Following similar moves from other major cruise lines, Celebrity Cruises has extended its “Cruise With Confidence” program through March 31, 2022. This will permit guests greater flexibility with their travel plans, knowing their vacation investment is protected if they should choose to change or cancel their cruise on short notice in these uncertain times.
Cruise With Confidence Dates Extended
With this latest update, announced January 13, 2022, Celebrity Cruises will now honor the Best Price Guarantee and Future Cruise Credit (FCC) components of the Cruise With Confidence program for bookings made through March 31, 2022 on sailings departing on or before September 30, 2022.
This includes sailings on Celebrity Beyond, the line’s third Edge-class ship that is scheduled to debut with a 10-night Western Europe itinerary setting sail on April 27, 2022.
Furthermore, if guests who booked refundable airfare through Flights by Celebrity now wish to modify their sailing date, Celebrity Cruises will handle all re-accommodations and waive change fees
Most recently, the program was only valid through January 31, 2022 on sailings departing on or before May 31, 2022. Celebrity Beyond bookings were not previously covered, but are now included from January 13 forward.
The Cruise With Confidence program was created on March 6, 2020, just before the industry-wide pandemic shutdown began. The original program allowed guests sailing through July 31, 2020, to reschedule or cancel their cruise in exchange for Future Cruise Credit up to 48 hours prior to sailing.
The program has been extended and modified 16 times in the past 22 months as pandemic conditions have evolved. Adjustments were also made for cruise bookings in select markets, such as Australia/New Zealand sailings that have different requirements than other markets.
Royal Caribbean also announced similar changes to their own Cruise With Confidence program on January 13. This is not surprising, as both Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises are part of the Royal Caribbean Group.
Future Cruise Credit Dates Also Extended
Another change made with this extension to Celebrity’s program is that all new and existing Future Cruise Credits must be used – both applied to a booking as well as setting sail – on or before December 31, 2022, or one year from the original sailing date, whichever is later.
Bookings made with FCCs from suspended sailings will also benefit from the Cruise With Confidence policy.
To give guests with multiple FCCs even greater opportunities, FCCs are stackable and multiple certificates may be redeemed per person on the same reservation. This can be especially helpful for passengers who want to delay their travel plans significantly, as pricing for sailings months ahead can be far different than pricing for cruises only recently suspended. Stacking FCCs can use those credits efficiently for cruising later this year.
Because there have been so many changes to the different components of the Cruise With Confident program, it can be confusing to sort out which options may be applicable to which sailings or cruise reservations. Guests are advised to contact their travel partner or Celebrity Cruises directly if they wish to change their vacation plans, or just to stay updated on what their current options may be.