Dolebludger

Well, as a retired business executive, I do know how competition works. And in this case, Celebrity is charging more for its lux experience than the real lux lines are charging for the real thing. And it has a right to do so. And, on the other hand, we have the right to book a suite on a true lux line for less if we do our homework. In the end, it is up to us to find the best price on what we want.

Yes, NM, you are correct. All cruise prices are shown on web sites with brochure rates crossed out and the REAL rate shown. And when I say that Retreat prices are too high across the board, I speak of REAL prices only. Back late in the last decade I compared REAL prices for the Retreat with REAL prices for lux lines, and the Retreat was the winner. Very lately, I did the same comparison and the Retreat was a real looser (especially due to recent cuts). Competition — I love it!

Well, the problem I see with all of Celebrity’s suite prices on all of their ships is that they cost more than suites on traditional lux lines (Silversea, Regent, Seabourn, etc.). The original marketing concept for the Retreat (and the Yacht Club and the Haven) was to offer accommodations and inclusions in a separate area on a large ship (mass market or slightly premium) that would be much the same as on a lux line at a price less than a lux line. And that was a very good concept. But to price these “separate area” suites higher than those on lux lines they nearly duplicate is not a sustainable concept, IMHO. Several other threads on this sub-forum are full of posts from people who liked the original Retreat concept, but due to the recent higher prices are moving toward (or returning to) the lux lines. People who cruise in the Retreat or on lux lines did not get that way by paying more for anything than was needed to buy it.

We have been at the “Gold” level with Regent for some time, so we get a total of three hours free phone time. But we have never used it at all! If we have to contact somebody “back home” we just email them. Now, we all know that sometimes Regent’s WiFi doesn’t work. But those times usually are fairly short before it comes back enough to send a simple email (no pics or anything). Since the subject came up here I think I’ll try the phone next cruise. But a question. How do we know when we have used up our free time?

Just a different question about Great Stirrup Cay. I’ve heard that NCL cruisers who stop there find that food, drinks, and many activities are at additional charge. Is the same true in the case of Regent guests?

In our recent cruise price/value research, we certainly did not find Silversea to be twice the price of The Retreat. In fact, in many cases, we found Silversea to be less expensive than The Retreat. Of course, Silversea may well be twice the per diem of other levels of Celebrity accommodations that do not include what Silversea and The Retreat do. We too feel that the dress code on Silversea (both official and unofficial) is a bit dressy for us. We find Regent’s dress code and guest’s practices to be much the same as Celebrity. Regent also offers inclusions that The Retreat does not — like unlimited valet laundry services and unlimited use of mini fridge items and restocking. We also found Regent to be less expensive than The Retreat in most cases. Bottom line, our cost/value comparisons did not favor The Retreat. But in many categories below The Retreat, Celebrity’s cost/value relationship looked quite good.

pappy, the other thread here dealt with the fact that Regent is now not including land transfers and embarkation port hotel (concierge suite and above) in Barbados. These services are what I mean by the term “destination services”. The people who provide theses services are independent contractors. But they are (or should be) managed by Regent employees who are also called “destination services”. Clear, I hope.

Along these lines, according to another thread here, Regent is not providing any destination services in Barbados. Guests embarking there must take the credit and set up their own transfers and hotel. I don’t know why, but I think Regent would provide these things if it could.

I have been told that the destination services people on land are contractors, and not employees of Regent. That may be part of the problem.

I think my post #47 above was an error on my part. Not on topic, and makes no sense. Oh, well, I’ll be 80 in four weeks. That is my excuse!

To my observation is that all of those who have gotten the current Coved vac, and all prior suggested vacs, are very unlikely to either get it or transmit it to others. That is highly recommended before travel. E 95 masks do a moderate job of preventing the wearer from getting it, and a much better job at preventing infections from the wearer to spread. First defense is from the vac. If you are so fully vaxed and wear a mask only when in a crowd, all should be fine. This may be unneeded advice, but Cary your Covid vax record with you, in case there are new rules in some ports that pop,up. Other than that, worry only about booking flights to the embarkation port that allow you to get to the embarkation, even if there are some airline foul ups — because these seem to be happening all the time. There is no reason for the cruise onboard experience to be less than seamless.

Tony k the hsvebr=the new vivid vac for the expected new dyraim

If the routes of the flights to your embarkation don’t take you near Russia, Ukraine, Israel, or Gaza, there should not be a problem visiting Oz and NZ and cruising there. The real problem with your cruise plans MIGHT be the unreliability of the airline travel these days. Ensure that you have travel insurance that covers forced overnights caused by airline delays and cancellations, and schedule flights to the embarkation port to arrive at least a day before ship departure. If it is a very long international flight with several connections, perhaps schedule two or three days early. As we are both quite old, we keep our vaccinations for Covid and flu very current, wear masks in crowded airports, and on planes during boarding. On ships (and other places) we avoid crowds. We would like an Oz and NZ cruise except for one thing. We live in the middle of the USA, and friends that have flown from here to OZ (even before current air travel problems) have reported 30 hours of airlines and airports each way. We know we are too old for that stuff! If we weren’t, we’d go and just take care as I’ve described above

I think I may know the problem. As I mentioned before, there seems to be a shortage of service labor, and it seems to be world wide. after the pandemic, it became so bad where I live that I considered moving elsewhere. Then I talked to some people who live here I was considering, and learned it was as bad there! On our Regent Alaska cruise the land services through Regent’s contractors were horrible — thankfully we had booked our own. Onboard, all was great. Getting home, the airline was all fouled up. It seems (I hope) that the lux cruise lines have found a way to still provide good service. I wish the rest of the service and hospitality industry would also.

FWIW, we are more concerned about lack of reliability of air to and from the ship than any other factor. In the past year, we have been stranded three times with a United connection in Denver and had uncompensated forced overnights there. On one occasion, it was going to take three day for it to get us to Boston. All we could get was a flight home the next day, and refund of ticket price — but we still didn’t get to Boston. Not bashing the airlines, as I know they have problems. Just questioning whether they have recovered from the pandemic and following labor shortage to provide reliable service to and from a cruise. But if a cruise line cancels your cruise, all but one I know of gave a cash refund (that one was not Celebrity).

With us, it is not a matter of Celebrity not being “nice enough”. By way of background, we don’t like to cruise where we use big ship MDRs, crowded lounges, and lines and crowds everywhere. Thus, when we have cruised Celebrity, it was in the Retreat. We certainly found that “nice enough” and I’m confident it would still be. The thing we liked about the Retreat was that it was as “nice” as a small ship lux cruise. The benefits were that we could book a suite (like a CS) that was larger than what we would book on a lux line, and (when we cruised in the Retreat) the cost was less. Now the cost is more than the smaller ship lux lines. So it is not a matter of the Retreat not being “nice enough” — it is just too expensive. Especially as some of the perks in the Retreat (or at least some levels of it) appear to have been eliminated.

I believe Oceania includes beer and wine at dinner and lunch now without a package, which was not the case in 2020. Now the drink package gives one most alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks in all lounges. The change, I believe, is a case of a cruise line trying to meet competition. Between 2020 and now, many lines began to find ways to make drinks less like cigarettes in prison! Now I fear that too many are going back to nickel and dimming. But Oceania’s drink package now includes drinks all over the ship, and one gets beer and wine at lunch and dinner without the package. Now, check out my info before you book, as things change, and I have never cruised Oceania. I have cruised it’s “big sister” Regent, where all drinks onboard have been included since around 2004.

We have been Regent cruisers historically. But in 2018 we were on a music cruise on X in a CS, and felt that it was the same experience for less cost. So our next cruise was booked on X in a RS. After the pandemic when we felt comfortable in cruising again, we checked out the X Retreat and were shocked at the increase in prices. They were higher than Regent for even a SS. So we booked Regent, and discovered no decrease in quality and service compared to our pre-pandemic experiences. So, as a better alternative to the Retreat, we returned to Regent. I think the original marketing concept for the Retreat (and Haven and Yacht Club) was to provide a lux experience on a large ship, at prices less than the lux lines. That is not the case now with the Retreat.

Apparently, and few changes appear acceptable to us.

When did you cruise? SS no longer have butlers, as I understand it. The SS have overworked “Retreat hosts” that work in rotation among the suites.

They are, if you want to walk to the Retreat Lounge, get the soft drinks, and carry them back to your suite. Kind of a cheesy situation at lux cruise prices.

Well, this is a real mystery as to what CS does and doesn’t get regarding in suite drinks. All I know is what was furnished to us back in 2018. I think the problem is that we don’t really know what will be the rule for any X suite now and in the future.

I I read that right here. If I is not true (I hope it is not) it would be great if guests in CS could get cokes and beer from their suite fridge without having to pay “bar prices” for it.

Thanks, but in 2019 in a RS we got laundry daily. Apparently that benefit is not quite up to what we got then, but it is still a good benefit, if only a RS cruise were priced similar to 2019!

Well, as there have been changes — not always “official” — but changes in what guests actually receive, I have a question. When we were in a RS in 2019, we received included valet laundry. Don’t know if this was an “official” perk of the RS, but I know we go it. Is valet laundry still actually included in the RS fare?