NCLH Press Release on “Simply More”

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3 hours ago, bradpole said:

Sadly I agree

ACTUALLY its REGENTS lil bro!

[Orator]

4 hours ago, D. B. said:

Celebrity tried All Included! pricing and found out a Lot of us have no intention of paying for a Drinks Package we would not be using.

 So, Cruise only Fares became an option.

If you are in Aqua Class or above you are required to take the AI program even if you have loyalty perks that are better than AI. It was this that encouraged me to find Oceania and I've really am pleased that I tried Oceania

[D. B.]

I never book anything higher than an ordinary Veranda but we are trying O for the first time.

sailing July11th. From Southampton on Marina.  The 4 level upgrade offer gives us a Veranda cabin.

  We tried Azamara and Crystal but didn’t find either worth the higher cost.

[bob brown]

2 hours ago, basor said:

After 01JUL - the only option that you will have available to book is Simply More with or without Air...the shore excursion page will be exactly the same for either OLife or Simply More.  If you are under Simply More, when you book excursions, your shore excursion OBC will be deducted from the cost and if you are under OLife (with shore excursion perk) your free excursions will be deducted.  That being said, the shore excursion page has been very wonky before so it might take awhile for it to proceed correctly.

Could be more complicated, based on past charges…under 0 Life, if an excursion price exceeded your $199. per excursion allowance, you had to pay much more than the difference between that and the price, in order to “upgrade” to the higher priced excursion.  Under the new plan, that is no longer the case under Simply More, your excursion credit is applied to whatever the price is.

[1985rz1]

1 hour ago, bob brown said:

Could be more complicated, based on past charges…under 0 Life, if an excursion price exceeded your $199. per excursion allowance, you had to pay much more than the difference between that and the price, in order to “upgrade” to the higher priced excursion.  Under the new plan, that is no longer the case under Simply More, your excursion credit is applied to whatever the price is.

Under OLife, I think you paid  the full price for an excursion that was not part of the included ones (typically exceeding $199) with no credit towards the higher priced excursion.

[pinotlover]

2 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

Under OLife, I think you paid  the full price for an excursion that was not part of the included ones (typically exceeding $199) with no credit towards the higher priced excursion.

This is correct!

 

One of the current great unknowns is whether the credit can be used for ANY shore excursions, or any shore excursion  from a short list as is the current OLife program.

 

Only 3 more days! 😂

[pinotlover]

Here’s my view of Simply More. It’s simply a potential price increase. That’s it, get over it.

 

I have always been straight forward on the subject and realize our priorities are 180 degrees different from many here. It’s itinerary, itinerary, itinerary. We book what we believe is the best itinerary. Sometimes Oceania has it, other times they don’t and we book on the line that does. You’ll never hear us say “Oh, I saved $500 by booking this itinerary we didn’t really like.”

 

We cruised Viking because they had a far superior itinerary for that specific region than O ever has. Viking has included tours which we almost never take. Just like on Oceania, I go to the Roll Call and arrange and/or participate on private tours that better suit our desires for that specific port. It’s all about seeing and doing what we want in a port, not whether we will save a few bucks taking an included tour.

 

This is actually just like our shore tour groups having spectacular lunches ashore. Yes, we can rush back to the ship to eat, as many do, but those wonderful meals of local cuisine, far surpassing anything aboard, is part of the reason we travel.

So we’re getting a price increase. I don’t see much changing for us. We’ll still cruise for the itinerary. We’ll take primarily private tours, even though we may have a tour credit. We will eat great lunches ashore, even though we can eat and drink aboard for free. Life goes on. Maybe the price increases over ten (10) years means we can afford 1 or 2 less cruises? Since we have no interest for “ the ship being the destination “, maybe in 8-10 years we’ll be so old it doesn’t matter. Life goes on.

 

[Tranquility Base]

1 hour ago, pinotlover said:

So we’re getting a price increase. I don’t see much changing for us. We’ll still cruise for the itinerary. 

Yes, however like yourself, it is the more regular reduced time in ports which is focusing more of our attention these days than these ‘simply more’ changes.

[basor]

7 hours ago, pinotlover said:

This is correct!

 

One of the current great unknowns is whether the credit can be used for ANY shore excursions, or any shore excursion  from a short list as is the current OLife program.

 

Only 3 more days! 😂

It has been stated that it is a $$$ credit that can be applied to any shore excursion - the credit is applied to the shore excursions you pick and you pay the difference, if any.  Thus you could choose a $350.00 pp shore excursion, you have $600.00 credit - 2 people x $350 - $600 you pay $150.00

[jonthomas]

We dont cruise for the itinerary , have been to most places that we were interested in. All with private tours. So no drink packages, no tours for us. We love to get off the ship and wander around, visit some of the places we have been to before, if we feel like it. So simply more has nothing to offer us. But we like most things about O and will have to adjust. 

[travelingJimmy]

3 hours ago, Tranquility Base said:

Yes, however like yourself, it is the more regular reduced time in ports which is focusing more of our attention these days than these ‘simply more’ changes.

Exactly!!!   We need the "Simply More Time in Port" program.  Just off Marina and it is definitely an issue...

[LHT28]

34 minutes ago, basor said:

 Thus you could choose a $350.00 pp shore excursion, you have $600.00 credit - 2 people x $350 - $600 you pay $150.00

You need  a new calculator 😉

 

 

[basor]

3 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

You need  a new calculator 😉

 

 

Hey - very early on the West Coast and watching granddaughter playing volleyball so fingers and brain still in sleep mode - thanks for pointing out that it is $100.00....just saved you $50.00

[DrHemlock]

31 minutes ago, travelingJimmy said:

We need the "Simply More Time in Port" program.

Definitely that!  

[bob brown]

13 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

Under OLife, I think you paid  the full price for an excursion that was not part of the included ones (typically exceeding $199) with no credit towards the higher priced excursion.

Our shorex price lists have a column for “supplemental” charge to be added to those already having O Life credit, for any tour priced over $199.  The supplemental fee is not the full price for the more expensive tour, but it is more than the difference between $199. and the full price.

For example, if a tour charge is $209., the supplemental fee may be $69., not just $10.

 

I never could understand Oceania’s logic for that,  and am glad that will disappear with Simply More.

[ssawjo]

It would be nice if tips were added to the SimplyMore thingee. 

23 hours ago, golfguyhhi said:

Does anyone think the per capital alcohol consumption is markedly higher on Regent?  Does anyone think that non-drinkers are skipping Regent in significant numbers because alcohol is included in the fare?

 

Edited June 28, 2023 by ssawjo

[SellaVee]

4 minutes ago, ssawjo said:

It would be nice if tips were added to the SimplyMore thingee. 

 

I would be much happier with that than excursions, but of course excursions is where there's money to be made.  
 

If there's a lack of availability on shore excursions, what then?  You can bet the money won't be refundable. 

[Jancruz]

11 hours ago, pinotlover said:

This is correct!

 

One of the current great unknowns is whether the credit can be used for ANY shore excursions, or any shore excursion  from a short list as is the current OLife program.

 

Only 3 more days! 😂

I can tell you for sure you can use your money toward ANY tour they have..

Jancruz1

[Jancruz]

27 minutes ago, SellaVee said:

I would be much happier with that than excursions, but of course excursions is where there's money to be made.  
 

If there's a lack of availability on shore excursions, what then?  You can bet the money won't be refundable. 

Correct not refundable 

Jancruz1

[SellaVee]

16 minutes ago, Jancruz said:

I can tell you for sure you can use your money toward ANY tour they have..

Jancruz1

I think that's a really good idea, but from my own point of view, in 5 cruises I haven't found a shore excursion that a) I wanted to do AND b) it was available.

 

Post pandemic we're just not booking far in advance, so booking excursions becomes a problem.  There is also the question of the value of Oceania's excursions compared to private tours.  Forcing us to spend money on excursions we don't want does mean we'll cast the net wider in looking for cruises.  
 

We've just returned to Oceania after a long break and were actually looking at Windstar when the Extraordinary Sales brochure landed.  Apart from the savings the itinerary was very interesting, which is what always brings us to Oceania.

[Hanoj]

1 hour ago, ssawjo said:

It would be nice if tips were added to the SimplyMore thingee. 

 

Why aren’t tips included in simplyMORE? Viking doesn’t include them.

[basor]

1 hour ago, ssawjo said:

It would be nice if tips were added to the SimplyMore thingee. 

 

O provides pre-paid gratuities through their loyalty program at Silver level and above plus many TA's offer pre-paid gratuities as part of the perks they offer..... so more opportunities to receive pre-paid gratuities than most other cruise lines.

[osandomir]

1 hour ago, bob brown said:

Our shorex price lists have a column for “supplemental” charge to be added to those already having O Life credit, for any tour priced over $199.  The supplemental fee is not the full price for the more expensive tour, but it is more than the difference between $199. and the full price.

For example, if a tour charge is $209., the supplemental fee may be $69., not just $10.

 

I never could understand Oceania’s logic for that,  and am glad that will disappear with Simply More.

I believe “supplemental” fee is for Unlimited Excursions Package.

[1985rz1]

2 hours ago, bob brown said:

Our shorex price lists have a column for “supplemental” charge to be added to those already having O Life credit, for any tour priced over $199.  The supplemental fee is not the full price for the more expensive tour, but it is more than the difference between $199. and the full price.

For example, if a tour charge is $209., the supplemental fee may be $69., not just $10.

 

I think the supplemental fee applies to the Unlimited package, not the basic OLife package.

[Rosroz]

If only we all had a crystal ball !!

These people are a business , they are not our friends , we pay our money and they provide a service , like it or not, they are not a charity ,  they have shareholders to answer to and they need to make a profit, todays markets are definitely not for the feint hearted .

You cannot please all of the people all of the time etc….

Edited June 28, 2023 by Rosroz