Are you booking??

[shorti503]

So I have a very small side business making custom shirts and tumblers. My profits are used for our family vacations. I have enough saved up to book the next cruise we have been wanting to take.  We are looking at a 9 night south bound cruise in February.  With everything going on would you feel comfortable booking at this time?  Obviously what's in store for the future is anyones guess and ANYTHING could still happen.  But would you personally be comfortable booking that far out? I do not cruise nearly as often as most of here so I figured you guys may be a better judge.  Thank you!

[firefly333]

I'm booked in January and worried. People posting no cruises until this miracle vaccine that we dont know would be 100% effective they post. I think I got a 50% chance of going. I also turn 70 by then and have the over 70 letter to worry about.

 

I might look at carnival. Right now I'm annoyed at how rcl keeps changing the rules to apply fcc. .. enough so I put in for a refund for 2nd fcc. Moving the goal posts is not the way to get cruisers back. Prices for next year seem high.

 

I'm now to a wait and see approach, maybe inside final payment if there are better prices. Nothing rcl is doing right now makes me confident to book more than I have booked.

[ISLABONITA]

I am not booked till Oct 2021 having canceled ( mentally) an Aug/Sept Europe cruise and have possible look at an April 2021. 

It depends so much on ports being open, the procedures and protocol for disinfecting, the number of Dr.s  on board a ship, the airlines being able to fly to Europe or not.. presently they are looking at shut down till Sept.

and more importantly whether the number of infections are down worldwide.

 

 

[vegas7df]

I would like to but am hesitant due to my husband being over 70 and  requiring a doctors note.  

[boogybaby]

Hi, we have booked jan21 and may 21, I’m still hoping my November 20  cruise goes ahead. As soon as possible we will  go on holiday.

[justKirbo]

No, not for my family. We actually canceled our cruise we had booked for April of next year because we want to see where this all shakes out before putting more money out. We want to know what the procedures are. We want to know what ports are open. We want to know what cruise lines survived. We want to know what's happening with the economy. We also want to know if there will be big discounts if we wait for it to all start up again.

 

We love cruising. We haven't had nearly as many cruises as most of you all (our family has 49 nights on DCL and 22 nights on RCI), but we love it and plan on jumping back in after all of this is over. But until cruising starts again and we see where it's heading and what ports are still accepting ships, we're going to be over on the sidelines.

Edited April 19, 2020 by justKirbo

[Jimbo]

I think you would be better off booking from 12 to 18 months out. Better odds on it sailing.

[lenquixote66]

2 hours ago, shorti503 said:

So I have a very small side business making custom shirts and tumblers. My profits are used for our family vacations. I have enough saved up to book the next cruise we have been wanting to take.  We are looking at a 9 night south bound cruise in February.  With everything going on would you feel comfortable booking at this time?  Obviously what's in store for the future is anyones guess and ANYTHING could still happen.  But would you personally be comfortable booking that far out? I do not cruise nearly as often as most of here so I figured you guys may be a better judge.  Thank you!

We have a cruise booked for December 2020.I am 99% positive that the cruise will be cancelled.We will not book a cruise until the flu is eradicated.

[Garyjames220]

Surly If there are no cruises this year, cruise lines will go bust 

[B-52]

10 minutes ago, Garyjames220 said:

Surly If there are no cruises this year, cruise lines will go bust 

Yep!  Busted as in Bankruptcy? Then what happens to all that FCC?
Incidentally, bankruptcy is not the end of the world in the big corporate world.

It protects them from bad debts...like you and me, and gives them time to re-organize for the future.

 

Edited April 19, 2020 by B-52

[Garyjames220]

8 minutes ago, B-52 said:

Yep!  Busted as in Bankruptcy? Then what happens to all that FCC?
Incidentally, bankruptcy is not the end of the world in the big corporate world.

It protects them from bad debts...like you and me, and gives them time to re-organize for the future.

 

 

Yeah as in bankrupt 

 

so say a line goes bankrupt. What would happen to all these cruise ships then

 

 

[shorti503]

These are all good things to think about. Maybe I'll keep watching it for now and make my decision in a couple months when we may possibly know more about what's going on.  

[B-52]

3 hours ago, Garyjames220 said:

 

Yeah as in bankrupt 

 

so say a line goes bankrupt. What would happen to all these cruise ships then

 

 

They'll keep right on cruising...fresh start with restructured management, possible new owners and/or investors, new schedules, new reservations etc. 

Possibly even a new name

Think of it as a reset.

[mek]

3 hours ago, shorti503 said:

These are all good things to think about. Maybe I'll keep watching it for now and make my decision in a couple months when we may possibly know more about what's going on.  

A wise decision.

[colesc15]

We booked an Oasis cruise for next March. Deposit is only $500 so even if the cruise line went under and we lost out, it's only $500 I'm out. 

[CanadaRob]

I would book for Feb 21. The timeframe gives enough time to have safe cruising available., if not would still get a refund or FCC, have a Dec 20 booked and I would be willing to move it month by month if I had to (Jan 21-no ok lets try Feb )

[xcell]

7 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

We have a cruise booked for December 2020.I am 99% positive that the cruise will be cancelled.We will not book a cruise until the flu is eradicated.

I cancelled my March 2020,  august 2020, Dec 2020 Mediterranean cruise but rebooked Dec rccl Oasis xmas cruise. I hope you are wrong about xmas but I made it a nonrefundable deposit.

 

 

[karlbrux]

3 hours ago, B-52 said:

They'll keep right on cruising...fresh start with restructured management, possible new owners and/or investors, new schedules, new reservations etc. 

Possibly even a new name

Think of it as a reset.

Issue with that is the creditors will be out of pocket. Everyone currently due a FCC or refund. Will put a lot of people booking cruises. Particularly as it will be a new company with the same personnel. 

[LibertyBella]

There is no hurry to book your special family cruise.  You have plenty of time to wait and see what happens in the world. Don't tie up your money unnecessarily.   I think flexibility is going to be the most important factor in deciding upon a future vacation. 

[JamesEM]

I'm holding off until RCL changes there policy for us folks over 70.

[PhillyFan33579]

I currently have three cruises booked thru October along with a cruise next month that was recently cancelled. I expect the other three cruises will eventually be cancelled too. While I miss cruising and plan to cruise again when possible, I have no plans to book another cruise until cruise lines (RCI specifically) resume operations.  

[lenquixote66]

15 hours ago, xcell said:

I cancelled my March 2020,  august 2020, Dec 2020 Mediterranean cruise but rebooked Dec rccl Oasis xmas cruise. I hope you are wrong about xmas but I made it a nonrefundable deposit.

 

 

I hope I am wrong too 

[ONECRUISER]

11 hours ago, JamesEM said:

I'm holding off until RCL changes there policy for us folks over 70.

Feel for you but not really Royals Policy. As with other Lines have feeling it will be around in some form for a while

[NateUpNorth]

15 hours ago, karlbrux said:

Issue with that is the creditors will be out of pocket. Everyone currently due a FCC or refund. Will put a lot of people booking cruises. Particularly as it will be a new company with the same personnel. 

Whilst I understand the economics at play here, rolling up all FCC and refunds to a $0 return would have to be a last resort. You’d effectively be killing off the client base that had A) committed to sailing again and B) any future business from those losing deposits.

If a cruise line goes this route even a restructure won’t save them, they’ll have no customers left, even under a new name.

[ariesgirl384]

I booked last week for a March 2021 cruise. I was able to make it a refundable deposit for $14 which made it that much easier to put a deposit down. I would say if someone is hesitant in putting a nonrefundable deposit down go through all the steps to where you request what type of dining you want and whether you want to prepay your gratuities because that was the screen that allowed me to check a box to make my deposit refundable for only $14 extra. I figure by my final payment date in December, we should have a handle on how 2021 will go with cruising. It also has already gone down $200 in price since then and Royal made it so easy to change the price. I know there are a lot of variables these days but we took the chance and put a refundable deposit down so we have something to look forward to. We didn't plan a cruise this year but our other trips have subsequently been cancelled also. I needed something to work towards and a cruise is just the thing!