More Price Drops Noticed - but they're fighting back....be persistent!

[Ourusualbeach]

29 minutes ago, jencruzin said:

Thanks for pointing this out....about to run a mock booking again to see. We're midship, on the hump, slightly bigger balcony but didn't pay more for it. We booked this cabin on our last cruise.

That is a different category than what you are pricing. 

[jencruzin]

1 minute ago, Ourusualbeach said:

That is a different category than what you are pricing. 

Actually no, this particular hump balcony wasn't listed as a different or higher category rating for some reason. However, thanks much for pointing out earlier what I did not notice. I checked, the midship balcony cabin booking is the same as our category.

[Ourusualbeach]

22 minutes ago, jencruzin said:

So here we go. Thanks ourusualbeach for pointing this out, I'm sobered up now from thinking I'd get the PD! THIS time I ran the mock booking center ship, like our booked cabin. Now, it's went up, so I think I'm giving this up and just pay off the remaining balance:
 

At least you were able to figure it out.  Royals website makes it easy to compare the wrong cabins which can lead to frustration like you experienced because you are not comparing apples to apples.  I also feel sorry for the reps who have to do their best to tell people that they are looking at a different category, in your case the rep should gave realized you were looking at a different category and pointed that out. 

[Ourusualbeach]

3 minutes ago, jencruzin said:

Actually no, this particular hump balcony wasn't listed as a different or higher category rating for some reason. However, thanks much for pointing out earlier what I did not notice. I checked, the midship balcony cabin booking is the same as our category.

I say category because I refer to anything thst is different as a different category even though technically it is a different subcategory.  There can be 9 or more balcony subcategories all with different prices. 

[nasa1974]

10 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

I say category because I refer to anything thst is different as a different category even though technically it is a different subcategory.  There can be 9 or more balcony subcategories all with different prices. 

That's crazy.

[Jimbo]

33 minutes ago, c-leg5 said:

How does that help, the OP is trying to pay less not more?

Guess it helped her out because now she is considering it....   Go figure, what do you know.

[Ourusualbeach]

Just now, nasa1974 said:

That's crazy.

Not really.  There are different sizes of balcony cabins both cabin size and balcony size, different locations and different occupancy levels... nearly every cruise line is the same 

[c-leg5]

37 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Guess it helped her out because now she is considering it....   Go figure, what do you know.

Obviously I don’t. Seems like a complete turnaround to me.
 

We had some good deals on Royal Ups when cruising resumed but they seem to be harder to find these days.

[Homosassa]

Could part of your problem be that your request is being made outside of the forty eight hours of your initial booking  that would fall under the Best Price Guarantee?

[Starry Eyes]

51 minutes ago, nasa1974 said:

That's crazy.

It would be crazy if they did not break similar cabins into subcategories and price each subcategory differently by perceived value.  

[jencruzin]

1 hour ago, nasa1974 said:

That's crazy.

ourusual is right though about this. I found out this without knowing beforehand and yes, it is crazy!

[Ourusualbeach]

1 hour ago, Homosassa said:

Could part of your problem be that your request is being made outside of the forty eight hours of your initial booking  that would fall under the Best Price Guarantee?

No.  That 48 hour best price guarantee only applies to bookings made after final payment date.

[Biker19]

3 hours ago, jencruzin said:

Now, it's went up, so I think I'm giving this up and just pay off the remaining balance and won't look at pricing again.

Fixed.

[Biker19]

Dup

Edited February 22, 2023 by Biker19

[Mum2Mercury]

I'm all about watching for price drops, and I'll make two comments on this: 

 

- When you call and ask for a price drop, they'll almost always say, "Yes, we have a price drop.  Wouldn't you like to bump up to a nicer room?"  Just consider ahead of time whether this is what you want so you'll have your answer ready. 

- Be 1000% sure you've done your math right.  Check it twice, write it out and have that note pad in front of you.  A relative of mine recently called and HAD IT OUT with a Royal phone person ... only to realize his math was wrong.  Oops.  

[Starry Eyes]

1 hour ago, jencruzin said:

ourusual is right though about this. I found out this without knowing beforehand and yes, it is crazy!

As you were pleased that your slightly larger balcony had not cost extra, you must have known some balconies are priced higher than others.  And you knew you were booking a nicer balcony.  
 

In the future you’ll know it is easier if you write down your exact cabin category and the price before port and taxes and any other additions.  If you want to keep your exact cabin when you do a price check you must look for your exact category.  If you are willing to change cabin location, you can look at other prices, too.

[Mum2Mercury]

Just now, Starry Eyes said:

As you were pleased that your slightly larger balcony had not cost extra, you must have known some balconies are priced higher than others.  And you knew you were booking a nicer balcony.  
 

In the future you’ll know it is easier if you write down your exact cabin category and the price before port and taxes and any other additions.  If you want to keep your exact cabin when you do a price check you must look for your exact category.  If you are willing to change cabin location, you can look at other prices, too.

Yes, small differences between rooms in the same categories (for example, standard balcony vs. large balcony) is an easy way to "go wrong".  

[TheMiz]

Of course in my case there has been a price drop because of a Senior Rate that lowered the 

cruise by $314    BUT this is after Final Payment was made. 

[Starry Eyes]

11 minutes ago, TheMiz said:

Of course in my case there has been a price drop because of a Senior Rate that lowered the 

cruise by $314    BUT this is after Final Payment was made. 

Do you mean it was after your final payment date?  

Some people make their final payment before the due date; they can still get price drops (money back to credit card or other payment method) until the actual final payment date.

[TheMiz]

1 hour ago, Starry Eyes said:

Do you mean it was after your final payment date?  

Some people make their final payment before the due date; they can still get price drops (money back to credit card or other payment method) until the actual final payment date.

 

 

Yep mine was after the due date.   Nothing I could do about it anymore. 

[Starry Eyes]

4 minutes ago, TheMiz said:

 

 

Yep mine was after the due date.   Nothing I could do about it anymore. 

I’ve had that happen in the past, though lately prices on my cruises seem to be climbing instead.  
 

After final payment I *try* not to pay attention to the price of my cabin, instead looking at the prices of better cabins for upgrade opportunities.  

Edited February 22, 2023 by Starry Eyes

[Mary Louise]

I had a PD before final payment of our cruise for over a $100. They would not give it to me as they said it was for new bookings only. They find ways not to give you the PD. No where did I see new bookings only. They did take it to the resolutions department and still a no go. 
 

ML

[jencruzin]

10 hours ago, Mary Louise said:

I had a PD before final payment of our cruise for over a $100. They would not give it to me as they said it was for new bookings only. They find ways not to give you the PD. No where did I see new bookings only. They did take it to the resolutions department and still a no go. 
 

ML

Yes indeed. We have 5 more days to make our final payment. We'll probably end up just getting it over with - but the excursions, 5 day dining, chef's table, onboard activities? If we see a PD in ANY of those items, we'll cancel and rebook under the cheaper rates (IF they occur). So far we have saved, overall, nearly $2k thanks to these drops.

[kccrzr]

I called this morning about a price drop of $600 on a cruise with final payment early next week and received it with no issues and no pitch to book a higher category cabin.