Press Release: HAL offers 'Stimulus Plan'

[jleq]

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Holland-America-Line-Unveils-prnews-13820343.html

[brucory]

That all sounds like good news!!!

 

:D:D:D

[NevadaHiRoller]

I just knew they would drop the fuel surcharges and for the people that screamed, well they are going to raise the prices like they said, they won't. They are going to be the lowest in history for 2009 because they just cannot fill these ships in this economy.

[jhannah]

Every little bit helps!

[NevadaHiRoller]

Every little bit helps!

 

It sure does and I do hope that many people do cruise and take advantage of these low prices so we can keep our cruise lines in business.

[sassyredhat]

It sure does and I do hope that many people do cruise and take advantage of these low prices so we can keep our cruise lines in business.

 

 

Well, we are ! We're booked thru' 2010. :D

 

Pat

[kryos]

I just knew they would drop the fuel surcharges and for the people that screamed, well they are going to raise the prices like they said, they won't. They are going to be the lowest in history for 2009 because they just cannot fill these ships in this economy.

There was a story on the news last night about vacation providers offering dirt cheap rates to fill their properties. They specifically talked about cruise lines. They said that the rotten economy is forcing these people to give dirt cheap rates because people are not taking vacations. They profiled a family of three on a Carnival ship who got the cruise for something like $539 ... for ALL three of them. I think it was on the Imagination. They talked about a group of friends who had taken a cruise several years ago for something like $359 each who now got that same cruise for like $199 each.

 

The only thing that I fear is that if cruise lines wind up cutting their prices to rock bottom, what else are they going to have to cut? There is no way they can continue to offer the same experience when there is almost no profit margin left. I think the cruise experience is really going to change over the coming couple of years ... and not change for the better either. Yes, you'll be able to pick up a cruise for those prices, but will it be a cruise as we currently know and love it?

 

Also, what about tips. Do you honestly think that family of three that only paid $539 for their cruise is seriously going to leave auto tips of $10 or so per day per person ride? I honestly know that I wouldn't if I were in their shoes. I would say, "are you nuts?" I'd bet that in half these cases the first thing those families will do is go down to the purser's desk and have those puppies removed ... like pronto! So I hope the cruise lines have something in place to guarantee their staff a liveable wage when these budget conscious families say no way am I tipping close to half the value of what I paid for this discount cruise!

 

I'll tell you ... these cruise lines made one heck of a big mistake. They built way too many ships and now they haven't a prayer of filling them unless they practically give the cabins away. And they aren't going to be able to do that for long.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kryos]

It sure does and I do hope that many people do cruise and take advantage of these low prices so we can keep our cruise lines in business.

I hate to say this ... but at the prices I saw on that news clip last night, they won't be in business for long. I think they are assuming that people will spend, spend, spend once they get onboard and that will make up for the cheap fares. Well, I hate to say it, but the type of people that only take a cruise because it is like $199 per person for a five-dayer aren't going to spend freely onboard either. In fact, one of the people interviewed on the news clip said that they would have normally never taken a vacation this year because they had had a rough one, so this cheap cruise gave them a chance to get away for a very budget friendly vacation. Somehow I don't think those folks were spending a whole lot on the ship.

 

I kind of feel bad for the cruise lines, especially those lower budget ones like Carnival. They are in for a really rough time. I think Holland America might be a little protected on their longer, more exotic cruises ... because the people who take them aren't as much affected by this economy and will continue to take them. But the "get awayer" who goes in for the really short cruises that some of the other lines routinely offer, they're going to be looking at price and nothing more, and these cruise lines are nuts if they think these people can be convinced to drop a bundle once onboard. Most of them won't do it ... because they simply can't. They don't have it.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[NevadaHiRoller]

All these things are true, and yes, this may effect our cruises and the quality of food, etc. However, I think this will only be a temporary thing maybe through 2009 and hopefully things will get better out there. It is really sad, all of it.

[kryos]

All these things are true, and yes, this may effect our cruises and the quality of food, etc. However, I think this will only be a temporary thing maybe through 2009 and hopefully things will get better out there. It is really sad, all of it.

I think it's gonna go on for a little longer than just 2009, though. Probably more like about three years, at least.

 

The whole economy is tanking and sadly, things are probably gonna get a lot worse before they get better. A lot of people are out of work ... and still many more are going to be joining them. And, until our government can do something to get the economy humming again and provide jobs for some of the folks who have been displaced, things are gonna be bad. Lots of people are barely gonna have the money to stay afloat, let alone go on nice vacations.

 

Like I said, it's a shame these cruise line executives didn't have crystal balls in their offices so that they could have seen this coming. They built way too many ships ... big ships ... thinking cruising was just going to keep getting bigger and bigger and they'd be filling them week after week. The sad fact is they are not going to be able to keep those ships filled ... probably for the next several years ... and now they are faced with having to absolutely slash prices, and for some lines that will mean slashing them to the bare bones. I doubt some of them will even sail at a profit oftentimes.

 

It's gonna be interesting, I'll say that.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[billroddy]

Something new from HAL

Details

http://www.hollandamerica.com/VSP

----------------------------------------

Bill

Ancient Mariner

[bigwally]

Why isn't OUR cruise on sale. I would love to step up to Verandah for $200 less that we're paying for OV! :( :rolleyes: :D

[ger_77]

bigwally, I feel your pain. We've never had a price reduction on any of our cruises either. Paid the regular prices and got the cabin we booked; maybe one day our cruise will be discounted and the upgrade fairy will visit us. Till then, we keep on booking just like always.

 

Smooth Sailing! :):)