Is the 40% off sale a deal?

[Ace_Caliente]

I see NCL is running a 40% off sale, and it appears it was just extended a few days. Anyway, my question, are the prices listed particularly good? As in, unusually good? We're looking at taking a cruise in June or July, but aren't yet sure exactly what we want. We're leaning towards Caribbean, but we're not sure. I've heard a lot of good deals usually come late winter or early spring ("Wave season"?), and since we're not really yet ready to book I'm wondering if I'm likely to miss out on a good price if I wait too long or if this is one of those "revolving sales".

[shof515]

its not really sale. they been having the 40% sale forever. they raise the price by 40% percent and then give you a 40% discount. not really a sale. same thing all stores do

[Oakman58]

I don't think I've seen a real sale in years with NCL.

[homer2005]

11 minutes ago, shof515 said:

its not really sale. they been having the 40% sale forever. they raise the price by 40% percent and then give you a 40% discount. not really a sale. same thing all stores do

LOL, I said basically the same thing on another post and was accused of starting a rumor.  Some awful touchy people on here.

 

[MoCruiseFan]

The fact that it is or is not a 'real' sale is not the question.  IMHO the prices on NCL are very reasonable.  Unusually good, I am not sure what that means but in general, for me anyway, it is cheaper to go cruise for a week than it is to stay home.  Anyway the real  issue is where one can find the same or very similar vacation at the best price and what all you get for that price.  In that scenario we always do best with whatever NCL has to offer.  Of course your situation may vary.  Shop around and see what you find that fits your vacation preferences at the best price! 🙂

[casofilia]

I feel sure the way that NCL advertises is illegal in New Zealand.   If you offer a "before" and an "after" price, as NCL does, then the "before" price has had to be offered as the actual price for a decent length of time prior to the "after" price was deing offered.

 

If you look at any of the 40% Off prices on the NCL website, just when was the actual "before" price ever offer as the norm?

[MoCruiseFan]

10 minutes ago, casofilia said:

I feel sure the way that NCL advertises is illegal in New Zealand.   If you offer a "before" and an "after" price, as NCL does, then the "before" price has had to be offered as the actual price for a decent length of time prior to the "after" price was deing offered.

 

If you look at any of the 40% Off prices on the NCL website, just when was the actual "before" price ever offer as the norm?

 

 

It is quite possible that an overall rise in the cost of something coincides with a percent off (or any other) sale.  In fact it is a common practice used to ease the transition from the old price structure to the new one  For example if I were selling tires at $100 each and needed to raise the price to  $150 each (for increased cost or any other reason), I might initiate the new $150 price and offer a sale of 1/3 off  month or two prior to when I really wanted to initiate the price increase.  Then at the time the new price really goes into effect I'd remove the sale and the then current selling price would be the desired $150 and the customers would have had the month or two to be groomed for th price increase.  It actually a pretty good marketing concept.

 

[dolfan1980]

The current sale is what I would call regular price.  Of course there are certain sailings that are overpriced/underpriced in certain people's views, but the current 40% off sale is pretty much their regular price and the way NCL markets their product.

[spanishguy1970]

the way it works is like this. Example. an inside cabin may be 999 for a while and you think you are getting a great deal then they advertise a big sale and hope that people don't notice that they have raise their price by 40% so that inside cabin is no longer 999 but 1398.60...so they take the 40% off and boom is back to being 999...LOL so shorter answer is a BIG no :-).....

[Ace_Caliente]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Definitely an eye opener. We'll be celebrating our 20th anniversary and taking basically our first trip away from the kids in over a decade so we don't want to rush to book something. 

[Peachypooh]

26 minutes ago, Ace_Caliente said:

Thanks for the replies everyone. Definitely an eye opener. We'll be celebrating our 20th anniversary and taking basically our first trip away from the kids in over a decade so we don't want to rush to book something. 

We booked a cruise for next year at the beginning of the summer when they were running a different sale. When I re-priced it two days ago with the 40 percent off it came within five dollars of my current price. I guess what I am saying is that book when you feel comfortable doing so not based on the current promotion. That said one time I did get a true sale from them. A few years ago they were offering 10 percent extra off for latitudes members and I was able to re-price my cruise and saved that extra 10 percent.

[MoCruiseFan]

59 minutes ago, Ace_Caliente said:

Thanks for the replies everyone. Definitely an eye opener. We'll be celebrating our 20th anniversary and taking basically our first trip away from the kids in over a decade so we don't want to rush to book something. 

 

Congrats newly weds.  44 years here!

[globetrotterjay]

26 minutes ago, Peachypooh said:

We booked a cruise for next year at the beginning of the summer when they were running a different sale. When I re-priced it two days ago with the 40 percent off it came within five dollars of my current price. I guess what I am saying is that book when you feel comfortable doing so not based on the current promotion. That said one time I did get a true sale from them. A few years ago they were offering 10 percent extra off for latitudes members and I was able to re-price my cruise and saved that extra 10 percent.

 

Same here! I am booked for February. I’ve visited their website here and there to see if I wanna kick myself for booking too soon/too late and price hasn’t changed more than raising a couple a bucks. I paid for a solo Haven, however price tag is definitely covering costs as if two guests. They advertise solo cruiser fare, would not wanna know the fee without this *promo*. It’s definitely not a price tag I’ll ever brag about, but Haven matters to me. Maybe one day I’ll meet another solo traveler and we can book together and save us both 🤪

[ontheweb]

31 minutes ago, MoCruiseFan said:

 

Congrats newly weds.  44 years here!

Gotcha 45 years here.

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, Ace_Caliente said:

Thanks for the replies everyone. Definitely an eye opener. We'll be celebrating our 20th anniversary and taking basically our first trip away from the kids in over a decade so we don't want to rush to book something. 

Are you aware that  you can book a cruise and then have the cruise line refare the cruise should the fare drop?  I've done that many times.  This allows  you to lock in a fare now and now that fare can only go down in the future.  BTW, this only works until 'final payment' which is usually 120 days before the cruise leaves.  And, you can cancel prior to final payment and receive a complete refund.

[Mic101680]

I would look at a couple specific cruises you're interested in and track the prices over time. I did this with one we're going on in 2024, and in my case, there was a huge price difference between a brief time when they didn't have the sale active and when it did go active, with only minor fluctuations in the price during the sale periods. I realize we're also talking way, way, way in advance pricing too for my cruise, but it's still worth following if you know you're going to book something at some point.

[farjar]

2 hours ago, MoCruiseFan said:

 

Congrats newly weds.  44 years here!

 

2 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Gotcha 45 years here.

We're at 53 years and still going strong.  I attribute it to my hubby's philosophy "Happy wife, happy life!"😀

[ChiefMateJRK]

14 hours ago, shof515 said:

its not really sale. they been having the 40% sale forever. they raise the price by 40% percent and then give you a 40% discount. not really a sale. same thing all stores do

I believe that you meant to say that they raise the price by 67% and then give you a 40% discount.

[ChiefMateJRK]

4 hours ago, spanishguy1970 said:

the way it works is like this. Example. an inside cabin may be 999 for a while and you think you are getting a great deal then they advertise a big sale and hope that people don't notice that they have raise their price by 40% so that inside cabin is no longer 999 but 1398.60...so they take the 40% off and boom is back to being 999...LOL so shorter answer is a BIG no :-).....

1398.6 * .6 = $839

You folks must be using that "new math."🤣

Edited October 29, 2022 by ChiefMateJRK

[pickle11]

Who cares if the cruise is "advertized' as a sale.  If the cruise you are interested is at a reasonable price do it.  If not, monitor other cruise lines with comparable itineraries and wait.  Why is this hard?

[spanishguy1970]

18 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

1398.6 * .6 = $839

You folks must be using that "new math."🤣

Oh my so we have grammar police now math police how fun, feel better now? 🤷🏻.. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

20 minutes ago, spanishguy1970 said:

Oh my so we have grammar police now math police how fun, feel better now? 🤷🏻.. 

Having received the desired dramatic/clever response, YES!!  🤣

[Steff79]

in Germany it is now a 50% Deal discount, but prices are same or feels higher then before with the 40%.

NCL thinks the people are dumb.

[MoCruiseFan]

10 minutes ago, Steff79 said:

in Germany it is now a 50% Deal discount, but prices are same or feels higher then before with the 40%.

NCL thinks the people are dumb.

 

The 50% hit in the US as well.  It does not look like the prices are higher THAN before though.

[davencl]

1 minute ago, MoCruiseFan said:

 

The 50% hit in the US as well.  It does not look like the prices are higher THAN before though.

Yes they are a little lower on the cruise I was pricing but not by 10%.   I.E.  with 40% off an inside was $789.  Now with 50% off it's 749.  If you do the math it's clear they raised the base price.   Also the free airfare for second guest has been deleted.