ArtM

The bankruptcy case was adjourned to March 28, 2024.  Then on March 24, 2024, the case was adjourned indefinitely.

"PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that the Auction has been further adjourned to a date and time to be announced by the Debtors.
PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that the Debtors will conduct the Auction via remote videoconference in accordance with the Bidding Procedures. Prior to the Auction, the Debtors will circulate login instructions for the remote videoconference to all parties permitted to attend the Auction under the Bidding Procedures"

Art

One potential benefit is that on-line bookings for cruises beyond April '17 which may only offer a $300 OBC (Go Big).

For on-board bookings, those cruises offer a second amenity, either the drink package or gratuities. The OBC for booking on-board is ranges from $100 to $500 depending on the stateroom category. That additional OBC can be used on the current or the future cruise. There is also a reduced deposit (essentially the amount of the additional OBC) for the future cruise.

How this translates. We just booked an outside stateroom on the Constellation cruise out of Dubai in 2018. We received a total of $475 OBC ($300 Go Big + 175 on board booking incentive) plus the beverage package. Had we booked on-line, the only thing we would have received is the $300 Go Big OBC.

Will there be a better offer next year? Who knows?

There are the usual gotcha's but it is a pretty good deal if one really wants to do a particular cruise.

Art

No luck with a search for this for River Cruises, so . . .

If I make a direct booking with a river cruise line, AMA or Avalon in particular, what are the rules for transferring the booking to a travel agent.

Art

Yes, taxes and fees do go up and down.

If they go up before final payment date, the final payment amount will increase.

If they go down, my experience was that I paid the "original" final payment amount, and then received a credit on-board reflecting the decrease in fees.

I had one cruise where the fees went up, I paid the increased amount, and then received a refund on board after the fees went down.

Art

Up until recently, I had to go through the cabin selection step to find out the fees. I think it is a big improvement to have them listed, fine print or otherwise, on the front page.

With respect to the original question, I have had them go both directions.

One cruise, they went up and later came back down.

As far as cash flow goes, no matter when they come down, even if it is a day after I booked, the money was only returned in the form of refundable OBC.

Art

Don't know whether to believe "Sergio" at the X reservation line, but I called and asked about the Constellation eastbound TA on 9 April 2015. I was told that it was available for booking. I politely said no thanks after hearing the prices.

Don't hold me to the exact numbers, but I was quoted $1956 per person for a 2C and $2496 for a C1 stateroom.

I know the Constellation is popular, but these prices are grossly out of line with the rest of the 2015 eastbound TA's especially considering that this is only a 13 day cruise as compared to 15 and 16 days on the S class ships.

If anyone else is interested in this cruise, please call and see if a different agent provides different numbers. Oh, yes, I gave a positive answer when I was asked about being a Captains Club member.

Art

What's the Constellation April 2015 itinerary, and when does it depart?

It departs April 9, 2015 from Ft Lauderdale. It is 13 days so the itinerary is pretty simple. Fort Luaderdale, Madeira (Funchal), Malaga and Rome.

Art

The April 2015 east bound Constellation TA isn't listed either although it was on the preview list. Not a super itinerary, but it fits with some other plans. Hope it shows up soon or someone hears something.

Art

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

For those of us on the east coast of the US, we can fly non-stop from various east-coast airports to Amsterdam. We usually try to book European cruises that start and end in the Barcelona, Lisbon, Rome, Venice, Amsterdam, Southampton (Heathrow), and Harwich (Heathrow) (or US for TAs) because of non-stop flights and generally 7-9 hours in our case; and sometimes Athens in the summer although the flight is longer.

 

Kathy

Actually, because of the hassle getting to/from the ports from LHR, we would rather fly to nearly any other airport in Europe for a cruise.

From eastern North America, there isn't much variation in cost for different European destinations so convenience matters.

Art

On an upcoming cruise, we had a veranda guarantee. We had our choice of a C3 or Aquaclass guarantee when the prices on those dropped after final payment date to below the cost of our original stateroom.

Some friends who had an inside on the same cruise, upgraded to a veranda guarantee (got a 2 B) at no cost under similar circumstances.

Art

Marriott and Hilton group properties seem to show up rather frequently on Priceline while Holiday Inn properties seem to only show up on Hotwire.

We picked up the Residence Inn in Miramar FL when we wanted to spend a couple days closer to the Keys before a cruise out of Port Everglades. The all in cost was $147 for two nights.

Art

Mrgoalie

Check over on http://www.betterbidding.com

There is some cute stuff over there to help you identify which hotels are being offered on hotwire.

Art

Got the Admiral Fall Inn in Baltimore on 12/11/09. A Priceline 3* bid of $50 (I started at $46 and did two free rebids), total of $71 with fees. The hotel is in the Fells Point area near Little Italy so it should be good for pre-cruise dining and exploration.

The high fees are because according to the Admiral Fell website there is a $10 fee in addition to the room rate. As far as I can tell, this is one of the extra fees that Priceline says a bidder might be subject to. I'll let everyone know in December if that's true with this fee.

Art