Our honest review of Celebrity Summit (and how it compares to NCL & Oceania)

OBC: On Board Credit: 

What it is. How to get it. How to spend it!

 

TYPES OF OBC:

Refundable  is usually given by a travel agent and can be stacked with other OBC. If you don't use all of your refundable credit, the agency will usually send you a check after the cruise. This type will usually stack with non-refundable OBC. 

 NonRefundable is usually given by the cruise line, travel agent, shareholder benefit or credit card as a perk. If you don't use it, you'll lose it. Make sure you spend every penny!

Category Specific is good only for a certain type of on board spend. They usually include one of the following: excursions run by the cruise line, spa or wellness credits, casino credits or beverage upgrades. 

How to get it:

 Before the cruise:

 ·         Special booking offers from cruise lines or travel agents.  Often you can stack them for more OBC.
o   OBC through the Cruise line you usually see in your portal or app before the cruise
o   OBC through agents usually show up on your account only after you are on the ship.

·         Loyalty programs – the higher up you go in a loyalty program the more likely you are to receive extra OBC on every future cruise, that stacks on any others you may receive.

·         Group bookings, if you book five or more cabins for a trip it might be worth booking as a group. Often the cruise line will give each cabin some on board spend.

·         Paying for a trip with a premium credit card: Amex Plat give OBC and special events when you put the entire trip on your card. On a 7 day cruise on Oceania we had $300.00 of AMEX on top of our cruise line OBC (Scotland trip) Sometimes this is not available if you get a special price or discount cruise, but you should always ask. 

·         Paying with a cruise branded credit card. Often you can use your points to use towards a cruise, category upgrade or for OBC. Check with your cruise line to see if this makes sense for you.
 Stock Holder Benefits: We cruise with the NCL family of cruise lines (NCL, Oceania & Regent Seven Seas) enough that it makes sense for us to have the minimum 100 shares of stock. This gets us at least $100.00 OBC

 ·         Repricing your cruise. We watch the prices of our cruise and get an adjustment if it goes down. Usually that is a reduction before final payment to the cruise price. Although rare, sometimes a cruise line will give you a ONE TIME adjustment AFTER final payment, so ask, if this happens it’s most likely you’ll see OBC when you board or in your account before.

•   Referrals: Some cruise lines like Windstar will give OBC to you for referring someone.

 

On the cruise:

·         If you have to cancel something prepaid and it doesn't get refunded to the credit card, you might get OBC. Be sure that it is refundable if this is the case.

 ·         Buying a ‘cruise next’ deposit for a future cruise while on board will often come with OBC on the cruise you are on or on your future cruise.

 ·         If something goes wrong on the cruise that can’t be easily fixed, like if you were downgraded to a different cabin due to overbooking have housekeeping issues that aren’t easily resolved, you can ask guest services for compensation. It pays to be nice and polite.

 What to spend it on: 

 First the basics of cruising – the things you are going to spend on:

·         Tips and gratuities (if you haven’t prepaid them) Not all cruise lines will allow this, so find out in advance. Holland America and NCL do not

  Things to make on board easier:

•   Babysitting and kids club activities
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•    Wi-Fi – this is often pricey so waiting to purchase on board or to upgrade might be a good use of OBC
•  Laundry – who wouldn’t like to come home with clean, pressed and folded clothes?
•     Room Service – especially if you aren’t feeling well or have a super early excursion

  Things that make life of board more fun:

 ·         Specialty Dining – buy a package as you board the ship. Make reservations at the same time.

·         Drinks – either buying a package on board or doing wine by the bottle

·         Fancy coffees at onboard coffee shops like Starbucks etc.

·         On board activities: Bingo, Arcades, go karts, flo rider, cooking classes, behind the scene tours

• ·         Casino play – not all cruise lines allow this, but some do. Just check at the Casino services desk to see if and of your OBC is eligible.
• ·         Spa and Salon Treatments – Need a haircut? OBC, want a deep tissue massage OBC, coveting the high priced spa products? OBC

·         Fitness center classes  & Cooking Classes, Wine or spirit tastings

·         Canapes, birthday cakes and spirits to be consumed in your cabin.

·         Excursions: last minute additions or changing to a more expensive one can help use it up.

Things that keep the memories alive:

 ·         Photo packages or photography services

• Souvenirs and gift shop items: the stores on most lines will be happy to help you spend that OBC 

What you CAN’T use it on:

 ·         Medical services on board (got that insurance? Be sure to watch our tale of two claims)

·         Future Cruise Certificates

·         Flights, transportation to and from port

  What to do if you haven’t used it all?

 ·         Why not go to guest relations and give an extra tip to a staff member who made things extra special for you?

·         Go to the duty free shop – need a new camera, cosmetics or some bottles of bubbly back home? Stock up with your OBC in the shops.

 Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments what your favorite thing to use OBC on or your most unusual!