GS/JS Pricing Question

We tend to try and cruise (Typically out of Galveston) about 1-2 times a year. We took a little break since we recently had a new baby. I wanted to go ahead and try and start getting some on the books again, but am noticing first checking the Liberty (which tended to be one of the cheapest in the past) and other ports and noticed it's still typical to see an Int/OV for $400-500PP Balcony for $800PP, but I'm not seeing the JS for $900-1000PP or GS for $1100-1200PP all in that I used to see. I of course expect some inflation, but it seems the gap between the regular rooms and suites has grown pretty dramatically. The cheapest price I could find for a GS going all the way into 2020 was $1,500PP with our Diamond discount. This required a NON-refundable $1,000 deposit (which had also always been 100% refundable in the past) I'm not sure if this is an RCCL or travel agent rule.

Is this a permanent re-positioning of the suite pricing by RCCL or are there just not any great deals right now and I should wait it out?

It does seem that suites pricing has gone up. Seems just basic supply and demand. If ships are selling out quickly it just seems prices would increase. Keep in mind if people stopped cruising prices would go back down. Not that people have shown any sign of stopping.

As for the non refundable deposit. That is a RCI policy they rolled out about 6 months ago.

Hope this helps.

Happy cruising

And remember, JS's don't get the "suite perks" that the GS's and above get....

We tend to try and cruise (Typically out of Galveston) about 1-2 times a year. We took a little break since we recently had a new baby. I wanted to go ahead and try and start getting some on the books again, but am noticing first checking the Liberty (which tended to be one of the cheapest in the past) and other ports and noticed it's still typical to see an Int/OV for $400-500PP Balcony for $800PP, but I'm not seeing the JS for $900-1000PP or GS for $1100-1200PP all in that I used to see. I of course expect some inflation, but it seems the gap between the regular rooms and suites has grown pretty dramatically. The cheapest price I could find for a GS going all the way into 2020 was $1,500PP with our Diamond discount. This required a NON-refundable $1,000 deposit (which had also always been 100% refundable in the past) I'm not sure if this is an RCCL or travel agent rule.

 

Is this a permanent re-positioning of the suite pricing by RCCL or are there just not any great deals right now and I should wait it out?

Suite price has gone up, no idea if it's permanent. All suites of category GS and better have non-refundable deposits now.

Yes JS just feels a little more like a hotel room instead of a cave :) It also helps with the double points as we are about 4 JS/GS 7 days from D+. Diamond feels like it has diluted slightly the benefits of the GS as well. We could always go back to balconies, but you do get used to that extra room!!

Is their an FAQ or anything on the deposit? On the smaller rooms it's small and forgettable, but for suites $1,000 is a large percentage of the price. We typically book 18-24 months in advance and a work change or something could cause us to need to change dates or cancel one although this is rare and not abused.

Lastly, is booking on board worth it anymore? We are cruising in 4 weeks so if I identified at least a decent price is the on-board worth the trouble anymore?

The prices have generally been rising over the last few years, especially in the suite category. I think with the economy doing well, those cabins sell, so supply and demand kicks in.

I typically do not book on board any more. I just book as soon as the route opens. The prices are as good as they'll get and so is the room selection.

The non-refundable deposit is not all lost.

Only $100 is lost if you change ship or sailing date. The remainder is returned as a future cruise credit. I have heard that you must obligate that FCC within 1 year of cancelling.

We are booked on Liberty out of Galveston in August. There are 4 of us traveling and were all booked in a JS with $375 OBC for $4844. This weekend’s sale prices made such a difference that we were able to rebook for 2 of us in a JS, 2 in an inside across the hall, ended up getting an additional $25 OBC (for a total of $400), and our price dropped $100 overall.

We paid about 1600 each for grand suites the last 2 April’s , never saw it around 1200

Thanks for all the help. It looks like since there's non-refundable deposits anyway booking on board seems like a no-brainer for a GS. Is there any trickery here? It looks like we will get $300 from RCCL and another $250 from travel agent once the booking is transferred. Seems to make the all in cost much more reasonable. Were any of the July-17 changes negative I'm not seeing?

Just wondering--if you do a suite guarantee is the deposit refundable? So if you get a GS when cabins are assigned, does your deposit become nonrefundable? Never have done a guarantee since I like to know my cabin location.