Major March 15 Price Increase

[Elizabethbea]

I agree the huge price increase in the last 6 months is mind blowing . Think I may be forced to blow to another line...

[drron29]

When I go to check cruise prices on the Australian site it only comes up with Port to Port fares. Have they decided it's too hard to book SS Air from Australia.

The Port to Port fares are pretty close to what we paid less than a month ago as Door to Door fares.

[RetiredOnVacation]

8 hours ago, Isr45 said:

I don’t think they will price themselves out of the market as they will still compare favourably to many luxury land based holidays - I really do believe cruise prices have been too cheap in this market for the last few years 😀

Agree with you, although other than the fact it is a vacation, I think that there is a difference between land based holidays and cruise holidays. The closest comparison of a land based holiday would be a resort-style property which has several f&b options and multiple facilities including stage artist entertainment, but such a resort doesn't move locations for varied visitor & cultural experiences. 

 

So cruising is unique in that respect and difficult to truly compare. 

But I think you are right about a cruise pricing readjustment (especially in the luxury all-inclusive market) catching up to the fare-point it perhaps needed to be at. 

 

I think SS will survive as it won't be an outlier in the cruise sector it's in! 

[RetiredandTravel]

The December Nova cruise to Australia that we booked in February is now up ~ 10%.  We make our own flights and transfers..  When we booked it was Door to Door with the credits now classified as Port to Port.  Its still cheaper than Regent by a lot.

 

SS is now charging 8K (two people Veranda) for economy tickets and transfers on our cruise.  We got a "deal" of $15k (US) for two business class tickets with one stop from NC.  Many of the business class tickets were $18-20k, so 8k for economy might be within reason.  I didn't check economy prices.

 

 

Edited April 5 by RetiredandTravel

[commodoredave]

On 4/5/2024 at 12:30 AM, PaulaJK said:

I do not consider SS equivalent to the Four Seasons or Ritz…... And certainly recent downgrades in cuisine and provision quality remove it from a high end restaurant group. After our recent experience on Spirit, we will avoid SS.

I agree 100%. And I have almost always been able to book top resorts at prices below those referenced above. 

[Gourmet Gal]

On 4/4/2024 at 8:30 AM, PaulaJK said:

I do not consider SS equivalent to the Four Seasons or Ritz…... And certainly recent downgrades in cuisine and provision quality remove it from a high end restaurant group. After our recent experience on Spirit, we will avoid SS.

Agree also.  Though I’ve never thought any cruise line had Michelin* caliber dining nor was the onboard service anywhere near as wonderful as FS or Peninsula, ever.  Seems even less so now.   But in terms of pricing you could easily exceed SS pricing at those hotels so then the value question becomes debatable.  

[commodoredave]

10 hours ago, RetiredOnVacation said:

Agree with you, although other than the fact it is a vacation, I think that there is a difference between land based holidays and cruise holidays. The closest comparison of a land based holiday would be a resort-style property which has several f&b options and multiple facilities including stage artist entertainment, but such a resort doesn't move locations for varied visitor & cultural experiences. 

 

So cruising is unique in that respect and difficult to truly compare. 

But I think you are right about a cruise pricing readjustment (especially in the luxury all-inclusive market) catching up to the fare-point it perhaps needed to be at. 

 

I think SS will survive as it won't be an outlier in the cruise sector it's in! 

When I choose a land resort over a cruise (and I spend more time in land resorts each year than cruising), I avoid all-inclusive. On land, I like the ability to eat at different restaurants, drink at my favourite bars, and enjoy a variety of local entertainment venues. And I find the quality of all these to be superior to cruise ships. What I cruise for is the itinerary and the ability to see multiple places in one trip, without having to pack and unpack, and to do so in comfort. While this makes it difficult to do direct value comparisons, there is a limit to what I am willing to pay for a vacation, and some luxury cruises are beginning to stretch that limit.