Following the example from sister cruise line Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises has extended its Cruise with Confidence program. The program offers a much more flexible cancellation policy that will undoubtedly help with giving guests confidence to book a cruise.
The policy allows guests to cancel their voyage up to 48 hours before sailing. If that cancellation does happen within a period when penalties are ordinarily applied to the booking, guests will receive a Future Cruise Credit.
Cruise With Confidence Extended Until January 31, 2022
Guests who book a cruise with Celebrity Cruises, or those on the fence about booking a cruise, will be happy to note that the cruise line has extended its Cruise with Confidence program through January 2022. The policy is such that guests may cancel their voyage up to 48 hours before the cruise’s start and receive 100% of the cruise fare as a Future Cruise Credit (FCC).
A cancellation can come for any reason on any booking made by January 31, 2022. However, the FCC must be used for a new cruise by May 31, 2022, on any cruise onboard a Celebrity ship through December 31, 2022, or one year from the original sailing date, whichever is later.
The previous end date for the policy was December 17, 2021 on sailings departing on or before May 4, 2022.
Both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises have extended their Cruise with Confidence policies. With both cruise lines hoping to be operational with their entire fleet before the summer of 2022, boosting consumer confidence is essential for the companies. The cancellation policy is not the only perk that guests have.
How Does Cruise With Confidence Work?
The Cruise with Confidence policy from Celebrity Cruises is not just a cancellation policy; some more perks and advantages are designed to give guests the confidence needed to book a cruise.
The program also offers Celebrity Cruises’ Best Price Guarantee, allowing guests to change their price or promotion up to 48 hours before sailing. What does this mean? If a guest finds a cheaper cruise or one that offers better onboard perks than their current voyage, they may change their cruise to the new promo price as many times as they like, up to 48 hours before sailing.
The best price guarantee is one part of the program that has been well received since it was introduced. One of the biggest annoyances for guests booking a cruise is finding that cruise for a much lower price, with more inclusions, after final payments had been made. If guests see this now, they can apply the new price to their bookings.
There are some factors that guests will need to keep in mind though. If Celebrity Cruises’ best price guarantee results in a decrease in cruise fare after the final payment, the difference will be provided as a non-refundable onboard credit. If it decreases the guest’s cruise fare before the Final Payment due date, Celebrity will provide the difference in a rate adjustment.
Guests will need to opt-in to the Cruise with Confidence program. Should they fail to do so, or choose not to opt-in, the original cancellation policy applies to their cruise. If a guest cancels before the final payment due date, Celebrity will refund any payments except for any non-refundable deposits.
If a guest cancels after the final payment due date, they will be subject to cancellation charges. This could mean guests lose the entire amount paid for the voyage.
The hope is now that both Celebrity and Royal Caribbean continue to offer the program after the pandemic ends. Although chances of this happening are small, it would mean a groundbreaking shift in the travel and tourism industry.
