Allure 9-day Holiday cruise too expensive

[cruiserintampa]

I was hoping to book the cruise on the Allure, departing on December 26 from Fort Lauderdale, but the cost is prohibitive, specially when I compare with other cruise lines. What do others think about the cost for this cruise with prices starting at $2,049 per person for an inside cabin.... ridiculous!

[Cruising89143]

It's not ridiculous if they can fill the ship at those prices. You cannot compare Oasis or Allure with other ships or cruise lines. It's apples to oranges. If you feel that it's too expensive then find an alternate ship or cruise line that more suits your needs and budget.

[worldspan]

Wait till everyone has made their final payments 70 days out of sailing, then you or your agent should monitor the rates from that time. They will surely drop. RCCI takes its passengers to the "Cleaners" on advance bookings for the holidays

 

Worldspan

[above sea level cruiser]

I was hoping to book the cruise on the Allure, departing on December 26 from Fort Lauderdale, but the cost is prohibitive, specially when I compare with other cruise lines. What do others think about the cost for this cruise with prices starting at $2,049 per person for an inside cabin.... ridiculous!

 

 

I agree....two grand is a bit much for a nine day....I don't care which ship/line you are on...it's about $215.00 PP per day!

[cruiserintampa]

I guess your right. The Oasis and the Allure are unbelievable ships, but I don't think that Royal should surcharge simply because they feel they can. As consumers, we have the power to influence pricing by responding or not to these high prices. This is not a matter of having the money or not. Its a matter of paying a fair price.

[Cruising89143]

I guess your right. The Oasis and the Allure are unbelievable ships, but I don't think that Royal should surcharge simply because they feel they can. As consumers, we have the power to influence pricing by responding or not to these high prices. This is not a matter of having the money or not. Its a matter of paying a fair price.

 

It's simple supply and demand. Any company is going to go after what they think their customers are willing to pay. If those cabins don't sell then the price will drop. When or if that happens, no one knows.

[Merion_Mom]

I was hoping to book the cruise on the Allure, departing on December 26 from Fort Lauderdale, but the cost is prohibitive, specially when I compare with other cruise lines. What do others think about the cost for this cruise with prices starting at $2,049 per person for an inside cabin.... ridiculous!

 

I agree....two grand is a bit much for a nine day....I don't care which ship/line you are on...it's about $215.00 PP per day!

 

I guess your right. The Oasis and the Allure are unbelievable ships, but I don't think that Royal should surcharge simply because they feel they can. As consumers, we have the power to influence pricing by responding or not to these high prices. This is not a matter of having the money or not. Its a matter of paying a fair price.

 

The cruise that includes New Year's Eve is ALWAYS the most expensive cruise of the year.

 

I regularly pay more than that pp pd for NYE cruises, and not on the Oasis/Allure.

 

If you think that it's too high a price, don't pay it.

 

Royal Caribbean will fill the ship with people who believe that it's worth paying for.

 

No one is forcing you to book it.

 

There is no such thing as "a fair price". A price is what a buyer will pay for something. It's only too expensive if no one buys it.

 

By the way, THIS New Year's, I'll be on the Jewel. I'm doing it B2B, and the cruise before includes Christmas - the SECOND most expensive cruise time of the year.

 

12/24 is a 5 night cruise.

12/29 is a 4 night cruise.

 

12/29 is MORE EXPENSIVE than 12/24.

 

No one is forcing me to pay those prices. I do it because it's the only time I can cruise because of my profession.

 

You, too, can exercise free will.

[bajathree]

While I do think prices on that 9 night Allure sailing are high....I booked the Oasis 7 night Eastern New Years Eve sailing instead and think it was fairly priced in comparison....I guess I may have not been alone in my thinking as there was just a price increase in the last couple weeks.

[AF-1]

I believe all cruises around Christmas and New Years cost more; regardless of the ship your on. My wife and I are taking our family of 11 on Freedom this Dec. We booked Dec 4th cruise; because the very next cruise; the price starts to go up; all the way thru January; so it is not just Oasis or Allure that has higher pricing over the holiday.

[gram2kids]

Unfortunatetly all travel regardless if it is airfare prices, hotel costs or cruising fares, or foreign travel aboard, the Christmas and New Years season will bring much higher costs. The companies know that if consumers want to go bad enough they will pay the cost. I was fortunate along with 25 family members to be on the Allure of the Seas this past New Year's cruise. We all had deck 9 outside balcony rooms situated on both sides of the ship between the "humps". It cost use all a very pretty, pretty penny but in the end it was well worth the extra expense to be all together as a family on this very fun and festive New Year's cruise...Party, Party, Party...Oh what a night..we danced the night away...could not compare to any cruise ship out there...oh what a night...we were crooning and spooning and dancing to the music all night long...

 

Start tucking any extra $$$ you have away...or decide to join a cruise group that has no holiday week envolved and meet some fun people and make your own party group on board. If Allure is the only ship that you want to sail on and knowing that the prices are higher then some other smaller, but very nice ships, you may need to save up a little longer to make it happen. Good luck, I hope you get the chance to experience Allure of the Seas, she is an awesome ship to sail on.

[cgncruise]

...and also for the very high pricing during other peak periods. In deciding whether and how nicely to build a ship as over-the-top as an Oasis class, RCI thought carefully about the expected annual profitability. A big driver of this was the knowledge that passengers are willing to pay very high prices for peak dates (even though their costs for those dates don't go up--- making them VERY VERY profitable sailings).

 

No government forced them to set pricing a certain way or to do this math and come to this conclusion. They did the homework and bet hundreds of millions of dollars hoping that they were right.

 

If all cruises were priced at off-peak rates, there simply would not have been enough profit incentive for RCI to build a ship like the Oasis.

 

So, as I sail on a non-peak date, I will raise a glass in humble thanks to those NYE cruisers who (voluntarily) "subsidized" me on my vacation. Thanks to you guys and to the free market!

[The-Dude]

I guess your right. The Oasis and the Allure are unbelievable ships, but I don't think that Royal should surcharge simply because they feel they can. As consumers, we have the power to influence pricing by responding or not to these high prices. This is not a matter of having the money or not. Its a matter of paying a fair price.

 

Ever heard of supply and demand? The current prices reflect what customers are willing to pay.

 

And Right now, consumers are willing (DEMAND) to pay the extra premium to sail on the Allure or Oasis. This due to the fact there is no ship in comparison (SUPPLY) that's offered by competitors.

 

If the current prices are too high, the Oasis class ships would be sailing half-empty or less! And RCI would respond accordingly by lowering prices. After all, RCI is a publicly traded company with a profit motive. Shareholders wouldn't be happy if their ships we're sailing empty and at a loss.

[LynnTH]

I really want to do the Allure (or Oasis)during the week after Christmas 2012. The prices are not out for this yet. Does anyone know if the prices are generally lower right when they are released for this time period? We normally go over Spring Break but thought we would try this time of year. Now, I'm not so sure...

[tiyana4]

I really want to do the Allure (or Oasis)during the week after Christmas 2012. The prices are not out for this yet. Does anyone know if the prices are generally lower right when they are released for this time period? We normally go over Spring Break but thought we would try this time of year. Now, I'm not so sure...

 

We typically sail during spring break and summer break and find those to be pricey, but the week after Christmas is always out of the question for us. Higher than normal airfare added to the holiday rates is the deal breaker for us. Not sure when the new dates will be released but that is a VERY popular week you are looking at and I wouldn't count on the pricing structure changing too much.

[LynnTH]

We typically sail during spring break and summer break and find those to be pricey, but the week after Christmas is always out of the question for us. Higher than normal airfare added to the holiday rates is the deal breaker for us. Not sure when the new dates will be released but that is a VERY popular week you are looking at and I wouldn't count on the pricing structure changing too much.

 

Thanks for the info. I guess I will have to wait and see what the prices look like when they come out. May have to stick with Spring Break afterall. The last 2 cruises have been with Carnival and the kids had a blast but not that they are getting older I want to go on RCCL as they have more activities for the kids (and adults). I really want to go on the Allure or Oasis but may have to think about a different ship. (Am getting kind of tired of the Eastern/Western Route).

[tneah]

I guess your right. The Oasis and the Allure are unbelievable ships, but I don't think that Royal should surcharge simply because they feel they can. As consumers, we have the power to influence pricing by responding or not to these high prices. This is not a matter of having the money or not. Its a matter of paying a fair price.

 

Ditto! I have been on these ships. Although, these are very nice ships it's not worth that much...to me.

[above sea level cruiser]

The cruise that includes New Year's Eve is ALWAYS the most expensive cruise of the year.

 

I regularly pay more than that pp pd for NYE cruises, and not on the Oasis/Allure.

 

If you think that it's too high a price, don't pay it.

 

Royal Caribbean will fill the ship with people who believe that it's worth paying for.

 

No one is forcing you to book it.

 

There is no such thing as "a fair price". A price is what a buyer will pay for something. It's only too expensive if no one buys it.

 

By the way, THIS New Year's, I'll be on the Jewel. I'm doing it B2B, and the cruise before includes Christmas - the SECOND most expensive cruise time of the year.

 

12/24 is a 5 night cruise.

12/29 is a 4 night cruise.

 

12/29 is MORE EXPENSIVE than 12/24.

 

No one is forcing me to pay those prices. I do it because it's the only time I can cruise because of my profession.

 

You, too, can exercise free will.

 

MM..............is this really you or did someone steal your computer? You sound a bit off on this one. There IS such a thing as a fair price in EVERYTHING. It is the difference between demand gouging and realistic mark ups. To say no one forces someone to buy something is no excuse for demand gouging.

 

The fact that you "regularly" pay more is of no condolence to the rest of us schleps that may not be able to afford it.:confused:

[masonpips]

What's funny (ironic) to me is that in 2004/2005 we took a DCL NYE cruise. I paid about $4,500 - $5,000 (got that receipt somewhere) for a Category 9 which was an oceanview room, porthole! NO BALCONY.

 

The next fall we booked on RCCL for the first time. I got a JS Aft on Mariner for Fall Break (mid-Oct) for about $3K? Do you know how big that balcony was?

 

It's all supply/demand and holidays.

 

I've looked at other post Christmas, Christmas and NYE cruises. Can't bring myself to do it again. I have done Thanksgiving and it was pricey, but not as bad.

[Older Party]

I was hoping to book the cruise on the Allure, departing on December 26 from Fort Lauderdale, but the cost is prohibitive, specially when I compare with other cruise lines. What do others think about the cost for this cruise with prices starting at $2,049 per person for an inside cabin.... ridiculous!

 

Having just completed a Silversea cruise, I would say this fare is a BARGAIN! ;)

[Beth C]

All about supply & demand - key for this cruise is demand! They know they have consistently sailed both Oasis & Allure for the past 3 months at capacity which drives up the price for this 'special holiday cruise'. RC isn't stupid - they're only offering 1 ship with a 9 day itinerary rather than both of them which would decrease the 'value' to the consumer.

 

We initially booked the Oasis Inaugural at almost $1900 pp ($270/day) for an inside room (no comparable supply & high demand) and a year later with 2 ships sailing we booked the Allure Inaugural for $749.

 

I too would love to go on the 9 nighter but I think christmas/ny might fall either a week before or a week after for me ;)