WOW @ this price increase!

[Crazy4Koko]

yesterday I was looking at inside rooms on the Sensation for March 2011.. they were $219..

 

today the same room is $259.... :D

[Tapi]

Tapi, looks like we will be cruising together in October. Check out our roll call http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1082151

 

Yes, we are! It will be our son's 1st cruise. We wanted to take a 7 night cruise but didn't want to fly or have a super long drive since we've never cruised with a little one before. Mobile is our closest port of embarkation so when 7 night cruises from there were announced, we booked immediately!

 

Checking out the roll call right now. Thanks for the link!

[Lindys]

My October cruise has also gone up and they've eliminated Past Guest rates which I booked under. Instead of $289pp, today I would have to pay $399pp! I can't see the price going down that much over the next few months.

Why did you not book ES Rate with your cruise being so far out...Now you can not get any money back if price drops...I booked mine for sept a few months back and the price dropped for 2 weeks and made a quick 40 bucks with the ES claim form. And I did it all on the carnival site without talking to anyone booking everything!!!

[Tapi]

Why did you not book ES Rate with your cruise being so far out...

 

I'll tell you the reason why we didn't book the ES. We booked more than a year out. Knowing that A LOT of things can change in a year, we preferred to have the flexibility of knowing that we could make changes and cancel without penalties, even if it meant paying more.

 

We did book under the regular rate initially, but then switched to a promotional rate which turned out to be lower than the lowest ES rate, (and we can still cancel and make changes without penalty until the final payment date!). True, we won't be able to claim any price reductions past the final payment date, but considering the current rates vs. what we paid, I'm not concerned. Under the current rates, our cruise is over $1100 more. I may be wrong, but I doubt that they will drop below what we paid.

[Kurbanfan]

Why did you not book ES Rate with your cruise being so far out...Now you can not get any money back if price drops...I booked mine for sept a few months back and the price dropped for 2 weeks and made a quick 40 bucks with the ES claim form. And I did it all on the carnival site without talking to anyone booking everything!!!

 

They sure can......up until final payment......

[David-n-Rita]

I think you seem to generalize. Im betting a LOT of us on CC get daily emails with so called deals, that arent special deals, just whatever the cruiselines are offering.

 

Only RCL and Carnival go out of Galveston, so if I consider going out of Florida or San Juan to get a "deal" I have to factor in say $700 more for flying in the night before and hotel and maybe shuttles. Parking is only $50 in Galveston for a 7 day and hotels are cheaper.

 

Im not even seeing the same great deals any more out of New Orleans I was seeing even last December. Im hearing from my booking agent that people are more willing to drive to get that deal from Texas to New Orleans pushing those prices higher.

 

Maybe if we get Magic that will help some with supply and demand, but the rumor is Conquest will go to New Orleans so it wouldnt help that much. Im personally seeing higher prices, even if you say you always got the deal in the past (so did I) but so far not happening this spring.

 

For instance I could go out of San Juan for $329 ... but airfare was $350 pp plus a expensive hotel ...so its hard to justify the overall higher price and its a lot more worry to me to have to fly to a port.

 

When we went out of San Juan in Oct of last year, we met some people from Puerto Rico who said they stand in line ready to go and get the tickets until the boat fills. They showed us the receipt, they paid $79.00 a person for the 7 days cruise.

[Carol1560]

Well I am near New Orleans port. NCL is putting a boat there all year around and before it was just for like six months. I think that Carnival is going to have a little competition there now and will adjust their rates accordingly:)

[halos]

Well I am near New Orleans port. NCL is putting a boat there all year around and before it was just for like six months. I think that Carnival is going to have a little competition there now and will adjust their rates accordingly:)

 

competition is always a good thing :)

[jetskier]

Well I am near New Orleans port. NCL is putting a boat there all year around and before it was just for like six months. I think that Carnival is going to have a little competition there now and will adjust their rates accordingly:)

 

It will be the NCL Spirit. I wish it would have been a different ship as the Spirit can only hold 3 people in the OV, Balconies and Suites. If you have a 4th person, you are limited to inside cabins only.

 

Before Katrina, New Orleans used to have three to four ships sailing from there. Sensation doing 4 & 5 nights; Conquest doing 7 nights; NCL Sun doing 7 nights. There also was a RCCL ship that sailed from NOLA part of the year.

 

Dave

[DaisyGirl55]

Lots of things going on with rates increases and the reasons behind them. I will continue to cruise no matter what - I may not cruise as often, and I may not be able to take my grown kids and grandkids as often as I have been doing so - but I for one will not stop cruising. I look at ticket prices from when I first started cruising and the rates are still cheaper than they were over 20 years ago. My first cruise on the Norway back in 1991 was for a total of $2800 for my husband and myself in an oceanview cabin on a 7-day cruise. This year I am cruising in a balcony cabin for less than $2000 total for the two of us.

 

My question and thoughts regarding the increase of rates is this: will the service improve? will some of the things that have been eliminated find their way back?

 

I've read that cheaper fares have caused a drop in service: more tables for your waiter to services, more cabins for your steward to look after - just to name two things.

 

So, I am asking if service will improve if the rates go up - or is the reasoning for a decline in service just an excuse the cruiselines give us to increase their profit margin by lowering the number of crew members per ship?

 

If I have to pay more, will I get more?

[halos]

If I have to pay more, will I get more?

 

 

I think the situation boils down to this:

You're going to pay a bit more so they won't have to give you less.

[krmckee]

Well our rate went down and not up. Booked in January for a May cruise out of Baltimore. Final payment due on 3/16 so went online last night and the price of our cabin (4 guests) had dropped by $300! Called Carnival directly since I booked with them and they adjusted the final payment due. Sweet deal!

[GaNavy]

I've booked with TAs and directly with the cruise lines. Yeah, I like to get a great deal, just like anyone else, but I always do my homework before booking so that by the time I'm ready to book, I have a pretty good idea of what the cruise I want to take should cost. I'll book as soon as the price hits that mark (or less) - saving is nice, but when I'm paying as much as I pay for a cruise, I'm not going to worry about whether I paid $50 more than the next passenger, nor am I going to risk waiting and not getting a good price anymore. If the price never goes as low as my sweet spot, I book another cruise or throw the $ into that little blue crock that so many of us have (you know, the one that says "Cruise Fund" :)) and just wait till next time.....

[Cambrensis]

I think you will see the price of that cruise start dropping again towards the middle of the summer. Carnival is trying to scare people into buying at the current rates. Why else would the announce prices are going to go up? They just want people to purchase now, feeling as though they have to hurry. Carnival's marketing department is full of genius's...this announcement was a great idea...

I agree. I thought it odd that Carnival would make so much noise about a price INCREASE--that is usually something companies just do as quietly as they can get away with.

 

Besides, the economy is still not in full recovery mode and people will just opt for another form of vacation. YOu bet I will.

[Cecethekittencat]

We cannot book last minute because the airfares are usually too crazy. Really, we've had fantastic luck by booking early and getting cheap air or mileage tickets. As the balance of the ship is not due until 90 days ahead, I'm more than happy to book the ES and can rest assured that if the price drops I'll get the credit for it.

 

We have (2) RCCLs booked this year and the price has now gone through the roof so I'm thrilled I planned so far in advance ... :)

[simplelife]

If they raised prices without warning, people would complain about that too and say that the line SHOULD have let them know an increase was coming so they could book before it went into effect.:D

[Theresa522]

I always feel if you have the extra cash then you should book as early as possible. Then just keep checking for price drops.

 

I just booked the Jewel for next summer. NCL rates are going up April 2nd :( Also they are running a very good special now with obc for booking a suite ($300) They are aslo offering free upgrades for non-suites.

 

I love cruising and I find that booking way in advance always pays off for us.

 

For my May RCCL cruise I caught 3 price drops already. Our July cruise with Carnival has gone up $1000 since we booked :eek:

[RossTheBoss]

I have to say that what is bothering me a hell of a lot more than a cruise rate increase, is the cost of flying lately!!!! :eek:

HOLY CRAP! Flights that used to be reasonable for us have been totally outrageous. ...But there is nothing fair about what I pay to fly...

 

Halos - I see you live in Maine. I live a couple hundred miles North in Prince Edward Island, Canada. In checking for flights to Orlando from here it will cost us more than double what it would cost to fly from Maine! It is outrageous how expensive Canadian airlines can be. Consider yourself lucky. Well not as lucky as those living near a departure port, but somewhat lucky. :)

 

 

With regards to the announcement that Carnival fares would be increased on March 22nd, 2010, - I noticed in the press release Carnival CEO Gerry Cahill said something to the effect that he was pleased to announce that due to strong demand prices would be going up. Given that statement it should be clear that they were making the announcement more for shareholders than consumers. Carnival shares closed up 3.2 percent that day.