Price drop on cruise, but I can't get it.

[Dreamer333]

Thanks to the cruise critic price drop notification, I saw a price drop on all cabin catagories on my upcoming cruise. But when I contacted my travel agent, I was told the price drop doesn't apply to me because my cabin category is sold out (the only sold out category).

I guess that technically makes sense, but one would think when every other cabin price went down on the entire ship, that perhaps it would apply to all categories.

Oh well, I'm happy with the price I originally booked it for, and I'm counting down the days! Just wanted to share something new I learned.

[Pia1913]

Thanks to the cruise critic price drop notification, I saw a price drop on all cabin catagories on my upcoming cruise. But when I contacted my travel agent, I was told the price drop doesn't apply to me because my cabin category is sold out (the only sold out category).

I guess that technically makes sense, but one would think when every other cabin price went down on the entire ship, that perhaps it would apply to all categories.

Oh well, I'm happy with the price I originally booked it for, and I'm counting down the days! Just wanted to share something new I learned.

 

Are you still prior to final payment? In that case, you can cancel and rebook another catagory, if it pays to, at the lower price.

[Calgon1]

Did the next level category drop to something close to what you paid for your category? Might be worthwhile to upgrade . . . :confused:

[cdngrl]

bummer.

I'm glad you are fine with what you have.

when is your cruise?

[Colo Cruiser]

If you cancel you will lose your cabin, don't know how the availability is.

Is it wide open or close to sold out?

[lovevacadays]

If your category is sold out I can't see why Princess would discount it. Perhaps you can get a category higher at the same price? Might be worth checking into.

[Pam in CA]

Often, price drops are not for all categories and are for new bookings only. There are exceptions but I've found that using a TA that discounts, I still pay less than whatever the sale is. Every now and then, I qualify for a sale which is a nice bonus.

[Coral]

I had this happen once and my agent was still able to "re-fare it" while the category showed being sold out (the sold out price was less than what I paid, not including her discounts). Ask your agent to try to re-fare it or have them call Princess and ask for the reduction. She/he has nothing to lose but a few minutes of their time.

 

For me, this was before final payment.

[Dreamer333]

Yes, it is before final payment.

These are all great suggestions, thank you!

I will look into these ideas.

Worst case scenario, nothing changes and I have a great cruise at a price I'm happy with!

[Treven]

...

Worst case scenario, nothing changes and I have a great cruise at a price I'm happy with!

Good "worst-case scenario".

Edited July 27, 2014 by Treven

[dorisis]

Thanks to the cruise critic price drop notification, I saw a price drop on all cabin catagories on my upcoming cruise. But when I contacted my travel agent, I was told the price drop doesn't apply to me because my cabin category is sold out (the only sold out category).

I guess that technically makes sense, but one would think when every other cabin price went down on the entire ship, that perhaps it would apply to all categories.

Oh well, I'm happy with the price I originally booked it for, and I'm counting down the days! Just wanted to share something new I learned.

 

If your category is sold out you may be offered an upsell or better yet a free upgrade,

[geoherb]

We were able to upgrade ourselves from an inside cabin to an obstructed view on one cruise when prices dropped before the final payment date. It always pays to look at the prices for your category and all other categories.

[suzyed]

Often, price drops are not for all categories and are for new bookings only. There are exceptions but I've found that using a TA that discounts, I still pay less than whatever the sale is. Every now and then, I qualify for a sale which is a nice bonus.

 

Yes!

My TA discounts and the price I originally got for our upcoming cruise was still $1000 less then the cruise line price. When I saw a temporary price drop, I called my TA to get the lower price which would have been about another $500 below the cruise line. Much to my surprise, they gave me an even lower price and it ended up being over $1800 less than even the current price stated on the cruise line website.

It pays to keep checking. ;)

[OCruisers]

When your cabin category is sold out, it's highly unlikely you be able to get a price drop.

LuLu

[ar1950]

When your cabin category is sold out, it's highly unlikely you be able to get a price drop.

LuLu

 

Exactly. Why would they lower the price on something that they did not have to sell? It would be a bate and switch tactic if they did. :cool:

[donaldsc]

Thanks to the cruise critic price drop notification, I saw a price drop on all cabin catagories on my upcoming cruise. But when I contacted my travel agent, I was told the price drop doesn't apply to me because my cabin category is sold out (the only sold out category).

I guess that technically makes sense, but one would think when every other cabin price went down on the entire ship, that perhaps it would apply to all categories.

Oh well, I'm happy with the price I originally booked it for, and I'm counting down the days! Just wanted to share something new I learned.

 

They are not dropping the price to save you money but to get rid of unsold cabins. Why should they drop the price of a cabin category that is sold out? You have no reason to complain.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

 

DON

[DebJ14]

They are not dropping the price to save you money but to get rid of unsold cabins. Why should they drop the price of a cabin category that is sold out? You have no reason to complain.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

 

DON

 

Agreed, but if the sale is not just for new bookings only and a higher category is down to what they paid, they should go for the upgrade. We were hoping to do just that on our upcoming cruise, but alas our already booked S6 was the only suite category discounted. So, we took the lower fare and are happy to save $200. But, I will keep checking future sales to see if the other suite categories go down in price. I have a target price (based on what we paid last year + a little more) for an S3. I won't however pay $600 pp more for basically the same cruise.

Edited July 27, 2014 by DebJ14