? I can't.

 

Princess...whats up?:confused:

 

If you lived in the UK and paid a deposit which is non refundable in all cases, so count yourself lucky in that respect.

[A Sixth?]

I see that they've offering cabin credits too on this sale. Is it per person?

[remydiva]

I see that they've offering cabin credits too on this sale. Is it per person?

 

yes...it is pp

[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

If you lived in the UK and paid a deposit which is non refundable in all cases, so count yourself lucky in that respect.

 

I always thought that was the case for UK passengers, but if you look at para 32 of the Princess booking conditions in their 2012/2013 exotics brochure, it states 'cancelling 180 days or more before cruise, no cancellation charge'. So, it appears to be possible to book a cruise almost 2yrs in advance and if the price drops, you could cancel at no cost then re-book at the cheaper price.

[critterchick]

What does "nontransferable" mean? Not transferable to another person, not transferable to another sailing or both?

 

The price for our Sapphire booking is $500 less under the promotion, so I'm thinking that it's a good gamble for us.

[kath00]

This is from 2011... FYI.

[critterchick]

This is from 2011... FYI.

 

So it is, but there's another similar promo running now.

Edited December 1, 2013 by critterchick

[Astro Flyer]

What does "nontransferable" mean? Not transferable to another person, not transferable to another sailing or both?

 

The price for our Sapphire booking is $500 less under the promotion, so I'm thinking that it's a good gamble for us.

 

This is from 2011... FYI.

It's been awhile since I booked a sale promotion price but based on this post it's still a restriction for some sale promotions.

 

It's not transferable to anyone else nor to another cruise...your deposit will be lost if canceling & is not transferable. I use a $100 FCC deposit so sometimes losing that & the OBC it gives me may be cost effective.

 

A couple of years ago when the NR-NT deposit was added to sales promos I had them waive the NT restriction but only one time. I never got them to give me future price reductions but some were able to get them to waive the restriction to get a lower price. They did give us a better cabin costing the same as what we paid in lieu of another price reduction but would not lower the price after booking our cabin.

 

This was my experiences however check to see if anything has changed. You can decide if the $500 price restriction with the NR-NT restrictions is best for you. Future price reductions are based on availability & hope that your 'crystalball' lets you know what is best for you. I'd probably gamble on the price reduction particularly if it was near final payment when future price reductions generally are not possible & only for new bookings.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Astro Flyer

[critterchick]

It's been awhile since I booked a sale promotion price but based on this post it's still a restriction for some sale promotions.

 

It's not transferable to anyone else nor to another cruise...your deposit will be lost if canceling & is not transferable. I use a $100 FCC deposit so sometimes losing that & the OBC it gives me may be cost effective.

 

A couple of years ago when the NR-NT deposit was added to sales promos I had them waive the NT restriction but only one time. I never got them to give me future price reductions but some were able to get them to waive the restriction to get a lower price. They did give us a better cabin costing the same as what we paid in lieu of another price reduction but would not lower the price after booking our cabin.

 

This was my experiences however check to see if anything has changed. You can decide if the $500 price restriction with the NR-NT restrictions is best for you. Future price reductions are based on availability & hope that your 'crystalball' lets you know what is best for you. I'd probably gamble on the price reduction particularly if it was near final payment when future price reductions generally are not possible & only for new bookings.

 

Thanks you. As it turns out, there's another promotion that is refundable for the same price as the non-refundable one, so we went with that.:)

[Astro Flyer]

Thanks you. As it turns out, there's another promotion that is refundable for the same price as the non-refundable one, so we went with that.:)

That's great that you were able to find the best option for you. :)

[beg3yrs]

This is from 2011... FYI.

 

OMG, thank you! I was reading on and wondering how the heck people were getting notices of a Flash Sale a month in advance ... and I wasn't ... :o