Med cruises - why so expensive??

[DrivesLikeMario]

Greetings from Northern California...

I feel your airfare pain...

last month we flew United and purchased the Economy Plus upgrade for only a couple of hundred dollars for 2 people (total) I know it's not business class..but it's a definate step up than Economy and A LOT cheaper!

 

Yeah, fellow Californian, I've thought about doing that too. I don't think DH would go with that though. :( Can't really blame him when the flights are 15-19 hrs. one way.

[rdsqrl]

. . . Air is difficult too because you are always going in one port and out of another!!

 

This is a misconception I see all the time. The fact is, there's usually no significant difference to fly into one European city and out of another, assuming the same airline in both directions and that the roundtrip fares to each are about the same.

 

The cruise prices aren't bad at all. In fact, almost all of them have dropped in price from when they originally opened up for booking.

 

What makes it costly for us is airfare from Southern California to Europe!! We're looking at an average of $1500 per person for Economy Class to Europe for a one week cruise that cost much less than that per person. Add to that a DH who refuses to fly to Europe in anything less than Bus. Class and we're easily talking $3500-$4000 per person for air alone. :eek:

 

I envy those that live on the East Coast and can fly to Europe so much cheaper.

Our business class fares from the East Coast aren't that much lower than what you quoted, sad to say. BA was having a two-for-one business-class special -- that may be gone now but you should check it out; it would be worth buying a separate ticket to get to Washington to take advantage of that kind of deal!

[mickeysgal]

You are right, the pricing has been phenomenal this year. We had no plans to do anything big this year but we saw the pricing for the Med starting around $999 and we couldn't resist. Funny thing is that our 7-nt Alaska cruise is costing us more than our 12-nt Med cruise next year. Hopefully the airfare will stay in the $600 range next year.

 

We thought the same thing. The prices were fantastic this year and we couldn't resist. Now I'm looking at prices for next year for a 12 night Ruby itinerary and holy smokes, they're high.

 

I've got my fingers crossed that over a year away, the prices may just be set a bit too high and may be coming down, because if they don't we can't justify the cost.

[Pam in CA]

Our business class fares from the East Coast aren't that much lower than what you quoted, sad to say. BA was having a two-for-one business-class special -- that may be gone now but you should check it out; it would be worth buying a separate ticket to get to Washington to take advantage of that kind of deal!

This is so true. When I priced a Biz Class ticket for my daughter from Boston to LHR, it was MORE than my ticket from LAX to LHR. Go figure. :(

[Murphey]

While I agree, the last minute Euro cruises are priced well this year...many of us have to plan ahead and are looking for next year. Wish we could go this year....

[Poulsbo Cruisers]

While I agree, the last minute Euro cruises are priced well this year...many of us have to plan ahead and are looking for next year. Wish we could go this year....

 

If you want to go, go ahead and book it. The fares may very well come down. We booked our upcoming cruise back in March 2008. We were going to cancel it because of the cost, but the price kept coming down until it was 1/2 the fare originally booked. Princess often starts the prices up high. If the economy doesn't make a drastic about face, chances are they will reduce the fares. You can always cancel and get your deposit back if the fares do not come down.

[Atomica]

Believe it or not, the Med is actually one of the more reasonably-priced destinations in Europe. There are some 12 and 14-day Med cruises that are significantly cheaper than the Northern Europe cruise we have booked...but we want to go to northern Europe...:)

 

Some other things to consider:

 

-Europe is a destination most people book early. We booked our upcoming cruise in May 2008 - 14 months ahead of time, so we could have more time to pay for it. We got cabins we wanted at a price we were comfortable with. During that time, the price went down considerably and we saved a good deal of money, and now it's back where it was last May.

 

-Flights: there's more than one way to get to Europe. If money, not time, is more important, flights that route you through several cities are usually far cheaper than a direct flight. Sure, they might put you through NY and Frankfurt to get to Venice, but if it saves you $1000, well...

 

For example: for us to go to London, we chose Air Canada from Vancouver. Now, for $400pp less, we could go on Continental from here to Houston, then Houston to LHR. More time? You betcha. Four hours to Houston, 10 hours from Houston to LHR. In our case, time was more important than $$.

 

Europe is a destination that can be very expensive, but it is a destination that in my opinion is worth every single cent.

[BruceMuzz]

Why are Mediterranean Cruises more expensive?

 

1. They are generally longer.

 

2. Most of the passengers pay for their cruise and onboard amenities in US Dollars, which are not worth very much anymore.

 

3. The Cruise Line has to pay for shore excursions, fuel, port charges, tug boats, water, port agents, food, flights out, stevedores, inspections, port security, and many other things - in Euros, which are expensive to buy with the US Dollars paid to the cruise line by most of the passengers.

[junglejane]

If you want to go, go ahead and book it. The fares may very well come down. We booked our upcoming cruise back in March 2008. We were going to cancel it because of the cost, but the price kept coming down until it was 1/2 the fare originally booked. Princess often starts the prices up high. If the economy doesn't make a drastic about face, chances are they will reduce the fares. You can always cancel and get your deposit back if the fares do not come down.

 

This is exactly what happened to us with our upcoming July 19 British Isles cruise. We booked it in March 2008. We thought about cancelling as the economy started to go sour. But then the fare started coming down and at one point actually hit 1/2 of the original booking fare. We were able to get the price drop. We also figured out what flight we wanted and watched the airfare for months. When the fare for our flight hit a certain price, we bought it. We feel we've gotten a great deal this year.

 

You certainly can't count on the price going down that drastically but I think it's reasonable to think that the fare will go down somewhat. :)

[mickeysgal]

This is exactly what happened to us with our upcoming July 19 British Isles cruise. We booked it in March 2008. We thought about cancelling as the economy started to go sour. But then the fare started coming down and at one point actually hit 1/2 of the original booking fare. We were able to get the price drop. We also figured out what flight we wanted and watched the airfare for months. When the fare for our flight hit a certain price, we bought it. We feel we've gotten a great deal this year.

 

You certainly can't count on the price going down that drastically but I think it's reasonable to think that the fare will go down somewhat. :)

 

I'm glad to hear you and others say this. We're looking at a 2010 Ruby itinerary and to me, it's very high at the moment. I may book just to secure the room I want, but I am hoping that these are prices that may come down out of the stratosphere.

 

Is this normal for Princess to have published rates so high a year or so out? This would be our first Princess cruise (have sailed four other lines) and I don't know what they typically do.

[tiyana4]

We were looking at Princess for our Med cruise too, but found that it was double the cost for the exact same itinerary (even the overnight in Alexandria). I love Princess but not enough to pay twice as much. Add to the fact that we have already received a very nice price drop on NCL and that it probably where we will stay.

[j!m]

we think cruising is very reasonably priced

 

for one amount (whatever your budget) you have a room, transportation and, all the food you wish to eat, not to mention entertainment and the opportunity to visit several places

 

the convenience of unpacking only once while visiting several countries is an added plus

 

without cruising we would never have seen half the places we have seen

 

my sole criticism might be that many of the port stops are too short

[mascara]

I think the air fare should be included.

 

You really think so? What if you're already there and just want a cruise? Or more importantly, have you ever really seen an included airfare that is so much better than what you could book on your own? I've seen about the same and higher, nothing that made me say -wow, I need to book that! With the myriad gateways, it'd be a nightmare to try to price that all in.

 

A good travel agent should be able to do both for you and put the package together for you. Heck, I'm not even a travel agent and I can put a package together. Plus, you get to decide your flights, airline, days you travel, etc.

[lel5344]

Why are Mediterranean Cruises more expensive?

 

1. They are generally longer.

 

2. Most of the passengers pay for their cruise and onboard amenities in US Dollars, which are not worth very much anymore.

 

3. The Cruise Line has to pay for shore excursions, fuel, port charges, tug boats, water, port agents, food, flights out, stevedores, inspections, port security, and many other things - in Euros, which are expensive to buy with the US Dollars paid to the cruise line by most of the passengers.

 

Med cruises tend to be extremely port intensive. And when you're in port, you're not creating revenue aboard the ship: you're not gambling, you're not playing bingo, you're not consuming alcohol, you're not going to the spa, you're not buying "stuff" in the ship's boutiques. So the necessary revenue has to come from increased fares...

 

One of the reasons Transatlantic (and repo cruises) are relative bargains is because the ship has a captive audience.

[hubofhockey]

I think the air fare should be included.

 

Apart of it, with american cruise lines (RCI, carnival, NCL, Princes ...) should be arround 10-14 days. So it must be more expensive than standar 7 nights' cruises ...

 

The med cruises are great but I do prefer baltic ones.

 

The premium lines are now including air, among other things, making their products very price competitive with mass market lines like Princess. It is something to consider.

[caber]

Wow! I wish the prices in the UK were as cheap as that! We are doing a 12 day med in August and we are paying over £2,000 pp (yes, that is POUNDS not dollars!) for a lower category cabin (BD) :eek: I know Aug is an expensive time of year (didn't have much choice due to DH's work), but if you consider that the med it is much nearer to UK, I think you guys over the Atlantic are blessed :)

Maybe August is different but they are advertising Med cruises in July for great prices. It pays to wait, this year anyway.

 

We try not to pay more than £100 per night including air fare. Our next cruise was much more expensive for a lesser cabin too. We are doing Canada, New England.

[Wormy53]

I'm glad to hear you and others say this. We're looking at a 2010 Ruby itinerary and to me, it's very high at the moment. I may book just to secure the room I want, but I am hoping that these are prices that may come down out of the stratosphere.

 

Is this normal for Princess to have published rates so high a year or so out? This would be our first Princess cruise (have sailed four other lines) and I don't know what they typically do.

 

I am hoping the same thing. I was looking at prices for British Isles or Egypt & Aegean next year, and balconies are starting at $3140 and $2790. That's quite a bit more than people are paying this year. Guess we'll just wait and see. Waited and got a good deal on Alaska this year. Add flights and excursions and some shopping - you've gone thru 10 grand easy!!

[ANYPORT]

Wow! I wish the prices in the UK were as cheap as that! We are doing a 12 day med in August and we are paying over £2,000 pp (yes, that is POUNDS not dollars!) for a lower category cabin (BD) :eek: I know Aug is an expensive time of year (didn't have much choice due to DH's work), but if you consider that the med it is much nearer to UK, I think you guys over the Atlantic are blessed :)

 

I share your pain! As first timers we booked a BA cat. 14 months ago for this July on Ruby. Hadn’t discovered this wonderful site then. We’ve paid almost £6000:eek: Was most upset to discover US guests getting 2 for 1 deals & fantastic upgrades (cat. ff to BA) for the same cruise. Bitter pill, however you live and learn and move on…… maybe we’ll get a visit from the upgrade fairy :p

[dmackay46]

I share your pain! As first timers we booked a BA cat. 14 months ago for this July on Ruby. Hadn’t discovered this wonderful site then. We’ve paid almost £6000:eek: Was most upset to discover US guests getting 2 for 1 deals & fantastic upgrades (cat. ff to BA) for the same cruise. Bitter pill, however you live and learn and move on…… maybe we’ll get a visit from the upgrade fairy :p

 

First timers with Princess too. We are booked on the Ruby soon and paid £2,200 each for double occupancy BD cabins (2). We booked in Oct 08 and have since tried to get an upgrade - no chance. Princess want an extra $12,000 in total to upgrade the 2 cabins to AD minisuites and $4.500 to upgrade to balcony on Caribe deck.

So, as said, the upgrade fairy works the other side of the pond at the moment!