Originally Posted by ocdb8r

On an $8,000 booking it's a valid point. With the current Amex offers though, it's a different story - I think [MENTION=224846]mrkenneth[/MENTION] post was not referencing the "Cruise Privilege's" program, but rather the recent Amex offers that have popped up on cruises (of which there are quite a few recently). For example, many received an offer for Royal Caribbean for $500 back when charging at least $1500 to your Amex. Combine this with the Cruise Privilege's program which will gives you on board credits depending on the cabin booked, and you can be doing quite well. I also note that you don't need to spend 8k to get decent benefits from the Cruise Privileges program - you get a $200 on board credit for any balcony stateroom (plus some other minor perk, like champagne). At current prices for the upcoming year, you can get on many 1-week cruises for under 2k total for 2 people (making that credit worth 10%...and you're still getting the Amex points). Bottom line, everyone should do their own calculations to makes sure they're maximizing options.

[MENTION=224846]mrkenneth[/MENTION] - as has been mentioned above, in nearly every case these charges are posted by the cruiseline and not the Travel Agent (this is standard practice for the cruise lines as they prefer to have the cash in their hands and rebate commissions to the agents).