Cruisers are "speaking" on the new NCL COVID Policy: Bookings Jump

[MEFIowa]

"

"Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings announced earlier this week it was dropping vaccination requirements on cruises from the U.S., as well as pre-cruise related testing protocols for vaccinated guests. The result? Cruise bookings picked up. "(The) announcement was an instant catalyst, resulting in one of our top three best booking days of the year," said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO, speaking on the company's second quarter earnings call."

 

Norwegian Cruise Line Drops Vaccination Requirements and Bookings Accelerate - Cruise Industry News

[escrick]

Oh, dear.

[Nymich]

O makes this call and everyone screams this is not right it will backfire on them.  Good news about bookings comes out and the same people scream they are all about show me the money.  It's perfect one can complain no matter how it turns out!

 

I'm not saying I support it or not because that really doesn't matter the question has never changed.

 

Am I going to cruise given the current situation?

 

That is the only thing I have any control of the rest is just a bunch of opinions being thrown around and sometimes at each other.

[Flatbush Flyer]

I spoke with one of O’s longest-serving phone agents yesterday and he said, to his knowledge (and personal experience), the phone booking #s have remained about the same. Of course, it’s still “early in the game” and that doesn’t necessarily account for all of the online and TA traffic.

 

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

I spoke with one of O’s longest-serving phone agents yesterday and he said, to his knowledge (and personal experience), the phone booking #s have remained about the same. Of course, it’s still “early in the game” and that doesn’t necessarily account for all of the online and TA traffic.

 

Please remember that FDR's announcement about the bookings was about total corporate results, not Oceania. 

As I often point out NCL is the 800 pound gorilla on the NCLH balance sheet and in the case of this announcement in particular common sense suggests that NCL cruisers are the NCLH customers most likely to book cruises because of the elimination of vaccination requirements, due to demographics. 

Oceania and Regent Seven Seas cruisers are older, wealthier and likely more attuned to medical risks due to their age, suggesting that a much higher percentage of their customer base is probably vaccinated than the population as a whole. NCL has many more families with children and the percentage of children that have been vaccinated is much, much smaller than older adults. Then add on the possibility that many of Oceania's  customers are upset with the decision just as you are, which would have the potential effect of decreasing bookings.

 

So, yes, an Oceania phone agent might not have seen an increase in bookings for  reasons that seem fairly obvious to me.

Edited August 12, 2022 by njhorseman

[shepherd really]

I believe Oceania bookings increased like I believe the Vista release sold out in hours, yet curiously has tons of availability now months later.   Let's see what their next quarterly SEC filings look like, what they say in press releases is of no consequence since it isn't published under penalty of perjury. 

[MEFIowa]

54 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

... Oceania and Regent Seven Seas cruisers are older, wealthier and likely more attuned to medical risks due to their age, suggesting that a much higher percentage of their customer base is probably vaccinated than the population as a whole. NCL has many more families with children and the percentage of children that have been vaccinated is much, much smaller than older adults. Then add on the possibility that many of Oceania's customers are upset with the decision just as you are, which would have the potential effect of decreasing bookings. ...

Lots of assumptions.

 

But I was on Riviera 12/13-23/21 right after the summer '21 COVID wave and before the COVID wave in late Dec & Jan. A cruise where COVID was essentially forgotten. We knew COVID was out and about. The risks. But we didn't seemingly do anything different than in the past. 719 cruisers. Maybe 1% wore a mask. I joked about that on an elevator where I counted about 12 of us crammed in. Not a mask being worn. People going on excursions. Wife and I did one each in 5 ports. Hanging out around the pool. Or to get coffee. Or in the internet area. Watching the comic. Guess what? COVID wasn't hardly mentioned, and the passengers were enjoying themselves. We had a great time. We didn't see or hear much about any COVID problems. One sick very elderly man was taken off by CG patrol boat by Key West, but he looked like Boris Karloff near the end of his life and probably shouldn't have been cruising (reportedly more dementia-type issue).

 

And we booked another cruise while on board (11/22) and have later added cruises in 2023 and 2024.

 

I'd like to think O cruisers are smart and aware of the risks, talking with their medical professionals. IF they are fully vaccinated and fully boosted (as I am), unlikely much harm, if any, will come to someone with no serious specific risk factors.

 

I've got an MBA. I flew to Paraguay in April for 2 weeks. Didn't get COVID. Didn't worry about it. What would be the point? I did what I could, esp. some social distancing, but never masked. 

[Guest ldtr]

11 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

"

"Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings announced earlier this week it was dropping vaccination requirements on cruises from the U.S., as well as pre-cruise related testing protocols for vaccinated guests. The result? Cruise bookings picked up. "(The) announcement was an instant catalyst, resulting in one of our top three best booking days of the year," said Frank Del Rio, president and CEO, speaking on the company's second quarter earnings call."

 

Norwegian Cruise Line Drops Vaccination Requirements and Bookings Accelerate - Cruise Industry News

Of course this is just for a three day period, without any statistics of exactly what it means.  It also does not address if there were any cancellations.  Considering that NCL just had to revise its forecast about when it would reach profitability, they certainly needed to give wall street some kind of good news.

 

Will be interesting to see how the numbers for the quarter work out.

[MEFIowa]

On 8/12/22 both CARNIVAL and PRINCESS essentially made the same decisions. NO pre-testing on most cruises for the VACCINATED but pre-testing within 72 hours for the unvaccinated.

 

CARNIVAL: "All new guidelines are effective for cruises departing on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 or later, and include:

• Vaccinated guests must continue to provide evidence of their vaccination status prior to embarkation. Pre-cruise testing is no longer required, except for cruises to Canada, Bermuda, Greece and Australia (per local guidelines), and on voyages 16 nights or longer.
• Unvaccinated guests are welcome to sail and are no longer required to apply for a vaccine exemption, except for cruises in Australia or on voyages 16 nights and longer.
• Unvaccinated guests or those who do not provide proof of vaccination must present the results of a negative PCR or antigen test taken within three days of embarkation.
• All policies are subject to local destination regulations."

 

PRINCESS: "Starting Sept. 6, vaccinated guests sailing on voyages of less than 16 days will no longer have to test before boarding and only need to upload proof of vaccination while getting OceanReady.

Unvaccinated guests, or those who do not provide proof of vaccination, on those itineraries will self-test within three days of sailing and upload proof of a negative test before boarding, the company said, in a press release."