Wow, huge price increase

[sdrocks]

We booked Symphony on our January cruise for March 2024.  We are in a JS with a refundable deposit. We are diamond plus, so with discounts our Total Cost was $5,572.  Today a JS guarantee nonrefundable for this same cruise is $11,667 or REFUNDABLE is $16,971.  Incredible !!  There are price increases and then there is this unbelievable PRICE INCREASE.  I did the mock booking just to be sure I wasn't seeing things, but sure enough that was the price.  Won't be able to book any others for the future at this price.  We have to fly so that adds to the cost and also hotel rooms.  Well, guess will enjoy this one immensely and then hope for something more reasonable in the future.  

[ONECRUISER]

14 minutes ago, sdrocks said:

We booked Symphony on our January cruise for March 2024.  We are in a JS with a refundable deposit. We are diamond plus, so with discounts our Total Cost was $5,572.  Today a JS guarantee nonrefundable for this same cruise is $11,667 or REFUNDABLE is $16,971.  Incredible !!  There are price increases and then there is this unbelievable PRICE INCREASE.  I did the mock booking just to be sure I wasn't seeing things, but sure enough that was the price.  Won't be able to book any others for the future at this price.  We have to fly so that adds to the cost and also hotel rooms.  Well, guess will enjoy this one immensely and then hope for something more reasonable in the future.  

Nothing new, my longer 10+ niters 2022, 2023 and 2024 have all doubled or close to from day I Booked. Almost everything else is up. Ships running over the 108% Capacity of Pre-CV, so people are paying the higher Rate

[yogimax]

With supply remaining fairly constant only reducing demand will bring prices down.

 

The significantly higher prices may actually begin the process to stabilize/reduce prices.  I use the word "may" since it seems some people are oblivious to cost and will pay anything.

[Ourusualbeach]

33 minutes ago, sdrocks said:

We booked Symphony on our January cruise for March 2024.  We are in a JS with a refundable deposit. We are diamond plus, so with discounts our Total Cost was $5,572.  Today a JS guarantee nonrefundable for this same cruise is $11,667 or REFUNDABLE is $16,971.  Incredible !!  There are price increases and then there is this unbelievable PRICE INCREASE.  I did the mock booking just to be sure I wasn't seeing things, but sure enough that was the price.  Won't be able to book any others for the future at this price.  We have to fly so that adds to the cost and also hotel rooms.  Well, guess will enjoy this one immensely and then hope for something more reasonable in the future.  

While it may give you a price fir a refundable JS it is still non refundable.  Junior suites and above are all now non refundable deposits. 

[Mapleleafforever]

We already booked an AI for Feb 2024 and will revisit the possibility of cruising again in 2025 or so. Have been looking at MSC quite a bit lately as well as prices seem to be more reasonable. 

[Concord Slim]

7 minutes ago, yogimax said:

With supply remaining fairly constant only reducing demand will bring prices down.

 

The significantly higher prices may actually begin the process to stabilize/reduce prices.  I use the word "may" since it seems some people are oblivious to cost and will pay anything.

I'd say the supply side of the equation is rising across the industry and if you look at RCL 2024 will bring a lot of additional capacity with Icon and Utopia...  This should bring the price down but I think this is more based on the inflation across the US and globe but cruise fares have certainly outpaced other categories...  It will take a recession to bring down prices IMO, especially as you say if people "will pay anything"...  

 

I'm experiencing the same as others...  We have 4 cruises already locked in and prices are up on all of them, the two suites we have on Icon in Feb/Dec of 24 are up over 100% from what we paid the day bookings begun!!!  I expected a run up given it's a new hyped ship but not that much...  The CLS we booked on Symphony for August 24 is up 18% with a lot of supply still available...  On our Odyssey booking in Nov. the GLS's cost quite a big more than what we paid for the OLS!

[smokeybandit]

So you've just proven that booking early is the best way to go

[Ashland]

16 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

So you've just proven that booking early is the best way to go

We book when the schedule opens. Some good pricing on our 2023, 2024 and 2025. Just waiting for the rest of 2025 to open.

[smokeybandit]

Just now, Ashland said:

We book when the schedule opens. Some good pricing on our 2023, 2024 and 2025. Just waiting for the rest of 2025 to open.

Bingo. Plenty of good prices available if you book early.

[orville99]

19 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

So you've just proven that booking early is the best way to go

 

1 minute ago, Ashland said:

We book when the schedule opens. Some good pricing on our 2023, 2024 and 2025. Just waiting for the rest of 2025 to open.

We always book as soon as the new schedules are released, and every on eof our booked cruises has more than doubled in price since we booked, and a few have more than tripled. I just went out and looked at the remaining inventory on our 11/7 Panama Canal transit, and I could now book an ocean view cabin on Deck 3 for only $2,000 more than we paid for a balcony cabin on deck 9.😱

[smokeybandit]

1 minute ago, orville99 said:

 

We always book as soon as the new schedules are released, and every on eof our booked cruises has more than doubled in price since we booked, and a few have more than tripled. I just went out and looked at the remaining inventory on our 11/7 Panama Canal transit, and I could now book an ocean view cabin on Deck 3 for only $2,000 more than we paid for a balcony cabin on deck 9.😱

I've got a cruise next summer that currently costs as much for 1 person than for the three of us that I booked it for when schedules were released.

[Jimbo]

14 minutes ago, Ashland said:

We book when the schedule opens. Some good pricing on our 2023, 2024 and 2025. Just waiting for the rest of 2025 to open.

What happened to that thread that talks about when new itineraries  come out? Can't seem to find it, how many pages back is it?

Edited August 29, 2023 by Jimbo

[orville99]

7 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

What happened to that thread that talks about when new itineraries  come out? Can't seem to find it, how many pages back is it?

Just bumped it up to page 1.😇

[orville99]

15 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I've got a cruise next summer that currently costs as much for 1 person than for the three of us that I booked it for when schedules were released.

We have a B3B (8/6/8 night) in a GS on Adventure booked for next July (booked on board the day the itineraries were released), and the current cost for the middle 6 night leg is more than we paid in total for the entire three legs.

[mike123abc]

It is like airline pricing.  The fewer rooms left the higher the price.  It is by category, which can lead to the odd situation you see sometimes where a balcony costs more than a JR suite.

 

Other categories may have gone down in price if they are not selling well.

 

I like to book early, if the price goes down the TA can usually get a price adjustment.

[smokeybandit]

Just now, orville99 said:

We have a B3B (8/6/8 night) in a GS on Adventure booked for next July (booked on board the day the itineraries were released), and the current cost for the middle 6 night leg is more than we paid in total for the entire three legs.

Those Adventure prices when Summer 2024 came out were a steal.

I'm hoping for some similar deal for Summer 2025

[Slidell_Cruiser]

It’s all about the demand for, the ship and the sail…

I’m thinking of last minute, Oct Quantum, 17 night Honolulu to Brisbane, Guarantee Ocean BALCONY for $2,424 for two…Fly home to LAX on a Fuji Airlines for less than 1k each.

[Ourusualbeach]

1 hour ago, smokeybandit said:

So you've just proven that booking early is the best way to go

Or finding a travel agent with group rates that were locked in over a year ago and are now 50% or more less than Royals website prices

[neverbeenhere]

Please get control of these prices by the time we come back to Royal full time in early 2025. We are busy mostly cruising Princess until then to use up credits from cancelled cruises.

[Ourusualbeach]

12 minutes ago, neverbeenhere said:

Please get control of these prices by the time we come back to Royal full time in early 2025. We are busy mostly cruising Princess until then to use up credits from cancelled cruises.

Unless we have a major financial meltdown I don't think prices will just magically drop.  They will keep pushing the envelope until people stop booking.

[loman]

23 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Or finding a travel agent with group rates that were locked in over a year ago and are now 50% or more less than Royals website prices

I think i will be calling one for my next cruise 😉

[CTCruiser76]

1 hour ago, loman said:

I think i will be calling one for my next cruise 😉

That makes two of us !

[sdrocks]

22 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

While it may give you a price fir a refundable JS it is still non refundable.  Junior suites and above are all now non refundable deposits. 

Interesting. Sure I'll pay another $5,000 for a non existent refundable deposit.  Not !!

 

[ocean sounds]

20 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Or finding a travel agent with group rates that were locked in over a year ago and are now 50% or more less than Royals website prices

Yep!    my.Usual.TA just made it affordable for me to book my first Panama Canal cruise, Radiance EB, next April.   A great TA makes all the difference. . 

 

Edited August 30, 2023 by ocean sounds
Typo

[karena1]

On 8/29/2023 at 1:23 PM, sdrocks said:

We booked Symphony on our January cruise for March 2024.  We are in a JS with a refundable deposit. We are diamond plus, so with discounts our Total Cost was $5,572.  Today a JS guarantee nonrefundable for this same cruise is $11,667 or REFUNDABLE is $16,971.  Incredible !!  There are price increases and then there is this unbelievable PRICE INCREASE.  I did the mock booking just to be sure I wasn't seeing things, but sure enough that was the price.  Won't be able to book any others for the future at this price.  We have to fly so that adds to the cost and also hotel rooms.  Well, guess will enjoy this one immensely and then hope for something more reasonable in the future.  

That is why I book my cruises as soon as itins come out.  Sometimes I get price drops (just got one yesterday), but lately, almost all of my cruises are much higher than I originally paid for them.