New Celebrity Bundle Pricing (Go! Big, Go! Better, Go! Best)

[JaneStarr]

I missed the part where the BBB pricing goes away after final payment. Do you have a link to that?

 

Edit, from the FAQ concerning this promo;

 

"Can I book this pricing at any time?

You can book this pricing until 10 days prior to sailing."

 

From Chamima;

{{{Snip}}}

 

Saying it another way - if I add the Go Better or Go Best on a booked cruise when the price has gone up from my initial booking will I be adding the $15/pp (or $45) or will I need to re fare?

 

(Or conversely , if I book with Go Best and want to downgrade to Go Big will I need to re fare at current rates or will they just lower our fare by $45/pp/per day?)

 

 

I'm curious what you're basing this on?

 

I think it would be simply $15 per person per day from the base fare for Better or $45 pp per day for Best. I'm basing my answer from the FAQ on this document;

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Celebrity/Multi_Dest/Special_Offers/15045079_CEL_Big_Better_Best_FAQ_Overview_Flyer.pdf

 

Specifically these two;

Can guests change the amenity chosen of Go Big, Go Better and Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

Can guests change from Go Big, Go Better and/ or Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

Taking the 2 answers to FAQ that Orv has quoted above, we have until 10 days before sailing to adjust to a different BBB package (provided we remain in the same cabin category).

It's sounds like they *will* allow downgrades, but I expect final payment deadlines & refundability rules could come into play for lowering packages

 

I'm also not sure being able to book Go! BBB rate packages up until 10 days prior to sailing means that the rate plan would necessarily be offered to new bookings late in the game at a discount. It would annoy those who booked early.

 

It seems more likely to me that Celebrity would use various new booking specials (like Tuesday, 55+, military, residency, fire-fighters) to move inventory closer to sailing.

 

It will be interesting to see how this all develops, but I'm sure there will still be good deals to be snagged!

Jane

[chamima]

From Chamima;

 

I have a question that I don't think anyone has brought up yet.

We usually book our cruises WAY in advance.

Let's say I book a cruise for 2017 (or 2018 in the future). I book with Go Big.

Just before final payment I decide I want Go Better (or even Go Best) .

Since the pattern for our winter cruises has been that the prices only go up as they get closer, will my initial price hold?

 

Saying it another way - if I add the Go Better or Go Best on a booked cruise when the price has gone up from my initial booking will I be adding the $15/pp (or $45) or will I need to re fare?

 

 

(Or conversely , if I book with Go Best and want to downgrade to Go Big will I need to re fare at current rates or will they just lower our fare by $45/pp/per day?)

 

 

 

I'm curious what you're basing this on?

 

I think it would be simply $15 per person per day from the base fare for Better or $45 pp per day for Best. I'm basing my answer from the FAQ on this document;

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Celebrity/Multi_Dest/Special_Offers/15045079_CEL_Big_Better_Best_FAQ_Overview_Flyer.pdf

 

 

Specifically these two;

Can guests change the amenity chosen of Go Big, Go Better and Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

Can guests change from Go Big, Go Better and/ or Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

Thank you.

[4774Papa]

It's hard to have 3-4 glasses of wine at the Happy Hour if you have Early Seating! But I suppose it could be done haha The amount you drink after 5 is about what we drink all day lol:D But we still upgrade to the premium!

We do select, but when we did early seating we usually managed two glasses.

 

Have you ever checked you bill at the end of a cruise and added up all the alcohol costs. I have done that for every cruise that we have done.

 

For two weeks (before we were elite) DW and I would spend no more than $500 for both of us on alcohol.

After we because elite, our average has dropped to about half of that for two weeks.

 

Paying over $50 a day for a drinks package would be flushing money down the toilet for us.

 

I wonder how many people have checked their bills to see what they spend (with no drinks package)?

[wallie5446]

Have you ever checked you bill at the end of a cruise and added up all the alcohol costs. I have done that for every cruise that we have done.

 

 

I wonder how many people have checked their bills to see what they spend (with no drinks package)?

 

 

For every one since 1987. We used to re-fill our own water bottles :o

 

Last Nov we had 7 pages of zero's for our 11 days on the Equinox. Well except for the $3.50 I had to pay for the $35.00 milk stout I had at the GastroBar on happy hour one day!:D And $3.00 for the 5 Martini flight ;)

 

Only 40% involved an alcohol beverage, and the unlimited smoothies from the Aqua Spa Café were wonderful.

 

Moving forward the beverage package will be factored in as a cost if we don't have it included in our price. It made the cruise so much more worry free and enjoyable.

EW

[MicCanberra]

I understand your example of how cruise prices can rise over time especially when you purchased many months or years prior.....although you did not give specific timings.

 

In my personal example posted earlier in the thread, I compared my experience with an Aqua 2 cabin I booked in early June, 2015 with the same cabin/class next door now.

There is a $980 pp difference now when similar perks are added in to match my booking with 1,2,3 Go. Whether that is due to good timing in June or the effect of the new BBB program is impossible to say until we get more examples of similar bookings within a time span within 2015 under the two programs.

 

Overall I see Celebrity prices rising outside my personal comfort zone regardless of the level of perks chosen. Celebrity is a GREAT cruise line with Excellent crew members, but HAL, Princess and RCI can be more economical and are comparable in services if ships and itineraries are chosen carefully with CC as a great resource in that quest.

My time span example is generally from when the itinerary is first offered (18 months before sailing), however, I have had occasions where the price has jumped up within weeks of us booking and the cruise is leaving within 6 months. My point was that price flucuations arenot always about sales or promotions but there is also the suplly and demand effect for any cruise.:D

Edited July 10, 2015 by MicCanberra

[MicCanberra]

We do select, but when we did early seating we usually managed two glasses.

 

Have you ever checked you bill at the end of a cruise and added up all the alcohol costs. I have done that for every cruise that we have done.

 

For two weeks (before we were elite) DW and I would spend no more than $500 for both of us on alcohol.

After we because elite, our average has dropped to about half of that for two weeks.

 

Paying over $50 a day for a drinks package would be flushing money down the toilet for us.

 

I wonder how many people have checked their bills to see what they spend (with no drinks package)?

 

I agree, we would rarely get a package, if we had to buy due to our normal spend but as a perk I will take the drink package before the $150 OBC each or the gratuities as we do spend more than what they are worth.:D

[MicCanberra]

For every one since 1987. We used to re-fill our own water bottles :o

 

Last Nov we had 7 pages of zero's for our 11 days on the Equinox. Well except for the $3.50 I had to pay for the $35.00 milk stout I had at the GastroBar on happy hour one day!:D And $3.00 for the 5 Martini flight ;)

 

Only 40% involved an alcohol beverage, and the unlimited smoothies from the Aqua Spa Café were wonderful.

 

Moving forward the beverage package will be factored in as a cost if we don't have it included in our price. It made the cruise so much more worry free and enjoyable.

EW

 

The convenience is awesome, and those multiple pages of $0 is fun reading.:D

Edited July 10, 2015 by MicCanberra

[woodyren]

I have read a few times here that the BBB isn't available on GTY cabins. While I understand and have read somewhere that BBB is not available for +55, military etc , GTY is a cabin category rather than a discount rate (well it's a bit of one and the other really).

 

Is this speculation from others or is this quoted on Celebrities conditions. As a regular booker of GTY cabins I am interested to know.

[Scrappytraveller]

I have read a few times here that the BBB isn't available on GTY cabins. While I understand and have read somewhere that BBB is not available for +55, military etc , GTY is a cabin category rather than a discount rate (well it's a bit of one and the other really).

 

Is this speculation from others or is this quoted on Celebrities conditions. As a regular booker of GTY cabins I am interested to know.

 

 

Speculation, and untrue. Just did a dummy booking on my next cruise and a guarantee OV came up with go big.

[grandgeezer]

The convenience is awesome, and those multiple pages of $0 is fun reading.:D

 

More impressive is getting your final statement as seeing a credit going back to your credit card for unused obc. Had it the last five cruises we've done and expect to see it the next four we have booked before the end of the year.

[ptrpanpens]

More impressive is getting your final statement as seeing a credit going back to your credit card for unused obc. Had it the last five cruises we've done and expect to see it the next four we have booked before the end of the year.

 

Isn't this only true for OBC from your travel agent? i do not think OBC from Celebrity is refundable unless you use it to get cash out of the casino at 5% charge.

 

If this is incorrect, I would like to know.

[woodyren]

Speculation, and untrue. Just did a dummy booking on my next cruise and a guarantee OV came up with go big.

Thanks it is what I expected but just wanted to be sure.

[grandgeezer]

Isn't this only true for OBC from your travel agent? i do not think OBC from Celebrity is refundable unless you use it to get cash out of the casino at 5% charge.

 

If this is incorrect, I would like to know.

 

That is true. I have a B2B on Royal in October. We are getting prepaid gratuities from them and $350 obc from our travel agent. In December we have a B2B on Celebrity. We are getting the drink package from Celebrity, prepaid gratuities and $300 from our travel agent. We spend 0 on the ship so that $650 comes home with us. Being Diamond/Elite Plus, we get drinks, laundry and Internet so we get everything we want.

[4774Papa]

I agree, we would rarely get a package, if we had to buy due to our normal spend but as a perk I will take the drink package before the $150 OBC each or the gratuities as we do spend more than what they are worth.:D

We would probably take the OBC for a short cruise and grats for a long one, since we would not spend more than $300 on alcohol.

 

By the way, does Celebrity charge grats on the beverage packages like NCL?

[Tangocherie]

We would probably take the OBC for a short cruise and grats for a long one, since we would not spend more than $300 on alcohol.

 

By the way, does Celebrity charge grats on the beverage packages like NCL?

 

In a nutshell...no!

[MicCanberra]

More impressive is getting your final statement as seeing a credit going back to your credit card for unused obc. Had it the last five cruises we've done and expect to see it the next four we have booked before the end of the year.

 

That would be nice.:D

[MicCanberra]

We would probably take the OBC for a short cruise and grats for a long one, since we would not spend more than $300 on alcohol.

 

By the way, does Celebrity charge grats on the beverage packages like NCL?

 

Yes, they charge you for it if you buy a package, but it is all part of the perk.

[midwestchick]

More impressive is getting your final statement as seeing a credit going back to your credit card for unused obc. Had it the last five cruises we've done and expect to see it the next four we have booked before the end of the year.

 

Was this from a TA? I didn't think X face and refundable OBC.

[Cruise Junky]

We would probably take the OBC for a short cruise and grats for a long one, since we would not spend more than $300 on alcohol.

 

By the way, does Celebrity charge grats on the beverage packages like NCL?

 

It's not just alcohol though, It's water, specialty coffees, smoothies, specialty teas.

[MicCanberra]

Was this from a TA? I didn't think X face and refundable OBC.

 

Correct, it was from the TA.

We are getting prepaid gratuities from them and $350 obc from our travel agent. In December we have a B2B on Celebrity. We are getting the drink package from Celebrity, prepaid gratuities and $300 from our travel agent.

Edited July 11, 2015 by MicCanberra

[midwestchick]

Correct, it was from the TA.

 

 

Thanks. Not sure why my post said X face. :confused:

[The_Big_M]

 

I'm curious what you're basing this on?

 

I think it would be simply $15 per person per day from the base fare for Better or $45 pp per day for Best. I'm basing my answer from the FAQ on this document;

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Celebrity/Multi_Dest/Special_Offers/15045079_CEL_Big_Better_Best_FAQ_Overview_Flyer.pdf

 

 

Specifically these two;

Can guests change the amenity chosen of Go Big, Go Better and Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

Can guests change from Go Big, Go Better and/ or Go Best?

 

Yes, as long as the guests stays within the same cabin category. If, they change their cabin category, then they would pay prevailing pricing. To make the change, please call Trade Support to facilitate the change.

 

I believe they were basing it on that information.

 

Once already bought, they said it has to be refared, i.e. charged at prevailing pricing.

 

However, they suggested just paying for the element separately, just as you can do at present. This wouldn't affect the price booked at.

[The_Big_M]

By the way, does Celebrity charge grats on the beverage packages like NCL?

 

Yes. Similarly the upgrade from classic to premium which some pay for is $10/day + gratuity, so $11.80.

[The_Big_M]

Is this speculation from others or is this quoted on Celebrities conditions. As a regular booker of GTY cabins I am interested to know.

 

It's not speculation. It's more a generalisation instead of writing out all the exclusions that apply.

 

Technically this offer excludes "interior staterooms, are not combinable with any other offer, promotion or discounted rate, including, but not limited to, Book & Go, Exciting Deals, Celebrity’s ChoiceAir, Interline, Senior, resident, net rates, travel agent, and employee rates."

 

Guarantee rates often fall under the above, but not in all cases.

 

However, the more likely they're deep discounted guarantee rates, e.g. after final payment, the more likely they are to be excluded.

Edited July 11, 2015 by The_Big_M

[MicCanberra]

Thanks. Not sure why my post said X face. :confused:

 

One of the emoticons' Code?:D