O's Misleading Pricing

[bubbaed]

I'm new to O and wonder if this is standard practice for them. They advertise "teaser" fares that "reflect promotional pricing" but in fact, those prices just reflect any OBC that comes with the real (higher) fare. Example:

 

When viewing a cruise from the "See Pricing & Availability" link a B4 Veranda for a 10-day on Vista shows $2,499 - not a bad deal!

 

 

However, when you click through and start to actually book:

 

 

Now the same B4 Veranda shows $2,799. An increase of $300, which is the same amount as the OBC amenity that comes with the fare.

 

I find it misleading to tease a "promotional" fare that is actually the "real" fare minus the included OBC. This basically means that the OBC is not a bonus - we actually just pay for it upfront. 🙄

 

This is not going to prevent me from booking cruises, but still... this feels a tiny bit shady on O's part.

 

Happy cruising!

 

[1985rz1]

32 minutes ago, bubbaed said:

This basically means that the OBC is not a bonus - we actually just pay for it upfront. 🙄

Yes, OLife is not free.  It's an add-on to each fare equal in cost to the per person of the OBC that is an option on OLife. The only deal in paying this upfront is if you select O's excursions as the OLife perk, when you effectively pay $100 for for each included excursion, but can select from standard excursions up to $199 (not included as options are the excursions marked OE, OS, etc).  Some folks like the beverage package (only wine and beer and only with lunch and dinner in restaurants) and think that option plus an upgrade to the prestige package for spirits and cocktails in all venues all day is worth it, but we can't drink enough to justify the cost.

 

Another item you should know is that the air is also not free.  You can decline that as well and reduce the price.

 

Your options are

Cruise with OLife and air

Cruise with OLife and no air

Cruise with air but no Olife,

Cruise without air or Olife: Cruise only fare.

 

A good TA with O experience is your best bet to sort it all out.

Edited May 26, 2023 by 1985rz1

[LHT28]

When you book online  is there  an option to remove  the O Life perk from the cruise only fare ?

 

Better to call direct or use  a good TA that is used to booking Oceania 

[Sthrngary]

@bubbaed I booked Oceania for the first time a few years ago and the cruise was cancelled due to the Pandemic.  I rebooked in September 2022 for a November 2023 cruise in the Mediterranean.  I am NOT an expert on Oceania but I made the decision to book after getting a bit frustrated myself.  So, I totally get what you are saying.  

 

Please allow me to be of some assistance.  Every cruise line has something that makes them confusing. Examples only and only from my perspective.  NCL has the "Free At Sea" program that includes the Premium Drink Package.  Yet when you select, the "Free At Sea" program (vs. Cruise Only), you have to pay a couple of hundred dollars for 20% tip as if you purchased the Drink Program at Retail.  Regent Seven Seas Cruise states on international flights that they include Business Class Airfare. Yet that is ONLY on the international legs. Coach from your home base to the city with the international flight. If you are not by a airport like New York, Chicago, Atlanta, ECT, you pay an additional amount. If you want to choose itinerary or your brand, cost more.  My point is, all cruise brands seem to do these things with Oceania in the mix. 

 

I blame all of the cruise brands marketing departments.  I also don't like having to do all the checking to figure out what should be SO simple. It is, however simply part of our personal due diligence when cruising. 

 

What I have learned is when in doubt, check with your travel agent or if you booked directly with Oceania, call them.  Example, I booked originally was a four-category upgrade in September 2022 and could not be happier. Then a NEW sale on my sailing came out and because of the fine folks here on this stream, I had my travel agent check my availability for additional reductions.  Sure enough, the rate I was give was less than what I had and it simply did not show that way online.  My agent had to call to get it. Happy I asked for help from my agent.  

 

I wish the marketing departments for ALL cruise brands would focus on clear, clean communication but what do I know anyway.  So it forces the consumer to check and double check.  I am fine with that.  So blame the entire industry, I do.  Oceania is simply playing the game they all are.  My opinion ONLY.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

 

 

[AMHuntFerry]

1 hour ago, bubbaed said:

I'm new to O and wonder if this is standard practice for them. They advertise "teaser" fares that "reflect promotional pricing" but in fact, those prices just reflect any OBC that comes with the real (higher) fare. Example:

 

When viewing a cruise from the "See Pricing & Availability" link a B4 Veranda for a 10-day on Vista shows $2,499 - not a bad deal!

 

 

However, when you click through and start to actually book:

 

 

Now the same B4 Veranda shows $2,799. An increase of $300, which is the same amount as the OBC amenity that comes with the fare.

 

I find it misleading to tease a "promotional" fare that is actually the "real" fare minus the included OBC. This basically means that the OBC is not a bonus - we actually just pay for it upfront. 🙄

 

This is not going to prevent me from booking cruises, but still... this feels a tiny bit shady on O's part.

 

Happy cruising!

 

You can get the cruise-only fare (the lower price), but not by using the book-online route which essentially forces you to add on O-Life to the fare. As was mentioned, O-Life, air, bev-packages, shorex packages, etc. are add-ons to the cruise-only fare. We typically do cruise-only, and occassionally add on either O-Life's shorex or YWC shorex.

 

[Woofa]

@bubbaed

Just to clarify.  I believe the answer is that you cannot get cruise only fair when booking online.  If you have a TA have them book it for you.  If not call Oceania to book and that should drop the extra $300.  Sorry this gets confusing.

Of course I have not booked online, only through our TA and was also not aware of this issue.  Was wondering why I could not make it work either.🐵

[bubbaed]

Thanks, all, for the clarification.

 

@1985rz1 I fully realize that O Life is not free. But as @AMHuntFerry graciously informed me, the "cruise only" fare is, in fact, available - just not when booking online. This is new, but helpful information.

 

The misleading part (IMHO) is that Oceania promotes the "cruise only" fare online, but then does not let you actually book it online. I can navigate this in the future, it's just not very clear at first (for an O newbie.)

 

FWIW, my next (and first) O cruise is booked via an experienced TA. I will know next time to ask for the "cruise only" fare if I want it. In this case, however, the OBC will certainly be spent so I'm not worried about the price. I did book air on my own, which was less expensive than O's price, so my fare included the air credit (discount) and I can fly my preferred airline at my preferred times/days.

 

So all good! This is why we ask the questions... for (mostly) helpful answers from the CC community.

 

Happy cruising, all!

[AMHuntFerry]

6 minutes ago, bubbaed said:

Thanks, all, for the clarification.

 

@1985rz1 I fully realize that O Life is not free. But as @AMHuntFerry graciously informed me, the "cruise only" fare is, in fact, available - just not when booking online. This is new, but helpful information.

 

The misleading part (IMHO) is that Oceania promotes the "cruise only" fare online, but then does not let you actually book it online. I can navigate this in the future, it's just not very clear at first (for an O newbie.)

 

FWIW, my next (and first) O cruise is booked via an experienced TA. I will know next time to ask for the "cruise only" fare if I want it. In this case, however, the OBC will certainly be spent so I'm not worried about the price. I did book air on my own, which was less expensive than O's price, so my fare included the air credit (discount) and I can fly my preferred airline at my preferred times/days.

 

So all good! This is why we ask the questions... for (mostly) helpful answers from the CC community.

 

Happy cruising, all!

I lurked this board for about a year absorbing the many vagaries associated with O (and cruises in general) before booking; without questions this forum would be dead. I think many of us have gone through the mock/real booking process and been stymied by how to remove O-Life at some point (at least I did, and you probably saved someone time/frustration by asking).

My TA is also experienced, but not an O-super-duper-booker so I always give very clear instructions. You can drop O-Life from your booking or change your O-Life amenity up to a deadline (can't remember exactly...maybe final payment for dropping? The legal mumbo-jumbo has it listed if needed).

[bubbaed]

Well, the confusing pricing saga continues...

 

I'm booked on a 17-day (which is essentially a 10+7 B2B) on Vista this December. With the arrival of the 4 category upgrade sale a few days ago, I enquired with my TA about the possibility of upgrading from my standard veranda to a concierge veranda on this trip. I was told it was not offered on this (17-day) sailing.

 

BUT I check O's web site and the individual 10- and 7-day sailings were part of the promotion. So I asked my TA if it made sense to swap the B2B for individual 10- and 7-day sequential bookings rather than the 17-day combo. And it worked! For very little money (under $300 total for both pax) I could, in fact, upgrade both cruises from standard to concierge veranda. The only caveat is that it's GTY and we may need to switch cabins on turn around day. I'm waiting for confirmation on that point, but I don't think that's such a bad thing.

 

I'm sure I'll get used to navigating the world of O pricing. But just like anything new, it takes some getting used to. 😜

 

 

[WayneLaR]

bub, I had a 20 day TA booked that wasn't past of the Extraordinary Sale a while back, but one of the legs (the 13 day of the 7 & 13), was.  So I asked my TA to split it to get the savings and I was able to keep my original cabin for both legs. 

[Twiga]

1 hour ago, bubbaed said:

I will know next time to ask for the "cruise only" fare if I want it. In this case, however, the OBC will certainly be spent so I'm not worried about the price.

@bubbaed -  You can change your choice of Olife perk at almost any time up to sailing, if you decide the excursions or the beverage package is a better deal for you than the OBC.  I don't know exactly what the cut-off time is.  I thought it was before final payment, but a friend changed hers about two weeks before sailing in March.  The same is true with airfare.  If you take the O air, you can remove it at any time before final payment.

[cruiserchuck]

I just learned this week about getting the cruise only fare vs. the fare with one OLife perk.  I had received quotations from 5 different TAs and only one quoted me without the OLife perk.  He told me some TAs do not tell their customers about deleting the OBC perk, since the TA gets commission on the price of the perk.

[Vertygo]

43 minutes ago, cruiserchuck said:

I just learned this week about getting the cruise only fare vs. the fare with one OLife perk.  I had received quotations from 5 different TAs and only one quoted me without the OLife perk.  He told me some TAs do not tell their customers about deleting the OBC perk, since the TA gets commission on the price of the perk.

I know which TA I would book with!!

[basor]

41 minutes ago, Vertygo said:

I know which TA I would book with!!

Or you have a TA that sends you the Cruise Only price and the price with the O Life Perks and what the perks are for that sailing......that is the TA I book with

[hawkesbaynz]

I had always booked cruises with included gratuities. Oceania does not so I did not factor that price in on our first trip. However some TAs may pay your gratuities & it is a perk with being a higher level Oceania cruiser after many trips with them.

[SellaVee]

The biggest revelation for me was finding out about air credit, back in the days when O charged a deviation fee to fly in a day or two early.  It's often a surprise to me how much the "free air" usually costs.

 

On our upcoming cruise we wanted to take the excursions as best use of the O life benefit.  Unfortunately, I learned from the roll call, that included shore excursions were mainly full, so we opted for OBC.  Then I did the maths!  Choosing the drinks package works out at just under $27 per day, as opposed to $39.95 if we bought it, and having just a couple of glasses of wine per day would run to almost $34 when you include gratuities.  We like wine with dinner, so I asked my TA to make the change.
 

Something that astonishes me is the price of a post cruise hotel booked through Oceania.  They offer a post cruise hotel for £299 pet person, so £598 for us, for a standard room.  I've booked a superior room in the same hotel for £159 and change.  I know we'll have to organise our own transfers but we can take a taxi or a shuttle bus.

 

That being said, I don’t think paying $300 for $300 onboard credit is a rip off, it's just like paying ahead of time, and we never book that far in advance, post pandemic.

[shepherd really]

1 hour ago, SellaVee said:

That being said, I don’t think paying $300 for $300 onboard credit is a rip off, it's just like paying ahead of time, and we never book that far in advance, post pandemic.

Let's play a game. 

 

We go out for the evening, and you ask me to hold your $300.  When the check arrives you generously offer to pay the $250 bill, so I do so with the money you asked me to hold.  Time to go home and you would like me to give you the remaining $50. but oh no.  I inform you that due to the terms and conditions I gave you (which you didn't bother to read) that money is non-refundable, so I keep it and go my merry way with your $50.

 

That's all you are doing when you pay Oceania for a non-refundable credit.  

 

 

[Croooser]

Ed,

 

It is confusing and the line between marketing hype and deliberately misleading is for each of us to determine for ourselves. My personal opinion is that the language used is intended to sell what really are add ons. Or maybe, just to create the illusion of added value at no extra cost - "free". I think it is compounded by the fact that many of us have experienced the pricing model of other cruise lines which is what we are used to - and that is not what O does. 

 

Some good info shared here. Once you take the time to understand, it is easy enough to calculate the various options. Once onboard, most are happy with the cruise experience. Hope that you enjoy it.

[edgee]

I book through a great TA and nearly always take the cruise only fare. However, when doing research on pricing and cabin availability, I search on one of several large on line agency websites. (Of course, cannot name them on Cruise Critic, but the names are pretty intuitive.) They nearly always show the lowest available cruise only fare and also show deckplans of the ship with dots on available cabins in each category. Much easier when doing research than using the O website. 

[MEFIowa]

17 hours ago, bubbaed said:

Well, the confusing pricing saga continues... I'm sure I'll get used to navigating the world of O pricing. But just like anything new, it takes some getting used to.

I've booked all of our cruises directly thru O. Use the same O rep for my initial bookings and all rebookings on the same cruise. And we book only "cruise only", doing our own airfare, excursions, bring our own alcohol, etc.

 

If only everyone paid attention to two things:

 

1. Cruise-only fare. That tells you the real cost of things.

2. SALES! The cabin-upgrade and the Extraordinary Savings Sales were true sales, real money off your cabin. Not junky "OBC" that you're learning isn't really money. Other than paying for gratuities, the OBC is worth pennies on the dollar.

 

I usually book an inside G or F when some cruise I see I want is initially released on the schedule. Then I use future SALES to get the exact cabin & price that works best for us. So, on our upcoming "B2B"on Riviera, I've ended up in an A4 for the 1st 10 nights and a B3 for the 2nd 10 nights. For the 2nd cruise, I've rebooked it twice from sales since the original booking.

 

Now I'm hoping my 9/2024 Baltic cruise eventually goes on another real sale. Went from G to C1 so far. Hoping for B or A eventually.

[jazznruby]

5 hours ago, shepherd really said:

That's all you are doing when you pay Oceania for a non-refundable credit.  

Unless you know, as some of us do, that the non-refundable credit WILL be used...for gratuities, bar bill, La Reserve, whatever...and that we like the convenience, minus the sticker shock at the end of the cruise. Not interested in O's shorex or drink packages.

[mauibabes]

It really depends on how “YOU” travel and not others.  We usually select the Shore excursion amenity option and couple those tours with some private ones.  A lot depends on who we are traveling with and our itinerary. We often use Oceania air, especially when heading to Europe and can get a deal on Premium Economy seats. We just completed a whirlwind Rome- Venice trip on Vista and dropped a wad 🤪 on Biz Class and it was great but hardly worth three times the price, again, IMHO. That is going to be a tough sell on the DW 😇🙏 in the future. Guess I will pick my battles 🤪.

With all said and done with all amenity OBC, Shareholder benefits, O Club OBC, etc, we walked off Vista owing $18.80 to Our dear friends at Mastercard. 
IMHO, a little mix and match of Oceania benefits and an understanding of what fits your travel style is all that is needed for you to determine what is YOUR best Value decision. If life is structured under a “green eyeshade” then bottom line cheapest is your way to go. I know we will spend every cent we receive so in the end, it all works out for us.

Enjoy your cruise, no matter how you structure your travels.

 

Mauibabes
 

[Woofa]

Sounds like this may all get a little easier in July when the new price structure starts.  I believe O has heard how confusing it is and the new structure will be easier.  Of course some will not like it regardless of what it becomes.  As we don't really drink, the idea of including beer and wine at meals sounds like we will have to pay just a little more.  But as long as the prices stay relatively the same, we will be happy.  All of life is a compromise unless you have basically unlimited money. What works for one may not work for us.

[sunlover12]

1 hour ago, jazznruby said:

Unless you know, as some of us do, that the non-refundable credit WILL be used...for gratuities, bar bill, La Reserve, whatever...and that we like the convenience, minus the sticker shock at the end of the cruise. Not interested in O's shorex or drink packages.

I agree.  We haven't chosen the O Life OBC but I understand why people like the convenience of it. 

I'd have no trouble spending it. We don't get pre-paid gratuities and that alone will almost reach the amount spent on O Life OBC.  Add in a few drinks and maybe a small purchase in the gift shop and that OBC will be spent before you realize it. 

[jazznruby]

32 minutes ago, sunlover12 said:

I agree.  We haven't chosen the O Life OBC but I understand why people like the convenience of it. 

I'd have no trouble spending it. We don't get pre-paid gratuities and that alone will almost reach the amount spent on O Life OBC.  Add in a few drinks and maybe a small purchase in the gift shop and that OBC will be spent before you realize it. 

Yes, thank you!