Discounted cruises

[Travelcat2]

I am referring to the U.S. website. Take a look at all the changes that have been made.

Everyone who has a booked cruise with Regent should be very concerned before making

final payment.

 

Interesting information! IMO, it is always a good idea to withhold final payment until the last minute because of changes that could occur even though we have only experienced one price decrease on a Regent cruise. I am wondering if Regent is changing the way it handles itineraries that are not selling well. I much preferred the way it was handled in the past than lowering prices at the last minute.

[newlondon]

Octoberkat, You generally make sense, but this time I agree with Jacquie and swansong. We have been on river and ocean cruises where the ambience has been somewhat spoiled by those who don't understand upmarket cruising. IMO this is too bad because they have many choices as do we who like a certain atmosphere for what we pay. Quick examples would include gross disregard for dress codes, smoking outside of approved areas and abuse of staff (not exclusive to any passenger class).

[Eager2Travel]

Also agree with above statements about the feel of cruises that are heavily discounted to one part of the world and not everyone. We have been on several of these. There appears to be more unrealistic (in my opinion) demands placed on staff and crew diminishing the experience for others.

 

Also we overheard several of these passengers being startled about the cost went they went to do an onboard booking for a second cruise. They said they would never pay such a price. Not sure what the long term gain for Regent is in this situation. It would be better ( again my opinion) to offer a significant reduction to those of us that are willing to pay Regent's usual prices as a nice treat.

[Travelcat2]

in this situation, It would be better ( again my opinion) to offer a significant reduction to those of us that are willing to pay Regent's usual prices as a nice treat.

 

Love that idea! Specials only for Regent Seven Seas Society Members (meaning that you have taken at least one Regent cruise) would be such a good will gesture!

[mrstanley]

Regarding dress code. Regent is at fault for not enforcing the dress code.

[Travelcat2]

Regarding dress code. Regent is at fault for not enforcing the dress code.

 

I believe that newlondon was referring to the dress code on river cruises or cruises other than Regent. While Regent does miss some people that are dressed inappropriately, they would not miss someone smoking in the wrong area which was mentioned in the same sentence. Regent takes their smoking policy very seriously. Admittedly, they can sometimes be lenient on dress code (particularly when excursions arrive late and there is not enough time for the passengers to change in time for dinner).

[flossie009]

One aspect of different t&c's which is rarely mentioned in these threads of 'your country has cheaper fares than mine' is the ability to cancel when booking from the US. In the UK we have hefty cancellation fees if we cancel after paying our deposit - an initial reservation is a fixed reservation.

 

I suspect that this is why Regent offer these discounts in Europe rather than in the US. In Europe they will attract additional bookings rather than having existing bookings discounted or other bookings moved to the discounted cruise as would occur in the US.

 

The downside for Regent is that it upsets loyal customers in the US and those in the UK who have booked early.

The lower prices will also attract a different demographic..................but I will refrain from joining in that debate :rolleyes::rolleyes:

[tubeamps]

Re: more restrictive cancellation policy and discounted fares vs US fares with more liberal cancellation fees.

 

I haven't run the numbers, but is this half a dozen of one, six of another?

 

If your cruise fare is 25% to 40% less in the UK and your cancellation penalties were double what they are in the US, wouldn't the cancellation fees be similar?

 

I don't know what UK cancellation policy is, but just thought as a dollar amount they would be similar to what we have in the US.

 

Or maybe I haven't had enough coffee yet.

[flossie009]

If your cruise fare is 25% to 40% less in the UK and your cancellation penalties were double what they are in the US, wouldn't the cancellation fees be similar?

 

I don't know what UK cancellation policy is, but just thought as a dollar amount they would be similar to what we have in the US.

 

Cancellation charges in UK:

 

Booking date up to 90 days prior: Loss of Deposit (20%)*

89 to 60 days: 50%

59 to 31 days: 75%

30 to 0 days: 100%

 

*More onerous 121 days for Navigator World Cruise

[tubeamps]

Thanks for the information Flossie. It appears the cancellation charges are the same for 0 to up to 90 days prior to cruise.

 

I was booked on a cruise June 6 out of London. My fare for concierge E was 10,299/person. UK pricing is 3799/person which is approximately $5400 US.

 

That is a huge difference , when you add airfare from the eastern US, where I am located it is still a large up charge.

 

I have since cancelled the cruise due to a medical issue that would have run into the cruise date, however if I had researched this before booking I would not have booked.

[Travelcat2]

With my luck this week, this link won't work for people in the U.K. but here is a link to the very complicated cancellation policy that is in place in North America for 2016 http://www.rssc.com/media/hostedfiles/legal/US-TC_DEC15.pdf

 

In case the above does not work, here are some highlights of the cancellation policy:

 

Cancellation penalties Explorer (only) - August 3 - Dec 28, 2016

 

151+ days - 25% (MS-SS2) - 100% (A-H

150-121 days - 50% (MS-SS2) - 15% (A-H)

120-91 days - 50% - all categories

90-76 days - 75% - all categories

75-0 days - 100% all categories

 

 

Other ships

 

Cruises 14 Nights or Less

 

From date of deposit to 121 days prior to vacation date: $100 per person administration fee. This admin fee will be converted to a future cruise credit redeemable on bookings made up to 12 months after cancellation and for travel any time.

 

120-91 days prior to vacation date: 15% of cruise fare per person

90-61 days prior to vacation date: 50% of cruise fare per person

60-31 days prior to vacation date: 75% of cruise fare per person

30-0 days prior to vacation date: 100% of cruise fare per person

 

Cruises 15 days or More

 

150-121 days prior to vacation date: 15% of cruise fare per person

120-91 days prior to vacation date: 50% of cruise fare per person

90-76 days prior to vacation date: 75% of cruise fare per person

75-0 days prior to vacation date: 100% of cruise fare per person

 

There are also various cancellation days/fees for cancelling excursions, flights, excursions and more.

Edited January 30, 2016 by Travelcat2

[Eager2Travel]

mistaken post

Edited January 30, 2016 by Eager2Travel

[flossie009]

Thanks for the information Flossie. It appears the cancellation charges are the same for 0 to up to 90 days prior to cruise.

 

I was booked on a cruise June 6 out of London. My fare for concierge E was 10,299/person. UK pricing is 3799/person which is approximately $5400 US.

 

That is a huge difference , when you add airfare from the eastern US, where I am located it is still a large up charge.

 

I have since cancelled the cruise due to a medical issue that would have run into the cruise date, however if I had researched this before booking I would not have booked.

 

So sorry to hear that you will not be coming to the UK this Summer and hope you recover well from your medical issue.

 

Yes, the differences in cancellation charges between US and UK are prior to final payment.

 

Certainly the disparity in Regent pricing around the world is most bizarre.

I have checked the US price of an E cabin on the Voyager June 6 cruise in my latest US brochure (I always pick one up whilst on-board) and it is shown as $11,299 US pp with the UK price on the website remaining at £3,799 GBP ($5400 US).................and this is not one of the 25/25/25* cruises

 

*UK Regent marketing: '25th Anniversary; up to 25% off on 25 sailings'

[gnomie1]

The other night we had dinner with friends and they told us they would like to cruise with us so I started to research some possibilities for the summer - we actually found a cruise that appealed to all and I was planning to make arrangements next week to start the booking process - before the post appeared on CC regarding the discounting currently available in the U.K. and other parts of the world, other than the U.S., I learned from relatives overseas about the discount - apparently they were provided with a heads-up by their TA.

 

While we have no problem traveling with passengers who are not Regent regulars and I have found some of the postings on this thread to be rather offensive, we do have a problem paying a major premium for the same product. I can take into account that the cost of airfare is greatly reduced for those individuals from the UK, but then again, Regent is not paying normal retail airfare prices for their U.S. passengers. The large purchasers of airline tickets are provided with discount pricing structures not available to the everyday traveler (and before I get slammed on this board to provide "proof" of this, there are people on this board who are not professional travelers but rather individuals who actually know a thing or two about business structure and operations because it is what we do for a living). We are not talking a few dollars, but significant money which we would rather spend elsewhere.

 

Now, back to the drawing board to find a cruise - we like Regent because as Platinum we get some very nice benefits, but free laundry and the Wall Street Journal delivered to our door is not worth thousands of dollars.

 

gnomie :)

[Travelcat2]

IMO, there are a lot of "professional travelers" on the Regent board (which I took to mean people that travel - or in this case cruise - a lot). While there are passengers in all areas of business on the boards, the advice I prefer to take is from other cruisers. In terms of business sense -- an expert in one field is not necessarily an expert in another. For instance, the advice from an attorney that works for a cruise line would mean a lot more to me than a injury or criminal attorney's input. We are also extremely interested in what cruise line executives have to say.

 

While every poster has different feelings on this subject, I cannot see where the input from anyone not in the cruise industry would be helpful (speaking only for myself). Cruise lines are quite different than most companies. The tax issues alone are so different, one could write a book about it. Coming from a Human Resources background (not in the cruise industry), I find the rules for minimum wage, hiring, benefits, discrimination, etc., to be 100% different than anything I have seen in the states.

 

In any case, some North American's will book Regent this summer and some will not. We do not typically sail in the summer so it is a non-issue for us. I am trying to understand the reasoning behind the dramatically lower fares in the U.K. What I have learned is that some British passengers are no more interested in sailing on a discounted cruise than some American's.

[mrstanley]

Flossie…you should be looking at the Regent website for current pricing on all cruises.

That E cabin you mentioned at $11,299 per person is now $10,299 per person.

Business Class tickets on that June 6th cruise are now $499 each way.

[flossie009]

Flossie…you should be looking at the Regent website for current pricing on all cruises.

That E cabin you mentioned at $11,299 per person is now $10,299 per person.

Business Class tickets on that June 6th cruise are now $499 each way.

 

Thanks for the info.

We cannot access the Regent US website (with US pricing) from the UK

[tallship]

There are several listed currently in the Med from 1999 GBP for 7 days versus 2399 GBP for 10 days

 

This is a huge reason we stopped purchasing Regent since 2014 because they discount so heavily in the UK we were out several thousand dollars on our last cruise

 

Now with our currency devaluation, even the 15% Regent offer for Canadian residents does little to offset the ridiculously high fares

 

Take Alaska, for example - We went several years in a row but fares have since doubled and fewer excursions are included

[Gilly]

Flossie , I think you can - look at the too right hand corner of the Regent website and click on the 'country of residence' or similar and change it to USA. You can always switch back again when you're ready to come home

[tubeamps]

Flossie…you should be looking at the Regent website for current pricing on all cruises.

That E cabin you mentioned at $11,299 per person is now $10,299 per person.

Business Class tickets on that June 6th cruise are now $499 each way.

 

In the original brochure for this itinerary the fare was 11,299, so I assume that is the brochure Flossie was quoting from. The fare was lowered to 10,299 in the April brochure.

[aussiechick7]

I have not even heard of "25th Anniversary cruise special discounts" and they do not appear on our rssc.com website under specials. This is the second year in a row that significant discounts have been available only in the U.K. I checked prices on one itinerary (June 6th on the Navigator)...... the least expensive price is 4,000 GBP ($5,799 U.S.).

 

There are some air discounts that we receive in the U.S. but nothing like the discounts described by the OP. I have not seen any cruise priced at 1,999 GBP ($2,861 U.S.) in years (if ever).

 

FYI here is a listing of the "specials" on the rssc.com website: https://www.rssc.com/specials/default.aspx (hope the link works)

Hi,

I live in Australia and we don't get the discounts either or any air credits or free flight included I have even thought of flying to London to take up the UK offers lol, as my husband and I have British passports.

[tallship]

You can purchase with a UK TA

You will need to purchase your own insurance and air to London

[mrstanley]

The majority of Regent cruises are somewhere in Europe. If you live in the UK it's not very difficult to fly into a port city and take a cruise. No long plane flights, no need to purchase a Business Class airline ticket and plenty of airlines that fly all over Europe. Really easy

to take a cruise from the UK. Lucky British!

[Travelcat2]

The majority of Regent cruises are somewhere in Europe. If you live in the UK it's not very difficult to fly into a port city and take a cruise. No long plane flights, no need to purchase a Business Class airline ticket and plenty of airlines that fly all over Europe. Really easy

to take a cruise from the UK. Lucky British!

 

This is true (during the summer only) but Regent is based in the U.S. and the majority of their customers are from North America. Flights, as has been discussed, are heavily discounted for Regent and, IMO, would not account for a 25% discount for Brits.

 

If North American's were given 25% discounts for the Caribbean, South American, African and Asian itineraries, would the people in the U.K. be happy? I do understand that many people are not booking Med. cruises and there may need to be some incentives. Perhaps Regent should offer the 25% discount without air to everyone - no matter where they live.

 

When you mention the proximity to the ports that Regent sails out of as being a reason for the discounts, we need to look at the Caribbean and Alaska. I can drive to Vancouver for Alaska cruises and a lot of passengers drive to Miami for cruises departing there. The benefit we get is being able to take an "air credit" which is quite nice to get. However, it is not nearly worth 25% of the cruise fare.

 

Obviously I don't have any answers - just thoughts and comments......

[Philandher]

Earlier in this thread I posted that I would not knowingly book a cruise that had been heavily discounted. I also said that this was not being snobbish!

Whilst I can't answer for TC my reasons are certainly nothing to do with 'class'.

My reasons are to do with expectations.

 

I expect my fellow passengers to be in all respects what I have experienced in the past on Regent in terms of outlook, behaviour, politeness etc. This is one of the ticks in my boxes. There are of course occasional exceptions but those are minor.

 

In my, albeit limited, experience of being on a discounted cruise we met several ( British ) cruisers who volunteered that they had taken advantage of the lower pricing as this compared favourably with that which they ended up paying on mainstream lines when everything was included. We did not meet any of these who had been with Regent before. I remember P&O, Celebrity and Fred Olsen being mentioned as their usual lines.

 

However, both my wife and I got quite fed up with the overwhelming moaning and negative comments regarding their perception of value for money. We heard it ( or overheard it ) in the bars on the excursions and in the corridors. None of those we met were intending travelling with Regent again if they had to pay a normal price. Their reasons were in the main lack of facilities that mainstream lines have such as shopping, bigger entertainment extravaganzas, food not 'british' enough! They did like being with a large British contingent (which we don't as in general we keep ourselves to ourselves).

 

They also would not have experienced before the standard and quality of service on board and the worry I have is that when there are large percentages of discounted first time passengers their expectations are not as high as regular luxury line passengers which could possibly lead to reduced standards.

 

I agree with TC that due diligence on their part would have identified those issues.

 

So, back to my point, we just didn't want to hear this as we were long term Regent customers who were ( and are ) happy with what we pay for. We haven't experienced this on any other cruises before and hope not to again.

 

Whilst statistically my report could be ripped to shreds, I felt I should share my reason hopefully to knock this class thing on the head.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

This post echo's our sentiments exactly!