Is Celebrity an 'exclusive' operator?

[mosstraveltv]

Hi folks,

 

I've been looking for a cruise for a while that stops at both Malta and Santorini, and I see that Celebrity are doing a 2 week cruise next July that calls at these ports. I'm a little taken aback though at the pricing, for a balcony they are quoting over 2 and a half thousand pounds, which seems a bit on the excessive side. I have had two week med cruises before for a lot less than that, so really I'm wondering why they are charging so much.

 

I don't know anything about Celebrity, and I had never been under the impression that it is an exclusive brand, but is it? Are the prices likely to come down? What are the benefits of Celebrity compared to other cruise companies?

 

Any information greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers!

[Mulege]

July is prime season so price is set by demand. If you are flexible you most likely can get a much better price by waiting until next year. Europe cruises are currently being heavily discounted. It seems prices offered to Europeans are higher than those advertised in the US.

 

Celebrity offers beautiful ships, great service, good food, and a great vacation experience.

[stipmom]

Celebrity is considered a premium cruise line but it is not exclusive like Regent or Crystal.

 

In the U.S. if prices come down before final payment they will adjust the price. I don't believe they do the same in the U.K. but you should inquire. July is prime cruising time for families so prices are higher. We took a cruise in May that stopped at Malta but not Santorini. Prices kept going down to the point where we paid $1100 pp less than what we originally booked at.

[jacketwatch]

Hi folks,

 

I've been looking for a cruise for a while that stops at both Malta and Santorini, and I see that Celebrity are doing a 2 week cruise next July that calls at these ports. I'm a little taken aback though at the pricing, for a balcony they are quoting over 2 and a half thousand pounds, which seems a bit on the excessive side. I have had two week med cruises before for a lot less than that, so really I'm wondering why they are charging so much.

 

I don't know anything about Celebrity, and I had never been under the impression that it is an exclusive brand, but is it? Are the prices likely to come down? What are the benefits of Celebrity compared to other cruise companies?

 

Any information greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers!

 

So my conversion to USD comes at at around $4000.00. I assume you mean total for two, correct and not per person? If so then thats not bad at all. We were paying about $3600.00 for two for an 11 night cruise on the Equinox in Oct. for a partially obstructed balcony but prices dropped so we ended up with a non-obstructed balcony on the 9th deck from the 6th for about $500.00 less! If you book and the prices drop B4 final payment you can rebook at that lower rate, assuming the rules are the same for UK vs. US passengers. I would think so. Good luck, Larry :)

[DebbieMacG]

Its a five star cruise line so think of it as five star hotel :)

 

As others have said July is expensive. I've paid as little as £515pp for a 1b balcony cabin on a 10 night Eastern Med Equinox cruise last year in November, this was booking in August :D

[Jenna109]

Unless it is a definite cruise and date you wish to travel then WAIT. The prices they are quoting for next year are really high at the moment and it is highly likely they will come down. I am also looking at a cruise from UK to Iceland but far too expensive. I will just keep an eye on the prices until they come down. There are so many cruise lines leaving the UK to the Med that they have to reduce their prices. For the past two years we have had a two week cruise for less than £1000 per person. One on queen Victoria and this year Azura P&O. Both were in June.

[kasijab]

I did that cruise this year ...and when I booked it (almost this time last year) it was a similar price. But, there were 2 price drops before final payment and Celebrity honored both of them ...dropping over £1100 from the original starting price.

[stipmom]

Since it seems Celebrity also honors price drops for UK cruisers book when it is a price you can afford to pay to get the cabin you want and monitor the booking so if prices go down you can call and get the new price.

[Jenna109]

If Celebrity definitely honour the price drops then go ahead and book - providing you are willing to pay the price if it does not drop! So much better if you can book ahead as you do get choice. However, to be fair, my late deal cabins have always been perfectly okay.

I have three cruises booked because I got really good deals through my TA and two of them have gone up in price but they are all leaving from the US. Any leaving from UK I wait for late deals - fortunate to be retired so no problem with holiday dates. However, with the price drop promise I will take another look at my Iceland cruise and see what my TA can do. Thanks for information