Booking next cruse while on board?

[peterm]

We just got our tickets for our March 30 INFINITY cruise and are already looking into another cruise. Does Celebrity offer any incentive if we book a future cruise on board?

Does anybody know if these incentives would also count for a future Azamara cruise?

Thanks for your input.

Peter

[Pontius Navigator]

I believe there are incentives. On our cruise they were really pushing Asmara cruises. You book on board and you can nominate your TA.

 

They were pushing Asmara but had no colour brochures and ran out of photocopies.

 

Yesterday we got a couple of offers for Asmara West Med, April and October (IIRC) discounted from £5500 to £1450 and also offering up to $800 obc.

 

Looks like someone got their pricing wrong.

[lord of the seas]

I believe there are incentives. On our cruise they were really pushing Asmara cruises. You book on board and you can nominate your TA.

 

They were pushing Asmara but had no colour brochures and ran out of photocopies.

 

Yesterday we got a couple of offers for Asmara West Med, April and October (IIRC) discounted from £5500 to £1450 and also offering up to $800 obc.

 

Looks like someone got their pricing wrong.

 

The product has so far,not achieved the higher standards that Celebrity had hoped for.It is no better and in some areas below the standards of a regular celebrity ship.

[Pontius Navigator]

The product has so far,not achieved the higher standards that Celebrity had hoped for.It is no better and in some areas below the standards of a regular celebrity ship.

 

Got a long way to go then, hasn't it :D

[mjwcruising]

Yes, if you book on board you get an on board credit for the future cruise. I believe it is $100 for up to 10 days, $200 for 11 or more days. However, it is not always wise to wait for your cruise to book another one while on board just to receive the on board credit.

 

Example; DH and I had a cruise booked for Feb 2006 for Panama Canal. In July of 2005 we decided that when we went on our Panama Canal cruise we would book a New England and Canada cruise and get a $200 room credit. We had priced out the cruise in July 2005 and when we went on our Panama Canal cruise in Feb 2006 we went to the "future cruise desk" to book the NE/Canada cruise and found the price had gone up $400 PP since July. We would have to pay $800 more to get a $200 room credit because we waited to book it onboard.

 

Now, we try to book our cruises as soon as they come out to get the cheapest fee. In April 2007 we booked our June 2008 Alaska cruise the first day the bookings were available. Of course, you can only do this if you like to plan well in advance. We usually get a CC class and prices don't usually go down. However, if you do book early and notice the price goes down, just contact your TA and Celebrity will give you the lower rate. My son and his girlfriend booked the Alaska 2008 cruise also in an inside room and the price has gone down, he contacted the TA and Celebrity has given them the lower rate.

[Galaxy2004]

Actually, the on board credit program has changed. We were on the Summit in January and they now have the new "Celebrity Passages" program. Now you can book a future cruise with a $100 deposit and get shipboard credits ranging from $50 to $300 per stateroom without having to commit to a ship or sailing. The value of the shipboard credits depends on the cruise fare (not the length of the cruise). We "purchased" two bookings to be used at any time in the future. They do not expire. I think they can be used on Azamara, but not on RCCL. You can book on board for the RCCL cruise but it is a different program. I think there's still a lot of confusion about these changes so be sure to check Celebrity's website or with your travel agent.

[BostonRU]

Yes, if you book on board you get an on board credit for the future cruise. I believe it is $100 for up to 10 days, $200 for 11 or more days. However, it is not always wise to wait for your cruise to book another one while on board just to receive the on board credit.

 

Example; DH and I had a cruise booked for Feb 2006 for Panama Canal. In July of 2005 we decided that when we went on our Panama Canal cruise we would book a New England and Canada cruise and get a $200 room credit. We had priced out the cruise in July 2005 and when we went on our Panama Canal cruise in Feb 2006 we went to the "future cruise desk" to book the NE/Canada cruise and found the price had gone up $400 PP since July. We would have to pay $800 more to get a $200 room credit because we waited to book it onboard.

 

Now, we try to book our cruises as soon as they come out to get the cheapest fee. In April 2007 we booked our June 2008 Alaska cruise the first day the bookings were available. Of course, you can only do this if you like to plan well in advance. We usually get a CC class and prices don't usually go down. However, if you do book early and notice the price goes down, just contact your TA and Celebrity will give you the lower rate. My son and his girlfriend booked the Alaska 2008 cruise also in an inside room and the price has gone down, he contacted the TA and Celebrity has given them the lower rate.

 

Note that if the price goes down, some TAs will hit you with a change fee and a reduction in their on-board credit to get the lower rate. Celebrity has already dropped their CC rate three times since September 2007 for an April 2008 cruise, for a total rate reduction of over 20%.

[peterm]

Thank you all for your answers - we will be on the Infinity end of March 2008 and plan a cruise on Azamara's Jouney for end of February 2009. It seems that the new program is similar to Princess' pre-booking.

Peter