Jojo90123 Posted February 16, 2017 #1 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I am looking at my first cruise to the Norwegian fjords in September, it has gone up over £500 in the last two weeks. I could kick myself for not booking it. What is the likely hood of it coming down in price, in the next few months. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted February 16, 2017 #2 Share Posted February 16, 2017 How long is a piece of string? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josy1953 Posted February 16, 2017 #3 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I am looking at my first cruise to the Norwegian fjords in September, it has gone up over £500 in the last two weeks. I could kick myself for not booking it. What is the likely hood of it coming down in price, in the next few months. Sent from my iPad using Forums P&O have fluid pricing so there is always can chance that it will come down but equally it could rise again. It may be that some British passengers are switching from the American lines because they are looking at the on board costs being higher since they are in dollars and the £ is so low against the $. You need to decide whether you think if it is worth the extra £500 and book at that price our you could keep an eye on it and if it comes down then jump in and book it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plumduff68 Posted February 16, 2017 #4 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Sometimes they increase the OBC at the same time- might be worth a look. I think you'd still be a bit out of pocket but maybe not as much? Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josy1953 Posted February 16, 2017 #5 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Sometimes they increase the OBC at the same time- might be worth a look. I think you'd still be a bit out of pocket but maybe not as much? Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app I just looked at the 2 cruises we have booked, they have both risen in price and the OBC is less than we have. I guess the cruises are just filling up. The cruise that we have booked for March is actually £150 each more for a saver price than we paid for select. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plumduff68 Posted February 16, 2017 #6 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I just looked at the 2 cruises we have booked, they have both risen in price and the OBC is less than we have. I guess the cruises are just filling up. The cruise that we have booked for March is actually £150 each more for a saver price than we paid for select. Our carribean cruise next Jan has gone up by around £800 overall since we booked it. Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daiB Posted February 16, 2017 #7 Share Posted February 16, 2017 At the moment the trend is for prices to rise rather than fall. However if you are flexible and prepared to wait I am sure some deals will be available. The cheapest cruises are, at the moment, those booked on day one of booking, very early. Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisPBacon Posted February 16, 2017 #8 Share Posted February 16, 2017 In the Caribbean right now on Azura, and the pricing for next year is ridiculous. They had an 'offer' on, with a chunk of OBC. So we go to the cruise desk and she goes online and says....oh no, all those cabins are gone. She was almost convincing. But we can offer you one at a higher price. Ok, what have you got? Oh no.....they are all sold out too. Ok, I can definitely offer you one at yet another higher price. They are definitely available. Two things about booking onboard. The offer is just a hook to get you there. Not the price you are going to pay. Second.....booking a cruise onboard a year before the cruise means there are lots of cabins available. But P&O are just not releasing them yet. They are simply creating a false demand onboard to urge people to book now. The last time I booked onboard, they said, ok, which cabin do you want? They offered me a choice of five. All of which were crap. I won't be booking onboard. They may offer you more OBC, but it comes at a price. A very limited cabin selection unless you go 3-4 grades higher than standard, at prices that are going up at a phenomenal rate. P&O are not simply reacting to supply & demand. They are artificially creating the demand by restricting what they sell and when. That's been confirmed by a travel agent relative of one of our party. Right now it's working for them. But this new tactic of still saying (in the advertising blurb for the select price) you can pick your cabin, and then when you go to pay, saying you have a guaranteed cabin may one day backfire on them. We've also heard from, shall we say, a person in the know on the ship, that P&O are worried about Branson's entry into the cruise market in 2020 and in part, it has led them to start building the new ship. When the cost for two of us in a balcony cabin is already £800-£1200 higher for next year than we've paid for this one, it's time to jump off the bandwagon. I may book my holidays at work and try and get it a couple of weeks before. If not, I'll do something else. If P&O keep telling me to jump and I keep asking, how high.....then I only have myself to blame. But I do see things going back to the way they were around three years ago, when many people just waited to see if the saver fare dropped. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daiB Posted February 16, 2017 #9 Share Posted February 16, 2017 You can easily check with a TA on line for availability and price. You would never ask a question without having a good idea what the answer was. Perhaps all the cabins are sold. BTW do not believe "people in the know" they usually aren't Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisPBacon Posted February 16, 2017 #10 Share Posted February 16, 2017 I'm well aware of all the tricks and tips when it comes to cabin hunting Dai. We currently take two cruises a year with P&O and have done for the last few years. I subscribe to info on my chosen cruise so I'm alerted on price changes. Re the cabins being sold....they are not. I forgot to mention that after visiting the cruise desk, I went online and saw those second tier balconies on decks A, B and C ALL available....without the extra OBC of course. But that's P&O's choice. As for the person in the know, there's a reason I don't identify them. The reason P&O are worried about Branson is because at the moment they have the Caribbean sewn up. No other cruise company can offer the all-in package with local airports flights as P&O do. Branson will change that. He already has direct flights to Barbados from Gatwick and Manchester. It's true enough. P&O are reacting to Branson. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daiB Posted February 16, 2017 #11 Share Posted February 16, 2017 As I have said above I am finding more and more that booking very early i.e. On day one gets you the best price, our cabin on Ventura to the Caribbean next Jan. is now priced 40% more than we paid in April. I have found that the prices are always more when you book a year ahead which I think of as being in the middle. Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoupPlease Posted February 16, 2017 #12 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Chris..P&O are not managing the demand, they are managing the supply. It is as simple as that. It is a common retailing strategy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrierjohn Posted February 16, 2017 #13 Share Posted February 16, 2017 As for the person in the know, there's a reason I don't identify them. The reason P&O are worried about Branson is because at the moment they have the Caribbean sewn up. No other cruise company can offer the all-in package with local airports flights as P&O do. Branson will change that. He already has direct flights to Barbados from Gatwick and Manchester. It's true enough. P&O are reacting to Branson. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Crispy, what about Thomson, they currently have 3 ships doing fly cruises to the Caribbean, and I am sure their planes will offer the same service that they gove to P&O. I have also seen MSC offering flights to Barbados with Virgin to pick up one of their cruise ships. Not to mention all the US lines that sell fly cruises from the UK. Unfortunately Sterlings devaluation is going to lead to higher prices on UK based cruise lines, its just something we now have to accept. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisPBacon Posted February 16, 2017 #14 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Chris..P&O are not managing the demand, they are managing the supply. It is as simple as that. It is a common retailing strategy Good point but the net result is the same. There is a point here because they stress the 'loyalty' aspect at the cruise desk. What they are actually doing is offering the poorer cabins in exchange for the extra OBC. They are perfectly entitled to do that and passengers can make their choice. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisPBacon Posted February 16, 2017 #15 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Crispy, what about Thomson, they currently have 3 ships doing fly cruises to the Caribbean, and I am sure their planes will offer the same service that they gove to P&O. I have also seen MSC offering flights to Barbados with Virgin to pick up one of their cruise ships. Not to mention all the US lines that sell fly cruises from the UK. Unfortunately Sterlings devaluation is going to lead to higher prices on UK based cruise lines, its just something we now have to accept. I do intend to look around because even with the devaluation of sterling, the popularity of cruising is raising the price and making me think twice. The extra cost for our balcony is in effect, another week's holiday. It might be a Winter cruise in the Middle/Far East next Winter. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomelessBear Posted February 16, 2017 #16 Share Posted February 16, 2017 My friend got a price for a cruise and two hours later when she rang to book it (after checking with DH he was happy), the price had gone up by £600pp!! Yes they called it "fluid pricing". If you're happy with the price and its a cruise you really want to do then I'd book it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeanlyon Posted February 16, 2017 #17 Share Posted February 16, 2017 My cruise on Oriana in September is £300 pp more than we paid last year. It will go down towards September, but we got such a good deal and usually do when we book early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FatBoy20 Posted February 16, 2017 #18 Share Posted February 16, 2017 My Balcony Cabin on Azura in September has gone up by £1700pp & my Balcony Cabin on Ventura next January has just increased by £400pp & I only booked four weeks ago!. Happy Days.:):):) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Granny bee Posted February 16, 2017 #19 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Just wondering FatBoy20 re cruise in September. Usually you can get s cruise for that price. Did you book a suite. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jojo90123 Posted February 16, 2017 Author #20 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Thanks everyone, I've just found out I can redeem my Tesco vouchers so that takes it back down to what it was. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plumduff68 Posted February 16, 2017 #21 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Thanks everyone, I've just found out I can redeem my Tesco vouchers so that takes it back down to what it was. Sent from my iPad using Forums I have read elsewhere that you dont get the "standard" price if you use Tesco Vouchers - may not be 100% correct but id double check first (Im sure you would though ;)) Katie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FatBoy20 Posted February 16, 2017 #22 Share Posted February 16, 2017 The Price was for a Balcony on C Deck Azura 17 nights to the Greek Islands & paid just under £2k per person. The price now is £3699pp.:D:D:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brillo Posted February 17, 2017 #23 Share Posted February 17, 2017 It is highly unlikely that prices will drop unless there is a radical improvement in the exchange rate with the dollar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennizor Posted February 17, 2017 #24 Share Posted February 17, 2017 On Britannia in September 16 we booked for the Caribbean on Azura in Feb 2018. Our first choice of cabin, the one we were on last year, was not available but next door but one was so we booked it and we got 375pp OBC. It is now showing as £280 pp dearer and only £300pp OBC. If my maths is right, booking now we would have to pay £560 more and get £150 less OBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jojo90123 Posted February 17, 2017 Author #25 Share Posted February 17, 2017 I've booked it thanks everyone, got £600 off thanks to Tesco. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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