Another Upgrade/Lowered Price Question

[luvtravel]

Hi everyone....we booked our May Alaskan cruise yesterday (guaranteed unobstructed), at a price a couple of hundred dollars higher than it was advertised a few days earlier. The rooms are going, said the agent...so we decided to book right away. We've sailed HAL 3 previous times, but not for quite a few years now...in the meantime we've taken Renaissance, Oceania & RCCL on others. However, we always loved HAL (our first cruises) and decided to take HAL again, especially since the timing/port/location fit our vacation time. My question to you all now is (with background): this morning I was showing my sis online where I came across the cruise info...and lo and behold the price has been lowered (since yesterday) several hundred dollars below the first lower price I had originally seen. Darn! From the other remarks I've read HAL does not respond to requests for adjustment, but I'm wondering (hoping) that if there are better cabins available when they are assigning cabins to the 'guaranteeds' - that our past travels with them, plus the higher price we've paid, will help us get a better cabin. Any experience with this situation...or thoughts? Thanks.

[lougee1043]

and lo and behold the price has been lowered (since yesterday) several hundred dollars below the first lower price I had originally seen. Darn! From the other remarks I've read HAL does not respond to requests for adjustment, >>

 

if you booked thru them they will and if you booked thru a ta its his/her responsibility to act on your behalf and get the lower rate

 

that said i believe you are sailing in may and that puts you into the final payment period -- the only chance you have is if you used a ta and he/she does a lot of business with hal they may give you a shipboard credit--if they do consider yourself lucky and the credit will not equal the total cheaper price

 

that 70 day window gives hal an opportunity to fill up a ship by lowering prices and yet not having to give back any $$$$$ to pax who paid up

[Randyk47]

I'd have to agree with Lougee's response....basically there's not much that can be done other than hold on and see what, if anything, your TA might be able to do. I can't say I don't watch the fare for cabins we've booked but I do stop after I've made final payment.....it might tell me something I don't want to know. :)

 

Watching HAL fares right now is almost like the stock market....no telling where they're going or why. Our category B for our March 2007 cruise just went up $220 per person from the TA though only $20 at HAL. That's a year out and there's no indication that the cruise is exactly filling up like wildfire. Go figure.......

[lougee1043]

Watching HAL fares right now is almost like the stock market....no telling where they're going or why. Our category B for our March 2007 cruise just went up $220 per person from the TA though only $20 at HAL. . quote]

 

reads to me like th ta is trying to stick on a little more profit (actually 440 per couple is more then a llittle profit

[Randyk47]

Lou - I'd agree. I'm not sure what kind of arrangement the TA had with HAL in the first place. As you and I have emailed back and forth this TA was significantly lower than our other trusted agent and way below the HAL website price. Possibly they're adjusting a mistake or some special deal they had with HAL or they're seeing what the market will bear. Of course, raise it now close to the HAL price then drop it a ton in a few weeks and see who bites. Kind of like fishing.........;)