Costco, Placeholder, Changing of Itinerary

[AJ09876]

I've search and can't seem to find the answer to this. I have a cruise planned this December. If I call Costco on October 4th to book one of the 2020 cruises, then what happens if I want to take advantage of the discount if I book onboard in December? Or am I just out of luck as far as the onboard booking discount?

Also, what happens of I later want to change that booking to another cruising?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I've search and can't seem to find the answer to this. I have a cruise planned this December. If I call Costco on October 4th to book one of the 2020 cruises, then what happens if I want to take advantage of the discount if I book onboard in December? Or am I just out of luck as far as the onboard booking discount?

Also, what happens of I later want to change that booking to another cruising?

You have a placeholder. You can apply that placeholder to any cruise you wish, as long as that future cruise is before the end of the 24 month period for using it.

You can book a cruise on Oct 4th and may, or may not, apply the onboard booking benefits to it. And then book another cruise once onboard the ship (with or without the OBB perks).

If you're asking if you can book Oct 4th using the OBB placeholder and then reshop the same cruise while onboard in Dec, yes you can do that. But, be aware any discounts with an onboard booking will apply to the prevailing rate of the cruise that day (not the day you originally booked it). It's quite possible for rates to raise enough between Oct and Dec to negate any savings using the OBB placeholder.

If you book a cruise using the OBB placeholder, and then wish to change which cruise you want to take, just call DCL to "change" the cruise date (DO NOT SAY CANCEL) and the perks will then apply to that new cruise (as long as it's before the 24 month window closes).

 

[disneyfaninaz]

If you book a cruise on Oct 4, you can "reshop" that cruise while on your December cruise to get a booking onboard discount. I have done that twice and was able to take advantage of an onboard booking discount. However, the category you booked for the cruise in October has to be still be available in December or you can book an entirely different category. Basically, you will get 2 reservations and will need to cancel your first reservation when you return home. You can also move your original stateroom and deposit to your new reservation at that time. if you so choose.

 

[lilsonicfan]

So I take it you don't have a placeholder, but you will be cruising in Dec 2018. In your scenario, you won't need to purchase a placeholder. What you will want to do (most likely) is book your cruise on Oct 4 (you may find it faster to book online, then transfer it to Costco as opposed to calling Costco, but I'm not sure of that), and then re-shop it once you are on board in December 2018. If you find that the on-board booking gives a better price (which may be the case, if the price hasn't gone up much in two months), then you can do the on-board booking for that itinerary, which is not called a placeholder.