New Survey about Inclusions in the cruise pricing.

[Shawnino]

12 minutes ago, uktog said:

I think a lot of first time cruisers use them, not knowing any better.  Also certainly in the UK a lot of travel agents push them.  (By that I am meaning the use of pre and post cruise hotels and transfers).  Met several people in South America who did the pre or post cruise tours to Macchu Pichu and Iguazu Falls.  It was an eye watering price but some people were buying the comfort of having the cruise line control the logistics.

 

Thanks. That a very good explanation (for reasons you describe, I won't say it "make sense").

 

We are actually doing Iguassu on our own after the Rio TA this Nov. As you write, the Azamara price was huge when we looked at it. 

[uktog]

Yes we did Iguazu on our own pre cruise a few years ago and Macchu Pichu last year. With good internet skills and some common sense you can beat the price and equal or beat the quality. We had a memorable day traveling on Belmont train and stayed in an iconic hotel in Cusco. 

[snowglobe]

 

51 minutes ago, uktog said:

Also certainly in the UK a lot of travel agents push them.  (By that I am meaning the use of pre and post cruise hotels and transfers).

 

Travel agents like to push pre-and post bundled cruise packages for two reasons:

It makes their job very easy and it pays a good commission = maximum pay-out for the least effort.

 

If the shore excursions are to be included in the cruise fare, then some of the pricing increase will have to be a calculating-in of the travel agent commission percentage to the whole - that would represent at least a min. 10%+ increase, if not more, to the already jack-ed up excursions rates portion of the prospective cruise fare.

 

No thank you.

Under such an ‘inclusive’ pricing scheme, I wouldn’t even have considered becoming a first-time Azamara cruiser and would have looked for another ‘smaller ship’ experience.

[hubofhockey]

1 hour ago, snowglobe said:

 

 

Travel agents like to push pre-and post bundled cruise packages for two reasons:

It makes their job very easy and it pays a good commission = maximum pay-out for the least effort.

 

If the shore excursions are to be included in the cruise fare, then some of the pricing increase will have to be a calculating-in of the travel agent commission percentage to the whole - that would represent at least a min. 10%+ increase, if not more, to the already jack-ed up excursions rates portion of the prospective cruise fare.

 

No thank you.

Under such an ‘inclusive’ pricing scheme, I wouldn’t even have considered becoming a first-time Azamara cruiser and would have looked for another ‘smaller ship’ experience.

 

Basically, this scheme is already in play in the Galapagos and will get only worse now that Royal Caribbean controls all three (two Celebrity and one Silversea) ships there.  They get you for a night at the hotel and excursions are included.  Because Ecuador limits the amount of passengers and number of people that can visit any of the islands, passengers pay a premium for everything.  

 

I agree that Azamara won't have much luck with prices that include excursions even if it drives down the overall cost of those excursions.  The pricing is only part of it.  The idea of excursions with 20-24 others and shopping stops is the non-starter.  I'd rather do business with locals who can provide more flexibility, even when it comes lunches for people with allergies.  

 

People who use Cruise Critic, unfortunately, are in the minority of those actually on cruises. Those who use this website are more likely to learn how to be independent in ports and find the best vendors for great private experiences.  The cruise lines love the buzz and positive word of mouth from Cruise Critic, but cannot be crazy about the information available on Cruise Critic where users learn how to save $ on cruises and the overall cruise and vacation experience.  

[dabear]

2 hours ago, uktog said:

Yes we did Iguazu on our own pre cruise a few years ago and Macchu Pichu last year. With good internet skills and some common sense you can beat the price and equal or beat the quality. We had a memorable day traveling on Belmont train and stayed in an iconic hotel in Cusco. 

 

We also did Iguazu on our own pre cruise from Buenos Aries. It was easy to arrange independently & we used a tour guide to pick us up at the airport, take us around the park, with time saving shortcuts, etc, & take us back to the airport, all about 50% less than the cruiseline rate. We find pre or post cruise packages from the cruiselines to be grossly overpriced, but convenient.

We also did Macchu Pichu with the Belmond train, but that was a different trip.

Edited May 2, 2019 by dabear

[Wendy The Wanderer]

18 hours ago, LuAnn said:

 

WOW...I had no idea!! Growing up in the US...I had always heard that "Canadian Bacon" was on an "Eggs Benedict"!! It sounds like that was not correct??? Please enlighten me...as this is one of my FAVORITE breakfast dishes..and I had  NO idea I was offending my Canadian friends?? !!! What is the right term please?? LuAnn

 

Yes, there is a product called that in the U.S., and yes it seems to be part of the classic eggs benedict.  But it is not a product that originated in Canada, nor is it one that you will find here, normally.  What's in a name?  I'm not sure of its origins, but I surmise that someone decided to produce something that was 'like' back/peameal bacon that was uniform in shape.  I believe peameal bacon was referred to as Canadian when pork was exported to the U.K. during a pork shortage there, in the 19th century.

 

If you ever get a chance to try a good quality peameal bacon, freshly grilled or fried, do it!

[Lookyboy]

4 hours ago, uktog said:

I think a lot of first time cruisers use them, not knowing any better.  Also certainly in the UK a lot of travel agents push them.  (By that I am meaning the use of pre and post cruise hotels and transfers).  Met several people in South America who did the pre or post cruise tours to Macchu Pichu and Iguazu Falls.  It was an eye watering price but some people were buying the comfort of having the cruise line control the logistics.

We always use them.....great peace of mind.....flight from Scotland to Heathrow  and onward flight across the world,  pre cruise hotel and transfers and....As a result .....  not ever responsible for catching up with the ship if anything goes wrong. Same on the way home.... done this every cruise for about 30 ish now. No regrets and quite a few scary moments with delays and cancelled flights to and from Scotland , but never had to pay anything extra for hotel rooms, taxis, meals.  Horses for courses!

[uktog]

12 hours ago, Lookyboy said:

We always use them.....great peace of mind.....flight from Scotland to Heathrow  and onward flight across the world,  pre cruise hotel and transfers and....As a result .....  not ever responsible for catching up with the ship if anything goes wrong. Same on the way home.... done this every cruise for about 30 ish now. No regrets and quite a few scary moments with delays and cancelled flights to and from Scotland , but never had to pay anything extra for hotel rooms, taxis, meals.  Horses for courses!

Indeed horses for courses. 

We too travel from Scotland but find Azamara rarely would route us through Heathrow opting for AMS or CDG. Our own experience is Heathrow is a far better routing and has more contingencies. They also use carriers other than BA. 

We are happy to rely on our travel Insurance (albeit accept we claim back later etc) and also always pay for the flights usingAmex to get the interruption cover which is superior  to any insurance. In Europe we also have (at present anyway for us Brits) EU261 cover which is an automatic payment in the event of delays over a certain length- though you do have to file a claim. A few cruises back we had a four hour delay out to Athens. No problem just a late night in but 600 euros waiting for us back home once we filled the form in 😃😃

Port agents help all guests catch up, the reality is the group on catch up will often include those who were booked direct and independent travelers.  Often they are all on the same flight anyway. The number of times this happens is rare and the risk often overplayed by those with a financial interest in selling you the more expensive options. It’s the same line as don’t do independent excursions because the ship won’t wait. 

All this, plus always travelling at least a day before gives us sufficient comfort but it does depend on your perspective on risk. 

The one thing that totally turned us off Cruise line organised flights was on a return home I did experience in Venice where we were taken to the airport six hours before the scheduled flight and could not even enter the airport but were left to her own devices.     Making my own arrangements I am able to control how I go to the airport and whether I sightsee along the way.   This can be with the Azamara offered excursion or their transfers or on my own .What I do know over the years is I have saved a significant sum booking direct with British Airways being in control of my booking of the flights and choice of hotel.

But each to their own choices. 

 

[Grandma Cruising]

1 hour ago, uktog said:

Indeed horses for courses. 

We too travel from Scotland but find Azamara rarely would route us through Heathrow opting for AMS or CDG. Our own experience is Heathrow is a far better routing and has more contingencies. They also use carriers other than BA. 

We are happy to rely on our travel Insurance (albeit accept we claim back later etc) and also always pay for the flights usingAmex to get the interruption cover which is superior  to any insurance. In Europe we also have (at present anyway for us Brits) EU261 cover which is an automatic payment in the event of delays over a certain length- though you do have to file a claim. A few cruises back we had a four hour delay out to Athens. No problem just a late night in but 600 euros waiting for us back home once we filled the form in 😃😃

Port agents help all guests catch up, the reality is the group on catch up will often include those who were booked direct and independent travelers.  Often they are all on the same flight anyway. The number of times this happens is rare and the risk often overplayed by those with a financial interest in selling you the more expensive options. It’s the same line as don’t do independent excursions because the ship won’t wait. 

All this, plus always travelling at least a day before gives us sufficient comfort but it does depend on your perspective on risk. 

The one thing that totally turned us off Cruise line organised flights was on a return home I did experience in Venice where we were taken to the airport six hours before the scheduled flight and could not even enter the airport but were left to her own devices.     Making my own arrangements I am able to control how I go to the airport and whether I sightsee along the way.   This can be with the Azamara offered excursion or their transfers or on my own .What I do know over the years is I have saved a significant sum booking direct with British Airways being in control of my booking of the flights and choice of hotel.

But each to their own choices. 

 

We feel exactly the same. We prefer to research and choose our own hotels and flights. If you book hotels early you can get excellent rates and we often book flights as soon as they are available to buy - again that’s usually at the best price.

Like you, we like to feel in control of our own destiny!

[Riocca]

We used to take the “One Stop Shop” approach but got fed up with ridiculous flight times, long airport waits and poor hotel deals so now do it ourselves.

Even with Viking we removed their flights and hotels saving £1200 in the process, yes there’s always an element of risk but we have good travel insurance.

Also we really enjoy the planning and putting our own packages together and I like the fact we are in control, however I realise this is not for everyone.

[Lookyboy]

16 hours ago, uktog said:

Indeed horses for courses. 

We too travel from Scotland but find Azamara rarely would route us through Heathrow opting for AMS or CDG. Our own experience is Heathrow is a far better routing and has more contingencies. They also use carriers other than BA. 

We are happy to rely on our travel Insurance (albeit accept we claim back later etc) and also always pay for the flights usingAmex to get the interruption cover which is superior  to any insurance. In Europe we also have (at present anyway for us Brits) EU261 cover which is an automatic payment in the event of delays over a certain length- though you do have to file a claim. A few cruises back we had a four hour delay out to Athens. No problem just a late night in but 600 euros waiting for us back home once we filled the form in 😃😃

Port agents help all guests catch up, the reality is the group on catch up will often include those who were booked direct and independent travelers.  Often they are all on the same flight anyway. The number of times this happens is rare and the risk often overplayed by those with a financial interest in selling you the more expensive options. It’s the same line as don’t do independent excursions because the ship won’t wait. 

All this, plus always travelling at least a day before gives us sufficient comfort but it does depend on your perspective on risk. 

The one thing that totally turned us off Cruise line organised flights was on a return home I did experience in Venice where we were taken to the airport six hours before the scheduled flight and could not even enter the airport but were left to her own devices.     Making my own arrangements I am able to control how I go to the airport and whether I sightsee along the way.   This can be with the Azamara offered excursion or their transfers or on my own .What I do know over the years is I have saved a significant sum booking direct with British Airways being in control of my booking of the flights and choice of hotel.

But each to their own choices. 

 

We avoid the long drive home from Edinburgh, which is a real bummer after international flights - those 4-5 hours extra are awful, so Heathrow is usually always more convenient, and of course British Airways used to be so good.....nothing stays the same, though!

We did fly out of Edinburgh on two occasions recently - to Southampton for Azamara  Quest round UK in 2015 and then the inaugural voyage last year of Pursuit, although on that one, we had to come home early and managed to fly home via Shetland......so that didn't turn out so easy either.  Carl, Ryszard and Gita oversaw  those arrangements on our behalf.

It is good for folks on Cruise Critic to know that everyone has different experiences and choices and that it's not always down to costs. Sometimes, it's just what we have learned to value most.....for us it's booking on board and leaving it to Azamara, who, of course usually offer options with flights, and hotels when flights come into view.

 

[cruisingaussies]

On 5/2/2019 at 11:13 AM, BBMacLaird said:

Hi cruisingaussies,

The survey about inclusions may have closed. Perhaps the authors are analyzing the feedback already? I’ll ask around tomorrow.

Hi Bonnie

Seems that this survey has definitely  closed?  From what I can see, the window of opportunity was very small, disappointed that I’ve been unable to respond. I didn’t receive it and attempted to participate only a day after news of it was first posted here. 

[BBMacLaird]

On 5/7/2019 at 3:51 AM, cruisingaussies said:

Hi Bonnie

Seems that this survey has definitely  closed?  From what I can see, the window of opportunity was very small, disappointed that I’ve been unable to respond. I didn’t receive it and attempted to participate only a day after news of it was first posted here. 

Yes, the survey is definitely closed. I'm sorry you didn't get the email to participate.