Disappointed with RCL last minute deals....again

[islandmama01]

In April 2015, Chairman and CEO Richard Fain said in an earnings call that no longer would RCL be offering heavily discounted last minute deals "We have adapted policies designed specifically to deal with the last minute discounts that are so disruptive to the system," I booked my cruise 6 months ago and was shocked after my final payment date passed to start being inundated by all these Seek the Royal Caribbean promotions on TV, on FB and throughout the internet. I understand they need to fill rooms, but it's pretty messed up that once again RCL is showing they aren't valuing their loyal customers that book ahead. I called RCL today and they basically told me that because I am past my final payment date they can't do anything for me. :(

[Merion_Mom]

In April 2015, Chairman and CEO Richard Fain said in an earnings call that no longer would RCL be offering heavily discounted last minute deals "We have adapted policies designed specifically to deal with the last minute discounts that are so disruptive to the system," I booked my cruise 6 months ago and was shocked after my final payment date passed to start being inundated by all these Seek the Royal Caribbean promotions on TV, on FB and throughout the internet. I understand they need to fill rooms, but it's pretty messed up that once again RCL is showing they aren't valuing their loyal customers that book ahead. I called RCL today and they basically told me that because I am past my final payment date they can't do anything for me. :(

 

Did you compare the price of your cabin that you paid with the current price under whatever promotion you are referencing? What was the cost difference?

[Garavar]

Even past final payment cant you upgrade?

 

Ie if you paid $500 for Interior and OV is now $500 cant they move you?

 

Also I dont see heavy discounts. I think Fain is sticking to his guns. I wish he wouldnt. Last minute deals are wonderful. Id love to purchase my ticket the night before or morning of at a heavy discount.

[Merion_Mom]

Even past final payment cant you upgrade?

 

Ie if you paid $500 for Interior and OV is now $500 cant they move you?

 

Also I dont see heavy discounts. I think Fain is sticking to his guns. I wish he wouldnt. Last minute deals are wonderful. Id love to purchase my ticket the night before or morning of at a heavy discount.

 

Hey, Garavar, what happened when you called at 12:01 yesterday?

[reallyitsmema]

In April 2015, Chairman and CEO Richard Fain said in an earnings call that no longer would RCL be offering heavily discounted last minute deals "We have adapted policies designed specifically to deal with the last minute discounts that are so disruptive to the system," I booked my cruise 6 months ago and was shocked after my final payment date passed to start being inundated by all these Seek the Royal Caribbean promotions on TV, on FB and throughout the internet. I understand they need to fill rooms, but it's pretty messed up that once again RCL is showing they aren't valuing their loyal customers that book ahead. I called RCL today and they basically told me that because I am past my final payment date they can't do anything for me. :(

 

From your other posts, it looks like you are going on the Oasis April 16th and your cruise is showing sold out. Were there cabins available earlier today or were you trying to get a price drop on the 30% off sale? Your cruise is during vacation week for a lot of the northeast states, that is going to be a more expensive week.

Edited March 30, 2016 by reallyitsmema

[BekkaW]

Seek the Royal Caribbean is 't a sale/promotion, it's just their current advertising campaign

[islandmama01]

It had open cabins this morning when I looked. Problem is that I really liked the cabin I picked and didn't really want to move even if given the option, which I never was. I am not generally a complainer, so I probably just waited too long to address it. I guess lesson learned on my part, but I still feel these last minute deals stink for people who book well ahead and support this company regularly. I can't just take time off from work whenever a deal is announced so last minute deals aren't an option for everyone.

[islandmama01]

I am aware, but it's the tag line on all their commericals toting the deep discounts

[IndyKid]

In April 2015, Chairman and CEO Richard Fain said in an earnings call that no longer would RCL be offering heavily discounted last minute deals "We have adapted policies designed specifically to deal with the last minute discounts that are so disruptive to the system," I booked my cruise 6 months ago and was shocked after my final payment date passed to start being inundated by all these Seek the Royal Caribbean promotions on TV, on FB and throughout the internet. I understand they need to fill rooms, but it's pretty messed up that once again RCL is showing they aren't valuing their loyal customers that book ahead. I called RCL today and they basically told me that because I am past my final payment date they can't do anything for me. :(

 

They may say that they won't offer last-minute deals, but they're not going to sail with empty cabins if they can avoid it.

 

If you think about it, the only added expense for Royal for the additional passengers is the food, so they still make a decent profit on a cheapo fare.

[reallyitsmema]

It had open cabins this morning when I looked. Problem is that I really liked the cabin I picked and didn't really want to move even if given the option, which I never was. I am not generally a complainer, so I probably just waited too long to address it. I guess lesson learned on my part, but I still feel these last minute deals stink for people who book well ahead and support this company regularly. I can't just take time off from work whenever a deal is announced so last minute deals aren't an option for everyone.

 

What were the cabins going for this morning? There couldn't have been many of them if all categories are showing sold out.

[Garavar]

Hey, Garavar, what happened when you called at 12:01 yesterday?

 

4/14/16 $649 pp was for JSs not GS or OS unfortunately :(

 

I booked an OS on Indy for the the cruise right before "sale cruise" (4/9/16) because even with the "sale" the price for 4/9 was better. I am gonna keep monitoring the 4/14/16 see if its price drops as well. If it doesn't I am gonna go to "Next Cruise" desk on Indy to see if they have any good OBC or incentive for the 4/14/16 so I can do a back to back.

Edited March 30, 2016 by Garavar

[trojan3000]

Hi could you tell me if the buy one get one half price sale has now stopped in the United States and Canada?

[krisko]

Their current sale is '30% off every person every ship'. I'm not sure if these are better than the BOGO prices, but I will say the bogo drove me away from Royal for almost 2 years. I prefer Royal to Carnival but not at double the price...think my price threshold is about 25% more.

[Clarea]

Their current sale is '30% off every person every ship'. I'm not sure if these are better than the BOGO prices, but I will say the bogo drove me away from Royal for almost 2 years. I prefer Royal to Carnival but not at double the price...think my price threshold is about 25% more.

Theoretically (if Royal does not raise the prices before the sale), the current sale is better than the BOGOHO. The BOGOHO ended up being 25% off for two guests, and the current sale is 30% off for two guests.

[Keith1010]

Sorry this happened.

 

Keith

[cruisinfanatic]

I am aware, but it's the tag line on all their commericals toting the deep discounts

They may discount last minute sailings, but they are normally not discounted lower than an early booker could have booked for

[Clarea]

They may discount last minute sailings, but they are normally not discounted lower than an early booker could have booked for

That has been our experience too.

[Want2Cruise 701]

They may discount last minute sailings, but they are normally not discounted lower than an early booker could have booked for

 

That has been our experience too.

 

O Yes they are. Take a look at the May 28 Oasis sailing. We booked over a year ago March on the day it was released and now the Boardwalk is $600 less and the Central Park View is now $750 less than what we paid.

 

We've upgrded to 2 Oceanview balconies since for the same cost but we had to do it on a guarantee. You can now book the Oceanview Balcony rooms WITHOUT a guarantee for less than we upgraded on a guarantee for.

 

This all happened 24 hours after final payment. They dropped it tremendously. IMO, I thought it was kind of sleazy. If you have to drop prices that much 24 hours after final payment, you obviously know well before your ship isn't selling. I know it's business. They're in it to make money.

 

When Fain came out with that statement, I knew he couldn't possibly hold true on that always. Maybe some. He doesn't have a crystal ball just like any of us do to predict whether a sailing is going to sell or not when it's released. He is certainly not going to sail with a large number of empty cabins either. If he has to discount rooms to fill the ship, he most certainly will.

[cruiselife4me]

I'm sorry for your hassle. Mr Fain is a nice guy but it's happened to me. On a brighter note, you have a balcony!! Woo!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[cruisinfanatic]

O Yes they are. Take a look at the May 28 Oasis sailing. We booked over a year ago March on the day it was released and now the Boardwalk is $600 less and the Central Park View is now $750 less than what we paid.

 

We've upgrded to 2 Oceanview balconies since for the same cost but we had to do it on a guarantee. You can now book the Oceanview Balcony rooms WITHOUT a guarantee for less than we upgraded on a guarantee for.

 

This all happened 24 hours after final payment. They dropped it tremendously. IMO, I thought it was kind of sleazy. If you have to drop prices that much 24 hours after final payment, you obviously know well before your ship isn't selling. I know it's business. They're in it to make money.

 

When Fain came out with that statement, I knew he couldn't possibly hold true on that always. Maybe some. He doesn't have a crystal ball just like any of us do to predict whether a sailing is going to sell or not when it's released. He is certainly not going to sail with a large number of empty cabins either. If he has to discount rooms to fill the ship, he most certainly will.

How much are they now and what did you pay?

[KG1924]

We're booked on the Allure for May 8th. We booked a few months ago on a balcony X for $2300 for 2 (w/ taxes and fees...can't remember exact base fair off hand) and we're content with that price. Of course I would always want it cheaper, but it's the lowest we had seen the Allure for awhile. We've been watching pricing and most recently you could book an ocean view balcony for $899 and some days the neighborhood balconies for $799. All after final payment and I'm sure there were some caveats w/ some of them (new bookings only, etc.) My sister booked her family of 4 in one balcony and when the D3's went to $899 she was able to get 2 balcony cabins for the same price and was able to switch. The balconies are all back up to $1400+ per person last I checked.

 

While I don't think that this is always the case, the May sailings (Allure at least) have been dropping to some great deals. We can't sail all that last minute and airfare is usually the killer for that, but last minute deals are out there sometimes. Of course, May is generally considered a cheaper time to sail overall-I wouldn't expect to see any last minute drops june-early august.

[Expat Cruise]

Royal change the company policy about a year ago. Under the new guidelines no added discounts will be offered within 30 days from sailing.

 

I agree I too like the old system.

[FSUNole]

Theoretically (if Royal does not raise the prices before the sale), the current sale is better than the BOGOHO. The BOGOHO ended up being 25% off for two guests, and the current sale is 30% off for two guests.

 

When we booked the 4/9 indy cruise under the BOGOHO, it also included $300 OBC. When the 30% off sale came along, the net cost was lower on the BOGOHO by about $100... in a JS.

[Clarea]

When we booked the 4/9 indy cruise under the BOGOHO, it also included $300 OBC. When the 30% off sale came along, the net cost was lower on the BOGOHO by about $100... in a JS.

You're right, I forgot that they added an OBC part to the BOGOHO towards the end.

[molly361]

We're booked on the Allure for May 8th. We booked a few months ago on a balcony X for $2300 for 2 (w/ taxes and fees...can't remember exact base fair off hand) and we're content with that price. Of course I would always want it cheaper, but it's the lowest we had seen the Allure for awhile. We've been watching pricing and most recently you could book an ocean view balcony for $899 and some days the neighborhood balconies for $799. All after final payment and I'm sure there were some caveats w/ some of them (new bookings only, etc.) My sister booked her family of 4 in one balcony and when the D3's went to $899 she was able to get 2 balcony cabins for the same price and was able to switch. The balconies are all back up to $1400+ per person last I checked.

 

While I don't think that this is always the case, the May sailings (Allure at least) have been dropping to some great deals. We can't sail all that last minute and airfare is usually the killer for that, but last minute deals are out there sometimes. Of course, May is generally considered a cheaper time to sail overall-I wouldn't expect to see any last minute drops june-early august.

 

I noticed that as well for both OA and AL which I don't remember seeing in the past years. There were sailings that had neighborhood balconies in the mid $600 range.

Edited April 2, 2016 by molly361