Donnie Posted March 13 Report Share Posted March 13 Hey Matt and Team Question, Due to a work hour change, I can no longer catch the Monday blog live, and have not been able to watch the recorded version in a while. You have always been known to say no to RCL gift cards. I heard they have changed the rules and are a lot easier to use. So... DO you now recommend them? How can they be used? How can you buy them? Can I use them to save up for a cruise at like $50 a week? Do you have a video explaining the changes? RCIfan1912 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 They did get changed recently: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2023/10/20/royal-caribbean-has-quietly-upgraded-its-gift-cards-be-much-more-useful I haven't personally used them, but they have much better redemption rules compared to the old ones. I won't go as far as to say I'd recommend them yet, but it appears like it's a step in the right direction. 19 hours ago, Donnie said: Can I use them to save up for a cruise at like $50 a week? An alternative is to open a new checking account (should be free at your bank) and start stashing the money there. Or under your mattress, eitherway. RCIfan1912 and TessFromFlorida 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reigert2008 Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 20 hours ago, Donnie said: Can I use them to save up for a cruise at like $50 a week? 1 hour ago, Matt said: An alternative is to open a new checking account (should be free at your bank) and start stashing the money there @Donnie I would not recommend getting that many gift cards for anything. It would be better to do like @Matt suggested and open an extra account someplace and save the money there. With how things in the world can change rapidly, you'd want your money to be more "liquid" than in gift card that can only be used in one spot. Also you'd have to keep up with all the cards and then spend some amount of time getting them applied to the booking. I've done it in the past with Disney gift cards for the fuel points, and even with using $200 gift cards, it was a terrible pain to deal with. If you have the cash available, you could even put the amount needed for the trip in a short term CD that earns more interest than a savings account and "make" some extra spending money for the trip! *I am not a financial advisor and this is not intended as financial advice. Please contact your financial advisor or tax professional for specifics to your situation. Good Luck! Ryan79 and TessFromFlorida 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharla Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 Even if the gift cards work perfectly- they will be a pain to use. You (or ideally, your travel agent) will have to input these numbers to make any payment. So if you save up a whole bunch of gift cards then they will have to be input individually. A huge PITA to be honest. People do this for Disney all the time and while I am accommodating I will request that the guest combine them on the Disney gift card site to make it easier for me and the cast member. Here's what I'd rather you do for Royal Caribbean- FlexPay! This will allow you to pay weekly or monthly a certain amount and it's all set up automatically. It would be the equivalent of putting money away weekly once your cruise is booked. Ryan79 and Reigert2008 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reigert2008 Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 1 hour ago, Sharla said: I will request that the guest combine them on the Disney gift card site This is what I do. I have an "older" Disney Gift card that accepts up to $1000 in total value, so as we acquire Disney gift cards during the year, i move those balances to my "trip card" and then when we make a visit (we're annual passholders), we have them swipe that one card on our room and put the rest on the credit card. TessFromFlorida and Sharla 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freegirl Posted March 14 Report Share Posted March 14 I received a Royal Caribbean gift card recently and I was able to take it to Guest Services and apply it directly to my account. It only took about a minute to do and it covered most of our specialty dining charge! This was especially useful to us since we use our BOGO D+ benefit on the first two nights and don't book dining in advance. KristiZ and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristineA Posted March 15 Report Share Posted March 15 My friends at work gave me a RCCL gift card for Christmas knowing I was leaving on a cruise in February. Freegirl said it best. It was super easy. Just wait until you have a balance on your on board account. I tried going to guest services right away and they told me they couldn't load it yet because I hadn't spent any money on the ship. Once you have a balance, it took 2 minutes for them to add it right on. Happy cruising! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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