Where is the breaking point?

[Mikel1733]

With gas prices heading to $4 a gallon and airline ticket prices increasing along with surcharges where does the breaking point come for mass market cruising? Even though many of us can afford higher prices there is at least for me a psychological barrier to spend over a certain amount. If you are a balcony snob would you stay in an interior room rather than not cruise? What would you give up to continue cruising? Where is the breaking point for you?

[GoinCruisin]

I would stay in the engine room before I wouldn't cruise :p

[big_duck]

I would stay in the engine room before I wouldn't cruise :p

 

But then you would be right next to that cranky lady from last week, you wouldn't want that. :eek:

 

But seriously, demand fuels pricing, so if less people book the price will drop. My Splendor cruise has dropped 1/3 in value since I've booked :D

[ruskatab]

I dont think I could give up my balcony, weve had the corner aft on the last 3 cruises and were pretty spoiled to it. On our Destiny cruise in May the 9A category is going for 200 more than the 11 suites, which is ridiculous. Carnival has definately caught on to how popular the 9As have become. I used to get an interline rate on the 9As and now Carnival has stopped that. We have to pay regular price. If it keeps up we will have to go back to a regular balcony so we can afford to cruise more than once a year with our other vacations until our kids get out of college.

[DqALEX]

With gas prices heading to $4 a gallon and airline ticket prices increasing along with surcharges where does the breaking point come for mass market cruising? Even though many of us can afford higher prices there is at least for me a psychological barrier to spend over a certain amount. If you are a balcony snob would you stay in an interior room rather than not cruise? What would you give up to continue cruising? Where is the breaking point for you?

You ask a very good question. I have hit it for New Years cruising. I'm booked this year on the Carnival Freedom. I booked over 2 years out and paid $999.00 for a Balcony cabin. That same cabin is now over $1,300. Im looking to book New Years 2010, and I can't find a Balcony under $1,300. in todays price. There are 5 of us I have to pay for. Now we are going to go in January, and the price is around $900 for A balcony cabin. When the price goes to $2,000 per person cruising for me will sail into the history book.

[flipflops78]

prices for flights are going to kill me. I can make a payments for my cruise but I cant for plane tickets. ( I never use credit cards! personal choice)

 

So who knows what Im going to do!?!

[Randy & Carmen]

I'd go as far as hiring on as a bartender on the lido deck!:p

[sixgun8]

prices for flights are going to kill me. I can make a payments for my cruise but I cant for plane tickets. ( I never use credit cards! personal choice)

 

So who knows what Im going to do!?!

 

 

Book your tickets through carnival, pay on it all. just pay extra for them.

[RatherBFishin]

With gas prices heading to $4 a gallon and airline ticket prices increasing along with surcharges where does the breaking point come for mass market cruising?

 

Cruise Ships have fantastic economies of scale that continue to get better, but Planes have hit a wall. Both the size of the planes and the limits of the infrastructure (airports) are hard to push any further. Plus, Cruise Ships can adjust their itineraries to compensate for fuel prices, since the ship is as much a destination as the ports it sails to. However Planes by the very nature of things have to get you where you need to go. They are nothing but transportation.

 

So, if the price of fuel keeps going up and up, I would expect the cruise lines to push deeper into local markets, spreading out their ports of embarkation so fewer passengers have to fly to board the boat. Even if gas hits $10 a gallon (or oil hits $250 a barrel) they could probably offer a 7 day cruise to nowhere leaving Portland, ME and price it so the ship sells out.

[big_duck]

I'd go as far as hiring on as a bartender on the lido deck!:p

 

With you doing the pouring, Carnival would go broke in a month. :eek:

[LegalCat]

We are spoiled because we dont have to fly as we live within a 10 minute drive of the port of miami... so that money we would spend on airline tickets we can spend a little extra on the cruise... although I'm all about sales and I dont think I will ever sail at "full price" we are both very lucky that our jobs are semi flexible with vacation dates... i can find a good sale and then plan to have that vacation time, as opposed to being locked in to a certain time and then being at the mercy of the cruiseline as far as price... We are definately "balcony snobs" lol but mostly because we like a nice room because we spend a lot of time there.. Usually we sail with other people and we get a nicer room and they get an inside room and then we all hang out in our room... we did that on our recent all girls cruise... we had one pair with an outside with a window, then several inside rooms, then our room which was a balcony room, so we set the bar up in our room and everyone hung out there...

 

I'm the same with hotel rooms.. some people say why spend money on the room if you are never there... well we like to spend a lot of time relaxing in the room, sitting on the balcony etc... I dont think I would cruise in an inside cabin, I would rather wait until a better sale and spend the money on at least an outside... it doesnt have to be a balcony but I think a minimum for me would be a window... we have sailed in between an outside with a porthole up to a category 12 on carnival or owners suite.. I've actually never sailed in an inside cabin... I'm not saying I would never do it or that I'm "above" it... I just think if you wait for the right sale, you can get a better cabin for a good price...

 

On our upcoming NCL cruise in May... we saved 50% by choosing the date we did, we picked it specifically because of the dramatic price difference from the other sailings.. so we were able to get a much nicer room for the same price as an inside on a different date... our kids are in college so they dont usually travel with us... so needing to wait for smaller kids to be on school brake or anything is something we luckily don't need to deal with...

[VentureMan_2000]

I bumped into this question last May and decided that I couldn't affort to fly as the air prices jumped 60%, from $250 RT to $400 RT... and I think they are even higher this year.

 

Now tack on the fuel surcharge, and it's even more.

 

I wouldn't mind so much... but all these extra costs are digging into my ship drink'n money... :D

[JenniGail]

We originally planned to do 2 balcony rooms for our upcoming Triumph cruise, but as the prices increased and fuel surcharges were added we downgraded to adjoining OV rooms. I was a bit 'bummed' about not having the balcony, but would much rather get to cruise twice this year. Our October cruise will be a balcony (just DH and I on that one) and we were able to lock in at a lower price.

 

I find that I do a lot more comparison shopping for our cruise prices than I used to. I love my PVP, but had to go with a TA for our October cruise because of the price difference.

 

I don't know if I could do an inside or not. I'm extremely clausterphobic and there are five of us, so unless they were adjoining insides, I think I'd have to reduce down to one cruise a year.

 

With that said, I love cruising and will find a way to continuing doing it even if it means less of them!

 

Jen:p

[dec2007w3boys]

This is a very good question. When gas first hit $3.00 a gallon, we really cut back out everyday driving, limited errands, etc. AFter time, we probably went back to normal, but I cringe everytime I fill up. (I filled up today for 2.87 and I was all excited). We didn't stop traveling though - we used to travel to South CArolina (drive) and Florida yearly. As some one once said, if $50 or so more a trip in gas was the make or break point, you shouldn't be taking a vacation. But at 5.00 a gallon or heaven forbid more, then I don't know.

Now we have decided to take up cruising for a few years, so that means getting from DAyton Ohio to southern Florida. We are fortunate to have Skybus flying out of Columbus and I was able to get the 10 tickets both ways for all of us. So, for $240 roundtrip, we saved a lot of gas money that we would have spent driving. Originally we were going to unless we could find air under 200 a person as with my mom there are 6 of us. Our other option would be Southwest - but those Ding deals aren't what they used to be.

Probably as long as I work, we'll take a vacation of some type. Just more money to save for it!!:mad:

[Jsme]

We pretty much have come to the decision we will be cruising out of ports we can drive to after this year, unless decide to go a year with out cruising then we would do another area, such as Hawaii or Alaska. Right now my limit is no European/Med Cruise for us. With the value of the dollar I can not afford the Med Cruise I had so longed for.

 

We are fortunate that we live in driving distance of 3 ports. I am praying that RCI will bring in their Freedom Class ships to PC.

 

I only drive to and from work. I do not use my car for any other driving if I can help it. We pay a surcharge that comes out of my DH's paycheck in order to use is company car. I use it for my Saturday errands.

[LegalCat]

To me, cruising is almost the cheapest vacation you can do.... I mean, everything is included basically so if you find a good deal your really ahead of the game.. again I'm spoiled because I dont have to fly to cruise...

 

but think of it this way, if you spent $650 p/p for a 7 day cruise... thats 92.86 per day... and that includes your hotel, your transportation from one port to another, all your meals, some of your drinks, and all of your entertainment... not many places can you go and get a hotel, transportation, 3 meals a day and entertainment for under $100 a day... heck, in a lot of places you wont get a hotel for less than $100 a day unless its in a bad area...

[Kurbanfan]

Even if gas hits $10 a gallon (or oil hits $250 a barrel) they could probably offer a 7 day cruise to nowhere leaving Portland, ME and price it so the ship sells out.

 

 

That right there would be my breaking point....

[deborahjo]

This is why we are taking advantage of Cruise Critic Group Cruises. As a matter of fact 2 of them next year. Less expensive and we can pay over time for them. Makes taking a cruise more affordable. Kudos to Randy and Lucy for hosting them.

 

I have started working a second job topay for my cruising. It works well for us.

[vacruizer]

Airfare is what is killing us. We're driving 3 hours to Raleigh in July because the air was less than half what we'd pay here and the prices just keep going up. We will still cruise, but if Norfolk ever gets any more sailings we will probably cruise from there to save the airfare. We were also considering doing a couple of the 4 night cruises in the next couple of years, but they no longer seem worth it to pay the exorbitant airfare for just four days.

 

I do drive a hybrid car so that really helps with the gas prices, though - I only fill up every 5 or 6 weeks!!!:D :D :D

[scopewest]

I'd probably go every other year, every three years, whatever, instead of trying to go every year as we have been. But it's just the two of us cruising, which also makes a difference.

 

As for cabin prices, I'll go inside cabin if I can cruise every year if it comes to that.

[cruisecruisecruise1234567]

To me, cruising is almost the cheapest vacation you can do.... I mean, everything is included basically so if you find a good deal your really ahead of the game.. again I'm spoiled because I dont have to fly to cruise...

 

but think of it this way, if you spent $650 p/p for a 7 day cruise... thats 92.86 per day... and that includes your hotel, your transportation from one port to another, all your meals, some of your drinks, and all of your entertainment... not many places can you go and get a hotel, transportation, 3 meals a day and entertainment for under $100 a day... heck, in a lot of places you wont get a hotel for less than $100 a day unless its in a bad area...

 

You are sugar coating it.

Did you forget about the High cost of parking as you stated your within a 10 minute drive.

$650 total PP for a Balcony including taxes,and port charges? When,what ship?

 

How about tips?Another $70 PP

 

So thats $220 per couple per day minimum.

Do you take shore excursions?

The entertainment is the same shows over and over again except for the comedians.

[yeahbaby]

this is my first cruise and it's already too expensive, but i know it's only gonna get worse! that's why i'm biting the bullet and paying it off.... luckily i live about 10 minutes away from NYC, i didn't want to pay for airfare as well, even though it costs less to cruise from fla, , i wanted more days at sea.:cool:

[GoinCruisin]

You are sugar coating it.

Did you forget about the High cost of parking as you stated your within a 10 minute drive.

$650 total PP for a Balcony including taxes,and port charges? When,what ship?

 

How about tips?Another $70 PP

 

So thats $220 per couple per day minimum.

Do you take shore excursions?

The entertainment is the same shows over and over again except for the comedians.

 

That is the point... most decent land vacations, your hotel alone will cost that... then add on meals and entertainment, gratuities, etc. It's still a great value.

[VentureMan_2000]

If I was a tea-toter, I would be able to brag how in-exspensively I could cruise... :D

[GoinCruisin]

Cruising is still less expensive than it used to be :) Each person has to determine the value to THEM personally.