Canadian Celebrity Pricing a bit Crazy at the moment

[AuntMom]

Note: all prices below are in Canadian dollars.

We just returned from a 10 night Celebrity Hawaiian Cruise on board the Eclipse on October 13th, 2019 (it was excellent by the way).

  Concierge Class - Balcony Room 1038

  Classic Beverage Package 

  Prepaid Tips for 2

  Total Price:  $4,092 (taxes, fees included) (Price Per Person: $2,046)

 

We had such a great time that we were thinking of going again in the Spring, so I went ahead and logged on to Celebrity to do up a mock booking.  This is for same amount of nights, same itinerary but just opposite start and end points  Here are the results....

  Concierge Class - Balcony Room 1036

  Classic Beverage Package

  Prepaid Tips for 2

  Total Price:  $7,690.00 (this comes with a $200 OBC)

 

Celebrity!  This to me is a complete joke.  Same product.  Same experience.  $3,600 difference in price!!!  And to boot....this is with the "weekend sale".

 

Just thought I would share real numbers for those who are contemplating booking.  When we initially booked our prior cruise we did so 9 months out.  During those 9 months we were able to take advantage of price drops numerous times and our price dropped from $5,300 to final payment amount of $4,092.  I'm sure there will be price drops along with way with the cruise I am looking at but it is starting out almost $2,400 more than our cruise last week.  We are not willing to pay substantially more for the same project we just enjoyed a week ago.  

 

Cheers,

Edited October 19, 2019 by AuntMom

[C-Dragons]

Booking your last cruise 9 months out offered the advantage of the fares being lower. It was also for a different season (Fall). The more cabins are sold, the higher the pricing goes. Right now you have, I'm guessing, about 6 months before the spring cruise and the fares have risen. A spring cruise to Hawaii, IMO, would probably be very popular. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be any more price drops, but only time will tell.

 

Glad to hear you had a wonderful time on the Eclipse. Our cruise to Hawaii on Eclipse is coming up!

Edited October 19, 2019 by C-Dragons

[Cruise Junky]

Keep an eye on prices and don’t lock in. We’ve done that one twice on Solstice and paid $1,600 pp us each time for a 1a on the hump with drinks. They now have two ships doing it there will be a sale. 

 

I also looked at that as an option for us next year and laughed at the price. 

Edited October 19, 2019 by Cruise Junky

[AuntMom]

Cruise Junky, glad I'm not alone 🙂  I will watch prices and if they don't come down I will look at others.  I see from your signature that you have cruised Princess.  How did you like it?  They also have great cruises going to Hawaii so they may be an option.  As you can see from my signature, we have only sailed Celebrity so don't have anything to compare to.  Thanks again for your reply, I appreciate it.

 

C-Dragons, have a great cruise.  Our seas were calm the whole time.  We didn't know what to expect in October but it was smooth as glass.  Captain Leo is fantastic.

 

Edited October 19, 2019 by AuntMom

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, AuntMom said:

And to boot....this is with the "weekend sale".

The "Weekend Sale" only applies to a limited number of 2019 cruises, so no price breaks on a 2020 sailing.

 

We are booked for the April 2020 sailing in and A1 Veranda on the leading edge of the bump. We paid more than you, but nowhere near the price you were quoted. Strangely enough, although maybe not these days with Celebrity, a similar A1 on the bump is actually more today than your quote for a CC, at $7870.

 

While I never gave it any thought previously, is it possible that otherwise identical Honolulu ---> Vancouver cruises are priced differently than the reverse direction?

[Schmoe38]

We just returned from the Sept 22/19 Vancouver to Hawaii leg on Eclipse. We are like you and have tended to book our cruises many months and even years in advance. This last one was booked in July 2019, as we could not resist what we thought was “unusual pricing.”

 

After speaking with some of our fellow cruisers, we learned that the pricing had been much higher earlier and slow bookings had created some price drops. 

 

With the July 2018 eruption of Kilauea, many people must have had questions about how the volcano would affect their visit to the Big Island and if was safe to visit Hawaii during and after this volcanic activity.

 

I suspect the story we tell will be “glad when we did it when we did,” as there’s a good chance we may not see that same pricing for a while

 

Just a thought

 

Randy

[Cruise Junky]

3 hours ago, AuntMom said:

Cruise Junky, glad I'm not alone 🙂  I will watch prices and if they don't come down I will look at others.  I see from your signature that you have cruised Princess.  How did you like it?  They also have great cruises going to Hawaii so they may be an option.  As you can see from my signature, we have only sailed Celebrity so don't have anything to compare to.  Thanks again for your reply, I appreciate it.

 

C-Dragons, have a great cruise.  Our seas were calm the whole time.  We didn't know what to expect in October but it was smooth as glass.  Captain Leo is fantastic.

 

I like princess but I do prefer Celebrity. Nothing wrong with Princess though if they go where you want for a fair price. There are a lot of Celebrity cruises on my Grand Princess cruise in 2021 as Celebrity put Connie in Tampa instead of Dubai.  

[ldubs]

AuntyMom, I don't think what you are seeing is limited to Canadian pricing.  We were ready to push the button for a cruise this time next year, until we saw the  prices (Yikes!).  

 

We will watch and keep our fingers crossed that prices come down.  But truth be told, we have already identified a reasonable alternative on another line, so we do have a plan B if they don't come to their senses.   

[son3cruisers]

Spring sailings are usually much more expensive then Oct.

We can only cruise over Canadian March Break, Christmas or summer, as I’m an educator.

We would love to cruise in Oct, Nov or early Dec as sometimes the prices are half of what we pay in March for the same itinerary. Flights are so much cheaper as well during the fall.

 

As others have said, wait until the final payment date has passed on the cruise you are looking at and maybe you can get a better price. 

Good luck. We loved our Hawaiian cruise too! 🌺

 

[zackmar]

23 hours ago, AuntMom said:

Note: all prices below are in Canadian dollars.

We just returned from a 10 night Celebrity Hawaiian Cruise on board the Eclipse on October 13th, 2019 (it was excellent by the way).

  Concierge Class - Balcony Room 1038

  Classic Beverage Package 

  Prepaid Tips for 2

  Total Price:  $4,092 (taxes, fees included) (Price Per Person: $2,046)

 

We had such a great time that we were thinking of going again in the Spring, so I went ahead and logged on to Celebrity to do up a mock booking.  This is for same amount of nights, same itinerary but just opposite start and end points  Here are the results....

  Concierge Class - Balcony Room 1036

  Classic Beverage Package

  Prepaid Tips for 2

  Total Price:  $7,690.00 (this comes with a $200 OBC)

 

Celebrity!  This to me is a complete joke.  Same product.  Same experience.  $3,600 difference in price!!!  And to boot....this is with the "weekend sale".

 

Just thought I would share real numbers for those who are contemplating booking.  When we initially booked our prior cruise we did so 9 months out.  During those 9 months we were able to take advantage of price drops numerous times and our price dropped from $5,300 to final payment amount of $4,092.  I'm sure there will be price drops along with way with the cruise I am looking at but it is starting out almost $2,400 more than our cruise last week.  We are not willing to pay substantially more for the same project we just enjoyed a week ago.  

 

Cheers,

I know what you mean, prices are so varied. I would suggest calling your travel agent or the big box TA and ask about group booking prices. We always do really well with that but not all categories are available with a group booking. We’ve saved thousands of dollars. I like booking a little further out to get select dining as I find getting closer to a sailing that gets booked up. Another suggestion is to book a lower cabin category that you’re comfortable with, continue watching prices and upgrade if prices drop or after final payment as usually they will drop then. There are usually many concierge cabins available after final payment and I find that some of the best cabins come available then as well. Good luck to you fellow Canadian! 😊 

[AuntMom]

Thank you all for your reply. I guess we will just continue to look for sales and keep our options opened.  Again, thank you.

[cynalan]

On 10/19/2019 at 12:15 PM, Cruise Junky said:

Keep an eye on prices and don’t lock in. 

 

Even if you deposit a cruise, you are not locked in until you put down your final payment 90 days before embarkation. For example, we originally booked an Oceanview for an upcoming New Zealand cruise on the Solstice. I guess it was not selling that well as we were able to secure a Concierge Class Balcony for only $300 more than our Oceanview. The original difference when we booked was in the $900 range pp.

[Cruise Junky]

17 minutes ago, cynalan said:

 

Even if you deposit a cruise, you are not locked in until you put down your final payment 90 days before embarkation. For example, we originally booked an Oceanview for an upcoming New Zealand cruise on the Solstice. I guess it was not selling that well as we were able to secure a Concierge Class Balcony for only $300 more than our Oceanview. The original difference when we booked was in the $900 range pp.

All cruises now have the non refundable deposit option and you never know when sales are for new bookings only.