ocalatim01 Posted July 30, 2017 Report Share Posted July 30, 2017 Has anyone heard that the reduced deposit when you book onboard in NextCruise is going away sometime in August? and if so do we know the new plan? Thanks for any info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted July 30, 2017 Report Share Posted July 30, 2017 I heard rumblings that you would only be able to book under the non refundable deposit program, but that's it. Personally, I never found they incentives of the program, except for longer cruises where the OBC could stack up, to be worth it to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monorailmedic Posted July 30, 2017 Report Share Posted July 30, 2017 This seems to be the case, along with reduced future cruise OBC. The reduced OBC is a bit of a bummer, the reduced deposit thing is a bit of a shell game, so meh. DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FManke Posted July 30, 2017 Report Share Posted July 30, 2017 Pay me now or pay me later. Just another way to increase cash flow, asap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted July 30, 2017 Report Share Posted July 30, 2017 I have read on CC that it will take affect on 1Aug but who knows if that's true. I don't book with NextCruise so I don't pay much attention Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 Info is posted here now on the blog.......while it may not have been that big of a deal, its just another perk or incentive that RCCL has removed, with no benefit to the customer. It really amazes me how many changes they make that helps their bottom line and removes the perk to the customer. But I guess as long as people continue to support them with their wallets, they can do whatever they want. DocLC and Candio 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianAlt Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 This doesn't bother me very much. I don't decide to book a cruise or not based on the deposit. I'm always going to book refundable, so I can get my deposit back. And you end up paying the same total at the end. Sure, it ties up a few more bucks. But I don't tend to worry about that very much. I know others aren't in the same situation. WAAAYTOOO and Bob_KY 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 44 minutes ago, BrianAlt said: This doesn't bother me very much. I don't decide to book a cruise or not based on the deposit. Ditto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 All those working in the Next Cruise desk better start updating your resume. And I love those on this blog that when RCCL takes anything away from the consumers from top tier members to the ones that just cruised for the first time with RCCL everything is perfect and smells like roses. Just my observation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 It would be interesting to see a list that shows over the past two years how much RCCL has taken away or modified that affects the consumer? The next thing they will re implement is the rule related to the alcohol package. I don't know how they can legally make someone purchase a service that goes against their belief. Trust me I get it, like the saying goes, one or two people ruin it for others, but RCCL should be able to come up with a system that accommodates this problem. monctonguy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eaglesfaninfl Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 Don't know why their crack IT department can't come up with a solution! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 58 minutes ago, RBRSKI said: And I love those on this blog that when RCCL takes anything away from the consumers from top tier members to the ones that just cruised for the first time with RCCL everything is perfect and smells like roses. Just my observation! I recognize that first and foremost, RC is a business. Their #1 goal is to make money. Making us happy is a priority, but like any business, profit comes first. So when I see these kind of changes, I certainly don't like it or say it's something I'd wish for, but it's their prerogative and at the end of the day, I still enjoy cruising with them. If it reaches a point where it's not financially viable for me to cruise with them (see Disney Cruise Line), I start looking elsewhere. I doubt anyone will say they like NextCruise better with this change. I certainly don't, but as stated earlier, I never booked my cruises based on the deposit amount. Reduced deposit is a great perk, but it's more like icing on the cake. I joked with my wife this change (along with the suite non-refundable change earlier this year) makes my decision so much easier to skip NextCruise all together. Less temptation, and more money in my pocket. I'm booking cruises years in advance anyway, so it has become rarer to book onboard. There's no question RC has been making changes over last year or so aimed at increasing their bottom line. Drink package "sales", onboard promotions for buying drink/dining packages, non-refundable deposits, etc. Business is booming for RC, so they are less reliant on offering steep discounts as often as they once did. I think we can all see that writing on the wall. I guess what I'm trying to say is while I don't love the change, I sort of understand it on some level and it won't stop me from cruising RC. I think as fans, we absolutely don't have to like everything the cruise line does and should call them out on poor choices. I file this one under "que sera sera". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 I also love RC and this forum but It gets very frustrating when they keep chipping away at things that were once offered. With that being said, I totally respect everyone's point of view on this forum but would like to add my two cents to some of the opinions listed above,yeah I get the whole profit thing but are they really concern about making us a priority? I know I always refer back to Southwest but I know that they make it a priority not charging for the first two bags. I may eat my words in the future but I think they will NEVER get rid of this perk. I never based the reduce deposit perk on which cruise I pick but I use it as a budget tool! Fist of all, I have been fortunate enough to never cxl a cruise. This reduce deposit helps balance out the four cruises I have booked( and will sail on) for next year. I wonder what the breaking point will be for the consumer to start looking at other cruise lines or different types of vacations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjweber3 Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 We are D+ and have booked many through NextCruise. But that stops now. There seems to be no incentive left to book while at sea. RCCL is making its economic decisions. Soon, I think we will have to make ours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 You know what I see them getting rid off next? The Diamond Lounge or changing it to Diamond+ and above. Hey here is an idea, once a year give a cruise certificate based on the number of completed cruise points you sail on RCCL. For example, 94(cruise points) X $10.00(just a thrown our figure) $940 per calendar year. Make this the only perk that way, we the consumer, will not expect anything else for the entire year. Well, we hope to have good service, food, entertainment and value. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 My best guess is that this is in line with their relatively new price integrity policy. If they can get more people to commit in advance to a cruise, that means fewer cancellations and this greater price integrity as they won't need to lower prices to fill cabins. Do I like the change? No. Does it affect new? No. I've only use Next Cruise once in all of my cruises. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 I thought the OBC was bigger when booking on board? Or was it just that you could take the OBC for booking a future cruise on your current cruise? ( my next cruise was booked onboard..$100 deposit and gave me $100 OBC on the cruise I booked it on....pretty good, no?) I am sure there was some perk to booking onboard....otherwise why bother? I still love cruising with Royal(for as long as I can afford them) but I would love to see a list of all the changes they have implemented in the past 2-3 years and see which favors the company and which favors the customer. As long as the ships are full they can do whatever they want....but sooner or later the scales will start to tip against them if they keep making these changes imho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 8 minutes ago, monctonguy said: As long as the ships are full they can do whatever they want....but sooner or later the scales will start to tip against them if they keep making these changes imho. Yup, they have us by the balls! Someone posted on this forum a statement similar to this "RCCL seems to benefit more from the new cruiser vs the ones that have shown loyalty. They start linking their chops when they book suites at full prices too!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 9 minutes ago, RBRSKI said: Yup, they have us by the balls! Someone posted on this forum a statement similar to this "RCCL seems to benefit more from the new cruiser vs the ones that have shown loyalty. They start linking their chops when they book suites at full prices too!!! I think this is true for all cruise lines and most businesses in general. They are after the new customer over the already existing customer. And since they need growth and since roughly 80% of the public hasn't cruised, the emphasis for growth is in the first-time cruiser. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted July 31, 2017 Report Share Posted July 31, 2017 I know, that's what's great about this forum, it puts your mind at ease when you read other people have the same ideas and opinions as you. I highly doubt anything on this forum will change the minds over at 1050 Caribbean Way! So with that being said, I GIVE, I SURRENDER !!! DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted August 1, 2017 Report Share Posted August 1, 2017 20 hours ago, RBRSKI said: I also love RC and this forum but It gets very frustrating when they keep chipping away at things that were once offered. With that being said, I totally respect everyone's point of view on this forum but would like to add my two cents to some of the opinions listed above,yeah I get the whole profit thing but are they really concern about making us a priority? I know I always refer back to Southwest but I know that they make it a priority not charging for the first two bags. I may eat my words in the future but I think they will NEVER get rid of this perk. I never based the reduce deposit perk on which cruise I pick but I use it as a budget tool! Fist of all, I have been fortunate enough to never cxl a cruise. This reduce deposit helps balance out the four cruises I have booked( and will sail on) for next year. I wonder what the breaking point will be for the consumer to start looking at other cruise lines or different types of vacations. I passed mine a while back :) For about 4-5 years I was an RCI loyalist ... when it came time to book a vacation, I only looked at one website, didn't even consider any other alternatives. A few years down the road and they are just one of many options .... and frequently don't win my business anymore. Of course, they don't care since they have more than enough new customers to fill the ships anyway, so losing me as a loyalist hasn't hurt them at all. I guess it will be interesting to see what happens next time the economic cycle swings back down and whether it hurts them then but probably not in all honesty ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted August 1, 2017 Report Share Posted August 1, 2017 19 hours ago, monctonguy said: I thought the OBC was bigger when booking on board? Or was it just that you could take the OBC for booking a future cruise on your current cruise? ( You just get bonus OBC on top of whatever deal RC is running to the general public Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted August 1, 2017 Report Share Posted August 1, 2017 1 hour ago, Matt said: You just get bonus OBC on top of whatever deal RC is running to the general public Ok..so it is still a perk then...plus u used to get the reduced deposit. Now you still get the extra OBC...just no reduced deposit. But then you have to decide between the deposit back or no deposit back option which affects what you get as well. Hard to keep track! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted August 1, 2017 Report Share Posted August 1, 2017 @monctonguy unless they opt to only make the bonus OBC available with non refundable deposits, which could (but hasn't) happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RBRSKI Posted August 5, 2017 Report Share Posted August 5, 2017 Just had the chance to read some comments on cruisecritic.com and MANY unhappy people Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted August 6, 2017 Report Share Posted August 6, 2017 On 8/5/2017 at 4:32 PM, RBRSKI said: Just had the chance to read some comments on cruisecritic.com and MANY unhappy people Considering this was CruiseCritic.com, doesn't that just mean it was a day ending in "Y"? ? whenismynextcruise, DocLC and bcarney 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaGunny Posted August 13, 2017 Report Share Posted August 13, 2017 On 7/30/2017 at 0:50 PM, ocalatim01 said: Has anyone heard that the reduced deposit when you book onboard in NextCruise is going away sometime in August? and if so do we know the new plan? Thanks for any info They already now charge full deposit for suites. We usually get suites and were able to book them for $100x2. Now it's $450x2 and non-refundable. Sure, you can move it for a $100x2 cancellation fee but it's a loss. We have one now that we will have to move and will suck up the loss. We usually book 15-25 cruises a year and 2 years in advance. That being said, the difference for deposits on 20 cruises would be $18,000 vice $4,000. I rather have my funds in investments working for me so I could go on more cruises. Perhaps it is a way to stop travel agencies from sucking up blocks of rooms and then returning unsold rooms at the last minute. However, as a stock holder it provides great dividends and RCL is booming. $117 a share vice the 30ish be bought at. Two edged sword. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted August 13, 2017 Report Share Posted August 13, 2017 4 hours ago, DaGunny said: Perhaps it is a way to stop travel agencies from sucking up blocks of rooms and then returning unsold rooms at the last minute. I can't imagine an agency has to place deposits down on larger blocks, but I could be wrong. Perhaps one of our TA members can shed some light on this. It's been explained that suites were selling out immediately upon release and then many were cancelled just before final payment. As a result, Royal had difficulty selling them at a rate that they would have been able to get if they had been in inventory earlier. This happened on the upcoming group cruise. A huge block of rooms, including suites, was returned to inventory and Royal had to drastically cut process after final payment to fill those rooms. While it allowed many to upgrade quite affordably, Royal didn't get anywhere near the amount they normally would have for those rooms. Time will tell. I would never book a non-refundable deposit especially when booking so far out, so I guess a suite won't be in my future. I could see this hurting European cruises, too. Right now, I have two cruises booked for next summer (Japan and Norway) and in going to let airfare and world affairs determine which cruise we'll take. I couldn't do that without a loss if those deposits were non-refundable. If this does lead to increased fares and a more predictable revenue stream, at least this will be good for you as a stockholder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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