What's going on with the Splendor???.....Dirt-cheap/free cruises and DEAD Roll-Calls?!?!?

[1912]

So I checked out the Cruise Critic roll-calls for the Splendor for my upcoming B2B2B in August and with the exception of the 8/2 departure (with just 7 posts!), there are no roll-calls even started so close to the cruise departure dates? So I started 2 roll-calls for 8/9 and 8/16. I remember the days when Cruise Critic roll-calls used to have pages (not posts) numbering into the hundreds. What happened?

Edited July 10, 2022 by 1912

[ScottsSweetie]

I've sailed 4 times since the restart and every single roll call has been completely dead. No idea why it's so different these days.

 

[tallnthensome]

With so many cruisers canceling cruises, the lines canceling cruises, covid and people not going to roll call meet and greets on board people just have just not found them that important . My opinion of course but surely there are reasons. 

[1912]

3 minutes ago, tallnthensome said:

With so many cruisers canceling cruises, the lines canceling cruises, covid and people not going to roll call meet and greets on board people just have just not found them that important . My opinion of course but surely there are reasons. 

 

I always like your comments on Cruise Critic. I am new.....have been lurking for years and years. Decided to pull the trigger and contribute. Long-time cruiser with scores of cruises done but new to all this social media stuff.

Edited July 11, 2022 by 1912

[JT1962]

Carnival decided in Jan / Feb to move Splendor to Alaska, relatively late to try and fill ships for the summer.  They have been offering cheap rates to try and fill the ship. I went in May for $ 125 solo and was lucky to get r/t airfare less than $ 300 when booking in February. I received similar cruise offers for June & July, but airfares jumped to $ 800 - $ 1,200+, so I passed on the great cruise fare.
 

I suspect many booked cheap rates, then saw the prices  of airfare and canceled before final payment or forfeited their deposit rather than pay the high airfares. With the increase of Covid cases across the country, and numerous reports of positive tests after cruises, I’m sure many have canceled out of those concerns as well.

Edited July 11, 2022 by JT1962

[Eli_6]

I think part of the reason is that the airfare to Alaska is really high. 

[pengu1n]

My roll calls have been very empty lately too. I think people are chatting on that other "face" place rather than here because while the roll calls here had about 4-7 people, there were 100s (200-450) people who had joined that other group.

[1912]

19 minutes ago, Eli_6 said:

I think part of the reason is that the airfare to Alaska is really high. 

Cruise starts & ends in Seattle 😄

[1912]

I am combining the cruises with Amtrak's Coast Starlight return train ride.....it is one of the most scenic train rides in the country.....LA to Seattle. It was not bad $101 each way for a direct 35 hour train ride. I have always wanted to do that ride. And I lucked out with finding hostel accommodation for pre and post cruise in downtown Seattle for $37 a night at the highly-rated/acclaimed Green Tortoise Hostel, breakfast included!

[Joe817]

1 hour ago, 1912 said:

I am combining the cruises with Amtrak's Coast Starlight return train ride.....it is one of the most scenic train rides in the country.....LA to Seattle. It was not bad $101 each way for a direct 35 hour train ride. I have always wanted to do that ride. And I lucked out with finding hostel accommodation for pre and post cruise in downtown Seattle for $37 a night at the highly-rated/acclaimed Green Tortoise Hostel, breakfast included!

Oh wow! That would be a dream come true for my wife! A scenic train trip up to Seattle, THEN an Alaskan cruise. Well done! 👍 (Thank God that my wife is not on Cruise Critic! )  

Edited July 11, 2022 by Joe817

[1912]

7 minutes ago, Joe817 said:

Oh wow! That would be a dream come true for my wife! A scenic train trip up to Seattle, THEN an Alaskan cruise. Well done! 👍 (Thank God that my wife is not on Cruise Critic! )  

Thank you Joe.

[Joe817]

Just now, 1912 said:

Thank you Joe.

That would be a dream come true for the both of us. Thanks for sharing! 

[1912]

14 minutes ago, Joe817 said:

That would be a dream come true for the both of us. Thanks for sharing! 

 

Joe, if it helps, here is how I managed to put this together: I have been diligently checking my VIFP offers from Carnival daily....ever since April. It is a pain to go through each offer to see what my actual cost is on any given offer but finally on Friday, I managed to find an offer, I think it was called "Exclusive VIFP Offer" or something like that, after I chose Seattle and the Splendor, a bunch of rates opened up, some with promotional obc and some without. I immediately booked b2b2b and it allowed me to put them on hold.....I went to the Amtrak website, the price there never changes although they do practice dynamic pricing as the trains fill up, their prices go up. I am a senior and usual is what I paid which is $101 each way. Then I hit the various travel websites, found rave reviews for the Green Tortoise Hostel in downtown Seattle and found the cheapest rate on the hostel's own website, $37 single person plus tax, breakfast included and booked that one night pre and post cruise. One of those things that after trying day in day out for the last 3 months, I managed to make it work. 

If you wanna give it a shot, I hope you find the above info useful.

Thanks again.

Edited July 11, 2022 by 1912

[Joe817]

1912, you definitely did your homework, and it paid off for you well. Well Done! And thanks for telling me how you did it. Mucho appreciate it! 

[BlerkOne]

I don't see cheap, cheap prices. What I do see is no single supplement. Two can each have a cabin for the same price.

[JasperCruiser]

I took the deal for interior cabin on the July 19th sailing for $35.00. My wife couldn't go with me so this will be a solo cruise. Airfare from Alabama was staggering, but the overall cost of the trip was still very reasonable. I even got $200.00 onboard credit, which I didn't see coming.