djs68 Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 My wife and I are set to sail on Vision for 5 nights in the Med departing on 1st October. This is our first cruise. We will be buying the drinks package and perhaps some of the others in advance. They are already discounting these but not by much (drinks package has gone from £56pppn to £46ppp). Is it best to buy these now (as prices may go up) or do they usually offer much better deals the closer we get to sailing? Are excursions worth booking via them or is it cheaper via third parties (some of the trips are unbelievably expensive...) Also, it looks like we have to pay for extras in full when we book them. So if we cancel the cruise before final payment do we get the money back or not? Many thanks for your help. Darren Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChessE4 Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 Most folks book Cruise Planner when price seems OK knowing they can cancel and re-book later if the price drops. For cruises, we book refundable deposit, and we also get travel insurance to cover pre-existing conditions. How much you get back later if you cancel the cruise depends upon the reason, the trip insurance, whether your deposit was refundable, and the time when you cancelled. We have seen 3rd party excursions that are a few $$ less than Royal, but we haven't booked them unless we were on land before/after the cruise. Sometimes the 3rd party excursions go places you want to visit. Just make sure they get you back in time! Cruise planner purchases are refunded if you cancel the cruise itself -- they go back to the form of payment used to purchase them (for most, a credit card). We are also going to the Med in October. Because of all of the port visits, you might be off the ship more than on, which affects the value of an unlimited drink package. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djs68 Posted April 6, 2022 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 Many thanks for responding, very useful. As this is our first cruise I have a couple of follow ups if that's ok? Does RCCL have any pattern for running discounted extras or do they occur completely at random? Do you have any insight around what discount levels are common? From your note it looks like the rates can vary - is the variance usually significant or just a few $? BTW there was no option to choose a refundable deposit when we booked (it didn't even mention whether it is or not). Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike.s Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 33 minutes ago, djs68 said: Many thanks for responding, very useful. As this is our first cruise I have a couple of follow ups if that's ok? Does RCCL have any pattern for running discounted extras or do they occur completely at random? Do you have any insight around what discount levels are common? From your note it looks like the rates can vary - is the variance usually significant or just a few $? BTW there was no option to choose a refundable deposit when we booked (it didn't even mention whether it is or not). Many thanks Cruise planner sales (extras) happen every few weeks, prices vary so buy when you see a price you're confortable with. With regards to the % discount, they are meaningless, one week the price with 40% discount can be higher than it was previously with 35% discount, as many on this forum say, no point trying to understand Royal's maths (or math ) ellcee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moby Dick Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 I'd book/purchase a package the minute the "Cruise Planner" becomes available on the website. Then keep an eye on the package(s) you purchased to see if there is a price drop. If there is a price drop, cancel the existing purchase and repurchase the same package. There is no limit as to how many times you can do this. If the price drops, you are eligible to purchase it at that reduced price. Happy sailing and saving to you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CGTLH Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 In my opinion the £46ppp rate is really good. If I'm recalling correctly this already includes the gratuity/service charge and is added to the invoice of the cruise. That rate would be around $60 USD, equivalent of around $51 a day before the gratuity/service charge is added. Never mind, think that might be a discontinued promotion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ja-sun Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 I purchased a package and had it saved in my cart. The next week, the price went up, and so did the package I had saved in my cart, so be careful of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loki007 Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 Just keep checking the cruise planner. You’ll see periodic sales and quickly learn the cheapest price. right now its about $69pp per day and includes drink gratuities. Pre-pandemic it was $59pp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlantix2000 Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 2 hours ago, Ja-sun said: I purchased a package and had it saved in my cart. The next week, the price went up, and so did the package I had saved in my cart, so be careful of that. If it is still in your cart, you did NOT purchase the package. You just added it to the list of things you are thinking of buying. Same thing as a shopping cart in a real store. Until you pay for it, it doesn't belong to you. In a real store, the items in your cart are basically reserved for you (because it would be incredibly rude for someone to take something out of your cart). But in the online world, items in your cart are not reserved, someone else COULD buy the last item and it would disappear from your cart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy & Sheryl Unwin Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 As we do with excursions, we usually follow the sage like wisdom provided by Matt and purchase the DBP (with Voom) about the same time as we book the cruise. Then keep an eye on it. Invariably there are fluctuations based on discounts and if its significant, we cancel and repurchase. I wont go through the process to save $2 if you get my drift. Certaily, with excursions (and specifically the Coco Beach Club), it can save a whole bunch of money. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliCraig Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 6 hours ago, jay1021 said: I'd book/purchase a package the minute the "Cruise Planner" becomes available on the website. Then keep an eye on the package(s) you purchased to see if there is a price drop. If there is a price drop, cancel the existing purchase and repurchase the same package. There is no limit as to how many times you can do this. If the price drops, you are eligible to purchase it at that reduced price. Happy sailing and saving to you! What has been your experience with RC refunding you in a timely fashion? I had canceled a number of items off of one order when I saw a price drop a few weeks ago. They credited me for just one of my items, and the rest have been pending for almost 3 weeks. Has anyone run into this before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moby Dick Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 9 minutes ago, CaliCraig said: What has been your experience with RC refunding you in a timely fashion? I had canceled a number of items off of one order when I saw a price drop a few weeks ago. They credited me for just one of my items, and the rest have been pending for almost 3 weeks. Has anyone run into this before? On average, about a week to be credited back to your C.C. I've never had that happen to me. CaliCraig 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moby Dick Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 32 minutes ago, CaliCraig said: What has been your experience with RC refunding you in a timely fashion? I had canceled a number of items off of one order when I saw a price drop a few weeks ago. They credited me for just one of my items, and the rest have been pending for almost 3 weeks. Has anyone run into this before? BTW, call! There is obviously something wrong. Find out what's going on! You are missing out on some lower prices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliCraig Posted April 6, 2022 Report Share Posted April 6, 2022 @jay1021 Thanks! I did call about a week ago and they can see it in their system as "pending". They claim it can take up to 30 days before the credit actually gets sent back to my card. Haven't heard of that before... Do you think it's worth it to try push this up to the next level? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted April 7, 2022 Report Share Posted April 7, 2022 Time will vary and I say anything over 30 days, I would call. I got one refund in only a few days. But I did a bunch of UDP refunds, and it took almost 3 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMick424 Posted April 7, 2022 Report Share Posted April 7, 2022 How far in advance of sailing do beverage and dining packages typically become available? I received a promo email from RCL today with some offers and a prompt to explore packages. But when I log into the cruise planner or click the links it says “Amazing Experiences Coming Soon”. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted April 7, 2022 Report Share Posted April 7, 2022 13 hours ago, TheMick424 said: How far in advance of sailing do beverage and dining packages typically become available? I received a promo email from RCL today with some offers and a prompt to explore packages. But when I log into the cruise planner or click the links it says “Amazing Experiences Coming Soon”. Usually 9-10 months before the sailing starts. I have some sailings in Jan 23' that only have options for PDCC now and nothing else. I am hoping that around May or June I will be able to start purchasing my dining and such. TheMick424 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy314 Posted April 8, 2022 Report Share Posted April 8, 2022 Just had a pretty disappointing cruise on Anthem of the Seas. We left out of NJ and cruised down to Coco Cay and the Bahamas. My understanding is that the crew got hit with Covid (not confirmed, just what I heard). They were very short staffed. The main show - “We Will Rock You” was canceled. We had purchased the soda package and the Coke machines were consistently empty. The food was not up to par for a Royal Caribbean cruise. That being said we are willing to try again as this is the first time that RCCL has disappointed us. So we booked a short cruise in September to introduce our young granddaughter to the joys of cruising. Fingers crossed this one goes better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denise Phizacklea Posted April 9, 2022 Report Share Posted April 9, 2022 I've literally just bought our drinks package (an hour ago)for August sailing on Wonder, and it's at £550 for the two of us for 7 nights bargain! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Dubois Posted April 9, 2022 Report Share Posted April 9, 2022 We are sailing on Oasis of the Seas in May. About three weeks ago we received an email.saying our final payment was coming due. Until this date our invoice shows all was paid in full. We now owe 352.00. Has this happened to anyone else. We were also expected to pay without any explanation. Not impresses Royal Caribbean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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