Carnival not so Specials

[mystery_caller]

Hi, I have my April 23/2011 cruise bought and paid for on line through the carnival site. I just found a carnival 72 hour sale that offers 216.00 cheaper then I have paid. When I first signed on for this it said if you find a lower price Carnival will reimburse the difference. I just got off the phone and no such luck...they just fed me a line...and before you ask... No it wasn't an early saver!

[Kuki]

You should be outside of final payment date, so I don't really understand their position. You could cancel and rebook.

[mystery_caller]

If I cancell I have to pay 600.00

[Kuki]

Originally Posted by mystery_caller

If I cancell I have to pay 600.00

Not sure I understand why. What date was your final payment due date?

[Donna]

Can you explain why you'd have to pay $600 and why the cruise is already paid for?

[Snoozeman]

Never completely pay for a cruise BEFORE the final payment date. Deposit only.

[hojo]

Why would you not make the final payment till it's due?

[A&B]

I'd want to hold onto my money until the deadline in case anything happened with the cruise line prior to my sailing date.

We had the Big Red Boat booked once with Premier Cruise Lines (years ago now) and the line went bankrupt soon before my sailing date. Fortunately, we paid by credit card and did get our money back, but all those who paid cash were basically screwed. Even though we did get our money back, we still had red-tape to go through with the CC company so was not fun to deal with.

That is the main reason why I never pay until the deadline.

Beth

[Snoozeman]

Originally Posted by hojo

Why would you not make the final payment till it's due?

You have much more flexibility with your booking. It can be transfered to a TA, it can easily be cancelled for full refund (except ES fares), it can be transferred, etc.

If you pay in full your kind of 'locked in' depending on fare code and terms. The worse thing you can do is pay early an Early Saver fare.

[Chris M]

To your original question regarding the best price guarantee, Carnival only guarantees best price if you find it within 48 hours of booking. However, as everyone else has said, if it's out of final payment you should cancel and either rebook or go with another agency.

Okay. Breathe in deeply. Hold for five seconds. Now slowly exhale. That sense of calm you're feeling is thanks to our 110% Best Price Guarantee. It works like this: you book your cruise with Carnival. And if within 48 hours you find a lower-priced fare available to the public, we'll give you 110% of the difference in onboard credit. That's what you call your classic win-win situation: peace of mind and a fruity umbrella drink in your hand.

[krunch]

I found this for the early saver program.

"Price protection applies to new Early Saver bookings only and requires payment of a non-refundable and non-transferable deposit. Applies to cruise fare only. Applies only to a Carnival.com or Carnival advertised fare available to the general public and excludes group rates, membership programs, charters or other Travel Agent promotions not offered by Carnival to the general public, including but not limited to travel agent rebates. "

Read it all here:
Early Saver Program | Carnival Cruise Lines

Krunch

[mystery_caller]

Feb 7 was the date for final payment.I booked it a few months back. i wanted to make sure I got the location midship and on the deck I wanted.

[Kuki]

I have no idea why Feb 7 would have been final due date for an Apr. 23 cruise.

I haven't checked for awhile, but has the final payment date moved to 75 days prior?

[krunch]

Kuki,

I think that might be exactly it. Just this week I emailed Carnival about some basic information as I am considering organizing a group cruise (Family & Friends) in 2013. That is one thing they indeed told me. Final payment was due 75 days before the cruise date. The other thing they told me (not really relevent to this thread but) was once I did decide and organize the people for the group, and call them for pricing, that price (quote) is only valid for 14 days. So I would have to give people lots of notice that I would be calling on "X" date and that they would have to at least deposit $250 per person on the group cruise within that 14 day period.

Krunch

[cruise soon]

Maybe you should check to see if you can get onboard credit for the difference. There is a form you can fill out to check on it.

[A&B]

I haven't checked for awhile, but has the final payment date moved to 75 days prior?

Yes. Not sure for how long now, but was the case for my last cruise. Used to be 60 I think.

[Wendy Loves To Cruise]

You could also request an upgrade... just saying =)

[jadejazzkayla]

thanks for mentioning the carnival 72 hour sale. i googled it and bingo. saved me a bunch.