Asking for upgrade once onboard?

[MR_T]

We boarded yesterday and as the move up minimums we’re so high we thought we’d ask onboard… although the day before the cruise there was over 20 S/S available we were shocked they were asking $1300 US each for the upgrade from a S/V 😱 

 

Although the price was a little lower vs the move up prices it still seemed very high compared to a previous move up on the Apex that had the full retreat etc compared to our current cruise on the Reflection which doesn’t! 

 

Not a big deal as we’ve not sailed in a s/v before so we will just enjoy the cabin we have 🍹😎

[Hlitner]

On 9/14/2022 at 4:30 PM, maggie.1008 said:

We are similar to you. We have been on 65 cruises on 12 different lines. Half of those cruises were with Celebrity and the others on premium and luxury lines. 
the prices for suites on X are making us consider the luxury lines again. 
we have never received a comp upgrade on X but we have on Seabourn and Regent.

We now do a lot more cruising on luxury lines and our cost per passenger day is far lower than retreat suites on X.  And we also get the benefit of a luxury cruise with no queues, no nickel and diming, no tipping nonsense. etc.   No problem with X charging ridiculous prices for suites as there are obviously folks willing to pay luxury+ for routine mass market.  Their loss!

 

Hank

[canderson]

3 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

We now do a lot more cruising on luxury lines and our cost per passenger day is far lower than retreat suites on X.  And we also get the benefit of a luxury cruise with no queues, no nickel and diming, no tipping nonsense. etc.   No problem with X charging ridiculous prices for suites as there are obviously folks willing to pay luxury+ for routine mass market.  Their loss!

 

Hank

I'm not seeing it.  Example:  Sail with /Seaborn in a 'Penthouse' which is smaller than a Celebrity RS and pay a good bit more than the RS price.  Much higher pricing seen at Silversea, even for anything less than a Silver Suite.

[Hlitner]

1 minute ago, canderson said:

I'm not seeing it.  Example:  Sail with /Seaborn in a 'Penthouse' which is smaller than a Celebrity RS and pay a good bit more than the RS price.  Much higher pricing seen at Silversea, even for anything less than a Silver Suite.

We have taken Seabourn cruises (in the past year) for no more than $400 per person/day!  The norm on many of their cruises can be around $600 per person day.  But consider that it is truly all-inclusive with no tipping, no nickel and diming, decent top shelf booze, etc.  When I sit at a friendly bar on Seabourn with my platter of caviar (with the fixens) and a glass of French Champagne it is easy to forget about X.  And walking in the Collonade (Lido)  for breakfast or lunch with no lines (and being greeted by name) or going to the MDR of Thomas Keller with no lines is also a reminder that we are not cruising on X.

 

I think you also need to consider that on luxury lines the space ratios (tons:passengers) is over 70 while on Celebrity it is generally in the low 40s.   It is true that some luxury cruise lines will cost in the area of $1000 per passenger day, but again, you need to consider what is included.  I am not saying that luxury lines are price competitive with mass market lines, but I am saying that they are competitive to Retreat Suites on X.

 

I should also mention (for those not familiar) that luxury cruises generally mean relatively small ship cruising.  For those that prefer the huge ships with tons of amenities (especially for kids) this may not be the right thing.  But we love smaller ship cruising (our next cruise is on a ship with only 200 passengers) where there are never queues, nobody coming into the dining room wearing wife beater shirts and baseball caps, etc.  It is a different style of cruising/travel.  We still take our share of mass market cruises (often in regular balcony cabins) but do admit that every time we take another luxury cruise it becomes more difficult to go back to the mass market stuff. 

cWe have recently been eyeing the new Explore Journeys Cruise Line.  It is owned by MSC (very deep pockets) and will have 6 ships within the next few years.  Their ships carry about 900 passengers (with space ratios in the 70+ range) with all suites and all-inclusive.  The cost for many of their cruises falls into the $475 - $500 per person range and it is all-inclusive.   We have long enjoyed the fact that the cruise industry is very competitive with all kinds of interesting deals.

 

Hank

 

Hank

 

Hank

[RichYak]

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

We now do a lot more cruising on luxury lines and our cost per passenger day is far lower than retreat suites on X.  And we also get the benefit of a luxury cruise with no queues, no nickel and diming, no tipping nonsense. etc.   No problem with X charging ridiculous prices for suites as there are obviously folks willing to pay luxury+ for routine mass market.  Their loss!

 

Hank

I'm with you, Hank. The Retreat prices I'm seeing are way too high for a mass market line. Sure there may be some bargains to be found, those are few and far between.  I will definitely be giving luxury lines a closer look for my future bookings.

[miched]

1 hour ago, RichYak said:

I'm with you, Hank. The Retreat prices I'm seeing are way too high for a mass market line. Sure there may be some bargains to be found, those are few and far between.  I will definitely be giving luxury lines a closer look for my future bookings.

 

I think many  passengers are hoodwinked into the Loyalty Status and keep sailing on X in suites to get to Zenith.  They are  willing to pay way too much for being  in a suite to get the points.   
 

I agree with you and many others about the prices for suites being too high for a mass market line.

 

I don’t need to sail in a suite and it is getting to where if I keep sailing with Celebrity it won’t be in one.   
 

I need about 900 points to get to  Zenith.   It won’t happen and am not chasing it.   I am also looking at Seabourn and it looks very appealing for the value.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[C-Dragons]

4 hours ago, canderson said:

I'm not seeing it. 

We agree.
Luxury is in the eye of the beholder…

[drakes2]

57 minutes ago, C-Dragons said:

We agree.
Luxury is in the eye of the beholder…

I don't really care if I have a suite as I hardly spend time in my cabin already.  Since I have a SV on the wake I will eat breakfast there and do a bit of reading hopefully get in a sunrise and sunset but that's it. 

[Georgia_Peaches]

On 9/13/2022 at 9:20 AM, Hlitner said:

.  The downside is that it means standing in a queue at the Guest Relations Desk (this line can sometimes be quite long on embarkation day since folks have lots of different issues).  We have sometimes witnessed a situation where the Guest Relations folks will simply take your name and tell you they will contact you later if something opens up.   

 

 

I never cease to be amazed by the length of the line at Guest Services on embarkation day!  What in the world could cause such ques on day one?  DH and I generally take an over/under bet on how many there will be when we board.  Sometimes we get a cocktail and watch the line.  We imagine what the issue might be for each individual.  In 30+ cruises over the years, we have never had a need to stand in line at GS on embarkation day.  And I can only think of two times that we did so during a cruise, both for unwarranted charges on our account.  I guess we have been exceptionally lucky.

[Georgia_Peaches]

16 hours ago, miched said:

 

I think many  passengers are hoodwinked into the Loyalty Status and keep sailing on X in suites to get to Zenith.  They are  willing to pay way too much for being  in a suite to get the points.   
 

I agree with you and many others about the prices for suites being too high for a mass market line.

 

I don’t need to sail in a suite and it is getting to where if I keep sailing with Celebrity it won’t be in one.   
 

I need about 900 points to get to  Zenith.   It won’t happen and am not chasing it.   I am also looking at Seabourn and it looks very appealing for the value.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

We will never make it to Zenith on Celebrity because there are too many other cruise lines that we enjoy.  We do, however like traveling in a suite, not for the loyalty points but for the extra room and service.  Therefore, we often shop cruise lines for the cost of their suite.  We just recently experienced Yacht Club on MSC and were very pleased!

[drakes2]

26 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I never cease to be amazed by the length of the line at Guest Services on embarkation day!  What in the world could cause such ques on day one?  DH and I generally take an over/under bet on how many there will be when we board.  Sometimes we get a cocktail and watch the line.  We imagine what the issue might be for each individual.  In 30+ cruises over the years, we have never had a need to stand in line at GS on embarkation day.  And I can only think of two times that we did so during a cruise, both for unwarranted charges on our account.  I guess we have been exceptionally lucky.

I've never understood the line ups either. They are very slow moving most times the crew members are very new and not fully trained.  On a recent cruised I needed to access some cash from a refundable obc and was told they don't do that and I should use the ATM. 

[Homosassa]

20 hours ago, Hlitner said:

 

 

 

cWe have recently been eyeing the new Explore Journeys Cruise Line.  It is owned by MSC (very deep pockets) and will have 6 ships within the next few years.  Their ships carry about 900 passengers (with space ratios in the 70+ range) with all suites and all-inclusive.  The cost for many of their cruises falls into the $475 - $500 per person range and it is all-inclusive.   We have long enjoyed the fact that the cruise industry is very competitive with all kinds of interesting deals.

 

Just an FYI for anyone else like me that has looked into the new MSC offering, it is Explora, not Explore, Journeys.

 

There is a website.

[Hlitner]

17 hours ago, miched said:

 

I think many  passengers are hoodwinked into the Loyalty Status and keep sailing on X in suites to get to Zenith.  They are  willing to pay way too much for being  in a suite to get the points.   
 

I agree with you and many others about the prices for suites being too high for a mass market line.

 

I don’t need to sail in a suite and it is getting to where if I keep sailing with Celebrity it won’t be in one.   
 

I need about 900 points to get to  Zenith.   It won’t happen and am not chasing it.   I am also looking at Seabourn and it looks very appealing for the value.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

We are oddities since DW and I could care less about loyalty (except to each other and our family).  We have pretty high status with more than half a dozen cruise lines (we have cruised on 16 lines) including long-time Elite Plus with X.  But so what?  For what it costs to get to Zenith we could easily cruise many times on lines like Seabourn and Silverseas (both far superior to X) or maybe Oceania!  If we want Zenith kind of amenities on X we could simply book one of the top suites.  In fact, somebody on their first X cruise could simply book the largest suite and get plenty of "stuff."  One does not need to spend 100s of thousands of dollars on 50 X cruises to get similar amenities to Zenith.

 

A few years ago, we knew a really nice couple (he was a CC Moderator) who would always cruise on RCI.  He never tried other lines because he told us he wanted "status" on RCI because it made him feel special!  If that is what motivates folks than bless them.  What motivates DW and me is travel, cruising, and adventure.  I would rather go on a new cruise line (we are in the process of booking Explora Journeys and are also very curious about Atlas Cruises) than book another 10 cruises on X.  Even when we are on lines where we have high status and get invited to various functions, we normally don't bother to go to any of those functions.  On HAL, where we have been 5* for some time, we hardly ever go to their popular Mariners Lunch!  Why not?  Because why on earth would we leave our comfy deck chairs, put on appropriate clothing, and go to a crowded lunch.  For us, that is the perfect time to go to the Lido (which is not crowded because many are at the Mariners lunch) where we have a much larger choice of food!  All the hype with loyalty pins and medallions hold no interest for us.  To be very honest, we prefer companies like MSC who give a 5% discount to loyalty folks and even make it easy for just about anyone to get loyalty status via a match.  That 5% is real money.... while a Mariners Lunch on HAL is simply a free lunch on cruise ship.

 

Speaking of MSC, they turned all that loyalty garbage on its ear with their match policy.   The first time we ever cruised on MSC (in the Yacht Club) we immediately got their highest loyalty status (at the time is was called Black Card) by simply asking for a stus match to our HAL status.  So on our first MSC cruise we had the same "status" as anyone who might have cruised 100 times on that line.  Big deal!   

 

We will confess that our favorite loyalty perk is free laundry :).  But then again, it cost us a fortune to get the status that gets us free laundry (on several lines) vs simply being a first time cruiser who pays for a few bags of laundry.

 

But I get it!  Some folks love the egocentric boost they get with "status."   If that is the kind of thing, they find important in life than I hope, they get sufficient gratification.   A few years ago HAL announced they were eliminating their "Medallion" program which gives tinny medallions (on a ribbon) to loyal cruisers who reach certain day milestones.  There was an uproar from many of their fans who truly treasure those medallions (some actually bring them on cruises and wear them to Mariners Luncheons....so they can say "look at me!"  HAL quickly relented and they still give out those Medallions (DW either threw the out of tossed them in a basement drawer).  One frequent HAL poster argued that "she worked hard to get that Medallion!"  ahhhhh. OK.

 

Hank

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, Homosassa said:

Just an FYI for anyone else like me that has looked into the new MSC offering, it is Explora, not Explore, Journeys.

 

There is a website.

Sorry for the typo.  I also think that some software changes spelling and Explora is not recognized by the internal dictionaries.  Type it into some software and it is automatically changed to Explore.

[LGW59]

22 hours ago, Hlitner said:

We now do a lot more cruising on luxury lines and our cost per passenger day is far lower than retreat suites on X.  And we also get the benefit of a luxury cruise with no queues, no nickel and diming, no tipping nonsense. etc.   No problem with X charging ridiculous prices for suites as there are obviously folks willing to pay luxury+ for routine mass market.  Their loss!

 

Hank

Their choice 

[Lastdance]

Choice is good, along with the fact that opportunity cost allows for it.  If you are happy, that's all that matters.  Wear those pins for status; rack up those points, along with whatever floats your boat!  None of us is getting any younger...

Edited September 18, 2022 by Lastdance

[Fly and Sail]

15 hours ago, Hlitner said:

A few years ago HAL announced they were eliminating their "Medallion" program which gives tinny medallions (on a ribbon) to loyal cruisers who reach certain day milestones.  There was an uproar from many of their fans who truly treasure those medallions (some actually bring them on cruises and wear them to Mariners Luncheons....so they can say "look at me!"  HAL quickly relented and they still give out those Medallions (DW either threw the out of tossed them in a basement drawer).  One frequent HAL poster argued that "she worked hard to get that Medallion!"  ahhhhh. OK.

 

RCCL also bestows tier pins to Elite members, all the way up to pinaccle.

[wineoclock]

I’m not keen on smaller ships. So I prefer being in a suite on a larger one. Horses for courses. If everyone liked the same it would be a boring world. 

[Fly and Sail]

On 9/18/2022 at 4:22 PM, drakes2 said:

I've never understood the line ups either. They are very slow moving most times the crew members are very new and not fully trained.  On a recent cruised I needed to access some cash from a refundable obc and was told they don't do that and I should use the ATM. 

 

If that happens to you again, just go to the Casino, charge slot credit to your room then print the slip and cash it at the cage. Done!

[Jim_Iain]

On 9/11/2022 at 5:01 PM, capecodmercury said:

On a related issue, does Celebrity accept  Move Up offers until the embarkation date? According to the program description,  the Move Up program ends two days before sailing.  But I am not sure how that worked with people canceling due to positive tests.

 

I am on a cruise on Summit in October that will be stopping in Bermuda, so it is a cruise that still requires a monitored pre cruise test.  All balcony, CC, Aqua, and Suites are sold out and have been sold out for months. I'm in CC, but have bids in on Aqua and various suites.  I bid assuming that the only way to win a Move Up would be if there was a last minute cancelation.  But not sure how Celebrity handles cancelations due to positive tests opening up cabins.

No -  Move ups are award by day two.   Exactly at 48 hours prior to boarding time rejection e-mails are sent out.   The ships are required to submit manifests 2 days in advance to Homeland Security.  For last minute cancellations you would have to check with Guest Relations.   On one cruise 6 months ago a guest in the RS tested positive and the ships  I got a call from Retreat Concierge and they gave us a Gratis Upgrade from a CS to the RS but was told they couldn't change the manifest.   We had to physically write our room number on our luggage tags.    I'm sure this is a unique experience as we were already in the same RS for the next two cruises.

[drakes2]

1 hour ago, Fly and Sail said:

 

If that happens to you again, just go to the Casino, charge slot credit to your room then print the slip and cash it at the cage. Done!

Didn't know that.  I was on my way off the ship and needed extra cash and didn't want to go back to my room. I think the crew was new as first Equinox sailing since March 2020 but they should know better. 

[RichYak]

38 minutes ago, drakes2 said:

Didn't know that.  I was on my way off the ship and needed extra cash and didn't want to go back to my room. I think the crew was new as first Equinox sailing since March 2020 but they should know better. 

It's my understanding that you can't cash out any unused refundable OBC until the last day of the cruise. Perhaps that was the issue in your case?

[Fly and Sail]

3 hours ago, RichYak said:

It's my understanding that you can't cash out any unused refundable OBC until the last day of the cruise. Perhaps that was the issue in your case?

 

Can you cash out at all or does it go back to the FOP on file?

[drakes2]

3 minutes ago, Fly and Sail said:

 

Can you cash out at all or does it go back to the FOP on file?

Refundable obc can be cashed out non refundable must  be used or you will lose it.  Celebrity applies the NR obc first to any on board purchases. 

[letsgogogo]

On 9/18/2022 at 8:52 AM, Georgia_Peaches said:

!  What in the world could cause such ques on day one? 

Maybe a lot of first timers who haven’t watched enough YouTube content to know luggage comes later, no MDR not open for lunch (for most), no there isn’t magically a suite for you, no there aren’t suddenly connecting rooms for you., I bet that’s 3/4 of the line.