Should I Book A Placeholder On Board?

[BWV Dreamin]

Im a bit confused with the differences wjen it comes to booking a placeholder onboard DCL vs waiting to book with a DU travel agent. Is there a difference in OBC? Is there still a 10% discount with a placeholder? Would appreciate the pros and cons.

 

[starry_solo]

There is a discount on the cruise from Disney, when a placeholder is booked. When the placeholder is transferred to a TA like DU, you will get a smaller OBC than if DU booked your new reservation originally (unless, of course DU was your original TA)

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Im a bit confused with the differences wjen it comes to booking a placeholder onboard DCL vs waiting to book with a DU travel agent. Is there a difference in OBC? Is there still a 10% discount with a placeholder? Would appreciate the pros and cons.

If you know you're going to do another cruise, yes, book it onboard.

Booking onboard gets you a 10% discount on the cruise fare.

You can transfer your booking to a travel agent (within 30 days) to get any perks the TA may offer. Be aware, booking first and then transferring typically results in lower perks than if you use the TA to make the booking. But using the TA to book results in no 10% discount. You need to figure out which will work best for you.

Onboard bookings (either a placeholder or an actual cruise booking) will both receive the 10% discount.

 

[Mommb]

If you book (other than a Concierge room or a blackout date) while onboard, you will get a 10% discount off the fare. There is no longer any onboard credit (except for Concierge rooms). If you booked your existing cruise through a travel agent, you can name the same agent for your on-board booking.

If you don’t know when you want to cruise again, or the dates you want haven’t been released yet, you can book a placeholder through DCL or through your current travel agent. You will pay a $250 deposit, with the remaining deposit when you book an actual cruise date. If you convert the placeholder to an actual cruise that departs within 2 years of when the placeholder was booked (again, except for Concierge rooms or blackout dates) you will get a 10% discount on the fare.

You can cancel a cruise booked onboard for a full refund of your deposit at any time up until the final payment date. You can cancel a placeholder reservation for a full refund at any time. If you don’t convert the placeholder to a cruise within 2 years, your deposit will be automatically refunded.

The only downside to booking onboard is that you will tie up the money for the deposit. The upside is locking in current rates and saving money on the fare.

 

[Geomom]

The placeholder booking is actually $250. If you currently have a TA (like Dreams Unlimited), you can say that you'd like to use them for your placeholder booking and you'll get the Dreams Unlimited OBC (the lower on board booking/transfer amount) AND the 10% off your cruise rate from DCL. The placeholder needs to be used for a cruise that sails within 24 mths of the booking, otherwise your $250 deposit will be refunded. Usually the 10% off your cruise more than makes up for losing 1/2 the OBC from DU, so I would definitely do the placeholder while on board!

(If you only book through a TA after your cruise, you will not get the 10% off, only the full OBC that TA offers.)

 

[PrincessShmoo]

ou will pay a $200 per person deposit,

The placeholder booking is actually $250.

And that's $250 per placeholder (stateroom).

 

[Mommb]

Thanks! I will fix the cost in my original post. Sorry about that!

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thanks! I will fix the cost in my original post. Sorry about that!

If you convert the placeholder to an actual cruise within 2 years of when it was booked (again, except for Concierge rooms or blackout dates) you will get a 10% discount on the fare.

A bit of further clarification: You must convert the placeholder to a cruise that begins by the 2 year mark, not convert the placeholder by the 2 year mark. That is, the cruise must begin by the end of the 2 year window. You can't book at the end of the 2 year window for a cruise later than that.

 

[Mommb]

That’s what I meant, but I now see that was unclear. Thanks again!

 

[BWV Dreamin]

Awesome info!! I am planning a Panama Canal Cruise for spring 2022. I see that the next sailings released wont include this sailing. So while onboard my September cruise, I should book a place holder. With the price of the cruise (looking at this years pricing), I think I will save more with the 10% discount. Thank you everyone. This is why I love the DIS community!!!!

 

[orion2185]

just wondering can each person in your stateroom book a placeholder booking on the cruise? Or, is it only 1 placeholder per stateroom?
It's just my wife and I that sail...but wondering if each of us could book a placeholder in our name.
We live in Australia and typically do 1 or 2 cruises at a time (since it's such a long way to travel just for 1 cruise and the cost of airfare).
In 2021 we are doing our first true b2b cruise on the Fantasy and thinking this is how we will try to do all future cruises. We have done the parks and our DVC owners...so there's not a whole lot of interest in land and sea trip (prefer just the cruise aspect).
TIA

 

[PrincessShmoo]

just wondering can each person in your stateroom book a placeholder booking on the cruise? Or, is it only 1 placeholder per stateroom?
It's just my wife and I that sail...but wondering if each of us could book a placeholder in our name.
We live in Australia and typically do 1 or 2 cruises at a time (since it's such a long way to travel just for 1 cruise and the cost of airfare).
In 2021 we are doing our first true b2b cruise on the Fantasy and thinking this is how we will try to do all future cruises. We have done the parks and our DVC owners...so there's not a whole lot of interest in land and sea trip (prefer just the cruise aspect).
TIA

Each "household address" can book up to 2 placeholders on the same future cruise.

If two people in the same room have two different household addresses, they can book 4 rooms/placeholders. That would be each person could book 2. But the two of them don't have to book all 4 for the same cruise.

 

[orion2185]

Thank you. Just so we understand correctly
It's 2 placeholder for the same curise sail dates, per household address? Not 2 different sail dates/ships?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thank you. Just so we understand correctly
It's 2 placeholder for the same curise sail dates, per household address? Not 2 different sail dates/ships?

Correct. I'm figuring you and your wife have the same household address. You (the two of you) can book 2 placeholders/rooms for the same (one) future cruise. You cannot book one placeholder on one cruise and one placeholder on a a different cruise.

Just a bit more clarification - you can book more than one cruise while onboard, but only one of them will get the onboard booking perks.

 

[tarheelz]

If you know you're going to do another cruise, yes, book it onboard.

Booking onboard gets you a 10% discount on the cruise fare.

You can transfer your booking to a travel agent (within 30 days) to get any perks the TA may offer. Be aware, booking first and then transferring typically results in lower perks than if you use the TA to make the booking. But using the TA to book results in no 10% discount. You need to figure out which will work best for you.

Onboard bookings (either a placeholder or an actual cruise booking) will both receive the 10% discount.

I transferred our last placeholder to Costco because the Disney Castmember on the ship advised me to do that since she couldn't do that TA placement on-board. (My prior placeholder had not been transferred and their rule is that they can only put a placeholder with the TA who had handled the current cruise's booking.)

Why would anyone book a placeholder and transfer it if the transfer terminates the entire benefit of a placeholder (ie the 10% fare discount)?

If this is true, I'm a dead man. DS will not be happy at all that the price of our next cruise is going up by 10%.

 

[MichelleCanada]

With a placeholder you can book a 7 night or longer cruise and only put down a 10% deposit instead of 20%.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I transferred our last placeholder to Costco because the Disney Castmember on the ship advised me to do that since she couldn't do that TA placement on-board. (My prior placeholder had not been transferred and their rule is that they can only put a placeholder with the TA who had handled the current cruise's booking.)

Why would anyone book a placeholder and transfer it if the transfer terminates the entire benefit of a placeholder (ie the 10% fare discount)?

If this is true, I'm a dead man. DS will not be happy at all that the price of our next cruise is going up by 10%.

Yeah, in re-reading it's not real clear. What I was saying, if you just wait and book directly with a TA (not onboard) there's no 10% discount. But, chances are, you'll get better perks, since DCL no longer offers OBC for onboard bookings.

If you book onboard, and the cruise you are currently on had a TA attached you can only keep the same TA or book without a TA and then transfer to another TA once back home. If the cruise you are on doesn't have a TA attached to the reservation, you can indicate a TA at the time you book onboard.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

So booking a placeholder and transferring to a TA still gets you the 10% discount, just not DCL OBC, correct? If so I guess I’m missing why to transfer to a TA at all?

 

[cwis]

So booking a placeholder and transferring to a TA still gets you the 10% discount, just not DCL OBC, correct? If so I guess I’m missing why to transfer to a TA at all?

DCL no longer offers OBC with placeholders reservations.

 

[bobbiwoz]

DCL no longer offers OBC with placeholders reservations.

And they no longer give OBC with a distinct future cruise reservation!