Refundable vs. Non-refundable Cruise Fares

[minnesotapaintlady]

Someone please explain this to me.  Royal Caribbean if that helps.

At checkout I can choose to pay an extra $635 for refundable tickets.  Everything I'm reading says if I cancel or change book date or other changes like cabin before the final payment date, paying this fee entitles me to 100% refund of all my deposit up until the final payment date (there might be $100/passenger that isn't refundable).

Ok, so if my deposit is $750, why on earth would I pay an extra $635 to maybe get that $750 back if I cancelled?  I mean, getting the $750 back is cool, but if I'm paying $635 for the privilege it's more like $115 refund.  There are no other required payments before the final lump sum payment 75 days before the cruise and it doesn't refund AFTER the final payment date, so why?  What am I missing here? 

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Clueless.  This makes no sense to me.

[jerseygirl]

Makes no sense. Insurance would probably be less and cover more.

[resolution]

A few months ago I paid $462 for travel insurance (travelex) on an $8000 trip. It covered the list below. The trip cancellation was only for specified reasons like illness or other situations beyond my control, it couldn't be just because I changed my mind, but there was an upgrade i could have bought that would cover cancellation for any reason.

Trip Cancellation 100% of Insured Trip Cost

Trip Interruption 150% of Insured Trip Cost

Trip Interruption - Return Air Only $1,000

Trip Delay $2,000 ($250/day)

Missed Connection $750

Baggage & Personal Effects $1,000

Baggage Delay $200

Sporting Equipment Delay $200

Emergency Medical & Dental Expense $50,000 ($500 dental sublimit)

Emergency Evacuation & Repatriation $500,000

Accidental Death & Dismemberment $25,000

Travel Assistance Services Included

[resolution]

Mom and dad used to be big cruisers and they always bought trip insurance from a separate company. It paid off for them when one of the cruise lines they had booked with went bankrupt and they received their fare back from the insurance. Also they have witnessed other cruisers getting injured in accidents and having to be air evacced out to a foreign hospital, so the medical coverage is important if you need a transfer back to the US.

[susana1954]

Sept 7, 2022 23:32:06 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Someone please explain this to me.  Royal Caribbean if that helps.

At checkout I can choose to pay an extra $635 for refundable tickets.  Everything I'm reading says if I cancel or change book date or other changes like cabin before the final payment date, paying this fee entitles me to 100% refund of all my deposit up until the final payment date (there might be $100/passenger that isn't refundable).

Ok, so if my deposit is $750, why on earth would I pay an extra $635 to maybe get that $750 back if I cancelled?  I mean, getting the $750 back is cool, but if I'm paying $635 for the privilege it's more like $115 refund.  There are no other required payments before the final lump sum payment 75 days before the cruise and it doesn't refund AFTER the final payment date, so why?  What am I missing here? 

I know nothing about cruises . . . 

Are you signing a contract for the rest of the cost when you make the deposit?  Does this insurance cover the cancellation of that contract if it exists?

[minnesotapaintlady]

Trip insurance is different.  They offer that for something like $300.  Not sure I'd get it because my Chase Sapphire card seems to provide the same coverage if I pay with that.  It's all very confusing.  This is just paying extra to insure your deposit. Up to 90 days before the cruise the final payment is 100% refundable either way, but I see change fees are waived if you have a refundable fare ticket, so not sure what all that covers?  If I drop a passenger would that be refunded? 

www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/booking-cancellation-refund-policy

Q Should I choose to cancel a reservation confirmed under a non-refundable deposit fare, what refunds will apply?
A

For sailings booked on or before March 31, 2022:

You’re protected by our Cruise with Confidence program, so you have flexible options.

For sailings booked by March 31, 2022 that depart by September 30, 2022, you can cancel up to 48 hours before your sail date and get the full paid value in a Future Cruise Credit.

For sailings booked after March 31, 2022:

Cruise with Confidence does not apply. Please see below for the Cancellation policy for all sailings booked after March 31, 2022.

Outside of final payment, when a non-refundable deposit cancellation occurs, the full deposit amount will be held in penalty. Any additional payments made will be refunded.

Should you choose to change your original ship and/or sail date, if you booked directly with us, please contact our Consumer Outreach team at [phone] where a representative will assist in making the desired changes, while also applying the qualifying change fee(s) and collecting payment, if not already done so. If you booked via a travel advisor, please contact them for any booking changes.

[minnesotapaintlady]

$650 to insure my $750 deposit?  There has to be more to this. 

[engineerdoe]

www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/ticket-contract.aspx

According to the contract language the only time you can't get your deposit back is if it is a specific promotion you are booking that says it is non-refundable (Super Saver, Early Saver, Pack & Go).  Also the language you had posted in post #6 is referring to booking travel before March 31, 2022 so it wouldn't apply if you are currently booking now.
I personally would not pay that amount (roughly 3/4 of the deposit) to get my full deposit back.  I don't know why they are offering it and I suspect they are doing it to confuse people to purchase it.  

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 8, 2022 11:02:59 GMT -5 engineerdoe said:

www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/ticket-contract.aspx

According to the contract language the only time you can't get your deposit back is if it is a specific promotion you are booking that says it is non-refundable (Super Saver, Early Saver, Pack & Go).  Also the language you had posted in post #6 is referring to booking travel before March 31, 2022 so it wouldn't apply if you are currently booking now.
I personally would not pay that amount (roughly 3/4 of the deposit) to get my full deposit back.  I don't know why they are offering it and I suspect they are doing it to confuse people to purchase it.  

Your link is for Carnival.

The link I posted above has the cancellation policy for both before March 31, 2022 and after March 31, 2022.

[engineerdoe]

Sept 8, 2022 11:12:19 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Sept 8, 2022 11:02:59 GMT -5 engineerdoe said:

www.carnival.com/about-carnival/legal-notice/ticket-contract.aspx

According to the contract language the only time you can't get your deposit back is if it is a specific promotion you are booking that says it is non-refundable (Super Saver, Early Saver, Pack & Go).  Also the language you had posted in post #6 is referring to booking travel before March 31, 2022 so it wouldn't apply if you are currently booking now.
I personally would not pay that amount (roughly 3/4 of the deposit) to get my full deposit back.  I don't know why they are offering it and I suspect they are doing it to confuse people to purchase it.  

Your link is for Carnival.

The link I posted above has the cancellation policy for both before March 31, 2022 and after March 31, 2022.

I was told reading comprehension wasn't part of the test.
I still don't know why they are offiering the refundable deposit for a fee that is equal to 3/4s of the deposit.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 8, 2022 11:31:08 GMT -5 engineerdoe said:

Sept 8, 2022 11:12:19 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Your link is for Carnival.

The link I posted above has the cancellation policy for both before March 31, 2022 and after March 31, 2022.

I was told reading comprehension wasn't part of the test.
I still don't know why they are offiering the refundable deposit for a fee that is equal to 3/4s of the deposit.

Me either.  It's driving me nuts, especially since even with the refundable fare deposit you still have a service charge of $100/guest taken off.  I think I'm just going to call and talk to a human.

[engineerdoe]

Sept 8, 2022 11:38:03 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Sept 8, 2022 11:31:08 GMT -5 engineerdoe said:

I was told reading comprehension wasn't part of the test.
I still don't know why they are offiering the refundable deposit for a fee that is equal to 3/4s of the deposit.

Me either.  It's driving me nuts, especially since even with the refundable fare deposit you still have a service charge of $100/guest taken off.  I think I'm just going to call and talk to a human.

So a $650 fee to get back your $750 deposit minus $100 service fee?  Meaning actual refund = $0?  Yeah I would need someone to explain this "new math" to me.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 8, 2022 11:57:36 GMT -5 engineerdoe said:

Sept 8, 2022 11:38:03 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Me either.  It's driving me nuts, especially since even with the refundable fare deposit you still have a service charge of $100/guest taken off.  I think I'm just going to call and talk to a human.

So a $650 fee to get back your $750 deposit minus $100 service fee?  Meaning actual refund = $0?  Yeah I would need someone to explain this "new math" to me.

$100 PER GUEST.  So $300 for the boys and I.  Pay $650 to get back $450 if I cancel.

This is way more convoluted and way more "extra fees" than when I booked with NCL in 2017.

[finnime]

I would be very interested in their explanation if you do call them and ask.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 8, 2022 20:57:36 GMT -5 finnime said:

I would be very interested in their explanation if you do call them and ask.

I emailed the travel planner from RC this evening, but he was probably done working for the day.  I'll let you know when he gets back to me.  I went ahead and booked non-refundable.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 8, 2022 20:57:36 GMT -5 finnime said:

I would be very interested in their explanation if you do call them and ask.

Q: I have a question about the refundable deposit fee. Is paying this fee just guaranteeing my deposit back if I cancel before final payment is due or is there more to it? Otherwise, I’m not seeing the point of paying $650 more for the room in order to insure getting back a $750 deposit if I should cancel…
A: That’s really it, so as you say it is not really worth it in this case.

Which leads me to wonder in what case it IS worth it, but whatever.  At least I know I wasn't missing out on anything.  Maybe if someone books multiple staterooms the fee is not so high as a percentage? But it was listed as a per stateroom charge, so who knows.  My guess is they're hoping to trick people into paying it. 

[wvugurl26]

I guess maybe if you had a really expensive cruise?

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 9, 2022 8:49:37 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

I guess maybe if you had a really expensive cruise?

Possibly but refundable isn't even an option on the suites which would be the really expensive options.  Now I feel compelled to book some scenarios.

I found the most expensive cruise they had and it was 20K for 14 days.  The refundable deposit fee was $969 and the deposit was still $750 ($250pp).  So, it makes even less sense in that case.  Maybe multiple state room bookings, but I don't want to mess with running that scenario.

[wvugurl26]

My cousin booked one of those loft suites for the RC cruise they did earlier this year. But they have 3 kids and this was supposed to be the wedding/honeymoon cruise. I canceled when they canceled the wedding as covid numbers went up in February.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Sept 9, 2022 9:07:11 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

My cousin booked one of those loft suites for the RC cruise they did earlier this year. But they have 3 kids and this was supposed to be the wedding/honeymoon cruise. I canceled when they canceled the wedding as covid numbers went up in February.

Those loft suites are amazing!  Carrot wanted one because they have baby grand pianos in them.  But i think they were like 14K/pp!