FTTF conspiracy theory?

[SadieN]

I was wondering about this FTTF buzz when planning our first Carnival cruise that we went on this past April. I figured I would see how it went before deciding if FTTF was worth the extra $$ for our next cruise based on our experience with the first. My conclusion - - we would not pay the extra money for FTTF. Here is what our experience was - my comments are in red.

 

...........

 

Dining Reservations (We used Your Time Dining and loved it. Didn't wait for a table our entire cruise.)

 

Priority Main Dining Room and Specialty Restaurant reservations (excluding Your Time Dining)........

 

 

 

For clarification FTTF gets you Priority in Dining Assignments and Priority in Speciality Dining requests. It does not get you any 'front of the line' privileges. Carnival does not take reservations for the MDRs.

[bruadhin]

There really is no reason for Carnival to slow up boarding. You can't spend money unless you are on the ship. The liquor flows quickly on the first day.

 

I overheard the liquor shop manager say he does 75% of his business on the first day. I suspect bar bills are also higher on the first day.

[near the beach]

How about Carnival delaying boarding for one or two hours so all cabins can be ready. Then everyone can be happy to go to their cabins.

 

Not all ships have FTTF.

 

I don’t care how much someone pays to board the ship after I do. If I had a zone 1 boarding card I would not care if the person in front of me paid $60 extra.

[Jimmy Geegitz]

First of all, I thought the lines are caused by customs, not the cruise ship companies. And secondly, they don't offer enough of them per cruise for Carnival to make that much of a profit off of them.

 

No Profit? Are u kidding?

20 FTTF per ship = $1200 x 25 ships =$30,000 x52 weeks per year = $1,664,000

[Bimmie Girl]

I'd quit cruising carnival if I were you.

 

I wish they had a like button, made me LOL

[jimbo5544]

There really is no reason for Carnival to slow up boarding. You can't spend money unless you are on the ship. The liquor flows quickly on the first day.

 

I overheard the liquor shop manager say he does 75% of his business on the first day. I suspect bar bills are also higher on the first day.

 

The only reason is the turnover on the rooms. I would bet embarkation day ranks second on highest liquer sales with day two being the top.

[jimbo5544]

No Profit? Are u kidding?

20 FTTF per ship = $1200 x 25 ships =$30,000 x52 weeks per year = $1,664,000

 

I don't know who thought of it, but this is one of the smartest ideas to come along in a long time. Pure added revenue.

[Captain Carnival]

Interesting theory LDL however from my experience most, and I mean most of all of the FTTF guests arrive at the port well before boarding time (usually around 11:30) - that's a principle FTTF benefit. Once the (pre-boarding guests) seating gallery is cleared open/general boarding commences. It is here, at around 12:30 that the great exodus into the terminal begins and thus creating the longer lines.

 

That being said it takes approximately a guest around 21 minutes from entering the port, getting checked in and then getting on board. Granted theses are the guests that have their online check in completed and use a credit card too. Those who do not complete anything on line and also use cash for their S&S account take a bit longer, especially if they are a large group resulting in a check in agent to spend a lot more time getting them on board and keeping the "line" moving.

 

Trust me here when I say that Carnival would rather have ALL of their guests on board and standing at the bar rather than standing on line inside the terminal.

 

FTTF is that premium service that some desire and can afford without any conspiracies attached from Carnival but an interesting theory nevertheless.

[chrisdridley]

Had my first cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines in May. My previous cruises have all been on Crystal or Windstar....except for a Commodore cruise on the MS Boheme back in the early 70's.....so I didn't know what to expect with Carnival. I purchased the FTTF shortly after I booked the cruise. I thought it was really nice to have because our luggage showed up to our cabins less than an hour after we boarded, we only had two tender ports and it came in very handy those two days but for us, the biggest benefit was being in Zone 1 for disembarkation. At 8:15 am we were outside the cruise terminal heading for the airport for an 11:00 am flight.

Carnival won me over and so did FTTF.

[K.T.B.]

People don't seem to understand that the main reason there are long lines for the tender is it's because there are usually other ships in port using those same tenders. If there were only 1 or 2 ships in port, things would go quickly.

 

The tendering process is not usually the cruise line's fault if it takes a long time.

[bruadhin]

No Profit? Are u kidding?

20 FTTF per ship = $1200 x 25 ships =$30,000 x52 weeks per year = $1,664,000

 

Revenue for 4th Quarter 2014 alone was 3.72 billion. $1.6 million for the year is a rounding error. And yes, that revenue is for the entire corporation, not just Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

It is found money, but it disappears into the larger numbers.

[bruadhin]

The only reason is the turnover on the rooms. I would bet embarkation day ranks second on highest liquer sales with day two being the top.

 

I won't argue with that. The second day, if a sea day, certainly could beat the first day in on board liquor sales. Any way you look at it, the sooner Carnival can get passengers on a ship, the sooner they can start buying alcohol and the sooner it can cast of to reach international waters so the shops and casino can be opened.

 

FTTF is found money with minimal additional expenses, basically just administering the program. The majority of it is simply prioritizing workflow to benefit certain passengers.

[bruadhin]

People don't seem to understand that the main reason there are long lines for the tender is it's because there are usually other ships in port using those same tenders. If there were only 1 or 2 ships in port, things would go quickly.

 

The tendering process is not usually the cruise line's fault if it takes a long time.

 

Are you sure about that? I thought the tenders were contracted to that ship or that cruise line for the day? More ships means fewer tenders to go around, but I don't believe they are shared between ships.

[jimbo5544]

Are you sure about that? I thought the tenders were contracted to that ship or that cruise line for the day? More ships means fewer tenders to go around, but I don't believe they are shared between ships.

 

I don't know but my guess is there is one supply of tenders (as example, in Grand Cayman). So it is a supply and demand thing. On our latest visit there in April aboard the Breeze, there were 6 or 7 ships and at least one ship (Celebrity I believe) was using it's own (the open boats among the life rafts on the ship itself).

[musikfans]

I don't know who thought of it, but this is one of the smartest ideas to come along in a long time. Pure added revenue.

 

I agree. The conspiracy theories about slowing the process to sell FTTF are bunk, though. Any business is heavily focused on customer experience. Watch how quickly on these boards the mob shifts when some small change (no bottles allowed, etc) occurs.

 

The brilliance here is not only does it allow an opportunity for one to enhance their experience, it also causes others to lower expectations. If you decide that you don't need to get to your room quickly when you board you don't buy FTTF. You have now made a conscious decision to wait, long before your trip starts. Next you get to your ship and wait without frustration. If your room is ready a little earlier you're even impressed. It's all about the EXPERIENCE.

Edited June 10, 2015 by musikfans

[bruadhin]

I don't know but my guess is there is one supply of tenders (as example, in Grand Cayman). So it is a supply and demand thing. On our latest visit there in April aboard the Breeze, there were 6 or 7 ships and at least one ship (Celebrity I believe) was using it's own (the open boats among the life rafts on the ship itself).

 

I agree with that and said as much. There are only so many tenders to go around. My point was, I don't believe Tender A is going to make a run to a Carnival ship and then turn around and make one to a RCL ship. It will just do one or the other all day. It would be too confusing for passengers, the tender's crew and the ship's crew otherwise.

[js]

It is mentioned in this thread that not all ships have the FTTF.

I am sailing the Breeze end of January and I check multiple times a day to see

if FTTF will be available so I can purchase, for the sole purpose of hopefully getting

my bags early.

 

Is FTTF available on the Breeze.

 

Thank you.

[bruadhin]

It is mentioned in this thread that not all ships have the FTTF.

I am sailing the Breeze end of January and I check multiple times a day to see

if FTTF will be available so I can purchase, for the sole purpose of hopefully getting

my bags early.

 

Is FTTF available on the Breeze.

 

Thank you.

 

Yes, there are just none available at this time for your cruise. The best advice is to keep checking to see if more open up.

[js]

Yes, there are just none available at this time for your cruise. The best advice is to keep checking to see if more open up.

 

Thank you. So do you think there use to be FTTF available and now they are no longer available or that they just haven't been made available yet?

[bruadhin]

Thank you. So do you think there use to be FTTF available and now they are no longer available or that they just haven't been made available yet?

 

FTTF doesn't interest me, so I'm not up on the timing. From what I gather here, they release it at a certain point before the cruise. Once that sells out, they evaluate how many Platinum and Diamond members are on the cruise and release some more for sale. They play this game up until the cruise or they reach the maximum they are willing to sell.

 

I would check out the other threads about it. I'm sure someone has a very detailed explanation of when and how often it is released for sale.

[jimbo5544]

Thank you. So do you think there use to be FTTF available and now they are no longer available or that they just haven't been made available yet?

 

There are a couple of factors that affect how many FTTF slots there are. The first is how many Diamond and Platinum guests are on the sailing. The second is the timing. There could be none available and two weeks later they suddenly open up 4 or 5. No magic, but because we can't see the above, it is in the "dark".

Edited June 10, 2015 by jimbo5544

[jimbo5544]

FTTF doesn't interest me, so I'm not up on the timing. From what I gather here, they release it at a certain point before the cruise. Once that sells out, they evaluate how many Platinum and Diamond members are on the cruise and release some more for sale. They play this game up until the cruise or they reach the maximum they are willing to sell.

 

I would check out the other threads about it. I'm sure someone has a very detailed explanation of when and how often it is released for sale.

 

Like you said.....;) sorry I did not see your reply before I replied.

[bruadhin]

Like you said.....;) sorry I did not see your reply before I replied.

 

All good. :)

[lido deck larry]

Ok CCL fans, great discussion so far. Here is another rumor / wild conspiracy my buddy Paco heard from his friend's friend who is in the cruise industry on the corporate side: CCL is going to cut Plat. Benefits and start charging them for the benefits they get now (for free) at a cost under the FTTF program. The price of FTTF goes up, but plats get a discount off the base price. Sounds like a sweet revenue grab, but lousy if it becomes true.

Edited June 10, 2015 by lido deck larry

[Captain Carnival]

Ok CCL fans, great discussion so far. Here is another rumor / wild conspiracy my buddy Paco heard from his friend's friend who is in the cruise industry on the corporate side: CCL is going to cut Plat. Benefits and start charging them for the benefits they get now (for free) at a cost under the FTTF program. The price of FTTF goes up, but plats get a discount off the base price. Sounds like a sweet revenue grab, but lousy if it becomes true.

So you heard a "rumor / conspiracy" from a buddy's friends friend that.....never mind I suppose in that case it must all be true.... :rolleyes: