1-2-3 Promotion available to World with exception of UK

[jackiepaul61]

Jackiepaul and others....of course it's legal.

 

Have you ever considered that nearly ever person in a given train compartment paid a different price for their ticket? seniors, students, employees, return trip tickets, one way tickets, and how many other pricing strategies can you come up with.

 

Same with airlines. Last minute tickets, 21day advance purchase, employees, family of employees, frequent flees, they all pay different amounts for their seats

 

 

Yes, that's fair enough. But these are LIVE bookings with a huge price difference that can be made on the Celebrity website at the same time of day, for the same trip (excluding airfares).

 

It's not for last minute bookings. I'm just booked for November.

 

It's regional discrimination. Bottom line.

[sawyer_boy]

The 123go promotion is now available for UK guests on certain ships (Eclipse). The three options are the classic beverage package, free parking or OBC. Yes some might see it as unfair however the North American cost for cruises is higher then any UK price after the dollar exchange. It's also promoting the North American customer to travel over to Europe or the UK where they will be spending money and dumping money into local economy's.

[mzk90]

Jackiepaul and others....of course it's legal.

 

Have you ever considered that nearly ever person in a given train compartment paid a different price for their ticket? seniors, students, employees, return trip tickets, one way tickets, and how many other pricing strategies can you come up with.

 

Same with airlines. Last minute tickets, 21day advance purchase, employees, family of employees, frequent flees, they all pay different amounts for their seats

 

I am afraid that is far too sensible an opinion and you are being too realistic about the situation. Please leave this board and never return until you can demand BP start selling petrol at £1.50 a gallon! :D

[uktog]

I am afraid that is far too sensible an opinion and you are being too realistic about the situation. Please leave this board and never return until you can demand BP start selling petrol at £1.50 a gallon! :D

 

Love it!!

[jackiepaul61]

It's not the actual difference in cruise price i'm complaining about. It's just if we all book at the same time, why can't we all receive the special offers?

 

I just think it would be fairer to apply the offers on certain cruises, not on where the passengers come from.

[mzk90]

Any company that has a global offering, will normally have a distinct arm in each of the countries or regions it operates in. Each area will be tasked with setting prices in their currency based upon various market forces, which differ from country to country. This is an economic fact. Do you think a company trading in Germany will be making the same offers to its customers as it's branch in Athens will to the Greek consumers?

 

Why would they not tailor the offers as they see fit?

 

Have you ever been on HotUKDeals website? There are always people who post how they got a Sony TV in Tesco for £3.95. So everyone rushes out to their local Tesco hoping to find the same deal, all across the UK. Lo and behold 1 other person may find this discontinued TV at that price while hundreds just wasted their petrol. This was a store specific deal that was created just to sell that TV.

 

If I buy a bag of frozen peas in Sainsburys for a quid, stick it in my freezer. Guess what, next week they reduce those peas to 50p. Shall I go back and ask them to give me 50p back? I mean I haven't used the peas yet, I bought them to have in a few weeks time. I wonder what Sainsburys will say?

[Sparkle 123]

Well after I made my feelings known via email to Celebrity about the 123 offer not being available to UK guests , they replied that are aware of the dissatisfaction this promo has caused and do read these boards!

Basically they have had a lot of feedback regarding the offer and comments have been passed to management.

But they do continue to state that "We have multiple offers globally that

are market (country) specific and are not combinable with other countries

offers"

 

So I am pretty tempted to take my chances and book our next Celebrity cruise via a US travel agent.

I used the website Swigso mentioned and have had quotes, just need to persuade my husband to stump up the deposit which of course would be refundable if we wanted to cancel if a better offer comes out before final payment is due, another advantage the US enjoys over us Brits.

[Andy]

Any company that has a global offering, will normally have a distinct arm in each of the countries or regions it operates in. Each area will be tasked with setting prices in their currency based upon various market forces, which differ from country to country. This is an economic fact. Do you think a company trading in Germany will be making the same offers to its customers as it's branch in Athens will to the Greek consumers?

 

Why would they not tailor the offers as they see fit?

 

Have you ever been on HotUKDeals website? There are always people who post how they got a Sony TV in Tesco for £3.95. So everyone rushes out to their local Tesco hoping to find the same deal, all across the UK. Lo and behold 1 other person may find this discontinued TV at that price while hundreds just wasted their petrol. This was a store specific deal that was created just to sell that TV.

 

If I buy a bag of frozen peas in Sainsburys for a quid, stick it in my freezer. Guess what, next week they reduce those peas to 50p. Shall I go back and ask them to give me 50p back? I mean I haven't used the peas yet, I bought them to have in a few weeks time. I wonder what Sainsburys will say?

 

Hi Mzk90,

 

Thank you for your excellent analysis. While I absolutely love our UK friends, I feel that all this talk of discrimination are way off base. Companies all over the world market to various regions as they see fit, and where they feel it will maximize their revenues & profitability. I accept this can annoy others at times, but to make all sorts of accusations about it, makes little sense to me.

 

Not too long ago, Celebrity offered a promotion for UK Guests, which was not offered to US Guests. Were US consumers discriminated upon ? Absolutely not. It's a marketing campaign - and what seems to be a very effective one at that.

 

On the bright side, Celebrity has listened to their Guest comments on this forum & elsewhere, and is now offering a variation on the 123 GO promotion for UK Guests sailing on Eclipse from Southampton. The details & terms can be found here : http://www.celebritycruises.co.uk/cruise-deals/ . I truly hope that our dear UK friends can take advantage of this offer. All the best to you !

[nijh]

I can fully understand region specific offers - but this is not one of them:

The offer, or a similar version of it, has been made available to all countries EXCEPT the UK.

I can fully understand offers only being available to new bookings - but this is not one of them:

Check this board, or the roll calls, to see many people who have got this offer after final payment.

I would be happy if there were now a ‘bright side’ and Celebrity had indeed listened - but they have not:

One ship out of Southampton. Is that really supposed to be an equivalent?

If I buy a bag of frozen peas in Sainsburys for a quid, stick it in my freezer. Guess what, next week they reduce those peas to 50p. Shall I go back and ask them to give me 50p back? I mean I haven't used the peas yet, I bought them to have in a few weeks time. I wonder what Sainsburys will say?

I certainly would not try to take my peas back to Sainsbury’s if there were a price drop – however if they were letting everyone who bought the peas now have a free chicken - but telling me 'No' - I’d shop at Tesco next week.

[swigso]

I am not going to debate the rights and wrongs of this particular situation, however

 

1 I very much doubt there will be consistency of airfare pricing on the plane I take to and from my cruise

 

2. Prices do go up and down - ever bought that dress or that tin of beans or whatever and found there is a special offer on it the next week - still like the dress and ate the beans

 

2. Maybe I am hitting a stage of too much information available - so I booked at a price I was happy to pay....................

and I cannot know everything ( like I also do not know what other perks or incentives my fellow cruiser got or the price they paid)

 

so rightly or wrongly, I will just relax and enjoy my cruise. And as ever, when I come to book my next cruise I will do my research at that point in time which is absolutely the right thing to do

 

You can do all the research you want, the fact is bookings in the UK do not

Qualify for an inclusive drinks promotion worth $88 per day.that is nearly £800 worth of extras based on a 14 night cruise and an exchange rate of 1.55

Excluding the 15% tip.

So if I book the Eclipse for March 14 the cost of a 2a cabin is £3368

Including Gratuities, add on the Classic drink package £906

Now compare that to if I book the same cruise same cabin with a TA

In the USA the total cost in Dollars is $4335, but that includes an upgrade

To the premium alcohol package.

So if you are happy to pay in pounds sterling feel free, it's just that some would rather have the benefit of the £900 worth of freebies, it would be a different situation if the pricing was different.

Also to compare a price differential of pence (beans) or pounds (dress) is not really a good analogy.

In regard to airfare pricing I think most realise

That timing when booking is how to get the best price.

When I book my airfare I know I pay in full and if the airline has a sale

Then that's too bad but booking a cruise has so many anomalies

It can be a mine field.

I also very much agree with you though on the point that if you

are not happy don't book, and I think that is the reason for this thread.

Many UK Loyal Celebrity Customers are unhappy,hence the protests.

[Frugalsgirl]

I did call up to check the new 123 out. I was to loose £300 deposit,pay an additional £400 in regional air fares( yes a lot but that's the cost of flying from local Scottish airport and limited flights) and loose $600 OBC so it did not make financial sense especially as only my husband drinks alcohol.

[mzk90]

I can fully understand region specific offers - but this is not one of them:

The offer, or a similar version of it, has been made available to all countries EXCEPT the UK.

I can fully understand offers only being available to new bookings - but this is not one of them:

Check this board, or the roll calls, to see many people who have got this offer after final payment.

I would be happy if there were now a ‘bright side’ and Celebrity had indeed listened - but they have not:

One ship out of Southampton. Is that really supposed to be an equivalent?

I certainly would not try to take my peas back to Sainsbury’s if there were a price drop – however if they were letting everyone who bought the peas now have a free chicken - but telling me 'No' - I’d shop at Tesco next week.

 

So if Shop A had a new offer 2 weeks after you bought your peas, you'd go back and ask for your free chicken? Would you really expect to get it? You bought the peas when they were a quid. You were happy to pay a quid.

 

I guess that is the beauty of democracy. If you are not happy then you can go buy your peas in Shop B. Of course the question is if you are buying the same brand of peas or Shop B's own make. And of course what happens when shop B do the same thing to you as Shop A did, which they will, because it is standard business practice.

 

Anyway, nice to have some reasoned debate. :D

[English Tim]

I believe that cruise-lines are trying to make it difficult to book anywhere other than the country in which you live, but there are usually ways around this. The complications may come with past guest benefits, if there are different schemes for different nationalities.

[sha1955]

I think you miss the point with this comment

 

Not too long ago, Celebrity offered a promotion for UK Guests, which was not offered to US Guests. Were US consumers discriminated upon ? Absolutely not. It's a marketing campaign - and what seems to be a very effective one at that

 

The main difference is that 123 is a major promotion, nothing of this magnitude has been on offer before. You cannot comment unless you compare like for like.

No body will feel discriminated by small variations in on board credit or bonuses, but 123 is big money and big savings which we in the UK are denied.

Yippee, we got a deal from Southampton. What about Rome, or Venice or other European ports. Why should a UK cruiser not benefit from that? Eclipse from Southampton does not come close!

I am on B2B on Summit in a few months. I booked at a fantastic price nearly 2 years ago. I got a great deal and do not feel aggrieved at all.

But to belittle our feelings of discrimination with these counter examples does little to inspire confidence here.

[Presto2]

As someone who booked with Celebrity in May 2012 for this coming August I just feel that this promotion fills the ship for them without us early bookers having the chance to ask for a cost reduction on the cruise. ( I.e. it is better for them if they give away free drinks that they sell at silly prices anyway to fill the ship than have to give us early bookers a price reduction when they have to reduce the prices to entice US customers). As 3rd time cruisers on the Silhouette we feel very let down.

 

Our roll call for the Eastern Med for August has been VERY quiet which makes me think that such cruises are not popular in the US. I accept that they need to do something about it, but not at the expense of making UK cruisers feel like 2nd class travellers.

 

Sorry Andy, but re comments that we could get the reduction if we sailed from Southampton --- sorry, but if we had to sail from there we would sail with P&O with no shadow of a doubt. Its the fly cruises that Celebrity do that make the difference re who we book with. There is no way that cruises from Southampton in August would take us on an Eastern Med Cruise and the Greek Islands ------ unless there was a month to spare. Have done the Eclipse itinerary on P&O and that is why we do fly / cruises -----------and we really do NOT want to go to Norway in August. We never see the sun in the UK so want to have our annual fix of sunshine as well as the history that the Greece brings with it.

 

Shame we have no Celebrity official on here like they do on Azamura to answer these questions.

 

Rant over - feel better now - off to research our excursions - life's too short to get 'too upset' ----but I don't think us UK fold feel very 'appreciated' at the moment.

[simon stingray]

Any company that has a global offering, will normally have a distinct arm in each of the countries or regions it operates in. Each area will be tasked with setting prices in their currency based upon various market forces, which differ from country to country. This is an economic fact. Do you think a company trading in Germany will be making the same offers to its customers as it's branch in Athens will to the Greek consumers?

 

Why would they not tailor the offers as they see fit?

 

Have you ever been on HotUKDeals website? There are always people who post how they got a Sony TV in Tesco for £3.95. So everyone rushes out to their local Tesco hoping to find the same deal, all across the UK. Lo and behold 1 other person may find this discontinued TV at that price while hundreds just wasted their petrol. This was a store specific deal that was created just to sell that TV.

 

If I buy a bag of frozen peas in Sainsburys for a quid, stick it in my freezer. Guess what, next week they reduce those peas to 50p. Shall I go back and ask them to give me 50p back? I mean I haven't used the peas yet, I bought them to have in a few weeks time. I wonder what Sainsburys will say?

 

Just imagine if Tesco had a huge pile of those TV's priced at £3.95 available at all of their branches and all the customers who wanted one were leaving the store very happy.

 

But then the sales assistant hears one of the customers has an American accent and quickly grabs the TV from his trolley and tells him that the offer is not for Americans and he could have one only if he pays £499.00 for it.

 

When the American customer complains then he is told that the Managment of Fresh & Easy have made this decision so nothing can be done.

 

Does this sound like a ridiculous situation to everyone else-or is it just me.

[MicCanberra]

We are currently aboard Equinox and as usual we book our next January cruise while on board. When we attend at the Future Cruise Sales to make the intended 28 night b2b cruise booking, we found that British guest are excluded from the current 1-2-3 offer that is available to the rest of the World, both on board and through Agents.

 

One of the segments of the offer is the Classic Drink Package which alone is worth 88$ a day, is you x this by 28 you see what a loss this is if you are intending to purchase the drink package! Are we UK guests subsidising the rest of Celebrity guests promotion?

 

I queried this with CC Club Hostess and apparently there have been complaints from other guests but Miami can do nothing about the matter, despite being unhappy with the situation, as the UK have the final say on the matter!!!! Sounds to me like the tail wagging the dog.

 

Two very unhappy loyal cruisers who are now not booking the cruise and will look elsewhere. What happened to Celebrity loyalty?

The Uk is not the alone.

The 123 go promo is available in Australia but it only provides free upgrades and not one of the other three options. This promo only came to Australia one week later than when announced for it's world wide promo ( I presume it was due to pressure from unsatisfied customers).

 

That said, the promo has always been for new bookings only, I know some existing customers have received it but they have either cancelled and rebooked or the cost of their cruise had not increased.

 

I, myself have received the Drinks package now on three future cruises, but this was due to me cancelling two and then rebooking (and costing me some extra $) and the third cruise was the same price (lost some OBC). I had to decide if it was worth doing all of this first and decided that it was for the drinks package.

 

Like I have mentioned, the UK is not alone.:D

[nijh]

So if Shop A had a new offer 2 weeks after you bought your peas, you'd go back and ask for your free chicken? Would you really expect to get it? You bought the peas when they were a quid. You were happy to pay a quid.

 

I would if the other people that bought the peas at the same time as me were being subsequently offered the chicken as a special promotion, free of charge - or a leg of lamb for a small upgrade ;)

[uktog]

so if that offer was in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Bermuda would you expect to be offered it in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Scotland (other locations or global stores are available!)

[nijh]

Does this sound like a ridiculous situation to everyone else-or is it just me.

 

I think that sums it up nicely.

 

The main difference is that 123 is a major promotion, nothing of this magnitude has been on offer before. You cannot comment unless you compare like for like.

No body will feel discriminated by small variations in on board credit or bonuses, but 123 is big money and big savings which we in the UK are denied.

 

Exactly - well put.

 

 

I, myself have received the Drinks package now on three future cruises, but this was due to me cancelling two and then rebooking (and costing me some extra $) and the third cruise was the same price (lost some OBC). I had to decide if it was worth doing all of this first and decided that it was for the drinks package.

 

Like I have mentioned, the UK is not alone.

 

How have you managed to get the drinks package if you're in the same boat (excuse the pun) as us in the UK?

[nijh]

so if that offer was in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Bermuda would you expect to be offered it in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Scotland (other locations or global stores are available!)

 

No - if it was a local offer I wouldn't think twice about it.

 

But if M&S were giving away £500 gift tokens in every store in the world apart from the UK then I think I'd be right in being upset.

[jackiepaul61]

Exactly Nijh,

 

US passengers are effectively all inclusive on board every cruise, while the rest of us will be penalised for taking more than 2 bottles of wine on board!

 

Ludicrous.

[Bestbubba]

To those that are thinking some UK posters are making a mountain out of a mole hill over this, look no further than Host Andy's original thread about the 123 offer....over 80,000 views and nearly 1200 posts. It's obviously seen as a huge deal by our good friends across the pond...

 

Sue

[villauk]

so if that offer was in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Bermuda would you expect to be offered it in Marks and Spencers in Hamilton Scotland (other locations or global stores are available!)

 

I wasn't going to reply because, at present, we haven't booked another Celebrity cruise, but I think I would be feeling quite miffed if I was seeing this promotion and not qualifying. So, back to M&S in Bermuda.....

 

I wouldn't expect the offer to be the same, however, would the shop in Bermuda refuse my money if I wanted to buy the item, or would it even ask my nationality before it took my money? Surely, one should be able to purchase an item from anywhere in the world and then take the chance with the rules and regulations of that country? Is this not the same when buying property abroad? Do you not have to comply with local customs rather than your own country's?

 

If you purchased an item whilst on holiday, you take that risk all the time of not being able to return the item. However, that's the risk you run. Do you say the shop won't sell me the item because I'm not a local?

 

I may be totally wrong, but I've never seen a website selling goods that says I can't buy them unless I'm a certain nationality - cruise companies excepted! Isn't that what 'shopping around for the best deal' at that particular time is? I'll leave it open to be proven wrong :D. I'm just off to check a few websites now :p.

[MicCanberra]

How have you managed to get the drinks package if you're in the same boat (excuse the pun) as us in the UK?

 

As I said, I used a TA in the US.:D