How does Royal get away with these rip-offs?

[mrpotatohead]

[fairywren]

Shore excursions have been getting very expensive lately. Maybe to do with insurance since the White Island tragedy.

Not sure. 
I won’t be paying those prices.

[SinbadThePorter]

Because they can.

 

Quantum of the Seas arrives in Airlie Beach on the Monday at 7pm and departs at 5pm on Tuesday.

 

The third party Viper excursion, i.e. not bought through the ship, departs Airlie Beach at 8am and returns at 5pm.

 

If you buy the non-ship excursion for the first day, you will need to get to the departure point on shore within one hour of anchoring. If you have ever tendered from Quantum you will know that it essentially impossible to do so.

 

If you buy the non-ship excursion for the second day you will arrive back to Airlie Beach just in time to wave goodbye to the Quantum as she leaves without you.

 

Which is to say Royal (and other cruise lines) know just exactly how much the market will bear, and so far the market is bearing this. 🤑

[arxcards]

Basic answer - enough people keep paying those prices for the tours.

[icat2000]

Hmmm expensive shore excurision or additional travel costs for waving the ship goodbye and catching up if you can. Some of the risky options I just pay the shore excusion price. Depends on what I want to do though. If I know I can safely get back to the ship then I might do my own tour in port.  But I can be such a lazy cruiser. Sometimes its a struggle to get off the ship. Like certain ports are just no my feet are not hitting land. Not today. Noumea, Suva are two that come to mind. 

[SinbadThePorter]

59 minutes ago, icat2000 said:

Noumea, Suva are two that come to mind.

 

I'll add Lautoka, Alotau and Luganville.

[cruiser3775]

I'm in Airlie Beach today on Carnival Splendor. The ship's excursion to the outer reef is more than $320. It takes two hours to get there and two hours to get back, and can be very rough. Then you get two hours at the reef. You can't book the private reef tours which are much cheaper, because of the timing.

I noted that this ship's tour was booked out early, despite the price.

 

[ceeceeDee]

9 minutes ago, cruiser3775 said:

I'm in Airlie Beach today on Carnival Splendor. The ship's excursion to the outer reef is more than $320. It takes two hours to get there and two hours to get back, and can be very rough. Then you get two hours at the reef. You can't book the private reef tours which are much cheaper, because of the timing.

I noted that this ship's tour was booked out early, despite the price.

 

That's a big chunk out of one's holiday budget to potentially get sea sick for 4 hours! No thanks.

[Chiliburn]

20 hours ago, mrpotatohead said:

How long is it because I don’t think that’s unreasonable in this day and age .

Royal Caribbean put their bit on top but $300 a head ,to the outer reef in a jet boat seem reasonable . Have a look at Sydney bridge climb .

 

[arxcards]

1 hour ago, Chiliburn said:

How long is it because I don’t think that’s unreasonable in this day and age .

Royal Caribbean put their bit on top but $300 a head ,to the outer reef in a jet boat seem reasonable . Have a look at Sydney bridge climb .

 

It tricked me at first too Chili. $311pp is very reasonable for a 9hr tour. That is the going rate for this tour and operator, sold via many of the various tour outlets. Royal charges $502.64pp for exactly the same tour, except it would leave from the ships' tender dock. Enough passengers think $500 is a good price too, but it does remain:

- The tour operator gets paid $311, less booking commission, for doing all of the work for 9hrs, paying for fuel & maintenance on the boat, wages for their staff, lunch, marina charges, snorkelling gear etc.

- Royal, and it would be the same for other lines to a large degree, make $190 for doing what?

 

Yes, there are limited safe options for doing a reef tour during a cruise day in port. Do it and get gouged, or find something else to do independently.

Edited September 5 by arxcards

[mrpotatohead]

I would bet that Royal are not paying the retail price to book in bulk - and probably making $300 a head in profit if not more. 

 

Yeah the timing is the things that gets you - as mentioned above by someone i wouldn't book the 1st day as there is no way you could get off Ovation that early on a tender (which is prioritised for their own tours) and then get from Airlie Beach terminal to Coral Sea terminal in time.

 

Bit of a rort with pricing and then pushing away realistic competition with the approach. With an overnight stop you have thunk it would a great opportunity for people to get to thereef itself rather than the islands.

 

Personally i have spent a few months here over the last few years and seen it before so will probably just spend the time around  town, maybe head to Hamilton for a day trip on a ferry.

 

[arxcards]

2 hours ago, mrpotatohead said:

I would bet that Royal are not paying the retail price to book in bulk - and probably making $300 a head in profit if not more. 

 

Yeah the timing is the things that gets you - as mentioned above by someone i wouldn't book the 1st day as there is no way you could get off Ovation that early on a tender (which is prioritised for their own tours) and then get from Airlie Beach terminal to Coral Sea terminal in time.

 

Bit of a rort with pricing and then pushing away realistic competition with the approach. With an overnight stop you have thunk it would a great opportunity for people to get to thereef itself rather than the islands.

 

Personally i have spent a few months here over the last few years and seen it before so will probably just spend the time around  town, maybe head to Hamilton for a day trip on a ferry.

 

$300 a head profit is a stretch. Royal might get 10% off for quantity plus the value of the booking fee. I reckon cost for them is around $260, so that "only" leaves them $250 profit.

[Chiliburn]

3 hours ago, mrpotatohead said:

I would bet that Royal are not paying the retail price to book in bulk - and probably making $300 a head in profit if not more. 

 

Yeah the timing is the things that gets you - as mentioned above by someone i wouldn't book the 1st day as there is no way you could get off Ovation that early on a tender (which is prioritised for their own tours) and then get from Airlie Beach terminal to Coral Sea terminal in time.

 

Bit of a rort with pricing and then pushing away realistic competition with the approach. With an overnight stop you have thunk it would a great opportunity for people to get to thereef itself rather than the islands.

 

Personally i have spent a few months here over the last few years and seen it before so will probably just spend the time around  town, maybe head to Hamilton for a day trip on a ferry.

 

Here’s a screenshot of Sydney bridge climb as a comparison,they haven’t got fuel to pay for.

 

[Chiliburn]

8 hours ago, arxcards said:

It tricked me at first too Chili. $311pp is very reasonable for a 9hr tour. That is the going rate for this tour and operator, sold via many of the various tour outlets. Royal charges $502.64pp for exactly the same tour, except it would leave from the ships' tender dock. Enough passengers think $500 is a good price too, but it does remain:

- The tour operator gets paid $311, less booking commission, for doing all of the work for 9hrs, paying for fuel & maintenance on the boat, wages for their staff, lunch, marina charges, snorkelling gear etc.

- Royal, and it would be the same for other lines to a large degree, make $190 for doing what?

 

Yes, there are limited safe options for doing a reef tour during a cruise day in port. Do it and get gouged, or find something else to do independently.

Yeah I missed that ,$200 mark up.

But cruise lines are there to make money ,you are paying for the convenience and their assurance you will get back on the ship.

 

 

Edited September 5 by Chiliburn

[arxcards]

7 hours ago, Chiliburn said:

Yeah I missed that ,$200 mark up.

But cruise lines are there to make money ,you are paying for the convenience and their assurance you will get back on the ship.

 

That makes so much sense. And here we all were, being told that $5 per head extra on port passenger taxes was going to break the cruise industry in Australia.

 

 

[arxcards]

8 hours ago, Chiliburn said:

Here’s a screenshot of Sydney bridge climb as a comparison,they haven’t got fuel to pay for.

 

To the point, if Royal had this as a tour, it would be $600+ to do the same climb.

[mrpotatohead]

19 hours ago, arxcards said:

$300 a head profit is a stretch. Royal might get 10% off for quantity plus the value of the booking fee. I reckon cost for them is around $260, so that "only" leaves them $250 profit.

I was factoring in that it was already on a 10% discount at Royal from $550 - that's the $300 profit lol  if people are willing to pay full price