ldambra

5 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Not really. Not when you buy a limited amount (100 shares) as low as I did. I figure within four cruises I will have come out even...and as mentioned the stock is already around 50% since I purchased it -- so whether I hold it or sell it, it's not likely to be a loss.

 

Truthfully, the onboard credit was the main reason for my purchase. Clearly I feel optimistic about cruising in the future. 

Absolutely! I’m optimistic about cruising next year too. And my post was just to describe a technique.

I bought several hundred shares about three weeks before two Caribbeans and a TA. Soon as I got the confirmation, used the online form, got the credit. Then ‘X’ cancelled. I’ve already sold them all for that 29% profit.

Then I sold another option, far out, where I’ll probably end up with the 100 shares, about a month before our next cruise (mid-21). If I don’t, and it expires worthless, I’ll use the profit to just buy the 100 shares, and then apply for the credit on a B2B ‘X’ TA & British Isles, and one ‘A’ cruise (18 night Norway). Right now the option premiums on RCL are so high it’s just nice to build up cash for the purchase.

I do it in the IRA, so no taxes, generate the trade confo, use the online form, send it in online to RCL and presto, OBC.

Very nice benefit indeed! Thanks for your post.

1 hour ago, mnocket said:

 

Yes I'm talking about a single stock.  My experience of riding a particular stock to zero during the tech crash was meant as a warning to those who are holding a cruise line's stock today.  All the way down, I couldn't imagine it could go down any further.  I was wrong.  There's nothing wrong with taking a flyer and holding a little cruise line stock.  With big risk comes big rewards...... sometimes, but I wouldn't invest an amount where it's total loss would be devastating. 

That’s a really good post.

And it goes directly to the point of why your broker should be directly looking at why you should hedge, and presenting you with other potential investments. Yes, the cruise credit is great, but it’s a pittance compared to potential losses, or gains.

I’m not talking about taking a flyer on options, investing in a hedge fund, or some other crazy strategy.

I’m just saying that if you’re retired, you want to limit your downside risk, and you’re concerned about risk, these are real concerns. After all, you really don’t want to experience large losses after retirement.

Find a “good guy”, and then take his advice! That’s my best advice.

For me, it presented a great opportunity. I like to invest in beaten down stocks and bonds, where I have good hard analytics, and the securities are taking undeserved punishment.

I believe there was an article out today, specifically citing RCL as being in a strong position, compared to the other cruise lines, with cash / credit to “weather the storm”. So, my RCL latest investing experience is detailed below. No taxes either!

In: 3/25/20 at $28.41 Out: 4/24/20 at 36.67 Profit: $8.26 / share or 29% / month.

However the real money was is the options, so I guess I‘ve earned my FCC, plus a good deal more. I’m also very glad to still have three cruises with fantastic itineraries, moved out to mid and late 2021. All my pricing, perks and OBC intact, and very little down.

Lost?

Holy mackerel, I’m up 120%, as of today’s closing market data. Check out the charts.

In Mandarin, the symbol for opportunity, and danger, are extremely similar. Odd coincidence right? Been going on for millennial, just accelerated with the the velocity of today’s markets.

Somewhere, here on CC, I laid out why this might be true. Search my profile to find the post.

See you on another cruise! Hopefully not too far in the future!

4 minutes ago, Oville said:

Where did X report this. We have canceled all our 2020 cruises as well as early 2021.

Well, I officially pronounce you as a genius, because you listened to all  of the official advice, even when others castigated the rest to of us for honesty. 

E-mail reply only.today, totally impossible to get through to a live CVP., as of several days ago.

Thanks for weighing in, nice to know that there are still a few rational individuals left in on the planet!

34 minutes ago, Pushka said:

 

Yes, we plan to do exactly that. Can I throw a spanner in though? Currently even within Australia we cant travel out of our own State (South Australia) because we will have to isolate for 14 days when we return home! We are also not even allowed into Western Australia, Queensland or Tasmania.  We have shut the country down completely except for Victoria and New South Wales. On the other hand, Australia has had less than 100 deaths country wide. 

 

Mmm, so its the 24th July now. Please cancel the 27th for Med Edge Celebrity and get it over with? 

Totally with you.

Sad thing is that we’re still locked down here in South Florida, at least for the long term. Can’t leave our homes without masks, protective equipment, and a valid excuse. No end in sight, anytime soon.

So I can’t provide any of you folks with any more information. Really sorry, but our  municipal, local, state, and national governments don’t want to give us more up-to-date, or any true and forthright info.

As I posted, and was vilified for, 2020 is dead for us. Not my opinion, it’s what X has already posted.

Sorry, Wish I had better news!

31 minutes ago, hcat said:

 

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/04/15/2020-07930/no-sail-order-and-suspension-of-further-embarkation-notice-of-modification-and-extension-and-other

Thanks,

Good post.

You’ve always brought great info to the threads, and we appreciate your quality input, and insightful comments!

Ruth and Larry

22 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

So April 15th plus 100 days is July 24th?  That sounds like the earliest cruises will start for US based cruises?

Yup,

Until they add another 100 days, because we’re not sure yet.

Optimistically, I hope it's done long before.

Thanks! 

29 minutes ago, hcat said:

 

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/04/15/2020-07930/no-sail-order-and-suspension-of-further-embarkation-notice-of-modification-and-extension-and-other

HCAT,

Thanks for that last post. Makes me feel good for posting items on issues, those for which I actually have documentation, and evidence.

It captures the essence of why the purported “misinformation”, info of which many bloggers deny is hurting cruisers. So ... they continue to post about how the whole thing is overblown, and I’m an alarmist. Top number one comment, “We’re still going, no matter what!”. Great until you’re cancelled a week before you try to get on a plane.

Thanks for engaging with fact, not innuendo!

34 minutes ago, Pushka said:

Thank you for that, and indeed informative. We are on Edge which is currently in the US. Somewhere! It's a possibility then, if they can get the ship to leave US that it could do an empty cruise to the Med and avoid those restrictions that cease mid July and restart from there. Our cruise starts July 27 so might be just a tad early but next cruise may go. On the other hand we have a Do Not Travel alert in Australia now so we can't travel anyway. But that isn't Celebrities problem but ours. 

Pushka,

Tough decisions, and the only advice I can legitimately provide, is that you live in a beautiful, diverse, and really large country. Jump in your car, travel at home, support your local businesses, and wait for all of this nonsense to fade away. As it ultimately will over time, but maybe a quite a protracted period of time!

The EU will be more far more restrictive than our US politically motivated leadership. So their restrictions will long extend beyond those of the US. Take the offer for a 100% refund, if that’s what they offer to you, so you can weather the storm, and live well until it all subsides.

Wishing you all the best,

Ruth & Larry 

44 minutes ago, Pushka said:

In the case of Australia we know we won't be allowed to travel overseas until after our winter. Let's say October. We can cancel now, wear the gap payment, and claim the balance. If Celebrity would do the right thing as they know July isn't a goer in Europe then we would receive full refund. 

Pushke,

Not to add to the bazillion points, already discussed here on CC. CC just put new info up on the site:

https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/5275/?et_cid=3326246&et_rid=16875594&et_referrer=Boards

It summarizes many things on our minds, and may provide info that hasn’t shown “down under”, yet.

Ruth & Larry

7 minutes ago, Pushka said:

In the case of Australia we know we won't be allowed to travel overseas until after our winter. Let's say October. We can cancel now, wear the gap payment, and claim the balance. If Celebrity would do the right thing as they know July isn't a goer in Europe then we would receive full refund. 

Yup,

Not only is it 100% true for you Aussies, but I think the Kiwis are in the same situation.

I'm US based, so our terms are different. I’ve taken Celebrity’s offer to cancel everything, for a full refund through the end of 2020. My advice, for what it’s worth, if you wait, you might get a better deal. Look at the Celebrity site for how their “Cruise with Confidence” policy applies to Aussies.

We’ve moved some cruises out to mid-2021, at no cost with only a small down payment required, but only where we had unique itineraries, ones that we really wanted.

My gripe, and it seems to be yours as well, is that the rolling month by month cancellations are making re-planning trip-by-trip both really annoying, and very time consuming. Extremely frustrating.

Best of luck, whatever you decide, hope we see each other onboard again sooner, rather than later.

1 hour ago, Pushka said:

Viking cancelled 3+ months in advance back in March until the end of June. 

I agree with your precept completely. Expanded credit lines, reductions in workforce, and preserving liquidity are exactly what RCL needs to do to weather this potentially disastrous, and quite possibly extremely protracted financial storm.

Slow-rolling reimbursements, expanding the credit line, lengthening out the pace of the “Revolution” (already happening), asking for more time to pay for Edge, Apex & Beyond, along with other prudent financial moves? All necessary.

The cost borne by their loyal employees, that’s a completely different matter, and quite frankly, a very unhappy story.

Boeing is a good model for RCL‘s  perceptions, and a prototypical corporation that also needs to undertake every action necessary to remain viable. In fact, they're pretty much obligated, as is RCL,  to undertake action in response to these unprecedented times.

Hey though, we don’t want to terrify people with the knowledge that their cruises might get cancelled!  Right?could scare them off cruising forever!

1 hour ago, Gracie115 said:

We DID cancel this cruise, unfortunately but not because of anything X did.  Didn't mean to barge in again, but kept getting pinged for posts here.  Hope the cruise still goes and that the rest of you have a wonderful time.

Boy, things have really changed in the twenty years we’ve cruised with X as well. Also, my comment about the dedicated CVP had more to do with my spouse’s mobility issues than our status, just that both events happen to coincide in time.

I appreciated your comment about getting tired of repeatedly getting pinged. I get some pretty nice comments from cruisers I’ve tried to help with port knowledge, and itineraries. In particular scuba excursions, as I’ve been teaching, and organizing trips for both disabled and able-bodied divers, to the islands. I know many good operators who are really desperate already. So, having others, who may not know all, come after us for providing the best available data we have for the benefit of the group, well that’s just getting really tiresome.

Many folks in RCL management are already acknowledging the difficulties the lines will have in complying with likely new guidelines, and CDC/USCG/USPHS regulations. In certain cases, mostly issues with the older ships, it may be impossible to refit ships to even achieve compliance.

So, sadly, as we had some really nice itineraries booked for this year, I too do not believe there will be a European 2020 cruise season. I’m thinking that all international travel will be a bear. Just hoping to have some opportunities soon for the Caribbean, anything beyond South Florida, and the Keys.

Since cruise ships frequently port in the US, and RCL prides itself on “Accessible Cruising”, and already has procedures for handling medical waste like sharps.I wonder how the “Americans With Disabilities Act” (ADA) will play into this new paradigm?

My European friends tell me that the EU has a similar law, although there are significant differences, especially with respect to “grandfathered” facilities? I guess they mean older historic structures, which that wouldn’t apply.in this case. Or maybe it would, at least for the older ships?

Maybe the industry could come up with a pre-cruise medical testing requirement? Just like pre-operative certification procedures, required in the US before you have surgery. Every passenger might have to submit an EKG, bloodwork, chest x-ray, and a note from your doc saying you’re fit. If you’re over fifty, maybe a stress test too, after all you could potentially have a chance of a heart attack occurring on the cruise, right?

Yeah, I’m just kidding, but it does remind of how the TSA went crazy after 9/11, and start confiscating everything. Even fingernail clippers, a very nasty weapon indeed!

Seriously though, we all need to get ready for another completely reactive and disproportionate response to the threat. Sad, but probably true.

25 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

That happens often, all about plane size and schedules.

So ... the US CDC put this out yesterday:

https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/s0409-modifications-extension-no-sail-ships.html

I’m pretty certain that the cruise industry’s response will have to be to suspend cruising to/from US ports from May 11, 2020 for another three month.

How does that affect the participants on this thread?

Thoughts?

Well Lester Holt, on tonight’s US NBC Nightly News, just interviewed a J&J rep. She said that their Corona vaccine will be ready for trials in September. Good News! So this global pandemic will all be over “real soon” now.

I think based on pricing alone, I would definitely upgrade. That said, be sure you are ok with a cabin in any location, and a possible obstruction (we had big window washing equipment right outside our balcony AQ last cruise), or handicapped accessible. Those are the chances you take with GTY. And current availability helps to know, but it also can change as people move cabins, upgrade to higher levels, etc..

My wife and I are leaving on the Jazz cruise on the Equinox tomorrow. Even though we have a nice 2B on the six deck with a great balcony. I’m not all that happy. It’ll be the first time we’re not in Aqua in a very long time. In fact out of nearly forty cruises, mostly S-Class, we’ve been in the exact same cabin or the one next to it thirty times or more.

The problem is wheelchair accessibility. Those cabins sell out so fast, we have to book as soon as they release them, which is usually more than a year in advance. So ask me if I like Aqua? No question there! One deck down and you have the Solarium the AquaSpa Cafe and spa facilities just a couple of steps away. Two decks up and you’re in Sky for the Elite party or some other fun event, and the best sailaway venue on the ship. The theater is five decks straight down.

If it wasn’t for Blu, which is amazing, I might never get to another part of the ship! Nah, just kidding I need the coffee from Al Bacio, once in a while a specialty restaurant, and that occasional trip to the feeding trough in Oceanview. JMHO.

I just wish Royal would get with the times and do what the airlines have done. Homogenize the Crown and Anchor, Captains' Club and Le Club. If they want you to prequalify every so often then ask you to take a cruise every couple of years.

If the airlines can do it, so can the cruise lines. I like American partnering with British, Alaska and the Alliance, it works well and seamlessly. Seems like good business to me! If you're lifetime elite, their database should be able to handle that small issue.

It's silly to be Pinnacle on Royal and downgraded to Elite on Celebrity, likewise the same for Zenith on Celebrity and then Diamond on Royal.

Your best customers, as a company, are your best customers period. Who cares about which brand they choose? The silly policy just means I'll spend less, look at other lines, not cruise more with Royal, and be ticked off.

It's a competitive business, Royal of all companies should know that! And if they're worried about their customer base aging out of Royal and shifting to Celebrity or Azamara, they should be. After all, if you retire and have the time and money to cruise you expect better treatment, not some second class crap like they're proposing for "The Edge" class, I expect that from Cunard, not from Royal.