pricing complaint, am I missing something

[Cruise Arizona]

Our teens get a two week spring break, and being that they are not getting any younger we are seriosly considering changing our current cruise plans so that we can vacation with them instead of just us.

 

So we have to hit a March 16 to March 31 window and we have looked at several options.

 

At the top of our list is back to back East/West Caribbean on the Silhouette in a balcony for nearly 8K.

 

We also priced the exact same itinerary with HAL. They offer the option to book the same itenerary as a 14 day rather than BTB. I was shocked that their price, unless I'm missing something, is about $1400 less for 4 people for nearly the same itinerary.

 

We are elite with Celebrity and for the two btb I figure we get about $1000 perks, so why not save the 1400 and book with HAL.

 

Why the big price difference???

[MicCanberra]

I am not sure if there is something amiss, but when I cruise, the dates and itinerary comes first, and price second. If I can get a cheaper deal with the same itinerary (albeit with a different line), I book it. Mic:D

[alcpa1]

I can't help very much with the pricing but I can guarantee that your youngsters won't be happy on a HAL cruise.

Two week cruises, or almost anything longer than a week in March will have very few teens. Add HAL into the mix and your kids will not be happy. The passengers will definitely be older - think 70's and above.

March is prime season for school vacations and thus the price differential. You also don't mention which categories you are comparing nor the HAL ship. It is not comparing apples to apples to be sure.

Week cruises in March sell quickly so you may have already misses the lower fares for the

Silhouette. There could be fare drops to watch for in the future but there's no guarantee.

You may want to expand your search to include other cruise lines with a few port changes that will still work for the entire family.

Do really think about your teens on a HAL ship for two weeks. I wouldn't do it to my kids and we have sailed both lines and a few others.

[Gonzo70]

Supply and Demand. The cruise lines sell staterooms for as much money as they can. If the HAL cruise is selling a similar itinerary for a lot less, many more people are desiring the Celebrity product and/or particular ship over the HAL product and/or particular ship. HAL is a nice line, but definitely caters to an older crowd than Celebrity with more of a focus on elegance than being chic. My guess is that few teens would find a cruise on HAL to be of much interest.

[hypercafe]

Beside the older pass on HAL, HAL does not have a ship that can compare to Silhouette in size, lively decor, or just things to do.

[Cruise Arizona]

Here are a few more details.

 

The HAL ship is the Zuiederdam, and they offer one 7 day Eastern Caribbean followed by one 7 day Western Caribbean, just like we would be booking on Celebrity. The difference is that HAL allows pax to book them as one cruise in addition to offering them separately. Both cruises would be during poplular spring break weeks.

 

So my thinking is 7 day cruise on any line during spring break will have lots of kids.

 

Truthfully we are leaning towards Celebrity, but price difference was just really shocking to me. I have cruised HAL before, but one was as a teen on a Christmas cruise in 1980, and the other was our Honeymoon in 1993. Both were wonderful experiences, but probably not as good as what Celebrity offers today. MIL just took a HAL cruise at Christmas and loved it. I think of them as a comperable but different product than Celebrity. We spent all our evenings in the Piano bar on the HAL cruise in 1993 as we found that to be the most fun place for us.

 

PS, Kids don't want to do HAL either, and Celebrity is their first choice.

[biker1972]

Have you looked at Royal? You are Diamond on Royal and their ships are very teen friendly. During spring break they would be ideal for the kids.

[hypercafe]

I would not go on the Zuiderdam, I just got off. The ship has AC and plumbing issues and is woren in general. Also the decor is stuck in the 60's IMO. Check the HAL board for pros and cons. If I were a teen I would not like it.

[Cruise Junky]

I would not go on the Zuiderdam, I just got off. The ship has AC and plumbing issues and is woren in general. Also the decor is stuck in the 60's IMO. Check the HAL board for pros and cons. If I were a teen I would not like it.

 

I would pay extra to NOT sail on Zuiderdam

[Karynanne]

Suzanne, I agree with the poster who suggested Royal. My brother, wife and kids (then teens, now in early 20's) have cruised Royal for years and love the atmosphere, activities on the line.

[jerseygirl3]

Our teens get a two week spring break, and being that they are not getting any younger we are seriosly considering changing our current cruise plans so that we can vacation with them instead of just us.

 

So we have to hit a March 16 to March 31 window and we have looked at several options.

 

At the top of our list is back to back East/West Caribbean on the Silhouette in a balcony for nearly 8K.

 

We also priced the exact same itinerary with HAL. They offer the option to book the same itenerary as a 14 day rather than BTB. I was shocked that their price, unless I'm missing something, is about $1400 less for 4 people for nearly the same itinerary.

 

We are elite with Celebrity and for the two btb I figure we get about $1000 perks, so why not save the 1400 and book with HAL.

 

Why the big price difference???

 

First of all, we just did the 12 night Celebrity Silhouette with my sister and her family (DH and 12 year old twins) and we all thought it was the best cruise yet (And we've been on over 30 cruises, on various lines).

 

Another thing to consider. Although you may be saving money on HAL (and personally I don't have any complains about HAL, but I've only done Westerdam), right now Celebrity is offering a very nice OBC for any cruises booked by May "something" (can't remember the exact date, but it's towards the end of the month) for cruises to the Caribbean in 2013 (among other itineraries). Since you would be booking two cruises (B2B), you would be getting double the OBC.

 

I would suggest you look into that. It may sway you. Silhouette is a brand new ship and it's absolutely beautiful.

 

Jo-Ann

[Cruise Arizona]

I went back and priced BTB Royal Caribbean on Mariner out of Galveston. Both are Western Caribbean, but with different ports of call. We will have to seriously put those two back into consideration.

 

With the two cruises for 4, the big price breaks come with Royal Caribbean on the 3rd and 4th persons, so it comes out at about a total $800 less for the four of us for two weeks.

 

What we are really hoping for is that they will offer a better discount on Celebrity for the obstructed view cabins. That would allow us to sail with the line of choice, and not have to be crammed into an ocean view or feel closed in in an inside cabin. We might also look into the FOV and see if any of them are still available. That would give us more room and be worth paying the extra.

 

So we at least have a couple more options.

 

I guess I need to go to the crown and anchor website and see what the benefits are there for those of us who are Celebrity elite level.

[Cruise Arizona]

First of all, we just did the 12 night Celebrity Silhouette with my sister and her family (DH and 12 year old twins) and we all thought it was the best cruise yet (And we've been on over 30 cruises, on various lines).

 

Another thing to consider. Although you may be saving money on HAL (and personally I don't have any complains about HAL, but I've only done Westerdam), right now Celebrity is offering a very nice OBC for any cruises booked by May "something" (can't remember the exact date, but it's towards the end of the month) for cruises to the Caribbean in 2013 (among other itineraries). Since you would be booking two cruises (B2B), you would be getting double the OBC.

 

I would suggest you look into that. It may sway you. Silhouette is a brand new ship and it's absolutely beautiful.

 

Jo-Ann

 

Do you know if that would be above and beyond the standard OBC that my TA always offers? That might a make a big difference.

[Cruise Arizona]

I would pay extra to NOT sail on Zuiderdam

 

Not such a great ship huh?

 

The Silhouette will be gorgeous and we know Celebrity is a great product for all 4 of us. So that is probably reflected in the price, new ship and all.

[jerseygirl3]

Do you know if that would be above and beyond the standard OBC that my TA always offers? That might a make a big difference.

 

Yes, it would be over and above what your TA offers. I'm assuming you are Captain's Club members (if not, sign up and your Crown and Anchor status will allow you to enroll with Celebrity's). I just checked the paperwork, and it's only good for sailings booked by May 18.

 

If I were you, I would call Celebrity and see what they have to offer in the way of promos.

 

Good luck! You will love Silhouette!

[junglejane]

Jerseygirl3, if you are talking about the Captain's Club New Sailings Offer that expires on May 18, it only applies to "select" Caribbean sailings. We just recently booked the March 10 sailing of the Silhouette. Our TA was first told that the promo applied to our sailing, but then when she went to apply our deposit she was told it didn't apply to that date. Long story short, we got it applied after our TA went up the chain of command, but I believe that the Spring Break sailings are not supposed to be included and we lucked into it because of the erroneous information our TA was given in the first place. Obviously Cruise Arizona should have her TA check into it, but don't be surprised if they say no. Here's the link:

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?pagename=captains_club_deployment_offers&ecid=em_18900786&rid=146084281&mes=Caribbean%20New%20Deployment%20EM%20&emsc=SEG%20CEL%20EM%20PERM&empf=Y&emct=C&lnkid=LOY_OFFER

 

Suzanne, hi from a fellow Arizonan. We are taking our 12 and 16 year olds for Spring Break the week before yours. How nice that your kids get a 2 week break! We are finding that, now that the older DD is in high school, it is getting much harder to schedule family trips. So many conflicts with sports, speech & debate camp, summer school, etc. I say go for it and stick with Celebrity. We're very excited about going on the Silhouette.:)

[Cruise Arizona]

Jerseygirl3, if you are talking about the Captain's Club New Sailings Offer that expires on May 18, it only applies to "select" Caribbean sailings. We just recently booked the March 10 sailing of the Silhouette. Our TA was first told that the promo applied to our sailing, but then when she went to apply our deposit she was told it didn't apply to that date. Long story short, we got it applied after our TA went up the chain of command, but I believe that the Spring Break sailings are not supposed to be included and we lucked into it because of the erroneous information our TA was given in the first place. Obviously Cruise Arizona should have her TA check into it, but don't be surprised if they say no. Here's the link:

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?pagename=captains_club_deployment_offers&ecid=em_18900786&rid=146084281&mes=Caribbean%20New%20Deployment%20EM%20&emsc=SEG%20CEL%20EM%20PERM&empf=Y&emct=C&lnkid=LOY_OFFER

 

Suzanne, hi from a fellow Arizonan. We are taking our 12 and 16 year olds for Spring Break the week before yours. How nice that your kids get a 2 week break! We are finding that, now that the older DD is in high school, it is getting much harder to schedule family trips. So many conflicts with sports, speech & debate camp, summer school, etc. I say go for it and stick with Celebrity. We're very excited about going on the Silhouette.:)

 

Thanks Jane, yes with the kids in high school, both of them in high school next year, and all their activities it is really hard to schedule trips. They have a 6 week summer breat, but my son has football or weights the whole time. October would be great, because we get a 2 week break then, but football doesn't stop for the break, so that is out. Then we have 2 weeks at Christmas and DH doesn't like to be gone then plus cruise prices are at a real premium then. So Spring Break is our only time. It limits our choices but the two weeks is great.

 

DH and I have a spectacular cruise booked from Sydney to HI, but we are starting to think that maybe we should do something like that when the kids are gone, not now why we can still do a family vacation.

 

The problem I've been having is finding a longer cruise that fits right into the spring break time frame. There are some that start a day too early or end a day or two late, so BTB seems to be our best bet.

 

I guess the one good thing about the BTB is the flexibility. We could decide later on to just do one week and get a vacation rental in FL for the other part of the time. Maybe something on the water but not the beach near my MIL in St. Pete. Still a fun vacation!

 

I'm gonna call my TA tomorrow and see what she can do for me. Probably not much more than I see on the Celebrity sight, but we'll see.

[Algebralovr]

I was told those new sailing OBC's were only for newly announced sailings, so the ones that started in Europe in 2013. We're supposed to be getting the enhanced/combinable OBC for our spring 2014 sailing but not the 2013 sailing that we booked this spring. I second the idea to stay away from HAL at this point in time. Since your teens are athletes, I assume they stay away from smoke? HAL is still allowing much more smoke inside and out than Celebrity, which would be a deal breaker for my teen-age athlete.

[4774Papa]

This is a suprise. Every time that I have looked at similar cruises between NCL, X and HAL, HAL was the most expensive. Sometimes NCL is cheaper, most of the time X and NCL are similar in price.

[Cruise Arizona]

I think that Celebrity charges more for the 3rd and 4th person and when you figure in the fact that it is over two cruises instead of one long one, I think that is the big difference.

[BKFlowerMound]

I think that Celebrity charges more for the 3rd and 4th person and when you figure in the fact that it is over two cruises instead of one long one, I think that is the big difference.

 

They charge more for the 3rd and 4th during Spring Break because they can. People want to bring their kids who are on Spring Break. They don't always charge more.

 

It's likely that the MOTS out of Galveston will not have as many children on it as the others. Those weeks are not Spring Break in Texas.

[jerseygirl3]

Thanks Jane, yes with the kids in high school, both of them in high school next year, and all their activities it is really hard to schedule trips. They have a 6 week summer breat, but my son has football or weights the whole time. October would be great, because we get a 2 week break then, but football doesn't stop for the break, so that is out. Then we have 2 weeks at Christmas and DH doesn't like to be gone then plus cruise prices are at a real premium then. So Spring Break is our only time. It limits our choices but the two weeks is great.

 

DH and I have a spectacular cruise booked from Sydney to HI, but we are starting to think that maybe we should do something like that when the kids are gone, not now why we can still do a family vacation.

 

The problem I've been having is finding a longer cruise that fits right into the spring break time frame. There are some that start a day too early or end a day or two late, so BTB seems to be our best bet.

 

I guess the one good thing about the BTB is the flexibility. We could decide later on to just do one week and get a vacation rental in FL for the other part of the time. Maybe something on the water but not the beach near my MIL in St. Pete. Still a fun vacation!

 

I'm gonna call my TA tomorrow and see what she can do for me. Probably not much more than I see on the Celebrity sight, but we'll see.

 

Your life sounds like our life used to be. We had four boys who played all sports, and finding a time for a vacation with all of them was quite a challenge. One year we finally found a week between football season, winter track, baseball, spring track, proms, etc., and after we booked, the track coach came to me and said one of the boys was invited to take part in the Penn Relays. Of course, this is a world wide invitational event, so that couldn't be missed. We actually found out it was easier once the kids were out of high school and in college. Although they didn't always have the same spring break, we were able to do at least 6 or 7 cruises with all of them, plus they always invited some friends to come along (we didn't pay for the friends). One cruise we had 8 teens with us...felt like we were chaperones on a class trip!LOL Actually, it worked out perfectly and DH and I treasure those memories. Now the boys are all grown and living throughout the country, so vacations together are no possible. We never regretted for one moment all the time and effort it took for the planning process.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about which cruiseline you select. Back then, Carnival was all we could afford, and the kids never complained. It's the memories you will create and will be remembered, not necessarily which ship you sailed on.

 

Good luck!

 

Jo-Ann

[junglejane]

Suzanne, are you being quoted 8K for a 2 week BTB in a quad room? If so, then it seems that you are getting no price break for the 3rd and 4th in the quad room. Have you considered a balcony and an inside, or connecting balconies? Last summer on the Equinox we had connecting 2B balconies (6224 and 6226) and it was a great set up. A big plus is two bathrooms. Even if you can't get connecting rooms, you should be able to get two side by side that connect via the balcony partition. Also, you would probably double the OBC you are getting from your TA if you have two cabins.

 

Since we can only go for one week, we are splurging and booking two side by side A2 cabins for our family.

[Cruise Arizona]

We have gotten a FOV for the last 4 cruises with the kids and really appreciated the extra room. I am going to see if any are available.

 

I looked into just an ocean view, but the price difference was not substantial enough to justify the smaller square footage they are 177 as opposed to 195 for a balcony room. The FOV is 525, but I am not sure we could book it with only 4 or there are any left.

 

DH won't do an inside, he just loves his balcony too much. The last time I talked to my TA she thought that the partially obstructed and obstructed balcony cabins might come down in price. Right now it is only a difference of a few hundred dollars over the two weeks for those cabins.

 

One thought is to book a standard balcony and watch for a price drop on the obstructed cabins. Or if there is an FOV, just book it and live with the high price. Maybe we could even invite my MIL who lives in FL to join us in the FOV. Certainly enough room if we could live with sharing one bath. :)

 

DH is not freaking at the price, so maybe he knows more than me. :D

[Cruise Arizona]

Not sure if it makes a differenct but I had my HAL ships mixed up. The BTB was on the Nieu Amsterdam, not the Zuiederdam.

 

Any way I put a courtesy hold on a Balcony. Still pretty expensive. I'm gonna watch like a hawk for a price change.