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Future with Carnival????

Star1

By Star1,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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luv2kroooz Holiday Sharing Rare

luv2kroooz

Posted
Posted

I believe Carnival is marketing heavily to the first time cruiser. The first time cruiser is one who will likely spend a ton of money onboard - think shore tours, photos, expensive drinks, etc. This is how they apparently intend to keep profits up. However, in their attempts to heavily attract first-time cruisers who may or may not cruise again, they are effectively abandoning a large population of repeat passengers such as myself and many others who were guaranteed to cruise again. I was a huge Carnival champion in the Bob Dickinson era. Granted they didn't make a ton of money on me on every cruise, but I used to sail 2 or 3 times a year exclusively with Carnival and they made a little profit more frequently. I have 203 days at sea with them, but will be seriously considering other cruise lines. I am looking for a good value and Carnival used to be the champion on value hands-down...not so much anymore. Time will tell if their strategy is successful.

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libtrek

libtrek

Posted
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I'm fine with Carnival (platinum) but must admit that I'm not sure about the new drink plans. Will folks feel obligated to "get their money's worth". Maybe. For us, buying a bottle from GS and taking on mixers will still cost far less. For me, 15 drinks would make me seek out the "paper bags." Seems to me Carnival may lose money on the plan. Sure it would go away fast in that case.

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janetz

janetz

Posted
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Carnival is the cheapest cruise going out of MIA,FLL. I live in south florida so if I can get it cheap we go on more cruises. I don't except alot from Carnival so whatever I get is OK. Hell we sometimes don't even get off the ship in port. Go on enough of them and you kinda know what is good and what is not. Most of the time we have a blast the other cruise guests are what make it fun for us!!

 

 

I don't except alot from Carnival so whatever I get is OK.

 

 

I have to assume you meant to say expect? If so, I hope I never think that way about any of the cruiselines we go on. ;)

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golfb4cruzing

golfb4cruzing

Posted
Posted

Why go on Carnival and not expect a lot. Why go and settle for subpar? Why not throw your money out the window or give it to charity? If you are willing to settle, maybe you are cruising too much. We go twice a year and expect everything to be right. I don't expect Trump just what they advertise.

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Sargent_Schultz

Sargent_Schultz

Posted
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It wasn't so long ago that people were complaining that Carnival had to had a booze package to keep up with RCCL and Celebrity. Now that Carnival did, they are the booze cruise? That's crazy.

 

And a booze package isn't a cut back, it is a money saver for many.

 

And how is a fixed price for unlimited internet a cutback?

 

Carnival hasn't just decided to go after new cruisers - that's what their market always has been. It is the old cruisers who have changed.

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toyotaford

toyotaford

Posted
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I gotta agree with ya Stu. I would never book onboard, that type of planning doesn't work for me. I am not sure what my future with Carnival is past January, but its not really because of the changes. I have been interested in NCL for a while. I do like the prices of Carnival, but I am willing to pay for what I want. My wife and I have also been looking at other vacation alternatives.

We are platinum with CCL and took our first cruise with NCL 5 years ago and loved it. Have not been on a CCL cruise since but will be leaving next week on one we have booked as an incentive cruise for employees. Booked CCL strictly because of port and price. I will be interested to see how we feel about CCL after having been gone so long. We have cruised 5 lines and NCL is by far our favorite.

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Colorado Beach Bum

Colorado Beach Bum

Posted
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I really enjoy the changes. While some may call them cutbacks I think it has kept cruising with Carnival more interesting. I was actually about to change lines because everything was the same. The last cruise we went on had the 2.0 upgrades and it was amazing. It felt different. It was fun seeing the changes and trying new and different food choices. Now if we could just get them to change up the production shows more often.

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stewpapa

stewpapa

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I see this as being very simple. YOu can stay in Motel 6, or you can stay in a 5 star hotel. If you want a quality food, and entertainment than you will pay for it on another cruise line, but if you want some cheesy shows, with unlimited drinking than Carnival is it. That's what Carnival wants. I guess they figured they already had that image, so might as well just go with it.

 

You don't know what you are talking about.

 

I believe Carnival is marketing heavily to the first time cruiser. The first time cruiser is one who will likely spend a ton of money onboard - think shore tours, photos, expensive drinks, etc. This is how they apparently intend to keep profits up. However, in their attempts to heavily attract first-time cruisers who may or may not cruise again, they are effectively abandoning a large population of repeat passengers such as myself and many others who were guaranteed to cruise again. I was a huge Carnival champion in the Bob Dickinson era. Granted they didn't make a ton of money on me on every cruise, but I used to sail 2 or 3 times a year exclusively with Carnival and they made a little profit more frequently. I have 203 days at sea with them, but will be seriously considering other cruise lines. I am looking for a good value and Carnival used to be the champion on value hands-down...not so much anymore. Time will tell if their strategy is successful.

 

You are exactly right. New cruisers spend more. Why would they keep catering to the old cruisers who want special treatment and don't spend money?

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Almost Packed

Almost Packed

Posted
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They are charging me for something that was included/free. As Platinum, DW and I received entry into either the Slot or Black Jack Tournament. Now it is BOGO.

 

It is a tough economy, but other lines don't appear to be watering down their cruises yet.

 

 

that's right...i forgot about that. since I am not platinum (yet) i do/did/will not miss that perk. but for those who are use to it, yes, i can see that being sad.

 

 

I was flying on an airline last month internationally, in first class, and even saw cut backs there :eek:

 

everyone is having to tighten their belts.

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MrPete

MrPete

Posted
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Carnival hasn't grown to the size it is on repeat customers but on new cruisers. New cruisers probably do spend more but people seem to overlook that there are a helluva lot more of them than old cruisers New cruisers are who build new ships and grow the business.

 

Any new ships in the CCL pipeline?

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ddbaab53

ddbaab53

Posted
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We are not drinkers or smokers and just avoid the areas or activities that we are not interested in. We have chosen Carnival more often because they have always offered more ports and less sea days. We have been reading about all the changes and since we are trying to figure out what to do next Sept. for our 40th anniversary we decided to wait until we get back from this one and see what effect the changes have on our trip. If they bother us then we may opt for a different line, if not we have always been happy with Carnival and will look at them first. I can't complain about what Carnival does or does not have since they are the only line I have cruised with. While price is important these day to a lot of folks, itinery is more important for us. The more ports the better for us.

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camper49

camper49

Posted
Posted
FCC might have been the straw that broke the camels back for us.

 

Not going to book onboard so we just effectively got a $ 100 price increase.

I feel the same way. However we want to book the Sunshine for Jan. 2014 and will be sailing on Destiny in Jan. 2013 so if i knew more about booking on board i would consider it this time. Could you still cancel before final payment as you can when booking otherwise??

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MrPete

MrPete

Posted
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The new Carnival Sunshine debuts next year and I also expect Carnival to announce a new class of ships next year. :)

 

That wll not be considered new. New ALWAYS means a new hull.

 

Again, what new ships are in the Carnival pipeline.

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PAPERBKWRITER

PAPERBKWRITER

Posted
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Bookings will dictate whether Carnival's cuts go to far. IMO cruising still offers the best bang for the buck. I'm not overyoyed with the new all you care to drink package since it will undoubtly increase the # of intoxicated guests. I can't imagine someone paying for the package and not getting their "money's worth."

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MrPete

MrPete

Posted
Posted
That is YOUR opinion.

 

In any grocery store you choose, you will see NEW on all kinds of old products.

 

It's basic Marketing 101.

 

No it's not. Carnival has stated the same thing.

 

Not sure of the relevance of something in a tin can or box. Are you saying you can slap the word new on the side of something and some will believe it, and possibly even post it?

 

Perhaps Carnival can name the ship the Carnival New, and maybe some will think a 16 year old ship is just that.

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Sargent_Schultz

Sargent_Schultz

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No it's not. Carnival has stated the same thing.

 

Not sure of the relevance of something in a tin can or box. Are you saying you can slap the word new on the side of something and some will believe it, and possibly even post it?

 

It's not me saying it, but Carnival:

 

"This is our most ambitious ship conversion project to date and it will radically transform the Carnival Destiny into essentially an entirely new ship offering a variety of exciting dining and beverage choices, spectacular outdoor spaces and entertainment options, and on-board innovations not available anywhere else,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival president and CEO."

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MrPete

MrPete

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It's not me saying it, but Carnival:

 

"This is our most ambitious ship conversion project to date and it will radically transform the Carnival Destiny into essentially an entirely new ship offering a variety of exciting dining and beverage choices, spectacular outdoor spaces and entertainment options, and on-board innovations not available anywhere else,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival president and CEO."

 

Transform is clearly the key word in that statement. It is not a new build, and research even shows not even eligible to be a flagship in that line.

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