Celebrity Cruises Introduces New "Always Included" Pricing

[yvrdave]

Celebrity Cruises introduces new "Always Included" pricing for new bookings made after Nov. 17, 2020, as reported in Cruise Critic's Cruise News today.  Being Elite Plus cruisers we feel we've been thrown overboard as it seems our loyalty has no perks any more.  So long Celebrity, it's been nice. 

[LGW59]

6 minutes ago, yvrdave said:

Celebrity Cruises introduces new "Always Included" pricing for new bookings made after Nov. 17, 2020, as reported in Cruise Critic's Cruise News today.  Being Elite Plus cruisers we feel we've been thrown overboard as it seems our loyalty has no perks any more.  So long Celebrity, it's been nice. 

LOL you are very late to the table, there are only about a million posts already on here about this.  

[Iamcruzin]

You are late to the party. Celebrity has been using this marketing tactic since 2012/2013.  Once it was called 123-go deal  then Good, Better and Best deal and some others after that. They keep trying to reinvent the wheel. Your Elite/ Elite Plus benefits have been diminished for years. We don't have any status on any line because we are only loyal to ourselves so these deals worked for us in the past. However the last 2 years Celebrity pricing has skyrocketed so we moved on the Royal Caribbean and just purchase a drink package and WiFi.

Edited November 12, 2020 by Iamcruzin

[RickT]

I’ve never booked a cruise with X simply because I was Elite... I did however factor in the value of the laundry, one category upgrade and wifi in my price comparison when shopping across different lines.  If this makes X less attractive there are other lines available.

 

Given how important loyalty is to many businesses (hotel, airlines, etc) I would be surprised if X doesn’t tweak the current Captain’s Club benefits to still provide something to repeat customers... but who knows.

[emmas gran]

 

27 minutes ago, ECCruise said:

Young Canadian proudly asserts that he loves paying more money to get what we have been getting for less for years.

And BTW, that "20 years" it took to accumulate loyalty allowed us to visit, on Celebrity alone, hundreds and hundreds of cities in dozens of countries on 6 continents.  Felt that money (which will be far less than you will spend for your "free" experience) was well spent.

Enjoy the "top of the world" on a diminished experience (unless booze is your focus or your "unlimited" excursions that don't exist).  

The name rings a bell I'm sure there was something on MSC about 15 months ago and a friend was "trolled"

[ABoatNerd]

Just another pricing scam by Celebrity, in a long line of scams.

 

Every for profit company relies on the naivety of new customers. Appears Celebrity has again picked the same old new Gen X group that they built the Edge class for. Celebrity how is that working out for you so far?

 

Some consumers care about the value of the goods and services they receive and some do not. Certainly the beverage packages and the "ease of use" have been adopted by many cruisers who really do not care they are overpaying for the number of drinks they consume cause they do "not have to sign a bill each time".

 

Like many on the CC Celebrity board, moved on from Celebrity to the premium lines where the entire experience is premium, not just a small part of the Celebrity ship. 

 

Good profit enhancing move Celebrity, only you will be able to determine how many customers bought your duping.

 

 

[Bo1953]

2 hours ago, ECCruise said:

Young Canadian proudly asserts that he loves paying more money to get what we have been getting for less for years.

And BTW, that "20 years" it took to accumulate loyalty allowed us to visit, on Celebrity alone, hundreds and hundreds of cities in dozens of countries on 6 continents.  Felt that money (which will be far less than you will spend for your "free" experience) was well spent.

Enjoy the "top of the world" on a diminished experience (unless booze is your focus or your "unlimited" excursions that don't exist).  

Not so "young" American and have heard the same assertions when X was selected our line of choice, regardless of price at the time.

 

While we have not quite accumulated the "status" as those who may have stayed on as loyal all these years, we believe that we found a line that offers what we like and how we like it, warts and all.

 

I support Marineboy and his thoughts, who knows if or when that will change, like us and our friends, he may never change but modify his thoughts about X and what he is willing to pay.

 

We all sail for one reason and that is the pure pleasure of sailing, then there are some of us who sail for secondary and tertiary reasons i.e. cost, inclusions, no inclusions, ports etc... 

 

Those who believe they are more sophisticated at detecting X pricing 'games', as it were, that is great, yet for those of us who also understand the game we can also move on to something which is considered more 'price' friendly and etc...

 

Maybe I will, yet for now, it is all fine as I pay what I think is fair for the experience, if I do not we do not go or wait for that ever elusive sale to sail... not missed one yet, until this year!

 

Like Marineboy, it is not about 'over paying' vs 'paying what we think is fair' for what we signed up for and not necessarily looking for a rock bottom price. Not that it would not be welcomed, but not digging and digging and digging for it.

 

I and others do accept those who do, especially the long timers who have been in the system longer than we ever thought we would be. While learning about past experiences is helpful, it is not always applicable to a new crop of passengers with different approaches and values and income.

 

Just my one (1) knot of input... good or knot.. LOL

 

bon voyage

[TeeRick]

4 hours ago, ChucktownSteve said:

 

And BTW it isn't unlimited excursions.  It's up to only $200 restricted OBC towards their overpriced excursions.  The more intelligent older generation knows  an identical excursion, sometimes from the same company, is much cheaper when booked directly without Celebrity tacking on their profit.

Am I missing something?  Did they just replace $300 OBC with an excursion of up to $200 value?  And they control the pricing of excursions?  I would rather have the OBC and apply it to an excursion if I want to or spend it on a specialty dining or whatever I feel like.

[Bo1953]

1 hour ago, ABoatNerd said:

Just another pricing scam by Celebrity, in a long line of scams.

 

Every for profit company relies on the naivety of new customers. Appears Celebrity has again picked the same old new Gen X group that they built the Edge class for. Celebrity how is that working out for you so far?

 

Some consumers care about the value of the goods and services they receive and some do not. Certainly the beverage packages and the "ease of use" have been adopted by many cruisers who really do not care they are overpaying for the number of drinks they consume cause they do "not have to sign a bill each time".

 

Like many on the CC Celebrity board, moved on from Celebrity to the premium lines where the entire experience is premium, not just a small part of the Celebrity ship. 

 

Good profit enhancing move Celebrity, only you will be able to determine how many customers bought your duping.

This could be in a Monty Python skit... LOL

 

It is only a scam if one does not receive the value that is perceived or gets nothing for payment of service to be received. My scam may not be your scam and etc... not to worry, most of us have time to change pricing or lines before the sailing, if we choose to.

 

Each consumer has their 'value' tolerances and act accordingly.... which differs for each of us.

 

Unless someone asks for my input on their choice, I find it of no value to tell them that their choice was incorrect, I can only say, to myself, it is or is not correct for us and our friends/guests.

 

I Am happy that those who have chosen to move on for that 'premium' experience has done so and I trust are very happy with that choice. Maybe the new pricing policy will serve to move more of those individuals on to that experience as being perceived as being a better value. Value is not only subjective but objective and the two may never meet.

 

We become more savvy through experience, our own and that of others, and accept what we choose to accept and change accordingly. Not just because someone else told us to.

 

bon voyage

Edited November 12, 2020 by Bo1953

[Life Buoy]

We are forced to pay for lots of things we will never use. For example, people without kids still pay school tax

[ECCruise]

Pretty weak analogy, IMHO.

I pay school tax and watch children which I don't have become educated.  That is a big win for me.

 

Paying for someone's booze package so they can overdrink, not so much.  Or so they can go on an overpriced and not as satisfactory shore excursion, ditto.

 

Over 30 =X= cruises and putting hundreds of thousands of $ in their pockets but unless I can find a way around this pricing strategy, no  mas.

 

Retired at the age of 44 by never spending stupid money.  Not about to start now to go on a cruise.

 

4 minutes ago, Life Buoy said:

We are forced to pay for lots of things we will never use. For example, people without kids still pay school tax

 

[Bo1953]

7 minutes ago, sippican said:

 

I agree.

Glad to see some of the younger crowd still loves to spend their money and time on Celebrity's overpriced,  bus tours while us old folks continue to book small customized high-quality private tours at a better price (which Celebrity hates, by the way.)  Let them enjoy their new benefit on the busses with the rest of the herd while we'll see twice as much at a better price.  If I could give away the Shore Excursion credit, I gladly would - it's not m,uch better than a partial credit to attend a carnival!

The real question, at this point is, when will the 'old folks' be able to book those independent tours again?

 

bon voyage

[Pinboy]

17 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

The real question, at this point is, when will the 'old folks' be able to book those independent tours again?

 

bon voyage

LOL-- The " old folks " have been on so many tours they don't go on them anymore --- unless they want to purchase more spices, visit their tour guide's family members gift shop , or revisit banana plantations and rain forests. 

Just so you don't get jealous --- Our tour guide told us that we were the nicest group he ever had.

And, to show our " thanks " , we all gave him a big tip , so, much , that he hugged every lady as she exited the bus.  

( Nobody asked him why the back door of the bus was locked when we were getting off at the end of the tour )

[wrk2cruise]

And remember Shore Excursion inclusion is an upsell and not a required purchase.   The real change here is the including 3 PERKs in the basic price for inside through aqua class.  

 

Now if you figure everyone should be paying tips then it's really that they are forcing you to buy a classic beverage package and surf wifi.

 

The real key is what will that do to the basic cruise fare.  The existing fares are crazy as they are.  On average my existing 8 bookings have gone up to within 5% of double what I have them booked for.

 

 

[Bo1953]

12 minutes ago, Pinboy said:

LOL-- The " old folks " have been on so many tours they don't go on them anymore --- unless they want to purchase more spices, visit their tour guide's family members gift shop , or revisit banana plantations and rain forests. 

Just so you don't get jealous --- Our tour guide told us that we were the nicest group he ever had.

And, to show our " thanks " , we all gave him a big tip , so, much , that he hugged every lady as she exited the bus.  

( Nobody asked him why the back door of the bus was locked when we were getting off at the end of the tour )

pb you needed to ask about that door (or kicked out the window) to really thank him for not taking you to the family Walmart for the last minute souvenirs before leaving port...

 

bon voyage

[ChucktownSteve]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

Am I missing something?  Did they just replace $300 OBC with an excursion of up to $200 value?  And they control the pricing of excursions?  I would rather have the OBC and apply it to an excursion if I want to or spend it on a specialty dining or whatever I feel like.

 

The Elevate package for $30/day includes $100/$150/$200 for Shore Ex excursions while the indulge package for $60/day includes that and an additional $100/$150/$200 general OBC. The always included package does not include any OBC for either.

[LGW59]

2 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

Not so "young" American and have heard the same assertions when X was selected our line of choice, regardless of price at the time.

 

While we have not quite accumulated the "status" as those who may have stayed on as loyal all these years, we believe that we found a line that offers what we like and how we like it, warts and all.

 

I support Marineboy and his thoughts, who knows if or when that will change, like us and our friends, he may never change but modify his thoughts about X and what he is willing to pay.

 

We all sail for one reason and that is the pure pleasure of sailing, then there are some of us who sail for secondary and tertiary reasons i.e. cost, inclusions, no inclusions, ports etc... 

 

Those who believe they are more sophisticated at detecting X pricing 'games', as it were, that is great, yet for those of us who also understand the game we can also move on to something which is considered more 'price' friendly and etc...

 

Maybe I will, yet for now, it is all fine as I pay what I think is fair for the experience, if I do not we do not go or wait for that ever elusive sale to sail... not missed one yet, until this year!

 

Like Marineboy, it is not about 'over paying' vs 'paying what we think is fair' for what we signed up for and not necessarily looking for a rock bottom price. Not that it would not be welcomed, but not digging and digging and digging for it.

 

I and others do accept those who do, especially the long timers who have been in the system longer than we ever thought we would be. While learning about past experiences is helpful, it is not always applicable to a new crop of passengers with different approaches and values and income.

 

Just my one (1) knot of input... good or knot.. LOL

 

bon voyage

From one boomer to another, very well stated and articulated, Bo1953!!!

[LGW59]

1 hour ago, Pinboy said:

Here's a question--- not a hard one, don't get nervous  :

Why should anyone be forced to pay for a service they will not use ??

Examples----- Non- drinkers ,  excursions that they are not interested in or that can be purchased on land for a fraction of the price , 240 ( ?? ) minutes of wifi. 

And, bye the way , may I suggest Carnival Cruise Lines for you --- more party fun, belly flop contests , and " cruizin " at the bars. Much more fun than cruising with " old timers ". 

 

We are not "forced" to pay for this, we have a choice, book it or do not, I really don't see that as being forced in any way.

[PTC DAWG]

I'm not going to take up space "quoting" him...but I always enjoy Bo's take on things here. 

 

Sail on.  Hopefully some day soon.  

[Travelexpert35]

It will be very interesting to see what the excursion prices will be like due to the COVID restrictions. They should be quite a bit lower if they’re not allowing private excursions. TUI cruises had some lower prices in Europe and they are all inclusive as well. Let’s see what $200 will get us.

[cantstopingcruising]

We have b2b Jan/Feb 2022 on Edge. Our winter cruises are merely an escape from the cold winter. We do not take tours or even go to the beach  anymore. We get off the ship and take a little walk nowadays. If, in 2022, we can't do that, we will be prisoners on the ship.  Needless to say, that will not work.

 

If our May cruise does go to Greece, we know some of the ports very well and have not interest in sitting on a tour bus. So, that may not work out for us, too.  I don't care so much about that because our first choice is to park ourselves at a nice hotel and walk around and sightsee at our leisure.

 

However, for our winter vacations, if there will be restrictions,  it will be time for us to find an alternative to cruising.

[yorky]

I tend to read quite a few posts on here stating the word “Loyalty”. Sorry but I’m much of the opinion that people need to forget about loyalty, it’s now something that belongs in the past for most companies and certainly with cruise lines it’s all about the bottom dollar. They don’t care if you don’t come back as long as there is someone else to take your place. They won’t even say goodby as the door closes. It’s rather like banking when people threaten  to close their account if not happy, my wife simply states I can do that for you right now.

[Roger88]

38 minutes ago, Travelexpert35 said:

It will be very interesting to see what the excursion prices will be like due to the COVID restrictions. They should be quite a bit lower if they’re not allowing private excursions. TUI cruises had some lower prices in Europe and they are all inclusive as well. Let’s see what $200 will get us.

Well, there two sides to it. From one perspective the prices might go up cause some of the places will be hard to visit. On the other hand, due to the fall of demand, the prices might be very and very low to attract people 

[Pinboy]

1 hour ago, LGW59 said:

We are not "forced" to pay for this, we have a choice, book it or do not, I really don't see that as being forced in any way.

That's true--- Then can the same analogy be applied to the buffet ? 

We are not forced to eat everything in sight even though we've paid for it . Mind you, I have to say, we sure don't get our money's worth because we only select what we will eat . not, what we will try to eat.  Now, I've seen people who etc etc.----WOW, can they " pack it away " !!

I do repeat myself , but, if someone doesn't drink, or want to go on their 37th tour of friggin bananas , and doesn't need the internet on board when they can use it in every port at no charge,  don't you think they should be offered an alternative pricing structure ?? 

The " trick " in Marketing is -- price your service or product at a price you can sell it, not what you " hope " you can sell it at.

 

[LGW59]

23 minutes ago, Pinboy said:

That's true--- Then can the same analogy be applied to the buffet ? 

We are not forced to eat everything in sight even though we've paid for it . Mind you, I have to say, we sure don't get our money's worth because we only select what we will eat . not, what we will try to eat.  Now, I've seen people who etc etc.----WOW, can they " pack it away " !!

I do repeat myself , but, if someone doesn't drink, or want to go on their 37th tour of friggin bananas , and doesn't need the internet on board when they can use it in every port at no charge,  don't you think they should be offered an alternative pricing structure ?? 

The " trick " in Marketing is -- price your service or product at a price you can sell it, not what you " hope " you can sell it at.

 

Everything you say makes total sense, Pinboy!  We are def on the same page re buffet, I never eat there, just go to people watch.  In my company, for annual benefits, we get a "menu" to select, benefits are not a "one size fits all" commodity in any way, thus our costs vary from employee to employee.  Perhaps for those not in a suite where the 4 perks are already included, they could implement such a process.  From what you and many many others here have said, this just might do the trick.