Has anyone else had a shipboard credit wiped out after leaving and charged to them?

[Cruiser Davey]

I am a Diamond level member with many sailings on Royal Caribbean and had a most disturbing experience on our last sailing, Vision of the Seas. We were given a marketing piece about booking our next cruise while onboard that offered cruise credit on THIS cruise AND the future cruise for booking while onboard. “Get up to $500 INSTANT Credit on your SeaPass to spend now! Plus, get an additional $300 Onboard Credit on your booked suite!”, signed by the Cruise Sales Manager.

 

It was such a good deal we decided to act on it, and booked a future cruise. After a couple days the $300 cruise credit we had been promised showed up on our folio. It was on the "final " folio when we debarked. But when our charges came through we had not only the "final" folio charge but also a $300 charge, plus a few bucks for what turned out to be a late minibar charge.

 

RCCL is claiming there is no valid offer of both sailings cruise credits (despite the written marketing piece that says otherwise). I kept a copy of the offer (attached), and am now glad I did. RCCL is claiming the people on ship made a mistake, that it's an isolated incident, and not happening to others.

 

Has anyone else had a shipboard credit wiped out after leaving the ship, and then charged to them?

Royal Caribbean future sailing shipboard credit document.pdf

[Paul65]

It's possible that someone did make a mistake in the flyer, as I have seen them offer OBC to use now OR save it for you booked sailing. Perhaps they weren't supposed to offer both. But, since they did, and you booked based on that premise, hopefully they'll honor it for you.

 

I haven't heard of this happening to others, but let us know how it works out.

[Clarea]

Ellen or Ken can confirm, but I thought the most recent BOGO promo offered OBC too. In other words, the OP could have received OBC from booking on board (sounds like this was taken instantly) and OBC from the BOGO promo too. As far as I know, these are the only Royal OBCs that can be combined.

 

Note that the OBC from the BOGO promo would not be combinable with a C&A balcony discount.

[nolesrule]

There was an "up to $300 OBC" promo going on recently, although I do not see it now. But that OBC applies on the cruise you booked. It's not an instant OBC applied to the current cruise.

[setsail]

Why would the future OBC,300, for the future suite booked, appear on your present folio?

[molly361]

Ellen or Ken can confirm, but I thought the most recent BOGO promo offered OBC too. In other words, the OP could have received OBC from booking on board (sounds like this was taken instantly) and OBC from the BOGO promo too. As far as I know, these are the only Royal OBCs that can be combined.

 

Note that the OBC from the BOGO promo would not be combinable with a C&A balcony discount.

 

Yes the offer that ended yesterday included up to $300 shipboard credit on a cruise.

 

OP is there any credit showing up on your future cruise??

Edited February 16, 2016 by molly361

[bxl121]

It seem like they are doing this to all their "promotions". Get you to buy and then not honoring it even if you have the print out.

[Clarea]

Yes the offer that ended yesterday included up to $300 shipboard credit on a cruise.

 

OP is there any credit showing up on your future cruise??

It could be that the OP booked a balcony, got a C&A discount, and that obliterated the BOGO OBC.

[Cruiser Davey]

RCCL offered shipboard credit on the current cruise AND on the future cruise for booking while onboard (which is why we did so). Here is what the RCCL marketing piece said: “Get up to $500 INSTANT Credit on your SeaPass to spend now! Plus, get an additional $300 Onboard Credit on your booked suite!”.

 

The shipboard credit for the current cruise did show up on my folio until I left the ship, and was then wiped out by RCCL and post dated the shipboard credit reversal back to the date it was granted, resulting in a second billing of $300+ to my credit card on file.

 

Anyone else out there who had this happen to them too?

[Clarea]

I have not had this happen to us. From what I've read here, it seems that you have a legitimate gripe. I agree that you should have been able to get both an instant onboard credit and a future onboard credit, assuming that the future cruise was not receiving a C&A discount. I would call Corporate Guest Relations at (800) 256-6649 and see if they can help.

Edited February 16, 2016 by clarea

[Paul65]

RCCL offered shipboard credit on the current cruise AND on the future cruise for booking while onboard (which is why we did so). Here is what the RCCL marketing piece said: “Get up to $500 INSTANT Credit on your SeaPass to spend now! Plus, get an additional $300 Onboard Credit on your booked suite!”.

 

The "marketing piece" did not really specify whether the $300 OBC on your booked suite was specifically tied to the onboard booking, or if it was part of a current booking promotion.

 

Either way, they shouldn't have reversed your instant credit on the current cruise, so just work on getting them to fix that for you. You already asked if anyone else has had this happen, and so far, no one else seems to be reporting it.

[setsail]

OP, do you also have a copy of the terms and conditions for this offer, maybe it's on the back of what you posted?

 

 

Every offer from rci has t/c tied to it

Edited February 16, 2016 by setsail

[DiamondSuiteCruiser]

I am a Diamond level member with many sailings on Royal Caribbean and had a most disturbing experience on our last sailing, Vision of the Seas. We were given a marketing piece about booking our next cruise while onboard that offered cruise credit on THIS cruise AND the future cruise for booking while onboard. “Get up to $500 INSTANT Credit on your SeaPass to spend now! Plus, get an additional $300 Onboard Credit on your booked suite!”, signed by the Cruise Sales Manager.

 

It was such a good deal we decided to act on it, and booked a future cruise. After a couple days the $300 cruise credit we had been promised showed up on our folio. It was on the "final " folio when we debarked. But when our charges came through we had not only the "final" folio charge but also a $300 charge, plus a few bucks for what turned out to be a late minibar charge.

 

RCCL is claiming there is no valid offer of both sailings cruise credits (despite the written marketing piece that says otherwise). I kept a copy of the offer (attached), and am now glad I did. RCCL is claiming the people on ship made a mistake, that it's an isolated incident, and not happening to others.

 

Has anyone else had a shipboard credit wiped out after leaving the ship, and then charged to them?

 

Since they said it was not a valid offer and that it is an isolated incident, but you have the flyer, did they say they would honor it? If not I would ask to speak to a supervisor and tell him or her to cancel the future cruise due to the bate and switch and the dishonest advertising.

[cruisenfever]

To the OP, may I suggest that you send an email to the person I've added below. Include your booking number and copies of all your documentation that you received on the ship. Also include a number that you can be reached at.

 

Aurora "Laly" Yera-Rodriguez

Director, Guest Relations & Shared Services

Azamara Club Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, & Royal Caribbean International

954-628-931 ext. 19313

ayera-rodriguez@rccl.com

[cymru cruiser]

When we were on Explorer in July we booked for Harmony this October. We received 30% discount off our Harmony balcony cost. We also received $100 obc on our Explorer cruise and $100 obc added to our Harmony cruise.

 

The explorer $100 showed on our on board account the same day and our invoice shows our $100 for Harmony.

 

So we had no issues. Good luck getting it sorted.

 

P.S I too kept the flyer just in case.

[critterchick]

We booked a couple of cruises while we were on Oasis in January. There were two promotions in place at the time:

 

1. Up to $500 in instant OBC (which can be deferred to the sailing actually booked, although some of the salespeople won't tell you that). We were eligible for $200, and we deferred it to the future cruise.

 

2. BOGOHO that included $300 OBC (it was briefly $350 during a 100 hour sale) for certain categories.

 

The two are unrelated to one another - anybody could get OBC #2, but OBC #1 was (and is) limited to onboard bookings. We had $550 of OBC for each sailing, but had to give up our C&A balcony discount, which would have been $250, in exchange for OBC #2.

 

So if the OP got both the C&A discount AND the $300, then RCI was right to remove one of them, but should have given him/her the option of which to remove - I imagine that pretty much everybody would give up the C&A discount.

 

OP, I would call RCI and try again. Email the person that Patti (cruisenfever) suggested. Good luck and please keep us posted.