Apex Southampton 2024 cruise pricing

[chemmo]

A pity….we enjoy an occasional cruise from Southampton and as we have got older the appeal of not flying has become more tempting.

 

We are highly unlikely to be booking…

4 hours ago, JeanieC,Aston said:

 

An Ionic Suite @ £76000 for a 13 day cruise?

You can buy a house in some towns for that in the UK.😉

Agree…just cannot justify this sort of pricing. Too rich for us…

[hawkesbaynz]

Folk on the Oceania forum were rating the new NCL Prima. The reviews looked great and I noted it had many ex-Soton cruises. Modern ship with many free dining venues. All inclusive. The Caribbean prices were great but ex-UK prices very high too.  
 

Sterling’s plunge has not helped. Maybe last minute ex UK and meticulously researched distant cruises. This forum is great for spotting price drops too.
 

Shame we have not been on an E-class. We cancelled a Beyond Barcelona cruise in September when our travel companions both contracted Covid 3 days prior to the cruise. Just got the FCC after a little fight which we will use for a Singapore Solstice cruise booked last year.

[wineoclock]

Emailed to cancel our provisional hold on May 24 for Apex Norway. Dh said no to an SV at £4500. We are paying less than that for Silhouette next May in Aqua. A shame but he agrees should relook later.  

[Moby Jones]

13 hours ago, JeanieC,Aston said:

Yes,the 2nd para was from a Social media post which I totally agreed with.

As did many of the posters on that platform.

I know that guy in the real world. Very, very well in fact. He'll be flattered by your post. 🙂 

[Geoffa30]

21 minutes ago, wineoclock said:

Emailed to cancel our provisional hold on May 24 for Apex Norway. Dh said no to an SV at £4500. We are paying less than that for Silhouette next May in Aqua. A shame but he agrees should relook later.  

We booked the eight night May 24  cruise and SV cabin yesterday. Always thought Celebrity prices were higher than other cruise lines - we normally sail with Princess - so didn’t think it was unreasonable. That was before I started seeing comments here and on social media.
 

Do you know whether we are able to reprice in the future? On Princess, in the U.K., this can be done once subject to a £50 per person admin fee.

[Moby Jones]

13 hours ago, JeanieC,Aston said:

Hi jelayne.

Trouble is here in the UK we can’t just reprice,,,,and we don’t have refundable deposits.

 

I hear of US cruisers booking 6/7 cruises then picking just one and getting deposit refunds on the others.

For us in the UK and presumable the US that just pushes the price up.

Jeanie, pay attention. You're in the UK. So you're in the best place of all to take advantage of the best cruise pricing. You can book in the UK. Or you can book in the US also. You get to pick and choose the best deals if you want to as you're not limited to one region. 

Also bear in mind that a lot of cruise prices are better in the UK right now. The important thing to bear in mind is that you must compare cruises on an individual basis. It's rare but it can be suites are cheaper in the US and balcony rooms are cheaper in the UK on the very same sailing!

I've just booked an Azamara cruise which was around 65% cheaper in the UK to book. Yes that's sixty five and not six point five! I got quotes from our regular US based TA who didn't believe the price I'd quoted him from the UK. 

Celebrity UK often have offers for UK sailings that are regularly cheaper to book in the UK. Last minute Caribbean sailings will likely be a lot cheaper when booked in the US as the big box TA's block book inventory and have to sell them off. 

There's also considerably more competition in the Caribbean and many mega ships based there. So prices do look cheap compared to European sailings. 

Next time you're ready to book look at UK pricing and the big box US based TA's and smile as you're able to choose the best deal. 🙂 

[Moby Jones]

13 hours ago, Cruise Junky said:

They’re giving them away in North America. 

I'd love to know how much money those on free casino cruisers have won or more likely lost in order to take a free cruise. 🙂 

[Moby Jones]

9 minutes ago, Geoffa30 said:

We booked the eight night May 24  cruise and SV cabin yesterday. Always thought Celebrity prices were higher than other cruise lines - we normally sail with Princess - so didn’t think it was unreasonable. That was before I started seeing comments here and on social media.
 

Do you know whether we are able to reprice in the future? On Princess, in the U.K., this can be done once subject to a £50 per person admin fee.

I think the reason many people are commenting is because the 2024 pricing puts Celebrity on a par with more upscale true luxury lines on a per person per night basis. But they don't deliver the same level of luxury. Not even close in some instances. 

But that's the great thing about cruising. We all have many choices to make. So if people think the current pricing is too high for the product being delivered we can just book another line. 🙂 

[wineoclock]

23 minutes ago, Geoffa30 said:

We booked the eight night May 24  cruise and SV cabin yesterday. Always thought Celebrity prices were higher than other cruise lines - we normally sail with Princess - so didn’t think it was unreasonable. That was before I started seeing comments here and on social media.
 

Do you know whether we are able to reprice in the future? On Princess, in the U.K., this can be done once subject to a £50 per person admin fee.

I think so but at those prices I’ve started to look at the more luxury lines.

 

But she’s a lovely ship. Make sure to go to Eden & have each of the tasting menus. Steakhouse was great also. Didn’t rate Le Petit Chef. 
 

Was in retreat in October on her. Lovely cruise. But a bit too big for me but I did love it. 

Edited November 16, 2022 by wineoclock

[Cruise Junky]

3 hours ago, Moby Jones said:

I'd love to know how much money those on free casino cruisers have won or more likely lost in order to take a free cruise. 🙂 

Find and read the multiple treads. Most thought it was a scam because they don’t gamble much.  

[Moby Jones]

2 hours ago, Cruise Junky said:

Find and read the multiple treads. Most thought it was a scam because they don’t gamble much.  

No need. I very rarely visit casinos. But I'd be interested to know what the average win / losses are in the real world. 

[bluwes]

On 11/15/2022 at 9:01 PM, JeanieC,Aston said:

Hi jelayne.

Trouble is here in the UK we can’t just reprice,,,,and we don’t have refundable deposits.

 

I hear of US cruisers booking 6/7 cruises then picking just one and getting deposit refunds on the others.

For us in the UK and presumable the US that just pushes the price up.

One of the benefits of booking on board at the Future Cruise desk, you can swap and move as many times as you like keeping the same perks and not losing your deposit.  Just swapped a Caribbean sailing on the Equinox onto an Apex Fjords sailing in August 2024.  We had two fjords sailings on the Silhouette cancelled during the pandemic, and this itinerary is almost identical to those, not the ones that Celebrity replaced them with in 2022 and 23. Another plus  is we won’t be paying extortionate prices for  long haul flights to Florida.

[Moby Jones]

10 hours ago, bluwes said:

 Another plus  is we won’t be paying extortionate prices for  long haul flights to Florida.

You can book return flights including baggage and fees etc for around £550 per person cattle class if you look hard enough. Although European sailings are a lot more interesting from a historical and cultural perspective compared to Caribbean islands. 

[wineoclock]

10 hours ago, bluwes said:

One of the benefits of booking on board at the Future Cruise desk, you can swap and move as many times as you like keeping the same perks and not losing your deposit.  Just swapped a Caribbean sailing on the Equinox onto an Apex Fjords sailing in August 2024.  We had two fjords sailings on the Silhouette cancelled during the pandemic, and this itinerary is almost identical to those, not the ones that Celebrity replaced them with in 2022 and 23. Another plus  is we won’t be paying extortionate prices for  long haul flights to Florida.

Do you get the same protection booking onboard as you do booking in the U.K.? 

[the penguins]

7 minutes ago, wineoclock said:

Do you get the same protection booking onboard as you do booking in the U.K.? 

Yes if you book in £ no if you book in 💲. You can only book in 💲 if you have an address and telephone number in the US. Our son is a US citizen and X therefore accepts us as US residents as well. Not always a good choice as currency fluctuations can dramatically affect the final payment. Much harder to complain if things go wrong. We had to cancel a cruise on Royal from Southampton on the morning of departure due to sudden illness. The cruise had been paid with 💲300 cash and the rest in FCC's. Royal would only give me a cancellation receipt for the 💲saying the FCC value was lost. After 2 hours on the phone to Miami Royal reluctantly agreed to give me a letter stating the actual value of the cruise cost that they had witheld and this was accepted by my insurance company which has now reimbursed me in full.

[wineoclock]

Thank you that’s interesting. I hope you feel better 

[Moby Jones]

10 minutes ago, the penguins said:

Yes if you book in £ no if you book in 💲. You can only book in 💲 if you have an address and telephone number in the US. 

This is incorrect. We have had numerous bookings made onboard transferred to our US based travel agent and we live in the UK. The US TA then adds additional OBC so it's the most lucrative way of booking when US prices beat UK pricing. 

[the penguins]

1 hour ago, Moby Jones said:

This is incorrect. We have had numerous bookings made onboard transferred to our US based travel agent and we live in the UK. The US TA then adds additional OBC so it's the most lucrative way of booking when US prices beat UK pricing. 

Was the sailing you were on booked through your US Agent? If it was then any new booking automatically reverts to that Agent unless you sign to say that you don't want it to. If not then X is breaking it's own rules which say you must have a US address to book at US prices. With the pound at it's current very low value against the £ the savings are not as great and the risk higher. 

[bluwes]

3 hours ago, Moby Jones said:

You can book return flights including baggage and fees etc for around £550 per person cattle class if you look hard enough. Although European sailings are a lot more interesting from a historical and cultural perspective compared to Caribbean islands. 

Sorry Moby we're too old to do Long Haul in economy. Pre Pandemic Virgin Atlantic Upper Class was around £1500 each, which we thought was reasonable based on what we got. That has now doubled

[upwarduk]

On 11/16/2022 at 1:46 AM, chemmo said:

A pity….we enjoy an occasional cruise from Southampton and as we have got older the appeal of not flying has become more tempting.

Same here.

I remember the times when a cruise was expensive if it was more than £100 per night.

 

[hawkesbaynz]

We just flew to Miami on Business Class yesterday. We paid about a £1000 for the taxes and a hefty amount of BA Avios points with a Companion Voucher. This was for two. I think they were charging £4K for cash each! 
 

Our Spring Caribbean cruise and forthcoming South American, East Med & Far East cruises all flying Biz with BA Avios points. Wife refuses to fly cattle class now. We just put everything on BA Amex & Barclaycard Mastercard and play the system. It is a bit of a hobby tho. We do not have massive expenditures just holidays and socialising. We are both middle earner so not churning cash through businesses (although I do occasionally get a Amex Business card as a Ltd Co.). See headforpoints website for tips. 
 

We buy a future cruise certificate onboard then call UK call centre to book the cruise with my 10% NHS discount. I have booked online with the US website.

Edited November 17, 2022 by hawkesbaynz
Incorrect info

[hawkesbaynz]

Oddly went on the balcony of the Doubletree by Hilton Grand Biscayne in Miami and   our beloved Silhouette is in Miami Port. Sailed on her three times and seen many times when walking the dog on the beach in our village.

 

I see that a P&O Iona balcony can be had for less than £1K to Norway. Will a IV on the Apex be twice as good at £2K? That’s a question I may try to answer. 

[Moby Jones]

6 hours ago, the penguins said:

Was the sailing you were on booked through your US Agent? If it was then any new booking automatically reverts to that Agent unless you sign to say that you don't want it to. If not then X is breaking it's own rules which say you must have a US address to book at US prices. With the pound at it's current very low value against the £ the savings are not as great and the risk higher. 

 

Not all of them were no. I've joined the ship via a UK booking then booked onboard and had the new sailing booked sent to my US TA if they were offering a better deal. 

I suspect you have been misinformed. You can have your booking sent to any TA either side of the pond regardless. If I was told I couldn't I'd tell the future cruise sales staff to stick their booking. 

We also done exactly the same with Azamara. It has never been a problem. Though at the moment it seems much cheaper to book AZ in the UK. 

Edited November 17, 2022 by Moby Jones

[sgmn]

On 11/16/2022 at 10:34 AM, Moby Jones said:

. Last minute Caribbean sailings will likely be a lot cheaper when booked in the US as the big box TA's block book inventory and have to sell them off. 

There's also considerably more competition in the Caribbean and many mega ships based there. So prices do look cheap compared to European sailings. 

Next time you're ready to book look at UK pricing and the big box US based TA's and smile as you're able to choose the best deal. 🙂 

The trouble with last minute cruises is that whilst you may get a good price on the cruise, the airfare is often very high. Also limited cabin choice or dinning time choice

 

We've used a US TA in the past,  but you have to be aware that UK consumer protection laws don't apply and the dollar currency fluctuations may cause the final price to be higher 

[swigso]

On 11/15/2022 at 5:09 PM, Moby Jones said:

We got an S1 sky suite on Beyond in January 2024, 11 nights for under £3000 ($3510) per person. That included a total of $1525 OBC after transferring the booking to a TA. Just to put new pricing into perspective. 

 

We are sailing on Beyond through the Panama Canal in March 2024 we have an S1 and it cost $7700 for the two of us. $350 pppn with $1250 OBC and everything included. With hotels in Florida costing over $400 a night we think it is a great deal