NCL "sales" ???

[DaCruiseBug]

I was watching the NCL website like a hawk the past 2 weeks or so to see what kind of sales NCL would have.

 

So the regular sale before Thanksgiving was a pick 5 freebies for Oceanview and above plus airfare on certain sailings (interior got 1 perk). The "black friday sale" was actually a cut back on those freebies and you only got 3 perks if you're in Oceanview thru Mini-Suite. The "Cyber Monday" sale was the same exact thing as the Black Friday sale...and the "back to normal programming" sale is the same exact as the Cyber Monday sale.

 

Basically NCL did absolutely nothing as far as any specials over the past few days...they actually offered less then before. Many other cruise lines I looked at actually threw in a few small items to make the deals attractive but NCL turned into scrooge instead.

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

[tonytone68]

31 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

I was watching the NCL website like a hawk the past 2 weeks or so to see what kind of sales NCL would have.

 

So the regular sale before Thanksgiving was a pick 5 freebies for Oceanview and above plus airfare on certain sailings (interior got 1 perk). The "black friday sale" was actually a cut back on those freebies and you only got 3 perks if you're in Oceanview thru Mini-Suite. The "Cyber Monday" sale was the same exact thing as the Black Friday sale...and the "back to normal programming" sale is the same exact as the Cyber Monday sale.

 

Basically NCL did absolutely nothing as far as any specials over the past few days...they actually offered less then before. Many other cruise lines I looked at actually threw in a few small items to make the deals attractive but NCL turned into scrooge instead.

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

 

If you see a "Pick 5" offer for Oceanview and above, you should probably take it especially if airfare is included.  We have only seen this for suites and the Haven.  We book the Haven and found that when you pick the drink package and the dining package, you still have to pay taxes and gratuities on those packages which add on another $300 or $400 to the cost of the cruise.  We've noticed that NCL has started doing this last year.

 

Good luck with your cruise search! 

[sverigecruiser]

1 hour ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

 

Maybe they sell enough cruises and don't need a sale?

 

Business is not about greed. No serious company has a sale just to be nice.

[luv2kroooz]

I have found best pricing, with limited cabin selection, within 14 days of sailing. If you are able to go last minute and don't care about cabin location, amazing deals can be found.

[sfaaa]

3 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

 

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

 Nothing wrong with being greedy (your word) in a free market economy. Always expecting more but wanting to pay less is also a form of greed in the eyes of NCL. 

[david_sobe]

NCL does not really have sales anymore.  I have watched cruises for about a year now. I have one booked and waiting to book another.  EVERY TIME NCL announces a new "offer" the prices (for most cruises) go up.  During Black Friday the cruise I wanted to book went up over $200 but they added another "offer."

Once over the last half year did the promo offers really go away.  This is what peaked my interest in the cruise I am looking to book because there was a price drop.  Foolish me, I waited too long and the promos came back and the price went up again.  Until bookings drop, NCL will stick with this marketing plan because it appears to be working.  It appears people are interested in paying for offers rather than discounted cruises.  Maybe I am in the minority. I also believe NCL like the other lines market to new cruisers more rather than frequent or loyal cruisers.  Marketing shows the repeat and loyal cruiser will always book cruises.  These "offer deals" are directed at newbies who really believe they are getting everything for "free."

Edited November 27, 2018 by david_sobe

[EllieinNJ]

I had been waiting for months for the NCL British Isles cruises to come down but they haven't.  They are almost double what you would pay for other European cruises.  So finally during the Black Friday events I booked this cruise with Princess, even though I have three more FCCs.  They had the "Three for Free" sale plus their balconies were $1000pp cheaper.

[zqvol]

6 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

I was watching the NCL website like a hawk the past 2 weeks or so to see what kind of sales NCL would have.

 

So the regular sale before Thanksgiving was a pick 5 freebies for Oceanview and above plus airfare on certain sailings (interior got 1 perk). The "black friday sale" was actually a cut back on those freebies and you only got 3 perks if you're in Oceanview thru Mini-Suite. The "Cyber Monday" sale was the same exact thing as the Black Friday sale...and the "back to normal programming" sale is the same exact as the Cyber Monday sale.

 

Basically NCL did absolutely nothing as far as any specials over the past few days...they actually offered less then before. Many other cruise lines I looked at actually threw in a few small items to make the deals attractive but NCL turned into scrooge instead.

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

 

What am I missing here? Why have we come to expect businesses to offer price discounts or "sales" on certain days. Those are nothing but marketing gimmicks to get people into stores, or looking at web sites. NCL is offering about as much as is possible, and all it is doing is driving up base fares. We would all be better off if they stopped all these "perks" and lowered base prices.

[MCC retired]

NCL could use some imagination and change up their Sales offers. Same boring offers repeated over and over. Last day of Sale means nothing .No call to urgency.

[fshagan]

3 hours ago, EllieinNJ said:

I had been waiting for months for the NCL British Isles cruises to come down but they haven't.  They are almost double what you would pay for other European cruises.  So finally during the Black Friday events I booked this cruise with Princess, even though I have three more FCCs.  They had the "Three for Free" sale plus their balconies were $1000pp cheaper.

 

We had a similar experience and found a Disney 7 night British Isles and Ireland cruise on DCL for about $2,400 per person in a Navigator's Verandah (which we like; they are a "hull cabin" type of thing). DCL has a pretty straight forward pricing system; the cheapest fares are on the day the cruise is released for sale, and continually seems to rise in price as you get closer to the sail date. They also quote the full price for two people in a cabin, with taxes, instead of doing the per person / double occupancy dodge, then plus taxes like the other lines do.

[SeaShark]

2 hours ago, zqvol said:

 

 We would all be better off if they stopped all these "perks" and lowered base prices.

 

Yes, "we" would be better off, but a business has to be concerned about what makes "them" better off.

 

9 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

I was watching the NCL website like a hawk the past 2 weeks or so to see what kind of sales NCL would have.

 

So the regular sale before Thanksgiving was a pick 5 freebies for Oceanview and above plus airfare on certain sailings (interior got 1 perk). The "black friday sale" was actually a cut back on those freebies and you only got 3 perks if you're in Oceanview thru Mini-Suite. The "Cyber Monday" sale was the same exact thing as the Black Friday sale...and the "back to normal programming" sale is the same exact as the Cyber Monday sale.

 

Basically NCL did absolutely nothing as far as any specials over the past few days...they actually offered less then before. Many other cruise lines I looked at actually threw in a few small items to make the deals attractive but NCL turned into scrooge instead.

Is their marketing department that bad that they can't come up with anything? Or is it all just greed?

 

IMHO, the reason for your confusion is that you're assuming a different economic model than the one that is being used.

 

When FDR took over, he changed NCL's model. They no longer operate under a "discount to fill" economic model where pricing is used to drive bookings. They don't run "sales" because they don't use price as a selling point.

 

The model that NCL now uses is "market to fill". Under this model it is the perceived value of the marketing offers that is used to drive bookings. IOW, "free drinks" with a higher price works better than a lower price where you have to buy drinks.

 

While many would disagree with FDR's approach, it is working and you can't argue with results.

[JamieLogical]

I am booked on the Bliss in February and the Escape in April. I have been tracking the inventory on both sailings for weeks (Escape) and months (Bliss). Since last Wednesday, when the Black Friday "sale" started, between the two sailings, NCL managed to sell a net of 5 total cabins of the over 1400 remaining. They sold 10 of the 202 remaining cabins on the Bliss. And inventory on the Escape actually went up by 5 rooms (it's before final payment so people can still cancel easily). There are still at least 1242 available cabins on the Escape sailing. The site I use to track inventory only shows up to 100 rooms in a given category. BE, BD, and BB all still have at least 100 rooms left, so there may actually be up to 134 more rooms available in those categories. It's possible that there are still unassigned Sail Aways, but I doubt the Black Friday and Cyber Monday "sales" had any affect on Sail Away sales, since those are ineligible for any of the perks.

[molole]

With that 5 perks promo, do they allow you to opt out of select perks?  I want to keep everything else but opt out of drink packages so I don't have to pay the gratuities.  We hardly drink.  

[JamieLogical]

11 minutes ago, molole said:

With that 5 perks promo, do they allow you to opt out of select perks?  I want to keep everything else but opt out of drink packages so I don't have to pay the gratuities.  We hardly drink.  

 

Unfortunately no. When they have run the Take All Five promo in the past, you could either take all five (four for sailings that didn't include 3rd & 4th guest free) or choose two. There was no way to choose three or four. It looks to me like "Free" Airfare is here to stay as a 6th perk, so I expect this current promo of Pick 3 for OV and above to stick. There is no expiration date when you look at the Terms and Conditions, despite the "3 Days Left" on the home page. So, in the future, I don't think we're be seeing the Take All Five promo again. Likely we will see a "Take All Six" promo instead and in that case you would likely have to choose between taking all six or only picking three.

[molole]

4 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Unfortunately no. When they have run the Take All Five promo in the past, you could either take all five (four for sailings that didn't include 3rd & 4th guest free) or choose two. There was no way to choose three or four. It looks to me like "Free" Airfare is here to stay as a 6th perk, so I expect this current promo of Pick 3 for OV and above to stick. There is no expiration date when you look at the Terms and Conditions, despite the "3 Days Left" on the home page. So, in the future, I don't think we're be seeing the Take All Five promo again. Likely we will see a "Take All Six" promo instead and in that case you would likely have to choose between taking all six or only picking three.

 

Cool!  I like the pick 3 one.  It works for us well.  

[Lupush]

1 hour ago, MCC retired said:

NCL could use some imagination and change up their Sales offers. Same boring offers repeated over and over. Last day of Sale means nothing .No call to urgency.

Why should they change it up if it's working?

[MCC retired]

23 minutes ago, Lupush said:

Why should they change it up if it's working?

Could it be working better for NCL? Perhaps not have to offer as many  close in" Sail Away " deals ?

It is just that we follow all the mass market cruise lines "Sales" that do actually offer deals that expire when they say they will.

We cruise frequently and enjoy the differences cruise experiences .