help me understand celebrity pricing ( 123go, etc)

[beaveh]

Hi there, I'm new here so sorry if this is a dumb question, I've read as much as I can but I still can't seem to get the answer.

 

I'm about to book a cruise with Celebrity for Aug/ Sept this year.

 

We did a great cruise with celebrity last year ( again in aug /sept, booking in jan / feb) which was out first cruise with them. That one was booked under a '123go' offer where you could choose your own perks. As we had concierge class it came with all 3 perks.

 

This year they don't seem to be doing the same sort of offer, it's just 'buy one get one half price' , inc a drinks package.

 

My question is do they always bring out the 123go offer or is the one on at the moment likely to be the main offer they do this year.

 

I do appricate that if I waited for a different offer, what they give you they make up by increasing the price...or am I being overly sceptical?

 

I'm fairly new to cruising and this would only be my second cruise with celebrity, so I'm not sure what their norm is when it comes to pricing.

 

thanks

[az_tchr]

The offers seem to be changing frequently. Celebrity stated 123 go was gone as a promo, but they have brought old plans back before. RCCL has stated they were changing their marketing to stop heavily discounting cruises in the last 30 days or so and would let cabins remain unsold. Offering those with existing bookings the opportunity to purchase inexpensive upgrades instead.

 

If you are looking at a cruise for September of next year you have committed nothing except a refundable deposit until final payment date.

 

A norm as to pricing - not aware of one except the law of supply and demand. Personally I think that there will be some great opportunities later this spring and early summer as final payment dates come up for cruises in July and August.

 

Also if I am within 60 days of booking and absolutely know I want to go I move my cruise to a TA and ask them - before agreeing to move it - for additional OBC.

[bigbenboys]

At this time 123Go is gone and we now have BBB promo.

[Wiltonian]

 

If you are looking at a cruise for September of next year you have committed nothing except a refundable deposit until final payment date.

 

 

OP is in the UK, where deposits are NOT refundable - unless you book through a US TA.

 

Current UK offer is second person half price and free classic bev. package on selected sailings.

 

Stuart

[macsford]

They will play around with the figures, change the offers, change original price etc. and probably come back close to the previous offer's figure!

 

IMO this current promotion is pretty good. You can do the maths and compare it to the offer you got with tips and onboard credit ,drinks package the same.

 

We also booked last year under the same offer as you did in concierge.

We booked this time a few months ago with the same offer as they are giving now, only difference was that the cruise price quoted for our chosen cruise was a little less in October than it is now. The second person half price is this time worth more to us than the tips and obc would have been.

None of us can be sure what next!

 

Sandra

[beaveh]

Thanks for your replies.

I am in the UK, so deposits are non refundable and I will have to pay the advertised price (at the time of booking). I think celebrity have just changed the prices today! But all still adds up to the same.

Is there any advantage booking direct with celebrity? ( using captains club points as well as selecting a specific cabin) to give you a better chance with a perk or upgrade closer to the time. As the prices of booking direct are the same as with a travel agent.

As I say, I'm new to all of this and I don't know if there are benefits booking direct.

[macsford]

Thanks for your replies.

I am in the UK, so deposits are non refundable and I will have to pay the advertised price (at the time of booking). I think celebrity have just changed the prices today! But all still adds up to the same.

Is there any advantage booking direct with celebrity? ( using captains club points as well as selecting a specific cabin) to give you a better chance with a perk or upgrade closer to the time. As the prices of booking direct are the same as with a travel agent.

As I say, I'm new to all of this and I don't know if there are benefits booking direct.

 

We booked this time with a well known high street TA (begins with T) and with a little persuasion they gave us 5% off.

Sandra