Using AARP and Educator Credit...can I do both...on more than one cruise?

[AryMay]

I have been verified for the Educator Credit and the AARP credit. I have email confirmations for both dated several days before booking a B2B cruise in 2024. When I booked these two cruises last week, my PCC said there was a glitch in the system (which I've read about on other threads) and he couldn't add the credits. I've called a couple of times to check on the status but so far he hasn't returned my calls.

 

Has anyone been able to use both the Educator and AARP credits on a single cruise? Can I use these credits on more than one cruise? My husband has a casino discount on the cruises, but it isn't a huge amount. Certainly not the free offers that many get. 

 

Thanks for anyone who can share their experiences...just trying to figure out how these offers work. It is frustrating to see HAL make these offers but then have so much trouble taking advantage of them.

[bajae]

You can use them both on the same cruise but it will only apply to the first cruise with the b2b. Also, just know you may not get them with the casino rate. 

[2LoveBikes]

Question:  What is an Educator Credit?

                 What is an AARP credit?

 

Is it a Gift card or something else?

Thanks

[cruisetravlr]

These would be listed on HAL’s website under Cruise Deals. Scroll down to find the info. No gift card, just verification. Membership in AARP required for that OBC. Of course, gift cards can be purchased on AARP at 10% discount. Limit of 5/month.
Military, Healthcare, First Responder, Teacher And Educator Cruise Offer

Thank you for your dedication and service. Holland America Line offers military personnel (active, retired or veteran), healthcare workers, first responders, teachers and educators $100 onboard credit per stateroom.

Learn More

 

AARP Member Offer

As a valued AARP member, receive up to $200 onboard credit per stateroom on our next cruise. 

See Details

[iflyrc5]

On 9/12/2023 at 10:20 PM, bajae said:

You can use them both on the same cruise but it will only apply to the first cruise with the b2b. Also, just know you may not get them with the casino rate. 

If the B2B are on different booking numbers you will get both benefits on both cruises.  We have gotten both on our 3 upcoming B2B cruises that are on different booking numbers.

[valancy1]

On 9/12/2023 at 5:51 PM, AryMay said:

I have been verified for the Educator Credit and the AARP credit. I have email confirmations for both dated several days before booking a B2B cruise in 2024. When I booked these two cruises last week, my PCC said there was a glitch in the system (which I've read about on other threads) and he couldn't add the credits. I've called a couple of times to check on the status but so far he hasn't returned my calls.

 

Has anyone been able to use both the Educator and AARP credits on a single cruise? Can I use these credits on more than one cruise? My husband has a casino discount on the cruises, but it isn't a huge amount. Certainly not the free offers that many get. 

 

Thanks for anyone who can share their experiences...just trying to figure out how these offers work. It is frustrating to see HAL make these offers but then have so much trouble taking advantage of them.

Yes you can.  There are certain extra promotions that do not allow it (casino rates as example), so ask your PCC. But AARP and Education *generally*  can be put together.

[WanderingTheWorld]

@AryMay - Thank you for posting this topic! I did not know about the Educator Credit. I was able to sign up and have this applied to my upcoming cruise! 😁

[AryMay]

1 hour ago, WanderingTheWorld said:

@AryMay - Thank you for posting this topic! I did not know about the Educator Credit. I was able to sign up and have this applied to my upcoming cruise! 😁

 

That's great you were able to take advantage of the credit!

 

My PCC still says he is "checking daily" with a supervisor but so far has not been able to add either the AARP or the Educator credits to our cruises. I have forwarded my verification emails and he "promises" me that he will get the credits applied. 

 

If I do a mock booking the HAL website shows the AARP credit has been applied so not sure why it isn't happening for real! 

[WanderingTheWorld]

49 minutes ago, AryMay said:

 

That's great you were able to take advantage of the credit!

 

My PCC still says he is "checking daily" with a supervisor but so far has not been able to add either the AARP or the Educator credits to our cruises. I have forwarded my verification emails and he "promises" me that he will get the credits applied. 

 

If I do a mock booking the HAL website shows the AARP credit has been applied so not sure why it isn't happening for real! 

I'm sorry you're having issues adding the credit.

 

Within my HAL account, I clicked on Future Cruise Credits. From there, I could see the $100 listed under Onboard Credits.

 

I used the chat feature on the HAL site to contact customer service. They were able to see the credit in my account and then add it to my reservation.

 

I had booked the cruise through a TA, so I was able to reach out to them and have a new booking confirmation emailed to me. The credit is now listed on the booking confirmation.

 

I hope you are able to resolve this soon.

[Skicruiser55]

1 hour ago, WanderingTheWorld said:

I'm sorry you're having issues adding the credit.

 

Within my HAL account, I clicked on Future Cruise Credits. From there, I could see the $100 listed under Onboard Credits.

 

I used the chat feature on the HAL site to contact customer service. They were able to see the credit in my account and then add it to my reservation.

 

I had booked the cruise through a TA, so I was able to reach out to them and have a new booking confirmation emailed to me. The credit is now listed on the booking confirmation.

 

I hope you are able to resolve this soon.

What is the code that is listed for the AARP credit?

[valancy1]

6 hours ago, AryMay said:

 

That's great you were able to take advantage of the credit!

 

My PCC still says he is "checking daily" with a supervisor but so far has not been able to add either the AARP or the Educator credits to our cruises. I have forwarded my verification emails and he "promises" me that he will get the credits applied. 

 

If I do a mock booking the HAL website shows the AARP credit has been applied so not sure why it isn't happening for real! 

If the cruise was booked prior to the AARP offer, that should be the only reason* it would not be there.  This offer is combinable with all the appreciation on board credits. Those of you who are being told differently need to press your agent a bit because they are combinable with practically everything.  Here is what AARP does not combine with:

• Any Grand or World voyage

• Casino fares

• Association (AAA, American Express, etc.) rates

• Virtuoso benefits

• Book onboard/FCC offers

• Bingo/ charity offers

Note: there was someone earlier who said their agent told them it was one or the other (education or AARP). Unless the above criteria is part of the mix, then no, you should have both.

Having said that, though, 2 educators cannot each get an education appreciation bonus in the same booking. Same with first responders and military. One per stateroom.

 

[bajae]

14 hours ago, valancy1 said:

Having said that, though, 2 educators cannot each get an education appreciation bonus in the same booking. Same with first responders and military. One per stateroom.

 

To expand on this, one per type of bonus. I have both the education and military bonuses on my booking. 

[valancy1]

2 minutes ago, bajae said:

To expand on this, one per type of bonus. I have both the education and military bonuses on my booking. 

100%

[Skicruiser55]

Can you get the military & AARP & the VPM/VPN OBC?  

[WanderingTheWorld]

21 hours ago, Skicruiser55 said:

What is the code that is listed for the AARP credit?

I don't know. I only qualified for the Educator credit. Now that is has been applied, I am no longer able to see that code.

[Ken the cruiser]

We contacted our TA today regarding our combination Military and AARP promotion being applied to our new booking, and here’s what they said.

 

We have confirmed the addition of the benefits to your profile.

However only one benefit can be applied to a booking per person so one of you has AARP and the other Military for a total of $300 obc.

[valancy1]

Aarp can be applied once. Military can be applied once. But BOTH can be applied to the same person.

[valancy1]

59 minutes ago, WanderingTheWorld said:

I don't know. I only qualified for the Educator credit. Now that is has been applied, I am no longer able to see that code.

Educator code? Guests don't see it as a code, but an offer.  If an offer is applied,  you shouldn't see an "offer" or "code" once applied. It should just show on your booking as obc.

[Ken the cruiser]

5 hours ago, Skicruiser55 said:

Can you get the military & AARP & the VPM/VPN OBC?  

If I might ask, what does VPM and VPN stand for?

[Skicruiser55]

11 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

If I might ask, what does VPM and VPN stand for?

It was the code to use for the OBC offer we got when returned from our last cruise 

[Ken the cruiser]

On 9/15/2023 at 4:43 PM, WanderingTheWorld said:

I'm sorry you're having issues adding the credit.

 

Within my HAL account, I clicked on Future Cruise Credits. From there, I could see the $100 listed under Onboard Credits.

 

I used the chat feature on the HAL site to contact customer service. They were able to see the credit in my account and then add it to my reservation.

 

I had booked the cruise through a TA, so I was able to reach out to them and have a new booking confirmation emailed to me. The credit is now listed on the booking confirmation.

 

I hope you are able to resolve this soon.

If I might ask, where exactly is the Future Cruise Credits information listed within your HAL account? I can't seem to find in my HAL account, and I've been certified for both AARP and the Military promotions and have the $100 Military OBC posted under my name on our cruise confirmation and my DW has the $200 AARP OBC posted under her name.

 

Update: I just found it under MY PROFILE heading, although the CREDIT ID codes really don't reveal much as they were just some random numbers. Any idea what they're for. I'm guessing the Military and AARP certifications.

 

Edited September 17, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[valancy1]

The $50 is AARP because that is variable.  The $100 is military appreciation because that's always $100

[Ken the cruiser]

33 minutes ago, valancy1 said:

The $50 is AARP because that is variable.  The $100 is military appreciation because that's always $100

Thanks! That triggers another question if I may. We checked my DW’s HAL account tonight as well, and only the $100 (military) entry shows up in her Future Cruise Credits while both are listed in my HAL account. However, when we checked our 2025 cruise confirmation noted in post #16, my DW was given the AARP perk and I was given the Military perk.

Can a person, in this case my DW, only use the AARP perk once per year, or will the AARP FCC reappear in her account once the cruise it’s tied to is either canceled or completed?

 

Edited September 17, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[valancy1]

17 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Thanks! That triggers another question if I may. We checked my DW’s HAL account tonight as well, and only the $100 (military) entry shows up in her Future Cruise Credits. However, when we checked our 2025 cruise confirmation noted in post #16, my DW was given the AARP perk and I was given the Military perk.

Can a person, in this case my DW, only use the AARP perk once per year?

No.  You can use it for every cruise bit the AARP number has to be validated each year on the anniversary of your initial AARP validation if that makes sense

[Ken the cruiser]

1 minute ago, valancy1 said:

No.  You can use it for every cruise bit the AARP number has to be validated each year on the anniversary of your initial AARP validation if that makes sense

Cool. I was just curious why both are listed in my account and only the military is listed in her account. However, we just did a fake booking while logged onto her account, and both the military and the AARP promotions were applied. So all is cool, and that of course is the main thing. Thanks for helping us learn more about this AARP promotion! 😁