booked onboard but tied to original travel agent

[CaribNomad]

We booked a future cruise onboard Anthem last year, only to find a much cheaper rate online recently (cheaper by around £700). The problem is, the booking we made onboard was seemingly automatically transferred to the original agent without our knowledge. Despite the significant cost difference, the original agent now  refuses to honour the online rate, and Royal Caribbean say it's not possible to release us from the initial agent. 

 

We're considering canceling and rebooking with the cheaper agent, but the snag is that the deposit we paid onboard would be held by the original agent, even though we didn't actively choose them or deal with them in any way for this cruise booking (we paid onboard).

 

Has anyone faced a similar situation, and do you have any advice on navigating this? Is there another way we can have the deposit we paid onboard released and transferred to the new, cheaper agent? Appreciate your insights!

[swoopy2110]

Regardless of if it was transferred to the original agent or not, UK T&C don't allow price adjustments once the booking is made (although I thought you were allowed 1 price adjustment for an onboard booking. Maybe someone else knows).

 

You could look to 'upgrade' to the next cabin class up if that's cheaper than the rate you've currently got as they do allow that.

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, CaribNomad said:

Has anyone faced a similar situation, and do you have any advice on navigating this?

Assuming you paid the lower on board deposit, call it a lesson learned cost - on board bookings default to being assigned to previous agent. Typically the agent doesn’t get the money, RCI does. 
 

Cancel and rebook. If you want price drops, book with a reputable US agent. 

[Scottdalfonso]

Yep, if you booked a cruise with a TA then use Nextcruise, it goes right to them automatically. 

[loudbmw]

When doing an open booking on board, you can tell the NextCruise desk that you don’t want your future cruise to go to your current agent. They will make you fill out a form leaving the booking unassigned.

 

I do that when I plan to use casino credit on the future cruise as my T/A doesn’t get much commission.

[Ocean Boy]

Why does the cruise line have the right to form an agent relationship with the customer, who did not authorize it, on a new booking? The agent didn't even lift a finger to create the booking.

[FionaMG]

I think it should be standard procedure for Next Cruise agents to alert guests to this aspect of the programme and ask them whether they want their booking assigned to the travel agent or not. Not everyone is aware of this, as the OP's example demonstrates.

[njkruzer]

18 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

I think it should be standard procedure for Next Cruise agents to alert guests to this aspect of the programme and ask them whether they want their booking assigned to the travel agent or not. Not everyone is aware of this, as the OP's example demonstrates.

I think Nextcruise has always asked me when making a booking onboard, but in a quick aside.  You can easily miss the comment. 

[FionaMG]

Just now, njkruzer said:

I think Nextcruise has always asked me when making a booking onboard, but in a quick aside.  You can easily miss the comment. 

 

I've had mixed experiences; sometimes they've asked and sometimes they haven't but I already knew about it so it wasn't an issue. I agree with you that it could easily be missed.

[Scottdalfonso]

1 hour ago, FionaMG said:

 

I've had mixed experiences; sometimes they've asked and sometimes they haven't but I already knew about it so it wasn't an issue. I agree with you that it could easily be missed.

And the fact that you don't even need to go to the NC office anymore and can just click a box on your app and be done, so you don't even have to talk to anyone if you don't want to. So that's even less chance for you to realize what's happening with the booking

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

2 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Why does the cruise line have the right to form an agent relationship with the customer, who did not authorize it, on a new booking? The agent didn't even lift a finger to create the booking.

 

The assumption is if you booked the current cruise through an agent you have already formed a relationship with that agent - not just used them to get in on a better rate.

[BecciBoo]

We used to have this problem a few times which is why I don't use an agent anymore.  .  If you use an agent, then the next cruise is automatically connected onboard unless you expressly tell them you do not want that. They had a form they sent me to transfer from the agent back to RCCL Don't know if that is the case now. But it was never a problem, just a hassle.  So now I'm my own agent.  LOL

[Tree_skier]

3 hours ago, FionaMG said:

I think it should be standard procedure for Next Cruise agents to alert guests to this aspect of the programme and ask them whether they want their booking assigned to the travel agent or not. Not everyone is aware of this, as the OP's example demonstrates.

 

3 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Why does the cruise line have the right to form an agent relationship with the customer, who did not authorize it, on a new booking? The agent didn't even lift a finger to create the booking.

The only time I have ever booked onboard the Next Cruise agent advised me that the booking was going to the agency I had booked with.  I was good with it so there was no problem. However, I think you are right it should be standard procedure for them to advise you that the booking is being handed off to that agency.

[Ocean Boy]

1 hour ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

The assumption is if you booked the current cruise through an agent you have already formed a relationship with that agent - not just used them to get in on a better rate.

There should be no assumption that a new booking is going to the same place as the last. It should be an active process not a passive default. What right does RCI have to cause this binding relationship without consent?

[steveru621]

Next Cruise is supposed to ask you if you want your booking transferred to the agent on file.

[soremekun]

I had to tell the Next Cruise agent I do not want my certificates associated with my current travel agent.  The rep asked me to sign a form and that removed the association.

[nelblu]

7 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Assuming you paid the lower on board deposit, call it a lesson learned cost - on board bookings default to being assigned to previous agent. Typically the agent doesn’t get the money, RCI does. 
 

Cancel and rebook. If you want price drops, book with a reputable US agent. 

$200 penalty vs a saving of $700 pounds--no brainer.🤣

[earn]

All UK bookings made on board are transferable to another cruise until final payment.  Just transfer this one to something in the future and book the one you have with the new TA.  That should be easy, unless your booking is with CN.   I have only ever made one booking with the large UK cruise specialist, CN.  I bought a future cruise on the ship and was happy for it to be associated with them.  Never again!  When I went to transfer it at the end of last year they said I couldn’t and wanted to charge me hundreds of pounds more.  I contacted Royal who told me I should be able to change the booking.  Got that in writing and it turned out the extra was CN fee for making the change.  It took weeks but eventually they changed the fee to £50.  In contrast, my own TA changed one for me in a 5 min phone call, while I was in Hong Kong a couple of weeks ago.  I’ll never use CN again.