Good things about Getaway Fares

[Harry Peterson]

Having once paid through the nose (£3000 each for a deluxe balcony on a 15 day cruise!) on an early P&O booking, naively believing that the early bird caught the best bargains - never again!

 

Last time we managed to get a top suite for not much more than half that, and we learned a lesson.

 

Getaway Fares (or some equivalent) are here to stay, and it's no good banging on about them. If P&O sail with empty cabins they lose far more than they do by heavy discounting, and if they didn't have these super-low fares to shift unsold cabins prices would rise even more for the early bookers.

 

The solution (pretty obviously) is to give the big discounts to the early bookers to shift as many cabins as possible, leaving fewer cabins to sell off (also discounted) at the last minute.

 

I'm guessing that a lot of Getaway customers are upgraded, and get better cabins than they thought they were getting - that probably hacks off the early bookers even more.

Edited September 3, 2013 by docco

[middy]

Long live the getaway fare. :)

I don't plan too far ahead and getting mine and hubby's holiday to coincide takes arranging. So frequently only know a couple of months ahead. I love a bargain and the getaway fares are just up my street. Managed one in June and had a great time, so now looking to book another for November.( did look at a Celebrity cruise but the difference in price means two for the price of one on P&O )

Just keeping my fingers crossed that when booking they apologise for only late sitting being available like last time. Wanted late sitting anyway. :D

 

Booked. Off to the Canaries on Oceana :) Late sitting was available :)

I've done the med in November with Celebrity a couple of years back, was somewhat cool. Think I'll head for the sun.

[david,Mississauga]

I know we Brits are used to paying through the nose which is why I often book European cruises through American travel agents where the price can be half that being charged in the UK (in addition to free pre-paid gratuities and/or OBC).

 

...

 

That is not always the case. Cunard usually charges US and Canadian residents a significant amount more than UK residents for European cruises. This is particularly painful because we also have the expense of getting to and from England, of course. Carnival prohibits those of us on this side of the pond from booking through UK agencies. (If my father, as opposed to my mother, had been born in the UK I could get a UK passport and get around this. Also, I have relatives in England, with whom I could "reside"). For a few years I have wanted to take a Cunard cruise to Norway, but the fares for a one-week cruise were approximately 40% higher than what we pay for an Atlantic crossing of the same length, and I can't justify that. Fortunately, for this year there was a sale for Princess and Queen's Grill that reduced the fare to a similar level as we usually pay on the crossings. Even with the sale, we still paid more than the UK rates, but it wasn't too bad. Getaway fares were even lower, of course, but there's no such thing over here. We enjoyed the cruise immensely and were pleased we could do it at a reasonable fare - and didn't mention fares to any of the many people we met on board. But next year it's back to the Atlantic crossings.

Edited September 3, 2013 by david,Mississauga
corrected typo.

[JenniC]

Totally agree with you. We book Vantage fares for our must do cruises 4 booked for next year including 50 nights on the Arcadia world cruise, 24 nights on Oriana Xmas cruise and a back to back summer cruise. If we see a getaway bargain and can fit it in we book it. This does not make us riff raff . We have done 2 getaways so far and have never met any pax that stand out as riff raff.

 

Sue

 

Sue .. Glad to see you are sticking up for us who choose a getaway as a means to do more cruising .. You and I are certainly not riff raff.. lol

Edited September 3, 2013 by JenniC

[JenniC]

We booked a getaway fare for our March our Caribbean trip on Azura, had to take pot luck on the inside cabin, had to pay in full, all of which saved us £200pp if I was paying for a balcony cabin then I would happily pay vantage to get exactly what I wanted.

P & O made plenty of money out of me when I paid the bar bill at the end of the cruise, I am sure that pays back what I saved - if enjoying a drink or 2, 3, 4 on holiday classes me as the undesirable type so be it I had a wonderful holiday and met some lovely people from all walks of life some with money and some on a budget like myself. I just accept people for what they are.

 

One of the best posts of the thread and totally agree with you:)

[Aloonie]

Celebrity Equinox 13th November back down to £799 for a balcony today. October 20th sailing also at £799. These are prices from Celebrity website so you may get a discount on these through your TA. This is below £70 pppn for a balcony cabin and pretty much below the best P & O getaway fares (certainly for the Med).

 

Hi

We have booked Ventura on the 11th Oct (med) on a getaway fare for 14 nights and comes out less than £80 pppn for a balcony.

[gadabout60]

Looking at cruise A322N - why would anyone pay more for a getaway than a vantage? Am confused

[geecee1]

There is no doubt that the Getaway fare is also bringing a new type of passenger to P&O, and one that may not be for the better. You used to think that with the cost it also kept , how shall I put this, the riff raff away. Not any more. If fares stay this low I predict it is only a matter of time before we start hearing of many passenger problems with drunkeness and disorderly behaviour becoming more prevalent.

 

 

 

 

 

Never read such rubbish in my life. We will use Getaway Fares when appropriate as we are pensioners on a limited budget. We were new to P&O after 3 Caribbean cruises on the OV ships. The only time I witnessed poor behaviour was from passengers on Ventura who treated the staff like servants..

One particular individual's behaviour has been referred to before on this site, made me ashamed to be British every bit as much as the "lager louts" who infect some of the Med resorts!!!!

[Eastbourne]

Definition of riff-raff:Vantage Fare cruiser.

 

If P and O choose to offer two fares, one priced considerably less than the other then this riff-raff is opting for the cheaper one.

 

Why? So I have more money left to get my extra strength Special Brew of course! (Can anyone confirm this is available aboard P and O or should I bring my own?)

 

Apologies to those cruisers of a better class if I'm abusive when tanked up. Perhaps you could suggest a two tier system to P and O, maybe segregation or tar and feathers for Vantage Cruisers.

 

Vantage Fare Passenger and Proud!!!

[wilson2579]

Definition of riff-raff:Vantage Fare cruiser.

 

If P and O choose to offer two fares, one priced considerably less than the other then this riff-raff is opting for the cheaper one.

 

Why? So I have more money left to get my extra strength Special Brew of course! (Can anyone confirm this is available aboard P and O or should I bring my own?)

 

Apologies to those cruisers of a better class if I'm abusive when tanked up. Perhaps you could suggest a two tier system to P and O, maybe segregation or tar and feathers for Vantage Cruisers.

 

Vantage Fare Passenger and Proud!!!

 

and here was me thinking it was us Getaway cruisers that were the riff raff.:confused:

[Eastbourne]

Ahhh-Sorry, I meant Getaway. That how riff-raffish I am. Can't even get my fare category right...

Edited October 2, 2013 by Eastbourne
punctuation error

[bahrain_not_dubai!]

The good is the obvious- if you have the ability to select a voyage at the last minute, without much planning, you can grab a fantastic price! Other than that, I am afraid to say that my personal opinion is that the Getaway Fares are not of advantage to the vast majority of P&O's passengers.

 

I for one was not amused when I found out aboard my P&O cruise that my table-mates had paid a staggering £600 per person less for the same category (for a 9 night voyage!)- in total, their voyage was £1,200 less than what we paid for ours, which to me is not spare change.

 

If P&O find it difficult to fill their ships, they should compromise, putting their normal fares somewhere in between the 'Vantage' and 'Getaway' fares, otherwise they risk alienating the passengers who book early and regularly. To those who are saying £50pppn is a fair price for an inside cabin (taking the per berth per week price to £350) has no idea of the costs of running an ocean going passenger vessel. Many people here have stated that the price of the voyage includes accommodation, food, entertainment, etc. You all seem to have forgotten the most important, and indeed expensive thing you pay for: transport! A ship the size of the Oriana or Aurora will cost about £40 per minute in fuel alone. That's £2,400 an hour, or £57,600 a day, and that is in calm seas at cruise speed. Granted, the above calculations are for a sea day, but nonetheless it gives you an idea for the considerable cost of running a 70,000 GRT ship (I cannot comment on the fuel costs of the larger vessels).

 

Now, I want to speak about hotels in London. Last year, I paid £420 per night for a room at The Langham Hotel- true, you may retort that that is one of London's finest hotels, but for the few days I was there, the service I received wasn't better than what I found on a P&O ship- the staff where there, to do your bidding if you asked them, but no more and no less. Not too different from a P&O ship. If I was aboard a Seabourn ship, the staff would have anticipated my every requirement. I imagine to get that level of service on land (again, minus food and entertainment) you are certainly looking at going north of £1,000 per night in most cases. If I want to convert what these hotels are charging per berth per week, the standard that cruise lines use, it would be £1,540 and £3,500 respectively. Is P&O really only worth £350, and that includes everything you could want (AND transport!).

 

Okay, I hear what you are saying- I've put up two institutions that should compete with Seabourn, not P&O. Well, the Holiday Inn Express Dundee (where I currently live) want £99 per night in July 2014. I have stayed at this hotel- it is a rather uncomfortable bed, basic toilet, basic everything. Breakfast is an extremely basic affair. It is a two star affair that is in no way comparable to a P&O Ferry, forget about P&O Cruises. Yet, they see it fit to charge £49.50 per night, or £346.50 per berth per week! What I am trying to point here is that Getaway fares, in some cases are loss leaders- being aboard the ship, you are generating revenue, at no extra cost to the cruise line. As such, passengers who opt for getaway fares do not cost P&O a penny to have aboard- as in most cases, the ship would have sailed empty had the Getaway fare not been offered (this is not a dig at getaway passengers at all- I would happily snap one up if I could!). Yet, should you buy shore excursions, dine in specialty restaurants, buy drinks, etcetera, you are generating revenue that otherwise would not have been generated. This has been going on for a very long time in the cruise industry, and in fact in bygone days one could turn up with one's suitcases at the port and buy a ticket during check-in at very cheap prices!

Edited October 3, 2013 by bahrain_not_dubai!

[Scriv]

Eastbourne, you'd probably been on the lager all day before you posted the first time, lol.

[simonpjd]

Yes, I too, was amazed at some entries who thought £50 a night was about the most the product was worth. But I guess we all look at things in a different way.

P&O will know how much the overall cost will be to run a specific cruise in advance:

Fuel, Staff, Food, Entertainment, Insurance etc etc.

They also know how many berths and how much revenue will come in if all sell at Vantage and/or Getaway prices. And I have no doubt that if they can sell out at Vantage fare levels then they make a handsome profit. I would guess that if they sailed with the ship full of Getaway pax then they would make a loss.

Their job is to

1 fill the ship with as many Vantage fare payers as possible and

2 then fill up the remaining cabins (Getaways) as anything is better than nothing.

 

I would actually be really interested in having the chance to go through a voyage with all this data in front of me to see how they continuously juggle the level of Getaway fare versus filling the ship - especially as sailing day approaches.

A fine balancing act indeed.

[crompton21]

Figures are from Carnivals Q3 trading update.

 

Operating Costs and Expenses for Q3 were $3,775,000,000, or £2,326,000,000 at todays exchange rate. This figure includes all costs, but to make a profit you need to cover all costs.

If there are approx 100 ships, then the costs per ship per quarter is £23,260,000! or £258,444 per day.

Assuming average capacity of 2500 people per ship, then to break even revenue per passenger (tickets and onboard spend) needs to be £103 per day.

From the q3 update, onboard and tour spend was £31 per passenger (using the same 100 ships 2500 per ship calculation). Which possibly means that £70 per night is break even for ticket sales.

That probably explains why Carnival are stating they may make a loss in the current market (if my maths are correct).

[jmnathan]

If you have a cheap cruise and spend money like water aboard, great, if you sit there with mouths full of wasps and don't spend a penny, not good news for the company or us other cruisers who are subsidising you.

 

I'm sorry, but that's a ridiculous notion. People spend little or no money on board for a variety of reasons, just like people spend a lot on board for a variety of reasons. I spend very little on board, in fact, mainly becuase my wife and I are not heavy drinkers and don't go to the casino. Does that make me any less of a valued passenger than someone else on board? We always tip our cabin steward and evening waiters very well; I can well imagine those who spend heavily on board tipping the absolute minimum.

[simonpjd]

What was meant is that P&O are looking to make a profit. And cruisers who spend little on board are not adding to their profit. You pay your fare - hopefully P&O make a profit on that. Then they hope to make more every time you hand your card over to make an on board purchase. If you spend very little on board they obviously make less.

Make no mistake P&O would rather have a ship full of passengers happily buying in the shops, punting in the casino and having a cocktail or three. On our last cruise our on board spend averaged £40 a day. And you can bet that around half of that goes straight into the P&O profit column.

[jmnathan]

Agreed, but to describe passengers not spending money on board "as having wasps in their mouths" and in some way spoiling the experience for others on board is ridiculous.

[Eastbourne]

Eastbourne, you'd probably been on the lager all day before you posted the first time, lol.

 

Hehehe! Very good!

[gadabout60]

To suggest that those who spend heavily on board tip the minimum seems absurd to me - in my experience it is quite the opposite

[rubydoobydoo]

You can have a balcony for the same price I paid for my inside on Azura to the Canaries on 20th Oct

 

Go and grab a bargain, see you there :D

[Eastbourne]

You sure will!

You can have a balcony for the same price I paid for my inside on Azura to the Canaries on 20th Oct

 

Go and grab a bargain, see you there :D

[vwgolf]

You sure will!

 

And me. I paid under £1,000 each for a balcony cabin and am really looking forward to it.

[rubydoobydoo]

Less than 2 weeks to go I am looking forward to it too

 

These good deals came in quite late I think, great if you can go last minute, we booked a year ago as I wanted to chose a cabin

 

Next time we will wait for a bargain I think as no special requirements for next year

[Suzieanna]

What does it mean if you know you are definitely riff raff, but you paid a Vantage fare?