Why are Celebration cruises so cheap?

[Illbcruzn4life]

Usually when a new ship comes on line it commands high prices.

 

I have been looking at Celebration cruises for Jan/Feb and they are really low.

 

Icon of the Seas is starting to take bookings and they start a little over $1000 for an inside cabin.

 

 

[BlerkOne]

Compare Icon prices in a year.

[shof515]

Royal always has higher pricing compare to Carnival

[Illbcruzn4life]

Thats true blerk but c’mon guys this ship should be higher priced.

 

Don’t get me wrong I’m glad it’s not. Hope to take advantage of these prices.

 

Mardi Gras is higher priced. Just never seen pricing like this on anybody's new ship

[matymil]

2 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Usually when a new ship comes on line it commands high prices.

 

I have been looking at Celebration cruises for Jan/Feb and they are really low.

 

Icon of the Seas is starting to take bookings and they start a little over $1000 for an inside cabin.

 

 

Not really true. I went on the first USA cruise on the Vista. It was a 12 day, i dont remember the exact price i paid but i know it wasn't that much. Maybe like 600-750 per for the 12 days. I think it depends more on the itinerary & time of year than the ship tbh

[LatinaInTexas]

I have been wondering the same thing, been watching this ships prices for the last 2 months. It is filling up though. Two weeks ago there were numerous insides on various floors and today only a few insides showing on one floor.

Every day I talk myself out of booking it. I need to keep a spot open in case I get a decent offer for Alaska next year. Can only take one cruise in Jan or Feb and one in October or one Alaska cruise.

 

[tidecat]

Icon of the Seas is a class leader; the Oasis class will have been in service for over 14 years when Icon makes her debut, so Royal may be seeing a bump from it being a newer product.

 

Carnival Celebration is not a class leader, but Mardi Gras is. You also have to figure in any effect from cruising out of Orlando versus Miami - the former can clams more cruisers who may be unwilling/unable to fly. Differences in itineraries can also affect fares.

[notscb]

4 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

I have been looking at Celebration cruises for Jan/Feb and they are really low.

 

I imagine that while RCL has a lot of selling points for their newer ships, their price points are just not economical enough for many families for the new product. Carnival, on the other hand, will be offering a brand new product at the very same time for half of the cost which will likely drive some families their way as they look for an affordable way to cruise until prices for Icon come down. From a marketing perspective, Carnival has the upper hand with new product + family friendly pricing over RCL right now.

[cruisingguy007]

They need to send it westward, they don't need two on the east coast when they have zero of this class out west. 

[CruizinSusan70]

27 minutes ago, cruisingguy007 said:

They need to send it westward, they don't need two on the east coast when they have zero of this class out west. 

You're getting a Vista Class hand me down from Costa that will sail out of Long Beach, can't have that one plus an Excel Class ship.

[mondello]

3 hours ago, cruisingguy007 said:

They need to send it westward, they don't need two on the east coast when they have zero of this class out west. 

Come party with us in Miami, first drink is on me.

[tidecat]

6 hours ago, cruisingguy007 said:

They need to send it westward, they don't need two on the east coast when they have zero of this class out west. 

Long Beach doesn't have LNG capability. There's some question as to whether California would even allow it due to their regulations on air quality. 

 

I'm also not 100% sure Panorama is staying in Long Beach past April 2024. It could be that Firenze winds up displacing Panorama and Miracle and Radiance stay put. Four ships at Long Beach is possible, but the options aren't always the best.

[Joebucks]

9 hours ago, tidecat said:

Icon of the Seas is a class leader; the Oasis class will have been in service for over 14 years when Icon makes her debut, so Royal may be seeing a bump from it being a newer product.

 

Carnival Celebration is not a class leader, but Mardi Gras is. You also have to figure in any effect from cruising out of Orlando versus Miami - the former can clams more cruisers who may be unwilling/unable to fly. Differences in itineraries can also affect fares.

 

The rest of the Oasis class was never this cheap because lack of "class leading". 

 

I was certainly not expecting Celebration to be so cheap. Mardi Gras was 50-75% more and during a period of lower demand. I had to jump on it.

[notscb]

1 hour ago, tidecat said:

There's some question as to whether California would even allow it due to their regulations on air quality. 

 

can you expand on this? Based on my quick google search, it looks like Long Beach and SF both have had LNG powered vessels at their ports as recently as Sept. of this year.

[gkbiiii]

Icon of the Seas is top $$$$+ and is near sold out for it's Maiden Voyage

[mz-s]

7 hours ago, cruisingguy007 said:

They need to send it westward, they don't need two on the east coast when they have zero of this class out west. 

 

The west coast is having trouble filling Panorama.

 

WRT Celebration - fares are down because this is Carnival’s new business model. Cut the experience to bare bones and hope to make up the difference in onboard spend and fines.

[kelkel2]

16 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Usually when a new ship comes on line it commands high prices.

 

I have been looking at Celebration cruises for Jan/Feb and they are really low.

 

Icon of the Seas is starting to take bookings and they start a little over $1000 for an inside cabin.

 

 

I really don’t know. But we have already booked the Jubilee, and it wasn’t cheap. I’d enjoy it and take it as a sign you should book!

[chengkp75]

3 hours ago, notscb said:

 

can you expand on this? Based on my quick google search, it looks like Long Beach and SF both have had LNG powered vessels at their ports as recently as Sept. of this year.

Yes, and these are cargo ships with much less fuel consumption than a cruise ship, and are currently filled by LNG tanker trucks, which is possible during the 1-2 days the ship is in harbor, but which is not feasible for the amount of fuel a cruise ship would need to bunker.

 

I don't know that California has any specific concerns with LNG, but studies have shown that in the "well to wake" analysis of CO2 emissions (all effects of the fuel from the well, through processing, transportation, and distribution, to the burning in the ship's engines, that LNG, while cleaner in "hull to wake" (the actual burning of the fuel on the ship) is cleaner in both short term and long term (20 and 100 year analysis), in the "well to wake" it is significantly worse for CO2 emissions in the long term (20 and 100 year analysis), when burned in the types of engines used in cruise ships.  "Methane slip" or the amount of unburned natural gas lost from "well to wake" is significantly more damaging than an equivalent amount of CO2, I've seen reports of 200 times as harmful over 100 years.

[BlerkOne]

2 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

Icon of the Seas is top $$$$+ and is near sold out for it's Maiden Voyage

as Maiden Voyages do. Carnival's Jubilee is "sold out".

[Buck64]

Booked on the Celebration for July.  Cruise price is up $300 pp.  Same room category with no onboard credit.  Also for this cruise interiors are over $1400 pp.  

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

July 2023: Celebration ABC island crusie, 8 days, would be about $1200 more than the Horizon cruise we booked (S. Carribean) for our family of 5

[trvlgirlmq]

I just booked 2 cabins on Celebration for May 2023 and it ain’t cheap! Like someone above I wanted Horizon but was overruled for the new ship.

[notscb]

6 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

"Methane slip" or the amount of unburned natural gas lost from "well to wake" is significantly more damaging than an equivalent amount of CO2, I've seen reports of 200 times as harmful over 100 years.

 

OMG i was hoping you'd notice this post and chime in. I genuinely don't know much about LNG, so I'm glad you were able to provide some clarity. I guess the question becomes how the cruise lines source this stuff to actually make good on an environmental "promise," or do we just accept that it's another form of green-washing and move on?

[Knights on the Beach]

Last week we booked Celebration for December 2023 and are paying $1336 total for a balcony on Lido. Mardi Gras was over $700 more for the same week in the same cabin type. I don't know why it was so cheap but we jumped on it.

[chengkp75]

12 minutes ago, notscb said:

 

OMG i was hoping you'd notice this post and chime in. I genuinely don't know much about LNG, so I'm glad you were able to provide some clarity. I guess the question becomes how the cruise lines source this stuff to actually make good on an environmental "promise," or do we just accept that it's another form of green-washing and move on?

The thing is, most of the reason cruise ships are switching to LNG is cost.  LNG beats traditional fuel in the North America market cost wise, somewhat less attractive in Europe (though their infrastructure is better), and non-existent in Asia.

 

The beauty for the cruise lines is that they can claim less emissions by only monitoring CO2, not methane (which is not required), and leave the blame for more damage by LNG to those entities further up the supply chain.  The cruise lines' "environmental promise" is just PR pandering.