gordiej

4 minutes ago, c-leg5 said:

People have reported there has been a price increase although strangely I haven’t seen anything official but it stands to reason since the last increase was 2016.

Well, I was there in late December, and I'm pretty sure the prices on the board were ~$2 higher than what had been posted previously here on CC. E.g., $40 for 4-8 from International Pier to Playa Mia/Sanchos/Nachi.

Weird, there was a big poster at the taxi rank (International). I took a picture (more for CruiseCritic than ourselves). For 6 of us it was $40 to Mr Sanchos. I didn't ask/confirm the price. When we got there, I handed the guy $40. I figure that included his tip, as it would have been only $20 if we were a party of 4 for the same amount of "work". No issues.

Going back, same thing, just handed the guy $40. Maybe they only try and rip you off on the 1-4 pax pricing? Now, there were a LOT of taxis waiting near Mr Sanchos, I wonder how many trips they can make in a day, I suppose it depends on how many ships in port - there were only a few when we were there, so I guess on those days it's a little slow. 

2 hours ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

 

I get that.  But why should I have to engage in that?

Let yourself get ripped off then, I really don’t care. 

On 1/1/2024 at 1:50 PM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

 

Yes, I have.  Why do you ask?  I never comment on a thread without reading all of it.

Because there's lots of discussion on how to avoid this highway robbery of which you speak.

5 minutes ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

 

But the price for a solo isn't double, it's more than the price for two in a cabin.  Example pricing for Silhouette March 25, 2024, booking at nonrefundable fare in AQ:

 

double:  $4,503.60

solo:      $5,827.00

 

In my view, that's highway (or seaway) robbery.

Have you read the rest of this topic?

By the way, what exactly is a public apology in this context? This was a private matter until the OP posted here about his experience. Would a private apology not be sufficient?

29 minutes ago, vjmatty said:

But isn’t that true with all documentation? They’re all government issued, therefore proven to the government. Unless you think Celebrity should start implementing road tests for everyone presenting a state drivers license.

 

I don't know why this is so hard. John & Patricia Murphy show up with two minors. All have passports. One minor's name is Dylan Murphy, the other minor's name is Peter Murphy. Only one of the minors is the son of John & Patricia. Can you tell which one from the passports?

On 12/29/2023 at 9:35 PM, Margarita Jane said:

We recently did a 7 day on Ascent. We carried on two bottles of wine, and we did not have a drink package. We are Elite + and not heavy drinkers. But….with the elite happy hour, and we ordered bottles of wine at dinner (5 bottles over 7 nights) with our 20% discount. I had purchased one device stream ( DH used elite minutes). Usually we have a beverage package, but the 7 night Ascent sailing was a last minute get away. It turned out to be about $40  night…lots less  than the packages. YMMV.

Strong proponent of this. 

We did 5-nights on Summit, party of 6 -- 1 non-drinker, 3 light drinkers, 2 moderate drinkers). My parents are Elite (and light drinkers) so would have two glasses of wine or basic martini before dinner. We bought 2 expensive bottles on board (one we drank pre-dinner, one during, sommelier waived corkage but I would have paid). We also purchased 4 bottles at dinner in the $60-100 range, before the 20% Elite discount. A few daytime drinks poolside, a couple of espresso martinis one night ($17 for a tiny pour!), and two of the $40 martini flights. Pretty sure we spent less than the premium package and had much better wines. The wines by the glass pricing is atrocious, anything good is over $17, and many of the $17 ones should be $12-13 but they jack the pricing up so people on the premium package feel like they're getting value. Really felt like other than some good values on the wines by the bottle list (at least 2 of which I wanted weren't in stock), the alcohol was way over-priced. Left a bad taste in my mouth, so-to-speak. On the positive side, the red wine bottles we had at Blu were served at roughly proper temperature. (Prior experience is they're usually way too warm and always needed to be chilled on ice for a bit). 

7 minutes ago, prmssk said:

It does not which is why Celebrity's clear policy says that if last names don't match, additional documentation is required.  In this case, last names matched.

Sure, but the other point I was making is that just because the last names DO match doesn't necessarily mean there couldn't be another reason to deny/delay boarding. (And to be clear, I'm not claiming that was the case, obviously OP believes there was no other reason.)

2 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

no, but in order to get a US passport for a minor, BOTH parents have to produce a whole bunch of documentation, including docs with prove familial relationship. A US birth certificate provides both citizenship and familial relationship proof.

Okay, then right - the passport only proves the familial relationship to the GOVERNMENT that issued the passport. It doesn't prove it to the cruise line. But yes, they have set the policy that if the last names match no further documentation should be required. 

On 12/27/2023 at 7:42 PM, D. B. said:

I just experienced the same thing booking an Alaska cruise. The Total price for Both my son and daughter in a Window Cabin on Summit (May,2025) was $1867 with Tips And without  X's insurance. For Me in an Inside cabin with tips and no insurance is $2858. 

 The reason is that X figures out How Much Each guest is likely going to spend Over and Above the Cruise price once onboard.

 My taking up a cabin Solo is going to cost X the extra that missing second guest was  probably going to spend.?

That's suggesting X thinks your son and daughter are each going to spend $1000 onboard, and so they're charging you an extra $1000 to make up that difference. On-board revenues year-to-date for RCL are 45% of passenger ticket revenues, the pricing you're quoting suggests they think on-board should be >100% of the ticket revenues, so it doesn't compute. 

On 12/27/2023 at 7:42 PM, D. B. said:

 Well I cruise Solo a lot and know the price for any cabin will be double.

Yes, this isn't unreasonable, it's the same for a hotel.

1 minute ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

a US citizen minor's passport can only be obtained with permission from and personal appearance by both parents. Their IDs are checked by the passport acceptance agent and copies are made and sent in with the application. The child's birth certificate is also checked and a copy is sent with the application. It proves both citizenship and familial relationship.  If one of the parents is not available personally, additional hoops have to be jumped through to prove that they agree to the passport issuance of a child.

Does the passport list the names of the parents? I'm assuming it does not, but will admit I haven't seen a minor's passport in many many years. 

6 minutes ago, wahooker said:

Then what does?  If following all the currently listed rules as written doesn't qualify us to board the ship then what does?

Nothing, really. Have you read the cruise ticket contract and conduct policy? 

6 minutes ago, wahooker said:

 

I'm all for measures to prevent trafficking. Arbitrarily singling out one kid among hundreds of families and demanding paperwork that is not mentioned anywhere is not the way to handle it.

Yes, I agree that it sounds like it was handled poorly.

On 12/24/2023 at 7:02 PM, GVM said:

2. As a solo traveller I am willing to pay a bit more, but 200% is crazy. So, let's say I book a stateroom (cruise-only) for me and John Doe. John doens't show up, taxes are refunded. But I want to buy a drinking package in advance. Celebrity FAQ says that all persons of legal drinking age in the stateroom must buy a package. Preferably I only want to buy myself a Premium Package (heavy drinker) and nothing for John ;). But that doesn't seem to work. Is the only work around here to get a Zero-Package for John and simply 'lose' that money?

 

Any other creative ideas are more than welcome 🙂

After the second passenger is cancelled, you can book the pre-paid drink package for one. You can cancel the second passenger shortly after booking (maybe wait until final payment?).

Not sure I understand how having the passport negates a potential trafficking situation. Is it merely that the last name matches the parent? I suppose it would have to be a pretty big coincidence otherwise, but not impossible. The passport only establishes identity and citizenship, not any sort of familial relationship.

I also agree with others that a (presumably) round-trip cruise is NOT how you go about trafficking. 

Nonetheless, it sounds like there was racial profiling and it was handled poorly. While heavy-handed, I don't think it's inherently wrong, if handled sensitively and probably in concert with behavioral profiling. 

Maybe also worth mentioning that just because OP met X's requirement for same last names doesn't necessarily give them a free pass onto the ship. 

Celebrity Summit December 2023
CABIN #: 9071

DECK #: 9

CLASS: AQ2

AREA: Between forward/mid-ship elevators, under the pool bar

BED NEAR: Bathroom

QUIET?: Mostly. Heard deck chairs moving a couple of times, but only briefly. Heard faint music from "Full Moon" party on pool deck, but it ended at 11 or 11:30pm. Crew area door across from stateroom but did not hear that much either.

BALCONY VIEW: Regular, big overhang. 

BALCONY SIZE: Regular, two reclining chairs and a side table.

WIND A PROBLEM?: No

SOOT A PROBLEM?: No

PROBLEMS/COMMENTS: No outlet on right side of bed (when lying down; side closer to bathroom), only a Euro style plug on the floor. Kind of astonishing for a newly refurbished ship. Didn't have a Euro adapter of course (only UK, lol). Otherwise, very nicely appointed cabin with lots of storage. Shower a little on the tight side. 

• Ship:  Summit
• Length of Cruise: 5 days
• Cruise Sail Date: Dec 2023
• Date email offer received: About one month before sailing
• Captain’s Club Tier :  Select
• Booked through Celebrity Direct OR via TA: TA
• Current Cabin: Aqua Guarantee (assigned A2 shortly after booking)
• Bid?  Yes/No: Yes 

If YES -  Bidding Details:

• Cabin Category: Aqua Sky Suite / Celebrity Suite / Royal Suite
• Bid Offer: US $350 / 450 / 750 (pp)
• Minimum Offers: $280 / 350 / 480 [and $240 for SS which we did not bid on]
• Notification Date: 2 days before sailing 
• Accepted / Rejected: All bids rejected

General Comments (offer details, etc.)

Traveling with 3 other cabins in Aqua, so didn't bother with SS bid. There were 8 (of 10) unassigned AS cabins at the time of bidding so we thought we had a decent shot. No CS or RS showing available so we figured those were long shots. By about a week prior to sailing, cruise appeared fully booked. I wonder if others who bid higher were successful. Was notified of failed bids 2 days before departure.

This has been happening for at least 20 years, it's not going to change. 

Just book with a dummy second passenger who you can cancel closer to departure and get the taxes and port fees refunded.

This is no different than a hotel - room costs the same whether it's for 1 person or 2. They're not giving you a break on the food because they're not going to reduce the amount of supplies they order due to a few single-occupancy cabins.

Sorry dupe

4 hours ago, BB94 said:

Wanted to add to this thread -

 

I spoke with Celebrity yesterday and posited the question: "If I book a 2nd person on my trip and they end up not being able to go, what happens?" The gentleman told me historically port fees and taxes would be refunded, however now they will also charge the difference in price. How I understood it was basically I'd have to pay the x00% single supplement difference.

Yes, they're going to "charge" you the cruise fare that the 2nd person was going to pay. They are NOT going to re-price the entire cabin at the higher solo fare that's being discussed and charge you MORE money. Could you imagine - you show up to the port, tell them the friend you were sailing with just tested positive for COVID/Noro/Legionnaire's/etc., and they try and charge you a few extra hundred dollars? Do you know how that would make them look? (Probably worse than they did in Australia with the denied boardings).

On 9/4/2023 at 6:33 PM, RD64 said:

For now perhaps - but it is a loophole that will eventually be closed.

It's been open since at least 1998, when I first did this. 

1 hour ago, TommyD3 said:

Question about the wines. Many are $60 a bottle but then some of those are $17 a glass (within premium) and some $19 a glass ($2.40 surcharge). How do they justify the different price per glass with the same price per bottle? Will be onboard starting Saturday. Thanks !!!

There's a whole separate thread about how the pricing often doesn't make any sense.  

19 minutes ago, CruiseRQA said:

Decoy cab has been often mentioned in this thread.   At my local Trader Joe's tonight, they were selling it for $19/bottle

Yeah, that's a decent price (I could get it at that retail price in NYC pre-pandemic, now it's probably close to $25). Either way, the markup on it (both by the glass and bottle) seems to be egregious, and not worth it. Of course if you're on the package it doesn't really matter as long as it's under the limit. I will not be buying a package and will be seeking out better values, even if at higher prices -- I have my eye on a few Rhone wines - CdP and Cote Rotie.  

On 12/4/2023 at 11:12 AM, cruisingator2 said:

Good Morning America just had a piece on this story. They interviewed the one couple that was not allowed to board. Also, named the cruise line and ship. Not the kind of attention that any cruise line would want. 

Yeah, whoever made the initial compensation offer (and the person who replied on Twitter) should lose their jobs. I suppose it says something that they don't even have a standard denied boarding compensation package, because it probably happens almost never.

On 12/6/2023 at 11:00 PM, markeb said:

Decoy is one of Duckhorns introductory level wines. They’ve always been acceptable, but never great. That largely translates to their Pinot Noir. They make a Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir that I remember being pretty good, but their base white label is just listed as California and is pretty forgettable. 
 

Duckhorn’s (parent company) Pinot Noir label is Goldeneye (named for the duck, not the James Bond movie or Ian Fleming’s estate). Goldeneye is made with Anderson Valley fruit and is generally excellent. 
 

Not a huge Reddit fan, but I’d agree here…

Duckhorn Merlot is one of my favorite wines. Haven't priced it recently but probably ~$50/bottle retail but often I see it on a restaurant (or cruise ship) wine list at a reasonable markup. Sideways really did a number on Merlot and Pinot Noir. Whereas there used to be tons of bad merlot, now there are tons of bad Pinot. And good deals on Merlot (one of the key Bordeaux grapes). Decoy is decent (for a Cab in that price range) but for whatever reason the markup on it at most restaurants (whether by the bottle or glass) is pretty egregious.