zitsky

12 minutes ago, the penguins said:

I was referring to the class of ship rather than the cabin split. However  when you look how the ship is marketed in the UK you would be forgiven for thinking that the "balconies" were exactly the same as on all the other classes of ship a decision that may come back to haunt them.

 

“You would be forgiven for thinking….”

Do people not bother to research the ships they sail on?

26 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

On my upcoming TA this fall. $100 from Celebrity and $600 from my TA.  I get either a group fare with refundable deposit, small OBC and fare about 8-10% lower or lots of OBC.

Obviously depends on cost.

Your post is confusing as you say you think no TA OBC and then how much OBC from TAs.  You already know.

I said TAs are not giving OBC but Celebrity is question mark.  How much OBC are they giving (is it) question mark, referring to Celebrity.

48 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

Yet still a bunch of misconceptions about what they are and how they work ...

They are a window.  That opens.  What misconception?

4 hours ago, the penguins said:

Your logic is flawed. X is experiencing record bookings across the fleet I.e in all cabin classes and ships. In some markets passengers have no choice as there are only E class ships e.g. sailing from the UK.

We will only know how successful the IV balconies are when X introduces its next class of ship. To date no other line has followed X down the IV route including Viking which has many of this cabin type in its river boat fleet but chooses not to have any in its ocean fleet.

UK passengers still have a choice.  They can choose to pay more for a veranda/balcony.  They may not like it but that’s a choice.  They can also “choose” to sail on another cruise line.

Are Aqua class bookings getting any OBC from Celebrity?  And how many shares must you buy?

So is there any benefit to using a TA for my next cruise?  Because I understand that TAs are no longer giving OBC but Celebrity is doing that?

How much OBC are they giving?  Is it per day or does it depend on the cost?

20 minutes ago, tscoffey said:

I guess I'll just have to let you know my opinion afterwards.

Well why pay for an inside cabin on the inside when you could pay twice that to have an outside cabin with a window on the outside?

1 minute ago, tscoffey said:

$5000?

I am about $2200 for a 13-night TA - less than $100 per person, per night.

 

I think you may have missed the point of the post.  Do you enjoy the window in your inside cabin?  You know, the one that opens?

38 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

Call it a premium window cabin.  You do have more space and a big window.

I get it!   It’s “premium” because you can open it.

59 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

Just keep the window closed…

Congratulations!  You now have a $5000 inside cabin.

39 minutes ago, jwlane said:

It's obvious the IV concept is a failure.  All those cabins are going unsold, and X is losing $$$ daily.  Oh, wait..........

Well I knew it was successful when they scrapped all the other ships that don’t have IVs.

53 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Having actually sailed in an IV, the only times the tops are locked is when they are cleaning (announced in advance in the planner) OR if the weather is adverse enough to warrant it, which is a time you wouldn't be (or shouldn't be) on a balcony anyway.

 

Them being locked by the captain is presented as far more than an issue than people on here want to make it.

So you think I should not decide for myself when I should be on my balcony?  Maybe I like rain?  If it’s a hurricane the ship shouldn’t be sailing in the first place.

Can I come to your house and install a switch to let me remotely control your windows?  Since it’s not really an issue?

3 hours ago, Syd58 said:

I absolutely loved our IV on a recent Ascent cruise. For me, I preferred it over a traditional balcony because we could control whether or not we had outside air. When we were in the cabin during the daytime, we were sitting on the IV, often with the window fully open for the breeze and the wave sounds. I would not have spent anywhere near that much time on a traditional balcony. 

I would disagree with you on that.  You didn't control whether or not you had outside air.  The captain did.

I'd be happy to book an IV if it cost less than a similar balcony (sorry, non-window) cabin.

8 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

There is only one way to solve this conundrum.  @zitsky you need to become the TA.

Good news!  Our TA is swapping our booking for a Penthouse suite. Because it’s cheaper than Aqua.  😂

31 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

While I recognize a tendency to sarcasm and sometimes extreme sarcastic positions (takes one to know one), you're also a notorious over planner and over analyzer. You wouldn't have picked a TA without more research than the average bear. Give them a chance.

 

And no, it shouldn't be that simple. That's how you do silly things. The TA SHOULD protect you from yourself!

I’ll see what the travel agent says.  I get slammed for not spending more or wanting to spend less.  You can’t please everyone.

And yes I plan things.  It’s what I get paid to do.  Now leave me be so I can decide when I’ll be eating lunch in 10 months.

1 hour ago, NMTraveller said:

I would think that you could show the deal that you want to your TA and your TA could book that rate.  Why switch TAs unless you are unhappy with their service?

 

 

I’m not saying I’d switch TAs.  I am not saying that’s possible.  It’s a question not a statement.  I think my TA might not be giving me all my choices.  To me this should be as simple as telling the TA that I want to change and she changes the booking. 

In future I can see it would be easier and cheaper to book Aqua then make a small move up bid if we really want a SS.

Solarium?

Casino?

Bars?

Read?

Art Auctions?

25 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Have seen Aqua cheaper than Verandas and Sky Suites cheaper than Aqua.

The problem with doing a check now is fares and promotions are all different.

Yes you can move your booking to Celebrity but if you are in a group block on your TA booking make sure nothing else changes.   Anything your TA provided you would lose.  Moving from one TA to another TA?  I tried and was told no.

Worth a mock booking with Celebrity followed by you comparing.  Then asking Celebrity.   If you are before final payment can you change cabin class?

Oh I did do a mock booking.  That’s why I wanted to check prices with the TA again.  I’ve done 5-6 cruises and I’ve never had any trouble making changes before.  But I’ve never tried to go from suite to something else.  I tried a mock booking on the TA site but I’m not getting a specific price for Aqua.  I’d have to wait for a quote.

7 minutes ago, critterchick said:

Are you looking at the no perks fare for your Aquaclass booking? Depending on when the group was formed, the AQ cabins may still include all four perks - classic drink package, standard Wifi, gratuity and OBC. 

If that’s the case and you don’t want the perks, the TA should still be able to change the booking for you to a no-perks fare.

Sure I get it depends on what group and how it is defined.  Celebrity gives two choices now.  Cruise only and All included.  I always thought I could change before final payment.

18 minutes ago, markeb said:

Have you talked to them since doing your own pricing? As stated above, things may have changed in those two months. They may be able to do what you're seeing. But it wouldn't surprise me for them to have had a better group rate than the rack rates you can see on Celebrity. But if you can now see a rate that's much better that includes everything you want, AND gets you the experience you want, the first step would be to ask the TA to look at the change. But I'd also listen to them if they break any of the "not obvious" parts down to be sure you understand the entire change.

 

But before trying to change TA's on an answer you got two months ago (if I'm reading your post correctly), make sure your current TA's information hasn't changed as well. We had a saying when I was in uniform that the truth has a date-time-group...

Yes I sent a quick short email.  I find it odd that they could have cheaper pricing for SS than for Aqua.  And that their pricing for Aqua is twice the Celebrity price.

7 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Not sure you could change the travel agent then either.

 

IF you can, you'd have to get the current TA to release it, which if it's part of a group booking they may be unwilling to do.

That’s what I thought.  This TA has been mostly reliable but then I’ve never said before “Maybe I’d like to change my booking.”

It’s not the end of the world and the difference won’t break the bank.  But it’s money we could save.

My husband says “we don’t need a butler and Blu is good enough”.  We had a lot of sea days on our South America cruise.  That would be a good time to be in the Retreat.

3 minutes ago, gold1953 said:

You can request Celebrity take over your booking with a valid reason

@gold1953 My reason would be not being sure I’m getting the right figures to change my booking.  But I am not sure how I can be certain if the TA is giving me the right story.

@WrittenOnYourHeart I chose a non refundable deposit which I’ve done several times.  So I don’t think I can cancel.

If I can save 50% I think we would choose to do it.

A couple months ago I was debating changing a Millie booking from Sky Suite to Aqua.  At the time the TA said “I have a group rate and Aqua is more expensive.”  I just went back and looked.  Has anyone ever heard this?

I wonder if I’m getting bad advice.  How do you change TA’s on an existing booking?  I think the current one has to release it and they have no incentive to do so.  I don’t want to switch then have the new TA say the same thing.

Currently Aqua is 50% of a Sky Suite.  I’m not sure for this cruise that a SS is worth it with only 2-3 sea days.

1 hour ago, tschwa2 said:

For my upcoming 13 day cruise it is $339 for 13 days or 10 days for $236.  So actually more per day for the longer period.  On the following cruise they are only selling for all 12 days at $339 only.

 

I would assume day passes are going to be $35-$40 for a single day perhaps with multi day discounts depending on how many pre cruise packages they sold.  

Thanks.  So that's per person yes?  So a bit less than $30 a day?  You know it makes Aqua seem more like a bargain since it includes the spa.  
 

And passes are only sold on board NOT on the website, yes?

1 minute ago, FeelingCruisy said:

I already knew I would get responses like yours when I wrote it.   I'm glad you have had all wonderful encounters but no need to take the extra step around and attack me just because I said what I said.   You don't know me.   

When you call people “horrid bitches”, you should expect a response.  Have you emailed the executive office?