O's 2024 pricing is ridiculous!

[RD64]

2 hours ago, Harry Lake said:

It would sure be a nightmare for us. And I would raise holy hell!

Or you could just cancel and avoid the nightmare since it is so horrific for you.

[Harry Lake]

44 minutes ago, RD64 said:

Or you could just cancel and avoid the nightmare since it is so horrific for you.

And get my money back? Cool.

[LHT28]

So  days later  the OP  has not come back to clarify  where  she is seeing higher prices than anyone else 🤔

 

Could  she be mistaken in what she saw ??

[rbtan]

On 10/31/2023 at 12:37 PM, julia said:

Long time cruiser here, just checking out some pricing for the fall of 2024 (comparing apples to apples, trust me).  We sailed the Regatta, 7 night California coastal this past Sept in a C-2 verandah cabin for $3398 total fare.  The EXACT same sailing, (in the exact same cabin) for Sept 2024 is $6198....  a $2800 increase!!  That is SIMPLY MORE ridiculous! 😲😪

That seems too high. Do more research.

[mauibabes]

Not sure it is exact room and date and itinerary but it was the 7 day California Coast cruise but  the pp rate with airfare included is $2749 and includes Simply More.  If the $3398 figure is for two guests, then the price has increased. 

Good Luck,

Mauibabes

[basor]

We were on the 07SEP 22 Regatta coastal in an A2 and the total for 2 with no air was $6298.00 and was an "Ultimate OLife sale" so included beverage package, $200.00 pp OBC and 2 free shore excursions pp.

The same sailing for SEP 24 Coastal in an A2 with no air and with SM (beverage package and $150.00 Shore Excursion credit is $6198.00 total for 2.....

 

I do not find this as an outrageous price increase over 2 years.....

 

[Croooser]

Seems like the OP has long since left the room after posting prices that did not match what others found.

[Jancruz]

On 11/2/2023 at 10:13 AM, Copper2031 said:

My husband and I did a 12 day land tour of Vietnam and then a 13 day tour of Thailand with Gate 1 in November 2023.  Our tour guides were excellent, can’t say enough good things about them.  We saw and did so much and both tour guides made sure everything went smoothly.  Our guides also set up extra tours for us that we asked for and were not part of our itinerary and they made it happen.  We are going with Gate 1 at the end of this November to Chile, Argentina (Patagonia) and Brazil.   Looking forward to it and expecting 🤞🏻to have another excellent tour.  

Cooper I hope you have a fabulous time ..my grandaughter works for Gate 1..

Jancruz1

[harryw]

What is “SM”?

[Copper2031]

1 hour ago, Jancruz said:

Cooper I hope you have a fabulous time ..my grandaughter works for Gate 1..

Jancruz1

Thank you Jancruz! Just a few more weeks and we will be on our way. Your granddaughter works for a very good company. 😁

[PhD-iva]

44 minutes ago, harryw said:

What is “SM”?

Simply More, which is Oceania‘s new marketing strategy. Currently all new cruise fares include wine and beer at lunch and dinner in dining venues, and an amount of money that can only be spent on Oceania excursions. It was supposed to simplify their Olife. Not sure whether or not it is simpler to understand.

[harryw]

Thank You!

[susiesan]

6 hours ago, harryw said:

What is “SM”?

SM stands for Simply More, which is simply more money for an Oceania cruise. You can no longer just book a cabin, cruise only. You have to pay for a beverage package and excursions whether or not you will use them. It's a sneaky price increase.

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, susiesan said:

SM stands for Simply More, which is simply more money for an Oceania cruise. You can no longer just book a cabin, cruise only. You have to pay for a beverage package and excursions whether or not you will use them. It's a sneaky price increase.

 

As far as we are concerned, this new SM pricing is no different (I think?) than some of the luxury/all-inclusive lines.

However, before Oceania changed to this type of "all inclusive" model, that was a VERY important factor for us:  We'd get the premium service and amenities but *not* pay for beverages and excursions that we would almost never use.  [As mentioned above, we drink fine wine, and those bottles are never (almost never!?) included in the "all you can drink" offers; and we prefer our own excursions, just by ourselves or perhaps along with a few other passengers when we are starting from a cruise ship.]

 

Oceania was really almost a perfect match, emphasis on "was".

I'm not sure what we'll do.  We are getting older, and had already wondered if we should not be too far from good medical facilities.  Unfortunate, but that's how things have changed for us.

But we wouldn't have hesitated to take Oceania on, for example, many Mediterranean cruises given this concern.

 

But it depends upon the total price, of course... with vague estimates of the approximate extra cost when the booze and excursions are added.  Perhaps it would push us into the luxury lines if/when we do cruise?  TBD.

 

GC

[Harry Lake]

2 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

But it depends upon the total price, of course... with vague estimates of the approximate extra cost when the booze and excursions are added.  Perhaps it would push us into the luxury lines if/when we do cruise?  TBD.

As much as O has angered people with that Middle East debacle, I've no doubt that they did the numbers before putting thi Simply More feature into effect.

[GeezerCouple]

Just now, Harry Lake said:

As much as O has angered people with that Middle East debacle, I've no doubt that they did the numbers before putting thi Simply More feature into effect.

Well, I'd certainly assume that they "did the numbers"!

But what they expect to work for them, on average, may *not* be what works for us.

That was my point.  And there are clearly others like us.  But O has presumably determined that their new pricing will "work" for them, on average.

 

GC

[Harry Lake]

4 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

Well, I'd certainly assume that they "did the numbers"!

But what they expect to work for them, on average, may *not* be what works for us.

That was my point.  And there are clearly others like us.  But O has presumably determined that their new pricing will "work" for them, on average.

 

GC

I think their math is saying that they will lose fewer customers than they will gain.

[GeezerCouple]

12 minutes ago, Harry Lake said:

I think their math is saying that they will lose fewer customers than they will gain.

Yup, we got that!!

But the math that works for "them" may NOT yield an outcome that some of us want.

No surprise there, but possibly an unfortunate outcome for some of us.

GC

[Harry Lake]

9 minutes ago, GeezerCouple said:

Yup, we got that!!

But the math that works for "them" may NOT yield an outcome that some of us want.

No surprise there, but possibly an unfortunate outcome for some of us.

GC

As Daddy used to say, "I wish I'd been born rich instead of so doggone good looking!" Then we could have our own ship, eh? Keep paying that lottery 🙂

[ak1004]

9 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

As far as we are concerned, this new SM pricing is no different (I think?) than some of the luxury/all-inclusive lines.

However, before Oceania changed to this type of "all inclusive" model, that was a VERY important factor for us:  We'd get the premium service and amenities but *not* pay for beverages and excursions that we would almost never use.  [As mentioned above, we drink fine wine, and those bottles are never (almost never!?) included in the "all you can drink" offers; and we prefer our own excursions, just by ourselves or perhaps along with a few other passengers when we are starting from a cruise ship.]

 

Oceania was really almost a perfect match, emphasis on "was".

I'm not sure what we'll do.  We are getting older, and had already wondered if we should not be too far from good medical facilities.  Unfortunate, but that's how things have changed for us.

But we wouldn't have hesitated to take Oceania on, for example, many Mediterranean cruises given this concern.

 

But it depends upon the total price, of course... with vague estimates of the approximate extra cost when the booze and excursions are added.  Perhaps it would push us into the luxury lines if/when we do cruise?  TBD.

 

GC

 

We recently looked at European cruises for 2025, and checked most premium/luxury lines. Ended up booking two cruises on Vista. Both cruises were under $500 CAD per night in FV. SB starts at $600-650, SS around $700-750 (but includes excursions), Crystal $800+. Overall O prices are still attractive in my opinion, even considering we don't drink and rarely take ship excursions.

As I say repeatedly, what matters is the overall package. There will always be things you don't use but have to pay for.

[Hlitner]

54 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

We recently looked at European cruises for 2025, and checked most premium/luxury lines. Ended up booking two cruises on Vista. Both cruises were under $500 CAD per night in FV. SB starts at $600-650, SS around $700-750 (but includes excursions), Crystal $800+. Overall O prices are still attractive in my opinion, even considering we don't drink and rarely take ship excursions.

As I say repeatedly, what matters is the overall package. There will always be things you don't use but have to pay for.

Like you, we do comparisons between various cruise lines (including O).  But, we need to keep in mind that there is an apples to oranges component.  For example, SS, SB, and Regent are a completely different level of product when compared to O, Celebrity etc.  And one can still find relative bargins, although it has become more difficult.  We recently booked a 14 day SS cruise (Caribbean) for less than $400 per person/day!  And consider that SS is all-inclusive and includes excursions in nearly every port.  We also have a 2025 Seabourn cruise booking (Dover to Montreal) for less than $450 per person/day. 

 

Folks who are one-line fans of O might want to consider that lines like Seabourn and Silverseas include all drinks and tips and suites in their basic fare.  Those two lines also have some decent international air deals (business and first class) that save thousands of dollars when compared to doing air for an O cruise.  Folks might also want to consider the "space ratios" (tonnage divided by passenger capacity).  The newer O ships are about 58 while the ships of SS, SB and Regent are in the 70 range.  

 

Hank

[ak1004]

49 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Like you, we do comparisons between various cruise lines (including O).  But, we need to keep in mind that there is an apples to oranges component.  For example, SS, SB, and Regent are a completely different level of product when compared to O, Celebrity etc.  And one can still find relative bargins, although it has become more difficult.  We recently booked a 14 day SS cruise (Caribbean) for less than $400 per person/day!  And consider that SS is all-inclusive and includes excursions in nearly every port.  We also have a 2025 Seabourn cruise booking (Dover to Montreal) for less than $450 per person/day. 

 

Folks who are one-line fans of O might want to consider that lines like Seabourn and Silverseas include all drinks and tips and suites in their basic fare.  Those two lines also have some decent international air deals (business and first class) that save thousands of dollars when compared to doing air for an O cruise.  Folks might also want to consider the "space ratios" (tonnage divided by passenger capacity).  The newer O ships are about 58 while the ships of SS, SB and Regent are in the 70 range.  

 

Hank

 

Agree with you 100% Hank. We are doing 10 night on SS next months at $325 USD per night, and next year in Europe for around $400 per night. A great value. But yes, those bargains are more and more difficult to find.

 

And yes, those lines are more inclusive, but in terms of overall experience, we found O much closer to SS than to Celebrity. So to me, O is good enough in terms of value for money, but itinerary is the most important things. We found couple great itineraries with SB and SS in 2025, but they were at least 30-40% more expensive.

 

As for air program - I cannot comment on SB yet, but we had mixed experience with SS air department. Their pricing for business class was great, and they gave us direct flights, but when we asked to fly 2 days earlier, they requested almost $1,000 USD extra per person. 

[Hlitner]

10 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

Agree with you 100% Hank. We are doing 10 night on SS next months at $325 USD per night, and next year in Europe for around $400 per night. A great value. But yes, those bargains are more and more difficult to find.

 

And yes, those lines are more inclusive, but in terms of overall experience, we found O much closer to SS than to Celebrity. So to me, O is good enough in terms of value for money, but itinerary is the most important things. We found couple great itineraries with SB and SS in 2025, but they were at least 30-40% more expensive.

 

As for air program - I cannot comment on SB yet, but we had mixed experience with SS air department. Their pricing for business class was great, and they gave us direct flights, but when we asked to fly 2 days earlier, they requested almost $1,000 USD extra per person. 

We have wanted to try O (which would be our 18th cruise line) for many years, but were put off by the R ships.  Once the Marina became reality, we looked for an acceptable itinerary/deal on that vessel.  We had booked an 18 day Miami to Lima cruise (on the Marina) when O, only 2 weeks prior to the cruise, significantly altered both the itinerary and debarkation port (over 1500 miles).  We cancelled and managed to get a full refund...but only after special appeals to the "higher ups" at O,  So now, we are going to try 35 days on the Vista :).  On that voyage we were able to get a reasonable price, but still had to deal with the awful O air situation (we ultimately booked our own Biz Class).  The truth is that O (and all the NCLH brands) do not offer the kind of air deals (Biz and First Class) found with the other major cruise companies.

 

In fact, I have long pointed out that we could cruise on many exotic Seabourn itineraries for less money thann on O.  We have long been puzzled why NCLH does not join both CCL and RCI at offering a decent air booking system/prices.  

 

Hank

[rbtan]

19 hours ago, Harry Lake said:

As Daddy used to say, "I wish I'd been born rich instead of so doggone good looking!" Then we could have our own ship, eh? Keep paying that lottery 🙂

Yeah, my father used to say that. I once replied who tells you, you're so good looking? He replied your mother. I shot back, my mother would never say that. You been cheating or what? The laughter was great.

[Harry Lake]

5 minutes ago, rbtan said:

Yeah, my father used to say that. I once replied who tells you, you're so good looking? He replied your mother. I shot back, my mother would never say that. You been cheating or what? The laughter was great.

And here I thought Daddy made that up 🙂 Thanks for the anecdote 🙂