Bookings...and Perks...and the UK ?

A question for people in the UK...

You must have noticed that our friends 'Across the Pond' talk a lot about this, that and the other perk. Be that OBC, drink packages, free gratuities, dinner packages, upgrades, price drop matching or the ability to cancel and re-book.

Unless I'm missing it, these 'perks' just don't seem available to us. With the exception of the 1st two and then I believe the starting price for Oceanview and above is already hiked up to accommodate for this.

Is there anyway around this so that we can get those same perks ? And if so do we really benefit pricewise ? Have thought of going through .com but I always end up being thrown back onto .co.uk site.

Just curious for the future.

Thanks

Fig.

Although there are (technical) ways you can get to the .com website and (occasionally) you can manage to stay on the .com website if you have been directed there by the .co.uk site for some reason, if the system recognises you are from the UK, you will be shown prices and perks for the UK.

The alternative is to book through a US-based travel agent. Many Cruise Critic members do. Others do not. The two offers are not like for like. If you do book through a US site, you will receive US rather than European (UK post-Brexit) consumer protection. This may or may not concern you.

The other element you need to consider is the £/$ exchange rate. A US$1,000 cruise booked on this day last year would have cost you £675. If the final payment date for that cruise fell today, you would pay £787. If you booked two years in advance (as we usually do) the difference would have been great £634 to £787.

Everyone is different and views risks differently. The choice has to be yours. Just make sure you consider everything, not just perks which US Cruise Critic members claim are not 'free' but built into the price anyway.

Agree with all you say Project_gal, except your last sentence. It's not just US Cruise Critic members who reckon the perks aren't free, all but the most gullible of people around the world will be of that view. Lol.

If people Google cruise vacations, that should throw up a few US based TAs for anyone thinking of going that route.

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A question for people in the UK...

You must have noticed that our friends 'Across the Pond' talk a lot about this, that and the other perk. Be that OBC, drink packages, free gratuities, dinner packages, upgrades, price drop matching or the ability to cancel and re-book.

Unless I'm missing it, these 'perks' just don't seem available to us. With the exception of the 1st two and then I believe the starting price for Oceanview and above is already hiked up to accommodate for this.

Is there anyway around this so that we can get those same perks ? And if so do we really benefit pricewise ? Have thought of going through .com but I always end up being thrown back onto .co.uk site.

Just curious for the future.

Thanks

Fig.

We always use a US based TA after coming to the same conclusion as you, that prices and perks are more favorable in the US than from the U.K. TA's or Royal itself.

The ability to cancel and rebook without penalty is a huge bonus for us, and having price drops applied has saved us a lot of money.

Of course the weak pound means the prices are not as good as they were a couple of years, but they're still cheaper than the U.K. (In our experience) - we wouldn't use anyone else now.

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This has been discussed many, many times on CC. Do a search and you'll find much information about the pros and cons. I'll say what I've said on most of those other threads: if you book in the UK, you have to be happy with your initial price/deal as the chances of you changing without penalty are slim ;).

Do your research and check out the deals on both sides of the pond. If the deal is more favourable over here, then take the chance. You have to be prepared that if there's a huge price drop, then you may lose out. It's a gamble.

We tend to book all of our cruises via our US TA, but one of our current bookings is through the UK because I didn't think the large difference in the initial price would drop below the US price. Unfortunately, it has. The reduction isn't as much for us as some other pax on our sailing because of when we initially booked. So I could always move that booking to another sailing and rebook in the US at the lower rate. As it stands, I'm thinking of moving the reservation anyway due loosely to worldwide political issues ;).

You do really need to consider all of your options prior to booking - you win some, some lose some ;). Btw, I would never book a guarantee on this side of the pond: whatever you are allocated, you have to take - not so if you book in the US.

Agree with all you say Project_gal, except your last sentence. It's not just US Cruise Critic members who reckon the perks aren't free, all but the most gullible of people around the world will be of that view. Lol.

 

The perks are definitely not free since for most bookings you are able to book a cheaper alternative fare (e.g. senior of resident fare) without any perks. However, the perks are often significantly discounted. Earlier this year I made a booking with two perks - Classic Package and $150 OBC - when the difference between the zero perk fare and two perk fare was only $450 for an 11 night cruise. Subtracting out the value of the OBC the effective price of the Classic Package was $300 or $27.27 per day, compared to the standard price of $55 x 1.18 = $64.90; thus about a 58% discount!

 

If people Google cruise vacations, that should throw up a few US based TAs for anyone thinking of going that route.

 

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Happy Cruising

A word of warning for Brits booking via the USA. The consumer protection we enjoy in the UK is not the same if we book via the USA. I opine that this is the main reason we have to pay more.

I have no experience or detailed knowledge of USA consumer protection but reading posts on CC it would appear that one has little recourse if say the itinerary is substantially altered . Indeed one poster claimed that Cel X could leave port , spin around the oceans for the duration and return and passengers would have no legal recourse.

Last year another cruise line were forced to pay compensation to UK passengers when a cruise was cut short by a day after s noro virus outbreak.

Like most things in life - it is a bit of a gamble. Knowing the risks helps though ( IMHO)

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A word of warning for Brits booking via the USA. The consumer protection we enjoy in the UK is not the same if we book via the USA. I opine that this is the main reason we have to pay more.

 

I have no experience or detailed knowledge of USA consumer protection but reading posts on CC it would appear that one has little recourse if say the itinerary is substantially altered . Indeed one poster claimed that Cel X could leave port , spin around the oceans for the duration and return and passengers would have no legal recourse.

 

Last year another cruise line were forced to pay compensation to UK passengers when a cruise was cut short by a day after s noro virus outbreak.

 

Like most things in life - it is a bit of a gamble. Knowing the risks helps though ( IMHO)

 

 

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ATOL/ABTA protection will be useful "when" Celebrity or Royal Caribbean or any other major cruise line goes under and strands thousands of people on some foreign soil (or sand!). Highly unlikely. These are not the same fly-by-night agencies of the past.

When have you heard of a Celebrity ship sailing around and coming back to port?? I have a bridge to sell you. Several years ago I was on a cruise and the captain skirted around three hurricanes. Was anyone I met angry? No! It was an adventure to see where we were going next. Things happen.

As for Noro, if you are quarantined in your cabin or your cruise is cut short you will be compensated, no matter whose flag you fly. It has nothing to do with being from the U.K. and having the almighty ABTA/ATOL.

I recently broke down and booked with a U.K. agency as I thought the deal was fair. In the end, that decision cost me £1100...essentially the cost of another cruise. That included changes in exchange rate in addition to losing out on a much better cabin.

Obviously everyone needs to do their homework and check out your options as there are MANY out there.

ATOL/ABTA protection will be useful "when" Celebrity or Royal Caribbean or any other major cruise line goes under and strands thousands of people on some foreign soil (or sand!). Highly unlikely. These are not the same fly-by-night agencies of the past.

 

When have you heard of a Celebrity ship sailing around and coming back to port?? I have a bridge to sell you. Several years ago I was on a cruise and the captain skirted around three hurricanes. Was anyone I met angry? No! It was an adventure to see where we were going next. Things happen.

 

As for Noro, if you are quarantined in your cabin or your cruise is cut short you will be compensated, no matter whose flag you fly. It has nothing to do with being from the U.K. and having the almighty ABTA/ATOL.

 

I recently broke down and booked with a U.K. agency as I thought the deal was fair. In the end, that decision cost me £1100...essentially the cost of another cruise. That included changes in exchange rate in addition to losing out on a much better cabin.

 

Obviously everyone needs to do their homework and check out your options as there are MANY out there.

I have no desire to influence people one way or the other as far as booking is concerned but the protection we received and those booking in the US do not is more than you state.

If you book in the UK you will receive additional protection when things go wrong. The extreme example is the Icelandic volcano eruption some years back when European holiday-makers were entitled to more assistance and/or compensation that those who booked through the US.

Again, everyone has to make their own choices but let us be fair when explaining what the differences are.

A question for people in the UK...

You must have noticed that our friends 'Across the Pond' talk a lot about this, that and the other perk. Be that OBC, drink packages, free gratuities, dinner packages, upgrades, price drop matching or the ability to cancel and re-book.

Unless I'm missing it, these 'perks' just don't seem available to us. With the exception of the 1st two and then I believe the starting price for Oceanview and above is already hiked up to accommodate for this.

Is there anyway around this so that we can get those same perks ? And if so do we really benefit pricewise ? Have thought of going through .com but I always end up being thrown back onto .co.uk site.

Just curious for the future.

Thanks

Fig.

We've booked through both US and UK travel agents many times. The best piece of advice I can give you is to treat each and every cruise on it's own merits. When it comes to pricing ignore any kind of sweeping statements.

It is true that you have a significant better level of protection if booking in the UK. Our consumer protection laws are much better than anything you get in the US. Some people believe that customer service is better in the US than in the UK. In my experience this really isn't true.

Prices can be cheaper in the UK. This often applies to cruises on Oceania and sometimes Celebrity X. If the cruise is leaving the UK from Southampton, then definitely check the price comparisons as occasional offers from Celebrity UK can be considerably better than anything offered in the US. Such as the very rare GENUINE buy one, get one half price deals occasionally offered.

What I would add is that the better value found in the US isn't as apparent as it once was. The prices have evened up in recent times. That said it's probable that the basic cruise price will be very similar but a US TA is likely to offer better perks. This is more apparent when booking suites though when all 4 perks are offered. The difference in value is less noticeable in lesser class rooms.

And whilst it's true that there are exceptions to every rule, the cost of perks are built into almost every cruise fare. Don't ever believe these things are 'free'.

Again, treat every individual cruise on its own merits and ignore sweeping statements.

The flexibility offered with rebooking at lower prices and cancellations with no loss of deposit is what appeals to us with US TA's. It's all a gamble though as the last four cruises we've booked with Celebrity have all increased in price after we booked due to them selling well which is exactly what we suspected would happen. I'm currently tracking others, a couple I suspect will fall in price. There is a price tracking website that for a small fee will help you track prices and let you know current availability across all classes of rooms. You pay $1 per 'tracking' but once you get the hang of using it you'll soon learn how price movements work on X and soon be able to make informed predictions etc. Sadly I can't name the site on here due to forum rules. And it's a bit fishy... :D

Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

I hate seeing the U.K. traveler being treated less equally than their North American counterpart. From my research and I COULD BE MISTAKEN but it seems that ABTA/ATOL membership costs the U.K. travel agent about £1500 yearly. This number varies slightly with gross sales. So basic math suggests that the extra cost that could be passed on to the consumer is negligible. (1500 cruises sold...£1 extra per cruise)

I just wish I could get a straight answer why the booking T&C's vary so greatly.

We have booked both UK & US. We have always had better value by a long way from the US sites. However, with the exchange rate at the moment, the U.K. seems to be better at the moment. We have booked August through UK travel agent & have just booked Equinox for next August direct with Celebrity. Hoping we don't regret that!, however I'm really pleased with the price and cabin we have chosen. Also, we normally don't book far in advance, so it's lovely to have it to look forward to! I think it's just a matter of research, research, research & then be happy with your price! Happy booking everyone [emoji3]

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A word of warning for Brits booking via the USA. The consumer protection we enjoy in the UK is not the same if we book via the USA. I opine that this is the main reason we have to pay more.

 

I have no experience or detailed knowledge of USA consumer protection but reading posts on CC it would appear that one has little recourse if say the itinerary is substantially altered . Indeed one poster claimed that Cel X could leave port , spin around the oceans for the duration and return and passengers would have no legal recourse.

 

Last year another cruise line were forced to pay compensation to UK passengers when a cruise was cut short by a day after s noro virus outbreak.

 

Like most things in life - it is a bit of a gamble. Knowing the risks helps though ( IMHO)

 

 

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I'm not sure what protections U.K. Customers receive. As a us customer I am well aware that after final payment I am locked in and can't cancel if any changes are made prior to sailing. So say a hurricane causes the ship to change all ports or in fact miss a few ports. My expectation is that I'm def due back my port charges. Outside of that, if celebrity offers anything or if I can negotiate compensation via OBC, great, but I wouldn't be surprised if there was no compensation. I think what you are referring to as if celebrity leaves and does circles is more along the lines of major engine troubles. I have seen cruises (not celebrity) miss almost every port due to engine troubles and sometimes even cut the cruise short to fix them. Again, no guaranteed protections - would hope there would be some compensation but I might have to fight for that on my own. Also have seen reports from people about a late ship charter where they have already booked plane tickets and hotels only to have the cruise canceled out from under them. They are due more since this was a choice the company made. The standard for that seems to be allowing you to move to certain other cruises at the same price or a full refund plus a the cost of a plane ticket change fee and some OBC. Not sure if a U.K. Booker would get more. This makes you whole if you can salvage your vacation - but not if you had the cruise booked as part of a larger trip or if you don't have flexibility to get a different week off of work.

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This issue winds me up no end. And I remain to be convinced that it's the favourable UK consumer laws that are behind this. I believe that the cruise ship companies are doing this because they can. I have read on the RCCL forum (some weeks ago) that they are making attempts to introduce non-refundable deposits on some cruises, and oh the fuss about that! Think sky falling in.

I really do not believe that the Icelandic volcano travel disruption issue which affected the airlines has anything to do with the cruise industry's pricing structure! It was largely an airlines' issue and absolutely the European airlines must provide greater consumer protection than their USA counterparts. But I cannot see what consumer laws would benefit us in the UK (an other Europeans) to such an extent that the cruise companies need to build in such great variations in their treatment of their customers. What, for instance, would prevent them from allowing ALL customers to select a different cabin under the 'guarantee' booking category if you knew a different one was available? Nothing, zero, zilch, I suspect.

As I have become more knowledgeable about such things over my three years of cruising, I have to keep reminding myself of 'caveat emptor' when it comes to making a new booking. For the record, I have used a US travel agent on a couple of occasions and know all about the risks one takes with currency fluctuations, but I see fewer cruises in my future in any case, unless they appear to be really good deals. Having said that, by putting my case nicely, I did get a price-drop match for my upcoming Princess cruise (booked directly in the UK) and that has totally changed the way in which I feel about that company.

The perks I am not so worried about; it's the bottom line of what I am paying for the cruise I am really interested in .... you should see my spreadsheets ;). Rant over.

No one (sorry, generalisation, make that "I") am not saying that the greater UK/European consumer protection necessarily causes any price difference. The protection is just something a cruiser should take into account depending on their circumstance, attitude to risk, etc.

Cruise pricing is much more complex than that and is as much dependant on how much profit the cruise company believes they can make in a certain market as what it costs them to operate in that market. That is why prices from the UK are often better value if you book in the UK where a cruise is more "exotic" to a US customer than a UK one.

My advice is not to worry about cruise company economics (or that of other cruisers). Concentrate on what the cruise and benefits are worth to you and your family.

For us, booking higher-end suites which sell out quickly and have all the "perks" built in, booking as early as possible (usually two years ahead), it makes no difference where we book. These economics will not work for everyone.

Cruise pricing is much more complex than that and is as much dependant on how much profit the cruise company believes they can make in a certain market as what it costs them to operate in that market.

This I definitely agree with.

The pricing does not annoy me as much as the lack of flexibility compared with North American bookings. It is pretty galling to read on here time after time of customers chasing price drops/cabin changes/holding multiple bookings only to know that this is not available to all. The Marriott Corporation (US) do not treat me any differently to their American customers when I book their hotels, which I do frequently, so why should the cruise companies?

By the way, I have typically booked up to 2 years in advance (3 years in advance with a Viking Homeland cruise!) and watched the price of my cruise rise afterwards, so it is not even as those issues I highlighted have affected me personally - well apart from the Princess one, which, as I related in my previous post, I got them to 'put right'. It is about fairness in the way they conduct their business, and I just do not believe that this unequal treatment of customers is fair.

I obviously lied about my rant being over in my previous post :D:D. Now done!

 

My advice is not to worry about cruise company economics (or that of other cruisers). Concentrate on what the cruise and benefits are worth to you and your family.

Agree!

Do a bit of homework then go with what you are happy with....

American bookings. It is pretty galling to read on here time after time of customers chasing price drops/cabin changes/holding multiple bookings only to know that this is not available to all.

I think this is why RCCL are introducing non refundable deposits.

I read recently that Azamara are introducing this too, so maybe it's in the pipeline for Celebrity?

Apparently we have also been able to move a cruise ONCE. I was told this in summer 2015, when we encountered a 'change in circumstances,' so rather than loose my deposit, I could have chosen another cruise.

I once was able to 'upgrade' to a better cabin. I had booked a 2B cabin, in Sept 2012 direct with Celebrity. 10 weeks before our cruise 2A 's became available and were £110 cheaper than ours, so I rang, as I had booked directly with Celebrity. At first, I was told ' for new bookings only,' but when I explained there were no 2A available when we booked, the agent said, I can do better than that.' She put us in a 1A and refunded us £246 p.p (£492 per cabin) - we hadn't paid, but I did immediately in case they changed their minds!

I haven't been able to negotiate an upgrade since!!

 

The pricing does not annoy me as much as the lack of flexibility compared with North American bookings. It is pretty galling to read on here time after time of customers chasing price drops/cabin changes/holding multiple bookings only to know that this is not available to all. The Marriott Corporation (US) do not treat me any differently to their American customers when I book their hotels, which I do frequently, so why should the cruise companies?

 

By the way, I have typically booked up to 2 years in advance (3 years in advance with a Viking Homeland cruise!) and watched the price of my cruise rise afterwards, so it is not even as those issues I highlighted have affected me personally - well apart from the Princess one, which, as I related in my previous post, I got them to 'put right'. It is about fairness in the way they conduct their business, and I just do not believe that this unequal treatment of customers is fair.

 

I obviously lied about my rant being over in my previous post :D:D. Now done!

I completely see your point of view. That said US based travel agents selling Celebrity cruises are available to you. What I concluded was that as far as those placing multiple bookings waiting for the best deal and then cancelling the others, was to play them at their own game and do the same.

It will be interesting to see if RCCL group roll out non refundable deposits fleet wide as this will come as quite a culture shock to many Americans. From my own observations prices have increased in recent times. Particularly in the higher end cabins, yet the ships are sailing at capacity. I've also noticed that there are far fewer last minute deals so regardless of what cruise critic members may feel the management are doing something right from a corporate point of view. Bargains can be had, but they've definitely become harder to find in recent times. Which is a shame!!!

Over the recent years I've met lovely folks from UK, Denmark and other countries from Europe on cruises out of USA and Puerto Rico on RCL and Celebrity who had great deals. This I believe was to entice Europeans to fly to USA ports to cruise. We discussed this and some had balconies, drink packages and flights for less than an inside cabin for USA cruisers. This included exchange rates.

I've contacted RCL and Celebrity separately and they showed me we from USA benefited on deals in Europe cruise ships on the Mediterranean Sea.

Explaining why to fill ships. So I guess it depends on when and which area you're from and where you are going.

Exchange rates have everything to do with it. We use to have far more Canadians on cruise ships out of Boston, Baltimore and Bayonne, NJ USA but now not so much.

I tend to use either a US or UK agent depending on the price/perk on offer. They do vary quite a lot. Interestingly, sometimes the UK agent is cheaper than the US agent even when you take into account the usually larger OBC offered by the US agent. Nice to have a choice between the two before we book though.....

Out of interest, I have never found it cheaper to book on the cruice ship. Yet, I constantly see hordes of people booking there. Am I missing something?

I tend to use either a US or UK agent depending on the price/perk on offer. They do vary quite a lot. Interestingly, sometimes the UK agent is cheaper than the US agent even when you take into account the usually larger OBC offered by the US agent. Nice to have a choice between the two before we book though.....

Out of interest, I have never found it cheaper to book on the cruice ship. Yet, I constantly see hordes of people booking there. Am I missing something?

We've booked a couple of AQ cruises on board. The prices matched the TA's however instead of one perk you could pick two perks (we chose grats and classic package) and were given $250 OBC. We then had the bookings transferred to our TA who gave us an additional OBC of £250 for a total OBC of $500.

The deposit was only $100 per person also.

We booked at $2809 per person for an A2 and used our CC membership for a free upgrade to an A1 aqua class room. There are none available now but before they sold out they were going for $4209.

So yeah, it can make sense to book onboard. I've posted all of the details to show the added value of captains club membership and using a TA. It also in my opinion anyway, shows that when you see a deal you're happy with and an itinerary you want to do it needs to be grabbed there and then.

Right now a C2 concierge class room with just one perk is $3799 for some perspective and a fully loaded all four perk S2 sky suite is $9499. At the time of booking I thought the $5529 for an S2 was on the high priced side!

The ship only has 22% stateroom availability right now and sails next february.

I tend to use either a US or UK agent depending on the price/perk on offer. They do vary quite a lot. Interestingly, sometimes the UK agent is cheaper than the US agent even when you take into account the usually larger OBC offered by the US agent. Nice to have a choice between the two before we book though.....

Out of interest, I have never found it cheaper to book on the cruice ship. Yet, I constantly see hordes of people booking there. Am I missing something?

A lot more depends on how early you book (or have to book) to get the accommodation you want. Celebrity in the UK decided a few years ago that, in the UK market, offering perks too far in advance was counterproductive for them. (I have not been following much recently so am not sure if this is still true.) The problem was the 'norm' in this country to book holidays only about 6-9 months in advance. Offering perks to far in advance was encouraging too many people to book a long way out and skip a year.

Booking with the 'masses' is likely to get you the best offer as that is when the agent/cruise company is trying to attract your business from everyone else.

We book early (two years in advance) and have found that prices rarely drop (for what we are interest in) after that time. Book in the peak booking period and you are likely to find the highest prices and the likelihood/possibility of prices falling later.

Book in the peak booking period and you are likely to find the highest prices and the likelihood/possibility of prices falling later.

There are still plenty of cabins available for 1 year out. We booked Silhouette for 23.06.18 and I was able to pick a 2C ( for a 2 D price ) when we booked last week. There was also a £90 reduction and a Classic beverage package offered (UK)

We mainly book RS....always benefited from booking early. Non left on our March 2018 cruise and a CS is only a couple of hundred less than what we paid for the Royal...