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Is it just me or does the Princess Web-site

Sitmar Lady

By Sitmar Lady,
in Princess Cruises

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Sitmar Lady

Sitmar Lady

Posted
Posted

Is it just me or does the Princess Web-site monitor the cruises you are searching and hold prices firm or even possibly raise them? I've been monitoring the pricing of two different cruises logged in to my name. Then when I noticed the price went up so I asked my Dad to log in and check them. The prices were the original price I saw when I initially looked into it. Within a month and after several searches loggging in with my name, the prices went up $300 per person. To date, the pricing on my Dad's log-in are the original lower price. We are both elite members with over 500 days so this cannot be the reason. Is anyone else experiencing this? I'm getting to the point where I might need to ask my fellow elite members to help me purchase the cruise I want to get the best price. :confused:

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Pam in CA

Pam in CA

Posted
Posted

Just about every website tracks usage and where people are clicking, how long they stay on a page, what page they just viewed and the one they viewed next, their geographic location, the operating system they're using, etc. That's nothing new. :)

 

Often, pricing is different depending on marketing segment, i.e., age, location, etc. and companies test different pricing to see whether one price works better than another. Not sure if I'm explaining that well but it's not unusual to have people experience different prices depending on where they live or whatever other criteria the company is testing. I've booked cruises with a friend living in MA, 3,000 miles away and she sometimes gets different pricing than I do. Same cruise, same category, cabin next door.

 

One thing to try is even after going to a page, refresh it. Sometimes, a page is held in cache and you don't see the updates.

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paddingtonbear

paddingtonbear

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Can you check the price without logging in and see if it is different?

 

If that makes no difference. Try deleting all cookies and history from your web browser - then the website can't see if you have been there before. Then check the prices again without logging in under your name.

 

If there is a difference and you wanted to book maybe you could call Princess and book on the phone at the better rate.

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paddingtonbear

paddingtonbear

Posted
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Often, pricing is different depending on marketing segment, i.e., age, location, etc. and companies test different pricing to see whether one price works better than another. Not sure if I'm explaining that well but it's not unusual to have people experience different prices depending on where they live or whatever other criteria the company is testing. I've booked cruises with a friend living in MA, 3,000 miles away and she sometimes gets different pricing than I do. Same cruise, same category, cabin next door.

 

Do you think that Princess think that their customers are stupid? Or that they would never discuss prices with other people, family members or other cruisers? Don't they care that customers get outraged by these variable pricing policies?

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Pam in CA

Pam in CA

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Do you think that Princess think that their customers are stupid? Or that they would never discuss prices with other people, family members or other cruisers? Don't they care that customers get outraged by these variable pricing policies?
It has little to do with what Princess thinks of their customers. This is a pretty standard marketing technique, whether it's Princess, Walmart or your local supermarket chain. Check any consumer "investigation" that checks the prices for a list of items in different parts of the country. Companies price what the local market will bear.

 

Several years ago, my friend (who lives in MA) and I booked a cruise, each solo. My friend received an email from the cruise line with 2:1 pricing and was able get her fare reduced by almost half. I wasn't eligible because I hadn't received the email. I tried, my TA tried. No dice. At final payment, I was suddenly re-fared a substantial amount (about $1,500) and a few days before sailing, I was upgraded from a BD to an AA. So, we wound up more or less equal. I paid a little more but had a mini. That's life. (And marketing.)

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paddingtonbear

paddingtonbear

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It has little to do with what Princess thinks of their customers. This is a pretty standard marketing technique, whether it's Princess, Walmart or your local supermarket chain. Check any consumer "investigation" that checks the prices for a list of items in different parts of the country. Companies price what the local market will bear.

 

That's life. (And marketing.)

 

Yes you are right we pay different prices for petrol and food depending on where we live. Marketing!!!! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

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Gaynors

Gaynors

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My brother and I booked our families on the Grand thanksgiving cruise about a month ago, same TA, same price, 4 people per room (rooms right next to each other :eek:), but separate bookings. When the father's day sale came out I noticed there was a price drop and called TA, the TA was able to save us $230 from our original booking. I told my brother the same day, he called the TA (same one), they had to cancel his booking and rebook and he only saved $125 :confused: and got bumped from early seating :(. We are both gold members with only 1 cruise different. TA stated that we got a better price (which was below what I could get logged in to the Princess site) because we had sailed and have past passenger numbers (and have sailed) on other Carnival Corp cruise lines. That was interesting, I've never heard that before. Can't complain though :D. It is kind of a pain about the dinner seating though but its still early enough we'll work something out :).

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CRUZER2012

CRUZER2012

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Trust me on this. :D

Check pricing for your booking often. If the fare has been reduced, ALWAYS request a refare. Do not assume that you cannot get the lower fare. Your savings can be substantial. I have been immensely surprised at the results from requesting a refare.

 

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caribill

caribill

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My friend and I (same zip code) saw different prices. I am elite, she is platinum. :confused:

 

Sometimes Princess will mail (snail or e-) special offers on pricing to some people. It is possible that one of you received that offer and the other did not.

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windsor26

windsor26

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My brother and I booked our families on the Grand thanksgiving cruise about a month ago, same TA, same price, 4 people per room (rooms right next to each other :eek:), but separate bookings. When the father's day sale came out I noticed there was a price drop and called TA, the TA was able to save us $230 from our original booking. I told my brother the same day, he called the TA (same one), they had to cancel his booking and rebook and he only saved $125 :confused: and got bumped from early seating :(. We are both gold members with only 1 cruise different. TA stated that we got a better price (which was below what I could get logged in to the Princess site) because we had sailed and have past passenger numbers (and have sailed) on other Carnival Corp cruise lines. That was interesting, I've never heard that before. Can't complain though :D. It is kind of a pain about the dinner seating though but its still early enough we'll work something out :).

As soon as you embark go and see the Maitre D and I am sure he will be able to assist you He will have had others who have changed their minds and want ATD I expect

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Love.II.Cruise

Love.II.Cruise

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The last cruise I booked with my TA was for last New Year's. I logged into the Princess website with my Captain's Circle number and got a price. I called my TA who is 3 time zones away and he got a price $300 MORE pp. He did it two ways... one way with his TA software and the other way directly with the Princess website. He also tried each of these with and with out my Captain's Circle number. Every way he tried were exactly $300 more pp. I sent him a screen shot and he called Princess. All they told him was that it was a valid price and gave him the price I found. Makes me wonder if I should start getting TA's in different time zones!

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