Vantage & Getaway fares scrapped

[clivep]

The new fare structure comes into place from Monday and will apply to bookings from spring 2014 onwards

 

The new premium Select Price fares are being introduced in place of Vantage fares. These new fares also offer flexible booking conditions but have a lower price point than Vantage.

 

An Early Saver fare is also being introduced on selected cruises with further price reductions, limited added value options and less flexible conditions.

 

Presumably the misleading and mostly pointless "price promise" idea has been shelved leaving the way clear for the fares to be heavily discounted close to sailing date as in the past unless they have something else in mind to replace the Getaway pricing to fill the ships.

 

"For those customers already booked on a Vantage or Getaway Fare, the booking terms and conditions will remain the same and Vantage fares will continue to be protected by the price promise". Yeah, right. As there will no longer be Vantage pricing then the price on them cannot drop. As we all know the Vantage price promise will not be applicable to the new cheaper Select Price fare. Will P&O do the decent thing and drop the Vantage price to the Select Price before the Vantage price disappears???

[Ray66]

The story is now up on Cruise Critic website

 

http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/news/news.cfm?ID=5597#

[mourne]

So where does that leave those of us who have booked early and paid full Vantage fare for upcoming cruises do we receive OBC ? :(

[davecttr]

So where does that leave those of us who have booked early and paid full Vantage fare for upcoming cruises do we receive OBC ? :(

 

I have 4 Vantage fare cruises booked with sailing dates after this new fares structure starts.

 

Take note of this P&O. I expect any additional benefits and lower prices to be given to me as a previous booker. I will not be happy to see lower prices for a similar or better product only applying to people booking after November 4th.

 

You got it wrong with the Vantage fare fiasco, don't get it wrong again :mad:

[bee-ess]

Reading the link on Cruise Critic I am confused - does this mean that Getaway fares for Feb/March 2014 will not be available after Nov 4th which is only next week. Does this mean if I want a Getaway for next March that I have to book it before Nov 4th.

[Midsomer Madness]

Yes, we have a vantage fare booked, had to book it because it was transferred from another cruise...i fully expect the new prices on select fares to be lower,and also fully expect that I won't benefit from any price drop because they will say its not a vantage fare....I already have my TA on the case, but she says she is not allowed to tell me anything until Monday :mad:

 

It also looks like the early saver does not have to be paid in full at the time of booking, well there is no mention of that and I guess its name means you will be able to book those fares at anytime provided its before 90 days of sailing...I guess the 90 days of sailing will be when they bring the really low fares in.

 

We won't know about really late booking until some of cruises are near to departure then we will see what sort of prices they are selling them for.

 

I have a feeling it will all be another vantage/getaway failure!

[Midsomer Madness]

Reading the link on Cruise Critic I am confused - does this mean that Getaway fares for Feb/March 2014 will not be available after Nov 4th which is only next week. Does this mean if I want a Getaway for next March that I have to book it before Nov 4th.

 

That is a very valid question and I have no idea of the answer!

[bee-ess]

Thanks MM, it is typical P&O, nothing is straightforward.

 

We are looking at a Getaway in March but from experience this is not a good time to book for March, they will normally get cheaper with 4 months to go.

Oh well if we lose it, we do, I'm not panicking to book by Monday.

[Midsomer Madness]

This is from Travel weekly...says basically the same but does admit some lead fares will be cheaper than current Vantage fares..also says those with vantage fares already booked will be protected by the price promise...so should we read that to mean if the prices are cheaper we will get something back/additional OBC or upgrade? Time will tell I guess!

 

P&O Cruises and Cunard have scrapped Vantage and Getaway fares in place of a new fare structure.

 

The new structure comes into place from Monday and will apply to bookings from spring 2014 onwards. More than 300 agents have been briefed about the plans during a webinar with cruise line representatives.

 

Speaking to Travel Weekly, Chris Truscott, sales and distribution support director for P&O and Cunard, said the fares were being introduced as a direct response to agent feedback gathered through the Agent Matters initiative.

 

The new premium P&O Cruises Select Price and the Cunard Fare are being introduced in place of Vantage fares, fully flexible deals that were designed to encourage early bookings.

 

The cruise lines said the new fares also offered flexible booking conditions but some had a lower price point than Vantage.

 

Customers will be able to specify their cabin number and have priority choice of dining times and table size. The fare is also inclusive of shuttle buses and a choice of one of the following: onboard credit, car parking or coach transfers to Southampton. The two new fares will be available on all cruises all the time.

 

An Early Saver fare is also being introduced on selected cruises with further price reductions, limited added value options and less flexible conditions.

 

On Monday, 90,000 cabins will be made available on the Early Saver fares across 178 cruises, while a further 100,000 cabins will be available on the premium fares across 200 cruises.

 

Truscott said the news had been welcomed by agents, but added that it was just one aspect of what the cruise lines were doing to assist the trade.

 

Agents recently said Cunard and P&O had a long way to go to build bridges with the trade, but Truscott said the lines were “coming back to the table with opportunities for agents”.

 

“Clearly we have cruises between now and spring and we will have Vantage and Getaway fares on them,” he said. “Past that we will dispense with them in place of the new structure.

 

“What we are trying to do is change the new culture of late bookings; this new structure encourages early bookings and it will drive demand in early bookings. Our approach to getting more early bookings with these fares is by offering more variables and more value for agents to be able to use in their favour.

 

“The response from agents has been really positive. We have had a webinar with 300 agents and we have talked to a number of agents to inform them of what’s changing. It is very positive.

 

“We have listened – and we continue to listen – to feedback from the trade on what we can do to stimulate early bookings.”

 

The Vantage and Getaway fares have drawn criticism from the trade in the past after customers bought early booking fares only for a cheaper alternative to be released later in the year but still some months out from departure.

 

Asked whether he expected the new fares to be less confusing than their predecessors, Truscott said: “I think the new fares give the ability for customers to clearly understand the benefits and value that come with them. It allows them to make an informed decision on what to book.”

 

Gerard Tempest (pictured), Carnival UK chief commercial officer, said: “We listened to our travel agents as part of our Agent Matters programme and have developed a fare structure that will allow them more opportunities to convert customers at all booking lead times.

 

“Importantly, this initiative will help agents to replace lower-priced late bookings with more profitable earlier-booking business.”

 

The current Vantage and Getaway fares will continue to be available for all cruises departing up to the start of the spring 2014 programme. For those customers already booked on a Vantage or Getaway Fare, the booking terms and conditions will remain the same and Vantage fares will continue to be protected by the price promise.

[tom_uk]

Like others I'm waiting for something from P&O advising me as to where I stand with regard to my existing bookings.

 

What's even more bizarre is that just a day or two ago I received a 'Cruise Collection' booklet from P&O which is full of - Vantage and Getaway fares!

 

 

Final thought - do we think that a third category might appear: "Late Saver"?

Edited October 31, 2013 by tom_uk

[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

Reading the link on Cruise Critic I am confused - does this mean that Getaway fares for Feb/March 2014 will not be available after Nov 4th which is only next week. Does this mean if I want a Getaway for next March that I have to book it before Nov 4th.

 

http://Www.travelweekly.co.uk explains it better. I read it that vantage & getaways will continue to be booked on all cruises that sail before spring 2014. After that time all cruises will come under the new booking conditions

[Midsomer Madness]

The last sentence says that vantage/getaway fares will continue to be available until the end of the season...so you may well be ok!

[bluegirluk]

I am really confused now as yesterday I booked a Vantage priced cruise for October 2014 where does that leave me ?

Any help great fully appreciated.

[bee-ess]

Like others I'm waiting for something from P&O advising me as to where I stand with regard to my existing bookings.

 

What's even more bizarre is that just a day or two ago I received a 'Cruise Collection' booklet from P&O which is full of - Vantage and Getaway fares!

 

 

Final thought - do we think that a third category might appear: "Late Saver"?

 

Yes, where we probably only eat every other day and have to do a shift in the laundry

[davecttr]

100,000 cabins over 200 cruises

90, 000 cabins over 187 cruises

 

P&O and Cunard have 10,700 cabins in their 10 ships

that is 2,140,000 cabins in 200 cruises

 

so the new scheme applies to less than 8% of the cabins

 

which implies that bookings for next year are running at over 90%

 

confused? I am :confused::confused::confused:

[Marym1]

I wonder how this affects future cruise deposits. I have two where a booking has to be made before February. I had thought we would bin them as no way were we falling for the Vantage price promise again. It will be interesting to see more detail on this new pricing policy.

[bee-ess]

The last sentence says that vantage/getaway fares will continue to be available until the end of the season...so you may well be ok!

 

Thanks MM and Princessthebest I think it will be OK, think it was just badly worded in the CC link.

 

Should we make the most of the Getaways while they are there, not sure they will be as cheap again, I have never seen 2 week Caribbeans for 949 as they are currently and saw one there is a 10 day Spain and Portugal for 399.

[cruisebore]

Smoke and mirrors :mad:

 

Far inferior to the terms and conditions Americans enjoy on Carnival cruise lines based in America, where deposits are refundable, if the price reduces you can request the reduction be applied to your booking.

P&O have lost touch with the Trade as well as its customers.

Marks and Spencer thought themselves invincible, and look what happened to them :-(

 

Cb

Edited October 31, 2013 by cruisebore

[terrierjohn]

Smoke and mirrors :mad:

 

Far inferior to the terms and conditions Americans enjoy on Carnival cruise lines based in America, where deposits are refundable, if the price reduces you can request the reduction be applied to your booking.

P&O have lost touch with the Trade as well as its customers.

Marks and Spencer thought themselves invincible, and look what happened to them :-(

 

Cb

Princess now offer all the above for UK passengers sailing from Southampton, and I have recently benefited from them for a cruise booked for May next year.. Strange thing is all 3 lines are part of Carnival so why don't P&O follow the Princess system??:confused:

[Wiltonian]

They are still left with the problem of too many cruise ships chasing too little business.

 

What will be really interesting is how low prices drop in the month before sailing. If they currently need to drop fares by 40-50% to fill ships, that'll still be the case.

 

We're looking at October 2014, so we'll be able to see what happens to early summer fares just before sailing before we have to decide whether to book the "Early" booker discounted fares 90 days in advance.

 

I suspect an overall levelling out of fares a bit; premium rates down a bit, and discount rates up a bit. Only time will tell. But only a fool would book next Monday!

 

Stuart

[jeanlyon]

I am also booked for October 2014 and got extra OBC for booking on board plus free parking. I wonder what happens now?

[Midsomer Madness]

They are still left with the problem of too many cruise ships chasing too little business.

 

What will be really interesting is how low prices drop in the month before sailing. If they currently need to drop fares by 40-50% to fill ships, that'll still be the case.

 

We're looking at October 2014, so we'll be able to see what happens to early summer fares just before sailing before we have to decide whether to book the "Early" booker discounted fares 90 days in advance.

 

I suspect an overall levelling out of fares a bit; premium rates down a bit, and discount rates up a bit. Only time will tell. But only a fool would book next Monday!

 

Stuart

 

I presumed that the early saver fares will be on sale at the same time as the select fares, else why would they be called early savers? I thought it would be that they have to be booked at least 90 days in advance, so anything after then will probably be last minute deals or special offers..I guess we won't know until Monday!

[Wiltonian]

I presumed that the early saver fares will be on sale at the same time as the select fares, else why would they be called early savers? I thought it would be that they have to be booked at least 90 days in advance, so anything after then will probably be last minute deals or special offers..I guess we won't know until Monday!

 

We won't know about late deals until we get into the early summer. If they are significantly lower than the Early Saver rates, then people will still wait.

 

Stuart

[the english lady]

We won't know about late deals until we get into the early summer. If they are significantly lower than the Early Saver rates, then people will still wait.

 

Stuart

Some people may wait until nearer the time, but I am sure there will still be a few of us who book early to get what WE want-not what they want to give us.

If the likes of upgrades are kept for those who book vantage/select then that will be better.

I am still waiting come after next April when people come on here and say I HAVE to have first sitting and they have stuck me on 2nd..,or there is a group of 6 of us, our cabins are opposite ends of the ship on different decks, and we are on different sittings....they will appear on here.......

[Midsomer Madness]

Some people may wait until nearer the time, but I am sure there will still be a few of us who book early to get what WE want-not what they want to give us.

If the likes of upgrades are kept for those who book vantage/select then that will be better.

I am still waiting come after next April when people come on here and say I HAVE to have first sitting and they have stuck me on 2nd..,or there is a group of 6 of us, our cabins are opposite ends of the ship on different decks, and we are on different sittings....they will appear on here.......

 

Indeed, people will be having a go at the restaurant staff because they want to change sitting despite booking the cheaper fares. I do hope p&o stick to their guns and say no..people really can't expect to have it all!