Royal Caribbean's/Bank Of America's Visa Reward Card?

[Moby Dick]

My wife and I have several hundreds of dollars in rewards saved up on the card.  Are they only redeemed through the BOA site and/or Royal Caribbean.com?  What are all the options?

Anybody?

[WAAAYTOOO]

We both use this card as well and we have only ever redeemed points to be applied as OBC for a cruise.  I think you can use the points as payment or partial payment for a cruise (although I am not certain of this as I’ve never tried).  We have always done this via the BofA site.  If there are other options I am unaware.

[loki007]

definitely thru the bank of america site. We too primarily have used for OBC and then used to purchase extras like the drink package. I did get a couple of robes for 5000 points which we use for our pool at home 

[Moby Dick]

Yep, we plan on using them as OBC.  About the only thing we can use them for is in the Casino, just about everything else is covered.  

Do you get a gift card/certificate to present at embarkation, or they, BoA, has it credited to your onboard account electronically, or how?

[WAAAYTOOO]

9 minutes ago, Suite Snob said:

Yep, we plan on using them as OBC.  About the only thing we can use them for is in the Casino, just about everything else is covered.  

Do you get a gift card/certificate to present at embarkation, they, BoA, has it credited to your onboard account electronically, how?

No certificate.  You will get an email confirmation showing the redemption and then at some point (the timeframe for this is something of a mystery…..but generally no less than 10 days prior to sailing), the credit will pop up in your CP and at that point, you can use it pre cruise or wait and use it while onboard.

We always use ours at the casino but you can use it for anything that you can use other OBC for.

[Moby Dick]

8 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

No certificate.  You will get an email confirmation showing the redemption and then at some point (the timeframe for this is something of a mystery…..but generally no less than 10 days prior to sailing), the credit will pop up in your CP and at that point, you can use it pre cruise or wait and use it while onboard.

We always use ours at the casino but you can use it for anything that you can use other OBC for.

Very helpful, thank you!

[WAAAYTOOO]

10 minutes ago, Suite Snob said:

Very helpful, thank you!

You betcha

[rjac]

I redeem at this website: Sign In | Bank of America MyCruise® Rewards (managerewardsonline.com). 

[Moby Dick]

8 minutes ago, rjac said:

I redeem at this website: Sign In | Bank of America MyCruise® Rewards (managerewardsonline.com). 

Thank you, I just "book marked" it.  

[YellowBrickRoad]

I redeemed and my OBC came a few days later on my cruise planner. Hasn’t always been that quick in the past so I was happy. 

[MadamG2U]

18 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

No certificate.  You will get an email confirmation showing the redemption and then at some point (the timeframe for this is something of a mystery…..but generally no less than 10 days prior to sailing), the credit will pop up in your CP and at that point, you can use it pre cruise or wait and use it while onboard.

We always use ours at the casino but you can use it for anything that you can use other OBC for.

Hello, how do you use it in the casino?  I would love to use it that way

[WAAAYTOOO]

1 hour ago, MadamG2U said:

Hello, how do you use it in the casino?  I would love to use it that way

You just take a cash withdrawal at a game table (or get money from your seapass account on a slot machine) and it is just like any other “purchase” using you seapass card.  Just keep in mind though, unless you are at least Prime level with Club Royale, you will be assessed a 5% “convenience fee” if you take money at a table.  Although I have never used the slot machine method, apparently there is no fee to get money this way (at a slot machine).  Let’s say you have $200 OBC from BoA on your seapass account and you go to the casino and take $100 on the slot machine.  Then, your account will Show a $100 casino withdrawal and you will have $100 remaining in OBC.  It’s pretty simple and this is exactly the reason that we both use the BoA cards.

[Moby Dick]

13 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

You just take a cash withdrawal at a game table (or get money from your seapass account on a slot machine) and it is just like any other “purchase” using you seapass card.  Just keep in mind though, unless you are at least Prime level with Club Royale, you will be assessed a 5% “convenience fee” if you take money at a table.  Although I have never used the slot machine method, apparently there is no fee to get money this way (at a slot machine).  Let’s say you have $200 OBC from BoA on your seapass account and you go to the casino and take $100 on the slot machine.  Then, your account will Show a $100 casino withdrawal and you will have $100 remaining in OBC.  It’s pretty simple and this is exactly the reason that we both use the BoA cards.

Yep, my OBC from my TA on my May Cruise, I used it in the Casino, cashed out at the Slot Machine, took the ticket to the Cashier and cashed it in.  No problem, no fee.  On the last full cruise day, sea day, they closed the casino for whatever reason.  I still had over $400.00 OBC and was going to put the card in the slot and pull it out and cash the ticket in.  But, the casino was closed except for the cashier, I cashed in my tickets.  Then I had to go to the "Customer Service" kiosks and they looked into my account, gave me the cash I had remaining and closed my account.  No problem.  I was pissed that they closed the casino on the last full cruise day.   Well, it may not have been on the last sea day, now that I think of it, it was the time we had to go to the casino before pulling into Victoria but they weren't going to open it again for the remainder of the cruise.  But, the bottom line, I couldn't cash in my tickets or cash out my account until I went to the Customer Service kiosk.   

Hope that all made sense.  

[leesam82]

I also have this card. I only use it to book RCL cruises etc. I recently used the accumulated points to get an OBC. I have only used the BoA website to ensure I get the OBC. 

[Moby Dick]

19 minutes ago, leesam82 said:

I also have this card. I only use it to book RCL cruises etc. I recently used the accumulated points to get an OBC. I have only used the BoA website to ensure I get the OBC. 

Me tooooooo.  I only use the card for Purchasing Royal Caribbean cruises and stuff.  Double points!

[AshleyDillo]

I only got the card to get the sign up initial bonus.  There are much better cards out there that give you better rewards value for your Royal purchases and I can redeem those rewards directly as cash back.

[Moby Dick]

9 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I only got the card to get the sign up initial bonus.  There are much better cards out there that give you better rewards value for your Royal purchases and I can redeem those rewards directly as cash back.

True!  But, I look at it as found money/OBC.  Kinda like over paying my taxes every year so I get a refund in Feb/Mar.  Yes, I know, I'm not making any interest on that money.  But, I'm not going to invest that relatively little amount of money every payday anyway.  So, it's kinda like found money. 

SIDE NOTE:  BTW, my investments/401K kinda sucks right now anyway.  

[Done]

I have called the RC credit card rewards number (888-305-4626) to inquire about rewards credit.  They said the rewards redeemed are applied as an OBC 2 weeks before the cruise.  If one asks nice they can be applied to an upcoming cruise ( have the booking number handy) immediately.

[Done]

13 hours ago, Suite Snob said:

True!  But, I look at it as found money/OBC.  Kinda like over paying my taxes every year so I get a refund in Feb/Mar.  Yes, I know, I'm not making any interest on that money.  But, I'm not going to invest that relatively little amount of money every payday anyway.  So, it's kinda like found money. 

SIDE NOTE:  BTW, my investments/401K kinda sucks right now anyway.  

The banks are not paying much, if any interest anyway so I wouldn't be too concerned about a modest over payment.

[Kathleen]

I have used mine as payment towards my cruise in the past. When you sign on to the website there are rewards you can select. We have selected both payment and OBC boxes at different times for cruises. For payment I always try to make sure I redeem 8-10 weeks before payment is due. When it shows up, my final payment is reduced by that amount. The redemption selection for this is $500 or less but to cash out $1000 you can choose $500 twice. Same for on board credit. You can select different amounts to satisfy the amount you prefer. 

[Moby Dick]

25 minutes ago, Toby said:

The banks are not paying much, if any interest anyway so I wouldn't be too concerned about a modest over payment.

Exactly.  And I can't add any $$$ to my 401K either.

[Moby Dick]

9 minutes ago, Kathleen said:

I have used mine as payment towards my cruise in the past. When you sign on to the website there are rewards you can select. We have selected both payment and OBC boxes at different times for cruises. For payment I always try to make sure I redeem 8-10 weeks before payment is due. When it shows up, my final payment is reduced by that amount. The redemption selection for this is $500 or less but to cash out $1000 you can choose $500 twice. Same for on board credit. You can select different amounts to satisfy the amount you prefer. 

Good info, thanks.

[Pattycruise]

you can see all the choices for your reward points on their website.  I prefer to call and speak with a rep to go over my options, ensure I understand them and have them apply them.  

 

[Moby Dick]

7 hours ago, Pattycruise said:

you can see all the choices for your reward points on their website.  I prefer to call and speak with a rep to go over my options, ensure I understand them and have them apply them.  

 

Yep, that's what I plan to do eventually.  But, I like to be armed with as much info as I can before I talk to CSRs on the phone.  It's a good way to get a good idea if the CSR is knowledgeable, a B.S.er, or incompetent.  I ask questions on sites like this, search websites (the actual company's and others), and call.  Knowledge is power!

[not easy being green]

We use the points to help pay off the cruise, we have all our bills that we can tied to the card and the last cruise we took we had over $ 3,000 off!  

 

100,000 points is $ 1,000 off the price - we do this by phone with BofA and they call RC then it is a done deal.

[Moby Dick]

9 hours ago, not easy being green said:

We use the points to help pay off the cruise, we have all our bills that we can tied to the card and the last cruise we took we had over $ 3,000 off!  

 

100,000 points is $ 1,000 off the price - we do this by phone with BofA and they call RC then it is a done deal.

As stated earlier/elsewhere, we only use the BoA/Royal Visa for purchasing Royal stuff for the double points.  I should rethink that as we do plan on cruising as much as our old bodies will allow.  Right no, I have my C.U.'s Credit Card set to pay many of my balances on "Auto Pays".  The rest right out of my checking account.  My C.U. Credit Card doesn't have any rewards offered but it is only 7.something % interest if not paid off, but I rarely carry a balance on it.  I really need to do some due diligence on that.   I should start using it on everything like I do the C.U. Credit Card and earn something toward our cruising. A big benefit if I don't carry a balance!  I think I've solved my thought just now.

[MikeK]

On 6/15/2022 at 7:40 PM, leesam82 said:

I also have this card. I only use it to book RCL cruises etc. I recently used the accumulated points to get an OBC. I have only used the BoA website to ensure I get the OBC. 

Since I pay my RC card completely off every month I use mine to buy any large purchase.  I don't get the double points but even with single points it adds up.

[smokeybandit]

The RC card is actually pretty poor for accumulating points since there are so few ways to accumulate anything beyond 1x

[AspiringCruisePlanner]

35 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

The RC card is actually pretty poor for accumulating points since there are so few ways to accumulate anything beyond 1x

Louder @smokeybandit!  Even if you only use the card for RC purchases, you're missing out.  Also, something to be aware of is the points expire after 5 years.  So if you plan on not cruising for a while or wait to save up, you could be loosing those points.

The best card out there IMO for the occasional or active cruiser is the US Bank Altitude Connect Visa.  Earns 4x points on travel, including cruises.  4x at gas stations! 2x at grocery stores, grocery delivery, dining and streaming services, 1x on other purchases.  Points never expire and can be redeemed for cash, merchandise, or travel.  No foreign transaction fee.  It does have a $95 annual fee, but it's waived for the first year and the $500 sign up bonus is very nice.  The annual $30 streaming credit knocks the effective annual fee to $65.  Not saying this is for everyone, but for an average consumer that travels even occasionally this card kicks butt.

[Moby Dick]

2 hours ago, AspiringCruisePlanner said:

Louder @smokeybandit!  Even if you only use the card for RC purchases, you're missing out.  Also, something to be aware of is the points expire after 5 years.  So if you plan on not cruising for a while or wait to save up, you could be loosing those points.

The best card out there IMO for the occasional or active cruiser is the US Bank Altitude Connect Visa.  Earns 4x points on travel, including cruises.  4x at gas stations! 2x at grocery stores, grocery delivery, dining and streaming services, 1x on other purchases.  Points never expire and can be redeemed for cash, merchandise, or travel.  No foreign transaction fee.  It does have a $95 annual fee, but it's waived for the first year and the $500 sign up bonus is very nice.  The annual $30 streaming credit knocks the effective annual fee to $65.  Not saying this is for everyone, but for an average consumer that travels even occasionally this card kicks butt.

It doesn't matter how many points a C.C. company issues.  What matters is how many points it takes to purchase something with the points.  Some C.C. companies have different values of points depending on what you are wanting to purchase.  I like being able to know what my points are worth before I even go into purchasing something.  I have a C. C. that I can purchase a $25.00 Gift Card for XX amount of points for brand X Gas company and a different amount of points for $25.00 worth of another Gift Card of another Gas Company.  BoA/Royal is 1 point per dollar, except their double offer when purchasing something from Royal.  And to purchase something it is 1 point per dollar.  No guess work involved.  Don't get me wrong, I'm no fan of BoA.  I actually prefer to not do business with them but I'm a whore for a deal.    

[AshleyDillo]

1 hour ago, Suite Snob said:

It doesn't matter how many points a C.C. company issues.  What matters is how many points it takes to purchase something with the points.

This is true. I use a no annual fee cash rewards from BofA. I get to pick what category I want to get my 3% cash back on each month. I choose travel and get 3% back on my cruises, 1% on all other purchases. I only get the bonus on the first $2500 I spend each quarter, but I keep track and will split my cruise payment up to time it if needed  

The Costco Visa does 4% on travel but you get it back in Costco cash, so it's worthwhile if you are a regular Costco shopper.

I have a wallet of cards that I use for various purchase categories to maximize my kickbacks everywhere

[richkim]

I was wondering what the points worth per point?

[ChessE4]

10 hours ago, richkim said:

I was wondering what the points worth per point?

5000 points for 50 OBC. So a 2500 cruise at double points gets 50 obc at redemption. Our TA gives us 50 more, so we're happy.

[Kristi Novak]

New to this, I just redeemed on my BOA rewards to apply to OBC. When and where do I see that credit? Plan is to use it to pay for excursions

[Kristi Novak]

On 6/15/2022 at 5:34 PM, loki007 said:

definitely thru the bank of america site. We too primarily have used for OBC and then used to purchase extras like the drink package. I did get a couple of robes for 5000 points which we use for our pool at home 

Once you redeemed online, how long did it take to show on your account to be able to purchase things like drink packages or excursions?

[WAAAYTOOO]

37 minutes ago, Kristi Novak said:

Once you redeemed online, how long did it take to show on your account to be able to purchase things like drink packages or excursions?

It depends on how far out your cruise is.  In general BoA OBC will post a week or 10 days before your cruise.  If you want it to be available sooner than that, call BoA and ask them to process it soonest.

[Sandy C]

Once the points are added as OBC can they be used to cover the daily gratuity that is added?

 

[michaelp1446]

12 hours ago, Sandy C said:

Once the points are added as OBC can they be used to cover the daily gratuity that is added?

 

If you don't use them for any pre-cruise purchases, they will be used to cover your on board cruise expenses. 

So yes, they can be used to cover part or all of the daily gratuity...