Next Cruise and Nonrefundable Deposits

[RockerDom31]

Hi All,

I perused through the forum and I don't know if this has been brought up before. And if it has, I apologize! But here's the story...

The trip was supposed to be Aug 23 Oasis of the Seas from Cape Liberty - My wife and I decided to cancel this trip and get money back instead of FCC.

First of all, I was very surprised that we actually got the refund back on the credit card after just 5 days. I've read that people are still waiting for it after weeks have gone by so we are grateful that we successfully got our Cruise Planner purchases back and MOST of the cruise fare. We booked this trip in August 2019 at the Next Cruise desk and paid a $200 nonrefundable deposit ($100 each).

However, we just got news from our TA that we would be getting a refund minus $500 in FCC, not the original $200 deposit (as one would assume with Cruise with Confidence terms and conditions). She was told that we signed off on something on the ship that states that if we made payments along the way and we canceled, the FCC reverts back to the original deposit of $250 per person. And yes, we did make payments along the way.

Has any one encountered this? Our TA is currently escalating this issue with RCCL to refund us the $300 and subsequently, give us a $200 FCC.

Also...on a completely separate issue...we were charged by our TA a $150 per person cancellation fee (there goes the $300 ha!). Is that par for the course? Is that something MEI does as well? Just wondering if this is something to consider if we want to stay with this TA (it's a local business in our town and we try to support our local businesses as much as possible - we've been using them since our honeymoon).

Thanks!!

[Andrew72681]

36 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Also...on a completely separate issue...we were charged by our TA a $150 per person cancellation fee (there goes the $300 ha!). Is that par for the course? Is that something MEI does as well? Just wondering if this is something to consider if we want to stay with this TA (it's a local business in our town and we try to support our local businesses as much as possible - we've been using them since our

No. Unless that travel agent is adding something very special there shouldn’t be a fee. Their commission is paid for by the cruise line. Run as fast as you can from that agent. 

[Baked Alaska]

A good travel agent should never charge you A DIME! 

[Andrew72681]

7 minutes ago, Baked Alaska said:

A good travel agent should never charge you A DIME! 

For cruises. There are ones where it makes sense (airline tickets, planning out Disney adventures, etc..) but that’s because there isn’t a commission paid by the provider for those. 

[WAAAYTOOO]

MEI never ever charges a customer for anything.  You definitely need a new Agency.

[Baked Alaska]

Adventures by Disney, done it. Didn't pay my agent a dime. Commission paid by Disney.

[RockerDom31]

Thanks to all for confirming about TA's! I appreciate your feedback!

Has anyone encountered their $100 NextCruise deposit "reverted" back to $250 after customer cancellation?

Thanks!

[Hoppy2cruise]

9 hours ago, RockerDom31 said:

Thanks to all for confirming about TA's! I appreciate your feedback!

Has anyone encountered their $100 NextCruise deposit "reverted" back to $250 after customer cancellation?

Thanks!

From NextCruise Terms and Conditions:

3. Cancellations.
If the guest cancels a NDN Booking the cancellation terms applicable to your booking (which may vary from country to country) will apply. For Junior Suite and below categories, the reduced deposit will be held in full penalty (i.e., forfeited). If additional monies have been added to the booking fulfilling the required minimum deposit amount prior to cancellation and the final payment due date, Royal Caribbean will issue a future cruise credit (“FCC”) for the required deposit amount less the $100 per person service fee. For Grand Suite and above categories, if the cancellation occurs prior to the final payment due date an FCC will be issued to the guest named on the cancelled NDN Booking in the amount of the nonrefundable deposit paid for that guest, minus a $100 per person service fee, in countries where FCCs are offered. 1 The FCC may be used only towards the purchase of a Royal Caribbean International cruise and expires 12-months after the issue date (the “Expiration Date”). Any amount remaining after the Expiration Date will be void and forfeited. The FCC is non-transferable, non-refundable, and not redeemable for any other form of compensation, credit, or cash. For NDN Bookings that require a deposit of $100 or less, no FCC or any other compensation or credit of any kind will be issued.