for Bonnie -large increase in land discoveries prices

[cheznick]

Hi Bonnie

can someone explain why the land discoveries prices for our 16 night cruise on quest 21st march have gone up by an average of 16 percent overnight???? we were waiting on a refund from a trip we cancelled in Colombo before we booked a different trip,only to find we have to wait up to 2 months yes 8 weeks for the refund, meanwhile while we wait on our money back the price for the new trip we were going to choose has increased by 16 percent.not a good way to do business and we wont bother to book something with azamara in Colombo now but will do something on our own...

disgruntled customer

[Rovinglamb]

I agree. This seems to be a little underhand to put all prices up by such a large amount compared to the cost of the trips a week ago.

 

This is obviously not due to local fluctuations in prices but a company taking advantage of a target market. The cost of most trips was expensive before the price increase, but to add another £20-30 per trip seems excessive.

 

As you say Cheznick it will make some passengers go elsewhere.

[hubofhockey]

Are the prices posted in your local currency? If so, it could relate to the US dollar being very strong as compared with other currencies. The euro last summer was around $1.35 and it's now $1.12. The GBP is only $1.49. I suppose Azamara could have reduced the prices in US$ but instead chose to increase prices in other currencies. It certainly makes private excursions more attractive to both europeans and americans.

[cheznick]

Are the prices posted in your local currency? If so, it could relate to the US dollar being very strong as compared with other currencies. The euro last summer was around $1.35 and it's now $1.12. The GBP is only $1.49. I suppose Azamara could have reduced the prices in US$ but instead chose to increase prices in other currencies. It certainly makes private excursions more attractive to both europeans and americans.

 

hi hubofhockey

I dont think slight fluctuations in the dollar/pound exchange rate would warrant a huge 16 percent rise in the cost of the excursions. think azamara are just being greedy and upping the price of any of the trips which are in demand. we were going to book one of their trips in Colombo but as the price rose considerably then we wont put any more money their way.

regards

[AJCM]

We're on a cruise through Indonesia starting next week and were also shocked at the increase in price. It's obviously the outcome of conversion of the USD into, in our case, AUD but the increase makes one or two excursions prohibitively priced relative to what is on offer. A 5 1/2 hour excursion in Semarang, Java, is now a lot less appealing, increasing from AUD146 pp to AUD178.75 pp; so if they put on a shuttle bus into town, then we'll probably do our own thing - Azamara's loss. Considering that a year ago we could pre-purchase Azamara excursions with a significant discount, the new cost of excursions is quite off-putting. I doubt that Azamara's excursions have been locked in with tour operators by Azamara at a USD rate. I'd have thought that Azamara are price makers and that it's more likely they've locked in local tour operators at a fixed amount a long time ago and the increase is simply Azamara taking advantage of the recent appreciation in the USD. If they want to push more and more of their customers into private excursions - and it is evident from roll calls that many people already do so - then keep doing this Azamara.

[hubofhockey]

hi hubofhockey

I dont think slight fluctuations in the dollar/pound exchange rate would warrant a huge 16 percent rise in the cost of the excursions. think azamara are just being greedy and upping the price of any of the trips which are in demand. we were going to book one of their trips in Colombo but as the price rose considerably then we wont put any more money their way.

regards

 

The fluctuations in the strength of the US dollar are not "slight". They are substantial. A little over a year ago, The AUD was more than a USD. Now, it's less than 79 cents. Azamara chose not to reduce prices under the USD, which is how it does business. It's not up to Azamara to worry about how weak the Australian, Canadian, Euro, or GBP is relative to the USA currency. As an american, the funny thing is that these private tours all of the sudden become cheap. If Azamara is getting a windfall from the strength of the US dollar, if it doesn't pass some of that savings to its customers, it will be less profitable.

[wangeling gal]

hi hubofhockey

I dont think slight fluctuations in the dollar/pound exchange rate would warrant a huge 16 percent rise in the cost of the excursions. think azamara are just being greedy and upping the price of any of the trips which are in demand. we were going to book one of their trips in Colombo but as the price rose considerably then we wont put any more money their way.

regards

 

G'day cheznick,

A word of caution, when organising your own tour.

When in Sri Lanka in 2013 on an Azamara cruise, we were there on a public holiday. Nearly everything was closed. Hotels would not sell alcohol, and many restaurants were closed. We were interested in one espespecially, but it was a no go.

Our public holiday was for the full moon. I think there are 12 of them a year ;)

Plus other public holidays for other reasons.

My advice would be to check out when the public holidays are, in case they fall on the day you are there, and when/if organising your tour/guide make sure they will be working that day.

Happy Australia Day!

[cheznick]

thanks wangeling-gal. happy Australia day to you and to all the other Aussies on here.

[cheznick]

did you get this one bonnie????

[alfredo1]

Like Cheznick we will be on the Quest out of Singapore, and the increased tour prices are now such as to encourage independent tours, especially with the safety of late departures. Having previously been on this cruise in reverse and enjoyed the Azamara private train trip from Colombo to Kandy and the temple of the tooth, I would baulk at paying nearly £200 for the excursion now. Good for the indigenous tour operators though, probably not so good for Azamara.

[midwestchick]

I checked the land discoveries for our Norwegian Fjords cruise and could not believe how expensive they were compared to other cruises we've done with Azamara. Wow!

Did others who did this same cruise find this to be true on past cruises or has Azamara increased prices on all cruises?