Why are oceanias excursions most expensive

Why are Oceanias cruises more costly than even Silversea or Crystal or Yachts of Seaborn?

Is it based on the law of supply and demand?

It appears that more passengers sailing on Oceania opt for PRIVATE shore excursions rather than paying for sometimes over !00% over the ships for GROUP excursions..than on other cruises!

One would believe that Frank Del Rio would be made aware of this and provide more cost competitive ship cruises!

One more question...why is it that one passenger sailing on same cruise get a variety of perks [i.e. paid gratuities, OBC, free intenet, etc] while other passengers booking the same cruise at relatively the same time period [ so its not based on occupancy load] gets no perks...other than possibly a reduced deposit required to hold reservation.. [ give me a break ..this is not a perk :rolleyes:!]

Is it up to the individual TA or his/her agency. I deal with a TA who does much business with Oceania..he shares that it is the cruise company who determines what perks are given and when....so then why does one get and anoher doesn't?? Something not right here....:mad:

Eager to hear your thoughts!

Thanks

One more question...why is it that one passenger sailing on same cruise get a variety of perks [i.e. paid gratuities, OBC, free intenet, etc] while other passengers booking the same cruise at relatively the same time period [ so its not based on occupancy load] gets no perks...other than possibly a reduced deposit required to hold reservation.. [ give me a break ..this is not a perk :rolleyes:!]

Thanks

If Oceania is offering the perks as part of a promotion & 2 different people book in the time frame of the promotion then both should get deals

Some people get PPG or OBC's from their TA so you have to know where the perks come from

My big complaint is we usually book 18mths in advance & lately the line is offering better perks to those booking 8 mths out

We were fortunate that my TA go the extra perks for us but she should not have to go to the Cruise line and ask for them, others were not so lucky

If they add perks before Final payment give them to all or wait until after final payment then you can make your loyal passengers angry :(

Sorry to add my rant to your question

Lyn

We must book the day the itineraries are listed as we want OS (not to particular which one) but sometimes if you wait a little later you get a better deal. We have sucked it up as we want one of the three, and preferably Pritham (first) as a butler, or Sandeep (second) for a butler. We don't ask for unpacking or repacking. We don't ask for breakfast in the OS, we MAYBE ask for a small party (6)...not a big deal. We return most of the alcohol. I think we should get a break???

The fact that Oceania serves a " deep Pocket" sector of the traveling public who have the means spend at higher levels.

So, you charge what the traffic will bear..............:cool:

I agree with Dan.

If the price model O uses for its excursions didn't work, they wouldn't use it.

It appears that more passengers sailing on Oceania opt for PRIVATE shore excursions rather than paying for sometimes over !00% over the ships for GROUP excursions..than on other cruises!

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It may appear this way -- from reading Cruise Critic. But go to the lounge where tours are being dispatched on any morning of your cruise - and you will see many, many, folks who utilize the ship's tours. While we use private tours (probably one private to every five ship's tours) - there are reasons we indulge in this extravagance (some prefer "wastefulness," I know) -- convenience, ease of refund in case of adversity, ship generally waits if there is a delay, etc, etc.

 

But don't assume that a majority use the private tours. It is pretty clear that lots of O cruisers are willing to pay the premium. Otherwise the Shore Ex Department would be out of business!

It may look like most passengers opt for private tours based upon comments at Cruise Critic, but don't forget that the vast majority of passengers on any one cruise do not know that Cruise Critic exists ... or at least they don't participate in it.

But even among CC-ers, a lot of us *do* use ship's tours. We personally tend to do more private than ship's tours, but depending on where we are when (and if we have a ton of OBC which has very occasionally happened), we'll do a ship's tour.

Also, when you book relatively late in the process it becomes much easier to use ship's tours. I set up a few tours about a year ago for our May cruise. Many people who have booked this cruise in the past couple of months or so are seeking space on private tours -- which rarely exists unless someone has had to cancel the cruise at the last minute.

Mura

I think we overplanners and researchers are in the minority on many of the cruises. When I talk with people, many have never heard of doing private tours or have no idea how to plan them, or don't want to commit so early.

Many passengers seem to be part of groups who just go with the flow and sign up for ship tours with their friends.

I am on B2B cruises this summer, and my roll call is minimal.

On most of our cruises many, many people took ships tours. We do not because we would rather do our own thing but those who do can easily not take them if they are too expensive. They can also go on Regent where they are included or another line where they are much cheaper. To each his own!

The fact that Oceania serves a " deep Pocket" sector of the traveling public who have the means spend at higher levels.

So, you charge what the traffic will bear..............:cool:

Dan,

I hate to disagree with you again but I think the sector using Crystal, Silversea and Seaboutn has at least the same "deep pockets" ( if not deeper) than those using Oceania, yet those cruise lines have cheaper excursions.

I think Oceania's budget for food is larger than for those other lines (I am guessing here) because their emphasis is on food (and it is the best at sea, IMO). They have to make up the money somewhere and excursions is one of the places to do this.

Just a guess - not a fact.

Oceania chargers more for all non included items than other lines. We were on a trip where a NCL ship was with us. Same shore trip 69$ for NCL, 139$ for us. I am sure NCL was making money. Internet on Oceania, .99$ per minute with a 5$ set up charge, Crystal .75$ per minute period. Airport transfer Oneania 69pp$, Celiberty 29$pp. Per and post hotel, 2x what you can book for. Spar prices, 2x other lines, drink prices 20 to 30% higher. It is part of their business plan, take it or move on.

They use the extra money to subsidize all those slick mailings we seem to get on a daily basis! ;)

They use the extra money to subsidize all those slick mailings we seem to get on a daily basis! ;)

Must be :D

Why are Oceanias cruises more costly than even Silversea or Crystal or Yachts of Seaborn?

Is it based on the law of supply and demand?

Yes

It has been a couple of years since we have sailed with them, but I believe that Crystal generally prices their excursions lower than Oceania. In addition, Crystal makes the tours a slightly more "premium" experience by limiting the size of each group, eg. only about 35 people would be assigned to a bus that would ordinarily have 50 for a tour. On the other hand, Oceania tour groups are generally filled to the same capacity as, for example, a Celebrity or Princess tour...and at a significantly higher price.

I beg to differ. We have never been on a completely full bus on an O tour. Groups are general under 35 people. Speaking only from my experience of course.

We have done a few Oceania tours & the only time the bus was close to full was in Murmansk .....it was the only way to see that port not many private guides there

Other times the bus was not full

People must take the shorex as there are always lots of buses there waiting even in the Caribbean where it is much easier to DIY but still people take the ship's tours

Lyn

We're headed to Alaska on Regatta for the first time this June. Because there is so much else to see in the world, this trip is a "sampler" - if there's something that strikes our fancy in just the right way, we'd return on our own for an extended stay (without cruise ship). That said, we'll be doing a well researched excursion in each port to get the most out of our "sampling" trip.

I've compared prices for what my research found to be the best excursions (e.g., Misty Fjords seaplane or Helicopter out of Juneau) and found Oceania's "world your way" (25% off four or more excursions) to price out at about 10-15% higher than private tours recommended by folks on CC (whose expectations and recommendations may or may not be suited to our tastes - kind of like restaurant recommendations). For that extra 10%, I've booked everything online with confirmation by phone. And I have someone on board Regatta responsible for my relationship to the tour operators. As I said earlier in this note, if something really grabs us, we'll return in the future and then I'd look at private tours.

So, bottom line, IMHO: if it's your first trip to a new region with multiple draws on your interests, a cruise - including its own excursions - is the least troublesome (albeit a few dollars more) way to sample that part of the world. .

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Flatbush Flyer with your positive attitude you will have a wonderful time on Oceania and even their tours. Enjoy, enjoy.

I believe that it may be an incorrect assumption that all the people on O tours are paying the list price for those tours. We know that certain TA's can provide their customers savings/discounts. From casual conversations will fellow passenger from large groups, i.e. Alumni cuises, it appears that the tour operators are able to negotiate packages, which include, or include at greatly reduced rates, many of the extras O offers. Besides the obvious PPGs and internet, things such as air deviations, pre and post hotel rates, airport pick-up and delivery, shore tours, and drinks package costs all appear to be negotiable by these larger tour organizers. When you see those 120 Texas Aggies pile out to the O tour buses, you don't have a clue of what they are paying for those tours. ;)

One should book the cruises and other offerings from the lines,as meet heir needs, and not become obsessed with what others are/may be paying, imo.

My wife and I have done 6 cruises on Oceania--and done about 12 on Seabourn and 8 on Silversea. We have enjoyed our Oceania Cruises--however, there weak spot is their shore excursions. We generally do private tours with other guests or arrange outside companies to take us on tour. For example in Natal, Brazil the thing to do is the dune buggy ride on the enormous sand dunes that run up the coast to Fortaleza. Oceania wanted approximately $350 per person (2 years ago--Rio to Barcelona cruise). We had been there before on Seabourn--so I looked up a company on the internet and we booked a ride for $60 per person---All 6 of us had a great time.

Oceania has great itineraries, excellent food, etc. but the shoes excursions are overpriced.

Oceania has great itineraries, excellent food, etc. but the shoes excursions are overpriced.

Yes, we all know this and are in agreement with you about O's shorex being overpriced.

OP's question was why are they so overpriced. Any ideas?

Paulchili;

Obviously O is attepting to run its excursions as a profit center. However, as I pointed out, we don't know what all those taking the tours are actually paying or who may be covering the costs of those shortfalls.

I beg to differ. We have never been on a completely full bus on an O tour. Groups are general under 35 people. Speaking only from my experience of course.

I've never been on an O tour with more than about 35 people. They don't cram them full like some other lines.

In general, I think O's excursions have been coming down in price the last few years, at least on the cruises we've been on (European and Caribbean, Marina). I occasionally look at Princess' web site (just for ideas on places to go; not because I like Princess) and their prices aren't much lower than O's. I'm only guessing here, but I'm wondering if Princess, with its huge ships and larger number of customers, might be able to negotiate cheaper excursions due to size (like Costco) but who knows? In any case, I'm just happy that I have a lot of onboard credit coming my way on my next cruise - thankyou Oceania (past pax program) and TA!

Smaller cruise line + smaller ships = less discount from excursion suppliers, therefore larger price

Basic economies of scale.