Prices too low for UK travel agents to sell?

[clivep]

I see that some 7 day February cruises on the Costa Pacifica are still being sold on the UK Costa website at £299 for a balcony cabin.

 

I looked on numerous cruise TA websites and only found one that showed these cruises. The others all said things like "There are no results matching your criteria" when searching for Costa Pacifica in February.

 

Presumably the agents don't make enough commission to make it worth their while to sell the cruises at this price or do not want the general public to know how low the prices go at this time of year.

[chrispb]

Hmmm, I can see the sense of what you're saying but I must be honest it's not a cruise I'd want to do - ports are not very interesting and unlikely to see much sun in February. I wouldn't be interested even if it was free:cool: - just not worth the effort, I'm afraid.

[Discount lovers]

One of life's mysteries!!

The prices on Costa website are often cruise only. I get the impression that some cruises are not targeted at UK residents and have no flights & transfers in the package; so UK agents aren't selling them. This is conjecture on my part, I must add.

[AmoMondo]

There are certainly last minute bargains to be had via the Costa UK website. The med in winter has never appealed much to me but I guess still a bit warmer than at home. I like to get further away at this time of year to be sure the temperatures get to at least 20C.

 

Be aware that if you do go direct for one of these bargain fares, don't log on as a Costa club member as the fare is often higher then. These rock bottom discounts don't allow a further club discount but instaed of the website just saying no club discount, it returns the next fare that does allow a discount which is a lot higher then the promotion.

[clivep]

I agree with all your replies.

 

Hmmm, I can see the sense of what you're saying but I must be honest it's not a cruise I'd want to do - ports are not very interesting and unlikely to see much sun in February. I wouldn't be interested even if it was free:cool: - just not worth the effort, I'm afraid.

 

We actually enjoy the cooler weather and prefer it if the temperature is below 20C. Our cruise to the Baltics in October with P&O Adonia was our best yet and had a max. temperature of 13-15C.

 

Flights from our local Leeds & Bradford airport tie in nicely with the Costa Feb. sailings but, as you say, the itineraries are not interesting and it's not worth the effort.

 

One of life's mysteries!!

The prices on Costa website are often cruise only. I get the impression that some cruises are not targeted at UK residents and have no flights & transfers in the package; so UK agents aren't selling them. This is conjecture on my part, I must add.

 

I only look at the cruise only prices as I prefer to make my own flight arrangements to go from our local airport. Some UK agents only sell Costa cruises packaged with flights and sometimes a hotel stay as well. They probably do this to make their margin on the ancilliary services.

 

I also get the impression that Costa doesn't target the UK that strongly and uses the UK as a bucket shop to get rid of unsold inventory. You can log into the Costa website and select your country... when I've done this in the past I've seen the cruise price in continental European countries showing as double or tripple the UK prices.

 

Be aware that if you do go direct for one of these bargain fares, don't log on as a Costa club member as the fare is often higher then. These rock bottom discounts don't allow a further club discount but instaed of the website just saying no club discount, it returns the next fare that does allow a discount which is a lot higher then the promotion.

 

I've seen and posted about this previously, so much for appreciating and rewarding customer loyalty! Always make sure you're logged out when looking at prices.

[chrispb]

Oddly, the Pacifica cruise is advertised in one of the Sundays today, more expensive than Costa's price but does include airfares, £379 inside and £499 for balcony.

[henry hound]

I was looking at Costa Serena ex marseille cruise only in November . On the costa French website a samsara cabin is half the cost of the uk website. Does anyone know the rulings ? Is it possible for a uk resident to book through the costa French website?

 

Thanks

[petlady7]

In regards to the weather we live in South of France and it has been very dry here all month , and I have been walking the dogs in a t- shirt sometimes

If we book with costa uk we have to use a british registered credit card registered to a british address but normally the french website is much more expensive