Cost of cruising: now vs then

I posted something similar to this on the Princess boards as well when I saw so many people complaining that they were charging passengers an extra $10 if they ordered a second entree in the Crown Grill. And, now I see that people are complaining on this board about being charged for the gourmet style burgers they are going to be serving at what was formerly the Mast Grill on Celebrity.

Here is my experience and my feelings about cruising:

My first cruise was back in the early 80's ... it was on Carnival and I booked a week long cruise in an oceanview room for just a little under $100 a day per person (not including taxes, port charges, gratuities, trip insurance, etc). Food was all included but if you wanted a drink, you bought a drink. Fruit punch and even fountain sodas were self serve and free of charge... right there at the pool. They had a daily happy hour where they charged under $3 for a cocktail. We knew nothing about going for a spa treatment so not sure of the cost. Bingo was a mere $5. Gratuities were not automatically collected ... you got change at the front desk and filled your envelopes to hand to your room steward, your dining room waiter (there were no specialty restaurants), etc. The gratuities totaled approx $7 a day pp. Port charges, taxes, government fees, etc were a lot cheaper than they are now ... just as the gratuities, additional costs for specialty restaurants, single cocktail prices, excursions, etc. ... I mean, they were a LOT cheaper back in the early 80's.

Now, what hasn't really gone up exponentially like all these costs have?? It's the base price of an actual cruise!! I can still get a room on a major cruise line for under $100 per day per person for the cruise portion only ... I can and I do....and not on Carnival, either!! What I get now, though, is a balcony room for that pricing and it usually will come with at least one free perk, oftentimes three free perks so end up with a free beverage package, free gratuities and free onboard credit, sometimes even a free specialty dinner or two for each person in the cabin. And I usually can get this all for the same base price of the actual cruise fare that I paid way back in the early 80's....approx 35 years ago. So, while I am a bargain traveler, it really doesn't bother me to pay a little extra here and there onboard. Do I wish all these prices stayed the same and all the little extras remained free of charge? Yes, but when it comes down to it, the choice is mine and I don't have to purchase these extras if I don't want to. I am just thankful that the base fares haven't priced me right out of my favorite way of vacationing ... cruising is still a great bargain!! When they stop offering great fares and great perks, I guess I will have to stop cruising. But in the meanwhile, I just appreciate being able to do so!!

Bravo Cruise Raider. Bravo.

Happy sailings!

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I recently found the tickets for our honeymoon cruise in 1998. It was the Dawn Princess, in a lower category balcony. We sailed the same ship, same number of days, but in the highest balcony category in 2007. Guess which cost more?

In 1998, we got a daily newspaper digest, and we had to tip directly. We still had to buy drinks, and I don't think they'd started specialty dining yet.

I think our total in 2007 was about 6000. I think it was closer to 10000 in 98. (Both were 11 day cruises)

So, yeah, maybe it's a little less inclusive than it used to be, but in real dollars, the prices have pretty much held, I think.

Cruise Raider, I can't find the like button, but I sure wanted one!

Cruise Raider, I can't find the like button, but I sure wanted one!

I second that. Thanks Cruise Raider

Have a look at this Cruise Travel Magazine from 1979. On page 31 you will see 7 day Alaska cruises starting from $725. Run that through an inflation calculator and we see that is equivalent to $2456 in today's dollars. Just a month ago, I went on a 7 day Alaska cruise for about $725. That means that Alaska cruises cost about 1/3 of what they cost in 1979. (725/2456) I'd say cruises are a real bargain compared to 1979.

Cruise Travel Magazine on Google Books:

https://books.google.com/books?id=HzEDAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

I second that. Thanks Cruise Raider

Ditto.

In many ways what you say is true, but let's face it cruising is a whole different experience today. I've been a Celebrity fan for many years and have personally brought a lot of people to the Celebrity product and this is just my opinion.

The law of supply and demand and the fact that there are much larger ships and more of them factors in to the equation. I also recall people being able to jump on cruises at the last minute for $100 for the week.

Cruising was a unique experience, something that was really special. I remember things like giant containers of Beluga Caviar on the table on formal night at no charge. I remember outstanding food served in the dining room. I remember fabulous service because people had time to make it special. I remember wonderful live musical groups throughout the ship. I remember lots of wonderful daytime activities without charge or sales pitches. I remember the people who served us being able to learn about us and enjoy interacting with us. I remember really having the opportunity to make dear friends on a cruise because we spent more time together getting to know each other. I remember not having to play pricing games to make sure we got the best price. I could go on, but what's the point...those days are gone.

The staff and crew on board the ships remain the best thing about a Celebrity cruise but management is certainly making it much harder for them to do their jobs and enjoy them.

There were also quite a few remarkable years when the ships and staterooms were so much better and the product although changed somewhat was still terrific and even improved in some ways.

Yes, cruising is still a fairly good value but today it's more like going on a moving hotel than having a real cruise experience. I still love cruising but I'm not blind to the real differences from then to now and I'm really concerned about the obvious cost cutting measures and lower quality we are experiencing recently.

Our first cruise was in and inside cabin, Caribbean, on NCL and cost $1500 for the two of us. That was 1981. That was a lot of money back then.

Our first was on the Zenith to Bermuda in 2001. We booked a suite and at that time there were no verandas on the Zenith. We did have a large stateroom and a butler. The cruise was priced at just over $2,700.00.

Today you can book a veranda stateroom on the Summit for the same amount of money.

The difference was then there was no specialty restaurants and to be honest there was NO NEED for one, as the MDR meals, service and total experience was as good as or even better than that offered in today's specialty restaurants.

With inflation and the extras needed to bring a 2017 cruise up to the same "EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS" experience on the Zenith I guess the actual difference in real money is very slim.

The real difference is that whether you cruised in a suite or an inside cabin on the Zenith the overall quality of the cruise was the same (and it was spectacular), aside from the butler.

bosco

Excellent post,Cruise Raider!

Value is NOT only measured by the price tag.

The entire X experience has been downgraded and "Modern Luxury" has been watered down to mass market average.

After 11 X cruises and 2 since last September, we have none planned in the foreseeable future. We can't take the cuts anymore. It was GREAT while it lasted!!

I have never and I mean never been able to book a balcony cabin on any Celebrity ship for under $100 per person per day that included any perks. The cruise we just got off on Sunday was $155 per person for a 2B Balcony and that doesn't include port charges and fees.

You must tell me your secret.

Our first was on the Zenith to Bermuda in 2001. We booked a suite and at that time there were no verandas on the Zenith. We did have a large stateroom and a butler. The cruise was priced at just over $2,700.00.

 

Today you can book a veranda stateroom on the Summit for the same amount of money.

 

The difference was then there was no specialty restaurants and to be honest there was NO NEED for one, as the MDR meals, service and total experience was as good as or even better than that offered in today's specialty restaurants.

 

With inflation and the extras needed to bring a 2017 cruise up to the same "EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS" experience on the Zenith I guess the actual difference in real money is very slim.

 

The real difference is that whether you cruised in a suite or an inside cabin on the Zenith the overall quality of the cruise was the same (and it was spectacular), aside from the butler.

 

bosco

Loved the Zenith

Value is NOT only measured by the price tag.

 

The entire X experience has been downgraded and "Modern Luxury" has been watered down to mass market average.

 

After 11 X cruises and 2 since last September, we have none planned in the foreseeable future. We can't take the cuts anymore. It was GREAT while it lasted!!

^^ this and what Ma Bell said. Not everything is measured by the price tag. Back when we started cruising there were no stupid rules about Alcohol, no rules about bringing your own soft drinks on & Water. The entire experience has changed.

The kind of service that many of are remembering from the days of Zenith and Horizon, can be found today on Azamara. Their daily rate is about 2 to 3 times Celebrity. On the other hand, adjusted for inflation, Celebrity is charging about half to 1/3 of what they charged back in those days. So you can go on Azamara for about the same rate as Zenith and Horizon, adjusted for inflation.

What has happened is cruising in general has moved down-market, from a high-end experience to a mass market experience. The prices have come down, and so has the service level and food. Cruise lines have compensated with economy of scale, building ever larger ships.

Our last cruise was on Princess in Alaska. It was an excellent mass market cruise. But, at least once a day, my wife or I would say, "I wish we were on Azamara." Our next cruise is on Celebrity. But I think Azamara will be getting more of our business in the future.

Our first cruise was in and inside cabin, Caribbean, on NCL and cost $1500 for the two of us. That was 1981. That was a lot of money back then.

And that $1,500 would be around $4,200 in today's market. I guess some would rather have things like they were in the olden days and pay almost 3 times as much and if that had happened, then only the affluent would be able to cruise.

You can't compare apples to oranges. How much did you pay for your first color TV and what can you buy today? Economies of scale, mass purchasing, new technology, competition and many other variables have brought the cost of goods and services down in many ways. You can't use inflation as the only way to figure value.

It is true that comparing today's dollars to years ago (I first cruised Celebrity in 1992), cruising is perhaps less expensive than it was before. But when evaluating that, there are several other things to keep in mind. First and most important, is the fact that the businesses are so large now they can incur substantial savings by buying in bulk. Bigger ships also allow for more income per person as the space involved (save for cabins) does not increase on a one to one basis. What I mean is - if you double the size of the number of passengers, you don't need to double the size of the public spaces. I don't know exact figures of course, but I would guess for every passenger count doubled the public spaces increase by maybe 1/3 rather than 1/2. They just get more crowded. They also hold staff charges down by expecting more of their staff and their workload (for example, room stewards handle more rooms than in the past; waiters handle more tables). This of course has resulted in a decrease in service.

I think when one compares then to now, quality, ambiance, and service all need to be considered. While all still very good on Celebrity, they used to be excellent. A definite decrease and very noticeable to long time cruisers.

I also think people miss the more inclusive feel of the 'old days'. Yes, one is not required to purchase any of these extras. But at the same time, sometimes I feel like I am in the midst of the old blue light special from Kmart with all these added extras being advertised (and sometimes pushed) around me. And many of these extras take away space that was once available for use by all with no extra charge. I think that is one of the key issues. It is not just what is added; it is what is being taken away.

Am I thankful to be able to cruise? Absolutely!! I am not ignorant of the fact that I am so much luckier than many people on this earth. Do I still love Celebrity? Yes, it is still the top mainstream cruise line IMHO. But do I notice these differences and dislike most of them? yes again.

Value is NOT only measured by the price tag.

 

The entire X experience has been downgraded and "Modern Luxury" has been watered down to mass market average.

 

After 11 X cruises and 2 since last September, we have none planned in the foreseeable future. We can't take the cuts anymore. It was GREAT while it lasted!!

We have 22 cruises on X with the last being a B2B in December. The cruising experience has regressed to the point that we are no longer looking at any cruise line. There's nothing special about the experience, except for the ports, it's turned into a floating hotel and nothing more.

You can't compare apples to oranges. How much did you pay for your first color TV and what can you buy today? Economies of scale, mass purchasing, new technology, competition and many other variables have brought the cost of goods and services down in many ways. You can't use inflation as the only way to figure value.

Exactly. Also ships are bigger and holding more passengers making it more economical to sail a ship as opposed to the old days when they only held 700 - 1000 passengers.

Personally I would rather go back to the old days of cruising - well 15-20 years ago - even if that meant I could only afford to go on 1 or 2 a year. Service and attention to details is not anywhere near what it use to be. My favorite thing about Celebrity when we starting sailing her back in 2002 was they treated everyone like royalty or a star even if you were only in and inside cabin. I guess the bean counters figure we are not worth it any longer. Just throw us a few chocolates on our pillow at night to keep us happy.

I have never and I mean never been able to book a balcony cabin on any Celebrity ship for under $100 per person per day that included any perks. The cruise we just got off on Sunday was $155 per person for a 2B Balcony and that doesn't include port charges and fees.

 

You must tell me your secret.

Until the BBB unveiling several years ago, except for Europe and RCL's Oasis size ships, we were able to find a balcony at or under $100 p.p. per day. It helped being retired which opened our cruising window up considerbly. Since then, the $150 dollar range is pretty close. Like someone else mentioned, it's not just the cost, it's about the experience. April of 2016 we got a last minute deal on the 13 day Silhouette transAtlantic. We ended up with a 2A balcony and when you take the cruise price ($600) plus taxes and fees, and gratuities and subtract the travel agency obc, it came to about $750p.p. After talking about the trip, we decided that we overpaid for the enjoyment we had.

We did another Celebrity in December and after that we figured there are better ways to spend our money.

First cruise on Nordic Empress 1992 ,$710 p/p oceanview for 4 nights ,sailed Oasis for $875 p/p balcony 7 nights.

I've got to say this is a fascinating thread (at least some of the responses). I think the OP was addressing the idea that cruising had gotten expensive, which in real dollars, it actually hasn't. I realize the experience has changed (although probably 95% of the public wouldn't know that), but what the OP's analysis says (which at least for the US anyone can do by checking the CPI calculator at the Bureau of Labor Statistics) is we're paying less, in general, today, for a cruise. Should it really surprise anyone that you're getting "less", however you define more and less?

Economy of scale (bigger ships) has kept pricing down. Eliminating features that didn't matter to new cruisers kept pricing down. Adding additional income centers (extra fee dining) that did matter to many cruisers kept base pricing down. Changing staffing levels kept pricing down (and was probably only noticeable to repeat cruisers).

As others have stated, we can all pay more for premium cruise lines for the same sort of experience. Or we can pay similar amounts in real dollars for suites. I suppose in a perfect world, Celebrity would have kept its niche and upped pricing accordingly, but the business model (and largely the industry) went the other way, just like air travel.

People used to dress to fly. They were served hot food, and frequently drinks, in an at least reasonably comfortable seat. Today, I can fly from DC to Europe for as little as $500-750, in coach. That old experience isn't really available; in it's place is a much more comfortable cabin with layflat seating, hot meals, and free drinks. For as much as $10,000 on that same route...

A quick search found a 7 night, balcony cruise for under $ 95/pp per day inclusive of fees, taxes and gratuities. (Not Celebrity)