Cost Per Person Per Day?

[willowoodf]

I have a question. With the highest priced and lowest priced cruise threads up right now, some of you have mentioned the cost per day. What is a good cost per person per day for a cruise? We are newbies and just did our first cruise. It started out a great deal but then we upgraded to a suite when one became available, so the cruise then became much more expensive. But was it still a good deal? Or did we pay too much? We really enjoyed the "suite life", and to us, we didn't pay too much! Anyway, we are looking at booking our next cruise, and we are wondering, what is a good price per person per day for a suite? We would like to have some sort of a yardstick to judge by while we are looking for our next cruise. Any input is much appreciated!

 

Mary

[torpeedo]

That is a real tough question. It would vary from cruise line to cruise line, itinerary to itinerary, and ship to ship. If you select a cruise line, ship and itinerary and shop around with many TA's, you can determine the lowest pp per day amount for a suite and gauge which is the best deal. The best deal is the best deal you can get.

PS: Also not all Suites are equal between different ships and cruise lines (perks, cabin size, and location) so you should evaluate which ones you would be happy with.

[Roboat]

I think torp gives good advice above.

 

Also, remember to absolutely determine what shipboard credit you will receive. (NOT coupons.) The SC can run $50-$200 per passenger, and it is real money. It will offset your bar bill or other items charged to your shipboard account. So it can definitely make a big difference in your total cost pp/pd. Some T/A's will tell you SC is not available for that cuise, but check around. I found about SC on my cruise through friendly CC's, even though my online TA said there was no SC available. Saved me $150.

 

THEN, add the cruise cost, taxes, port charges, and shipboard credit. Some websites quote prices with port charges but not taxes, etc. Make sure you compare apples and apples.

 

IMHO, which deck you are on is not very significant, so I don't count "upgrades" for much, unless the upgrade takes me from an outside to a balcony, or a balcony to a suite.

[willowoodf]

Wow. I guess this is more complicated than I thought! About shipboard credit, do we just ask our TA about it? I would have never even known such a thing if I haven't read this board. Is SC something that is given by your TA as a "perk", or is it something that is offered through the cruise line? So if our TA says that there is no SC, I should call another TA? Isn't there something to be said, though, for loyalty to a specific TA??

 

Please excuse all the questions, but we are relatively new cruisers, and I think we have now found our vacation of choice at least for the foreseeable future, and want to be savvy cruisers!

 

As for different prices per day by cruise line, take it as a given that I'm only talking Holland America.

 

Mary

[torpeedo]

Shipboard credit is sometimes offered when you book. That will be advertised on their website usually. The higher end cabin you book, the more onboard credit you may get. If it is not available when you book, sometimes it is offered during the time between booking and when you cruise. You have to be on your toes to find that out. It may be in a Mariner magazine, in a mailing or just offered to TA's and you might find it on their website. Cruise critic posters have a great wealth of knowledge as to when they are available and what the promo number code is. If you see one, just call your TA and say that you want to take advantage of the promo number and the TA should take care of that.

Re loyalty to a specific TA, that is up to you:o . RE price: What you should do is shop around with as many TA's as you can and ask your TA to match that price. I would not be embarrased to do that. It is your money after all.

If you really need help selecting cruises and need special assistance in other areas, it may be worth a few extra $$ to you to have that special service of your TA.

[willowoodf]

Thank you, Torpeedo! From your sig, I can see that you do a lot of cruises, so you know what you are talking about!

 

Mary

[rochnd]

I try and negotiate for a rate as close to $100 pp/pd as I can get. This figure includes everything but gratuities. I usually negotiate myself out of onboard credit by working for a lower cruise price. The figure I've noted is for an upper grade ocean view cabin. I think the balcony would be about 150% of that rate but I have had no luck working a deal on them as the demand is quite high.

 

Don

[jhannah]

Truly it is more complicated than it seems. Our upcoming British Isles cruise is way more expensive pp/pd than any we've sailed yet. Why? Perhaps it's the weak dollar against the Euro. I'm not sure. I'd say if you can get $100-150 pp/pd on an oceanview, then you've gotten yourself a good deal.

[arzz]

I think that the $100pp/pday for an outside cabin is a reasonable yardstick for a 7 day Caribbean cruise that is not over a holiday. These cruises should be available at reasonable rates if you book at the right time (please note that the "right time" varies all of the time depending on the economy and whether cruises are selling well, or not selling -- this is extremely variable -- sometimes, like now, when demand for cruising seems to be high the right time may be well in advance -- when sailings are not selling the right time may be in the last 60 days or so before sailing.).

 

I have noticed that cruising other areas than the Caribbean, the rates vary tremendously. The European cruises all seem to run $150 pp/pday (and more) for a good outside price. I am ignorant as to whether this is because of the price the cruise line must pay to sail these waters, or whether it is a supply and demand issue. But I have seen this now for the past couple of years and the prices seem to only be going up.

 

Hawaii, Asia, Antarctica, seem to be even higher. Some of these cruises are admittedly scarce and therefore cruise lines can charge what they can get and fill the ships. That is definitely a market place issue.

 

if you continue to play the game of shaving off $50, $100, by looking for the 'best rate' -- if that is clearly what is most important to you -- this tells the cruise lines loud and clear that keeping the basic rates down sells cruises better and fills the ships (their goals) -- therefore expect to continue to see additional extra charge items, and cuts in service and amenities. This is what the cruisers are communicating to the lines who concentrate on their bottom line. They cannnot, economicaly continue to undersell their product and provide all of the goodies of yesteryear. The behavior of the buyer dictates what will be important and what is expendable.

 

Please do not get me wrong -- I am not encouraging buyers to overpay or just buy from the first service provider. I am just suggesting that many of the complaints re: service and amenities are the consequence of buyer behavior that emphasizes bottom line price over the quality of the end product.

[obriendan]

I would agree with Jhannah that $100-150 pp/pd for oceanview is probably a good deal. I would think that anything under $200 pp/pd is good for a verandah.

 

A note on shipboard credit. For each of our last three cruises we have gotten $100 shipboard credit with a coupon from our yearly subscription to "Ocean and Cruise News" ($30/yr).

[willowoodf]

Thanks, everybody, for their input! And I think I need to get a subscription to Ocean & Cruise News!!

 

Mary

[sammiedawg]

Holiday pricing per diem is significantly higher due to demand. We've also noted a premium on 10 day verses 7 day trips but sometimes it still makes sense to book 10 day trips. If your cruise is port intensive or cool weather, Fall New England, skip the balcony. You wont use it.

[Krazy Kruizers]

That is a good and tough question.

There are some cruises that are offered only once a year - maybe once every couple of years. So there isn't much choice in the cost per day. But the Caribbean has so many choices and so many prices, that it boils down to ports, ships, and what you want out of the cruise.

[General Max]

I have a question. With the highest priced and lowest priced cruise threads up right now, some of you have mentioned the cost per day. What is a good cost per person per day for a cruise? We are newbies and just did our first cruise. It started out a great deal but then we upgraded to a suite when one became available, so the cruise then became much more expensive. But was it still a good deal? Or did we pay too much? We really enjoyed the "suite life", and to us, we didn't pay too much! Anyway, we are looking at booking our next cruise, and we are wondering, what is a good price per person per day for a suite? We would like to have some sort of a yardstick to judge by while we are looking for our next cruise. Any input is much appreciated!

 

Mary

 

We booked the Ryndam for our first cruise; Seward to Vancouver in 2004. We booked it as part of HAL Cruisetour No. 18 which included 6 nights on land in Alaska (Fairbanks, Denali Park, Anchorage and Alyeska Ski Resort)

 

We booked Suite No. 33 and the cost was $276.92 per person per night for the fourteen days.

 

We booked another "SA" category suite, cabin 7062 on the upcoming 15 night transatlantic sailing of the Westerdam for $256.67 per person per night.

 

We booked a 10 day cruise on the upcoming inaugural sailing of the Nordam (category VA cabin 5180) for $204.70 per person per day

 

Cheers

 

General Max

[zackiedawg]

I would say for in the Minisuite category (something in the 250-315sq ft cabin, with 50-100ft balcony category, whatever they decide to call it on different lines), $140 - 145 per day per person would be considered a good price. Some rare cases of a lower rate may pop up, while lots will pay higher, but that has typically been my target range.

 

Of course, the ship or line sometimes has something to do with it....for example you can often book a full Suite on a 7-day Carnival cruise for the same price as a standard veranda cabin on Celebrity or Holland America. Those two lines consider themselves more upscale, and charge comparatively more.

 

On a 7-day RCCL Voyager of the Seas cruise, I had a minisuite cabin at $128 per day - however I received an upgrade cabin and got lucky on that one.

 

On a 10-day Coral Princess cruise, I booked the minisuite for $1,499, yielding $150 per day. Considering the generous cabin size and the fun Panama canal route, I thought this was one of the best bargains I'd ever had.

 

On my last 10-day Celebrity Summit cruise, the rate was $180 per day for a Concierge class cabin...which is actually pretty small compared to Minisuites. This was not nearly as good a deal when comparing price per day, yet the ship, service, itinerary, and atmosphere still made it feel like it was well worth the money.

 

For my upcoming Holland America Zuiderdam cruise, I booked the SS for $929, which works out to an excellent $133 per day...which sounds like a fantastic deal to me, especially considering Holland America should deliver a similar level of service and attention to detail as Celebrity did.

 

Now on all of these, I haven't factored in tips, drinks, etc. But for just the raw cost of the cruise, I would try to target $150 per day for a minisuite level, while weighing the itinerary and cruise line's service and style. Some cruises can still be a good deal and a great time, even if you end up paying more.

[willowoodf]

Thanks, again, everybody for your input! Anybody else that would like to chime in, please do!

 

Mary

[General Max]

$204.78

[willowoodf]

Max:

 

Down to the exact penny!!

 

We are getting anxious to book our next cruise!!

 

Mary

[serendipity1499]

I would say for in the Minisuite category (something in the 250-315sq ft cabin, with 50-100ft balcony category, whatever they decide to call it on different lines), $140 - 145 per day per person would be considered a good price. Some rare cases of a lower rate may pop up, while lots will pay higher, but that has typically been my target range.

 

Of course, the ship or line sometimes has something to do with it....for example you can often book a full Suite on a 7-day Carnival cruise for the same price as a standard veranda cabin on Celebrity or Holland America. Those two lines consider themselves more upscale, and charge comparatively more.

 

On a 7-day RCCL Voyager of the Seas cruise, I had a minisuite cabin at $128 per day - however I received an upgrade cabin and got lucky on that one.

 

 

On a 10-day Coral Princess cruise, I booked the minisuite for $1,499, yielding $150 per day. Considering the generous cabin size and the fun Panama canal route, I thought this was one of the best bargains I'd ever had.

 

On my last 10-day Celebrity Summit cruise, the rate was $180 per day for a Concierge class cabin...which is actually pretty small compared to Minisuites. This was not nearly as good a deal when comparing price per day, yet the ship, service, itinerary, and atmosphere still made it feel like it was well worth the money.

 

For my upcoming Holland America Zuiderdam cruise, I booked the SS for $929, which works out to an excellent $133 per day...which sounds like a fantastic deal to me, especially considering Holland America should deliver a similar level of service and attention to detail as Celebrity did.

 

Now on all of these, I haven't factored in tips, drinks, etc. But for just the raw cost of the cruise, I would try to target $150 per day for a minisuite level, while weighing the itinerary and cruise line's service and style. Some cruises can still be a good deal and a great time, even if you end up paying more.

 

I also want to thank everyone who gave their opinion of good prices per cabin..I found this very interesting..

 

While reading this thread again I have one question for you all about your suite & verandah cabins..Am I correct in assuming ** that your daily estimates do not include port charges & taxes & are for the basic cruise only..Port charges & taxes will be varied, depending on the itinerary..

 

On The Prinsendams 25 day Amazon Cruise in 2006 it's over $200 per night for an outside cabin (not incl port charges & taxes)...Don't know if we will have any shipboard Credits yet..

However on a "Maasdam" 7 day Western Carib. cruise in March of 2003 we paid as little as $70.00 per day per person & that included port charges & taxes..We could not afford to stay home for that price..

 

Thanks again for all your input..:)

 

P.S. **Yes, I know the meaning of "assuming" so if I'm a "you know what", ;) please don't flame me..LOL

[ekerr19]

Is SC something that is given by your TA as a "perk", or is it something that is offered through the cruise line? So if our TA says that there is no SC, I should call another TA? Isn't there something to be said, though, for loyalty to a specific TA??

 

 

Mary

 

Mary - We always receive some type of shipboard credit from our TA - sometimes it is a combination of SC from the agency and HAL and sometimes just from the agency. :)

[zackiedawg]

Well I at least was not including port charges...so if you want you may adjust up a little for those. On the $1,499 Princess, I believe the final tally was $1,650 or so with all taxes and charges. My bill for the upcoming Holland America cruise has worked out to $1020 with all charges finalized for the SS cabin...minus the 2 bottles of wine, the $25 Odyssey meal, and the $125 shipboard credit from the travel agency.

 

Sounds like you had a great deal on the Maasdam cruise...assuming (there I go making assumptions too!) you had a standard cabin and not a minisuite. Should be around the same price for my upcoming Zuiderdam cruise...if the SS is $929, the regular cabins should be alot lower than that.

 

Hope that helps.

[willowoodf]

We just had a mini-war with the two TA's and I never want to get in that position again! Phew! We ended up booking with the local TA, with a promise to the charter TA for one fall/winter 2006 or winter/spring 2007.

 

I got some shipboard credit and a voucher for airport parking, so at least I came out with something!

[serendipity1499]

Well I at least was not including port charges...so if you want you may adjust up a little for those. On the $1,499 Princess, I believe the final tally was $1,650 or so with all taxes and charges. My bill for the upcoming Holland America cruise has worked out to $1020 with all charges finalized for the SS cabin...minus the 2 bottles of wine, the $25 Odyssey meal, and the $125 shipboard credit from the travel agency.

 

Sounds like you had a great deal on the Maasdam cruise...assuming (there I go making assumptions too!) you had a standard cabin and not a minisuite. Should be around the same price for my upcoming Zuiderdam cruise...if the SS is $929, the regular cabins should be alot lower than that.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Thanks for your reply,,Yes you assume correctly:) that fare was for an "H" guarantee & they upgraded us to an "E"..This was booked two weeks before departure & might have been one of those that is offered to Florida Residents at the last minute..

Happy cruising everyone..