Cancelling and re-booking due to price help?

[Chipchip]

Hi, we are booked on a cruise in July at a price of £996 per person. It's been booked for around a year. If I was booking now I could get the same cruise from the likes of Thomas Cook for £649 per person, I've enquired about doing this but was turned down flat due to the existing booking. I was told we can't help you, you have to go back to P&O.

 

Anyone else ever come across this?

[Chipchip]

Weird, P&O price is now £1141 PP.

[capnpugwash]

Hi, we are booked on a cruise in July at a price of £996 per person. It's been booked for around a year. If I was booking now I could get the same cruise from the likes of Thomas Cook for £649 per person, I've enquired about doing this but was turned down flat due to the existing booking. I was told we can't help you, you have to go back to P&O.

 

Anyone else ever come across this?

 

If you cancel now, you will lose your 10% deposit and if this is correct you will be free to rebook at the reduced price, but it is vital that you have Thomas Cook confirm that you will get the same grade of cabin etc before you commit to the cancellation.

[cruiser1955]

This happened to me a few years ago with another line. I had booked with TC and were surprised at the price difference. They tried to get me a reduction but were unsuccessful as has happened with you. TC then booked a new cabin for me at the new price before cancelling my original booking. As CapnP has pointed out, the deposit is lost (in my case £500) but the new booking was £2,100 cheaper, so well worth doing.

[cclarke12]

I have done the same with a Cunard TA booking for this summer. They suddenly had a really good deal for paying in full now, so I cancelled and lost my deposit and rebooked and it has still worked out cheaper. The cruise agent explained to Cunard what we were doing and they did the cancellation and rebooking over the phone in one go.

 

TC are wrong about you going back to P&O. They are your agent so P&O won't talk to you. TC can be very cheap and I have had a couple of good deals from them this year, but after sales is a bit hit and miss.

[Chipchip]

Hi

Thanks for the replies. Thomas Cook are not my agent as I booked the cruise direct last April, they just refused to take a new booking. I take the point about being careful with getting confirmation of the cabin grade. I spoke to P&O this morning, they won't alter it but were at least prepared to speak to me.

 

Will certainly be more careful in future although it looks like it will all change re competition now.

Shirl

[cruiseanywhere2]

We've booked a couple of the times in the past with Thomas Cook but found they were unhelpful if you wanted to change anything. I can't believe they won't take another booking off you as it would mean commission. I would try phoning them again and as it's a call centre you will get someone else and don't mention you've already booked with PandO

[seb530]

Had exactly the same issue wih Princess last year and the two companies have identical policies. When you book the price of any upgrade\ changes are set at the date you booked. So if you go back 3 months later xos the prices have dropped it wont help... They will upgrade you but you would have to pay the prices as the rooms were on the date you booked! The only optiion is to cancel and rebook which can be worth but you lose your depsit,

 

However, bear in mind that the TC deals are 100% deposit, non refundable, rooms are guarantee only, no free parking or coach and no OBC. We are on the same cruise as you and got a stonking deal from TC in an inside cabin. We have always gone balcony but the price was so good it was hard to turn down as it was probably cheaper than a 3 star hotel in spain!

 

Cruise prices seem notoriously difficult to predict and its very hard to hit the sweet spot i think. Its always a gamble.... Less so on 14 day cruises i feel.

 

In terms of the policy, the unfair thin with princess was that if you are uk then you lose depsit etc but us citizens seem to be able to get discounts even once deposit paid....

 

I think the cruise lines are making far more money over here in europe which would explain why traiditional us companies such as princess and rci are bringing more ships over.

 

Looking forward to the trip and sure we will all have a great time!

[capnpugwash]

In terms of the policy, the unfair thin with princess was that if you are uk then you lose depsit etc but us citizens seem to be able to get discounts even once deposit paid....

 

Looking forward to the trip and sure we will all have a great time!

 

The reason that the US market can take advantage of any reductions is one of regulation and protection. They have no protection in the event of a tour operator or travel agent failure whereas we have ABTA, IATA and similar. I know that it is unlikely that Carnival will go bust but if they do, we are protected. It isn't fair to treat different markets differently but that is the way of the world.

[shoreham01]

Spoke to Princess UK today and was told that they are changing their policy to the same as US so as from 2012/13 we should all have the same deal regarding price reductions. Hopefully P&O will follow their example.

[Brayman]

Spoke to Princess UK today and was told that they are changing their policy to the same as US so as from 2012/13 we should all have the same deal regarding price reductions. Hopefully P&O will follow their example.

 

That would be good, but don't hold your breath.

[Chipchip]

That would be good, but don't hold your breath.

 

Yea that would be good, will have to wait and see.

[u2cruiser]

Looking at the prices in the new P&O 2012/13 brochure, they have priced the cruises accordingly, to accommodate dishing back out for price drops :eek:

[SeaSickGill]

I share your frustration - I could now have a superior delux balany cabin for £300 cheaper than my inside cabin for A108. (I have my own moaney thread) P&O eventually got back to me after promising me a call back - after umpteen emails to Gills Cruises asking how much an upgrade to a basic balcony cabin would be, and was quoted £490 each:mad: How can that be? Its only £895 for a new booking in a balcony stateroom - I was thinking that if it was about £200 we might go for it!

 

I think it's a bit shoddy myself, especially when I paid in full months ago.

 

Ah well you live and learn

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