More CCL agreed: FTTF Going to $59.95

[foundmyMcGyver]

Me too. I think I've only boarded early 2 or 3 times since becoming Platinum. We usually just arrive at port between 12:30 and 1:00 and walk right on the ship with no line and no waiting.

DH and I are Platinum and cruise with friends who are not a lot. Most every time our friends are on within 20 minutes of us without FTTF. That being said it really depends on the time you arrive and we always get there early.

[foundmyMcGyver]

What's the big deal? If it is a service that you like and are willing to pay $60 for it, then it is a great deal and gives some people the ability to get on earlier, get settled in and unpack and iron all your clothes for the week in the laundrette during the mad rush at lunch. I also failed to mention priority tendering, priority debarkation and a priority line at guest services. I fall in this category of people.

 

If you're not willing to pay the money, then no one is forcing you to do it. It isn't a mandatory fee. Why get all bent out of shape because some people are willing to pay $60 extra? I don't want to pay for spa services on the ship. Should I get all cattywampus if the spa increases prices and say "I just don't get it. You can get a massage at one of the ports for half the cost..."??? Of course not.

 

And as for Carnival being "greedy", this isn't greed. It's a corporation trying to make money. Carnival isn't a charity or a non-profit organization. Most companies would be wise to invent ways to generate revenue which costs them little to nothing. If I were on the Carnival Board of Directors or a major stockholder, I would be happy about this move.

I agree, also I would rather they increase prices on things that are optional than across the board on something you can't get away from like drinks, excursions, t-shirts etc. This is something that if people want it they will pay for it and if you don't you won't. Win Win here for sure.

[Fla Senior]

I see it as a "user fee" just like all the other onboard revenue sources: bar, casino, photo, excursions, specialty restaurants, etc. Only the user pays the fee. The more of these, the better. It keeps the cruise rate down for everyone.

 

Just like the federal govt taxes. The more user taxes the better: gas, cigarettes, road tolls, etc. It should keep the income tax down, of course the govt doesn't look at it that way.

[dvond]

We have never purchased it but also check almost every bag but one with maybe bathing suits for a family of four which we do not pack heavy, not sure why you would lug around heavy carry on's. We then can put our carry on after lunch. Usually get to port around 10:30 and have never gotten on later than noon for any of our 22 cruises. But if I was Carnival I would keep raising the price as long as there was demand until that demand stopped, thats good business

[Buck64]

FTTF is a win win situation for everybody. Carnival earns extra income which in a way helps keep cruise prices lower. People purchasing FTTF get what they want for an OPTIONAL fee. Platinum and Diamond save $60 per cruise by getting this perk for free!!:D

[BallFour4]

Without FTTF I have boarded as early as 11am. Carry-on is limited to an oversized lightweight shoulder bag (think Vera Bradley).

 

The carry-on limit is not quantity, only size, you can carry up to a 22" suitcase or anything that will fit through the scanner. I've seen people carry two of those and a backpack.

 

If Carnival had offered the perk before we became platinum I would have bought it. It's great to get aboard, check your room, check dining table location, explore the ship and see what's new, unpack, have a quick lunch and then secure a spot at a lido deck table to people watch!

 

We arrive at port by 10:30am and have been at the buffet as early as 11:20am in Galveston. Debarkation is the same, on our last cruise in February we were in the car by 8:15am. The Magic is the first ship we have sailed where they separated FTTF from diamond and platinum in the dining room the morning of debarkation. They checked our cards as we left and held FTTF for the couple of minutes it took. Who cares, but it's an observation.

 

My next cruise on the Triumph will be a 22" roll-on, small case on top of that and backpack. That's standard fare for a 4-5 night trip.

 

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Edited April 21, 2015 by BallFour4

[topofE]

How would you even know what happens in the VIP lines? Your "even have that 'entitled' attitude" comment shows just how silly you are to be pretending you have any knowledge of what happens in places you have never been in.

 

Lol. The people in the VIP line aren't taken to an underground bunker! The lines at guest services are right next to each other and I don't think you need any special requirements to see from one to the other :).

[Sparky2]

As a shareholder I think it is a smart business move.

I say charge $100.00 if people are willing to pay it! :)

 

As a shareholder, I also agree with you. I thought $49.95 was too cheap for the entire cabin. Should have been per person.

 

I wasn't really too upset about this (although they certainly should board after Platinum/Diamond) because we now can legally go directly to our cabins.

 

I know that there were lots of Plat/Diamond who went directly to their cabin even though that was not a perk prior to FTTF.

[Jimmy Geegitz]

As a shareholder I think it is a smart business move.

I say charge $100.00 if people are willing to pay it! :)

 

I agree. There is a sucker born every minute.

[jiggs]

once again it is very interesting to hear the variety of responses from a message board. I'm so surprised that so many people find the best benefit is being able to drop off you bag. I really thought it would be skipping the lines and being on early.

 

Ever since the interweb and everyone and their brother publishing a 'cruise ship secrets' book people are flocking to the port earlier and earlier. CC and other boards have people conditioned 'they must' fly in at least a day before their trip. So many people are within striking distance of the port, they're arriving to check in while the previous cruise is still on group 7 of disembark.

 

I've been told that after their health and their families and possibly money, Time is the number one priority. UBER works because it saves me time, Amazon Dash technology saves me time...FTTF saves me time. I'm plat so whateves on the price increase. Like many on here I am also a shareholder, double it if people continue to pay. More revenue for CCL and you're only passing the price on to those who opt in. Unless you work for a non-profit I imagine your company is looking to commoditize anything they can.

 

If there are lurkers from CCL on this board, I would take all this feedback and create a bag check in the main dining room that works like a coat check and costs $5 per bag. No more 'lugging' your wine/water/soda around. Call a number and someone will bring your bag to your cabin after you've settled in. Then we can start a thread on 'Do I need to tip the guy who brought my bag from the dining room'.

 

Everything costs more money and all verticals are testing the market to see if increases work. Airlines saw the trend of everyone abandoning checked bags in favor of increased carryons - low cost carriers now charge for those. And they fill their planes with passengers. Others take their business elsewhere.

 

Guess this is a long winded way of saying services will continue to balance cost and quality...there is demand from shareholders that earning increase all the time. Shareholders don't care that ma and pa kettle can't get smoke duck breast as an appetizer anymore. As consumers we can take our business elsewhere or not participate at all. Decisions to cut services and raise prices are long thought out and risk to the brand and potential lost revenue are always weighted against the upside.

[Sparky2]

I know there are many opinions of FTTF. In the past I wasn't concerned about it because I am Platinum and got those benefits and my husband used a walker, so even without anything special, he would have been able to board early as many times he was in a wheelchair to board.

 

This next cruise, my young granddaughter is in the cabin with me and her parents are in the cabin next door. I purchased FTTF for them. My daughter-in-law has never been on a cruise and one of our ports is a tender port and the excursion they have arranged, is not through the cruise line. I am not going on that excursion, so, to me, FTTF is a benefit to them.

 

I know there are many who feel that my family could have all dropped off their bags in my cabin and that I could have put my luggage tags on their luggage as their cabin is right next to mine. There are others who feel they can just drop off their luggage even though the signs on the doors advise only Platinum and FTTF passengers are the only ones that are allowed in early.

 

I am one who follows the rules and don't feel the need to cheat, scam etc. It's not worth it to me to do that. I know I have to live with my conscience. I am not a goody two shoes, but, to me, those "just dropping off" the carryon before the time cabins are ready make the life of the cabin steward more difficult, even though they wouldn't say anything to the passenger because they might lose a tip.

 

I'm sure I will get flamed for my opinion, but that's one of the things about this site. We can all post our opinions.

 

I'm with you on this, katiel53.

[Warm Breezes]

I've only sailed three times and have purchased it every time. I also have it for the 4th cruise. I don't even know what it's like to sail without it. So with that being said, I'd probably pay over $100.00 for it. I assume it's extremely annoying having to lug your carry on around the ship until your room is ready. But then again, I don't know. Maybe it's not that bad after all?

 

Not that bad at all for us. We just did our 13th cruise without it. Our carryon has the 360 degree wheels that is very easy to move around. We took our shuttle from the hotel go to the port around 11:45. We were on-board by 12:15. Ate lunch on the Lido and by then our rooms were ready. We had 1 tender port that we weren't in a hurry to get off. We just did things around the ship until they announced open tendering and got off with no line. For us I wouldn't pay $50 for it, it would be a waste of my money.

[BigB0882]

I would rather them increase the price on things like FTTF which are a true novelty and not at all necessary than price gouge folks on things we are used to getting for free. The room service menu, for example. Sure, it still has free items but they took away about half of the items they used to have and I wouldn't be surprised at all to find out they took away the popular items, in order to steer people to the pay items. Same with the free drink in the MDR, why take that away and pretend it is because no one used it. That is a good thing if no one used it, at least from the almight $$ standpoint.

[Writerfl]

Someone posted this thought early in the thread, so props to you. I didn't copypasta as I wanted to add my personal spin.

 

Carnival has a lamentable history over the past few years of subtracting things we used to think of as "basic", then offering them back at an additional charge. Reducing the quality of some beef entrees, then offering "Steakhouse Selections" in the MDR is a good example, as is the recent removal of some of the more popular (and higher cost) room service items, then adding in up-charged items. Other items simply dwindle then disappear, like reducing the quality of the turn down chocolates, then discontinuing them because "no one liked them anyways".

 

The previous poster wisely linked the Platinum/Diamond benefit of early embark and debark to the popularity of FTTF at whatever price. I hope against hope that as I approach Platinum (55 nights) that "the beards" don't put two and two together. If they do, I'd wager that the benefit is eliminated (but of course suite guests retain it), the number of FTTFs offered triples and the price *initially* drops by about a third, allowing John Heald to proclaim it as 'brilliant' and the company to double their earnings from it. Later, the price creeps slowly up to whatever the market will bear.

 

<<sigh>> Carnival, I *want* to love you. Why do you make it so hard?

[Out to sea!]

Still worth every penny of it. I did not like FTTF. I was platinum. Annoyed me that others could buy early boarding.

 

Then my small grandchild sailed with me. I ate humble pie. Getting her on that ship quickly and easily was worth a lot to me.

 

I am a great fan of them.

 

What's the difference between buying early boarding though the number of cruises one has taken or FTTF? One is still buying their way to board early, just in a different way.

 

To be mad at FTTF users to me would be like being made at a Platinum who made it by taking 10-3 night cruises instead of 10-7 night cruises. Is it something that one really wants to get upset over?

[Out to sea!]

The best post I saw was that someone bought it so they can easily drop their luggage filled with soda and water without having to lug it around.

 

What is so funny, is that they paid $50.00 for this "perk" but yet brought soda on to "save" money. I fell over laughing! Why not just buy a soda package instead.

 

It's silly of how many people pay for something that is free.

 

Soda package for 4 on a 7 night cruise is well over $50 (it's over that even for two people).

 

Don't understand why you would fall over laughing when you have no idea what their circumstances are. I too carry my soda on board, not because I want to save money but because Carnival does not carry Diet Mountain Dew on board. I wish they would so I would not have to lug my soda on board every cruise. Also, there is MUCH, MUCH more to just having early access to your cabin with FTTF. It is especially useful if you have tender ports to deal with.

[Out to sea!]

Agreed..it shocks me how many people speak out against it. Everyone pays extra for something that is worth it to them. Clearly...if people want to spend $50 for fttf..it is worth it to them. Doesn't mean they are silly or wasting their money.

 

Those same people making fun of FTTF buyers are probably the ones wasting money on balconies or suites. My PT cabin is just as good and is a heck of a lot cheaper!

[Out to sea!]

Before I became Platinum, I never showed up at the port before 1-2:00pm. Normally by then, check in lines would be non-existent, staterooms would be ready, and the crowds for lunch would have died down. It was always the smoothest and best way to start my vacation. So when FTTF was announced, I thought that it was the dumbest idea. Who would pay for something that they could get just by showing up at the port a little later?? Boy way I wrong. People are willing to pay ANYTHING for this benefit. Not only that, but they will stalk their computers in the middle of the night, waiting for an FTTF slot to open up.

 

I now know that for those that must get on as soon as possible and have their cabins ready, it's the best invention after sliced bread and butter. For me, I still don't get it.

 

If you realized that there is a lot more to FTTF that early boarding (and I thought you did), you might get it. But in reality, does it matter? I love to board early and if for $50 I can drop my bags off so I race around learning the ins and outs of a new ship, why does it matter to anyone else? I don't rag on people for wasting money on more expensive cabins so why do some feel the need (or right) to rag on someone who buys FTTF? I just don't get it.

[Out to sea!]

I just hate how Carnival forces everyone to buy it!!! :mad: It's not fair!!!!!!

 

 

 

 

Oh wait..... :rolleyes:

 

Seriously, here in Florida, every Orlando theme park now has an optional for fee fast pass you can buy. Does not cost them a dime either.

 

Bottom line, like it or lump it, it's good business. Period.

 

Actually, the FastPass at Disney is free. ;)

[NCTribeFan]

FTR, my luggage delivery since they instituted FTTF has been no earlier than before. Sometimes it's there early afternoon. Sometimes it isn't. With or without the bright orange tag.

 

It always arrives prior to sailaway (on all 22 Carnival cruises to date) and I usually am unpacked before then as well. So, I wouldn't count "early luggage delivery" as one of the perks (because we have no parallel universe in which to see what time it would have been delivered without FTTF).

 

Again, as a shareholder, please go right ahead and continue to pay for FTTF. I just feel that it, like Early Saver, is not a necessity for every Carnival cruiser. Some of us are simply trying to point that out for the folks who are fairly new to Carnival.

 

Judging by many threads on this board, if I were a newbie, I might come to the conclusion that I absolutely HAD to book ES rates and FTTF!

[dvond]

I see some say they carry their soda on board, why would you not pack it in a luggage and check it, we have been checking our case of water and soda for years and never had to lug it around, maybe thats why FFTF does not really apply to us

[Out to sea!]

I see some say they carry their soda on board, why would you not pack it in a luggage and check it, we have been checking our case of water and soda for years and never had to lug it around, maybe thats why FFTF does not really apply to us

 

Because all soda/water/wine is supposed to be hand carried. :rolleyes:

Edited April 21, 2015 by Out to sea!

[stargate fan]

As a shareholder I think it is a smart business move.

I say charge $100.00 if people are willing to pay it! :)

 

Like!

[springs741]

I see some say they carry their soda on board, why would you not pack it in a luggage and check it, we have been checking our case of water and soda for years and never had to lug it around, maybe thats why FFTF does not really apply to us

 

Because that is expressly against the rules.

[Rottweiler Puppy]

I see some say they carry their soda on board, why would you not pack it in a luggage and check it, we have been checking our case of water and soda for years and never had to lug it around, maybe thats why FFTF does not really apply to us

 

It can be confiscated as you are supposed to carry it on. I have seen lots of soda in the naughty room.