Current Promo--75% off Second Guest

[CharmCity2000]

Is this a good promo or just a different way of advertising the same price?  I'm looking at a cruise for Dec 2024 and not sure if I should book now or just wait.

[Jim_Iain]

Best to check and keep track.   Usually it's a shell game and they raise the cruise price and factor in the discount to come out to the same net price.

 

I have however seen times that the price was good and was able to price reduction.

 

I find it best to find the cruise you want as early as possible (prices keep creeping higher) and book it.    Check on a regular basis and if they price drops with a promotion like today then call your agent or Celebrity and have them match your price.   Of course this is only available up until final payment.

 

To speed the search I find the cruise and go to the page where you check cabin types.   I bookmark that page and then can quickly check.  I got a reduction on the cruise below 2 days prior to final payment.

 

Example of my April Cruise- 

https://www.celebritycruises.com/booking-cruise/selectRoom/stateroomCategory?pID=AX07W462&sDT=2023-04-15&sCD=AX&sCT=CO&roomQuantity=1

 

 

Edited February 19, 2023 by Jim_Iain

[blackshirt]

Prices don’t really change from one promotion to another. Supply and demand is what really dictates pricing, not the promotion. If you see a price you like, you should book now. If the price does go down before final payment, you can get the lower price. 

[AmberCascades]

What Blackshirt and Jim_Ian said.  If it's something you want to do and it's a price you can afford then book it.  On the last promotion like this we compared with our previously booked upcoming cruise (just before final payment) and it looked like we could get it for less.  We contacted our Celebrity rep and we got it for almost $2,000 less, plus we got additional OBC.  We looked at the cruise we have booked for next year and there are no savings to be had using the current promotion.   Bottom line, book it and if the price goes down later then you may be able to take advantage of it and get a price reduction.  In our experience the prices usually go up from what we've originally booked at.  This is the first time we've ever had that kind of major savings.

[Jim_Iain]

Have to agree with Amber.    We have a booking for my SIL on a British Isle Cruise in AQ for May (past final payment now).    I checked frequently and the prices has increased substantially from when we booked it 1 1/2 years ago.    Price has gone up from $7,200 to $10,150

[RickT]

Personally I’m not a big fan of the current promo.  I find the prices on the high side and have no need for a large shipboard credit.  Would prefer they drop the price and eliminate the shipboard credit.  

[CruisersTimesThree]

This promo has been going on for months! I booked my upcoming Feb cruise under it and keep looking at adding a 4 nighter to it to turn it into a b2b. Todays “promo” is almost $4000 (PH) more then when I first checked it months ago with the same “promo”

[OysterD]

1 hour ago, CruisersTimesThree said:

This promo has been going on for months! 

This! It's also been 'Ending in <insert arbitrary countdown time>' for months.

 

Yet when the countdown clock gets to zero, the next day the 'sale' is still on and the clock has just started up with a new plucked from the air time on it! 

[sunviking90]

34 minutes ago, OysterD said:

This! It's also been 'Ending in <insert arbitrary countdown time>' for months.

 

Yet when the countdown clock gets to zero, the next day the 'sale' is still on and the clock has just started up with a new plucked from the air time on it! 

Yes, and every so often they add an additional $50 OBC to the offered OBC, so wait a bit til that shows up again!

[DCPIV]

1 hour ago, sunviking90 said:

Yes, and every so often they add an additional $50 OBC to the offered OBC, so wait a bit til that shows up again!

 

Except that the fare goes up by at least that amount.

[markeb]

Ignore the promotion and just look at the final price. Are you comfortable with it?

 

I'm not quite as convinced as others that X is simply going through blatant price manipulation (just raise the first passenger fare so that the 75% off is the same as two at 100%). Eventually that gets you in trouble (see the various lawsuits against Jos. A. Bank for "always being on sale"...). But the real question is whether the price you're seeing is acceptable to you. If it is, book it, maybe check back every month or so for a price decrease (recognizing that the new price is likely different enough that you won't get the same deal), but otherwise forget it and enjoy the cruise. You paid a price you were happy with!

 

(No, for those about to pounce, I'm not saying pay a clearly crazy price. I'm saying the sale is meaningless. The only thing that matter is whether you're OK with your own real after discount fare!)

[DCPIV]

7 minutes ago, markeb said:

(No, for those about to pounce, I'm not saying pay a clearly crazy price. I'm saying the sale is meaningless. The only thing that matter is whether you're OK with your own real after discount fare!)

 

I totally agree.  I do like you mention and make a mock booking from time to time to see if prices go down.  I haven't seen them go down at all since 2021.  Just the opposite.  We're about to sail, and the the same room class has gone up around 25% from when we booked.  The same room on a similar itinerary on the same ship at about the same time next year is about 60% more.

 

If you are happy with a price, book it.  They ain't getting cheaper right now.

[miched]

Tomato or taymayto  it is still the same.    
 

5:45 or quarter to 6.  It is still the same. 
 

The who said to best in their song “We Won’t Be Fooled Again”.  Meet the new boss, same as the old boss

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[deliver42]

The earlier you book, the better the price. Nothing has gone down in my experience for the past year.

[Mimiya11]

Current Promo has been going on for months now.  We are boarding a cruise this weekend which we booked in December with the same promo of 75% off and OBC   It said sale was only on for 24 hours.  Well 2 months later.....  

The only thing is ...at the time of booking, it also included 3 perks (AI) and the price went up pretty quickly.   Have not seen the A! included since.  

 

[sunviking90]

1 hour ago, DCPIV said:

 

Except that the fare goes up by at least that amount.

Not always. Ours didn’t.

[luckyinpa]

i had no idea why my cruise was priced this way till i remembered this sale. the booking page was 12011 pp but my receipt says this so i guess they make it lopsided to reflect the 'sale'

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

We booked our RS with the buy one get one 75% off promo. For us it was about the obc associated with the promotion. That’s where the price difference comes in IMO. Of course we received the $300 pp nonrefundable OBC for being in a suite but we also received $700 OBC (refundable) from our TA. For us, that’s where the savings come from. My suggestion is to shop around for the best refundable OBC.  

[Ellaleah]

I booked 2 solo verandas on the Apex for 11/24.  It was a great price AI and the solos were all sold out by the next day.  We got the 75% off.  I think it is really advantageous in this situation.

[rodndonna]

17 hours ago, RickT said:

Personally I’m not a big fan of the current promo.  I find the prices on the high side and have no need for a large shipboard credit.  Would prefer they drop the price and eliminate the shipboard credit.  

 

We can't name TA's, but here in Canada (since you are Canadian) we have an airline based TA (remaining nameless)  that appears (at least for our cruise) to have a fare option where the price is reduced by the OBC, and then no OBC is given. 

[RickT]

2 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

We can't name TA's, but here in Canada (since you are Canadian) we have an airline based TA (remaining nameless)  that appears (at least for our cruise) to have a fare option where the price is reduced by the OBC, and then no OBC is given. 

Thanks.  I think those fares are the Celebrity Exciting Deals where it’s simply the base fare with no perks.  Worth looking at.

[rodndonna]

43 minutes ago, RickT said:

Thanks.  I think those fares are the Celebrity Exciting Deals where it’s simply the base fare with no perks.  Worth looking at.

 

They have both (at least for our cruise Sept 2024)... with the "all inclusive" pricing and without. When you select a room and rates, you get a slew of rate options  

 

I just checked for our sailing with them again ... and I see XXX Special Rate with All Included..option - which has no OBC at a rate of $273 Canadian pp cheaper than the rate offering the OBC. The OBC is $200 pp US (effectively that $273 pp)

 

We won't have any problem spending that OBC on our cruise (13 day Hawaii) so we just booked Celebrity directly this time but we considered it.

Edited February 20, 2023 by rodndonna
more info

[crewsgirl]

I am just now looking at Celebrity for a June cruise using this promo. Do you think the best deal is cruise only fare and rock bottom price or should we do the added beverage/tips package? Not sure what the tip rate is for this 7 nighter I am looking at, so if you happen to know, I would appreciate it. This will be our first trip on Celebrity and I thought the prices were pretty good. Can't go HAL for this price, so we are hoping it is good. If you use this 75% off promo for the 2nd guest, can you participate in bidding up? I am not familiar with that process at all. TIA

[fourmile.ranch]

I've noticed the AI is often less expensive if choosing a higher fare. This example is an inside guaranteed vs. prime ocean view.

[davekathy]

28 minutes ago, crewsgirl said:

I am just now looking at Celebrity for a June cruise using this promo. Do you think the best deal is cruise only fare and rock bottom price or should we do the added beverage/tips package? Not sure what the tip rate is for this 7 nighter I am looking at, so if you happen to know, I would appreciate it. This will be our first trip on Celebrity and I thought the prices were pretty good. Can't go HAL for this price, so we are hoping it is good. If you use this 75% off promo for the 2nd guest, can you participate in bidding up? I am not familiar with that process at all. TIA

Gratuities are $17.50 pp/pd for inside, ocean view, and standard balcony staterooms. Concierge Class staterooms is $18.00 pp/pd.  AI is a personal preference of what is a good value or not. We always select AI.