Back-to-Back Discount?

[Observer]

Hello,

 

I looked and looked and didn't find an answer.

 

Is there a discount for two consecutive cruises booked back-to-back?

 

TIA.

[pinotlover]

28 minutes ago, Observer said:

Hello,

 

I looked and looked and didn't find an answer.

 

Is there a discount for two consecutive cruises booked back-to-back?

 

TIA.

There are very few Oceania cruises listed as Back to Back. A few exceptions exist . Typically most of the longer voyages are listed as separate individual cruises .
 

Review the cruise definition carefully.

[Observer]

3 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

There are very few Oceania cruises listed as Back to Back. A few exceptions exist . Typically most of the longer voyages are listed as separate individual cruises .
 

Review the cruise definition carefully.

 

Thanks very much for the prompt response.  My question is whether there is a discount when booking two separate individual cruises, back to back.  Another cruise line I use applies a 5% discount to each cruise, when two consecutive (say 10 day) cruises are booked to make a longer (say 20 day) cruise.

[mauibabes]

Talk to your TA and look at the itineraries you are considering for your extended voyage. Oceania calls B2B’s many things but bottom line, there is a benefit for combining multiple segments into a longer cruise.  You are usually talking a minimum of a 5% discount and the longer the trip the better the value is.  There is no set % number to pullout of the sky. Oceania pricing is always the best when the itineraries are released. Sometimes there can be Upgrade promotions but you do have to run the numbers to see what is the best value. 
Have fun,

Mauibabes

[mauibabes]

Pay attention to August 30 when the Labor Day Upgrade Sale is released for NEW bookings. 
Mauibabes

[Observer]

Thanks!

[Flatbush Flyer]

Oceania doesn’t really sell B2B cruises (or, at least, they’re not called that).

There are published multi-segment cruises called “extended journeys” (usually 2-3 segments of up to approx. 2 months) or “grand voyages” (usually 3+ segments of 3 months +\-). They have a single booking number with distinct name and are discounted compared to the sum of the individual segments.

If not published, you can assemble a multi-segment “custom cruise” which also gets a single booking number and similar discount. 
Note that there are differences in O Club credits/perks between the published/custom types and it can get a bit confusing. So a search here on CC where I and others have explained the differences and plusses/minuses of each type.

[mauibabes]

Ditto Flatbush,

Mauibabes

[Kate-AHF]

On Jan 9, 2021, I booked two cruises on Sirena for this fall, a 14 day and a 17 day.  We chose a cabin that was available for both segments.  The cruises have separate, but consecutive booking numbers, and we received a back-to-back discount on each cruise. So yes, it's possible.

 

Where it gets confusing is that Oceania will list a cruise (say, 7 days) as a stand alone, but also include that 7 days as part of a longer journey, which is priced lower than if you booked the segments separately.  If you try to combine that longer journey with a segment that follows it, that longer journey will not receive a B2B discount, as the longer journey is already discounted.

[MEFIowa]

Though then there is the issue of whether O will consider you to have taken 1 cruise or 2 when it comes to O Club Loyalty Program...

[Flatbush Flyer]

On 8/22/2022 at 10:03 PM, Kate-AHF said:

On Jan 9, 2021, I booked two cruises on Sirena for this fall, a 14 day and a 17 day.  We chose a cabin that was available for both segments.  The cruises have separate, but consecutive booking numbers, and we received a back-to-back discount on each cruise. So yes, it's possible.

 

Where it gets confusing is that Oceania will list a cruise (say, 7 days) as a stand alone, but also include that 7 days as part of a longer journey, which is priced lower than if you booked the segments separately.  If you try to combine that longer journey with a segment that follows it, that longer journey will not receive a B2B discount, as the longer journey is already discounted.

O prohibits “double dipping” discounts. 
I’ve got two consecutive Extended Journeys this fall. Had to book separately rather than combine as a Custom Cruise with an additional discount. SOP for O.

 

BTW - Make sure that you are looking at the actual O invoice and not the TA’s company invoice!  
Look at your aI invoice(s):

Don’t confuse the two consecutive “cruise ID” numbers (upper right corner of O invoice page 1) with the single Custom Cruise “Booking Number” on the upper left hand side of the same page 1. That combo of numbers gets you the Custom Cruise discount for each segment plus perks for each segment. You can only do Custom Cruise if the chosen segments have the same cabin and are not published as an Extended Journey or Grand Voyage.

Edited August 24, 2022 by Flatbush Flyer

[Cliff-FLL]

We were on a B2B not too long ago and received a discount.  We have a particular suite we prefer, but it wasn't available for the first part of the B2B so, for that week, we accepted the same suite on a different deck.  We asked about switching to our preferred suite at the mid-point, but were told we would lose the B2B discount.  This was bc we would need to make 2 separate reservations to get the other suite.  We kept our original reservation - and our discount - and having the other suite for the entire time wasn't the dungeon we'd anticipated.😁

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, Cliff-FLL said:

We were on a B2B not too long ago and received a discount.  We have a particular suite we prefer, but it wasn't available for the first part of the B2B so, for that week, we accepted the same suite on a different deck.  We asked about switching to our preferred suite at the mid-point, but were told we would lose the B2B discount.  This was bc we would need to make 2 separate reservations to get the other suite.  We kept our original reservation - and our discount - and having the other suite for the entire time wasn't the dungeon we'd anticipated.😁

You could’ve asked to rebook both as a custom cruise and gotten a discount. However, it would be based on the current pricing which could’ve made your bottom line significantly more expensive (even with the custom cruise discount).

[ORV]

18 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Don’t confuse the two consecutive “cruise ID” numbers (upper right corner of O invoice page 1) with the single Custom Cruise “Booking Number” on the upper left hand side of the same page

There are always exceptions, but for me the Cruise Id numbers on the right side are an abbreviation for the ship plus the date, so definitely not consecutive. On the left-hand side are the Booking Numbers which like Kates, are consecutive.

[BarbaraM]

I get 5% when booking B2B on Oceania.  

[Flatbush Flyer]

18 hours ago, BarbaraM said:

I get 5% when booking B2B on Oceania.  

Anyone who does a multi-segment (same cabin) “custom cruise” (not published as “extended journey”) gets a 5% discount (as compared to the total cost of the included segments).

Extended Journeys and the longer Grand Voyages have their own discounts built-in.

[Kate-AHF]

30 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Anyone who does a multi-segment (same cabin) “custom cruise” (not published as “extended journey”) gets a 5% discount (as compared to the total cost of the included segments).

Extended Journeys and the longer Grand Voyages have their own discounts built-in.

 

But, but, but.....  A "custom cruise" would have one booking number, not separate booking numbers like Orv and I have, wouldn't they?  So, in essence, they are still doing B2Bs in some cases.  I realize this may come down to semantics, but honestly... you are confusing people.  I feel the short answer is yes - they still do B2B cruises, if the circumstances are right.

[Flatbush Flyer]

17 minutes ago, Kate-AHF said:

 

But, but, but.....  A "custom cruise" would have one booking number, not separate booking numbers like Orv and I have, wouldn't they?  So, in essence, they are still doing B2Bs in some cases.  I realize this may come down to semantics, but honestly... you are confusing people.  I feel the short answer is yes - they still do B2B cruises, if the circumstances are right.

It’s not me who may be confusing people. 

 

“B2B” is a problematic term since O uses specific labels for each type of multi-segment arrangement which, in turn, has/have specific associated O Club perks.
Your saying a generic “B2B” (without ID-ing which kind) and then citing one set of perks can be extremely confusing for a CC thread reader who also has a multi-segment booked (“B2B”) though it is not the same “type” as yours (i.e., custom, extended journey....)

In any case, if you have a different cabin on each of two consecutive segments, you would need two booking numbers - one for each segment. But, it is still a “custom cruise,” which is what gets you a 5% “custom cruise” discount. 

[LHT28]

LOL

 It never ends  with some people 🙄

 

[LHT28]

On 8/22/2022 at 9:04 PM, Observer said:

Hello,

 

I looked and looked and didn't find an answer.

 

Is there a discount for two consecutive cruises booked back-to-back?

 

TIA.

Yes it does happen  just depends on the segments  & if they can be booked   as a B2B

A good TA can sort it out for you

 JMO

[ORV]

26 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

In any case, if you have a different cabin on each of two consecutive segments, you would need two booking numbers - one for each segment.

All well and good, but in my case I'm in the same cabin for both cruises. FWIW, I have no identified 5% discount. I'm also paying regular price for each cruise, but the benefits I'm getting outweigh that due to both of these being an Ultimate cruise. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

2 hours ago, LHT28 said:

LOL

 It never ends  with some people 🙄

 

The real LOL is when someone with dates flexibility doesn’t realize that the same exact two consecutive segments one month apart (same list price per segment each month) published as an “extended journey” and then not published that way the next month (ergo “custom cruise”) can bottom line with 4 figure price/perks differences. 

Savvy O cruisers and their savvy TAs understand the importance of knowing and using the difference efficaciously.

 

2 hours ago, ORV said:

All well and good, but in my case I'm in the same cabin for both cruises. FWIW, I have no identified 5% discount. I'm also paying regular price for each cruise, but the benefits I'm getting outweigh that due to both of these being an Ultimate cruise. 

 

Yes, that can be exactly the case (which is why, if one cruises often on O, it is so very important to understand all of O’s booking idiosyncrasies [with or without a TA in the mix]). 

 

I had a choice on our upcoming autumn journey of rebooking a total of four consecutive segments several different ways when two of the segments ended up in the “ultimate O life” sale (big thread discussion here among all sorts of folks in the same situation. Lots of folks came away from that discussion with the aha! knowledge that not all “B2Bs” are created equal).

In our case, both TA and I did every math and perks (incl O Club Platinum) combination to see if the initial booking (two two-segment “extended journeys”) would make sense to rebook. Bottom line was that, for a 45+ day trip I’d just about break even while running the slight (though real) risk of losing cabin 7108 in the process.

 

 

[dszrew]

I would assume if you do B2B cruises you will get either the 4 category upgrade or a discount, but not both?

[LHT28]

2 hours ago, dszrew said:

I would assume if you do B2B cruises you will get either the 4 category upgrade or a discount, but not both?

Never  assume  anything 😉

 

Get your TA or O  to give you all the prices & ask  for  both

you may or may not get it  but never hurts to ask

[Maine Cruisers]

On 8/27/2022 at 1:27 PM, Flatbush Flyer said:

Anyone who does a multi-segment (same cabin) “custom cruise” (not published as “extended journey”) gets a 5% discount (as compared to the total cost of the included segments).

Extended Journeys and the longer Grand Voyages have their own discounts built-in.

Is that 5%if you are getting air with O or 5% if you are booking without air? With air I would think it would be more since you are eliminating 2 flights.