ES price drop guaranteed. Why do we have to do the work?

[thomarvin]

On CCL website it says for ES, "If the price drops, your rate drops, guaranteed" So why do we should we even need to submit the price guarantee form? They shoud be doing it automatically. But they don't. How many people dont know that and pay more because they assume CCL means what they say.

[katiel53]

On CCL website it says for ES, "If the price drops, your rate drops, guaranteed" So why do we should we even need to submit the price guarantee form? They should be doing it automatically. But they don't. How many people dont know that and pay more because they assume CCL means what they say.

 

I think most people booking ESA know they need to follow up and submit or have their TA submit the form. To me, it's like buying a shirt. You pay a price today and tomorrow the store has a sale and the price of the shirt is less. The store is not going to contact you to tell you there is a lower price for the shirt and if you want the lower price you need to return the shirt and re-buy it.

 

Carnival is a for profit company and it would be foolish on their part to waste their employees time looking for price drops. It's to their advantage to keep the price as it is unless you notify them. I"m sure they feel that by booking ESA you probably got the lowest price available at the time of booking and if you want to pay less, then you do the work checking for it. Makes good business sense to me!

[hankandteri]

I see your point but I don't mind playing the ES game.

 

I'd love to know what percentage of people who booked using ES and qualify for OBC and then never apply for it. A lot, I'll bet, and I'm sure Carnival would never share that info.

 

Since I am fanatic about checking the rates, I know I'll get my price drops ($140 in OBC so far for next month's cruise). If they applied these automatically to everyone who booked ES, then the company would be giving up revenue (a bunch of revenue, I bet) and the offer might not be so generous.

 

So I figure those of us who book ES and check the rates consistently are winning the game.

[thomarvin]

but "stores dont say "if the price drops your price drops. GUARENTEED" They should say, "we'll give you a good rate. Come back and check often to see if we dropped it some more. If you do, we will give you the new rate"

 

BTW we have had our cabin have a $400 price drop since January.

[Frank12]

If it was automatic, everyone would get it. Half the customers probably do not bother with submitting price drop forms, so the cruise line makes more money that way.

[jks336]

BUT, when you look at the fine print (like any company does) it states the "rules" for getting that lower rate. and it is "guaranteed" you just have to see that rate, screen shot, and send in the request form. :)

 

just like car company comercials... you get this for that! yeah, look at the fine print before that comercial moves, states the Xamount of percentage is for great credit, oh yeah, an dyou have to drop 2500 down payment. same principle.

 

as other poster stated, they are a company that needs to make a profit like any other

[misstopgun]

LOL. Don't hate me but I will tell you what I tell my managers at work. "If it was easy, anybody could do it."

 

Seriously, those that choose this option have the time and patience to make it work for them. If you don't, don't do it. I have often opted for other offers such as military or past guest because the price was low enough not to be upset if I lost out on some savings. ES can be a hassle.

[klmorg]

You don't HAVE to do any of the work. It's your choice. Many people don't even know they can do this. For me, I book ES and submit for price drops because it takes about one minute to submit it, and I like the savings. ;)

[mondello]

The ES guarantee is like stores that offer rebates all the time. It looks like a great deal but they know a certain percentage of people will not meet the terms required.

[luv2trvlnow]

I just wish you didn't have to fill out the form to get the price drop and then wait to see if it is approved. Before final payment the people who booked other rates get to call in and get the reduction immediately. We wait and then sometimes get denied and have no reason why. Happened to my son once. Good thing the lower rate was still available when he asked why it was denied. They could not figure out why. He was finally given the price drop.

Why can't those on ES get the price drop before final payment just be calling? Believe it or not most of our price drops have come before final payment. We have to work to get the lower rate while those on other rates get the reduction with a simple phone call.

Sharon

[CRUISE4JANE]

I see your point but I don't mind playing the ES game.

 

I'd love to know what percentage of people who booked using ES and qualify for OBC and then never apply for it. A lot, I'll bet, and I'm sure Carnival would never share that info.

 

Since I am fanatic about checking the rates, I know I'll get my price drops ($140 in OBC so far for next month's cruise). If they applied these automatically to everyone who booked ES, then the company would be giving up revenue (a bunch of revenue, I bet) and the offer might not be so generous.

 

So I figure those of us who book ES and check the rates consistently are winning the game.

 

I'm winning the game. So far I have had $470 in price drops. There were 4 of them and they all came within 2 1/2 weeks time. Now I will be checking for OBCs. :)

 

You don't HAVE to do any of the work. It's your choice. Many people don't even know they can do this. For me, I book ES and submit for price drops because it takes about one minute to submit it, and I like the savings. ;)

 

Yep, one minute to submit, but a lot of days checking haha. :eek::p

[kmbp66]

lucky bunch of people...I'm ES too and our cabin has done nothing but gone up....we are paid in full....21 days until we sail...there are 10 cabins left on our deck and the price is still HIGH.......:eek:

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I just wish you didn't have to fill out the form to get the price drop and then wait to see if it is approved. Before final payment the people who booked other rates get to call in and get the reduction immediately. We wait and then sometimes get denied and have no reason why. Happened to my son once. Good thing the lower rate was still available when he asked why it was denied. They could not figure out why. He was finally given the price drop.

 

Why can't those on ES get the price drop before final payment just be calling? Believe it or not most of our price drops have come before final payment. We have to work to get the lower rate while those on other rates get the reduction with a simple phone call.

 

Sharon

 

 

To each his or her own...I'd much rather fill out the form than call each time. I'm in almost constant meetings throughout the day--I check for price drops during a meeting. If I'm lucky enough to find one, I fill out the form and send it in. If I had to call for it, I might never get a credit! :D

[adamsfly]

I had no clue about price drops on my last two cruises, now I know better. I check the rates 4-5 times a day! On 4 occasions, on my last check of the day, the rates went down and I submitted my price protection form.

 

Thanks to all CC members here, I've learned alot :)!!

 

I made my final payment today and I look forward to possibly more rate drops and seeing OBC.

[mitsguy2001]

I think that there are 2 reasons, similar to companies that offer a rebate when you purchase something. First of all is because of a person's value of time. Someone who has a lot of money but not a lot of free time may not want to bother searching for cheaper fares, and just be willing to pay their original fare. Someone with a lot of free time but is short on money would be more willing to frequently check for price reductions. Secondly, Carnival makes more money off of people who don't check for fare reductions. In economics, they call it "price discrimination", even though the word "discrimination" is not intended to have negative connotations in this context.

[klmorg]

I'm winning the game. So far I have had $470 in price drops. There were 4 of them and they all came within 2 1/2 weeks time. Now I will be checking for OBCs. :)

 

 

 

Yep, one minute to submit, but a lot of days checking haha. :eek::p

 

Yeah, but that only takes a minute as well, using the fareviewer site. I enjoy the game...:D

[thomarvin]

I am just saying that their wording is very deceptive. The way it is worded makes is seem as though your rate drops automatically. I think they need to re-word their ad.

 

I too have learned all this from CC friends.

 

p.s. we are down $490 on one of our cabins. the other (suite) keeps going up.

[Tahmay]

I see your point but I don't mind playing the ES game.

 

I'd love to know what percentage of people who booked using ES and qualify for OBC and then never apply for it. A lot, I'll bet, and I'm sure Carnival would never share that info.

 

Since I am fanatic about checking the rates, I know I'll get my price drops ($140 in OBC so far for next month's cruise). If they applied these automatically to everyone who booked ES, then the company would be giving up revenue (a bunch of revenue, I bet) and the offer might not be so generous.

 

So I figure those of us who book ES and check the rates consistently are winning the game.

 

Last year I got married and the next day left on Carnival Freedom for my honeymoon. I booked ES, but was so distracted by planning my wedding that I didnt ONCE look on carnival.com to see if the price went down, which I am sure it did. This year I was a psycho about checking it, and you know I am beyond excited about spending my OBC!!

[klmorg]

I am just saying that their wording is very deceptive. The way it is worded makes is seem as though your rate drops automatically. I think they need to re-word their ad.

 

I too have learned all this from CC friends.

 

p.s. we are down $490 on one of our cabins. the other (suite) keeps going up.

 

Congrats on the price drops! I think the wording is pretty clear though...

 

"In the unlikely event that you do find a lower Carnival-advertised rate* after booking your cruise, we will honor it and adjust your cruise rate accordingly. Simply fill out the Price Protection Claim form and we'll take care of the rest. If you booked your cruise with a travel agent and need to make a Price Protection Claim, simply contact your travel agent and they will submit it for you."

 

 

"If, after booking, you find a lower Carnival advertised fare, Carnival will honor it, issuing the difference in the form of a non-refundable onboard credit. The lower fare must be: i) for the same ship, sailing, stateroom category and number of guests; ii) available for booking at the time you submit your request for the lower rate; and iii) a rate you are eligible to receive, if special restrictions apply."

[Jsaxm]

I'm in the same scenario. My wife and I have an aft wrap on the spirit and for one, all the cabins are sold out, which means I can't even check the prices to see if there's a drop. So, basically I'm screwed, haha!!

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I'm in the same scenario. My wife and I have an aft wrap on the spirit and for one, all the cabins are sold out, which means I can't even check the prices to see if there's a drop. So, basically I'm screwed, haha!!

 

 

Well, not totally. :p If a higher category price goes below waht you paid for your aft wrap, you can get OBC for the difference. It's worth checking--you never know. :D

[CRUISE4JANE]

Yeah, but that only takes a minute as well, using the fareviewer site. I enjoy the game...:D

 

The game goes like this. When you don't see a price drop, you frown :( and when you see a price drop, that face turns into the biggest smile :D.

[T. Advisor King]

It's a goofy system because, of course, it is a hassle and time-consuming to check for price drops, and drops don't even necessarily take effect for an entire day, so you could check the price every single day for six months and still not get a price drop because you didn't check at the right time on one day.

 

While it is debatable whether the style in which the "rate" is promoted is misleading (the rules are fairly clear), it is also obvious that they provide this guarantee because they know it is something they can give away that will cost Carnival nothing to provide for most of their customers.

 

An earlier poster indicated that Carnival is a for-profit business and their employees don't have time to search for price drops for all their customers. I'm not sure if that comment was exceptionally naiive or not. Clearly, with the sophisticated billing and rate setting system that Carnival has, they could easily set it up so that price drops are automatically credited.

 

But they don't because they can "sell" the guarantee and they never have to honor it, in what I would guess is the vast majority of cases.

[katiel53]

I'm in the same scenario. My wife and I have an aft wrap on the spirit and for one, all the cabins are sold out, which means I can't even check the prices to see if there's a drop. So, basically I'm screwed, haha!!

 

Sorry, but I don't agree totally. On our last cruise, Dream in Feb, we had an 8D cabin and there were none left. A few days before our cruise, I guess some people moved to higher priced cabins so two cabins in our category became available.

 

The price for those cabins was $200 less than what we paid, so we got the price reduction. This was only about a week or so before sailing, so keep watching. After we got the OBC, we decided to upgrade to a Spa balcony and we did that for only a few dollars. We then got a price reduction on that one too just three days before sailing. Good luck!

[lbow2006]

I've been checking on ours daily, but so far it's been the exact same price since I booked (about 2-3 weeks ago). There are 20 rooms currently left in our category and we sail in 5mths so I don't know if that's good/bad for our odds of finding a lower price, but I'm going to keep checking since it can't hurt.

 

Glad you posted this though b/c we got the ES rate and I didn't realize we had to submit a form vs call in. So as long as you have a screen shot printed off of the price and send it in w/ your form you should be alright? I mean by the time they receive the form that price may be gone so I'm hoping that I'm correct that the screen shot is sufficient.