Royal Caribbean incentives its guests to book another cruise while onboard, but many don't take advantage of the extra savings offered.
If you're like me, after a day or two on the cruise ship, I become so enamored with the experience I want to do it again. That leads my brain to start thinking of ways to book another cruise.
When you're ready to double down on another cruise, Royal Caribbean offers a bonus for booking on the ship. Yet, a lot of cruisers miss out on it.
Beci Mahnken is the owner of MEI Travel, and one missed opportunity she sees from clients is when they don't book a cruise on the ship for the wrong reason.
Missing out on the best combination of perks
NextCruise is available on every Royal Caribbean ship, and it offers additional incentives when booking a cruise there.
By booking onboard, Royal Caribbean will add extra onboard credit and even reduce the deposit amount.
According to Ms. Mahnken, a lot of cruisers assume booking a cruise at the NextCruise desk means they can't use their travel agent.
"Too many people think booking at NextCruise means losing their travel advisor," she explained.
"But it’s not true. You get extra incentives, and your advisor still takes care of everything because the booking is transferred to them automatically."
I recently saw this first-hand when my neighbor returned home after a cruise and I asked them if they booked a cruise we discussed, but they didn't book onboard because they didn't think it worked that way.
Ms. Mahken has seen the same scenario play out many times, "It’s always frustrating when clients come to me after their cruise saying, 'I wish I’d known!' NextCruise can offer some valuable perks."
If you're working with a travel agent, you can still leverage their services while getting the extra money Royal Caribbean is offering with onboard credit. And yes, it's all combinable.
Make a reservation at NextCruise to avoid waiting
I'd recommend going to the NextCruise desk after making a reservation.
Depending on the ship, you can either sign up for a time slot on a piece of paper at the desk, or do it within the Royal Caribbean app.
It's easy to do this, and it ensures you minimize waiting.
By far the busiest day at NextCruise is the last day of the cruise because everyone seems to have the same thought: Let's book a new cruise because this one is ending!
Verify your travel agent is on the booking
When I make any booking at NextCruise, I'll always reconfirm my travel agent is on the reservation they are making.
Most of the time, the NextCruise agent asks me about it before I can remind them, but it's a good idea to double check it.
What to look for when booking a cruise at NextCruise
Besides your travel agent being on the reservation, there are a few things to verify.
The deposit type you pick is important, because you may want refundable cruise fare instead of non-refundable.
There's nothing wrong with a non-refundable cruise deposit. In fact, the price is usually a bit lower than a refundable deposit. But there are penalties for changing the ship or sail date with a non-refundable deposit.
The next thing to look for is the amount of onboard credit you'll be getting, in addition to whatever promotion Royal Caribbean is running at the time.
The onboard credit varies depending on the length of the sailing and the type of stateroom you choose.
The final printout should list exactly how much onboard credit you're getting, so it's important to understand how much there is on the booking. I can get confused when comparing different cruises and how much I'm actually getting in the end.
Finally, if you have an internet package on your cruise, you could message your travel agent to give them a heads up that you're booking onboard.
There have been times when my travel agent tells me to pick one option over another because there's a better deal on it.
As an example, there could be a group rate that's cheaper than Royal Caribbean offers. So if I book that sailing at NextCruise, I get the bonus onboard credit but then my agent can roll it into the group and I get a lower price. It's win-win!
