One Dollar Deposit

[CNSJ]

Looks like HAL is running the $1 Deposit deal again.  Expires 12 SEP 2023.

I wonder what percentage of these turn into fully paid cruises?

 

[Mary229]

I would love to know. 

[cruisemom42]

Here we go again....

[Hlitner]

LOL.  $99 to $1?  Sounds like one would expect for a cruise line in great demand.  

 

Hank

[CruiserBruce]

12 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

LOL.  $99 to $1?  Sounds like one would expect for a cruise line in great demand.  

 

Hank

Your chance...again...to tell us how HAL can do no right, but your favorite cruise line can do no wrong.  

[Hlitner]

1 minute ago, CruiserBruce said:

Your chance...again...to tell us how HAL can do no right, but your favorite cruise line can do no wrong.  

ROFL.  Just thinking of our local used car dealer who advertises $1 down!

[disneyochem]

Thanks for the heads up!  We’ve been waiting to book the 2025 Voyage of the Viking until we had FCC.  Didn’t want to put down a $3500 deposit on a cruise in 2025.

 

 I was able to select our room, get the Early Bonus HIA, AARP and Educator OBC, and only put $2 down!

 

I also booked a couple of rooms for family members for a 2024 Thanksgiving cruise.  My family already has five cabins booked but with the low deposit, a few of the younger college-age students who were on the fence are now booked.

 

[BermudaBound2014]

I just grabbed two long itinerary cruises for 2025. The $99 deposit last week did not include 2025 sailings. Both cruises I just booked include HIA w/early booking gratuities. 

 

I intend to sail on both, but with the state of cruise ship financials, I was not all that keen about slapping down $6,000 in deposits for sailings more than a year away. Color me financially conservative. 

 

This $1 deposit sale also allowed me to grab the cabins I want without any risk. Of course, I'll be monitoring for price drops and prepared to move to a 'normal' deposit if it makes sense. 

 

One thing for certain, these $1 deposits are removing inventory which changes the narrative at the quarterly release. I suspect that's a big motivator. 

 

 

 

 

[cbr663]

My guess that running this promo again right after the Labor Day $99 deposit promo may be that HAL didn't get the bookings it had hoped with the Labor Day promo.

 

I wonder if this is an indication that the post pandemic travel fever is starting to abate?  Time will tell.

[Cruise Junky]

Thank you thank you thank you. Really didn’t want to part with $4,500 Canadian two years in advance!  

[retird]

Hopefully their pricing will come down a little.   Some of their cruises are outrageously high compared to same cruise in 2023.  Fingers crossed

 

[DaveOKC]

Since I always have a FCD to use, these $1 deposit promos do nothing for me.  But I can see how others it is an important issue and good for them.

 

The thing that I dislike is how it ties up cabins that I might want to book, as knowledgeable HAL cruises put down $1 to tie up these superior locations "just in case" they decide to go.  This just happened to me on a cruise I was looking at for January.  Even though it was at a slow time for the region, the better located cabins were all booked - unusual in my past experience.  I guess I will just have to closely watch this cruise once it gets to be after final payment date.

[TeaBag]

1 hour ago, Cruise Junky said:

Thank you thank you thank you. Really didn’t want to part with $4,500 Canadian two years in advance!  

I would never have known about this.  Cruise Critic scores again!  I sure hope this materialises as it is a birthday cruise for both of us.

Thank you CSNJ.

Where are you sailing Tracey?

[Cruise Junky]

18 minutes ago, TeaBag said:

I would never have known about this.  Cruise Critic scores again!  I sure hope this materialises as it is a birthday cruise for both of us.

Thank you CSNJ.

Where are you sailing Tracey?

We booked Amsterdam to Athens on NS, 28 days. Now to decide between that and the Azamara cruise. Or… a lottery win and we can do both 😂. We had to cancel the same NS cruise for 2024 as Bernie wanted to go go back to Australia.   

[TeaBag]

We cancelled Azamara Singapore to Perth to Melbourne for Dec 2023 and I hated to do it.  I have a leg problem and we didn't think it wise to be on those long flights to Australia right now.  we booked Westerdam Sydney to Vancouver Mar 30, 2025.

[HappyInVan]

4 hours ago, CNSJ said:

I wonder what percentage of these turn into fully paid cruises?

 

 

Well, I can confess that HAL has been very disappointed in my bookings. 

 

Frankly, I find it very effective to wait for a last minute deal. After all, >95% of the itineraries are generic.

 

For example, the 2024 VoV is asking for sky-high prices. But, there's a ton of vacancies on every deck forward and aft.

Edited September 12, 2023 by HappyInVan

[deliver42]

I booked a 2025 Alaska cruise with the $1.00 deposit and the have it al, and fully expect to go. It's refundable, and I couldn't believe that. First time on HAL. It will be the Eurodam because of the itinerary.

[rodndonna]

14 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

I booked a 2025 Alaska cruise with the $1.00 deposit and the have it al, and fully expect to go. It's refundable, and I couldn't believe that. First time on HAL. It will be the Eurodam because of the itinerary.

 

Not that surprised they are  make it refundable (It is only $1). If not, people would just let it go to final payment and then let it go without payment (foregoing that $1), so at least this way they have a shot of people cancelling earlier if/when they decided the aren't going.

[CNSJ]

While the $1 deposit looks nice.  It's no value compared to booking onboard for many cases.  A two week cruise booked onboard nets $400 a cabin in OBC.  Granted you have to tie up $200 in deposits, but it's refundable deposit in most cases.  

 

 

[taxmantoo]

Anyone else having problems.  Half an hour ago I was able to view all cruises, all dates, all cabin prices.  Now I can see all cruises but cannot see the prices.  They are all listed as "Not Available" once you try to select a cabin to see the price.

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, CNSJ said:

While the $1 deposit looks nice.  It's no value compared to booking onboard for many cases.  A two week cruise booked onboard nets $400 a cabin in OBC.  Granted you have to tie up $200 in deposits, but it's refundable deposit in most cases.  

 

 

 

Which works if you have a FCC to use or you were recently on a cruise and booked while onboard. In the absence either; the $1 deposits are very attractive. 

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for the info.

[tupper10]

@CNSJ thank you for posting this. Booked our 2025 Europe cruise to Egypt and Istanbul with two overnights with the $2.00 deposit. 

[Cruise Junky]

14 minutes ago, tupper10 said:

@CNSJ thank you for posting this. Booked our 2025 Europe cruise to Egypt and Istanbul with two overnights with the $2.00 deposit. 

We booked the same cruise 🚢 

[deliver42]

While I realize the $1.00 deposit will have people booking that have no intention of going, for me it gave me a chance to book and still have $698.00 in my pocket instead of HAL's. The normal deposit on that cruise is $700.00.