Celebrity and "price drops" question

[jakenashleysmom]

I haven't cruised on Celebrity in years, been cruising mostly RC. I called Celebrity with what I thought looked like a price drop on their website and was told it was not a price drop, but a "promo". Their website is so jacked up who could tell first of all LOL, but my question is does this happen more often than not? Am I doing all the legwork of checking for price drops only to find I will lose my "pick your perk promo"?

 

thanks in advance for any insight here!

[gimletgal]

If the price is related to any promotion - senior, resident, military, loyalty, etc. - then yes, you will lose your "perk" in order to change to the lower price. When checking pricing on the Celebrity site (and you have a perk) be sure NOT to check the boxes for the senior/resident. Better yet, just call X (or your TA, if booked through one) and ask if the pricing is attached to a promo.

[jakenashleysmom]

Yes, that is what I ended up doing. I guess my question is more along the lines of is this the norm for Celebrity....calling any price drops "promos"? If so, I understand I will lose my previous "promo". Is this something they often do INSTEAD of a plain old fashioned price drop? Is this a way for them to get out of honoring price drops to those who have already booked?

[gimletgal]

They actually have "legitimate" price drops from time to time. You just have to be really diligent in ferreting them out. ;)

[suec12]

We have sailed with X several times lately and each year their pricing and promos get more and more complicated. I'm using my college educated brain for something these days, trying to get to the bottom line of their prices! But as others have said, many promos are "new bookings only" or there may be a lower price but you lose a perk given when you booked. I do like to book directly with X so I don't have to always go thru a TA when I see these promos and try to figure out if it is to my advantage.

 

And let me just say, in case someone from X reads these boards!, this fairly loyal X cruiser would rather see a lower bottom line than perks I may or may not want included with a higher price - just sayin'.

[jakenashleysmom]

Exactly! I always book through the cruiseline itself and have been happy with obtaining price drops with RC in the past. I will be diligent in checking as always!! Ya never know.....;)

[iancal]

Like others, the only promo we want is one that reduces our bottom line price. Same with the TA promos-we only want OBC's or paid gratuities. Bottles of wine, free this or that is of no use to us whatsoever. Cash is king.

 

We like Celebrity and were in fact going to buy a cruise on our last Celebrity cruise. But we were told by the consultant/salesperson that if we did, and then we subsequently took advantage of a Tuesday special or some other special, that we would not in fact get the OBC benefit from this pre purchase.

 

Since we often purchase cruises inside the cancellation period, and/or on a Tuesday special, this offer was of no use to us. We are on the Eclipse in mid/late December and we plan to ask this again just in case we missed something from the last conversation with a consultant.

[Iamthesea]

Bonnie - Was your price drop on your upcoming cruise, or on the Connie in March? If it's your upcoming cruise, it's probably a promo because it is so close to sailing. If it's the Connie in March, I suggest you call celebrity again and see if you get a different answer. ;)

 

I have been price watching on a fishy site. I do not do not check the Senior or Resident rates and see that there is a price drop for my cruises. The rate is listed as a Standard rate, so I assume it's a normal drop and not a promo.

[SusieV]

Right now it's annoying, because their Giving Thanks promo reduced all prices across the board, so apparently they aren't "normal" price drops.

 

I wish they wouldn't do that and just mention there is a promotional price available for new bookings and leave the standard rates alone.

[Iamthesea]

So you think that the prices I am seeing are for the Giving Thanks promo, even though it says Standard rate?

[SusieV]

So you think that the prices I am seeing are for the Giving Thanks promo, even though it says Standard rate?

 

That's what I was told!

[Iamthesea]

That's not good. :(

[berylde]

YES, the prices on the web site include the promo. I have had 2 very frustating phone calls with Celebrity

The Constellation cruise in March, 2014, will be our first on Celebrity in a long time. We have been sailing RCCL because we really like their dedicated Diamond Club Lounges

[Iamthesea]

I had to look you up, but see that you are on the early March cruise. We are 3/31.

 

I am going to call today just to see what kind of answer I get. I also have a May and August 2014 cruise booked with Celebrity.

[Tiggertastic]

I've repriced both the June and Dec cruises we have booked and the present offer works out a large price drop however celebrity confirmed that I will lose my pick your perk if I change and once we've added on the drinks package it works out the same price and would then lose our OBC

 

so not worth it however if you have no other offer booked, it is worth doing

[jakenashleysmom]

Bonnie - Was your price drop on your upcoming cruise, or on the Connie in March? If it's your upcoming cruise, it's probably a promo because it is so close to sailing. If it's the Connie in March, I suggest you call celebrity again and see if you get a different answer. ;)

 

I have been price watching on a fishy site. I do not do not check the Senior or Resident rates and see that there is a price drop for my cruises. The rate is listed as a Standard rate, so I assume it's a normal drop and not a promo.

 

Yes the price drop I saw was on Connie in March, and I was told what many of you have also reported that it is a "promo" price. Its hard to tell on their website, as you know its really screwed up and has been for a while. I agree I wish they wouldn't list the "promo" prices as standard rates for those of us looking for rate drops. Maybe they are on to us.....:mad:

[drb]

The answer is simple: Do not book a cruise at a price you are not happy to pay.

All service providers need to maintain a given income level in order to provide a given level of service. These boards are full of complaints about the quality of the service being supplied as having been reduced.

Do I wish that I paid a lower fare in any cabin category than any other person on the ship? Would that not mean that I would be asking everyone else to pay more than I do?

I believe that a driving force behind the 1-2-3 go promotions has been to accelerate earlier bookings and to "lock-in" fares and it seems to have been effective. I took advantage of this promo when booking our upcoming Panama Canal cruise knowing that at some point the promotion would be withdrawn and the cabin prices would drop. I made a decision that the price I paid represented a value that was fair to me. On two prior Celebrity cruises I was able to take advantage of a fare drop and I appreciate having found it and having had the opportunity to exploit it but I would have enjoyed either cruise just as much had it not occurred.

The bottom line is simply this, I believe. I can act like a spoiled child and feel that "others" have gotten a "better" deal than me, or I can put on my big boy pants and recognize that I am among a minute portion of the world's population that has the wherewithal to enjoy a magnificent two weeks adventure.

As always, your mileage may vary.

[jakenashleysmom]

The answer is simple: Do not book a cruise at a price you are not happy to pay.

All service providers need to maintain a given income level in order to provide a given level of service. These boards are full of complaints about the quality of the service being supplied as having been reduced.

Do I wish that I paid a lower fare in any cabin category than any other person on the ship? Would that not mean that I would be asking everyone else to pay more than I do?

I believe that a driving force behind the 1-2-3 go promotions has been to accelerate earlier bookings and to "lock-in" fares and it seems to have been effective. I took advantage of this promo when booking our upcoming Panama Canal cruise knowing that at some point the promotion would be withdrawn and the cabin prices would drop. I made a decision that the price I paid represented a value that was fair to me. On two prior Celebrity cruises I was able to take advantage of a fare drop and I appreciate having found it and having had the opportunity to exploit it but I would have enjoyed either cruise just as much had it not occurred.

The bottom line is simply this, I believe. I can act like a spoiled child and feel that "others" have gotten a "better" deal than me, or I can put on my big boy pants and recognize that I am among a minute portion of the world's population that has the wherewithal to enjoy a magnificent two weeks adventure.

As always, your mileage may vary.

 

Thank you for that answer! although it doesn't answer MY particular question, it is still an answer I suppose. I never said I was unhappy with the price I paid for my cruise/cruises....ever. I don't feel I am acting like a "spoiled child" in requesting that price drops be honored when that has been Celebritys policy all along. I have enjoyed ALL of my cruises thus far, and I am sure I will continue to enjoy them. I will also always seek the best deal possible for my hard earned money, as I am sure you will as well.

[jagoffee]

Right now it's annoying, because their Giving Thanks promo reduced all prices across the board, so apparently they aren't "normal" price drops.

 

I wish they wouldn't do that and just mention there is a promotional price available for new bookings and leave the standard rates alone.

 

That's what I was told!

 

For those of us that seek cost reductions this approach (special offer discounts) instead of reducing the price based on demand might make booking early and getting price reductions more difficult.