jaywoods678

I absolutely agree. We do all kinds of travel, and there have certainly been declines everywhere, nothing to the level of the cruise line, and I'm referring to all cruise lines from the mainstream lines like Royal, to the lines like Celebrity and Holland America, and to the upper premium lines like Oceania. We are done, at least for a while.

I personally will never get off at another Jamaica port ever again. The pushy aggressive vendors are terrifying. We even had some get in our face and threaten us if we don't buy. Again, just my opinion, but I would never get off in Jamaica. If my cruise stops there, we just stay onboard.

We were on that cruise and received our bronze ones. No special ceremony at all. It was just in our mailbox. I also assume it's just another one of many HAL cuts.

I agree. To me booking a guarantee cabin is just now worth the risk, even if there is substantial savings. But the main reason we don't book them is because we are very picky with cabin selection. We like a quiet room with little motion, so for us that is low and mid-ship with cabins above and below. We make sure we are not above or below bars, lounges, entertainment venues, restaurants, lido decks, etc.

That's great news! Thank you.

I've heard they've toned it down a bit. When it first started, it was this strange cringe-worthy performance art. That's when we stopped going on Celebrity. It was clear to us the Edge Class was geared towards suites and millennials.

I've traveled most all cruise lines - from budget to semi luxury, and actually on a per diem basis Disney is more expensive than the premium lines and sometimes as much or more than the semi luxury lines. I love Disney Cruises, but it is completely ridiculous.

And Disney enforces it MUCH better. It's not perfect, but they enforce it much better than the other lines. Some of the lines don't even enforce it at all.

Oceania.

I agree. I don't know where he got a burger on HAL, but the Dive In burgers are some of the best as sea, if not the best. And not just my opinion, it is widely known.

I completely agree. Also, I think it's a combination of both. The cruise lines are trying to save money by moving overseas, but also they are having a hard time finding staff here in the US.

I just heard Holland America started doing it too. 😔

And they don't listen and will just continue repeating the script over and over. It's very frustrating.

I just heard that Celebrity has too. 😔

I switched to Holland America long time ago. We also love Oceania, Disney, and Princess. We're even starting to look at Carnival, especially their new ship Mardi Gras. There are good choices on the menu, and they have lots of different food venues, many of which do not have an upcharge.

It's a few things. Some districts have year-round schools with multiple breaks throughout the year, a lot of kids are home schooled now, different regions of the country have week-long breaks like Spring break but also a week for fall (Fall break) and a week for winter (Winter break), etc. Mostly any given week some school district in the country somewhere has a school week off. But also as you mentioned, parents have no qualms about pulling kids out of school these days, usually for selfish reasons like because it's cheaper that time of year, etc. I've been on several cruises during school year that had many many kids, and even on 2 week cruises. I've asked some of the parents, and they said they pulled them out of school. I personally think it's irresponsible, but who am I to judge I guess.

I agree with this 100%. Families and first timers spend more onboard, and they know that's really the only way to make more money.

I completely agree. Although both Holland America and Princess have also gone downhill, not nearly as much as Celebrity, and at least with them you can still get a decent price.

I completely agree with this. You basically wrote down my thoughts exactly. And I believe this is a good theory. I'll elaborate. The large mainstream lines have economies of scale. They may have lower fares but have lots of first timers and families. These customers spend onboard. They spend on alcohol, excursions, photos, souvenirs, art auctions, spa services, etc. They also have a lot more cabins filled with four people. All of this obviously makes them more money. On the other end, the true luxury lines make more money simply because of the high fares. Then you have the lonely premium lines in the middle - HAL, Celebrity, and Princess. From my own personal experience and from others, these are the lines making the most cuts. Yes, all lines are making some cuts, even the upper premium lines like Oceania but NOTHING like the others. In fact, even on mainstream line Carnival, on their newest ships, they've actually eliminated extra charge fees for many of their specialty restaurants, so not only are they not cutting as much, they are actually giving more. They are still providing free lobster on formal night whereas their premium brand Holland America is not. Go figure. For all of us experienced cruisers who prefer the aforementioned premium lines, we've sailed a lot. We are most likely not purchasing photos, we are probably booking our own private excursions, I can't remember when I've last been to a spa onboard, and we don't spend money in the shops. So the lines don't know what to do with us or ways to squeeze more money out of us. They know we are not going to fall for all the gimmicks, so they are simply just going to cut cut cut until they can't cut anymore. At this point, these lines have already cut so much that they are pretty much indistinguishable from their mainstream counterparts. I think they would love to get rid of this category and just roll these lines in with the mainstream ones and just consider these lines the more "adult focused" versions. For me, there is really no reason to pay more to sail with the premium lines. I will just start sailing the mainstream lines and, if I want a better experience, will from time to time sail on a line like Oceania.

Depending on itinerary and time of year, we've been able to book Oceania for only slightly more, and in one case even less, than Celebrity on a per diem basis. And Oceania is a true premium line. I can no longer justify the cost of Celebrity especially considering all the cuts. I've even heard some people say they've been able to book the true luxury lines like Silver Sea, Seabourn, and Regent for only slightly more.

Me too! I noticed you're from Peachtree City, GA. Southerner like me. I was born in Georgia and live in Florida, and we LOVE our sweet tea. 🙂

I completely agree with you. I just don't understand all the excuses. I am a huge fan of Holland America, but I will NEVER make excuses for them. They have also gone way downhill (maybe not quite as much as Celebrity, but that is subjective), and I was furious at them when they started trying to charge $10 for an extra entree in the MDR. The optics are bad, and it cheapens the brand. This was even a couple of years before the pandemic. Then a couple of years ago they started NOT giving free lobster on formal night. Even the budget lines like Carnival still do. Both HAL and Celebrity claim to be on the premium end of the mainstream lines, and I'm tired of all the cuts. Just raise the price. Nothing they're doing now is premium, anything but. Getting back to my point, I never defended them for this, even some of the other cuts that did not affect me. It downgrades the product and is completely unnecessary. There is very little distinction now from the "premium" lines and the mainstream lines. A few years ago there was a big distinction. I have no problem calling out my favorite lines, but some on here just refuse to no matter what. I just can't understand it. I can't understand the blind loyalty.

Same here. Completely agree. We're in St. Augustine so only about an hour and 45 minutes away versus 4 hours to FLL.

We love this. We are in St. Augustine and are only about an hour and 45 minutes away. Now we wish that Holland America would also position a ship there.

Me as well. This is great. We are in St. Augustine - just about an hour and 45 minutes away.