Price guarantee even after final payment

Wouldn't it be great if Azamara could guarantee the price you paid up to 7 days before sailing? We all know the feeling we get when we see how much our stateroom price drops after final payment. I know that my stateroom has dropped by half!

Windstar has done something wonderful:

WINDSTAR PRICING ASSURANCE POLICYhttp://www.windstarcruises.com/terms-conditions/

Terms & Conditions

Guests who purchase a cruise on Windstar will be eligible for reimbursement upon request if the fare published by Windstar for their specific departure and cabin class is reduced after they have made a booking and deposit, and if the request is received by Windstar at least 7 days prior to sailing. The reimbursement will be provided in the form of a shipboard credit, upgrade, fare reduction, or a future cruise credit. Windstar will determine the form of reimbursement, and the amount of reimbursement will be the difference between the fare actually paid by the guest and the published fare on WindstarCruises.com the day the request is received. Guests who select reimbursement will be eligible for any complimentary inclusive features (e.g., hotels, air, tours) associated with the new fare and will forfeit any complimentary inclusive features associated with the original fare. All requests for reimbursement must be made directly to Windstar Cruises at 1-800-258-7245 (during regular reservations hours) at least seven (7) days prior to sailing. Windstar’s new fare pricing assurance policy will take effect with new bookings made on or after June 27, 2016. Windstar reserves the right to modify or terminate this policy at any time for bookings not yet made.

I hope this will have a domino effect!

Wow, that's good!

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It would be nice, but it means the ships will sail with more empty cabins and therefore ultimately the price for everyone will have to go up. That's less of an issue for Windstar because like other true luxury brands such as Seabourn, Silver Sea, etc. they have less cabins to fill, are already charging on average 1.5x per night as what Azamara is charging and almost never do any discounting close to departure anyway - so it's not much of a change for them.

I know I'm a minority on here, but I have never understood people's anger with price drops. If I buy tomatoes in a grocery store, I don't check the next day if they have gone on discount. If I buy a new TV, I don't keep checking the price in the weeks after. If I book a flight, I don't call the airline if the same flight is suddenly cheaper a few days later (and there's no way any airline would then offer compensation). And if I buy a cruise at a price I'm happy with at the moment of purchase, I don't look back. Anyway, that's just me :)

It would be nice, but it means the ships will sail with more empty cabins and therefore ultimately the price for everyone will have to go up. That's less of an issue for Windstar because like other true luxury brands such as Seabourn, Silver Sea, etc. they have less cabins to fill, are already charging on average 1.5x per night as what Azamara is charging and almost never do any discounting close to departure anyway - so it's not much of a change for them.

 

I know I'm a minority on here, but I have never understood people's anger with price drops. If I buy tomatoes in a grocery store, I don't check the next day if they have gone on discount. If I buy a new TV, I don't keep checking the price in the weeks after. If I book a flight, I don't call the airline if the same flight is suddenly cheaper a few days later (and there's no way any airline would then offer compensation). And if I buy a cruise at a price I'm happy with at the moment of purchase, I don't look back. Anyway, that's just me :)

I'm with you:) also, late bookers who might get lower prices don't get the same choice of cabins. I book early, choose the exact cabin I want and a price that suits me. I don't feel bad if someone else gets a better rate. :D

Azamara used to do that. We got massive price drops after final payment on our first two cruises with them. They, along with their sister lines, stopped allowing that about 5 years ago. So now I don't look at prices in the category we're booked in. They will allow one to upgrade to a higher category that's had a drop in price, so I continue to monitor those.

for the people who think that the price drop is worth it for getting a specific room:

My cruise has dropped dramatically per person for a balcony room. There are still plenty of rooms available. The Choice Air airfare for the same dates that I am currently flying has gone up only $300 per person. I will be rethinking my strategy of booking a cruise far in advance and just block out time that I am willing to be gone. Closer to the departure time I will check several cruise lines and go with what has the best price and itinerary choices. I feel stupid that I booked this a few months ago.

It would be nice, but it means the ships will sail with more empty cabins and therefore ultimately the price for everyone will have to go up. That's less of an issue for Windstar because like other true luxury brands such as Seabourn, Silver Sea, etc. they have less cabins to fill, are already charging on average 1.5x per night as what Azamara is charging and almost never do any discounting close to departure anyway - so it's not much of a change for them.

 

I know I'm a minority on here, but I have never understood people's anger with price drops. If I buy tomatoes in a grocery store, I don't check the next day if they have gone on discount. If I buy a new TV, I don't keep checking the price in the weeks after. If I book a flight, I don't call the airline if the same flight is suddenly cheaper a few days later (and there's no way any airline would then offer compensation). And if I buy a cruise at a price I'm happy with at the moment of purchase, I don't look back. Anyway, that's just me :)

I agree with your thoughts. I try to take advantage of deals out there at the time (and there are lots of those!) and book onboard if I can for a further saving and onboard credit. Occasionally I also book late when there are deals to be had. I have a price point I'm willing to go to for a specific type of cabin, book it and I'm happy. I try not to follow price drops and the absolute worst for me is the person on the cruise who wants to tell you how much they paid. This will always leave one person disappointed.

Phil

I am trying Regent Seven Seas next week for the first time. We thought we had got a good deal but after final payment I received an email from Regent (yes, they actually send me emails!) showing a considerable price reduction. I phoned my TA but was not really expecting anything as we were happy with the price we had paid. However, the end of the saga is that I was offered a decent upgraded cabin or a $900 per person future cruise credit. We took the cruise credit.

I was very impressed with this.

Now we hope we will like Regent but we will certainly not forsake Azamara.

Just off WindStar's Windsurf. It was my 2nd time on that ship. It is quite different from Azamara. Both are nice. However, when it comes to luxurious service and food, Windstar outclasses Azamara. Windstar menus have several added local food offerings. Azamara has better entertainment and activities. Both lines now have an amazing event. Both cruise lines are nice. However, Windstar's new price reduction policy is a great feature. My cruise fare went down quite a bit after the final payment. Had that policy been in affect, I would have saved $1000.

Just off WindStar's Windsurf. It was my 2nd time on that ship. It is quite different from Azamara. Both are nice. However, when it comes to luxurious service and food, Windstar outclasses Azamara. Windstar menus have several added local food offerings. Azamara has better entertainment and activities. Both lines now have an amazing event. Both cruise lines are nice. However, Windstar's new price reduction policy is a great feature. My cruise fare went down quite a bit after the final payment. Had that policy been in affect, I would have saved $1000.

Of course there will come a point where Windstar will do the math and conclude that it's cheaper to sail with the remaining cabins empty rather than give each booked passenger $1000 back -- so you might not have saved anything.

I'm with you:) also, late bookers who might get lower prices don't get the same choice of cabins. I book early, choose the exact cabin I want and a price that suits me. I don't feel bad if someone else gets a better rate. :D

You can look at that both ways. It does sting when you sail an interior for thirteen days, while 60 days out they put balconies for the same price, and don't let you upgrade.

I sail Solo, already overpaying in a way. So I have made the conscious decision to either book close to sailing or a solo supplement sale.

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