Vista in Galveston..prices are HIGH

[stressedmomof3]

Just saw the new 2019 summer sailings out of Galveston and it seems that they are all around quite high. And that goes for the Freedom at that same time too. Hopefully if Carnival wants customers to pay a good price increase, they keep up with the service aspect as well.

[riclop]

Just saw the new 2019 summer sailings out of Galveston and it seems that they are all around quite high. And that goes for the Freedom at that same time too. Hopefully if Carnival wants customers to pay a good price increase, they keep up with the service aspect as well.

That is the problem much higher prices and lots of cut backs in food and entertainment etc.

[Underway53]

I have a Spring Break 7 day on the freedom booked for 2019. It was $1700 for my wife and I for one of those rooms with the picture window. We didn’t think that was too bad.

 

I know it’s spring break but the wife and I are both teachers. We don’t care. We’re gonna party harder than those college kids. And besides, according to what I read in here the week long cruises aren’t as wild. We’ll see. I am the BMC teacher(Behavior Management Classroom). I’ll welcome cutting loose and living it up!

[gtonda]

Summer sailings, along with holiday / spring break sailings out of Galveston are ridiculously priced. It's a mostly drive to port for the second most populated state in the country, so during those peak times, they jack up the prices sometimes fourfold.

[Tiger0613]

I have a Spring Break 7 day on the freedom booked for 2019. It was $1700 for my wife and I for one of those rooms with the picture window. We didn’t think that was too bad.

 

I know it’s spring break but the wife and I are both teachers. We don’t care. We’re gonna party harder than those college kids. And besides, according to what I read in here the week long cruises aren’t as wild. We’ll see. I am the BMC teacher(Behavior Management Classroom). I’ll welcome cutting loose and living it up!

 

Are you talking about Scenic Ocean Views/Grand Scenic Ocean Views?

 

 

 

Do you teach kids with behavioral disabilities or kids that have misbehaved(in school suspension)? In either case, I have never heard that term before.

[lcpagejr]

That is the problem much higher prices and lots of cut backs in food and entertainment etc.

 

Not sure what your talking about... I haven't seen "a lot of cutbacks" in either those areas over the last 5-7 years....Maybe comparing to 10-15 years ago....but not recently.

[Keith1010]

All comes down to supply and demand.

 

If the demand decreases so will the prices.

 

Keith

[KmomChicago]

Meanwhile I was poking around one of the travel agent sites last week and saw Vista out of NYC in one specific week in June 2018, 7 days Eastern Caribbean for about $800 pp. If you can shop around, be strategic about when you book (during good sale promotions) and have some flexibility in dates, Galveston will likely offer some bargains as the sail dates get closer. This price I saw is far below the normal Vista price.

 

Don't get too dismayed by the published price!

Edited December 22, 2017 by KmomChicago

[ray98]

Supply and demand. Some can continuously moan about the quality and what they think they deserve for their bargain fare but bottom line is the product being offered at the current price point is filling up the ships.

[wms99]

The previous 8 years the economy was flat. Raises were flat. 401K values were flat. For most folks that meant disposable income was at a premium. Not a lot of spare cash for cruising. But this last year the economy is booming. Everyone has more disposable income, and starting Feb we will have even more. More cruisers, mean less need for the lines to cost cut. Prices go up. Like was stated in another reply, supply and demand.

[buddylover]

Not sure what your talking about... I haven't seen "a lot of cutbacks" in either those areas over the last 5-7 years....Maybe comparing to 10-15 years ago....but not recently.

 

Prices are WAY higher and the cutbacks are non stop......no lobster on cruises of less than 5 days, no lobster bisque at all, no tablecloths, completely different menus (now called "American Family") with far less choices and lesser expensive meats .... and the list goes on and on.....not sure how you haven't observed this let alone read about them right here on CC?? :rolleyes:

[skiingj]

Not sure what your talking about... I haven't seen "a lot of cutbacks" in either those areas over the last 5-7 years....Maybe comparing to 10-15 years ago....but not recently.

 

It didn't look like "recent" was mentioned. I would agree there have been lots and lots of cutbacks in my 11 years of Carnival. There are several new cutbacks discussed on CC this year alone.

[jimbo5544]

It didn't look like "recent" was mentioned. I would agree there have been lots and lots of cutbacks in my 11 years of Carnival. There are several new cutbacks discussed on CC this year alone.

10's of thousands of them in the last 3 years, just on Carnival, not any other line....

[StolidCruiser]

Prices are WAY higher and the cutbacks are non stop......no lobster on cruises of less than 5 days, no lobster bisque at all, no tablecloths, completely different menus (now called "American Family") with far less choices and lesser expensive meats .... and the list goes on and on.....not sure how you haven't observed this let alone read about them right here on CC?? :rolleyes:

 

Knew it wouldn’t be long before someone trotted out the lobster and tablecloth argument to substantiate the purported demise of Carnival.

 

It’s laughable.

[jimbo5544]

Prices are WAY higher and the cutbacks are non stop......no lobster on cruises of less than 5 days, no lobster bisque at all, no tablecloths, completely different menus (now called "American Family") with far less choices and lesser expensive meats .... and the list goes on and on.....not sure how you haven't observed this let alone read about them right here on CC?? :rolleyes:

Once the tablecloths left it was just hotdogs and PBandJ.....really? I do agreed on one point, the talk on this with wild unsubstantiated claims, does go on and on....

[nealstuber]

Just saw the new 2019 summer sailings out of Galveston and it seems that they are all around quite high. And that goes for the Freedom at that same time too. Hopefully if Carnival wants customers to pay a good price increase, they keep up with the service aspect as well.

 

 

 

Way too soon for us to be looking at 2019 cruises, but whenever we shop for cruises, Galveston prices are a bit higher than FL prices on comparable ships. But never so much higher that it would make sense to buy plane tickets. How do Vista prices compare to Harmony prices for the same time?

If I understand correctly, Dream is coming back, you might be able to do a 9 or 10 day B2B for what you’d pay for a week on Vista. And I think they’ll still have a Conquest Class ship also doing 7 dayers.

I don’t begrudge Carnival trying to get as much as they can get for a new ship that is new to the port at prime time when they are also offering other options.

With respect to cutbacks, sure the MDR dinner is not what it used to be, but there are so many good free options for lunch now that it really offsets what’s happened there. Entertainment is MUCH better than it was 5 years ago especially in the lounges and atrium. Service is still “Fun” - but it is clear they are pushing these guys to their limits.

 

 

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[evandbob]

Many of Carnival offerings do come with a high price tag, so it pays to shop around and do some fare comparisions. When other lines offer "free" dining or beverage packages and Carnival doesn't, the other lines often are better priced. Same with sailing from some ports like San Juan - I've found lower solo pricing on Celebrity e.g., than Carnival.

In 35 carnival cruises over almost 15 years, I've seen a lot of re-positioning of cruise line pricing and amenities, and will still pick Carnival as one of my favorite Caribbean lines. For other itineraries, not so much.

[jimbo5544]

Way too soon for us to be looking at 2019 cruises, but whenever we shop for cruises, Galveston prices are a bit higher than FL prices on comparable ships. But never so much higher that it would make sense to buy plane tickets. How do Vista prices compare to Harmony prices for the same time?

If I understand correctly, Dream is coming back, you might be able to do a 9 or 10 day B2B for what you’d pay for a week on Vista. And I think they’ll still have a Conquest Class ship also doing 7 dayers.

I don’t begrudge Carnival trying to get as much as they can get for a new ship that is new to the port at prime time when they are also offering other options.

With respect to cutbacks, sure the MDR dinner is not what it used to be, but there are so many good free options for lunch now that it really offsets what’s happened there. Entertainment is MUCH better than it was 5 years ago especially in the lounges and atrium. Service is still “Fun” - but it is clear they are pushing these guys to their limits.

 

 

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Can’t argue with any of what you say.

 

 

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[Garth2]

Summer sailings, along with holiday / spring break sailings out of Galveston are ridiculously priced. It's a mostly drive to port for the second most populated state in the country, so during those peak times, they jack up the prices sometimes fourfold.

 

Correct. This illustrates a basic of Economics called Supply & Demand. Prices are also usually higher for a brand new ship and when a ship relocates to a new port.

[cmukid87]

I noticed that Western itineraries in general are quite a bit higher than normal. On the flip size, eastern itineraries are quite a bit lower than normal.

 

I almost wonder if demand for Western itineraries has increased due to the devastation from Hurricane Irma on the eastern ports.

[thepoetess]

I've seen a ton of cutbacks, everything from once-a-day cleaning to chocolates on the pillows to a change in quality of the food served. I now hold my nose as I'm booking a Carnival cruise. My husband loves the line, so off we go again on Carnival Cut-Back cruise lines.

 

Do they still change the sheets mid-week on a 7-day cruise?

 

We took a 5 day cruise and I know they didn't change our sheets! My son got chocolate cake all over our sheets, it was awful!!!! Imagine our shock when we went to go to bed and saw that the cabin steward simply hid the dirty areas when he had made the bed. :mad:

[soapbxking]

Prices are WAY higher and the cutbacks are non stop......no lobster on cruises of less than 5 days, no lobster bisque at all, no tablecloths, completely different menus (now called "American Family") with far less choices and lesser expensive meats .... and the list goes on and on.....not sure how you haven't observed this let alone read about them right here on CC?? :rolleyes:

 

Are tablecloths a be all end all? I always get stuck to them anyways. Good riddance

[Thorncroft]

Are tablecloths a be all end all? I always get stuck to them anyways. Good riddance

 

They'll make a comeback when the new table tops start looking like hell and they realize that it's cheaper to throw a rag over them than replace them again. Then we'll have to listen to the anti tablecloth minions talk about how great Carnival is for bringing back elegance. LOL

[Purvis1231]

In general Galveston price are higher than the Florida based cruises but as other state it is supply and demand. As for the cut backs, I agree that some of them make the cruising experience less enjoyable but there are numerous other cruise lines to sail if you are not happy with Carnival.

[SNJCruisers]

Meanwhile I was poking around one of the travel agent sites last week and saw Vista out of NYC in one specific week in June 2018, 7 days Eastern Caribbean for about $800 pp.

Hate to burst your bubble, but the Vista sails out of Miami, not NYC. The brand new Horizon though will be doing 8 days in June out of NYC for about 800 plus tax for an inside. :)