Pricing on NCL Has Gotten Outrageous

[luv2kroooz]

On 7/31/2024 at 3:08 AM, Fredrik said:

Again. I have answered in a way that I think is satisfactory, but I’m going to play along to make it easier for you.

 

Q1. Disney

Q2. Oceania

Q3. By recommendation from friends who had tried YC on MSC.

 

Have a wonderful day.

 

-Fredrik

Thank you for the straightforward, concise answers. It all makes perfect sense to me and I'm sure many other members on these boards. Like you, we have also been hesitant to try MSC....maybe some day, though.

Edited August 1 by luv2kroooz

[DCGuy64]

19 hours ago, kirtihk said:

That's strange, because my TA (he is an owner of his agency) told me recently that the refundable deposit status for Celebrity cruises doesn't depend on whether booking is a group booking or not (the same non-refundable deposit rule is applied if not paying extra for a booking to have the refundable deposit).  Perhaps, this matter was changed by Celebrity a few weeks ago.

I know you were responding to @JamieLogical for this, but I just wanted to chime in and say this is another thing I do like about NCL, which is refundable deposits at no extra charge. Sure, some lines like Royal and Celebrity (and maybe Princess, we've booked with them before but never actually sailed) might offer the option of a refundable deposit, but they make you pay more for the room as a result. When I say I prefer a refundable deposit, I mean "I should be able to cancel my booking before final payment and not pay higher as a result." Because, of course if I do have to cancel, I'll get my money back, but if I don't, then I've paid more for the room, which could potentially outweigh the benefit of booking with another line and not NCL.

[JamieLogical]

28 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

I know you were responding to @JamieLogical for this, but I just wanted to chime in and say this is another thing I do like about NCL, which is refundable deposits at no extra charge. Sure, some lines like Royal and Celebrity (and maybe Princess, we've booked with them before but never actually sailed) might offer the option of a refundable deposit, but they make you pay more for the room as a result. When I say I prefer a refundable deposit, I mean "I should be able to cancel my booking before final payment and not pay higher as a result." Because, of course if I do have to cancel, I'll get my money back, but if I don't, then I've paid more for the room, which could potentially outweigh the benefit of booking with another line and not NCL.

 

Princess does NOT make you pay more for a refundable deposit. All deposits are refundable at least for US passengers (I know things are different with all the lines, including NCL for European passengers). MSC also does not charge extra for refundable deposits. Nor does HAL. Celebrity typically does charge more (a lot more!) for a refundable deposit, which is why I am happy I found a TA that did not charge more, offered a refundable deposit, and was cheaper than booking directly through Celebrity. Those are the only lines I have ever booked through, so I am not sure about any others.

[debenson0723]

I just looked at a European cruise last night on Princess and it did charge more for a refundable deposit (from the US site). It also charged more if you wanted to pick your own cabin.

I really believe it all depends on the number of people in your party, what port you are leaving from, included/additional perks and where in the world you are cruising to get a true picture of rates across all cruise lines. If you are just sailing over and over again in the Caribbean, Bermuda, Mexico, rates are going to vary greatly and NCL appears to be higher in a lot of cases.  But if you expand your search to include the Med, Baltics, Asia, TAs, I have found NCL to be competitive with all of the other mass market lines, and in some cases, significantly cheaper. 

I am a budget (cheap) solo cruiser who uses a strategy to plan my vacations, including airfare and hotels. I am lucky that I have a lot of vacation time and the freedom to cruise when I want. Rates are going to vary for all travel from month to month and week to week. What may work for you (general you, not anyone in particular) doesn't work for me. As long as the product brings me happiness and satisfaction for what I paid, then that's the bottom line for me.

[spethstation]

25 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Princess does NOT make you pay more for a refundable deposit. All deposits are refundable at least for US passengers (I know things are different with all the lines, including NCL for European passengers). MSC also does not charge extra for refundable deposits. Nor does HAL. Celebrity typically does charge more (a lot more!) for a refundable deposit, which is why I am happy I found a TA that did not charge more, offered a refundable deposit, and was cheaper than booking directly through Celebrity. Those are the only lines I have ever booked through, so I am not sure about any others.

This has not been my experience with Princess, it is usually a non-refundable deposit if you pick a GTY and is priced at a lower amount.

Edited August 1 by spethstation

[JamieLogical]

35 minutes ago, spethstation said:

This has not been my experience with Princess, it is usually a non-refundable deposit if you pick a GTY and is priced at a lower amount.

 

That's true. There are some instances like that where you have to pay a non-refundable deposit. I had forgotten about that, as I have never gone that route. But typically it is the opposite of what @DCGuy64 was saying about Celebrity. Whereas Celebrity charges more to get a refundable deposit, on Princess, the GTY bookings are usually cheaper, but require a non-refundable deposit.

[graphicguy]

43 minutes ago, debenson0723 said:

I just looked at a European cruise last night on Princess and it did charge more for a refundable deposit (from the US site). It also charged more if you wanted to pick your own cabin.

I really believe it all depends on the number of people in your party, what port you are leaving from, included/additional perks and where in the world you are cruising to get a true picture of rates across all cruise lines. If you are just sailing over and over again in the Caribbean, Bermuda, Mexico, rates are going to vary greatly and NCL appears to be higher in a lot of cases.  But if you expand your search to include the Med, Baltics, Asia, TAs, I have found NCL to be competitive with all of the other mass market lines, and in some cases, significantly cheaper. 

I am a budget (cheap) solo cruiser who uses a strategy to plan my vacations, including airfare and hotels. I am lucky that I have a lot of vacation time and the freedom to cruise when I want. Rates are going to vary for all travel from month to month and week to week. What may work for you (general you, not anyone in particular) doesn't work for me. As long as the product brings me happiness and satisfaction for what I paid, then that's the bottom line for me.

Absolutely!

[spethstation]

Just read this relevant article today...: https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2024/07/norwegian-cruise-line-holdings-2024-q2-results/

 

IMO pricing is just going to get higher as demand grows and occupancy rates rise.

 

Like yourself and others have mentioned, @JamieLogical, I kinda go where the discounts are and where my dollar can go further and will 'jump ship' on cruise lines to have different experiences. But NCL was my first cruise (and my next cruise) and will always hold a special place in my heart. Booking 2+ years out seems to be the only tactic I have going for me right now personally to find lower rates with them.

[Sugar Magnolia]

1 hour ago, debenson0723 said:

I just looked at a European cruise last night on Princess and it did charge more for a refundable deposit (from the US site). It also charged more if you wanted to pick your own cabin.

I really believe it all depends on the number of people in your party, what port you are leaving from, included/additional perks and where in the world you are cruising to get a true picture of rates across all cruise lines. If you are just sailing over and over again in the Caribbean, Bermuda, Mexico, rates are going to vary greatly and NCL appears to be higher in a lot of cases.  But if you expand your search to include the Med, Baltics, Asia, TAs, I have found NCL to be competitive with all of the other mass market lines, and in some cases, significantly cheaper. 

I am a budget (cheap) solo cruiser who uses a strategy to plan my vacations, including airfare and hotels. I am lucky that I have a lot of vacation time and the freedom to cruise when I want. Rates are going to vary for all travel from month to month and week to week. What may work for you (general you, not anyone in particular) doesn't work for me. As long as the product brings me happiness and satisfaction for what I paid, then that's the bottom line for me.

For once I agree with you. Mark this on your calendar. 
 

[pghflyer]

RCCL definitely has non-refundable deposits, inclusive of their version of "CruiseNext" certificates.........

[luv2kroooz]

42 minutes ago, spethstation said:

IMO pricing is just going to get higher as demand grows and occupancy rates rise.

Economic 101 would tell you as prices rise demand will fall and either occupancy will fall or prices will decrease. Just look at Alaska for an example. Cheapest place to cruise due to excess supply of cabins.

[Laszlo]

Come on now, stop the complaining. NCL has to pay for the new ships, new pier and other stuff at GSC somehow Lol

[JamieLogical]

1 hour ago, Laszlo said:

Come on now, stop the complaining. NCL has to pay for the new ships, new pier and other stuff at GSC somehow Lol

 

Hey, I don't blame NCL for charging the high prices. I blame the cruisers for paying them. Businesses are in the business of making money. Obviously, they are going to charge what people are willing to pay. But with very viable competition out there, I just have difficulty understanding why consumers continue to pay the higher and higher prices. We can all vote with our wallets and go to other lines and then NCL will be forced to adapt.

 

It does seem that transatlantic on NCL are still somewhat affordable and that they may be more competitive in the EU/international market, but pricing on US sailings doesn't seem to realistically compete with other cruise lines right now or for as far forward as CruisePlum has data.

[DCGuy64]

3 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

That's true. There are some instances like that where you have to pay a non-refundable deposit. I had forgotten about that, as I have never gone that route. But typically it is the opposite of what @DCGuy64 was saying about Celebrity. Whereas Celebrity charges more to get a refundable deposit, on Princess, the GTY bookings are usually cheaper, but require a non-refundable deposit.

Thanks, you are spot on! That's exactly what I meant. I like having a cruise line that has BOTH refundable deposits AND doesn't charge anything extra for that perk. However, having read so many of your great posts and reviews, I'd like to try Celebrity and Princess one day, when the stars align. BTW I was curious whether you've ever tried to get any of NCL's famous cocktails on another line. (And I hope I'm not getting senile and have already asked you this question and forgot!) 🤣

[JamieLogical]

1 minute ago, DCGuy64 said:

Thanks, you are spot on! That's exactly what I meant. I like having a cruise line that has BOTH refundable deposits AND doesn't charge anything extra for that perk. However, having read so many of your great posts and reviews, I'd like to try Celebrity and Princess one day, when the stars align. BTW I was curious whether you've ever tried to get any of NCL's famous cocktails on another line. (And I hope I'm not getting senile and have already asked you this question and forgot!) 🤣

 

I have definitely had bartenders on other lines do their best to replicate a Mr. World Wide. The best attempt was on the Celebrity Summit by the wonderful Komang!

 

 

I have heard they no longer have the Mr. Worldwide available on NCL ships! One of my solo cruise friends tried to order one on her most recent NCL cruise and they looked at her like she had sprouted a second head.

 

 

[pghflyer]

We got Mr. Worldwide on Star in April (4 months ago).  But yeah, old Mr. Worldwide is a ripe 43 years old now, hardly a modern pop star anymore

[WarfRatWA]

25 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 I just have difficulty understanding why consumers continue to pay the higher and higher prices. 

Its not difficult, people pay higher prices because they can and they choose to do so.  Everyone's cost/benefit is different.  

[debenson0723]

4 hours ago, Sugar Magnolia said:

For once I agree with you. Mark this on your calendar. 
 

You, of all people, know I am always right! 🤪

[JGmf]

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

But with very viable competition out there, I just have difficulty understanding why consumers continue to pay the higher and higher prices. We can all vote with our wallets and go to other lines and then NCL will be forced to adapt.

 

I'm almost 90 percent switched over to Princess due to a host of reasons, chiefly value, but while reading this thread, I get a cold call from a new NCL personal cruise consultant trying to get me to book a new cruise using my available Cruise Next certificates. 

 

Um, no thanks.  Last week I was eyeing (yet another) Bermuda trip out of NYC next summer 2025, but the prices knocked me on my butt.

[kirtihk]

7 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

I know you were responding to @JamieLogical for this, but I just wanted to chime in and say this is another thing I do like about NCL, which is refundable deposits at no extra charge. Sure, some lines like Royal and Celebrity (and maybe Princess, we've booked with them before but never actually sailed) might offer the option of a refundable deposit, but they make you pay more for the room as a result. When I say I prefer a refundable deposit, I mean "I should be able to cancel my booking before final payment and not pay higher as a result." Because, of course if I do have to cancel, I'll get my money back, but if I don't, then I've paid more for the room, which could potentially outweigh the benefit of booking with another line and not NCL.

Wow!  You wrote word by word exactly what I think of this matter!

 

I do not remember exactly when Celebrity changed to pay more for refundable deposit, but it was not long time ago.  Before that it was just a deposit refundable with subtraction of $100 pp (if I remember correctly) fee if canceled that you would still not lose if applying it toward a new booking.

[PartyPlannerLady]

4 hours ago, luv2kroooz said:

Economic 101 would tell you as prices rise demand will fall and either occupancy will fall or prices will decrease. Just look at Alaska for an example. Cheapest place to cruise due to excess supply of cabins.

 

Its called market equilibrium.  Pricing is set by the buyer and will settle to the point of maximum net income.

[luv2kroooz]

2 minutes ago, PartyPlannerLady said:

 

Its called market equilibrium.  Pricing is set by the buyer and will settle to the point of maximum net income.

Thank you for telling me this.

[PartyPlannerLady]

2 minutes ago, luv2kroooz said:

Thank you for telling me this.

 

What part of that did you find humorous?  It was all 100% factually accurate.  I can hardly wait to see your reaction when I explain to you that in many cases it is financially better to operate at a loss than to not operate at all.  You first need to understand the comcept of fixed and variable costs.

[complawyer]

if you really think cruise prices have gotten outrageous, go out and try and buy a ford or a chevy!

[kirtihk]

3 hours ago, complawyer said:

if you really think cruise prices have gotten outrageous, go out and try and buy a ford or a chevy!

Around 8 years ago we booked 12-day Great Barrier Reef cruise on Celebrity Solstice for $1,450 pp in Aqua balcony category (with Thermal Suites access and Blue restaurant).  At time I thought it was expensive.  Now, 12-day Asian cruise on Celebrity Millennium next March is around $6,000 pp (300% increase).  That’s nice!