Is Celebrity Loosing The Plot With Prices?

[chemmo]

We have a sort of general price in our head as to what we would be willing to pay for any given itinerary. In recent years we have tended to mix world wide cruises with Caribbean crash outs. If we see a cruise itinerary we love that fits in with our schedule we will be willing to pay more...If we can't see a Caribbean cruise at a price we like we will look at other alternatives.

 

The cruises that seem to be most expensive at the moment from our perspective seem to be the Med. As others have said, all down to supply and demand.

 

We presently have 4 cruises booked. One at what we considered a good price, one at an OK price and two (more special) cruises which we are comfortable paying the price for but they are more expensive than in previous years. X is offering to reduce the prices we have paid on both of these if the price of our room category does come down. This does offer some comfort, I have the exact room I want on both cruises and it may actually cost me less than I am expecting.

 

If you are not room or itinerary fussy you can afford to wait and see how things go but there is still a lot to be said for booking early.

[Wiltonian]

X is offering to reduce the prices we have paid on both of these if the price of our room category does come down. This does offer some comfort, I have the exact room I want on both cruises and it may actually cost me less than I am expecting.

 

But watch out that you can only change to a new offer once, and that you have to make any change by 31/12/16, which could be 8 months before an Autumn 2017 cruise. (You can also change cabin categories, by the way).

 

Stuart

[ABoatNerd]

Spot on Cruise Junky.

 

There are even more issues with Celebrity's product than excessive price, the ridiculous notion of "free" beverage, declining food quality and elimination of attributes for higher cost categories ...it is Celebrity's deliberate decision to reduce the scope of some cruises by dropping ports - just as you pointed out.

 

Many posters on this board are ignoring or not focused on the reduced scope of cruises - for our household this is a MAJOR reduction in product offering at a HIGHER price.

 

Celebrity must be laughing at the lot of us - they made this substantive change and barely a whimper from this board.

 

New patrons would have no idea that the previous versions of the same cruise offered substantially more value - but us oldies most certainly do.

 

I have contacted my 3 agents in Toronto and discussed the current state of Celebrity. They are well aware of the declining value and they shared some comments from returning cruisers...not reflecting well on Celebrity.

 

Thanks so much Cruise Junky for not losing site of this deliberate downgrading of product by Celebrity ... keep repeating this and often.

 

ABoatNerd

[chemmo]

But watch out that you can only change to a new offer once, and that you have to make any change by 31/12/16, which could be 8 months before an Autumn 2017 cruise. (You can also change cabin categories, by the way).

 

Stuart

 

Thanks for the advice. We were aware of this but know many people are not. We would love it if a second person half price came on our more expensive cruises!

But as I said in my comment if I pay the price I have booked at so be it. I at least have the cruise and exact suite I want secured, no good if an offer comes on but then you are compromising on what you want out of the cruise....

[ghstudio]

But watch out that you can only change to a new offer once, and that you have to make any change by 31/12/16, which could be 8 months before an Autumn 2017 cruise. (You can also change cabin categories, by the way).

 

Stuart

 

??? what change is limited to once and must be done by the end of 2016??

[Cruise Junky]

??? what change is limited to once and must be done by the end of 2016??

 

UK booking, doesn't apply to you

[4774Papa]

The Asia and Australia/NZ prices are still reasonable, but Europe is ridiculous.

 

Also,

time to do away with Go BBB.

[hulamoon]

Everytime I read a post by teecee60 I think I drank too much suite koolaid. But I won't be buying any stock anytime soon.

 

Although I have ridden the wave of free this and that for some good deals, I never used the drink packages anywhere near the value listed. But my bigger concern is the unevenness of ship board experience at higher suite levels. So unless the deal is right, we are likely done with that experience and will retreat back to other categories.

 

Teecee60 your deals maybe gone soon if everyone takes your advice! lol

 

CruiseJunky..I am also on a pacific crossing in 2017, now I guess I need to check my itineraries to see if any changed. :(

[cmalagngl]

A comparison on pricing. My family goes to Hawaii a minimum of once every two years flying from Los Angeles. Ten years ago we could fly at $400 per ticket for a coach seat. The specials sometimes were as low as $250. The cost for a room was over $400 a night for a major resort. This coming summer, rooms can be found at major resorts sometimes lower than $200 but airfare is now over $800 for a coach ticket. Best airfare in the last 90 days sometimes around $470. That is a huge risk if you are going in the summer because of school age children. The airfare rise was caused by the demise of Aloha Airlines which greatly reduced competition. The hotel prices have gone down because people are not rushing to go to Hawaii anymore because the airfare has gone up so much. The bottom line is they are still selling out hotels and planes during peak weeks and the summer. The money is just being distributed to the airlines and hotels differently.

 

How does this relate to Celebrity pricing, it is all supply, demand and the ability to pay if you really want to. I just booked a Veranda cabin to Asia in 2018. The price is a fair value for the cruise in my opinion. Airfare to Asia I have found is much more available using points than Europe. These two pricing points made a cruise in Asia a very good deal for us so we put our deposit down. I don't see the value in a suite or Aqua as I normally cruise with family or friends and in both cases we would rather save money and squeeze in another cruise or vacation per year than pay for a suite. I have mostly been cruising in Concierge to "buy" my way to Elite. I am retiring this summer so the value of those extra Captains Club points will disappear as my income becomes fixed. But if we take the Celebrity Cruises we now have booked we will be Elite when we get to Asia so the plan has worked.

 

Pricing is relative to what you personally want. I know for us we will continue to cruise Celebrity. It has never and never will be an exclusive relationship. I'm starting to travel with my grandchildren and the greater extended family, that means less expensive options are on the horizon for us. We came back to Celebrity after a twenty year hiatus as we raised our children. We cruised during those years but on less expensive lines. Never had a bad cruise. The Celebrity product in our opinion is a superior one for our demographic, early sixties and soon to be retired. That does not mean we will not go to another line for the pricing and itinerary and now the available entertainment for very young children.

 

It is all an individual choice on how you spend your hard earned money. I have friends that think we are crazy for the amount of travel we do. We live for the experiences, that is our choice.

[zoncom]

Have done 9 TAs. Way early gets first time cruisers who are told you must have biggest suite.Nothing to see out there but black water. I do Insides. TAs, when booked several mos. out yield one of best cruise buys out there. Do to bad situation over there 16 should be a bargain. Not for me. Patience.

Edited January 5, 2016 by zoncom

[Oceangoer2]

"I think it is up to each and every one of us as consumers to decide what's "fair" and act accordingly. If as a consumer of a cruise product I decide the price to be fair, who are you to tell me I'm wrong ? My money, my decision. No one is telling any prospective Celebrity customer they have to buy the product. Celebrity is saying, "Here's the Price, Here's the Product, either buy it or not".

Canadians pay almost double (even though the exchange rate is high it isn't double) what Americans pay. Some of us will carefully decide whether the future sea experience is worth the outlay. As you say, that's the price - pay it or not. Some will say 'or not'. We booked our 2016 March cruise in March 2015 so perks were included. Now the price for a C2 is almost double and that's in Cdn $$s; however I'm sure the US $ expense is that much higher as well. I don't think those perks equate to the increase.

[richstowe]

I'm hoping that Celebrity has overestimated the demand for their product at these prices .

That cruise is 18 months out. At this point nobody is really committed. It is an asking price and if people do not book the price will drop. A year ago you could have booked the West coast tour to Vancouver in a AQ cabin for $1899. Today it is $3699 for 10 days. It is all about supply and demand.

 

You never know where prices will end up except I do know if nobody reserves the one you mention the price will drop and keep dropping until the ship is 90% filled.

You may be right but where did you get the 90% figure ?

 

Capitalism in action! Supply and demand. The stock is flying!

Agree 100% . Nothing but foolishness to suggest they are being disloyal to loyal customers .

Almost as foolish as being a loyal customer .:p

[We're The Groupnors]

We are definitely voting with our dollars! We have recently booked our first Princess cruise since 2008 for a South American sailing in 2017. Looking at an almost identical itinerary and comparable suites on the Crown Princess and Celebrity Infinity, a Celebrity Suite came out $7,000 more than the comparable top suite on Princess. I know I will not get a butler, suite restaurant or other perks on Princess, but for $7,000 difference I can eat a lot of specialty dinners and buy a lot of good wine, in fact much better than I'd get under the Celebrity Premium Beverage Package. And I never use the services of the butler, anyway. For us, Celebrity pricing has just gotten too out of hand, and we will be looking for alternatives until they bring their pricing back to what we feel is a reasonable level for the product they provide.

[hulamoon]

Agree 100% . Nothing but foolishness to suggest they are being disloyal to loyal customers .

Almost as foolish as being a loyal customer .

 

 

I love this richstowe. I admit to having a hesitation everytime I mark the loyalty on the the survey. Which I am not sure anyone reads because I never got the promised call back. So all my disagreements are really with myself. lol

[ISABELLA]

In response to the question raised by ghstudio

 

I feel the current pricing structure is not offering fair value for the dollars being charged. As I am eligible for the elite benefits, the perks being offered are not of any interest to me, and I do not appreciate being charged excessively high prices to support the BBB pricing scheme. The perks are not free and I do not wish to pay for something I never wanted in the first place.

 

As gordylad said above, the loyal Celebrity cruiser looses out with this pricing structure. I agree with him that we should be able to buy the stateroom category we wish without the gimmicks.

 

I believe in voting with my dollars in a situation like this, and I will not pay these higher cruise prices when I do not believe I am receiving good value for my cruise dollars.[/quote

 

 

The saddest part is Celebrity don't care if loyalists are going away.

Edited January 5, 2016 by ISABELLA

[RickT]

"I think it is up to each and every one of us as consumers to decide what's "fair" and act accordingly. If as a consumer of a cruise product I decide the price to be fair, who are you to tell me I'm wrong ? My money, my decision. No one is telling any prospective Celebrity customer they have to buy the product. Celebrity is saying, "Here's the Price, Here's the Product, either buy it or not".

Canadians pay almost double (even though the exchange rate is high it isn't double) what Americans pay. Some of us will carefully decide whether the future sea experience is worth the outlay. As you say, that's the price - pay it or not. Some will say 'or not'. We booked our 2016 March cruise in March 2015 so perks were included. Now the price for a C2 is almost double and that's in Cdn $$s; however I'm sure the US $ expense is that much higher as well. I don't think those perks equate to the increase.

 

Not sure where you are shopping but all the Celebrity cruises I am looking at are priced approx 40% higher in Canadian dollars (representative of the exchange rate).

 

We Canadians are suffering a double whammy however since Celebrity is raising their prices (based on the cruises I have my eye on) and the Canadian dollar keeps losing value against the US $.

 

Ultimately as others have said, it's about Supply and Demand and Celebrity's desire to make money. It's a free world and if that works for them so be it. I still love the product but am booked on a HAL cruise for summer. The Year over Year prices do not seem to have risen as much and the base fare (no perks) is significantly less than a Celebrity cruise with perks. The perks offered by Celebrity do not come close (in real world values) to covering the increased price being asked by Celebrity.

[kencr]

I booked 2 cruises 2016.

Baltic 12 days May 14 concierge C3 $245 pp inc. Bev,grat, $725 OBC

Vancouver Hawaii 10 days Sept 9 $265 inc. Bev, Grat,$405 OBC

[kelmac]

I booked 2 cruises 2016.

Baltic 12 days May 14 concierge C3 $245 pp inc. Bev,grat, $725 OBC

Vancouver Hawaii 10 days Sept 9 $265 inc. Bev, Grat,$405 OBC

 

It's nice to be able to cruise off-season! We won't be able to do this until my wife retires.

 

Enjoy!

Kel:)

[rjrpar]

Capitalism in action! Supply and demand. The stock is flying!

 

 

Some people just don't understand this concept. If prices get too high to fill the ships, the prices will come down - Econ 101.

[Straughn]

Why should Celebrity care about its long time cruisers? New cruisers won't be complaining about how much the quality of the food has declined, the dumbing down of the dress code, the lack of daily water in Aqua class, and all the other cost cutting/revenue enhancements lately. New cruisers have no basis for comparison. They just accept it and are content.

 

New cruisers aren't high level Captain's Club members and therefore aren't eligible for the perks that come with those levels and the associated costs. They aren't complaining about what some other cruise lines give in their loyalty program that =X= doesn't, nor are they complaining about any changes Celebrity makes.

 

Primarily, it is all about the bottom line and loyalty is not a factor in the decision making.

Edited January 5, 2016 by Straughn

[jelayne]

How about next Xmas/New Year's Equinox cruise (14 days) at over $4,000 per person in a basic inside cabin with no perks? Our 15 year tradition just came to a screeching stop. :eek:

 

Enjoy!

Kel:)

 

Not sure where you looking but an inside is showing on the X web site at $3161 with tax. An OV with 2 perks is $3640 pp. I'm not suggesting the prices are reasonable just saying not as high as you indicated and 2 perks for an OV!

[Orator]

Some people just don't understand this concept. If prices get too high to fill the ships, the prices will come down - Econ 101.

 

I think most understand the concept and some probably do the same type of pricing in their business. I sense that we are seeing real frustration by some who really enjoy Celebrity, but seeing prices rising to the point where they can no longer afford what they want. So long as the demand for cruising remains strong prices will continue to rise. The danger for Celebrity in raising prices, cutting costs and rethinking itineraries is that once passengers decide for whatever reason to leave, it will be very difficult to lure them back. That I see as the risk in the Celebrity strategy.

Watch what happens in 2020 when Virgin Cruises cruise from Port of Miami. Celebrity has a target on their back and Virgin is taking aim.

Edited January 5, 2016 by Orator

[TrulyBlonde]

We have a sort of general price in our head as to what we would be willing to pay for any given itinerary. In recent years we have tended to mix world wide cruises with Caribbean crash outs. If we see a cruise itinerary we love that fits in with our schedule we will be willing to pay more...If we can't see a Caribbean cruise at a price we like we will look at other alternatives.

 

The cruises that seem to be most expensive at the moment from our perspective seem to be the Med. As others have said, all down to supply and demand.

 

We presently have 4 cruises booked. One at what we considered a good price, one at an OK price and two (more special) cruises which we are comfortable paying the price for but they are more expensive than in previous years. X is offering to reduce the prices we have paid on both of these if the price of our room category does come down. This does offer some comfort, I have the exact room I want on both cruises and it may actually cost me less than I am expecting.

 

If you are not room or itinerary fussy you can afford to wait and see how things go but there is still a lot to be said for booking early.

 

We cruise for itinerary first and timing. We typically prefer smaller ships, but if the itinerary is right, we enjoy X.

 

Cabin selection is important for us and yesterday just booked Japan April 2018 in a CS. With the GO BEST package it makes it totally inclusive and easy. The ships are lovely, clean, great staff, and we book early for all of this. I find it one of the best, premium cruise lines out there and willing to pay a bit more for what makes us happy. Now, if they don't charter that Japan trip we will be very happy ;-)

[swigso]

OK, We booked an Aqua cabin for our 2017 sailing on the Eclipse

for Feb , the same cruise for 2018 in the same clas of cabin is roughly

The same price.

However when we booked last year, we got a drinks package, free Gratuities and $300 on board credit. Plus we got our deposit $250 in OBC on the cruise we were sailing on. Plus when it was transferred to our TA He gave us an additional

$300 OBC.

CANT SEE THOSE DEALS HAPPENING SOON 😱😱

[chemmo]

Greetings Portofinoitaly,

 

It looks like we have the same values.

 

I sincerely hope your cruise does happen, I am aware of recent cancellations. I think this worries us more than price at the moment....If X does cancel one of our cruises, after early planning and commitment it will probably be too late to find exactly what we want on an alternative cruise line.

 

Our cruises in Asia do not have the history of cancellations that yours does but with the Asia market really opening up I think it is something we are going to have to learn to live with!

 

Hope it all goes OK.