Pricing for idiots....

[Bruin Steve]

So, I always watch the pricing on my cruises after booking...in case they go down...But, just out of curiosity as well, I just watch it until the end...

 

I have a cruise on Reflection leaving in less than 2 weeks...and, for that cruise, they are apparently down to one single cabin left (though, obviously, it could change...someone could drop out last minute or they may have a 24 hour courtesy hold on a cabin, etc.)...It's a Concierge cabin...

 

They are showing two basic rates:

A "Best Rate" at $2409 per person with zero perks...and...

A "Sail Plus" rate for $2949 pp with THREE perks...

 

Okay, those make sense since available perks are

a) Drink package

b) Internet package

c)  Gratuities (worth a total of $360)

d)  OBC ($300)

 

Theoretically, it could all add up to about $3000 in perks (if you skip the OBC)...and worth the added $1040 to a lot of people...

Here's where it gets bizarre:

First (and a minor point), the "Best" rate says "Nonrefundable Deposit" and the "Sail Plus" says "Refundable Deposit"...Of course, with just 12 days to the sail date, aren't ALL deposits nonrefundable?  In fact, there's no longer really a deposit since you'd have to pay in full by now...

 

But even stranger is this:

When you click on the Sail Plus link, it brings you to a page where you have the option of keeping and choosing the 3 perks...OR, you can go "All-Inclusive" and get ALL FOUR PERKS...For only another $420 per person!!!

 

Excuse me...If you get THREE perks and choose the drinks, the internet and the gratuities, the ONLY one left is that $150 per person OBC...SO, you are paying $840 in up front cash to get $300 in nonrefundable OBC!!!  Are there ANY idiots out there that would actually take THAT deal?

 

[bikerunner]

More or less because of the sale they are running with one free perk.  No reason to revise the whole structure.  But I have seen "idiots so called" do stranger things. 

[ipeeinthepool]

27 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

 Are there ANY idiots out there that would actually take THAT deal?

 

You been on this forum long enough to know the answer to that question.

[Mike981]

I  believe some people don't know how to do all of the research or that they should do a lot of research, or don't care.

Years ago I did a remote broadcast from a car dealership every Saturday and was amazed at how many people did NO research at all. A new car usually costs more than a cruise, for me at least. 😉

[Mike45LC]

If you call Celebrity, your sales agent ("cruise consultant" I think they are called) will not always tell you about the "no perk" offer or give you the time to consider those options.  Many people do no research -- and the Celebrity website is so bad that researching on the website is hard!

[hiccups]

When I did some mock bookings I noticed that adding the fourth perk cost $245 PP, which is exactly the same price it was to add two perks before the current third perk promo.

About two weeks ago there must have been a glitch, and a cruise I was pricing was listing the price to add the third and fourth perk as $145 PP.  Very shortly it was fixed and the price was again $245.

[sfaaa]

More choices are never a bad thing even if they cost more.

[ghstudio]

I want to congratulate Bruin Steve on taking the time to actually understand the different offers and the (please insert a word that's more politically correct than stupidity).  Truth is, many (I'm being kind) folks don't do the math...or even think about the deals......they take the one that feels good.  Yes, why would you pay more than $300 for a $300 OBC...etc. 🙂  Truthfully, I don't think many think about the value of the classic drink package TO THEM!  They just take it because it looks like the best deal. (note: I fall into that group...my wife doesn't even drink....but at least I know what I'm doing (and yes insert that word here as well).

 

Figure out the best deal FOR YOU and go with it......

Edited June 14, 2019 by ghstudio

[cynbar]

I hope that most everyone is happy with the deal they got --- even if, in fact, it doesn't make sense to the rest of us. It's sort of like buying a car. A friend recently drove into a car dealership in his dying car, drove out in a brand new one, and is pleased as punch with the "deal" he got and how he was treated. Did he really get a good deal? I wouldn't bet on it, but the important thing is that he thinks he did. I dislike seeing so many posts here from cruisers unhappy because the price went down, or someone else paid less. 

[Straughn]

I agree that there is far too much complaining about the rise and fall of prices. Cruises and airlines are all about how much interest they see on line for a specific flight or cruise. Even if the flight or cruise isn’t getting booked immediately, it tells them that there are passengers who are considering it. I don’t book a cruise unless I am comfortable with the price. If it goes down, and I can take advantage of it, yay! I don’t complain if the price drops after final payment is due, I remind myself that I have a cabin in a good location that probably wouldn’t be available to me at the lower price.

 

I also agree that the odd pricing costs for adding an additional perk or perks are wacko. It is pretty easy, with a little research on the website ,or asking questions here, to determine the cost of drink packages, gratuities and Wi-Fi. Do the math people! 

[helen haywood]

It must work for Celebrity.  There obviously must be people that can’t or don’t add.  Caveat emptor.

 

Glad I can! 😜

[Oville]

How long is the cruise?  The 4 perks usually upgrade you to the Premium Beverage Package though the website has in the past been wrong about this.

Edited June 15, 2019 by Oville

[rotoal]

8 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

 

Excuse me...If you get THREE perks and choose the drinks, the internet and the gratuities, the ONLY one left is that $150 per person OBC...SO, you are paying $840 in up front cash to get $300 in nonrefundable OBC!!!  Are there ANY idiots out there that would actually take THAT deal?

 

Still not a good deal, but the $840 covers the $150 per person OBC as well as the $12 a day to upgrade to the premium drink package.   If I did my math correctly, this is a 12 night cruise, so it would cost $840 to get $588 worth of perks.  

 

[Oville]

13 minutes ago, rotoal said:

 

Still not a good deal, but the $840 covers the $150 per person OBC as well as the $12 a day to upgrade to the premium drink package.   If I did my math correctly, this is a 12 night cruise, so it would cost $840 to get $588 worth of perks.  

 

Your math is fine.  Perhaps Celebrity is hoping people will add up all the perks individually and think they are getting a good deal but of course on the 3 perk package and adding the 4th they are not.

Edited June 15, 2019 by Oville

[Jimbo59]

Is there a way to book with no perks and a fully refundable deposit? This is for a cruise nearly a year from now. 

[keesar]

11 hours ago, cynbar said:

I hope that most everyone is happy with the deal they got --- even if, in fact, it doesn't make sense to the rest of us. It's sort of like buying a car. A friend recently drove into a car dealership in his dying car, drove out in a brand new one, and is pleased as punch with the "deal" he got and how he was treated. Did he really get a good deal? I wouldn't bet on it, but the important thing is that he thinks he did. I dislike seeing so many posts here from cruisers unhappy because the price went down, or someone else paid less. 

 

But most cruisers are really happy as they got FREE perks even though they paid more.  The key word is "FREE".

[villauk]

7 hours ago, Jimbo59 said:

Is there a way to book with no perks and a fully refundable deposit? This is for a cruise nearly a year from now. 

 

 

No, which is even more a pain when you have to book two cabins and one is for the kids where you don’t require perks (we use the OBC from our TA to cover their grats).

[happy cruzer]

Maybe someone already has 3 perks on a booking, drink package, OBC and grats and want to add the internet package as the 4th??  There may be a case where the math works.  For us, the 2 perks work booked at a lower price than the 3 in the Sail Beyond promo.

 

But yes do the math..

[Luckiestmanonearth]

17 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

SO, you are paying $840 in up front cash to get $300 in nonrefundable OBC!!!  Are there ANY idiots out there that would actually take THAT deal?

 

 

We had the same experience recently and it’s funny that as simple as the answer sounds, you stop and think about it assuming you’re probably missing something in the deal . 

 

In our case, they bundled internet with it but we have no interest in staying connected on a cruise so the answer was a no brainer

[CA_Cruzing]

I gave up on listening to people “saving” money on their bookings years ago. 

 

For us us it’s more simple; cost per day per person to be on vacation factoring all discounts into cruise fare. 

 

Example, if I’m spending $1943.56 pp for cabin (1B) and taxes/fees included for a 10-day cruise, that comes to $194.36 pp/pd. Then I add in all my TA’s OBC/cash back and other discounts (12% is my usually discounts total, not including perks like drinks or $150 OBC per person) and my cost to cruise pp/pd comes to $171.03. 

 

Add on top of that the value of Classic drinks and $150 OBC pp and that’s how I determine the actual value of any cruise. 

 

We’ll use the OBC and pay grats with them so really we have no additional ship costs (maybe a restaurant or two).

 

To get hotel and meals cost at $170 pp/pd we see as reasonable. 

 

All of X’s perks bundling plus base cruise fare are meant to distract buyers from seeing base cruise costs and any extras cruise cost. Sure, some people don’t want to see any bills at cruise end. They’re likely the ones who will wrap up the complete price for all options and call it a good deal.

 

We’d, however, prefer to take more cruises and vacations and skip many of the perks because perks just increase fares with intrinsic value. How you extract the value is dependent on how you utilize the perk(s). 

[Jimbo59]

So Celebrity has a curious marketing approach. For a cruise over a year from now, I can book with a non-refundable deposit, or I could pay $630 additional per person to reserve a cruise with a refundable deposit and some perks that I don’t want or need.

 

I told Celebrity to let me know when I can book with a refundable deposit and no perks. Meanwhile I will be looking at other cruise companies.

[Mynki]

21 hours ago, villauk said:

 

 

No, which is even more a pain when you have to book two cabins and one is for the kids where you don’t require perks (we use the OBC from our TA to cover their grats).

 

 

I'm not sure our American friends understand how easy they have it. If we limeys want the best deal we have to understand all of the pros and cons of booking in the US and all of the pros and cons of booking in the UK before concluding which is the best deal! 

[1taxlady]

I agree with Jimbo59. Having a non-refundable deposit($100 service fee) for choosing the lowest fare is not good passenger service in my opinion. The cruise fares for a 7 day cruise next spring are pretty pricey for a balcony.

Edited June 16, 2019 by 1taxlady
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