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Price increase of 80% for 2021 sailing


ak1004
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You also are comparing an April cruise when weather & possible covid restrictions may still apply vs September when weather is warmer and is considered more of a high season for this type of cruise.

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What is the problem?   If you think the price is too high then give it a miss or look at competitive products..  No different than any other product in the marketplace.

 

The only way to bring down the price is for people to stop booking the cruise at these prices.

 

Edited by iancal
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And you are surprised about price increases?  Cruise lines are hemorrhaging money having their ships laid up going nowhere.  They will have to increase prices to repay loans, pay for FCC, etc., if they want to keep sailing.  And sailings are problematic at the moment.  No one knows when any sense of "normal," much less the expected "new normal," will enable cruises to restart.  Ships will need to be rehabbed to meet new CDC and safety guidelines, additional medical and cleaning crews hired/trained, and new procedures put in place.  It all indicates increased costs to cruise and likely fewer options and ports of call.

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11 hours ago, dabear said:

You also are comparing an April cruise when weather & possible covid restrictions may still apply vs September when weather is warmer and is considered more of a high season for this type of cruise.

 

It's May, not April, and I'm not sure that September is in higher demand than May. But if you are right, this makes it even more extreme: Celebrity cruise on a 20 years old ship at lower season is more expensive than Oceania cruise on a 9 years old ship at higher season.

 

10 hours ago, iancal said:

What is the problem?   If you think the price is too high then give it a miss or look at competitive products..  No different than any other product in the marketplace.

 

The only way to bring down the price is for people to stop booking the cruise at these prices.

 

 

I'm already booked at lower price. It advisable to spend 30 seconds and read the initial post before commenting on it.

 

4 hours ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

And you are surprised about price increases?  Cruise lines are hemorrhaging money having their ships laid up going nowhere.  They will have to increase prices to repay loans, pay for FCC, etc., if they want to keep sailing.  And sailings are problematic at the moment.  No one knows when any sense of "normal," much less the expected "new normal," will enable cruises to restart.  Ships will need to be rehabbed to meet new CDC and safety guidelines, additional medical and cleaning crews hired/trained, and new procedures put in place.  It all indicates increased costs to cruise and likely fewer options and ports of call.

 

Well, as others mentioned, it's about demand and supply. I'm just wondering who would pay that kind of money for this cruise - this was the initial intention of the post. If they increase prices, people will simply go to the competitors. A lot of deals with Oceania at this point, and Crystal has some good deals as well. 

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28 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

Well, as others mentioned, it's about demand and supply. I'm just wondering who would pay that kind of money for this cruise - this was the initial intention of the post. 

 

People who’ve never cruised, and have no basis for comparison when it comes to pricing. 

 

Also, people who’ve cruised but don’t follow forums like this to read and learn the ins and outs. I know a lot of people who cruise fairly often who, after initial booking, don’t think to continue to price check. How many Roll calls have you been on where someone discovers a price decrease, and a lot of people take that opportunity to upgrade. The average Joe cruiser doesn’t do that. We’re a unique quirky little minority of cruisers here!

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1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

Well, as others mentioned, it's about demand and supply. I'm just wondering who would pay that kind of money for this cruise - this was the initial intention of the post. If they increase prices, people will simply go to the competitors. A lot of deals with Oceania at this point, and Crystal has some good deals as well. 

My DW and I agree with you completely. Awhile back we used to do a lot of sailing with HAL in their Vista Suites. Our goal was to get to 4 star and we finally did. Then one day we checked out Oceania and found we could book a veranda on their Riviera for about the same price as in a VS on HAL on a similar Caribbean cruise, and we did and had a wonderful time!

 

Then the following year we had an aft-facing C1 cabin booked on a Celebrity Pacific Coast cruise, but then switched to a Crystal Serenity cruise with a similar itinerary for just a few dollars more per day. We later made it a 21 day B2B when we added a 14 day Mexican Riviera cruise in the same veranda cabin for $250 pp/day. Again, we had a great time and were simply wowed by the treatment we recieved on that Crystal cruise.

 

Fast forward a few years and we now mostly enjoy booking Aqua Class or sky suites on Celebrity and mini-suites or an occasional suite on Princess because for us we have found we have the most fun and get the best bang for our buck, depending on itinerary, on these two cruise lines. But, of course, everyone is different. We have also found we have to book as early as possible with both Celebrity and Princess to get the best deals; otherwise a cabin booked closer to sailing but before the FPDD can get expensive as you pointed out at the beginning of this thread.

 

BUT, one thing we have found over time with each cruise line we sail, each has there own "cat and mouse" game to attract and hopefully retain repeat passengers. Well, at least from our perspective they do. But one thing we finally did that has paid big time was purchasing 100 shares of Carnival, RCI and Norwegian stocks to reap the Shareholder Benefits that come along with those holdings. As far as the other games we've uncovered, I won't bore you with the details as this post is way to long as it is. ☺️

Edited by Ken the cruiser
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8 hours ago, BEAV said:

 

People who’ve never cruised, and have no basis for comparison when it comes to pricing. 

 

Also, people who’ve cruised but don’t follow forums like this to read and learn the ins and outs. I know a lot of people who cruise fairly often who, after initial booking, don’t think to continue to price check. How many Roll calls have you been on where someone discovers a price decrease, and a lot of people take that opportunity to upgrade. The average Joe cruiser doesn’t do that. We’re a unique quirky little minority of cruisers here!

 

Well, you don't have to follow forums - as a new cruiser, all you need to do is to check similar lines line Princess and see prices 30%+ cheaper.

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2 hours ago, ak1004 said:

Well, you don't have to follow forums - as a new cruiser, all you need to do is to check similar lines line Princess and see prices 30%+ cheaper.

I remember when my DW and I booked our first cruise together in 2012 for a 7 day Caribbean cruise on the HAL Ryndam. From that point on we were hooked. But, in those "early days" we booked directly with a cruise line. We didn't know anything about promotional sales let alone you could refare a cruise to get a better deal before the FPDD. It took us another 5 cruises before we actually had promotional perks included with our booking and at least another 5 cruises before we found out about Shareholder benefits. But it only took 2 Princess cruises before we found out about their Military OBC perk, which we both benefit from being both retired. 

 

BUT, I have to say many of these "tricks" we first heard about here on CC. I still remember discussions on CC threads regarding the advantages of booking with a TA rather than directly with a cruise line's Personal Cruise Consultant. For the longest time I would defend the PCC side. Then, after contacting some of the pro TA folks who were kind enough to post their email address in their signature, we contacted a few of their recommended TAs. It took another couple of years, but we finally found a TA that gives great perks and also is very responsive to our needs.

 

As I said earlier it's a game of "cat and mouse". As you might imagine, we are the mice with the goal of trying to figure out how to maneuver through the cat's maize. Then, once you figure that out, while collecting various hidden rewards along the way, there is that one final carrot that keeps you searching for that perfect itinerary on some cruise lines more than others, the Loyalty Program benefits. For us the "carrot" is free laundry, as we like to take longer cruises and have no desire to wash clothes while sailing. Although free happy hour drinks when you make Elite on Celebrity is also nice. What's yours?

Edited by Ken the cruiser
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I had a March 2020 Edge 7 day booked...it was cancelled...I am now booked on an Edge cruise for March of 2021, I had taken FCC on the 2020 cruise, the 2021 cruise is a HIGHER level cabin, with more OBC. for almost the exact same price.  

 

Now I just hope we sail. 

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2 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

I remember when my DW and I booked our first cruise together in 2012 for a 7 day Caribbean cruise on the HAL Ryndam. From that point on we were hooked. But, in those "early days" we booked directly with a cruise line. We didn't know anything about promotional sales let alone you could refare a cruise to get a better deal before the FPDD. It took us another 5 cruises before we actually had promotional perks included with our booking and at least another 5 cruises before we found out about Shareholder benefits. But it only took 2 Princess cruises before we found out about their Military OBC perk, which we both benefit from being both retired. 

 

BUT, I have to say many of these "tricks" we first heard about here on CC. I still remember discussions on CC threads regarding the advantages of booking with a TA rather than directly with a cruise line's Personal Cruise Consultant. For the longest time I would defend the PCC side. Then, after contacting some of the pro TA folks who were kind enough to post their email address in their signature, we contacted a few of their recommended TAs. It took another couple of years, but we finally found a TA that gives great perks and also is very responsive to our needs.

 

As I said earlier it's a game of "cat and mouse". As you might imagine, we are the mice with the goal of trying to figure out how to maneuver through the cat's maize. Then, once you figure that out, while collecting various hidden rewards along the way, there is that one final carrot that keeps you searching for that perfect itinerary on some cruise lines more than others, the Loyalty Program benefits. For us the "carrot" is free laundry, as we like to take longer cruises and have no desire to wash clothes while sailing. Although free happy hour drinks when you make Elite on Celebrity is also nice. What's yours?

 

It looks like we are sharing a similar philosophy when it comes to cruising - no loyalty to any cruise line. We are driven mostly by itinerary at this point. Free laundry is a nice bonus, but definitely not one of the main factors. 

 

We are Canadians, so the options to get some extra perks are more limited - at least so far we were not able to get any extras beyond the regular discounts offered by the cruise lines (besides some occasional Virtuoso perks offered by our TA for Oceania and Crystal cruises). We could probably find a better TA, but looks like CC does not allow TAs to post their contact info.

 

Regarding "cat and mouse" - I might be wrong, but based on my experience, Celebrity is much better in this game than other lines. Our cruise price last June went down 30% after the final payment - never happened with other lines, and we sailed with 10 different lines. From what I can see, some of Celebrity cruises now are priced similar or higher than Oceania, which of course is absurd. 

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Regarding "cat and mouse" - I might be wrong, but based on my experience, Celebrity is much better in this game than other lines. Our cruise price last June went down 30% after the final payment - never happened with other lines, and we sailed with 10 different lines. From what I can see, some of Celebrity cruises now are priced similar or higher than Oceania, which of course is absurd. 

 

Each cruise line has there own maize. My guess is even though your cruise went down 30% after FPDD, it may not be the lowest fare recorded during the entire booking cycle. For example, we have a TP on the Millennium scheduled for Apr 2021 in a sky suite with a great location which we booked in Nov 2018 for $4,299 pp plus we received $300 OBC for booking onboard. The price dropped twice in a nine month period and we refared both times, with the last time being at $3,798 pp. Then around April 2020 during the pandemic, X offered an additional 10% off in a brief loyalty sale and we refared it again at $3,418 pp. Now the price today is back up to $4,209 and we haven't reached the FPDD yet.

 

My point is with the Celebrity maize, for us the key is to book early, do fake bookings often and refare when it makes economical sense to do so. This way if the price starts to shoot up because the Demand outweighs the Supply on a particular itinerary, we can sit back and feel good we were ahead of the game this time. For us, performing fake bookings on all of our booked cruises is just part of the cruising adventure! Just like pre-booking excursions with cruise line OBC and chatting on CC is. 🙂

 

BTW on our HAL 40 day New Caledonia and Australia circumnavigation cruise last fall, we learned the hard way with HAL that you cannot refare a cruise that has a nonrefundable deposit. We lost $3,200 pp before FPDD because HAL dropped the nonrefundable price of a vista suite that much. With Celebrity you can refare a booking with a nonrefundable deposit as many times as you want. 

Edited by Ken the cruiser
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30 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

 BTW on our HAL 40 day New Caledonia and Australia circumnavigation cruise last fall, we learned the hard way with HAL that you cannot refare a cruise that has a nonrefundable deposit. We lost $3,200 pp before FPDD because HAL dropped the nonrefundable price of a vista suite that much. With Celebrity you can refare a booking with a nonrefundable deposit as many times as you want. 

 

When it comes to Celebrity and HAL, we almost always book after final payment due to their often-large percentage price drops. But I realize not everyone has the option of booking within 60-90 days of sailing. We are typically okay with booking guarantees. After cabin assignment you can move to any other available cabin within the same category assigned. 

 

ak1004, the 30% price drop on Celebrity you saw after final payment was most likely the Xciting Deals rates they come out with weekly. When ships are sailing, they are posted on Thursdays or Fridays and go into effect the next Tuesday for 7 days. 

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@ak1004  are you referring to the 4th of May cruise?  I booked on the day it was released, & prices have gone nowhere but up since then.  Of course when I booked it, I thought I was booking a sky suite that would be freshly renovated & also have the private  suite outdoor area... however, doubt that's happening ;)     

 

If, (& that's a big if) this cruise does go forward, I will keep the booking as it's a one off, amazing itinerary, & that's the reason we cruise, for the ports...  i haven't seen this exact itinerary on any other lines except the very high end ones, so that could be contributing to sales of this particular cruise....  I do believe we will see huge price drops after final payment :)

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1 hour ago, cruise kitty said:

@ak1004  are you referring to the 4th of May cruise?  I booked on the day it was released, & prices have gone nowhere but up since then.  Of course when I booked it, I thought I was booking a sky suite that would be freshly renovated & also have the private  suite outdoor area... however, doubt that's happening 😉     

 

If, (& that's a big if) this cruise does go forward, I will keep the booking as it's a one off, amazing itinerary, & that's the reason we cruise, for the ports...  i haven't seen this exact itinerary on any other lines except the very high end ones, so that could be contributing to sales of this particular cruise....  I do believe we will see huge price drops after final payment 🙂

 

Yes, that's the one.

 

I agree, it's a very nice itinerary, but not really unique.

 

Here is a very similar itinerary on Princess, 14 nights (so one extra night) starts at $3,100 CAD including taxes, on their newest ship. 

 

Here is a similar one on Oceania, 12 nights, starts at $3,300 CAD. 

 

Comparing same period (May) and similar itineraries.

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7 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

I had a March 2020 Edge 7 day booked...it was cancelled...I am now booked on an Edge cruise for March of 2021, I had taken FCC on the 2020 cruise, the 2021 cruise is a HIGHER level cabin, with more OBC. for almost the exact same price.  

 

Now I just hope we sail. 

 

We were on the same 2020 cruise as you.  A few weeks ago I looked at the same itinerary / same timeframe for 2021 and found almost the same price for a S2.

Yesterday I looked again......up over $1000.  Perhaps  I should have booked when it was lower, but I just couldn't bring myself to purposely cause myself stress.  

Maybe the price will come down.  We usually have good luck for Celebrity cruises price-wise around Easter.  

Good luck to you.😀

Edited by mafig
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It is over but for the past few days you could book a sky suite S2 on the Celebrity Infinity Feb 27th 7 night cruise with four perks for $2020 for TWO.  Now that is a deal.

The other cabins were not as cheap.  In fact a suite was cheaper than a veranda in some instances.  We booked the Royal Suite for a good price.

This "fire sale" was the result of a charter (Rock and Romance) scheduled for that week moving to the Feb 2022 from Feb 2021.  There are deals if you just keep looking.  The price was up somewhat this AM but suites still bargains IMO.

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18 hours ago, ak1004 said:

 

Yes, that's the one.

 

I agree, it's a very nice itinerary, but not really unique.

 

Here is a very similar itinerary on Princess, 14 nights (so one extra night) starts at $3,100 CAD including taxes, on their newest ship. 

 

Here is a similar one on Oceania, 12 nights, starts at $3,300 CAD. 

 

Comparing same period (May) and similar itineraries.

I just looked at that Princess Cruise you linked...$36XX. PP all in balcony, drinks, tips etc..seems like a good deal to me..

Edited by PTC DAWG
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22 minutes ago, SHIP TRAVELER said:

It is over but for the past few days you could book a sky suite S2 on the Celebrity Infinity Feb 27th 7 night cruise with four perks for $2020 for TWO.  Now that is a deal.

The other cabins were not as cheap.  In fact a suite was cheaper than a veranda in some instances.  We booked the Royal Suite for a good price.

This "fire sale" was the result of a charter (Rock and Romance) scheduled for that week moving to the Feb 2022 from Feb 2021.  There are deals if you just keep looking.  The price was up somewhat this AM but suites still bargains IMO.

Tempted to move my Edge cruise in March to a Suite on this one...just checked...good deals IMHO..

 

Hos is the Retreat etc on Infinity? 

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2 hours ago, SHIP TRAVELER said:

It is over but for the past few days you could book a sky suite S2 on the Celebrity Infinity Feb 27th 7 night cruise with four perks for $2020 for TWO.  Now that is a deal.

The other cabins were not as cheap.  In fact a suite was cheaper than a veranda in some instances.  We booked the Royal Suite for a good price.

This "fire sale" was the result of a charter (Rock and Romance) scheduled for that week moving to the Feb 2022 from Feb 2021.  There are deals if you just keep looking.  The price was up somewhat this AM but suites still bargains IMO.

Just booked a S1 on this cruise at $1,599 pp with all 4 perks. What a great deal to get a quick cruising fix if it starts back up by then. Thanks for the heads up!!

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YES , nice deal with the caveat that she sails as scheduled, I'd venture to guess a 50/50 chance but I'm horrible at guessing. I hope she does and you all have a wonderful cruise experience.

Edited by jwc1027
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I would suggest that pricing for ANY cruise over 6 months out and especially with COVID is not meaningful.  Am sure others like ourselves that cruise often have several 100% refundable "placeholder" reservations booked.  Costs us nothing except a refundable deposit and we lock in a price until final payment.

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r

22 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

Tempted to move my Edge cruise in March to a Suite on this one...just checked...good deals IMHO..

 

Hos is the Retreat etc on Infinity? 

The Infinity was scheduled for a revolution this year but that has been delayed.  The ship will probably feel a little dated but it does have a Micheal's Club and a Luminae, both on the forth floor.  Some people enjoy having an actual bar and like the cozy club like feel of Micheal's compared to the Retreat.  I think the photos of the Royal Suite look nice with lots of wood paneling.  I expect some wear and rough edges but this will be our first Royal so I expect to be impressed.  I like the fact that the suites are mostly on deck six instead of under the pool deck.  They should be fewer noise issues.  I like the M class size and the fact we can take the stairs to dinner and drinks.  We also have a sky suite booked on the Infinity to Rome in April 2022 through a lift and shift so I will have plenty of time to check it out.  If this does not sail, we will try to lift and shift to either the Reflection or Summit in Feb. of 2022.

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I also just jumped on it.  $1499 pp for S2 with 4 perks.   I moved a booked onboard reservation and somehow I ended up with total of $850 obc from Celebrity and additional from my TA.  Considering the OBC it comes to $154 pp/pd.

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1 hour ago, SHIP TRAVELER said:

r

The Infinity was scheduled for a revolution this year but that has been delayed.  The ship will probably feel a little dated but it does have a Micheal's Club and a Luminae, both on the forth floor.  Some people enjoy having an actual bar and like the cozy club like feel of Micheal's compared to the Retreat.  I think the photos of the Royal Suite look nice with lots of wood paneling.  I expect some wear and rough edges but this will be our first Royal so I expect to be impressed.  I like the fact that the suites are mostly on deck six instead of under the pool deck.  They should be fewer noise issues.  I like the M class size and the fact we can take the stairs to dinner and drinks.  We also have a sky suite booked on the Infinity to Rome in April 2022 through a lift and shift so I will have plenty of time to check it out.  If this does not sail, we will try to lift and shift to either the Reflection or Summit in Feb. of 2022.

Thanks for the info, I was aware the revolution had been delayed...I have only sailed S class ships to this point.  I have neighbors who love the M class ships..I may talk with them, although they only sail insides...they sail a lot, it helps them to afford more sailings...I'm more of a person who wants nicer rooms, etc.

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10 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

I also just jumped on it.  $1499 pp for S2 with 4 perks.   I moved a booked onboard reservation and somehow I ended up with total of $850 obc from Celebrity and additional from my TA.  Considering the OBC it comes to $154 pp/pd.

If you really want to be impressed by how good a deal it is, take off another $40 pp/day for free . gratuities, free internet for 2 and free premium beverage package.

Edited by Ken the cruiser
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