Buying Princess Future Cruise Credits

[Jolly cruising]

Hi,

I wonder if someone out there can help!  In January 2023 we purchased Future Cruise Credits on board Regal Princess. I am sure we paid £75 (or dollars!) each (2 of us) for the credits.  We have now had these credits added to our next cruise which is in November this year on Sun Princess.  Shown online is just the £75 credit.  I know we were on holiday but I cannot find what the benefit was to purchasing the credits in advance(?).  I am sure we wouldn't have made the purchase if all we got nearly 2 years later was that exact amount added to our account.  I have researched online with Princess but cannot see any monetary benefits (talks of using the credits to make purchases etc) - why did we do it?!  Perhaps someone out there knows what the benefit is.  I know we should have kept the paperwork but I cannot find anything.  Thanks very much for your help and assistance.  

[voljeep]

was the future cruise 'deposit' that you bought on board actually used to book the next cruise on the SUN P?  If so, there should be the related OBC (on board credit) somewhere on your account.

[Jolly cruising]

Hi, thanks for the quick reply.  No, we just made the purchase as I am sure it seemed like a good deal.  We didn't have any cruise booked at the time.  We told our travel agent about the FCC and it has been added to our OBC on our account.  This shows £75 each which is exactly what we paid 18 months ago.

[phabric]

Check under Payments at the bottom of the page Credits on Princess website for your cruise.  It will show what OBC you have.

ie: - Future Cruise Credit - $25

     - agent - $

     - military- $

Edited May 14 by phabric

[voljeep]

OK, so you paid a separate deposit when you / TA actually booked the cruise?

[Jolly cruising]

Hi, firstly yes, in OBC it shows £75 (what we paid)

Secondly we paid the deposit then had the OBC added.  Thanks very much

[skynight]

I never heard of actually purchasing Future Cruise Credits, FCCs, on board in the amounts you are mentioning. Future Cruise Credits are usually provided by Princess for some error or problem. Sometimes passengers charge amounts to their credit card for a booked cruise to be deposited into their on board accounts. This amount becomes refundable OBC. 

I have, and always purchase myself, Future Cruise Deposits, FCDs. In the U.S. they are $100 each, which is around GBP75. They are valid for one year from the date of purchase and fully refundable. They are used to make the full deposit on a new booking (world cruise has some special terms). The $100 becomes the full deposit. When used non refundable OBC is applied to the booking depending on cabin category and length of cruise, see chart below.

What I am thinking has happened is that you made the regular deposit. You or your TA then added the GBP75 after the deposit was made. Thus, no additional OBC because the FCD was not used as the deposit. It was just used as cash. The GBP75 should become refundable OBC.

Future Cruise Length Per Person Shipboard Credit*

17 - 44 Days $125 Inside, $125 Outside, $150 Balcony, $150 Suite

11 - 16 Days $75 Inside, $75 Outside, $100 Balcony, $100 Suite

7 - 10 Days $25 Inside, $25 Outside, $50 Balcony, $50 Suite

3 - 6 Days $15 Inside, $15 Outside, $25 Balcony, $25 Suite

[Teechur]

We will be cruising in June on Emerald, then again in September on Majestic. We will pay the balance on the 2nd cruise just before we sail on the Emerald. Would there be any advantage to purchasing FCC or FCDs onboard during the first cruise, that would benefit us on the second cruise? Some OBC, for example.

 

How about FCC/FCDs to be used in 2025 on the Diamond? We just have a deposit on it so far. Would we need to cancel and rebook? 

TIA!

Edited May 14 by Teechur
Added a line.

[phabric]

37 minutes ago, Teechur said:

We will be cruising in June on Emerald, then again in September on Majestic. We will pay the balance on the 2nd cruise just before we sail on the Emerald. Would there be any advantage to purchasing FCC or FCDs onboard during the first cruise, that would benefit us on the second cruise? Some OBC, for example.

 

How about FCC/FCDs to be used in 2025 on the Diamond? We just have a deposit on it so far. Would we need to cancel and rebook? 

TIA!

FCD Future Cruise Deposit, is for a deposit for a new cruise, not a cruise that has a deposit already.
 

 You can apply a FCD to an already deposited cruise as a payment but you will not receive any OBC from it.  I have done that when my FCD was close to expire.

[cr8tiv1]

As detailed by seasoned CC members, you have been given some sage advice.  I am a list person:  (Using US dollars)

 

1.  FCC (Future Cruise Credit) and FCD (Future Cruise Deposits) are two very different animals.

 

2.  FCD are good for one year (used to be 3, then 2, then 1 but can be extended).

 

3.  FCD, when placed as a deposit will generate FCC/OBC (on board credit).  It will also be listed as FCC until you use it.

 

4.  In order to get OBC, FCD needs to be used to BOOK a NEW cruise.  Anytime it is added after the initial booking, it is applied as a cash $100 payment with no other perks.

 

5.  FCD of $100 will be deducted from final payment.

 

6.  FCD will generate OBC based on category of stateroom.  

 

7.  In my opinion, best $100 investment you could make.  Better than money in the bank (interest).  AND 100% refundable at any time.

[sfaaa]

Agree. Little risk as it is fully refundable. OBC is equivalent to a minimum 15% return or higher for longer cruise. I  bought 2x $100 on board Ruby last week and will keep buying.

[cr8tiv1]

I should also have added that I was one of the thousands who's FCDs expired during the pandemic.  It was sooooo painful to book several cruises without the benefit of the FCD's OBC.  I booked 3 cruises way out (before I could get on a ship to buy more).  Fortunately, I have stock holders shares OBC to give me a little cushion.  

 

For a while, I was able to purchase FCDs for my sister while onboard.  Someone reported that Princess is no longer going to offer this.  I am not crazy about the 1 year expiration, but you are able to book a cruise further out than 2 years.  

 

Best to keep SEVERAL on had.  You never know when the mood will strike.

[Jolly cruising]

Thank you so much to everyone who has replied to my question.

It all makes sense now, we should have used them as a deposit. Not to worry, I will purchase more on our next cruise and use them correctly.

Thanks once again and Happy Cruising!

[Retired-N-Happy]

19 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

Best to keep SEVERAL on had.  You never know when the mood will strike.

Please refresh my memory.  When you buy FCD's on board, is the dollar amount charged attached to your credit card or is it attached to your on board account.  If attached to your on board account, it can be paid off via gift cards.  For some reason I thought it was charged automatically to our credit card, so we would lose the 8% gift card discount.  Thanks

Edited May 14 by Retired-N-Happy

[sfaaa]

It's charged to your credit card on file.

[Ombud]

 

35 minutes ago, Jolly cruising said:

Thank you so much to everyone who has replied to my question.

It all makes sense now, we should have used them as a deposit. Not to worry, I will purchase more on our next cruise and use them correctly.

Thanks once again and Happy Cruising!

I have applied 2 to the same cruise .... 1 for OBC & the other just bc its supposed to expire soon. Because I have 2 on the same cruise it requires my CVP to manually apply the OBC. The one used for the deposit was a Welcome Home with 60 OBC. The 2nd one just applied has 100 OBC. So if you did not get the adjoining OBC it can be manually corrected, like mine was.

 

Before talking with CVP:

After talking with CVP:

Yes. They're on the same cruise.

Edited May 14 by Ombud

[Jolly cruising]

👍 Thanks once again everyone for helping me.  The OBC is shown as above on my account.  I now understand how these credits work.😉

[AZaTaz]

I have booked and made a deposit without FCD and then had my CVP add a FDC and got the appropriate OBC. 

[cr8tiv1]

3 hours ago, AZaTaz said:

I have booked and made a deposit without FCD and then had my CVP add a FDC and got the appropriate OBC. 

 

That is rare and you have a good TA.  I wouldn't count on this to be the norm.  I could possibly see that a TA rebooked the cruise (but that would give you a new booking number).  Lucky you.

[wallyj]

21 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

That is rare and you have a good TA.  I wouldn't count on this to be the norm.  I could possibly see that a TA rebooked the cruise (but that would give you a new booking number).  Lucky you.

A FCD can be added to a sailing already booked with a deposit AND get the associated OBC, IF the FCD acquired date is BEFORE the booking date to satisfy the whole FUTURE issue. 
 

Another scenario is, I am adding passenger2 to my solo booking I have already paid in full after final payment date. If passenger2 has a FCD that was acquired before my initial booking date, it can be added so they will receive the associated OBC for using a FCD. It will result in the booking having an overpayment, which is refunded to my credit card. If adding passenger2 to my solo booking before final payment, a FCD in their name can be added as long as the acquire date of that FCD is before the booking date and they will receive the appropriate OBC for using a FCD.
 

I have done this a few times when using one of my online TA booking sites on the weekend or evening when their office is closed and I want to grab a particular cabin or lock in a fare or sale. Their online booking engine does not have the capability of linking to Princess and applying a FCD from my Princess account, so a $100 deposit is usually charged to my credit card.

 

When their office reopens, I contact the agency and ask them to apply a FCD as long as I have one dated BEFORE my booking date, which I always try to have a few available, just in case. The FCD gets added to the booking and I receive the associated OBC. Yes, I now have double the amount of deposit $, but it is only $100. 

 

When I first started cruising with Princess, the FCD’s were good for 4 years, then reduced to 2 years, and now only 1 year, but should be able to extend if you call before expiration date.

 

I am currently on Enchanted and spoke to the lead Consultant, and it was news to her about plans to discontinue allowing passengers to buy FCD’s for passengers NOT on board.  I will be back on Enchanted in a month and see if this is still the case.

[AZaTaz]

wallyj
 

thank you for your through answer that explains why my experience was different from what cr8tiv1 was explaining.