Celebrity gotten expensive.

[Lastdance]

It is all opportunity cost.  Do what makes you happy; life is way too short to compare because we are all different.  It is absolutely wonderful to have options, not to mention the ability to choose what to do.  Each one of us is correct with our choice, as we monitor and adjust based on a multitude of factors.  My glass is half full right now!

Edited May 27, 2022 by Lastdance

[Megabear2]

Be interesting when all that FCC which is washing around the system is spent.  Celebrity are not alone in huge price increases. I've just rebooked my Cunard world cruise leg Sydney to Capetown which cancelled in 2020.  The price increase for 2024 is 40%.

 

Celebrity etc are making hay while the sun shines with the suites, can't be blamed for it but possibly a dangerous game as they may end up with only the very well heeled if the "normal" fares continue to be commensurate in percentage increases.

Edited May 28, 2022 by Megabear2

[aml3679]

Yes it has gotten a little expensive. That being said, when I priced other cruise lines, it was cheaper but by the time I added gratuities, beverage package and Internet it ends up being a wash for a little bit more expensive. We love celebrity and I think the price we pay is worth it.

[pieter&sharon]

On 5/23/2022 at 4:43 PM, FeelingCruisy said:

Is it just me or does anyone else here think celebrity cruises prices have gone up substantially recently? We booked a repositioning cruise and paid about $2,000

with all inclusive and refundable deposit only about a month and a half ago. I notice now that is almost the price before all inclusive added in.  This is true for most other cruises that we have been tracking. It seems like the price remain the same but now you have to pay a lot more to get the all-inclusive. Or is this all in my head?   

You are right. Switching to Holland America.

 

[Plum Happy]

15 minutes ago, pieter&sharon said:

You are right. Switching to Holland America.

 

Honestly, that price is cheap, $142 a day, try getting a hotel room cheaper than $2,000 for 14 days.  Your meals, drinks and wifi included????  If you stay in Florida for 14 days plus city and state taxes or any Caribbean island, you would be paying through the nose.  Even all inclusive resorts will charge you more than this.

 

Also, you can opt out of the drinks, wifi and gratuity in your price and pay separately,

Edited May 28, 2022 by Plum Happy

[Fly and Sail]

Even more reason to invest a little bit of money playing at the casino and then get free Blue Chip Club offers.

[laslomas]

I have been comparing other cruise lines as I think Celebrity are pricing me out after being a loyal cruiser for years. I note that Princess are offering their Princess Plus package (Beverage package, WiFi and Gratuities) for £40 a day, and only £30 a day if booked by 31st May. That seems a bargain when you consider that the new price for a Classic Bev Package with Celebrity has increased to £66 per day. 

Celebrity has always been my cruise line of choice, but after my October cruise on Silhouette I may need to start looking elsewhere if their prices keep rising.

[FeelingCruisy]

On 5/23/2022 at 8:36 PM, Dolebludger said:

It is impossible to find the best cruise “bang for the buck” these days, unless you know the overall quality of the line in the class of rooms you would like, and what you want included (or not) in the fare. It has never been a better time to have a TA who is working for YOU!  Celebrity’s fare structure is confusing, according to what I have read here. We have had two great Celebrity cruises in suites, that included everything like open bar all over the ship, WiFi, priority boarding and disembarking, vallet laundry, etc. but now I read that this does not apply to a suite guarantee, and that there are other exclusions depending on the class of suite. And we realize that some want the lowest cost, even though it doesn’t include much. In our younger days, we took many cruises like that.  The only thing I can figure out on this board is that if you book “cruise only” all you get is a cabin, meals in the MDR and buffet, and nothing else. Dependent on the choice of accommodations chosen on X, This can be quite affordable. But going upmarket from that, we are confused. 
 

Because of the ever changing Covid problems, we are not ready to book just yet. When we are, I’ll just call out TA and tell him where and what we want included. We will let him advise us as to which line and which ship we should book to get us what we want at the best price. The whole thing has become too confusing for me!

Surprised to hear they exclude some perks for suite GTY.  REALLY?? That is not good, Years ago, we gotten from a Suite GTY to a Royal Suite on the Milly, TWICE. and another on Connie (and because it Royal, we get to dine at all specialty for free too).  Just had to play it right like booking at the last minute, but those days are over since they introduced the bidding for upgrades. What is excluded from Suite GTY do you know? 

[SHIP TRAVELER]

8 minutes ago, FeelingCruisy said:

Surprised to hear they exclude some perks for suite GTY.  REALLY?? That is not good, Years ago, we gotten from a Suite GTY to a Royal Suite on the Milly, TWICE. and another on Connie (and because it Royal, we get to dine at all specialty for free too).  Just had to play it right like booking at the last minute, but those days are over since they introduced the bidding for upgrades. What is excluded from Suite GTY do you know? 

We have had a suite GTY and sailed in a sky suite in April 0f 2022.  It was booked before the shut down and ended up with a lift and shift.  We had Micheal's drinks and Luminae included.  We are Elite which covered some additional drinks, Wifi and laundry benefits.  We brought two bottles of wine on board. We paid the regular tips plus out of pocket and of course tipped in Micheal's because we didn't have a package.  We had excellent service and did not suffer at all.  As a bonus it probably helped us keep our drinking to a reasonable level.

[Lastdance]

I just saved $625 on an SV cabin(cruise from Rome to Adriatic and back) attached to my TA suite for a b2b.  I had that cabin booked since cruises were released.  The RFD was on $60 more and everything else was included.  I have been watching it forever, but price just went up until yesterday.  Anyway, the prices are still going up for many cruises, but opportunity cost keeps me with Celebrity.  

[dgoz]

8 hours ago, Fly and Sail said:

Even more reason to invest a little bit of money playing at the casino and then get free Blue Chip Club offers.

How much do you have to spend at the casino to be offered a cruise?

[mlmbar]

I guess it depends on where you travel and when. Went to Key West last September and used airfare credit to fly to Miami. Found this trip to be more expensive than a cruise by a long shot. Hotel (and this was off season) was $$ and we chose a mid price hotel not a resort. Add in food, drinks, and a few excursions and our 4 day trip was as much or more than an OV cabin on a cruise.

 

We sailed on Princess in Feb and it was cheaper than Celebrity for a wonderful mini suite. Also, specialty dining was cheaper and excellent quality. We are booked again on Princess for November, again in a mini suite.  We loved Princess but are coming back to Celebrity for October 2023 in Aqua mainly because we are elite, have many many credit card points, and miss Aqua. This 8 day trip is more expensive than our November Princess. At this point now, we will be not loyal to Celebrity or Princess but make choices based on itinerary and price 

Edited May 29, 2022 by mlmbar

[SHIP TRAVELER]

1 hour ago, mlmbar said:

I guess it depends on where you travel and when. Went to Key West last September and used airfare credit to fly to Miami. Found this trip to be more expensive than a cruise by a long shot. Hotel (and this was off season) was $$ and we chose a mid price hotel not a resort. Add in food, drinks, and a few excursions and our 4 day trip was as much or more than an OV cabin on a cruise.

 

We sailed on Princess in Feb and it was cheaper than Celebrity for a wonderful mini suite. Also, specialty dining was cheaper and excellent quality. We are booked again on Princess for November, again in a mini suite.  We loved Princess but are coming back to Celebrity for October 2023 in Aqua mainly because we are elite, have many many credit card points, and miss Aqua. This 8 day trip is more expensive than our November Princess. At this point now, we will be not loyal to Celebrity or Princess but make choices based on itinerary and price 

We have some status on Princess but find their loyalty perks to be minimum unless you are in the top Elite Tier.  We like some things about Princess and have taken some cruises with them post shut down with Princess Plus perks for the itinerary.  My big problem with them is the cabins, you absolutely have to book a mini suite on most Princess ships to get a chair for the second person in the cabin.  I HATE sitting on the bed.  On Celebrity (and most Royal) even inside cabins have some sort of place to sit in addition to the desk chair.   My husband does not like the MDR on Princess but that is at least easier to deal with than the cabins.  We much prefer X for the cabin layout and the MDR service.

[Fly and Sail]

On 5/28/2022 at 1:57 PM, dgoz said:

How much do you have to spend at the casino to be offered a cruise?

 

Normally I'm going through ~$1000-1200 loss in the first 2-3 days. That's ~ $6000 coin in if the slots aren't killing you completely. Usually that results in a cruise offer by envelope from the casino host to my cabin on Day 3/4. After you got that, stop.

 

I'm ok with that loss per cruise. Sometimes I win a little jackpot but most often I don't and just cut my losses around this level. I also try and maintain Blue Chip Club Amethyst each year which comes with another free cruise. I also get one from MGM.

 

My main problem: All suitable cruises are mainly North America. Nothing in Asia and very little in Europe.

[mk960072]

On 5/23/2022 at 4:43 PM, FeelingCruisy said:

Is it just me or does anyone else here think celebrity cruises prices have gone up substantially recently? We booked a repositioning cruise and paid about $2,000

with all inclusive and refundable deposit only about a month and a half ago. I notice now that is almost the price before all inclusive added in.  This is true for most other cruises that we have been tracking. It seems like the price remain the same but now you have to pay a lot more to get the all-inclusive. Or is this all in my head?   

i agree, demand has made the cost of cruises and so much other stuff go up.  Old economics of supply and demand at play. If cruise lines cannot get the crews they need to provide well for the paying customer, they may have to curtail cruise capacity, cancel cruises, or lower prices.  There are numerous stories out there with shortages of crew and people receiving less than stellar service.  Cruise lines cannot charge an arm and a leg and provide a less than stellar service.  Thats my prediction anyway.  

 

As for prices, set up a price alert as there are a few sites that will notify you if the price of the cruise you booked or want has an increase or decrease in the price.  Just make sure you book with an agency that will price match.