Choice Air - should Royal offer financial incentives to use it?

[Toddcan]

From my experience, which is very limited, I find that the prices offered through choice air are not very good. They seem to be run-of-the-mill retail prices for airfare - and often (most?) even more expensive than I can book myself.

 

What about Royal offering incentives, or subsidies to use it?

 

In the past 2 years, I have noticed a marked increase in the prices of flights. Although we drive from Canada to Florida for most of our cruises, and love the drive, I would prefer to fly, and take a longer cruise. But, the airfare prices are brutal lately!

 

I would cruise more often, or take longer cruises if flights were cheaper. I wonder if this would make any sense from Royal's perspective to subsidize Choice Air?

 

Here is my problem: I am addicted to Labadee. I can take a cruise on the NCL Epic in March for 7 days in a balcony for just over $700 pp. but it does not stop in Labadee, obviously. At that price, I would take a flight. But, the Freedom, which sails that same week and visits Labadee is $1311 pp for a balcony cabin. But, because it's a 7 day cruise, I would need to fly (work schedules).

 

Sigh....

[Folk Singer]

There is a program on right now with the newest BOHO. Where Choice air is offering up to 1000.00 off Flights. Check on the RCCL website.

[Clarea]

Royal is offering incentives to use Choice Air. They have a $1000 credit promo now:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contentWithGallery.do?icid=chc_gs_tctclp_thr_hm_cntntr_3586&pagename=august2014_three_ways_save#choiceair

 

Also, Choice Air prices for domestic US travel are the same (even a bit more to cover the Choice Air service charge) as airlines. I assume the same applies for travel between Canada and the US. However, prices for overseas flights on Choice Air are much better than airline website prices.

[Toddcan]

There is a program on right now with the newest BOHO. Where Choice air is offering up to 1000.00 off Flights. Check on the RCCL website.

 

Wow! Why didn't I know that? On the phone now.

[Toddcan]

Ah.. priceless...

 

The choice air is an optional promotion, and not combinable with the BOGOHO.

 

So.. bottom line: Freedom March 15 - 7 days. Balcony $3,634.06 for 2 people. Comes with a $500 Choice Air Credit. That's $1,817 per person for 7 days on a balcony (not JS). Sounds like more of the same inflated pricing to pay for the credits. Bah.

 

Now.. Celebrity is different.. I called them too. On the Reflection - $2,964 including taxes and fees AND Choice Air fare for 2 people 7 days - still visits Labadee. Now, THAT seems like a great deal. For $150 more PP, I can get a Concierge Cabin. No idea what all that means, but I know what I'm doing on my lunch hour - looking up Celebrity facts and cabin types.

[Clarea]

Ah.. priceless...

 

The choice air is an optional promotion, and not combinable with the BOGOHO.

 

So.. bottom line: Freedom March 15 - 7 days. Balcony $3,634.06 for 2 people. Comes with a $500 Choice Air Credit. That's $1,817 per person for 7 days on a balcony (not JS). Sounds like more of the same inflated pricing to pay for the credits. Bah.

 

Now.. Celebrity is different.. I called them too. On the Reflection - $2,964 including taxes and fees AND Choice Air fare for 2 people 7 days - still visits Labadee. Now, THAT seems like a great deal. For $150 more PP, I can get a Concierge Cabin. No idea what all that means, but I know what I'm doing on my lunch hour - looking up Celebrity facts and cabin types.

Thanks for the update. Some of the pricing seems ridiculous lately. We got a Freedom JS in April 2016 for about $1150pp, before taxes.

[PSCruiser]

From my experience, which is very limited, I find that the prices offered through choice air are not very good. They seem to be run-of-the-mill retail prices for airfare - and often (most?) even more expensive than I can book myself.

 

 

You should take a look at some fares to Europe and compare.

Choice Air has some great deals for those routes.

[Folk Singer]

The TA ( Transatlantics) seem to be some of the best fares.

 

Seen them as low as 379.00 for inside for 13 days before Tax. Out of the US.

[cruisenfever]

The TA ( Transatlantics) seem to be some of the best fares.

 

Seen them as low as 379.00 for inside for 13 days before Tax. Out of the US.

The OP is asking about Choice Air and not Cruise Fare.:)

[Toddcan]

The OP is asking about Choice Air and not Cruise Fare.:)

 

Sorry of my original post was not clear enough.. I was actually asking if Royal would subsidize the use of Choice Air. Where or how the incentive is applied didn't matter - in fact, I expected it to be applied to the cruise fare, since that is all they really have control over.

Edited August 12, 2014 by Toddcan

[workingonlytocruise]

Choice Air is only the middle man. They get nothing from the airlines so why would they want to "pay you" to book with them?

[Toddcan]

Choice Air is only the middle man. They get nothing from the airlines so why would they want to "pay you" to book with them?

 

I'll try this once again...

 

I was asking if ROYAL should/could offer incentives to USE choice air to offset some of the skyrocketing cost to fly. The incentive would come in the form of a reduced cruise fare.

[Ourusualbeach]

Hey Todd,

 

Have you checked out Southwest out of Buffalo. Pretty sure you are looking at 2016 dates but to get an idea of prices for 2016 Southwest will release the flights for the same period in 2015 on August 25'th 2014. My cousin always books for March break the day it opens and has never paid more than $300pp return to Orlando.

[stompy]

Royal is offering incentives to use Choice Air. They have a $1000 credit promo now:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/contentWithGallery.do?icid=chc_gs_tctclp_thr_hm_cntntr_3586&pagename=august2014_three_ways_save#choiceair

 

Also, Choice Air prices for domestic US travel are the same (even a bit more to cover the Choice Air service charge) as airlines. I assume the same applies for travel between Canada and the US. However, prices for overseas flights on Choice Air are much better than airline website prices.

 

We were able to get this special for our B2B AND we booked it not as a back to back but as 2 distinct cruises and did one way air. The flights were about $30 more to do one way than round trip but for $2000 off I couldn't say no.

[JasonV1]

There is also a promo right now that gets you 5% off the cruise fare plus 5 cruise points that applies to any choice air booking. That promo does not stack with resident rates though, but at least it applies to any booking (most others are for Alaska or other non-US sailings only). Scroll through the deals on the Royal front page to find it.

 

I jumped on that one as those points will get me to diamond a little earlier, plus the airfare was the same price as buying it direct.

 

From my experience, which is very limited, I find that the prices offered through choice air are not very good. They seem to be run-of-the-mill retail prices for airfare - and often (most?) even more expensive than I can book myself.

 

What about Royal offering incentives, or subsidies to use it?

 

In the past 2 years, I have noticed a marked increase in the prices of flights. Although we drive from Canada to Florida for most of our cruises, and love the drive, I would prefer to fly, and take a longer cruise. But, the airfare prices are brutal lately!

 

I would cruise more often, or take longer cruises if flights were cheaper. I wonder if this would make any sense from Royal's perspective to subsidize Choice Air?

 

Here is my problem: I am addicted to Labadee. I can take a cruise on the NCL Epic in March for 7 days in a balcony for just over $700 pp. but it does not stop in Labadee, obviously. At that price, I would take a flight. But, the Freedom, which sails that same week and visits Labadee is $1311 pp for a balcony cabin. But, because it's a 7 day cruise, I would need to fly (work schedules).

 

Sigh....

[L A RAY]

I was trying to book flights back from Orlando to Manchester in the UK and wanted to fly direct with Virgin Atlantic, best deal I could get was priced at 1,157 US Dollars per person for a one way ticket so I tried choice air and and got them for an incredible 411 US dollars each so yes you can get some good deals.

[delirious9876]

I was trying to book flights back from Orlando to Manchester in the UK and wanted to fly direct with Virgin Atlantic, best deal I could get was priced at 1,157 US Dollars per person for a one way ticket so I tried choice air and and got them for an incredible 411 US dollars each so yes you can get some good deals.

I'm SSSOOOOOOOO happy that at last someone from the UK has seen the value of using Choice Air even though RCI 'U.K.' tell you that you can't use it :)

[midnight talker]

I was trying to book flights back from Orlando to Manchester in the UK and wanted to fly direct with Virgin Atlantic, best deal I could get was priced at 1,157 US Dollars per person for a one way ticket so I tried choice air and and got them for an incredible 411 US dollars each so yes you can get some good deals.

 

Are you from UK? If so then please let me know how you managed to book through Choice Air's website as I'm currently going NUTS trying to book my return flights London-NYC to go on the Quantum for Christmas, and it just won't let me!?

:mad:I'm able to search the flights but won't let me book, it doesn't like my ID - it says 'ChoiceAir.com is not available for direct guests, please contact ChoiceAir customer support'. Spoke to Royal Caribbean a million times and they keep quoting me some astronomical prices that have nothing to do with what I'm getting on Choice Air's website... HEEELP!!

[CruisingMachine]

Ah.. priceless...

 

The choice air is an optional promotion, and not combinable with the BOGOHO.

 

 

Sounds like you were misadvised. The Choice Air promo IS combinable with BOGOHO, and even C&A discounts. It's not combinable, however, with residency, military and senior discounts.

[bighairtexan]

Choice air as mentioned above is THE BEST price wise for 1 way transatlantic and also more than competitive for a European cruise. Less than half of what I'd pay if I wanted to book a DFW to FCO Rome O/W. So as far as I'm concerned that's more than enough of an incentive. $600 vs $1500.

[Cookiecookie]

Are you from UK? If so then please let me know how you managed to book through Choice Air's website as I'm currently going NUTS trying to book my return flights London-NYC to go on the Quantum for Christmas, and it just won't let me!?

:mad:I'm able to search the flights but won't let me book, it doesn't like my ID - it says 'ChoiceAir.com is not available for direct guests, please contact ChoiceAir customer support'. Spoke to Royal Caribbean a million times and they keep quoting me some astronomical prices that have nothing to do with what I'm getting on Choice Air's website... HEEELP!!

 

We were looking online at a western Caribbean cruise next summer for 3 adults. We could get the cruise price £1600 for us all but it wouldnt add on the air fare no matter what we tried. We had to ring RCI in the end, wish we hadn't bothered £5500 !! What a joke over £3000 for the air fare. Not happy.

[robtulipe]

Hey Todd,

 

Have you checked out Southwest out of Buffalo. Pretty sure you are looking at 2016 dates but to get an idea of prices for 2016 Southwest will release the flights for the same period in 2015 on August 25'th 2014. My cousin always books for March break the day it opens and has never paid more than $300pp return to Orlando.

I agree, especially since Toddcan lives really close to Buffalo, but like you mentioned SW bookings only go out about six months.

We regularly use BUF airport and don't even bother checking Choice Air for flights to Florida because we can get flights, even non-stop ones, on Southwest and Jet Blue at such low cost and there's no luggage fees to add to the cost.

In fact earlier today I booked BUF to TPA return on SW, non-stop both ways, to go to a Vision of the Seas cruise for $228US total each.

For this post I just did check on Choice Air and the lowest price flights was with Delta for $260 each return for one stop connecting flights both ways and there would be luggage fees to add to that cost.

Jet Blue on CA showed a cost of $285 each, also one stop connection so it would be about the same cost with a checked bag each since they don't charge for the first checked bag each.

I believe Choice Air cost includes a service fee.

Right after I checked the above I looked at booking the same dates and flights directly with the same airlines and it would have cost us $250 each on JB and with Delta $245 plus luggage fees. :rolleyes:

We like to do TA cruises and that's where Choice Air offer great price even with a service fee attached.

We got our one way BUF to BCN for our Serenade TA cruise, we go on next week, on Choice Air for $429US each which was over half the cost of what I could find elsewhere but the MSY (New Orleans) to BUF was over three times more than what I directly booked it for on SW web site. ;)

Edited October 28, 2014 by robtulipe

[iancal]

We have found Choice Air pticing to be unattractive for domestic and European return trips.

 

But, for one way, to or from Europe they seem very good. In Early Sept. We booked an RCL cruise with one way return Barcelona to western Canada. The fare was $465 USD with very good connections. We were pleased.

[nealstuber]

We have found Choice Air pticing to be unattractive for domestic and European return trips.

 

But, for one way, to or from Europe they seem very good. In Early Sept. We booked an RCL cruise with one way return Barcelona to western Canada. The fare was $465 USD with very good connections. We were pleased.

 

What's the best way to price choice air without doing a full booking?

[Clarea]

What's the best way to price choice air without doing a full booking?

Go to the website http://www.choiceair.com and click "Quick Flight Search Only".