How is New Pricing Afffecting CC'ers Booking?

[turtlemichael]

For me, when I take the whole package of accommodation, food, daily changing destination etc into account the cost of a cruise is reasonable. Like all free enterprise markets where making a buck is the objective, the cost will be determined in large part by what we consumers are prepared to pay. One of the factors that comes into the equation is that in the hospitality industry if the client is spending very little on the basic product, they tend to spend little on the high profit ancillaries such as booze and tours. If they are spending a lot, on average the consumer will drink and tour more. I am talking averages but it is sometimes more profitable to charge a bit more for the basic product and attract bigger spenders. Finding the balance is the skill.

[satchiesmom]

I have heard that the other cruise lines are, if not planning price increases, at least watching to see how the Celebrity situation goes. I think that RCCL wants to position Celebrity as an upscale cruise line as it was considered before. Will it ever be comparable to Radisson, Seabourn, Silversea, etc.? Not likely. But it will be above mass market and should have pricing that reflects this. I know my thoughts on this are not popular ones, but I think these price increases are here to stay and will become prevalent in the future. Most people who enjoy cruising will continue to cruise because, as has been pointed out here, it is still the best value out there. JMHO.

[brigittetom]

I absolutely agree that I wouldn't want to see a decrease in quality but on the other hand still want the best deal for the dollar. We just received an offer for the Horizon. $550. pp inside 10 nights for the Southern Caribbean, $650. for outside. Would anyone say that it is too cheap and no one should book this because looking for bargains decreases the cruise experience. :)

[ISABELLA]

Just would lilke to add two cents into the topic.Carnaval, who own HAL and Princess also will be going to no discount policy begining of the next year.

What I would do if I see a good deal now - book it. Price may change in the same day. I booked Jewel of the Sea for next September round trip from Boston in August. Prices in the afternoon of the same day were $100 pp more.

So, here we go. But I have to say that there are still some Balcony $$ are what we used to pay for inside rooms before 9-11. We got spoiled with under $100.00per day prices. I will miss them.

[Hondu]

Don't forget. Cruise prices were higher before Sept 11, 2001, than they are today. Cruise lines have been filling ships for the past year, at discounted prices. There is much more demand for cruising these days, than there was in the past. Therefore, they can increase prices, and make more money.

 

We were able to cruise more often over the past three years, than we did prior to Sept 11, 2001. And, it's been a great way to vacation.

 

We are just going to have to adjust to the higher prices, as I believe they are here to stay. One cruise per year is all that we will be able to afford.

 

However, I do believe the cruise lines will bring back an even higher quality of food and service along with the increase in prices. Stay tuned. Time will tell.

 

SDCruiser

 

I disagree. We have been cruising since 1996 which was 5 years before 9/11 and the discounts were available a year in advance of sailing. You could call several agencies and get competitive pricing. It was always great to be able to shop around. I remember booking with different agencies just almost every sailing due to the price advantage. Not so anymore. The only discounts now are close to sailing when flights are more expensive.

 

We have 3 cruises booked at great prices and after the sailing next summer, we will only sail from the two ports that are within driving distance which makes it easy to wait for last minute discounts. Those who want to pay more can have our cabin at the fly to ports.

 

As for food quality going up, keep dreaming.

[sdcruiser]

It depends on the cruiseline, particular ship, itinerary, etc. and other factors when comparing pre-09/11 pricing and post-09/11 pricing. Maybe it does not hold true for some Caribbean cruises.

 

I agree that there were discounts pre 09/11. However, the end price we paid for our cruises on a per person/double occupancy basis, was definitely higher then, than it is now. The cruises we took pre-09/11 were to Alaska, Mexico, and the Pacific Coast with Carnival, Holland, and RCCL.

 

Dreaming of even better quality of food and higher service ahead...Just wait!

 

SDCruiser

[Pesky143]

I have beeen traveling exclusively with Celebrity since August of 1995. We took the Horizon out of New York two weeks after the big Legionaire's disease incident and smack in the middle of Hurricane Andrew. It was so bad that a third of the crew, including the Captain, were seasick. Many people arrived in Bermuda and refused to sail back instead opting to fly back to New York.One would think that that would have been my first and last cruise but I was immediately hooked on cruising. I have since sailed twelve more times, all with Celebrity. I don't know if it is related to the RCCL merger, but over the years, I have noticed a steady decline in the service provided by Celebrity. In 1995, all three meals were served by our waiter and waiter's assistant and each night had a different theme for the "midnight buffet". This has since changed to "open seating" for breakfast and lunch and four of the seven midnight buffets being served "Gourmet bites". This new pricing policy really bothers me. I would always book with Celebrity and then shop around for the best deal via the internet. With this new system, it appears that Celebrity/RCCL is telling its customers, "This is the new policy. If you don't like it, then don't sail with us." Well, I for one have opted for the latter. I had booked my family on the Millenium for President's Week this February. After not being able to find any "deals" whatsoever, I have decided to cancel my reservations and use my timeshare. I don't know yet if I will try any other cruise lines for fear of being disappointed but I refuse to be strongarmed by the company in this manner. If enough "customers" took this approach, maybe Celebrity/RCCl would lighten up their policy.

[C 2 C]

As a frequent cruiser I price compare and my TA matches internet deals... Looked at Zenith Jan 30th and all the discounters quoted the same as Celebrity direct. The price was higher than last year but still less than the $100 per day which I was paying several years ago.. Fuel prices are higher, but cruising is still our choice. We just finished a cruise on the Sun Princess and for the first time in over 40 cruises were happy to get off... we did not book another Princess cruise but are eager to go on Celebrity again.

[alcman]

I normally book with Celebrity and then shop around until my TA gives us a better deal. We booked Constellation Baltic and the TA gave us a price reduction of $400/pp the day before the no discounting went into effect. The price of the same cabin is now $1500/pp more than the list and $1900/pp more than we paid. I just brought my TA an RCCL cruise that I booked the day before final payment due -- no discount possible; on this or any other RCCL/Celebrity. Did the policy give them this starnglehold or just market conditions? I don't know, but we are going to look closely at Princess in the future. The difference in lines does not justify the cost differences that result from an inability to negotiate and if RCCL/Celebrity keep raising prices like this and limiting the use of their coupons, I am unable to afford to continue cruising with them.

 

Jerry

[C 2 C]

Just got a couple of more quotes for the Zenith cruise...

One from Tr********y and one from QQ.. The last one offers a $200 credit card which is enough reason to switch. Certain TA's used to buy wine for their customers.. Perhaps some of them can give a larger present (a case of wine) to compensate for the higher markup and profit... ;) :cool:

[kelmac]

It seems that the real "sticker shock" is the price of cruises more than four months out. I like to have a long range plan and this pricing makes it difficult for me. Since the price increase, I have booked two cruises, one with HAL and one on the Century (June 05). Both cruises were higher than last year, but still within reason. The Zuiderdam was 20% less per day/per passenger compared to the Century. If the price of the Century does not drop as we approach the 70 day period, I will cancel and book with someone else. I have noticed the prices are falling on RCI/Celebirty inside the 120 day period; sort of like the old days, when last minute prices are the only deals.

 

So the whole premise of people paying the same price for their cruise is bogus, and this was all about price supports for brick and mortar agencies. Why not just drop the charade, require people with less than "X" number of cruises to book with an agency, and let the repeat cruisers (maybe select/platinum members+) book directly with RCI/Celebrity at a real discount?

Allows new cruisers to be "hand held" by the agencies, and allows repeat customers to get a real break. Promotes both sides of the equation. I don't think RCI gets the fact that their best advertising is the word of mouth from their repeat customers. I have 7 cruises on Celebrity and 5 cruises on Royal Caribbean--I'm one of your biggest fans!! "Friends, don't let friends cruise Carnival.":D

[C 2 C]

I've found two sites with discount prices.. savings of at least $200 (10%) on Jan Zenith

[toreilly]

We are based in the Uk and have just booked on the century for New Year. We tried to book through the US and get a good deal, but all agents were offerring the same price saying that Celebrity wouldn't allow them to discount. So we tried a UK agent who for a change got us a much lower price, in fact in comparison the price was so good we got them to double check it - twice. Obviously Celebrity are up to some sort of price fixing.

[sandymc47]

It is hurting the "blue collar" people, for sure. It would be nice to be able to say,"its ok, I will pay, as long as the food and service is great." Well, I cant afford it, and I would like to bet, the food and service will be no better then it was last year. Its like every thing else, money goes to money.

[carkosh]

Ok, I've held off discussing this subject but guess I finally have to add my 2 cents to this debate & then will hopefully shut up about it for good lol. Frankly, I'm not upset about the rise in prices. With the ships more full every year I expect the prices to rise. What upsets me is the new policy that RCL & Celebrity (& probably still more cruiselines in the future) have instituted concerning the commission policy. I believe firmly in competition & this policy, imo, will take the competition out of cruise pricing. I'm one of those who uses the internet TA's for the discounts but I still always ask for quotes from several of them + a few local & national TA's before deciding which quote to accept. The last few years I've gotten much better prices from the internet discounters &, frankly, I enjoy doing all the research on cruises & finding the "perfect" cruise. I have also found that the service I've received from some of the internet discounters has been better than the local or national TA's (please don't think I'm criticizing all TA's, I know that there are many good ones, including a very good friend who used to be our TA; unfortunately she retired after her 3rd child was born. Maybe I should've done a little more research on finding a good non-internet TA.)

 

As far as travel in the near future, Hubby & I haven't decided yet if we'll cut down on our cruising & take more land based vacations due to this new policy. We'll just have to see what happens in the next few months or year. If we don't cruise as much in the future I'll be somewhat disappointed as cruising is definitely our favorite mode of travel.

 

Ok, I'm now shutting up about this particular subject lol.

 

Carol