I am shocked at the prices for cruises in 2023!

[Nunagoras]

2 hours ago, zeroed said:

Met a pinnacle who said demand is high right now because of all the people having to use their FCC. Royal is using the demand level to estimate prices they can get for 2023 bookings. As demand wanes perhaps prices will come down some. 

This, plus perspective for high fuel costs, and higher labor costs to fill the ship's crew seats.

 

One thing that some perhaps underestimate is that the industry is now serving the... 2020-2021 guests, by the most part. Surely there are the last minute ones, but those are at inflated prices. The remaining ones are exactly those ones whose cruises were by the most part cancelled and whom are rescheduling now and then. Obviously this, the need to recover some profitability and the need to cope with higher fuel and labor costs is leading to massive raising prices. Come mid-2023 onward, when all those FCC's are over upon such a recessive global economy and I'm more than sure, some sailings will actually run at a discount...

[Engineroom Snipe]

13 hours ago, 4-2-N-8 said:

I'd take my chances on the S.S. Minnow any day!

Please whatever you do, DO NOT pick the "Three Hour Cruise" option. 😉

[Stealthdog]

1 hour ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Interesting point of view but it seems a majority of new first-time cruisers are very price conscious. I wonder why you would not consider more inclusive cruise lines considering your price point of four cabins for two people.

 

I mention first-time cruisers because they still represent (according to C&A meet and great events) about 50% of each cruise I have attended.

 

 I think alot of other cruisers would jump ship too.  I have zero loyalty to a cruise line.  I sail with royal because of price.  If rates go up enough then its no longer value and I will look at holland, msc, ncl, princess, and celebrity.  If royal prices themselves at the same point as celebrity, why sail royal?

Edited November 29, 2022 by Stealthdog

[Engineroom Snipe]

9 minutes ago, Stealthdog said:

 I think alot of other cruisers would jump ship too.  I have zero loyalty to a cruise line.  I sail with royal because of price.  If rates go up enough then its no longer value and I will look at holland, msc, ncl, princess, and celebrity.  If royal prices themselves at the same point as celebrity, why sail royal?

I tend to lean towards @Nunagoras's ideas that RCI has a calculation of how much future cruise credit is outstanding and there are time limits on its reservation and usage. They are willing to test the market at higher prices than historical averages, even with inflation included.

 

Time will tell as we get closer to the currently higher-priced cruises.

[Jimbo]

2 hours ago, dada2199cc said:

 

 

I know their goal is occupancy+profit, but I'd rather pay 20% more if it meant 20% fewer people on a sailing.  My regular sailing partner and I are contemplating just booking 2 staterooms each cruise already, just to add a little dent to the number of folks sailing.

I think that wouldn't even register as a dent.............Probably not even a ding. Best to just sit it out and not book any cruises at these crazy high prices.

 

Lot's of other vacation choices just as fun out there. You would be surprised what you can find if you just look elsewhere.

[SummerBeee]

When I’m looking at cruises, the price per day - per person is my qualifier. Prices for 2023 are higher than last year but seem on par with 2019 and early 2020. At least for the sailings ai booked. Radiance, Vision, and Voyager class offer the best per day price with longer sailings being an even better deal.  
 

I had to throw my price per day threshold out the window for the UWC. 

[HappyTexan44]

I am one of those price-conscious new cruisers.   I don't know if I'll like it so why pay $$$ if it turns out I'm just not a cruising-type person.   That said, I'm happy with the price.    Feb 2024, Voyager out of Galveston, 5-night, $1600 for two rooms and four people.  So, $400/pp for 5 nights.  Promenade Interior.  

I also fully expect the 2023 and 2024 prices to be higher than those for sale 2021 and early 2022.   More people willing to cruise without restrictions.  

[Engineroom Snipe]

6 minutes ago, HappyTexan44 said:

  More people willing to cruise without restrictions.  

 

The barn door is open, and the herd is stampeding. As soon as there were serious rumors about restrictions being lifted in July 2022, I saw an immediate rise in future cruise prices.

[lcpagejr]

4 hours ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

When I was younger, I could easily see myself doing the same thing. Time and health have dictated a bit more restraint on my total allotment per day. I do not judge as long as your behavior onboard does not negatively affect others around you. 

 

Reasons to enjoy your DBP:

 

1. You do not have to worry about a DUI when vacationing on-board ship.

2. You can try a different cocktail and not worry if you 'have-to' drink it.

3. They also include non-alcoholic drinks for hydration.

4. No surprises on your final bill.

All valid points. Interestingly I rarely drink outside of vacations. But #4 is the real reason … piece of mind and not getting mad at my wife as she has several glasses of wine…. Lol

[neverbeenhere]

53 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

Please whatever you do, DO NOT pick the "Three Hour Cruise" option. 😉

 

But it was a tour.

[Engineroom Snipe]

23 minutes ago, neverbeenhere said:

 

But it was a tour.

Worse yet!!!!!! A cruise ship sponsored tour 😱 . There was a TV series on the history channel  😉 (the series was originally in black and white, and they remastered it in color).  There was so much drama created for such a small group of people. I figured there was bound to be trouble when there were more men than women.  I will not even venture why one of the men kept calling another one, "My little buddy."  😁

[RandomUser123]

Cruise I was looking at I was going to wait till Black Friday weekend to see if prices dropped and despite what Royal Caribbean advertised as their greatest sale ever, the price for the cruise I was looking at actually went up and it appeared to kept going up slightly each day. I should have booked this cruise a couple weeks back when it was cheaper. It is now $260 more than it was a couple weeks back. 

[AtSeaAlways]

This is a competitive free market - the supply of modern cruise ship berths across quite a few lines is constrained- new ships cost a lot and take years to bring online.   The prices are what the market will bear.   Demand is strong.   We saw a year ago those prices could be quite low- no longer.   This is similar to what happened in rental cars- the fleets were reduced and new cars were hard to get. 

 

If you don't like crowds, smaller older ships, suite only decks or luxury lines are options. 

[Guest 4-2-N-8]

23 minutes ago, RandomUser123 said:

Cruise I was looking at I was going to wait till Black Friday weekend to see if prices dropped and despite what Royal Caribbean advertised as their greatest sale ever, the price for the cruise I was looking at actually went up and it appeared to kept going up slightly each day. I should have booked this cruise a couple weeks back when it was cheaper. It is now $260 more than it was a couple weeks back. 

In order to have a successful "sale," they no doubt had to raise the price in order to run the event and make a (better) profit.

 

AKA, "we had to destroy the village to save it" mentality.

[TheHawk1]

3 hours ago, dada2199cc said:

I wish Royal would raise prices more.  Maybe even significantly more.

My reasoning:

1. Ships at 120% occupancy are not pleasant for anyone.  Crew are overworked, on-board things to do are overcrowded.  A ship at 90% would be much much more pleasant overall.
2. Higher profitability per passenger means the cruise lines would be more likely to adapt some of their outdated services to provide better ones for passengers.  I'm thinking IT/website/app specifically, but also Diamond events, etc.
3. Fewer chair hogs as occupancy drops.
4. Better quality food as you're serving fewer people.
5. Less wear and tear.

 

I know their goal is occupancy+profit, but I'd rather pay 20% more if it meant 20% fewer people on a sailing.  My regular sailing partner and I are contemplating just booking 2 staterooms each cruise already, just to add a little dent to the number of folks sailing.

Do you have a degree in economics? Based on your comments, I’m thinking no.

[dada2199cc]

2 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

Do you have a degree in economics? Based on your comments, I’m thinking no.

You'd be surprised who you are talking to.  I've founded and sold numerous successful businesses and have been quoted by noted economists in trade journals and in books as well.

 

I won't continue the discussion here as I write under my real name and you hide behind an anonymous pseudonym, but if you want to discuss economics, feel free to email me below and I'd be happy to teach you.

[jeh10641]

23 hours ago, oldmom said:

Guess I have not been paying attention to this. We normally cruise once a year or every other year or so on RCCL. We are Diamond- finally in 2019. I have been able to get a balcony room for 7 nights on a Oasis ship at a "great price" , for years now. We go off season-early December -early May, etc. We got a great price in May 2022 ( also tested positive for COVID 2 days after) on Harmony. We have been busy with a family member passing away and having to pack up their house and all the stuff that goes along with that. SO-finally started looking for cruises for 2023.WOW! The "great price" is at least $1000-$1500 more than I have ever paid for the cheapest sailing week!! I knew inflation was bad-but I did not expect this much an increase from 2022. These are for 7 day cruises on an Oasis ships. I know the other ships are cheaper-but ? Wondering if this price will continue? We have done interiors to save money before-but these are pricey also now. Just sort of bummed.

Hi, oldmom,

Not just inflation. I booked a transatlantic cruise for next October (2023) in April 2022. That cruise is now 55% higher than when I booked! Supply and Demand, basic economics. Also, cruise companies are billions in debt due to the Covid shutdown. Trying to catch up on that. The bargains were available for this fall but are now pretty much gone for 2023.

 

Jim

[Nunagoras]

1 hour ago, dada2199cc said:

You'd be surprised who you are talking to.  I've founded and sold numerous successful businesses and have been quoted by noted economists in trade journals and in books as well.

 

I won't continue the discussion here as I write under my real name and you hide behind an anonymous pseudonym, but if you want to discuss economics, feel free to email me below and I'd be happy to teach you.

Well: Actually I worked on the financial frame as well, but things don't go this way...

 

Let's see: Back in the "good ole days" when cruising was a rare event for a "handful of them"; I say the last century's mid 80's, pretty much all cruise lines were basically the same; more or less similar to what are now the likes of Silversea/Seaborne/Hapag/Regent/Viking/Oceania/Explora, with the possibly the odd ones running older smaller ships for some more party like ships. Then came the 90's... And with them a huge transformation on the cruise industry arrived: Segmentation! Sadly there are many (sometimes me think most?) individuals here that are "unable" to understand what market segmentation is about. Now we have contemporary mainstream trademarks following megaships on what I can to describe as European Union 4* land hotel standards: Those trademarks are basically Carnival (in Europe operating as Costa), Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line and Mediterranean Shipping Company. Then there is a segment that I can call as upper-mainstream that stands for 4*+ EU land hotel standards. Those ones are basically Disney Cruise Lines; Celebrity Cruises; and Princess Cruises. Then there is the traditional small ship that runs from 5* to 6* EU land hotel experience. To simplify I'll join pretty much all the other well-known lines in this segment. You know: From Viking/Oceania/Explora onwards.

 

Price wise: In general: The smaller the ship, the higher the price.

 

Oh, boy: X prices are now cheaper than RCI ones S***!... Well: Keep calm and think a bit: The ones actually sailing with higher oil prices are the ones whom booked from 2019 to 2021 in average. Those huge amounts of FCC's are now being redeemed, so they need to compensate the higher costs elsewhere. Come the end of those FCC's and the market will likely to normalize. Oh, boy and why those so nice X deals? Smaller company with perhaps a different crowd that came with less FCC's, plus sort of a strategic change under the hood: X is now going after the ones whom may be discontent with the ultimate change on the mainstream lines. They are not only are following the EU 4* land hotel standards, but they want to do so at the young family market target point, and they'll succeed. So where will all the 45+YO's go now that they have the kids on their own? They'll go the X way, but not at traditional X prices; then X started to sell regular tickets without the All Inclusive again to fill their cabins!...

 

In summary: Don't expect prices to jump too more on the mainstream. They're cruises for everyone. The day all the current market distortion caused by the FCC's is gone, the markets will likely to normalize. Till there; there are choices. X being one of those under the RCI's umbrella. Out of it you can have either way; MSC Yacht Club; Princess; HAL; or whatever jumps with a great deal out there.

 

Cruising is changing as is everything else elsewhere. I believe it will be entirely different in 10-15 years term. Better? Worse? I'm not sure. 200k GT ships will be the norm on "hard-rock" mainstream cruising. Regular 100k-150k will take the place of traditional upper-mainstream cruises as we knew the mainstream ones from Voyager class onward...

 

Nobody will sell an Oasis/Icon ship at Regent/Hapag prices, other than the odd excessively overpriced Owners Suite on occasion due to the FCC's market distortion. That won't endure. And for the ones wishing something more, there are options.

 

Have a nice day!...

[Engineroom Snipe]

3 hours ago, lcpagejr said:

 But #4 is the real reason … piece of mind and not getting mad at my wife as she has several glasses of wine…. Lol

 

The most important reason of all! 😁 Why go on vacation if it leaves you mad at anyone? Sounds like you have a plan for happiness after the vacation. You choose life......😆, smart man.

[Guest 4-2-N-8]

1 hour ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

 

The most important reason of all! 😁 Why go on vacation if it leaves you mad at anyone? Sounds like you have a plan for happiness after the vacation. You choose life......😆, smart man.

Wait, did I miss an opportunity to get angry at something here? 😄

Edited November 29, 2022 by 4-2-N-8

[Engineroom Snipe]

5 minutes ago, 4-2-N-8 said:

Wait, did I miss an opportunity to get angry at something here? 😄

Do not fret, there will be many more opportunities to become angry on CC. Be like the Hulk, you are always angry but you find a way to be in control.  🤣

[Guest 4-2-N-8]

Just now, Engineroom Snipe said:

Do not fret, there will be many more opportunities to become angry on CC. Be like the Hulk, you are always angry but you find a way to be in control.  🤣

I keep my emotional support cobra next to me to help me focus. 🐍

[Engineroom Snipe]

4 minutes ago, 4-2-N-8 said:

I keep my emotional support cobra next to me to help me focus. 🐍

I hope he does not bite the hand that feeds him. 😁

[Guest 4-2-N-8]

4 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

I hope he does not bite the hand that feeds him. 😁

 

4 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

I hope he does not bite the hand that feeds him. 😁

I haven't slept in three days having to keep track of that thing so it doesn't bite me, which has worn me out to the point of no more emotion. 

 

Point being, emotional support cobras are 100% effective.

 

Now, if I could just solve for the insomnia!

[Engineroom Snipe]

17 minutes ago, 4-2-N-8 said:

 

I haven't slept in three days having to keep track of that thing so it doesn't bite me, which has worn me out to the point of no more emotion. 

 

Point being, emotional support cobras are 100% effective.

 

Now, if I could just solve for the insomnia!

Maybe you need an emotional support Mongoose to keep your emotional support Cobra in check. Your mind can sleep knowing the Ying and Yang of your complex emotional support system are in check.

 

On second thought, maybe you should just be somewhat angry and not count on emotional support animals. 😅

 

As AeroSmith would say, "Living on the Edge."