Cost to add 2nd person to existing single reservation

[BethV114]

Hello all. We've cruised before, but this is a new situation for us, so I'm hoping you can help.

 

We booked our mother to go with us on a cruise in January. She was originally booked as a single traveler in a cabin and, as such, was charged the entire double occupancy fare for the cabin. We know cabins are priced based on double occupancy, so this was not a problem for us. Her fare at the time was $1,289 plus taxes of $45.91 and we elected to pre-pay gratuities of $80.50.

 

Now, she recently spoke with a friend who might be interested in joing her/us on the cruise and we've decided that we would still help pay for the cruise for my mom and only ask that the friend pay any additional costs (i.e. taxes and gratuities for an additional person). I e-mailed our TA and the price she quoted me to add the friend is $295, which is a bit higher than what we had thought it would be.

 

In our mind, my mother is already booked at the full double occupancy fare of the cabin, so the only change in price should be the additional taxes/fees and gratuities. Is this not correct? I know that $295 to joint the cruise is a bargain either way, but I want to make sure that no one is paying more than they have to. Based on the quote the TA gave me, it appears as though they would now be charging the increased rate for the ocean view cabin we have booked. Does that make sense? It seems to me that since the cabin is already booked, the price should be locked in, but perhaps I'm wrong?

 

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[bellybutton530]

Since I am booked in a suite, and have to pay a double deposit, I booked as a single. I questioned my TA about a month ago about the cost of adding another person, and was quoted only the taxes and fees for the second person. She told me that I had locked in the rate when I booked earlier this year, and would not be subject to price increases unless I canceled and rebooked.

 

 

[Buckeye94]

Similar situation here. I was going to go alone, but then I made an offer my sister couldn't refuse :) Namely, pay the difference and her own airfare, and she's got a cruise. Her portion was a little higher than I expected, and here's what I figured out: 1. taxes and gratuities were assessed individually and 2. the solo supplement wasn't exactly 200% of the fare, more like 197%. So, when she picked up her taxes, gratuities and 3% fare difference, the math worked. Hope that helps!

[BethV114]

Since I am booked in a suite, and have to pay a double deposit, I booked as a single. I questioned my TA about a month ago about the cost of adding another person, and was quoted only the taxes and fees for the second person. She told me that I had locked in the rate when I booked earlier this year, and would not be subject to price increases unless I canceled and rebooked.

 

 

 

Thanks for your response Cheryl. This is the way we feel that it should work - we booked early and locked in the rate for the cabin - but I think our TA is quoting us the cost to add a person at the current rate (i.e. the difference between initial booking rate and current rate) plus taxes/fees. That doesn't seem quite right to me, so I did question her and am waiting to see what her response is.

[Xport]

Several years ago, I added a second guest to a reservation that I'd made--initially as a solo traveler--directly with Celebrity...

 

At the time...

• Celebrity preserved my basic original pricing despite the fact that the cruise was selling at a higher price [for my cabin category] at the time I added the second guest...
  
• My guest did pay the increase in port taxes/fees [in your case, $45.91/person] plus the incremental, per person gratuities [in your case, $80.50/person]...
  

Unless Celebrity's policies have changed--or your Travel Agent charges a change fee--I would not expect an increase of the magnitude you cite... Suggest you ask your Travel Agent to verify with Celebrity...

[BethV114]

Similar situation here. I was going to go alone, but then I made an offer my sister couldn't refuse :) Namely, pay the difference and her own airfare, and she's got a cruise. Her portion was a little higher than I expected, and here's what I figured out: 1. taxes and gratuities were assessed individually and 2. the solo supplement wasn't exactly 200% of the fare, more like 197%. So, when she picked up her taxes, gratuities and 3% fare difference, the math worked. Hope that helps!

 

 

Well, I did ask my TA to break down what the price she quoted me entails. She had simply stated a figure of $295, and I wrote back asking her for more information to pass along to my mother and her friend. So hopefully she can shed some light on the subject. I'm fairly certain, however, that my mother did get charged the full double occupancy rate for the cabin, and she actually even had to pay deposit of $500 because she was a single fare.

[Xport]

I'm fairly certain, however, that my mother did get charged the full double occupancy rate for the cabin, and she actually even had to pay deposit of $500 because she was a single fare.

 

While deposit amounts vary by cruise length and for suites, I've never had to pay double the appropriate per person deposit--whether I booked through Celebrity [by phone or while aboard ship] or through my Travel Agent--as a result of traveling solo... The incremental amount has always been due at final payment...

[BethV114]

While deposit amounts vary by cruise length and for suites, I've never had to pay double the appropriate per person deposit--whether I booked through Celebrity [by phone or while aboard ship] or through my Travel Agent--as a result of traveling solo... The incremental amount has always been due at final payment...

 

Usually, I don't believe that you are required to pay double deposit for a solo traveler. However, the promotion that our TA booked us under, which gave my mom a $100 obc, required that the deposit be paid on a double occupancy basis.

[Xport]

It's possible but, with all due respect, I've never seen a Celebrity-sponsored promotion--booked through them or my travel agent--that requires a solo to pay a double deposit under any circumstances [including receipt of Onboard Credit provided by the cruise line]...

 

We all ought make our travel arrangements through a source we trust and your agent may be totally trustable... But, if this is a condition that your travel agent has imposed--in essence to improve the cash flow of his/her business [ie; collect early/remit to the cruise line later] in exchange for an Onboard Credit that might be coming from the cruise line and might be coming from the travel agency--I might personally, especially in times of economic uncertainty, consider getting a quote/terms from a second travel agent next time...

[Ma Bell]

The majority of the increase is probably port charges. A single only pays port charges for one.

[BethV114]

It's possible but, with all due respect, I've never seen a Celebrity-sponsored promotion--booked through them or my travel agent--that requires a solo to pay a double deposit under any circumstances [including receipt of Onboard Credit provided by the cruise line]...

 

We all ought make our travel arrangements through a source we trust and your agent may be totally trustable... But, if this is a condition that your travel agent has imposed--in essence to improve the cash flow of his/her business [ie; collect early/remit to the cruise line later] in exchange for an Onboard Credit that might be coming from the cruise line and might be coming from the travel agency--I might personally, especially in times of economic uncertainty, consider getting a quote/terms from a second travel agent next time...

 

 

Actually, we've used this travel agency several times in the past and have found them to be quite trust worthy. The TA we book the cruise with is not the same person who "services" it after booking, and that's where we occasionally run into trouble. For what it's worth, the agency is one of the larger advertisers here on Cruise Critic and has the same initials, so I'm not worried from that aspect. If they tell me they need to book the cabin based on the full double occupancy fare due to the current promotion, then I believe them.

[Ma Bell]

The majority of the increase is probably port charges. A single only pays port charges for one.

 

Beth,

 

I think you might have missed the answer because you were posting the same time I was.:)

[cruisestitch]

Holiday cruises sometimes require higher deposits and I think I remember seeing that singles must pay higher deposits for them, so maybe there are other cruises with the same requirements.

[Xport]

Holiday cruises sometimes require higher deposits and I think I remember seeing that singles must pay higher deposits for them, so maybe there are other cruises with the same requirements.

 

I am aware that holiday cruises require final payment earlier [i believe it's 90 days prior to sailing] than non-holiday cruises do [75 days prior to sailing] but had never heard of or experienced a higher deposit amount for a holiday cruise [in fact, I have one booked now]...

 

Thanks for the insight; it's news to me...

[dtagirl]

Just a quick answer for you, the port charges are $169.00 per person, so your mom is only paying that once. So for her friend, take the $169.00 plus the taxes of say $47.00 and add the gratuities, the total is close to the $295.00 your agent quoted. There is no increase in your cruise rate!

Hope this helps!

 

Pat

[TMLAalum]

We haven't had the same situation you are experiencing, but the TA service we use, which doesn't provide a specific "agent", will always call Celeb and have us hold while the "agent du jour" speaks directly to someone at Celeb. For example, when we wanted to link reservations with friends who used a different TA, initially our agency rep didn't know that it could be done, but when I told her our friends TA said we needed to call ours, the rep called Celeb and together they linked us.

 

I suggest calling your TA again and ask that they speak to Celeb while you are on hold and request that the TA tell you exactly why you are being charged what you are.

[CapeCodCottage]

Hi Beth,

 

Out of curiosity I visited the Celebrity Website and selected the January 28, 2012 Southern Caribbean cruise on the Summit and picked an Ocean View stateroom (Category 6). At today's prices a single person would be charged $1,306 CAD plus taxes of $48 for a grand total of $1354.

 

Picking the same category based on 2 persons occupying the same stateroom it indicates a charge of $738 per person for a total of $1,476 CAD plus taxes of $96 for a grand total of $1,572.

 

In this case the variance is $170 ($1,306 single versus $1,476 double).

 

Assuming that the variance equates to port charges of $169 + 45.91 taxes + 80.50 tips = 295.41 to add your mom’s friend.

 

I'd still wait to hear back from your travel agent but I would agree with Pat’s earlier post. It appears to be a fair fare.

[Ma Bell]

Gee, I agree with Pat too.;)

[kitty9]

I think the amount sounds fair. The port fees and taxes are high, but they sound about right.

 

As for the higher deposit for a solo, I've been on about 25 Celebrity cruises as a solo and never paid double deposit, not even when I booked a Royal Suite for myself.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

If they tell me they need to book the cabin based on the full double occupancy fare due to the current promotion, then I believe them.

 

Well, if they tell you that, they'll be lying. I just booked myself into a cabin that my sister has had booked for some time. Same reduced deposit of $100 that she paid because of booking on board and my cruise fare is exactly what she paid. The cruise fare has gone up considerably since then.

 

So, she had this cabin held all this time with a single deposit. Cheryl had to pay double because she reserved a suite. They now charge a double deposit on suites.

[playfulMD]

Hi there. I was reading your posts this morning and found myself saying "me too" several times. I also booked this for my birthday, was going to go alone, then made a friend an offer they couldn't refuse. Look forward to meeting you on the cruise.

/Elizabeth

 

 

Similar situation here. I was going to go alone, but then I made an offer my sister couldn't refuse :) Namely, pay the difference and her own airfare, and she's got a cruise. Her portion was a little higher than I expected, and here's what I figured out: 1. taxes and gratuities were assessed individually and 2. the solo supplement wasn't exactly 200% of the fare, more like 197%. So, when she picked up her taxes, gratuities and 3% fare difference, the math worked. Hope that helps!

[Christine Frances]

I booked our Baltic cruise onboard the Infinity. I booked this one in just my name with plans to add DH closer to final. I was told that my single booking price was less than double (180-190% I think) so I knew I would have to come up with some more $$$ later. Here are the figures and someone with better math skills can figure out the actual percentage:o This is in CAD $'s

 

Single Occ $6499 + $219 tax = $6718

Double Occ $3429 x 2 = $6858 + $438 tax = $7296

 

These figures are from dummy bookings on X's website but they match my invoice.

 

Difference is $578 of which $219 is tax = $359

 

Clear as mud?:D

[kenevenpar]

Hi there. I was reading your posts this morning and found myself saying "me too" several times. I also booked this for my birthday, was going to go alone, then made a friend an offer they couldn't refuse. Look forward to meeting you on the cruise.

/Elizabeth

 

Just so you are aware, the OP was from Aug 2011. They may or may not have already cruised.

[garycarla]

Just so you are aware, the OP was from Aug 2011. They may or may not have already cruised.

 

Thanks for pointing this out.

 

So, I will ask, which is more annoying?

 

A) Someone bringing back an old post of maybe a year ago, or longer?

 

or

 

B) Someone starting a new message thread asking the same question that is currently being discussed right on the first page?

[Christine Frances]

Darn, missed that:o