How do you get a resolution to Royal Caribbean booking issues?
Here's my customer service story, what I did, and how I was able to get it resolved finally.
Storytime:
On Saturday, November 9th, I received an amazing Black Friday email deal from Royal Caribbean for dining packages on my upcoming cruise - this included the 3-Day Dining Package. I canceled my existing dining reservation and re-booked the three day dining as well as Chops Grill. However, no confirmation email arrived and the orders were not showing in my account under Order History. I checked my credit card, and the charge was there.
What followed was a week of calls and email that would test anyone's patience: 4+ hours on hold, four unanswered emails, and three separate booking attempts online that did not show up on my account. Each time I reached a customer service rep, I hit a wall:
Saturday: Email sent with no response
Monday: "It's a system issue, check tomorrow it will be automatically fixed" (but they couldn't note my discounted price)
On Tuesday, I sent Royal Caribbean an email explaining everything.
On Wednesday, I called again and was told, "Sorry, we can't honor the discount, but you can go back online and re-book it.
Thursday, sent an email with no response
Saturday: I finally got a transaction number (after recording my entire booking process), but still radio silence on my previous emails.
Monday: Called again and was able to resolve the issue but I did not call the traditional Royal Caribbean phone number. I also contacted the executive team.
I know large companies like Royal Caribbean have their challenges, but this seems excessive. Have others experienced similar issues with RC's booking system? I'm sharing this hoping to help others who are having issues like I did.
Here is how I was able to get a resolution:
I originally called Royal Caribbean's main number 1 (800) 256-6649 (no resolution on either call)
On my last call, I called the Crown and Anchor Number: 1 (800)526-9723 (they were able to help)
As a last resort, I emailed their president and CEO at Michael.Bayley@royalcaribbean.com I received a call back within 24 hours to ensure everything had been resolved properly.