Rate drop - reduced by air tax increase ????

[nlond]

Is there someone that can explain this to me? See below statement from TA sent regarding a rate drop I asked about for NH residents. Thanks in advance!

 

I spoke to Royal Caribbean and the 1159.00 rate is for an E3 balcony, you both have E1 balconys next door to each other. The NH resident would have to change her cabin to get the 1159.00 rate.

 

However the E1 balcony NH promotion is 1169.00, they would get a 76.00 pp on board credit but because you have choice air RCCL does not protect the air tax. As of today the air tax is 166.31 and they paid 106.27. The on board credit would be 16.00 per person. I can get them 32.00 on board credit.

[amybeth4]

I think your TA needs to learn how to type clearly because that made no sense to me, lol...

[nlond]

I think what she is saying is they reduced the reduction in the room rate by the increase in the air tax.

 

I have been reading a lot on the boards about room rate drops and no one has ever mentioned this so I though I would ask if anyone heard of RCL doing this.

[mpbmark]

The following observations are based on my own personal experience. Your post reflects one and/or two possible problems.

Initially, most travel agents have a difficult time working up any enthusiasm to help you reduce your cabin fare. That is not to say they are all like that, but a lot of travel agents don't like having to deal with a fare reduction because it reduces the amount of their commission. This obviously presents them with a conflict of interest. On the one hand, they are trying to obtain the best possible price for you, but in doing so, they are taking money out of their own pocket in the form of a reduced commision.

A second issue is the fact that RCCL somehow ties the cabin fare and the airfare together when you make your initial booking. I have never received a satisfactory explanation but they are linked somehow in the RCCL computer and if there is a drop in the cabin fare, the airfare apparently has to be rebooked. For some inexplicable reason, when the air is rebooked, it always seems to be more costly, so that you are unable to take advantage of the reduced cabin fare. In other words, the cost of the new airfare is usually more than the reduction in the cost of the cabin.

It would seem your particular situation falls into the area that I have designated as the second issue. This has happened to me on several occasions and I therefore do not book my airfare with RCCL. I still occasionally use an outside travel agent but only after I have pretty much finalized all of my arrangements for the cruise, the most important items being my cabin location and dining preference.

The onboard credit is most likely being provided by the travel agent and the amount of that OBC is predicated on the amount of the commission. As stated above, the commission will be reduced if the cabin fare is lowered and as a result there is less money available for the travel agent to make available to you as onboard credit.

Hopefully this has not confused you more than you already were. :)

[nlond]

Thanks so much - very helpful. My parents have used this TA for many-many years so she should not object to making any changes, even if they do result in a reduction in her commission. I do think that the second option you refer to is the issue, with the air fare being tied into the room reservation.

[Mark_K]

The following observations are based on my own personal experience. Your post reflects one and/or two possible problems.

 

Initially, most travel agents have a difficult time working up any enthusiasm to help you reduce your cabin fare. That is not to say they are all like that, but a lot of travel agents don't like having to deal with a fare reduction because it reduces the amount of their commission. This obviously presents them with a conflict of interest. On the one hand, they are trying to obtain the best possible price for you, but in doing so, they are taking money out of their own pocket in the form of a reduced commision.

 

A second issue is the fact that RCCL somehow ties the cabin fare and the airfare together when you make your initial booking. I have never received a satisfactory explanation but they are linked somehow in the RCCL computer and if there is a drop in the cabin fare, the airfare apparently has to be rebooked. For some inexplicable reason, when the air is rebooked, it always seems to be more costly, so that you are unable to take advantage of the reduced cabin fare. In other words, the cost of the new airfare is usually more than the reduction in the cost of the cabin.

 

It would seem your particular situation falls into the area that I have designated as the second issue. This has happened to me on several occasions and I therefore do not book my airfare with RCCL. I still occasionally use an outside travel agent but only after I have pretty much finalized all of my arrangements for the cruise, the most important items being my cabin location and dining preference.

 

The onboard credit is most likely being provided by the travel agent and the amount of that OBC is predicated on the amount of the commission. As stated above, the commission will be reduced if the cabin fare is lowered and as a result there is less money available for the travel agent to make available to you as onboard credit.

 

Hopefully this has not confused you more than you already were. :)

I pretty much agree, except that the person with the air tax difference is not using traditional RCI air, but has ChoiceAir which is a new program RCI has that is contracted out to a third party. I don't think it's linked to reservations like the traditional RCI air is.

[Sue L]

I pretty much agree, except that the person with the air tax difference is not using traditional RCI air, but has ChoiceAir which is a new program RCI has that is contracted out to a third party. I don't think it's linked to reservations like the traditional RCI air is.

 

Yes, it is still part of the booking, so if you reprice one part and the others part have changed then you can't do one without the other. Happens also with cruise tours and such if the "tour" portion goes up but the cruise goes down then one could negate the other.

[mpbmark]

I pretty much agree, except that the person with the air tax difference is not using traditional RCI air, but has ChoiceAir which is a new program RCI has that is contracted out to a third party. I don't think it's linked to reservations like the traditional RCI air is.

 

My experience is related to Choice Air. I most recently ran into this problem on my April 2009 cruise from So Am. A real pain and mostly related to a poor agent, I believe. Nevertheless, when I finally reached a supervisor who agreed to speak to me (a big no-no when you have an outside agent), the "tie in" nonsense was used to thwart any attempt to reduce the cabin fare, so at least in my case, they were linked. Maybe something has changed and that would be most welcome.