Interesting conversation with customer services

[Josy1953]

I called customer services this morning to pay the balance of our next cruise and thought that I would be a bit cheeky and ask if there was any chance of any extra OBC as our upcoming cruise now has additional OBC. As I expected the answer was no but the man that I spoke to decided to explain to me about fluid pricing and actually said that the reason that there was now additional OBC as an incentive to book was because they had increased the price. I knew that if we were booking now for the 2 of us we would be paying £500 more than we were paying but we would only get £200 OBC so we obviously had a better deal by booking earlier. I was surprised to actually hear a P&O person say what I have always suspected that they offer OBC as an incentive but that they increase the price so that they don't actually give anything away.

[daiB]

I think it's called marketing.

 

 

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[gadabout60]

Its win win for the cruise companies

P and O only give you your loyalty discount when your obc is spent so they have saved there

 

also - if you use your obc to buy a bottle of wine at say £20, it has probably only cost P&O £2 or £3 to but that bottle

 

I would much rather get a deal on the price and no obc - I think it is a big con!

[daiB]

Its win win for the cruise companies

 

P and O only give you your loyalty discount when your obc is spent so they have saved there

 

 

 

also - if you use your obc to buy a bottle of wine at say £20, it has probably only cost P&O £2 or £3 to but that bottle

 

 

 

I would much rather get a deal on the price and no obc - I think it is a big con!

 

 

If it is a "con" and I do not think so. It is one that is shared across all the cruise industry.

 

 

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[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

It's a bit like the free drinks package.. No such thing. The price is factored into what you pay for the cruise.

 

 

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[P&O SUE]

Yes, I've noticed when "following" a few cruises that when the OBC goes on the actual price actually goes up

[terrierjohn]

It's a bit like the free drinks package.. No such thing. The price is factored into what you pay for the cruise.

 

 

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Not always true PTB, on my last Celebrity cruise I cancelled the original booking lost the deposit but still saved £700 as well as getting a free drinks package on the new promo.

[balf]

Moral, never regard OBC as free and remember that the cruise line is on a win win given that it all comes back to them during the cruis.

 

David.

[yorkshirephil]

If a cruise costs me £100 more and I get £200 OBC then I see that as a net gain fo me, regardless of the fact that I wont get my 8.5% off the first £200 on board spend. I win P&O lose, however I may have won that little battle but P&O will always win the war so to speak. If they don't they will cease to make a profit and stop trading. As they say you win some you lose some.

[daiB]

Quite clearly it is far cheaper for any cruise line to give you OBC rather than a cash discount. But on the other hand if this is money you would have spent anyway then you as the customer are getting the full benefit. On our next cruise in Oct we have £800+ OBC but as we normally spend over £1000 per 2 week cruise we are happy.

 

 

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[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

I think it depends on your personal circumstances which is the best deal for you. Some people need to book early because of annual leave or physical reasons for a particular cabin. They will be forced to pay higher prices and as a select fare get OBC, free parking etc. If you are not fussy about cabin location and can wait to book, the rewards can far outweigh OBC. I recently booked a cruise which was selling at £1949 as a select fare with free parking or OBC. I waited and got it for £1,100 and no parking or OBC. That's nearly £1,700 saved. In my case this was a no brainer.:D

[Florry]

I agree with Dai and PTB, even if pando give OBC which doesn't cost them face value it's still face value to me. Over the years you get a 'feel' for what you can book last minute and what you can't, then book depending on whether you are prepared to take a risk and what you are prepared to settle for. I think overall pando are good value.

[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

I have received an email from a well known travel agent offering me a lead in balcony cabin on Oriana X705 for £1999 per person with £200 OBC. This is a promotion with P&O big on board spending money giveaway. I have just checked the P&O brochure that was released in March 2016 and the same cabin is priced £1799 on a select fare with OBC or free parking. It is obviously a marketing ploy, but in a way i'm glad they are looking after select customers. No one wants to book early and find the've been shafted!:eek:

[Thejuggler]

I have tracked Celebrity and Princess prices over 6 months during the last two years. The cheapest price has been when there have been no 'freebies'.