Singles to get Double Points

[Yenom]

I have mixed feelings on all this, but in the end the cruise line decides as they do on everything else. It's not to please guests it's an economic issue.

 

We fly to every cruise, adding that expense. So we pick & choose wisely.

 

Please don't shoot the messenger, just offering some facts.

Solo travelers never "really" paid 200%. They paid 1 port charge, 1 tax, & up to 200% on the cruise portion only. The 1 person then received the same shipboard credit if they booked onboard or had a shareholder benefit as the 2 people in the double cabin had to share. If the single person qualified for a balcony discount then they had the same credit that the 2 people had in the double cabin. Same with the amenities that were earned. And, if the single was lucky enough to have cruised 50 times (or over 349 days) their cruise portion of the charges was never more than 150%.

So, I can say when we booked a 15 night transatlantic & paid $649 for a balcony, it would have been cheaper to book 2 cabins but we did not do that. We should have but it seemed like the wrong thing to do to take up 2 cabins. However having 2 onboard credits of $200, 2 balcony discounts, & so on would really have made a difference.

I know this isn't always how it works out for singles, but I'm just saying there are some deals to be had for a single rate.

 

Now for a bad piece of news. I just found out today that when RCCL closed down the etire reservation system over the weekend they also changed things. Now the single must pay port charges for both guests! So they get extra points but now they pay more. Under those circumstances how many couples will want to book 2 cabins? The math will have to be done for anyone to figure this out & to personally know if it benefits them for $ saved or for the goal of more points.

 

Unfortunately, pricing solo's is pretty much 200% on every cabin now. However, the port and taxes are still only charged once for solos. I just checked again before posting this and the quotes I just got show only one charge as solo. If 2 people, 2 sets of charges. I did not check every scenario for all cruises, but I did check (online) many of them out of Baltimore. Sadly, it is no longer a good deal for me to cruise solo. Still hoping that the old pricing will come back a little after the dust settles from all the upgrading (I also read somewhere that the pricing might actually be lower than is posted online & you need to call and get "real" pricing).

 

Side note: they finally posted the weekly sales flyer and it does show some sailings with below 200% for single supplements. Good sign for solo travelers.

[Ocean Boy]

Isn't the non-commissionable part of the fare what used to be listed as port charges or does it also include other things? Why would one person have to pay two sets of port charges? That doesn't make sense.

[Tagsalong]

A solo passenger will never have to pay 240% of the cruise fare. The max supplement is 200% and then one set of taxes. When comparing prices you must use the same category. Not all categories will be available to singles just like not all categories are available for 3 and 4 passengers.

 

The facts stand on their own. I clearly stated that the same category is not available for a solo when booking the November 18 cruise on-line. That results in a solo on this particular cruise having to pay 240%. So you are wrong in this case. And I can compare prices any way I chose, not the way you tell me to chose!

[mommabean]

Isn't the non-commissionable part of the fare what used to be listed as port charges or does it also include other things? Why would one person have to pay two sets of port charges? That doesn't make sense.

 

"non-commissionable cruise fare" and "taxes and fees" are two different things. You won't see that break down on your cruise confirmation.

 

For instance, my upcoming EN cost is $33 for the solo cruise fare - interior room. Total cruise fare. That is what the agent gets commission on. Total commission at the 10% rate for that cruise is a whole $3.30.

 

Add to that the non-commissionable cruise fare of $100. Taxes and fees are an additional $71.91. See how it starts adding up? And this non-commissionable fare of $100 is only added once. Fast forward to booking it today. It seems that RCI will be adding the non-commissionable fare of $100 twice. This increases the cost of a 4 night cruise by $25 a day. It doesn't sound like much but compared to the cost of the cruise prior to the web site "update". Well, it's a large percentage increase.

 

I will add that I prepaid gratuities so add another $48 total to that cruise. This won't be charged twice by today's pricing standards.

 

Total cost for this 4 night cruise including all fees, non-commissionable fare, and gratuities? $252.91. That is $63.22 a night solo. :) What a deal. Yes, that's what I paid.

 

If booking today at the same rate solo and they add the non-commissionable fare twice it will be $88.22 a night solo. Whether they really intend to add that non-commissionable fare twice remains to be seen. On an expensive cruise, this won't raise the cost by a major percentage since it's the base fare that goes way up on long, interesting, expensive cruises.

 

I hope you followed what I just said.

 

Gina

Edited November 2, 2013 by mommabean

[Hoopster95]

Wow, what a thread... some very unfortunate banter. This is a real hot topic for me and directly affects me as I cruise both solo and double occupancy consistantly, and have been on RCL for 18 of my 20 cruises.

 

In my earlier cruising days I certainly looked at all cruise lines for solo deals and RCL was always the winner (once solo on X) and now I'm extremely loyal to Royal! I feel RCL has always been totally awesome to me as both a solo and double occupant. The most recent weekly Tuesday sale rate sheet shows very few single supplements under 200%... normally there are many more ranging from 110% recently on Oasis/Allure to 175%.

 

Summary of my thought:

- I believe this bonus point promo that is supposed to reward only to solo's and nobody else, no?

- By previous posts, it's obvious that "abusing the system" under rules that make "abuse" allowable can and will occur. As one previous poster stated, "hate the game, not the player".

- By examples in previous posts, it's obvious couples can reap points benfits over solos, but likely only worth it if they can buy two cabins for the price of one with a reduced single supplement. So guess what... no more 110-150% supplements??

- I see an massive dilution of RCCL tiers (ie. Diamond, +, etc...) again only if double occupant passengers buy two cabins to maximize points.

 

Pros:

- Solos paying the same amount for a cabin as a couple get the same treatment, and therefore same # of points (2) as a couple

- RCL will fill more cabins quicker if couples book more side-by-side cabins, thus making it "seem" like they are busier cruise line filling ships all the time.

 

Cons:

- I think RCL will lose revenue... Mr&Mrs. X book two rooms. Ship fills and prices go up. Then I don't book single because price now too expensive. RCL gets stuck with 2 adults in two rooms rather than Mr&Mrs.X in one room and me in the other... losing out on a 3rd adult buying gifts, booze, excursions,etc.

- #1 issue is dilution of upper tier RCCL Diamond and above. If so many people can take very few cruises to maximize points, this minimizes the meaning and benefits of what Diamond, + and Pinnacle are all about.

- More discounts and benefits to hand out by RCL means less profits and possibly higher upcoming cruise prices.

- Coming off the Rhapsody solo in Sept, the new Diamond lounge holds about 50 people. I fully suspect that Mr.&Mrs. X having sailed with RCL 30 times in the last 15 years will be very upset if they are turned away at the door of a full Diamond Lounge if the lounge is fully packed with point chasers who have sailed only 5-6 cruises with multiple points.

- Once the diamond and above tiers are saturated, does everyone on the ship get free booze from 5pm-8pm?

- If profits decrease because more and more discounts and beneifits needed to appease more and more upper tier passengers, how can that help the shareholders and bottom line of the company? What could this mean for furture cruise pricing, or reduction of perks for being loyal?

 

Solution?

- My comment card to RCL in the past has been to reward a solo the 150% supplement perk much earlier in the RCL tier program, say at Diamond level (instead of at 349 points I think).

- Or even much better, allow true single occupancy solo cruisers to get an immediate and healthy OBC (ie. $250 and more depending on cabin category) not available to double occupancy cruisers... this OBC is obviously used on the cruise buying RCL products/excursions/dinners/spa anyways so it's a win-win.

- With the above, go back to old system double cruiser get 1 point per passenger (2 pts total), and also solo cruiser get only 1 point regardless (no bonus) but a really nice OBC that the double doesn't get.

- With the above, tier saturation does not occur whatsover as nothing changes at all for double occupancy cruisers... each indivisual regardless of whether your a single or double receive 1 point for every day you sail... no confusion at all ever!

 

These are only some really quick thoughts after reading some extremely excellent previous posts on both sides of the argument. I personally feel that without some of the single supplement offers I have received in the past from RCL, my ability to cruise solo has now sadly ended :(:(:(. I feel getting an extra 7 points for a 7 day cruise is extremely poor compensation for my RCL loyalty compared to a supplement or OBC offer for a solo cruiser.

 

Bottom Line: My ability to solo cruise has been made much worse with this new system. I disagree with it.

 

Just my 2 cents and only my honest opinion from my gut from what I have seen so far with pricing and discussion here. I hope I'm wrong. Love to hear more thoughts on both sides regarding this. Thanks to all for some really great posts on this topic.

[Hoopster95]

Just wanted to mention a real life example of 2 months ago... I discovered in late July that I had the last minute opportunity to get a full week off during Labour Day weekend. My #2 choice was to take a last minute (and incredibly well priced) all inclusive land vacation to a resort in Puerto Vallarta or Cabo for approx $750 flights included (single occupancy) or look for another option.

 

Well, my #1 option has always been look trough the RCL website first! RCL was offering a lower single supplment for interior cabins on the Rhapsody to Alaska for residents. I've already done the Rhapsody to Alaska and really wanted to have sun and beach for 7 days, not Alaska.....

 

But my choice as a cruise addict?? No brainer.... cruise cruise cruise!!! :D So I went on the Rhapsody. With the supplement and as solo, it was about the same price as the land based solo all inclusive in Mexico. And as always RCL gave me an awesome experience and great cruise! As an fyi, the full 200% no supplement would have been approx $1300 all in incl taxes....

 

Bottom Line: There's no way I would have even considered the Rhapsody at $1300 to get 7 measly extra bonus points!!!!!!!! compared to an all-inslusive in the sun for close to half the price. Would you?

 

I just wanted to point out a real life thought process from a solo cruiser perspective with a very recent example to support my opinions in my previous post. The above is why I think my ability to solo cruise with this new point system plus much higher single supplement fares has punished me, not rewarded me, as a solo cruiser. I suspect RCL has thought about all of this in their decision making to roll out this program, so I really hope I am missing something.

[Gil T. Azell]

The facts stand on their own. I clearly stated that the same category is not available for a solo when booking the November 18 cruise on-line. That results in a solo on this particular cruise having to pay 240%. So you are wrong in this case. And I can compare prices any way I chose, not the way you tell me to chose!

 

 

Haha.....you don't. However you won't be right if you use different categories to compare. You may be too stubborn to see it but I am not wrong. Single supplement pricing is NEVER more than 200% of all available categories offered to solo cruisers.

 

As far as what's available and what's not available to who is irrelevant. Within a specific category the single supplement max is 200%. To make it simple for you.....In terms of single supplement.....the total cost of those paying for different categories to determine a percentage is irrelevant. True single supplement percentages are determined on the fare for a specific category and the pp fare of that category. Comparing total cost of two different products is a whole other thing and does not determine the single supplement percentage.

[maureencruiser]

Single supplement pricing is NEVER more than 200% of all available categories offered to solo cruisers.

 

I have seen fares where solos pay 3 times as much as double travelers, as recently as last week. I will post the price here the next time I see it. Of course, I guess if I wanted to sail that date, I would do a dummy booking with Brad Pitt as my roommate and then , he would be a no-show (probably :D) and I would pay double.

 

Until RC gets their website and prices straightened out, much of this is just speculation. We get double points, that is the fact. Whether we can continue to search for good deals as a solo remains to be seen. We just have to wait for the website. :rolleyes:

[C Cruise Dude]

I have seen fares where solos pay 3 times as much as double travelers, as recently as last week. I will post the price here the next time I see it. Of course, I guess if I wanted to sail that date, I would do a dummy booking with Brad Pitt as my roommate and then , he would be a no-show (probably :D) and I would pay double.

 

Until RC gets their website and prices straightened out, much of this is just speculation. We get double points, that is the fact. Whether we can continue to search for good deals as a solo remains to be seen. We just have to wait for the website. :rolleyes:

 

Maureen, I have to agree with the later part of your statement. Double points are nice but 180% or less is better. Royal really just made Carnival and NCl more competitive. NCL has some Studio Cabins on their new ships that are solo priced and Carnival, at times, drop their price low enough to swing the deal. I booked two Royal cruises for next year before the change. I was looking to upgrade to a balcony on one but with the double price it won't happen, I can stop looking. Fortunately, I got a great deal for an ocean view. Sadly, there may be fewer Royal cruises as a result of the policy. :(

[Gil T. Azell]

I have seen fares where solos pay 3 times as much as double travelers, as recently as last week. I will post the price here the next time I see it. Of course, I guess if I wanted to sail that date, I would do a dummy booking with Brad Pitt as my roommate and then , he would be a no-show (probably :D) and I would pay double.

 

Until RC gets their website and prices straightened out, much of this is just speculation. We get double points, that is the fact. Whether we can continue to search for good deals as a solo remains to be seen. We just have to wait for the website. :rolleyes:

 

That particular sailing would just be a glitch in their system. Royals policy is that max supplement is 200%. Just like when they show a cabin pp rate is 101,000 the triple pricing is a mistake.:)

[maureencruiser]

Maureen, I have to agree with the later part of your statement. Double points are nice but 180% or less is better. Royal really just made Carnival and NCl more competitive.

 

Dude, Since you have sailed Carnival, can I ask you something. I sailed Carnival once, back in 1991, didn't like it as much as RC. I would like to give CCL another chance, especially since they sail out of Baltimore, at least for a little while longer :rolleyes: But, every cruise I price on them, it is 200% for a solo. Do they offer ANY deals for solos? I have seen on the CCL board they have complicated fares, Early Savers, Super Savers, whatever. Is that why I can't find any deals. I want to give them another chance, but, not if I have to pay MORE than what I pay for RC. Thanks!

[icat2000]

Well I booked solo fare on 9 nights South Pacific on the Rhapsody Of The Seas in G2 Oceanview Cabin on 23 January 2014 for $1287 about 2 months ago. Immediately after the change that same cabin is being offered for $2480. I am very happy I booked when I did as it is my first time on RCL.

 

However, the 200% fares for solo would probably make me less likely to be a repeater as price and intinerary are the main reasons I choose to sail with any cruiseline.

Edited November 2, 2013 by icat2000

[C Cruise Dude]

Dude, Since you have sailed Carnival, can I ask you something. I sailed Carnival once, back in 1991, didn't like it as much as RC. I would like to give CCL another chance, especially since they sail out of Baltimore, at least for a little while longer :rolleyes: But, every cruise I price on them, it is 200% for a solo. Do they offer ANY deals for solos? I have seen on the CCL board they have complicated fares, Early Savers, Super Savers, whatever. Is that why I can't find any deals. I want to give them another chance, but, not if I have to pay MORE than what I pay for RC. Thanks!

 

Maureen, the closest that Carnival has is a 1A which is a cabin with bunk beds or a single bed. I don't like them because I'm paying 200% (sometimes you can find one for less than a 4A which is a double bed), I want a queen size bed.

 

EarlySaver is nice but it locks you in. If you make changes or cancel there are fees ($50) and Carnival keeps your deposit (what's left after the fees) and you have to sail with them over a two year period. The plus side is they gurantee the price up to sailing, if they drop it you get the difference in onboard credit.

 

This was my 1A on the Carnival Freedom. There is a bed above in the ceiling.

 

Princess, owned by Carnival Corporation, offers 150-180% and if you tell them that you sailed Carnival before they sometimes offer additional savings.

 

My cabin on Caribbean Princess. I paid less than $800 for 7 days with my Carnival discount plus Princess sale.

 

Jack

[Cruzin-K]

 

However it's possible that if they continue with this than solo bookings may go down on sailings that are charging the full 200% supplement. If that happens then they'll end up having to run more 125-150% single supplement sales. Will be interesting to see what happens in regards to fares and supplement percentages.

 

If RCI sticks with this 200% policy, I doubt I'll ever sail solo on them again, not when I can get much better deals on Princess, especially with the discount my TA offers on that line.

 

Royal is still my favorite line, but I'll have to limit sailings to the ones when I can find someone to go with me :(

[Zigggypup]

Guess I booked at the right time. I am a solo cruiser who is going on the January 18th sailing on the Oasis.

When I booked my D3 back in October the total charges were $1580.79 which included my Diamond discount.

Today I went back online to see if their were any price drops since final payment is due in 2 days.

They didn't have any D3's available, but after the Diamond discount they were still getting $791 dollars more for a D8.

Guess I hit it at the right time. But who knows, after final payment they might discount the remaing pretty heavily. I think Royal Caribbean increases the prices just before final payment is due in the attempt to snag any bottom feeders....lol.

Adam

Ziggypup@aol.com

[Aggie71]

It is my opinion that this is a glitch in the website "improvements". Clearly one person does not pay two sets of taxes and fees. Those are PER PERSON charges. It is simply not showing up properly on the website.

 

Yes, it is a new charge they are doing since last weekend. I tried to make a booking yesterday, spoke to 2 different agents at RCCL & that is how I found out. I did my calculations before I called & their total did not match mine, that is how we found out about the new policy. It is true. I don't get it myself, are port charges for the entire ship & divided by cabins or people? Or is it however the cruise line elects to do it?

[Aggie71]

"I will call shenanigans; never in my life have I been compelled to pay double taxes for anything. I highly doubt the cruiseline is going to charge 1 person taxes for two; how would that even work? This is not "kill the messenger" but I think maybe you are misinterpreting something or were told something incorrect and are passing it on. I don't fault you for sharing what you believe to be the latest information, but it just doesn't seem plausible."

 

Sorry, but I have the invoice & it was not done on the website. I didn't believe it either then called back & got the same answer from another agent. They are doubling the port charges (which are included in the cruise fare) & not doubling the tax. Only the port charges. But on a 7 night Caribbean cruise that is $175 that a single will be now paying twice.

 

Call RCCL & ask. When they send you an invoice for booking directly through them they do not break out the port charges, those are included in the "cruise fare." But in the past you would have noticed that if the fare was $500, you did not pay $1000. When it was 200% you were paying $500 + $325 for a total of $825, not $1000. Now you pay $1000. Just ask if there has been a change. I was shocked.

[Merion_Mom]

Dude, Since you have sailed Carnival, can I ask you something. I sailed Carnival once, back in 1991, didn't like it as much as RC. I would like to give CCL another chance, especially since they sail out of Baltimore, at least for a little while longer :rolleyes: But, every cruise I price on them, it is 200% for a solo. Do they offer ANY deals for solos? I have seen on the CCL board they have complicated fares, Early Savers, Super Savers, whatever. Is that why I can't find any deals. I want to give them another chance, but, not if I have to pay MORE than what I pay for RC. Thanks!

 

I just read that Carnival is coming back to Baltimore in 2015.

[Merion_Mom]

"I will call shenanigans; never in my life have I been compelled to pay double taxes for anything. I highly doubt the cruiseline is going to charge 1 person taxes for two; how would that even work? This is not "kill the messenger" but I think maybe you are misinterpreting something or were told something incorrect and are passing it on. I don't fault you for sharing what you believe to be the latest information, but it just doesn't seem plausible."

 

Sorry, but I have the invoice & it was not done on the website. I didn't believe it either then called back & got the same answer from another agent. They are doubling the port charges (which are included in the cruise fare) & not doubling the tax. Only the port charges. But on a 7 night Caribbean cruise that is $175 that a single will be now paying twice.

 

Call RCCL & ask. When they send you an invoice for booking directly through them they do not break out the port charges, those are included in the "cruise fare." But in the past you would have noticed that if the fare was $500, you did not pay $1000. When it was 200% you were paying $500 + $325 for a total of $825, not $1000. Now you pay $1000. Just ask if there has been a change. I was shocked.

Port charges are absolutely charged by the ports per capita, or by the head. For RC to charge a solo cruiser two of these would be utterly illegal.

 

However, there is that issue of "non-commissioned fare". Are the port charges in there? I thought that that were, but apparently I don't.

[Ocean Boy]

Port charges are absolutely charged by the ports per capita, or by the head. For RC to charge a solo cruiser two of these would be utterly illegal.

 

However, there is that issue of "non-commissioned fare". Are the port charges in there? I thought that that were, but apparently I don't.

 

What is in there besides port charges? I still don't understand this part of the fare.

Edited November 3, 2013 by Ocean Boy

[Aggie71]

There is some confusion with terminology.

I called & what someone here called "non-commissionable" is port charges. They are in the cruise fare. So, if the cruise fare on a 7 night cruise on Oasis is 800, part of that is the $175 non-commissionable port charges. The taxes & fees are itemized separately.

On our TA crossing the port charges are $220 for one of them & $240 on the other.

I was told that if we make a change on an existing "single" occupancy booking they are going to adjust the price to what we want (maybe lower, maybe just a category change) & at the same time they will update the new port charge/non-commissionable policy.

Yikes!

[Merion_Mom]

What is in there besides port charges? I still don't understand this part of the fare.

 

There are lots of travel agents on this board, and on this thread. Perhaps one or more of them will chip in with this information.

 

(that's exactly what I thought)

 

And, while it is true that the standard RC invoice does not break out cruise fare/non-commissioned fare, I often receive the TA invoice which DOES. I don't know why, but I do. :)

[Ocean Boy]

There are lots of travel agents on this board, and on this thread. Perhaps one or more of them will chip in with this information.

 

(that's exactly what I thought)

 

And, while it is true that the standard RC invoice does not break out cruise fare/non-commissioned fare, I often receive the TA invoice which DOES. I don't know why, but I do. :)

 

I thought it was the port charges also and Aggie's posting seems to be bearing that out. And that is why I don't understand how they can charge solos double. If port charges were based on ship capacity then the cruise lines would be paying for empty cabins. Everything I have ever read mentions ports charging per head.

[Aggie71]

There are lots of travel agents on this board, and on this thread. Perhaps one or more of them will chip in with this information.

 

(that's exactly what I thought)

 

And, while it is true that the standard RC invoice does not break out cruise fare/non-commissioned fare, I often receive the TA invoice which DOES. I don't know why, but I do. :)

 

I also get the break down when I use an agent. It could be so we see where our money is going, also maybe they are showing me what part of the fare they do not get paid for....I'm not saying it in a bad way, we don't realize that the port charges are non-commission as said above, the tax is non-commission, & so are air, transfers, etc. It adds up! Sometimes half of the "fees" & etc that make up the total are no commission.

[maureencruiser]

I just read that Carnival is coming back to Baltimore in 2015.

 

Thanks! :D