OBC - Paid by Travel Agent

[jimd909]

I have a cruise coming up and my travel agent purchased $400.00 of OBC.  They purchased it yesterday but it's not showing up for me to use to purchase online at Carnival.com

 

Does anyone know if you can use this type of OBC beforehand or do I have to wait to get on the ship?  I called Carnival and they were no help since I'm working with someone else and not them directly.

 

 

[JT1962]

Any OBC provided by my travel agent in the past has not been posted to my account until a day or two after I boarded. I believe you can only use Carnival offered OBC prior to boarding.

[BoozinCroozin]

Mine has posted the day after Embarkation in my experience.

[staceyglow]

What is the advantage to buying OBC through the TA?  Does the TA get a commission on it?

[klfrodo]

1 minute ago, staceyglow said:

What is the advantage to buying OBC through the TA?  Does the TA get a commission on it?

I don't believe you can buy OBC from a TA.

Most TA's will buy or give you OBC as a Thank You for giving them your business.

 

With Carnival, YOU can go online and purchase "Cruise Cash" which acts like OBC but it's non-refundable.

[Joe817]

42 minutes ago, JT1962 said:

Any OBC provided by my travel agent in the past has not been posted to my account until a day or two after I boarded. I believe you can only use Carnival offered OBC prior to boarding.

Exact same thing here. Didn't show up until after I boarded. And I agree. Only Carnival OBC shows up prior to boarding.

[Cruisesfun65]

Your agent probably bought you Cruise Cash, not actual OBC. So you will find that in your account onboard and you can't spend it pre-cruise.

[ladysail2]

55 minutes ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

Your agent probably bought you Cruise Cash, not actual OBC. So you will find that in your account onboard and you can't spend it pre-cruise.

Is the ‘gift’ whether OBC or Cruise Cash, refundable back to the cruiser?

[Joe817]

1 hour ago, ladysail2 said:

Is the ‘gift’ whether OBC or Cruise Cash, refundable back to the cruiser?

No, sorry. It's either "use it or lose it".  But I've never had that problem. 

[ladysail2]

1 minute ago, Joe817 said:

No, sorry. It's either "use it or lose it".  But I've never had that problem. 

Thank you for that information. I’m glad I asked. On Royal, any cash gift or OBC given to the cruiser is refundable if not used.  Only Royal Caribbean OBC is non-refundable.

[Joe817]

15 minutes ago, ladysail2 said:

Thank you for that information. I’m glad I asked. On Royal, any cash gift or OBC given to the cruiser is refundable if not used.  Only Royal Caribbean OBC is non-refundable.

Not to worry. Free OBC, what ever the source is readily spendable for anything you want to purchase on board the ship. And I mean anything and everything. Happy sailing....and spending! 

[Saint Greg]

Lately mine has been coming as cruise cash with a little gift note on embarkation day.

[ladysail2]

24 minutes ago, Joe817 said:

Not to worry. Free OBC, what ever the source is readily spendable for anything you want to purchase on board the ship. And I mean anything and everything. Happy sailing....and spending! 

Thank you. I do like shopping! 😁

[ladysail2]

8 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

Lately mine has been coming as cruise cash with a little gift note on embarkation day.

Thanks for the notice….I’ll be on the lookout! 

[CruizinSusan70]

8 hours ago, ladysail2 said:

Is the ‘gift’ whether OBC or Cruise Cash, refundable back to the cruiser?

 

6 hours ago, Joe817 said:

No, sorry. It's either "use it or lose it".  But I've never had that problem. 

 

6 hours ago, ladysail2 said:

Thank you for that information. I’m glad I asked. On Royal, any cash gift or OBC given to the cruiser is refundable if not used.  Only Royal Caribbean OBC is non-refundable.

If the TA bought Cruise Cash, which I doubt, then it's use it or lose it.  If it's OBC, then it is refundable and can be gotten as cash on the last day.

[Cruisesfun65]

1 hour ago, CruizinSusan70 said:

 

 

If the TA bought Cruise Cash, which I doubt, then it's use it or lose it.  If it's OBC, then it is refundable and can be gotten as cash on the last day.

 

Why do you doubt that? It's done all the time.

Instead of wine or other gifts, lots of travel advisors send a token of appreciation in the form of Cruise Cash.

[ontheweb]

One, I believe OBC provided by a TA is refundable.

 

Two, cruise lines use up the non-refundable OBC before they start using refundable OBC.

 

Examples of non-refundable OBC are shareholder OBC and military OBC.

[jimd909]

Thanks everyone for the info.

[jimd909]

Can this OBC or cruise cash from my TA be used in the casino?

[ladysail2]

9 minutes ago, jimd909 said:

Can this OBC or cruise cash from my TA be used in the casino?

I believe it can be transferred from your onboard account to your Casino account and used to play the machines. 

[klfrodo]

29 minutes ago, jimd909 said:

Can this OBC or cruise cash from my TA be used in the casino?

You have no choice as to where you can or cannot use it.

 

It's just a credit posted to your account. Whatever you charge to your account is subtracted from the credit until the credit is all gone.

[CruizinSusan70]

9 hours ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

 

Why do you doubt that? It's done all the time.

Instead of wine or other gifts, lots of travel advisors send a token of appreciation in the form of Cruise Cash.

Cruise cash is a money grab by Carnival.  If a TA decides to gift a client OBC instead of a discount on the booking, why would they give that client OBC on all of the other cruise lines and then give Cruise Cash on Carnival?   OBC given by a TA is refundable, whereas Cruise Cash is not.  If the TA gives Cruise Cash, it lessens the gift since the client has to spend it. If the TA gives OBC, it is refundable.   If the client has prepaid their gratuities and is frugal, then maybe they would not spend anything else and would be forced to spend the cruise cash instead of getting a cash refund from the refundable OBC.