Lauren123 Posted April 9, 2019 Report Share Posted April 9, 2019 My husband received a couple gift certificates from his family for RCL for us to use towards excursions and other things. It is taking a while to be linked to our account, so I called to check the status and the girl I spoke with said we cannot use it to pre-purchase anything; that we have to wait until we board our ship to start using it. Can someone confirm this is true? This is rather disappointing as I am a planner and wanted to have all my excursions/dinner packages set up so we can relax once we've boarded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyB Posted April 9, 2019 Report Share Posted April 9, 2019 Check the fine print on the gift certificates. We purchased a couple GC's to use toward paying on our cruise and found out that they had to be used ONLY for booking a new cruise...NOT paying on an already booked cruise. Not that yours are like that, but just make sure you read the fine print associated directly with the gift certificates you have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VolFanInGa Posted April 9, 2019 Report Share Posted April 9, 2019 Lauren - we had the same experience with the Gift Certificates my mom gave me. They never showed in the Cruise planner prior to the trip. Also, bring the record of your redemption with you on board. We were missing one $50 GC on my account on Indy last week. Guest Services had to call and have details emailed to the purser on board to have it applied. It all worked out in the end, but it was 2-3 stops at Guest Svcs I would have preferred to avoid. JennyB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauren123 Posted April 10, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2019 Thanks for the advice! @JennyB- I definitely know we can use it on board...but how frustrating for them to have something that you can only book on a future cruise! We don't cruise often (this is only our second one, first with RC), so we would have no use for that. I will definitely not recommend them again. @VolFanInGa- Did your redemption email come straight away or did it take a few days? When I had called she didn't see any record of it at all and we have not received an email. I did take a look at the terms and conditions and nothing was said about only being able to use it after boarding. I'm assuming they do that so you can't take advantage of the discounts by purchasing before the cruise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VolFanInGa Posted April 10, 2019 Report Share Posted April 10, 2019 @Lauren123 I don't recall recall getting an email. I took a screenshot when I redeemed it. I was getting nervous, and did call Royal a couple months before the trip. The customer service rep was able to see the OBC on my booking, and she emailed me a copy of my reservation that showed my gift cert redeemed per their record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMarc Posted April 10, 2019 Report Share Posted April 10, 2019 I have used them in the past. I never got an email confirmation, and the funds were not available until I was onboard. If you call them, they should see it on your reservation, but you cannot see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbethel11 Posted August 25, 2019 Report Share Posted August 25, 2019 Apologies to bump this thread, but a question @JennyB, or really to anyone who knows the answer. How long does a booking become "old" and not new? Like if I wanted to book a cruise today, and final payment date is next year, can I just stack up gift cards then and pay it all off? It's not like I put anything else down until then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyDillo Posted August 25, 2019 Report Share Posted August 25, 2019 A booking is considered new when the deposit is made. After that it is no longer a new booking. If you want to make it a new booking you would effectively have to cancel and rebook which would reprice the cruise at prevailing rates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbethel11 Posted August 25, 2019 Report Share Posted August 25, 2019 3 hours ago, AshleyDillo said: A booking is considered new when the deposit is made. After that it is no longer a new booking. If you want to make it a new booking you would effectively have to cancel and rebook which would reprice the cruise at prevailing rates. Yeah. I plan on booking a refundable deposit, which will be higher. Then, I can cancel before final payment date, and get the cheapest price available (if even) and then use the gift certificates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.