Beware: New rci suite refund policy worse than airlines

[The Admiral]

Well it's been a while since I've posted here but always enjoy the site and after my latest run in with RCI's new suite cancellation policy I have one word of advice: DONT BOOK A SUITE ON RCI AS LONG AS THEIR NEW POLICY REMAINS IN EFFECT OR YOU ARE THEIR PRISONER!!!

 

Here's the story the new RCI suite policy, the way it was explained to me while on board the Harmony was that after 30 days your $750 suite booking deposit is non refundable if you cancel or you are subjected to hefty fees if you decide to change the category. I completely understand RCI wants to protect from losses of passengers holding a suite only to cancel it later last minute and they can't sell it or have to sell it at a deep discount. I get that and do not have a problem with that, however What they don't tell you is that they will hold you prisoner from the moment you book a suite no matter what you do.

 

I booked while onboard the harmony of the seas a suite and was told that as long as I cancelled or made a catergory change within 30 days of booking I would be ok and could get a refund but after the 30 days is when the new policy kicked in and I would loose the $750 deposit. So to my surprise today I tried to cancel my reservation almost a year 320+ days before the cruise and well before the 30 day since my booking on board and they do not want to refund the $750 deposit.

 

This is is bad if not worse than what airlines do in my opinion. I can understand after that 30 days you're locked in but I was basically told the wrong thing by the on board booking agent and now have to find a way to make that cruise or loose $750!!!! I even asked if they could transfer the $750 to another active booking I have with RCI and they said no! This is unreasonable and if they don't fix this glitch in their policy they will loose a long time loyal RCI family. I don't like airlines because they treat passengers like crap and now RCI is taking a page from what looks like the airline playbook. I'm still fighting this with RCI hoping they will honor what the on board agent represented to me but it's a giant mess.

 

Question: So with this new policy why on earth would anyone book suites anymore with RCI? If they implement this new policy in such an unreasonable way that no matter what you don't get any sort of grace period to change the booking or category and get a refund? my advice NEVER BOOK A SUITE ON RCI until they modify the policy to be more reasonable while meeting their goal of a more restrictive suite refund policy. book a cheap cabin that you can change 20 times a day every day if you want or cancel up until the 90 day per sailing deadline with no monetary penalty.

 

I love RCI but they didn't think this one through they should have a more restrictive suite policy that's fine -but it's not unreasonable for there to be a 30 no penalty cancellation period so long as it's still more than 90 days prior to sailing- he'll make it 200 days before sailing if you want RCI. Please RCI fix this

[Ourusualbeach]

This only applies to suites booked on board as part of the next cruise program. If you book paying the full deposit then it is fully refundable up until final paymemt date.

[Debinnova]

Wow, is this correct? I had no idea and just booked a Grand Suite for Sept 2018 - 11 nighter. So, if I cancel or change to a different cruise, I won't get my full deposit back? Anything can happen in 18 months.

 

Can someone link to this new policy so I can get specifics? I booked with rep over the phone - shouldn't they have mentioned this to me?

 

 

 

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[Debinnova]

Oh, good. We posted at the same time. I thought I could lose $900. I feel better now. Lol

 

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[Ourusualbeach]

Wow, is this correct? I had no idea and just booked a Grand Suite for Sept 2018 - 11 nighter. So, if I cancel or change to a different cruise, I won't get my full deposit back? Anything can happen in 18 months.

 

Can someone link to this new policy so I can get specifics? I booked with rep over the phone - shouldn't they have mentioned this to me?

 

 

 

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Only applies to suites booked on board.

 

Text courtesy of Matt at the blog site,

 

Royal Caribbean is introducing a nonrefundable deposit and a change fee for all Grand Suites and above booked through the cruise line's onboard booking program, known as the NextCruise program.

WIth the change, suite guests who reserve their future cruise while onboard will now require a full, nonrefundable deposit. Assuming these guests commit to the original selection and do not adjust their ship or sail date in the future, there is no impact imposed by this new policy adjustment. Should guests opt to alter their cruise selection in the future, a change fee of $100 per guest will be incurred. All Suite cancellations are now subject to a nonrefundable fee in the amount of the deposit.

Here is a breakdown of the changes:

• For Guests whose NextCruise Booking is for a Grand Suite stateroom or higher, changes made during the first thirty (30) days after the NextCruise Booking was made shall not be subject to a Change Fee but will remain nonrefundable. After the expiration of that thirty day period, a Change Fee (currently $100 per person per change but subject to adjustment without notice) shall apply.
  
• For Guests who chose the Instant Onboard Credit offer for their NextCruise Booking (regardless of the stateroom category booked), the deposit is nonrefundable for all staterooms. Downgrades to your NextCruise booking will result in an additional charge of between $50 to $500 on your booking and in the loss of your special promotional offer.
  
• Downgrades include booking a shorter duration cruise or booking a lower class of staterooms. Grand Suite Staterooms and above bookings require full deposit and are only eligible for Future Onboard Credit. For Guests who choose the Future Onboard Credit offer and later Downgrade their NEXTCRUISE BOOKING, the amount of that future onboard credit shall be reduced.
  

The change is described as, "an effort to preserve our Suite inventory and to ensure that our committed Suite guests have abundant access to premium accommodations." The new change fee has been imposed to encourage solid business and to deter continual or late changes to the selected ship and sail date. During the first 30 days after creation, unlimited changes can be made without a change fee incurred. If a booking is cancelled within the 30 days, the deposit remains non-refundable.

If guests book a suite outside the NextCruise program, the deposit remains fully refundable until final payment. The benefit of booking onboard, however, is the advantage of the rich NextCruise Onboard Credit program, which will not apply if the reservation is not confirmed while onboard.

When asked if non-refundable deposits will become standard for Royal Caribbean, the cruise line's response via a statement was, "In recognition of the high demand onboard for our Suite inventory and the added value of the NextCruise onboard credit, non-refundable deposits are currently only applicable to onboard Suite bookings."

Any Suite bookings made prior to the policy change will not be affected by the change fees and non-refundable deposit policies.

[lucymorgan]

Won't you only be charged $100 per person for a change - which is often what the airlines charge with discounted tickets (sort of equivalent to next cruise bookings)? Unless you downgrade, where the OBC will be reduced to the amount applicable to the room you downgraded to? Which seems fair to me.

 

My understanding from the last cruise we booked onboard was that the amount of instant onboard credit applied to the current cruise was (approximately) equal to the deposit on the next cruise. So if you cancel, given that you have already received the amount of your deposit in OBC, you don't really lose anything. We took the instant onboard credit and we don't plan to cancel so we are in front. If we had to make a change, we would still be in front.

[gkbiiii]

I just don't see the reason to book on-board anymore!

[Paulxyz2004]

I just voted yes. Nothing unfair about this policy at all. It´s in line with most T&C´s internationally (read non North American) in place.

Despite them saying there are no plans to roll this further out beyond next cruise bookings, I think it´s testing the Waters and we are going to see it implemented in further Scenarios. It makes a lot of sense from a Business Point of view.

 

To the OP:

I´m sure you´ve been given the T&C´s in writing when making the deposit and have read them. It should be easy then to get this straightened out with RCI, as those written T&C´s are part of your signed contract. Of Course only written agreenents are part of the contract and nothing just discussed between you and the next cruise sales Person.

[MrYellowDuck]

This new policy will result in improved booking behaviours from those who make it harder than it should be for guests who want to make a booking for a cruise they actually plan to take.

[swoopy2110]

DONT BOOK A SUITE ON RCI AS LONG AS THEIR NEW POLICY REMAINS IN EFFECT OR YOU ARE THEIR PRISONER!!!

 

--

 

The rest of the world has to deal with being 'their prisoner' when they book a cruise as deposits are non-refundable on all cabin categories. I can only see this as a good thing as it will prevent people from sticking deposits down on multiple cruises they have no plans on taking

[STANMELB]

FYI---Recently had a price drop on a CLS for our 09/2017 cruise on the Oasis. This cruise was booked under the previous Next Cruise promotion. When they applied the lower price, they also reduced our OBC from $200 to $100. RCI said the reduction was due to this being our 2nd price drop for this cruise.

 

This never happened before, as we usually have 10 to 12 future Suites booked and have been able to take advantage of price drops without a penalty using our Next Cruise bookings.

 

After 10 days our Travel Agent was able to finally reinstate our $200 OBC. Their main office had to get involved with the main office of RCI to resolve this matter.

 

In the past we have had 20 Next Cruise booking for Suites which we never cancelled. However a few were changed to different ships or sail dates always at the same or higher Suite level.. We also have 7 additional booked for future cruises.

 

In the future we will continue to sail only with RCI. However, will we no longer use the new Next Cruise booking program.

[The Admiral]

1) I paid the full $750 deposit while on board as I was required to do by the agent so I got no reduced booking deposit benefit

 

2) I actually downgraded to a regular outside within 7 days so what I attempted to cancel yesterday was a non suite room before the 30 day Mark which in no way effects their suite inventory - so they are treating my outside cabin as a suite in terms of refund policy - sorry that's insane

[spookwife]

it was started because too many people were gaming the system, to get the better OBC or other perks. I have zero problem with this policy as implemented.

 

there is zero need to book while on board for anything other than additional OBC( factoring in suites never qualify for reduced deposits anyway) especially since many were taking the OBC for the current cruise. then downgrading afterward

 

if you cannot afford a suite based on the price you book it at, don't book it.

[njm5378]

I like the policy and wish they would extend it to all suite bookings. Far too many are booking suites on multiple cruises at the same time until they get their ducks in a row. We plan, then book. The idea that suites are gone from inventory withing a month of release, only to reappear in quantity near final payment date is ridiculous.

[Pat&Liz]

I agree with the policy, though I would keep fighting that 30 day rule. You should have that clearly in writing somewhere in the contract that you made. Keep trying resolutions to get your money back if you are within that 30 days change period (which I read as a change, rather than a cancellation!)

 

Here in the UK, the deposit for all cruises and all grades is non-refundable. It irritates me when people hold and cancel bookings right before full payment is due and get to walk about scott-free.

[Havingfun2010]

Guess I won't book a Grand suite or higher anymore, oh wait, I never do. This policy seems logical, and like all policy changes, it comes out, when too many people play with it. Suites are high dollar items, and they need them available to those willing to pay, so holding them for a year, and than changing your mind, locks the inventory up and causes less chances to find someone with large amounts of money to book on the last minute. Policy makes sense. But it does not affect most of us.

[Thisisgood]

Well it's been a while since I've posted here but always enjoy the site and after my latest run in with RCI's new suite cancellation policy I have one word of advice: DONT BOOK A SUITE ON RCI AS LONG AS THEIR NEW POLICY REMAINS IN EFFECT OR YOU ARE THEIR PRISONER!!!

 

Here's the story the new RCI suite policy, the way it was explained to me while on board the Harmony was that after 30 days your $750 suite booking deposit is non refundable if you cancel or you are subjected to hefty fees if you decide to change the category. I completely understand RCI wants to protect from losses of passengers holding a suite only to cancel it later last minute and they can't sell it or have to sell it at a deep discount. I get that and do not have a problem with that, however What they don't tell you is that they will hold you prisoner from the moment you book a suite no matter what you do.

 

I booked while onboard the harmony of the seas a suite and was told that as long as I cancelled or made a catergory change within 30 days of booking I would be ok and could get a refund but after the 30 days is when the new policy kicked in and I would loose the $750 deposit. So to my surprise today I tried to cancel my reservation almost a year 320+ days before the cruise and well before the 30 day since my booking on board and they do not want to refund the $750 deposit.

 

This is is bad if not worse than what airlines do in my opinion. I can understand after that 30 days you're locked in but I was basically told the wrong thing by the on board booking agent and now have to find a way to make that cruise or loose $750!!!! I even asked if they could transfer the $750 to another active booking I have with RCI and they said no! This is unreasonable and if they don't fix this glitch in their policy they will loose a long time loyal RCI family. I don't like airlines because they treat passengers like crap and now RCI is taking a page from what looks like the airline playbook. I'm still fighting this with RCI hoping they will honor what the on board agent represented to me but it's a giant mess.

 

Question: So with this new policy why on earth would anyone book suites anymore with RCI? If they implement this new policy in such an unreasonable way that no matter what you don't get any sort of grace period to change the booking or category and get a refund? my advice NEVER BOOK A SUITE ON RCI until they modify the policy to be more reasonable while meeting their goal of a more restrictive suite refund policy. book a cheap cabin that you can change 20 times a day every day if you want or cancel up until the 90 day per sailing deadline with no monetary penalty.

 

I love RCI but they didn't think this one through they should have a more restrictive suite policy that's fine -but it's not unreasonable for there to be a 30 no penalty cancellation period so long as it's still more than 90 days prior to sailing- he'll make it 200 days before sailing if you want RCI. Please RCI fix this

 

I feel your pain, but people who book on board to get OBC for a suite and then cancel are like chair hogs, IMHO. Sorry, not sorry.

[The Admiral]

Thanks all for the honest feedback

[waldorf]

Good news, we always struggle to get the suite we want probably due to cabin blockers who book loads of cruises with the intention of cancelling most of them. Perhaps we'll start to see passengers only booking onto cruises that they actually wish to sail on.

[molly361]

OP did you take the instant OBC ? Or were you getting the OBC on your future cruise?

[travelplus]

This only applies to suites booked on board as part of the next cruise program. If you book paying the full deposit then it is fully refundable up until final paymemt date.

 

To me its a fair policy . Royal Caribbean wants to protect heir assets and they tell you up front the policy. If you like it book it if not then don't book it. No one is forcing you to sail on Royal in a suite.

[A&L_Ont]

They lowered their deposit for full suites a few years ago, it might be the time to increase it raises it to the old amount again. It might reduce the number of people that book and then cancel on a consistent basis.

[Ery]

The policy is supposed to apply only if you received the instant obc. And that is because so many people book the suites get the instant obc on their cruise they are on and then change or cancel when you get home. Screwing up how it all works and before someone does the "RCCL can afford some list obc" do the math if a few thousand people book suites on board getting $500 on on board credit for their current trip. 26 ships, 52 weeks a year what ten suites per ship can add up to a significant cost that then gets passed on to the other cruisers that follow policy. So blame those who would book the cabins that got them the highest on board credit for their current trip, spent it then called and cancelled or dropped that suite to a $100 obc balcony room.

 

 

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[Scotty G]

it was started because too many people were gaming the system, to get the better OBC or other perks. I have zero problem with this policy as implemented.

 

there is zero need to book while on board for anything other than additional OBC( factoring in suites never qualify for reduced deposits anyway) especially since many were taking the OBC for the current cruise. then downgrading afterward

Just the tip of the iceberg!!

[IHateSnow!]

I was told the same thing on the Indy. Having a family of 6 and a husband with a work schedule that is not always firm, I have relied on the flexibility to make changes. I see no incentive to book on board at all.

 

 

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