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Horrible price increase on Secrets of the Faroe, Shetland & Orkney Islands Cruise


smallshiprider
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Got a terrible shock today when I checked the price of this cruise!!! One would think with "Black Friday" coming up, the price would at least stay the same as it has been for the last several months!

 

However, the lowest price went from $3,499 to $6,499 - an increase of $3,000 for a 7-night cruise! What a rip-off! For the next cabin category up the increase is $3,200 as they increased the category upcharge by $200 as well.

 

I called to make sure this was correct and that yesterday the price was still the $3,499 it has been for at least 4 months and all the agent could say was "well I guess you should have booked yesterday". I guess I should have, but I wouldn't have expected this kind of increase - more than 85%!!! I asked how booked it was and they said "about 1/2" - at this price, that is probably where it will stay.

 

:mad:

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Even if the agent thought it was correct, it's probably a mistake in the system. I haven't seen one where the "Today's Fare" was so close to "Brochure Fare." It will probably get adjusted back down. Most of the time the fare is half or less of Brochure Fare and sometimes much less.

 

The other week there was one cruise on the 7 for 7 special that had the no price change when the 7 for 7 was posted on Thursday. When I looked a couple of days later it had a sale price.

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Got a terrible shock today when I checked the price of this cruise!!! One would think with "Black Friday" coming up, the price would at least stay the same as it has been for the last several months!

 

However, the lowest price went from $3,499 to $6,499 - an increase of $3,000 for a 7-night cruise! What a rip-off! For the next cabin category up the increase is $3,200 as they increased the category upcharge by $200 as well.

 

I called to make sure this was correct and that yesterday the price was still the $3,499 it has been for at least 4 months and all the agent could say was "well I guess you should have booked yesterday". I guess I should have, but I wouldn't have expected this kind of increase - more than 85%!!! I asked how booked it was and they said "about 1/2" - at this price, that is probably where it will stay.

 

:mad:

Why didn't you just book when the prices were what you considered good? Don't understand why you are mad.

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

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Prices change often. When you see a good price, book it. Also, the Windstar price policy protects you. If prices go up, your rate stays the same. If the price goes down, you can contact Windstar cruises and request an adjustment. That works up until 7 days before embarkation. On a recent cruise, I had several price adjustments. By the time I sailed, I had saved money, recieved OBC, and upgraded my cabin. Knowing that Windstar adjusts, I book the cruise that I want to take when the price is good. I watch for changes. Sometimes, I benefit from the changes. I wish all cruise lines and airlines had a price policy like Windstar.

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Prices change often. When you see a good price, book it. Also, the Windstar price policy protects you. If prices go up, your rate stays the same. If the price goes down, you can contact Windstar cruises and request an adjustment. That works up until 7 days before embarkation. On a recent cruise, I had several price adjustments. By the time I sailed, I had saved money, recieved OBC, and upgraded my cabin. Knowing that Windstar adjusts, I book the cruise that I want to take when the price is good. I watch for changes. Sometimes, I benefit from the changes. I wish all cruise lines and airlines had a price policy like Windstar.

 

Windstar changed their price assurance policy. It is now 120 days, not 7.

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  • 2 weeks later...

A dramatic price change like that usually means that the lower priced category has been sold out and now a suite or higher category is all that is available. At the deadline to pay in full there could be cancellations and the lower price will appear again if cabins in that category become available.

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McCrews - actually, as soon as the price escalated, I called Windstar to make sure there wasn't an error! I asked at the time (on Nov. 21st) about availability and was told that the ship was almost half full. So there were probably still lots of regular cabins left at that point.

 

I have been watching it every week and today that particular cruise (Faroe, Shetland & Orkney Islands) has disappeared altogether and on the one date it was available (Aug. 17, 2018 on the Breeze) a new itinerary under the name Norwegian Splendours - Edinburgh to Edinburgh - has replaced it at the same price - and is on the Breeze. I still maintain that the quoted price (which is only $500 less than the brochure price) is pretty hefty for a 7-day cruise - which now also now has 2 sea days instead of 1.

 

So it's a good thing I didn't book it early when the prices seemed good - as it was probably doomed to be cancelled anyway!

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McCrews - actually, as soon as the price escalated, I called Windstar to make sure there wasn't an error! I asked at the time (on Nov. 21st) about availability and was told that the ship was almost half full. So there were probably still lots of regular cabins left at that point.

 

I have been watching it every week and today that particular cruise (Faroe, Shetland & Orkney Islands) has disappeared altogether and on the one date it was available (Aug. 17, 2018 on the Breeze) a new itinerary under the name Norwegian Splendours - Edinburgh to Edinburgh - has replaced it at the same price - and is on the Breeze. I still maintain that the quoted price (which is only $500 less than the brochure price) is pretty hefty for a 7-day cruise - which now also now has 2 sea days instead of 1.

 

So it's a good thing I didn't book it early when the prices seemed good - as it was probably doomed to be cancelled anyway!

 

The price for Norwegian Splnedours is now $3499 - more in line with what one would expect at half the brochure fare. There is a Star Collector with the prior voyage which has a kind of odd itinerary after the change as most of the second cruise has the same scenic cruising and port stops as the first cruise. Also, the short description and port map for the Star Collector haven't been updated. The description still says it includes " three memorable days spent examining the heathlands and steep coastal cliffs of the remote Faroe Islands.". The full itinerary listing is correct - I hope they don't have passengers who fail to notice the change which is only apparent when one scrolls down to the bottom of the itinerary.

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Thanks for the info. - I stopped checking it every day once they changed the itinerary. Windstar certainly made a mess of this one. I had also emailed them when the price increased so much, but of course never got a reply. And I don't have enough time to do the Star Collector one, even if it DID go to the Faroes. Maybe next year!

 

So I'll discontinue this discussion now - thanks to everyone who replied. Instead we'll stay home in the summer when the weather is nice for cycling, and are going on a river cruise instead from Prague to Berlin!

 

Bye.

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