A Crystal Ball Question!!!

[paulh84]

46 minutes ago, JaneStarr said:

It seems that this could’ve changed back to fully refundable very very recently. The flyer attached to my Eclipse March 2, 2024 cruise documents shows it as refundable.

”If I do not pick a ship and sailing date within 1 year of booking, my deposit will be refunded.”

 

Please see attached.

Of course it’s always possible that Celebrity messed up and attached an incorrect Book Now/Book Later flyer to my eDocs. I just noticed that the copyright date at the bottom of the very fine print shows 2020. Ugh.
Jane

 

 

My edocs (issued prior to 1/1/24) said the same thing. However Future Cruise Desk and the form they have available there say it's nonrefundable after 1/1/24. 

 

1 minute ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Almost always I book aboard and then transfer to my agent and receive aprox. 9% additional OBC.   Of course I am not expecting my agent to combine with a  group sailing.   

 

Just curious if you find Group Rates lower than 9% -  When I first started sailing the group rates I received were in the 5% range.   I really haven't looked in years.

 

https://creative.rccl.com/Sales/Celebrity/General_Info/Flyers/2023.07_BookLater_TCC_Flex

 

Also matches what I received onboard. 

 

 

[Jim_Iain]

9 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

The current Book Later form that is on file in Celebrity's trade website is here.

 

Deposit for Book Later has to be Non Refundable.

After 6 months, you lose the booking onboard offer.

After 12 months, you lose your deposit.

 

The T&Cs change occurred in mid-Jan.

 

 

Thanks...  First they remove the larger OBC and Gratuities and now they make them non-refundable.    No Thanks..    Has anyone ever heard the expression?   SHOOT YOUR SELF IN THE FOOT. 

 

Just another reason for my defection from Celebrity after 23 years.

[paulh84]

15 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

 

@RealDeal  I am also interested in this answer.  My experiences mirrors Jim's. 

 

 

I just booked one at a 19% difference when you take into account drinks, gratuities and not paying a premium of $821 for the refundable deposit. It also has $490 in OBC that Celebrity wasn't offering. 

[mahdnc]

9 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Thanks...  First they remove the larger OBC and Gratuities and now they make them non-refundable.    No Thanks..    Has anyone ever heard the expression?   SHOOT YOUR SELF IN THE FOOT. 

 

Just another reason for my defection from Celebrity after 23 years.

 

Both feet have already been shot off.  Time to aim for the ankles.

[JaneStarr]

18 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Thanks...  First they remove the larger OBC and Gratuities and now they make them non-refundable.    No Thanks..    Has anyone ever heard the expression?   SHOOT YOUR SELF IN THE FOOT. 

 

Just another reason for my defection from Celebrity after 23 years.

More like shooting themselves in the head! We have only one booking left with Celebrity. It was made almost 2 years ago, so it includes gratuities and lots of OBC. 

Giving them a chance to show me if the value is still there. This could be our final Celebrity cruise, at least until the tides change.

We are Elite + and typically spring for a CS or RS. We are entering our prime traveling years.

IN ADDITION:

The Cruise Later non refundable deposit is a deal-breaker for us because I am unable to privately insure to Cover preexisting conditions since the the future cruise certificate date becomes your official booking date.  

Edited February 6 by JaneStarr
To add info

[RealDeal]

Here's a bit of an example...booked a cruise for March 2026, 6 days. Quote from usual agency (b/c they have no group rates) for balcony: $3111, w/perks, refundable deposit, 345 OBC, and that's for a V3. Quote from a different agency who apparently has a contracted rate: 2338, w/perks, refundable deposit, 125 OBC, for a V2! So, it makes no sense to go w/agency #1 and get my $150 or whatever OBC from booking onboard. I have used agency #1 for many years, but things seem to be changing. For my 3 most recent bookings I did not use them b/c they had NO group/contracted rates and couldn't tell me if they will at any point...and that was for 3 different sailings.  

[RealDeal]

Just to add...I am guessing I can't name the site, but if you request quotes from a site on which different agencies "compete" for your "cruise" business, you will see a wide range. You of course just have to confirm which prices include perks and REF deposits to compare apples to apples.  

[DaKahuna]

2 hours ago, mahdnc said:

 

Both feet have already been shot off.  Time to aim for the ankles.

 

 I think it is more like aiming for the knees at this point. 

 

[cbfb]

12 hours ago, 81Zoomie said:

How many days is your cruise, which ship, and where in Europe?  “Good” price depends on a lot of variables.  You may find that some TA’s include all the perks for less than Celebrity’s sail only rate.  That was our experience for Sep 2024.

The cruise is to the Italian Riviera and France on the Equinox. 9 night. 
 

I spoke to my TA. They can do not have any group pricing at this time but will add $525 OBC. He also said Celebrity might be offering OBC starting Thursday but will May also raise the price so it would be a wash. He also said if I had to cancel I can move the deposit, less $200, to another cruise which wouldn’t be a problem. I Alan always booking something! I’m not sure what’s holding me back!! 

Edited February 7 by cbfb
Additional information

[Jeremiah1212]

3 hours ago, cbfb said:

The cruise is to the Italian Riviera and France on the Equinox. 9 night. 
 

I spoke to my TA. They can do not have any group pricing at this time but will add $525 OBC. He also said Celebrity might be offering OBC starting Thursday but will May also raise the price so it would be a wash. He also said if I had to cancel I can move the deposit, less $200, to another cruise which wouldn’t be a problem. I Alan always booking something! I’m not sure what’s holding me back!! 

 

There is no additional OBC published right now that would be given from Celebrity this month. OBC from the travel agency depends on several variables.

 

The cadence for February offers will be:

Friday - Monday: bonus savings of $100 for inside and oceanview/$200 for veranda and higher

Tuesday - Wednesday: bonus savings of $75 for inside and oceanview/$150 for veranda and higher

Thursday - BOGO 75% or 50%. 75% off second passenger for NRD, 50% off on refundable deposits

2/19 to 2/19 - 3rd/4th/5th passenger sails free available *with some restrictions 

 

[Jim_Iain]

17 hours ago, JaneStarr said:

IN ADDITION:

The Cruise Later non refundable deposit is a deal-breaker for us because I am unable to privately insure to Cover preexisting conditions since the the future cruise certificate date becomes your official booking date.  

 

That's good information.    I presumed that was the case and almost had a problem once -  My certificate was not in my Agent's name and they really gave me a tough time transferring it to my agent.   They did make a "Courtesy" exception.

[paulh84]

17 hours ago, JaneStarr said:

IN ADDITION:

The Cruise Later non refundable deposit is a deal-breaker for us because I am unable to privately insure to Cover preexisting conditions since the the future cruise certificate date becomes your official booking date.  

 

Am I missing something here? The purchase date on the Book Later certificate has always been used as the booking date once you selected a cruise regardless if the deposit was refundable or nonrefundable. That seems like a separate unrelated issue on the insurability. 

 

 

 

[JaneStarr]

1 hour ago, paulh84 said:

 

Am I missing something here? The purchase date on the Book Later certificate has always been used as the booking date once you selected a cruise regardless if the deposit was refundable or nonrefundable. That seems like a separate unrelated issue on the insurability. 

 

 

 

Actually, Steve Dasseos of Trip Insurance store has some policies where the future cruise certificate (Cruise Later) purchase date doesn’t count as “booking date” for insurance purposes. It counts as when you have a confirmed reservation with specific travel dates.

 

I went to reread what Steve @iamtrustworthy has about this on his TripInsuranceStore website. The paragraph doesn’t specify that the FCC has to be refundable, but I vaguely recall a conversation with him about that criteria. Perhaps Steve will see this and chime in.

 

It would be good to clarify if Celebrity’s change to making the “Cruise Later” future certificates nonrefundable impacts our options for covering pre-existing conditions.

Below is an excerpt on this subject from his website. Not sure if I’m allowed to include a link.

—————————————————————————————————————-

The Exceptions to “What Is Your Initial Trip Deposit Date?”

• If you are / were on a cruise and you paid a deposit for a future cruise without setting travel dates, IMG, TravelSafe, Travelex Select and Travel Insured will not consider that date your Initial Trip Deposit Date. Your Initial Trip Deposit Date will be the date you have a confirmed reservation with specific travel dates.
• CSA uses the Final Payment Date as the deadline to qualify for coverage for pre-existing medical conditions.
• Travel Guard counts the earliest date when any monies are paid as the Initial Trip Deposit Date regardless of whether there are set travel dates.

_______________________________________________________________________

Jane

[iamtrustworthy]

On 2/7/2024 at 1:31 PM, JaneStarr said:

Actually, Steve Dasseos of Trip Insurance store has some policies where the future cruise certificate (Cruise Later) purchase date doesn’t count as “booking date” for insurance purposes. It counts as when you have a confirmed reservation with specific travel dates.

 

I went to reread what Steve @iamtrustworthy has about this on his TripInsuranceStore website. The paragraph doesn’t specify that the FCC has to be refundable, but I vaguely recall a conversation with him about that criteria. Perhaps Steve will see this and chime in.

 

It would be good to clarify if Celebrity’s change to making the “Cruise Later” future certificates nonrefundable impacts our options for covering pre-existing conditions.

Below is an excerpt on this subject from his website. Not sure if I’m allowed to include a link.

______________________________________________

Jane

Hi Jane,

 

Thanks for tagging me on this thread. The link to the page you referenced is:

https://tripinsurancestore.com/initial-trip-deposit-date/

 

What caused the cruise or travel credits to be issued is important. If someone received cruise or travel credits instead of a cash refund, my plans will insure their value. If they are bonus or courtesy credits, they aren't insurable.

 

Steve Dasseos

Edited February 8 by iamtrustworthy
typo

[JaneStarr]

2 hours ago, iamtrustworthy said:

Hi Jane,

 

Thanks for tagging me on this thread. The link to the page you referenced is:

https://tripinsurancestore.com/initial-trip-deposit-date/

 

What caused the cruise or travel credits to be issued is important. If someone received cruise or travel credits instead of a cash refund, my plans will insure their value. If they are bonus or courtesy credits, they aren't insurable.

 

Steve Dasseos

Hi Steve,

Thanks so much for chiming in!

 

In this case, we were discussing Celebrity’s “Cruise Later” cruise certificates purchased onboard for an unspecified future cruise.They cost $100 pp and offer bonus onboard credit if assigned to a specific ship and sailing within 6 months of purchase. 

Celebrity just changed the rules on these last month. The $100 deposits are now forfeited if you don’t apply them to a specific sailing within 1 year. (Previously, they were fully refundable.)

 

My question pertains to the first bullet point under The Exceptions to “What Is Your Initial Trip Deposit Date?” at the link you provided.

 

Does the fact that these new “Cruise Later” certificates are nonrefundable impact what those mentioned insurers  (IMG, TravelSafe, Travelex Select and Travel Insured) will consider as the initial deposit date for being able to waive pre-existing conditions?

 

What I’m trying to determine is if we would be able to lock in pre-existing conditions coverage when assigning one of these certificates a few months after putting down the deposit.

(I do realize that CSA would currently be an option since it uses final payment date, but I’d  prefer other options)

 

Hope this is clear enough. I’m having trouble explaining.

Jane

PS I’m attempting to add screenshot of the current flyer in case it helps.

 

 

 

Edited February 9 by JaneStarr
Removed old flyer. Added current one