ChucktownSteve

Thought travel agents were not allowed to price cruises less than the cruise line?

Sounds like a Senior or State discount after final order that is offered by Celebrity. Those are always without perks but just low price.

We booked a Sept 2017 Canada/NE cruise through a US travel agent a few months ago, at $2100 pp, Oceanview (plus taxes) with Classic Drinks package. That was a nominal 50% off "brochure price". Since then it's generally been that price or a couple of hundred $ more.

 

That TA has now increased the price to $3265, presumably reflecting Celebrity's own increase, with the consequence that even if the "2nd person half price" comes in on 1st Sept as expected, the cost for two will be $4900, or $700 more than it was a week ago.

 

What a con!

 

Stuart

Actually you can't normally include NE/Canada in the pricing con because this always happens on that itinerary. They only do three sailings per year and they're always sold out, thus the only time to book this route for the best price is when they're first released.

Either we learn or accept or move on....

 

bon voyage

Whatever that means :confused:

Bon Voyage

I guess you might consider us as a "naive newbies", but in the end, we are all aware of the games and what is important is to monitor the prices, be informed and no matter what they called it 50% or whatever, is to pay the price you think is fair and we know the difference.

 

No matter the company, they all play the same. If you want to cruise you do your homework.

You're not a naive newbie because you do understand the game. It's the ones who don't which are.

I agree with the previous poster about avoiding the Washington Baltimore corridor if you're only going to do one day there. The horrendous traffic will take most of your time.

If you're going down I-81 and your kids are into history, there is Monticello in Charlottesville VA on I-64. It's Thomas Jefferson's stately mansion. You can use I-64 as a cut back to I-95 and you've avoided the tolls. Or take 81 to 77 as suggested.

If you're looking for a hotel as a stopping point and want to save money, I recommend you stop at the state welcome center as you enter on the interstate. They have hotel booklets that list unsold prices along the way by interstate exits. That will be cheaper than pre-booking a motel or walking in the door without the fixed price ad. You can actually call the phone number in the ad to reserve that day you're going to arrive to inquire since they only sell a limited number of rooms at that price based upon availability.

That's if you're looking to save money along the interstates. Another alternative is to use the hotel as just a sleeping place and spend the extra time in Charleston where there is a lot of things for kids to do. There's a Children's museum downtown, an Aquarium and horse drawn carriage tours. Just to mention a few.

Thus ,does X care whether they lose steady repeat customers ?

You probably hit the nail on the head with that last statement. Apparently Celebrity (can't call them X anymore because they don't resemble the Chandris line anymore) doesn't want the loyal, more value minded cruiser when they can hook naive newbies willing to play the game without knowing the difference.

OK I just checked the dailies from the Summit sailing 8/14-8/21. Every day Cafe al Bacio was open at 6:30am regardless of in port or sea day. I don't have the last day disembarkation but I believe it was 6am if memory serves correctly.

On the Connie this past February, some days were 6:30 and sea days were 7am. The F&B manager can set the time based upon lazy guests or up and at em guests if they so desire to. On the Connie I asked the F&B manager why he opened so late. He told me there were not many people asking before 7am.

So I believe YMMV.

As I recall, al Bacio doesn't open until 7am.

I'll have to check my dailies when I get home but on port days I believe it's 6:30. Sea days 7am. I wish it were 6am.

I know, a little odd, but I thought I might find some suggestions here. DD is traveling with her family, DH and 4 kids ages 18 mo - 9 to Charleston in late February. She's wondering where a good place might be to break up the trip. DC area would be about half way. Considering the time of year and ages of her kids if there might be some other places near by that might be good to hang out for a day.

So are you looking for suggestions in DC or Charleston?

I will most likely get the premium Bev package, and I am an early riser. I typically want a cup of coffee between 6-7 a.m.

 

Where can I get a good cup of coffee at that time? If not then when will the best spots open?

 

Sailing Summit, 10-2, Concierge Class.

 

I am assuming the coffee in the buffet has not improved in the last two years?

Cafe al Bacio is the place. They open usually at 6:30 but sometimes earlier. The times are posted in the dailies. Anyone with the Classic or Premium package has it included. so are the shots of liquor in the coffee! Even if you don't have a package, all the pastries & cakes are free to everyone.

On the Summit, the two best baristas imho are Florentina & Tipi. I hope her contract isn't up by the time you cruise. We had her for 14 days last September and two weeks ago!

It's insulting how stupid they must think we all are.

Well do you think that enough people are that book under this new scheme? Or wouldn't they try another gimmick?

Don't tell anyone, but Morningstar rates RCL as a strong BUY (4.8 out of 5.0), 4 stars.

 

This year to date is a correction. The stock is up 195% last 5 years. 90% last 3 years.

Don't tell anyone but I believe RCL gave weak guidance for the next quarter in their last quarterly report.

Besides, what good is owning RCL for shareholder benefit unless you're going last minute "Xciting" (sic) deals, re-positioning or transatlantic? Everything else is excluded...unlike Carnival and their group of cruise lines.

I am starting to research hotels & transportation for my Sept. 2017 cruise on the Anthem....I will have Holiday Inn Reward points I was hoping to use...but the only Hotel I can find in the area is across from the Newark airport...they have an airport shuttle which is great...but is it going to be terribly expensive for me to get to the port the next day? I will be traveling solo....open to all hotel suggestions...the free night would be nice...but not if it's going to cost me more in travel expenses later...

When I stayed at a Newark hotel, I had the front desk call a taxi for me. I noticed several people were taking taxi's also. This month I paid $45 plus tolls for 2-4 people from the airport to the port.

You might consider hanging around the hotel lobby before calling a taxi and asking someone with cruise cabin tags if they'd like to share a taxi to the port. Or when you check in ask the desk if someone wants a taxi you 'd be willing to share.

As long as Tito's is still on the classic package I am great.

It was on the Summit a week ago.

In business, every time you raise prices, you'll lose some customers. The bean counters know how much business they will lose and how much more money they will make on the remaining customers with the price increase.

Apparently Celebrity believes they'll make more money by forcing the perk purchases rolled into the fare than the people that jump ship. As long as the uninformed keep filling their ships this tactic will remain.

So far Queen Lisa may be laughing all the way to the bank but their stock price this year doesn't prove that out.

Good to know. Thanks.

 

What airline let you do this?

We were on United and had TSA pre-check. Although I don't know if that a bearing or not.

Last week we got to EWR at 9:30 for a 2:30 flight and had absolutely no problem checking in or going through TSA.

I'm beginning to wonder if the increasing number of comments about the surliness/tardiness of bar staff has anything to do with the drinks packages that seem to be frequently included in the cruise fare.

 

I assume that there is no longer any need to work for tips because they are all included in the package so why bother?

It appeared so on the Summit but not earlier this year on the Constellation. I tipped an excellent bartender on the Constellation $20 even though I had the drinks package and upgraded with him so he got the credit. The Summit bartenders lost out because they made it a self fulfilling prophecy.

I am becoming a little more concerned about the condition of the M class ships...Those pictures of the Summit were not inspiring! We have cruised on both Millie and Summit and enjoyed as older ships. We have expected to see a little age but I do hope X is not going to cut back on their maintenance now the Edge project is nearing. The recent 'revamp' does not appear to be very good.

It appears they may have already begun cutting back. I was sitting in the Oceanview cafe, in one of those extended window tables and glanced to the underside of the next window extension. There was a lot of rust there.

Last September on the Summit, two of the midship elevators malfunctioned. One was out the entire cruise and the other would stop three feet above the deck and open the doors. Then drop down to the deck and do the same thing again, opening three feet above the deck.

This month the one that was out all cruise was not working only one day but the other one I noticed had stopped three feet up with passengers and opened. So they still haven't fixed the elevator problems either. Also don't be surprised when you press the up button (or down) and an up elevator rushes past your deck going the direction you wanted to go. It happens a lot midship.

I'm just glad that our next two cruises are on an S class which will be our first time on the newer, larger ships.

I just got off the Summit last Sunday. During the cruise I went to the future cruise desk to check on a Panama Canal cruise in April 2018. They quoted over $10K for an obstructed balcony. :eek:

I told them if I wanted to pay that price, I would book with Oceania or Azamara and promptly walked out!!!

I had the same observations on my July 31 sailing. The bartenders at the Oceanview Bar were not a happy group.

Marie

That's why nobody sat at the sunset bar for any period of time the whole trip; including me.

The opposite was the case on the Connie this past February. Most of the bartenders were fun and personable. The bars were more full.

We disembarked the Summit August 21, three days ago. I found the ship tired despite the "refurbishment."

Here's a picture in the specialty restaurant, Tuscan, where they still haven't noticed the tape placed during painting.

This is along the port side.

This was the base of our balcony railing.

I won't bore you with more like pictures but I also found the attitude of many bartenders to be similar to the ship condition. They were doing their job but no interaction or personality. They didn't seem like they were enjoying their job. I'm sure there were some exceptions but I didn't run into them.

So no, again I say, the Summit is not a good equivalent substitution for the Eclipse!

I was scheduled to sail on the Eclipse in 2018 and got a great price. Since then, prices have at least doubled.

 

Got a call from Celebrity today telling me the cruise has been chartered and my reservation will be cancelled.

 

They are offering me one option. Book on the Summit in March and they'll "price protect" my rate and give me a $100 onboard credit. That timing doesn't work for us, as we have another trip to Europe planned.

 

I have another Celebrity cruise booked early 2017 and I thought that a reasonable offer would be some form of upgrade/specialty dining/obc on the current cruise. They basically told me "too bad" and either take the march Summit cruise, or pound sand. If I do nothing, they will cancel my current reservation Sep 6th.

 

Any thoughts or recommendations? I didn't think my suggestion was terribly unreasonable, was it?

NO you were not being unreasonable but Celebrity doesn't have to be reasonable. I'm just off the Summit. If that's all they'll give you for an alternative to an S class ship, I'd tell THEM to pound sand. Besides, $100 OBC, based upon their cost of goods, is nothing to them. Azamara cancelled one of my cruises next year and they gave everyone $500 OBC.

We just returned from a 7 night on Celebrity Summit. We ate in Blu on this cruise and our previous cruise on the Constellation this past February. Food varies by ship and crew.

Last fall in the MDR on the Summit our food was always overcooked. On the Constellation, Blu was perfectly cooked to temperature. On Summit, Blu was over cooked every night.

We're going the opposite direction from Celebrity to Azamara. On this past cruise I went to the future cruise office and inquired about a Panama Cruise in April 2018. They quoted me over $10K for an obstructed balcony. I told them if I wanted to pay that kind of money, I'd sail on Azamara or Oceania and left.

We're happily looking forward to our August 2017 Journey cruise!

Conversely when we ate in Blu on the Constellation in February, the food was fantastic. Every dish came out cooked to proper temperature and juicy/freshly cooked. Special orders were accommodated.

Last fall when we dined in the MDR on Summit for 14 nights, most of those meals were overcooked as well.

Now I wonder if it's "chef"/ship specific.