Pricing for Frequent Cruisers

[swindy]

I wonder if anybody from Silversea is monitoring this discussion?

[I'llBeCruisin']

I certainly hope they are monitoring! I have heard from several sources while on board that they do. However, I was thinking of writing a letter as well. Does any one know the best way to do this?

 

As far as the old air program, I always used it. I always found it was cheaper than arranging my own...not to mention easier. I can't tell you how many hours I spend now trying to figure out air. It was all handled for me before and I never had to worry about anything. One time I missed an international flight due to a connection delay so I called Silversea. They rearranged everything for me. It was so nice to have the help! And yes, I had forgotten about the travel insurance. Yet another thing they have taken away.

 

But, I don't really want to make this about what they have taken away. I was listing those things to show how we have all stuck by Silversea when times were hard for them and we tolerated the changes. Now they are punishing their good customers! Shame on them!!! We should all let them know we will not take it!

 

As mentioned before, this is not just for frequest cruisers. This matters to anyone who will ever take a cruise designated as Venetian, for anyone who will get an onboard savings, or for anyone who will take back-to-back cruises. We are talking thousands of dollars per cruise!

[ReadyToPack]

Silversea listen to us!!!

[swindy]

Silversea listen to us!!!

 

In what way.....and why? Have you lots of days accrued?

[chicagogal]

From the events you describe, perhaps you mean 1995, even 2000 but not 2005! When we had our first Mexican Riviera voyage in 2004 aboard the Shadow, we got none of those benefits.

 

We also had all of those benefits on our first Silversea cruise from Nice to Barcelona in 1999. Seems like a LONG time ago!

[oregon50]

I'm looking at invoices for two 2010 cruises. While they managed to get the May and July invoices to net the same, how they got there makes for an interesting read. I'm winning a bit because the July invoices extend final payment. The VS savings have gone from significant to minimal and truly an insult to loyal customers. While happy with the per diem for the 70+ days booked for 2010, future bookings might be harder to justify.

[CruisingAlong4Now]

I must not understand this. If the cruise is originally $10,000 and is being discounted by 60% and you get the 10% past customer discount, isn't the price of the cruise the same regardless of the order of the discounts?

 

PAST CUSTOMER DISCOUNT FIRST:

$10,000 X 10% = $1,000

$10,000 - $1,000 = $9,000

 

$9,000 X 60% = $5,400

$9,000 - $5,400 = $3,600 net cruise price

 

OR PAST CUSTOMER DISCOUNT LAST

$10,000 x 60% = $6,000

$10,000 - $6,000 = $4,000

 

$4,000 X 10% = $400

$4,000 - $400 = $$3,600 net cruise price

[ReadyToPack]

No, you are doing the pricing wrong.

 

If the cruise is 10,000. The old way, add together 10% over 250 days, cruise combo credit, venetian discount, etc + the 60% discount to take 70% off total:

 

10,000 X .70 = 7000 discount

10,000- 7,000 = 3,000 price

 

Now:

 

Discount the 60% first

10,000 x .60 = 6000

 

from this take the 10% off

6000 x .10 = 600

 

10,000 - 6000 (60%) - 4000

4,000- 600 (10%) = 3400 total cruise price.

 

Of course I don't know of many Silverseas published fares that are only 10,000. Usually they are at least 15000 for one person or 30000 for two. In this case the discount goes from $3000 to $1200, or we are losing more than 1/2 of our discount.

 

NOT FAIR for loyal customers!!!!

[meow!]

While ReadytoPack's calculation is right, Silversea still offers voyages with list prices under $10,000. Search for short voyages in the Caribbean!

[honest pleasure]

We have sailed 100 days on the Silver in the past few years. We are booked Vac-Vac on Aug 25 and Lax-Lax on Feb 7, 2010. We booked 3 Silver cruises last year and believe we got good deals. we have planned to make 250 before we do a world cruise. Now I am starting to question our concentating on Silver. We have sailed QM2 FLL to RIO as well as Princess, Holland America, and the QE2. When we found Silver it was a new world for us. We love the crew and have become good friends of numerous staff including 2 Captains.

 

The management has always been a pain. They never comunicate with their guests and normally anoy most passageners. However, the crew and the ship have always made it worth putting up with Ft Lauderdale and now Monaco.

 

The new AMX benefit of a free dinner in La Champaign plus $100 for a bottle of wine is a waste. The food and wine on the ship is all free and we enjoy it. Silver has removed the free early boarding and free hotel night pre or post to compensate for the free dinner. Poor planning if you are trying to wow your guest or reward them.

 

I will wait and see if going for 250 days on Silver makes sense. I have heard they have new people in command. Let's hope they do better then the castoffs.

[UNCW_Chick]

I want to start off by saying how much I love the onboard experience of Silversea. The crew is superb and it is a great product. This is why I keep going back. The problem I am having now is with the management. When I first started cruising in 2005. Each cruise came with air' date=' a pre-night hotel stay, transfers, and a silversea experience. Many, many cruises offered either free or drastically reduced business class air. The single supplement was usually 125%. In fact, I think there was a policy that it would never go over 150%. There was not difference in price between midship and other verandas. When they added the Shadow and Whisper, there was no Terrace suites, they were charged as Vista suites. If you booked a cruise and later the price was reduced, you were entitled to the discount if you contacted your travel agent for it. Caviar was free and abundant.

 

All of these things have changed, and not for the better. I never said anything because I realized Silversea was going through some rough times. I stayed loyal to Silversea and continued to book at least 3-4 cruises a year even in 2001.

 

Now I realize, alot of you are happy with the new fares. They include air...of course, not from my city. I had 4 cruises booked for 2010, none of them came back cheaper. I believe this is due to the new way of applying my 10% discount for having 250 days. This new pricing specifically targets cruisers with over 250 days.

 

I also realize that Silversea must raise prices occasionally to stay in business. But make these increases across the board, don't take it out on those that have gotten you through the rough times!! I believe that Silversea is insulting us by lowering rates for new bookings only and not letting those who have paid in advance have these discounts. I am glad they are not doing this with the new promotion. But this has happened to me on my last 3 cruises. I am insulted that they allow a new cruiser to pay significantly less when I have booked and paid a months or years in advance.

 

This new pricing policy that targets cruisers with more than 100 days is my final straw. I felt I had to speak out. It is my hope that others who read this will also respond. Maybe Silversea will read this and change the new policy!!! Help me make a change! I do not want to leave Silversea, but I might have to if no one listens. Let's all make a stand![/quote']

 

 

So let me get this straight: You want Silversea to go back to 1995? When you first sailed? If you are still working, does your company still run the exact same way it did 14 years ago? All cruise lines are changing and evolving. All cruise lines are cutting back and streamlining. It's called business. I know someone who's sailed over 700 days and they will continue sailing. If you want the best - sometimes you have to pay for it.

[meow!]

The management has always been a pain. They never comunicate with their guests and normally anoy most passageners. However, the crew and the ship have always made it worth putting up with Ft Lauderdale and now Monaco.

With the present poor economy, we have the feeling that cruise line head offices (not just Silversea, but Oceania and likely others as well) are trying to improve their customer service. We are bottom members of those two lines, have cruised with each only twice in the last several years, had low level cabins and did not purchase anything on board (other than with shipboard credit). We hardly even received brochures from them, just the occasional e-mail advertisement.

 

Lately, we started to get more frequent e-mail advertisements. Request for brochures were acknowledged with e-mail. So perhaps, gradually, cruise lines are trying to work harder. By the way, many travel agencies are so deligent in sending out e-advertisments. Sometimes you get several of them per week, even from agencies you have not used for years!

[fizzy]

I wiish I could remember if I saw this or dreamed it, but I just recommended some dear friends to SS and they booked a cruise using my regular TA. Did I ever see that one also gets discounts for referrals? Their cruise is in 3 weeks! just wondering...... thanx fizzy

[WesW]

Fizzy, here is information on the friends of Society program, taken from the Veneitian

Society tab on SS's homepage:

 

Friends of the Society® Programme

Introduce your friends to Silversea and they will also enjoy special privileges and savings when you travel together. When your friends sail with you, as a sponsoring Venetian Society member, you will receive bonus rewards including a USD$250 Onboard Spending Credit per suite on designated Venetian Society voyages and the opportunity to earn double rewards days on all voyages. Restrictions apply.

[dougburns]

We just experienced what Wes is talking about. We convinced friends of ours to take the 3 Jan Spirit cruise with us(16 days). Since the cruise is not a Venetian Society cruise they are giving us double days credit for the cruise(32 days).

[fizzy]

Thanks to everyone for the replies. I wish WE were going on the cruise that we are sending our friends on. I guess it would be a paperwork nightmare trying to sort out stuff like that. thanks again...fizzy

[LOGHL]

I saw a few post about this on a different thread' date=' but thought this merited it's own discussion. I am very disappointed about the new pricing policy for Venetian members who have reached 100 or 250 days. I am a Venetian member with 500 days on Silversea. In the past, this qualified me for 10% off any cruise. This discount was taken off the published fare. Now they have changed that to take it off the discounted fare. In essence, my discount has dropped from 10% to 4%. How can they do this to loyal cruisers?!!! I have stayed loyal to Siversea throughout all the cuts and the hard times and this is the way they return the favor?!! I think I have had it if things do not change. Seabourn has built 2 beautiful new ships similar to Silversea. I think we will have to change cruise lines. It is such a shame! Where is the loyalty from Silversea?[/quote']

 

I HAD been a very loyal SS passenger..had totaled over 768 days !! Loved the ships, the crew BUT the office really fouled us up !!! Rather than go into a long detail < I'll just say that I have started cruising Regent,,,the closest to SS in all repects. At first it was a bit different in feel, but after having accumulated 199 days on Regent, IT FEELS LIKE HOME !!

There are very many advantages to Regent,,,,After a minimum amount of days, free internet....free phone calls from anywhere in the world. I still miss many of the crew,but it is interesting to note that MANY of them have left. Ray Solaire..top notch entertainer & cruise director is now working for Regent/. Your choice.. but it will work out.