Among all of the cancellation and refund news, Royal Caribbean adds new (and extends) booking incentives to instill confidence in its loyal customer base.
Royal Caribbean announced that they will continue Cruise with Confidence into 2022! This policy allows anxious cruisers to cancel their cruise up to 48 hours prior to sailing and receive 100% future cruise credit. If a credit is acceptable, it may make booking a cruise risk-free.
This is great news for those looking at future bookings yet are unsure of the safety of cruising. Given the state of the pandemic and CDC current halt on cruising until Mid-July, it’s easy to be, well, uneasy.
Book Your Cruise By August 1, 2020
Royal is offering the cruise with confidence extension for sailing until April of 2022 but you have to book your cruise by August 1, 2020. So, start checking out those itineraries soon.
Best Price Guarantee
Royal also announced the “Best Price Guarantee” promotion which notes that any price drops up to 48 hours prior to sailing will be honored. If you’ve already reached the paid-in-full deadline, the difference will be awarded as an onboard credit.
Cruise lines have been known to offer this in the past, even Royal Caribbean. However, it would occasionally require a top-notch travel agent. If you booked the cruise yourself, you may have to catch the right customer service representative when you called the cruise line asking for a price adjustment.
Royal Caribbean Booking Incentives – “Life & Shift”
As a further incentive for cruisers to be loyal to Royal (and Celebrity, which among others is owned by Royal Caribbean), the company is offering “Lift & Shift”. This allows cruisers to move their booked cruise from one sailing to a similar sailing at a later date. No, It doesn’t even have to be on the same ship. Of course, consult your travel professional because there are sure to be several restrictions.
For example, it’s unlikely that you can “Lift & Shift” your February sailing on Majesty of the Seas to a Holiday Sailing and ring in the new year onboard the Ovation of the Seas. However, I bet some people will try.
Currently, Royal Caribbean has a return-to-service date for select ships and itineraries on June 12, 2020, but expect this to be delayed again. Carnival recently announced its plan to return to cruising with select ships and ports in August.
For the current list of cruise cancellations and return-to-service plans check this post. Be sure to consult your travel agent or the cruise line directly as things are changing almost daily.
Are you taking advantage of the new booking incentives? Have you had a cruise cancelled due to the pandemic? Let me know in the comments below or share in our community on social media.
