Oceania 2023 Sales Offer History: Be paying attention in 2024

[MEFIowa]

If there is ONE CONSTANT with O it is...SALES. Sales after sales. All sales are not created equal. BUT both before you book and certainly after you book, pay very close attention to each and every sale. For the devil is in the details with O's various sales. One sale after another. Which can save you a fortune. Ask anyone who booked off the Extraordinary Savings Sale of 2023. This was the mother of sales for 2023.

 

In 2024 we've got the New Year Sale that ends 29 Feb 24. Sadly, looks like NO Presidents' Day Sale, which ran, for example, in 2021 (from which I rebooked our very first cruise. 

 

I pulled out my pile of saved brochures...

 

2023 Sales:

 

1. 20th Anniversary Sale, January-February.

2. OLife Ultimate Sale, March-April.

3. Explore More (Land Programs), April-June

4. Extraordinary Savings Sale, May

5. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, June.

-----------------------------------------------

6. Summer Sale, July-August. [START OF SIMPLY MORE]

7. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, September.

8. Experience Europe 2024 Sale*, 1 October -20 November.

9. Black Friday Sale, November.

10. Holiday Sale, 6-31 December.

 

I'm not sure I'd count either #3 or #8 as "major sales". So, I'd count at least 8 (eight) major sales in 2023.

 

* "2 for 1 Deposits and up to $1,000 onboard cash"

[FetaCheese]

1 hour ago, MEFIowa said:

If there is ONE CONSTANT with O it is...SALES. Sales after sales. All sales are not created equal. BUT both before you book and certainly after you book, pay very close attention to each and every sale. For the devil is in the details with O's various sales. One sale after another. Which can save you a fortune. Ask anyone who booked off the Extraordinary Savings Sale of 2023. This was the mother of sales for 2023.

 

In 2024 we've got the New Year Sale that ends 29 Feb 24. Sadly, looks like NO Presidents' Day Sale, which ran, for example, in 2021 (from which I rebooked our very first cruise. 

 

I pulled out my pile of saved brochures...

 

2023 Sales:

 

1. 20th Anniversary Sale, January-February.

2. OLife Ultimate Sale, March-April.

3. Explore More (Land Programs), April-June

4. Extraordinary Savings Sale, May

5. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, June.

-----------------------------------------------

6. Summer Sale, July-August. [START OF SIMPLY MORE]

7. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, September.

8. Experience Europe 2024 Sale*, 1 October -20 November.

9. Black Friday Sale, November.

10. Holiday Sale, 6-31 December.

 

I'm not sure I'd count either #3 or #8 as "major sales". So, I'd count at least 8 (eight) major sales in 2023.

 

* "2 for 1 Deposits and up to $1,000 onboard cash"

Thank you for summarizing those sales.  Definitely agree the ESS was terrific.  Booked Alaska from it, last September.

[AMHuntFerry]

This is additional info for those reading who may be new to O. Please note that the sales listed are those available directly from O. There are other sales that are only available via TAs. For example, the Extraordinary Sale was available in February 2023 via a TA (I booked an ESS cruise for September on March 10, 2023). It pays (literally) to have access to at least one TA's sale opportunities. Those wishing for the most opportunities probably use more than one TA...probably one from each consortium as well as a well-connected O TA (more effort than I'm willing to expend though...sometimes saving $ just isn't worth the hassle).

[WESTEAST]

2 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

If there is ONE CONSTANT with O it is...SALES. Sales after sales. All sales are not created equal. BUT both before you book and certainly after you book, pay very close attention to each and every sale. For the devil is in the details with O's various sales. One sale after another. Which can save you a fortune. Ask anyone who booked off the Extraordinary Savings Sale of 2023. This was the mother of sales for 2023.

 

In 2024 we've got the New Year Sale that ends 29 Feb 24. Sadly, looks like NO Presidents' Day Sale, which ran, for example, in 2021 (from which I rebooked our very first cruise. 

 

I pulled out my pile of saved brochures...

 

2023 Sales:

 

1. 20th Anniversary Sale, January-February.

2. OLife Ultimate Sale, March-April.

3. Explore More (Land Programs), April-June

4. Extraordinary Savings Sale, May

5. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, June.

-----------------------------------------------

6. Summer Sale, July-August. [START OF SIMPLY MORE]

7. 4 Category Upgrade Sale, September.

8. Experience Europe 2024 Sale*, 1 October -20 November.

9. Black Friday Sale, November.

10. Holiday Sale, 6-31 December.

 

I'm not sure I'd count either #3 or #8 as "major sales". So, I'd count at least 8 (eight) major sales in 2023.

 

* "2 for 1 Deposits and up to $1,000 onboard cash"

Thank you for this list as it is a good reference. We took advantage of the Land Program and then the ESS for two different cruises.  Will be interesting to see if 2024 follows the same continuous pattern. 

[clo]

6 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

I don't think all that many pay close enough attention to each new sale as it arrives, sale after sale.

But we're 100% port/destination oriented and would never book a cruise just for the price. Well, we might decide to NOT book a cruise because of the price. Get it?

[MEFIowa]

43 minutes ago, clo said:

But we're 100% port/destination oriented and would never book a cruise just for the price. Well, we might decide to NOT book a cruise because of the price. Get it?

I think you're missing something. I book for destinations and ports and excursions, too. AND I RE-book the same cruise when a BETTER sale comes along. So I may start in a G then re-book to a C then re-book to a B or an A. So that means...STUDY each new sale carefully from the moment you book your cruise. Get it? Sales matter.

[clo]

1 minute ago, MEFIowa said:

I think you're missing something. I book for destinations and ports and excursions, too. AND I RE-book the same cruise when a BETTER sale comes along. So I may start in a G then re-book to a C then re-book to a B or an A. So that means...STUDY each new sale carefully from the moment you book your cruise. Get it? Sales matter.

L. O. L. I think you're WAY more into shopping than I am.

[MEFIowa]

3 minutes ago, clo said:

...I think you're WAY more into shopping than I am.

Really, saving thousands of dollars is too much "shopping"? When it takes a matter of a few minutes to scan prices when O announces each new sale. They send out the sales brochures. I can go to the web site.

 

BUT take just the ESS from 2023, 10 nights in a B3 for just $1749 PP and 10 nights in an A4 for just $1899 PP. Both on Riviera. Mediterranean. Oct-Nov 2023. 20 nights for just $3648. When I told some people on these cruises how LITTLE I paid, they almost cried! 

[basor]

Thankfully our TA is on top of the sales and lets us know with each sale that comes up for a cruise we are booked on, the pluses and minus so we can decide if it is in our favor to rebook.reprice.  We have never booked cruise only so can only compare our past cruises under OLife (no air) and now under SM (no air).  She spends her time not mine and gives us her perks too.

[ak1004]

We book based on itinerary we like. We won't book a cruise just because it's on sale. Overall we find O prices very reasonable based on what you get. If an itinerary we want goes on sale, it's a bonus, but it never happened so far. I guess they put the least desirable itineraries on sale, 

[ORV]

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

We book based on itinerary we like. We won't book a cruise just because it's on sale. Overall we find O prices very reasonable based on what you get. If an itinerary we want goes on sale, it's a bonus, but it never happened so far. I guess they put the least desirable itineraries on sale, 

Absolutely the least desirable ones go on sale or ones that aren’t selling well. But what might be undesirable to one person might be desirable to another. Just like the cruise I’m on now, while not cheap it did have a great price reduction. While many others have done it, it was new to me. I feel the same way about much of the Mediterranean or Caribbean, if it’s a good deal I’ll consider it, even though we’ve been there many times. 

[shepherd really]

Past sales are in no way predictive of future sales.  They are of no value in assessing what may happen this year unless you are in the marketing department of Oceania.

 

 

[Psoque]

It would be nice to see a great sales event like the Extraordinary Sales later this year, to see if the cruise we booked late last year can come down in price a bit, like it did for our previous cruise.

[MEFIowa]

20 hours ago, shepherd really said:

Past sales are in no way predictive of future sales.  They are of no value in assessing what may happen this year unless you are in the marketing department of Oceania.

The POINT is that O has SALES after SALES each year, going back to 2021, when there was the COVID restart.

 

I booked our first cruise (12/2021) off the Presidents' Day Sale in 2021. Cabin upgrade sale. That is pretty routine. Had been around Memorial Day and Labor Day, too. There were 2 cabin upgrade sales in 2023.

 

So the KEY is to WATCH each and every SALE to see how it may apply to an already booked cruise or one you may be interested in.

[MEFIowa]

On 2/12/2024 at 9:00 AM, ak1004 said:

... If an itinerary we want goes on sale, it's a bonus, but it never happened so far. I guess they put the least desirable itineraries on sale, 

Though if you look over ALL the cruises O put on sale in 2023, almost impossible to say it was the least desirable ones only.

 

BUT one thing that seems to hold true is that the sweet spot for so many sales is the B-A cabins. The G/Fs are the floor. The cabin-upgrade sales nearly always bring prices of B-A cabins down. Rarer for PHs to be in the cabin-upgrade sales. And seemingly rarer still for suites (not sure I've ever seen them in a cabin-upgrade sale).

[ak1004]

4 minutes ago, MEFIowa said:

Though if you look over ALL the cruises O put on sale in 2023, almost impossible to say it was the least desirable ones only.

 

BUT one thing that seems to hold true is that the sweet spot for so many sales is the B-A cabins. The G/Fs are the floor. The cabin-upgrade sales nearly always bring prices of B-A cabins down. Rarer for PHs to be in the cabin-upgrade sales. And seemingly rarer still for suites (not sure I've ever seen them in a cabin-upgrade sale).

 

We usually book C (OV) on Riviera/Marina and B5 (FV) on Vista. I'm sure many good itineraries were on sale too, it's just somehow never those that we booked.. also, the upgrade sale doesn't mean much to us since we don't care about veranda, and not likely being upgraded to PH.

[EJL2023]

You act as if ongoing sales are just an Oceania thing. I just opened the sites for Regent, Viking, Silversea, Seabourn and Azamara.  They all have a current sales indicated on their home page. I get ads weekly in the mail throughout the year from either their marketing departments or my travel agency. Therefore, I feel confident that those of us that take cruises have a decent understanding of the concept of sales.

[MEFIowa]

2 minutes ago, EJL2023 said:

You act as if ongoing sales are just an Oceania thing. I just opened the sites for Regent, Viking, Silversea, Seabourn and Azamara.  They all have a current sales indicated on their home page....

The POINT of this is to EDUCATE actual or potential OCEANIA cruisers of what O does with its sales and sale history. I could care less about Azamara, Regent, Silversea, or Viking. They have their own groups and pages.

 

What is sad is how many O cruisers seemingly book a cruise and then fail to monitor sales to see if their cruise could cost them less. Some claim their TA does that for them and others have encountered resistance from TAs when prices dropped significantly.

 

I book directly thru O using the same O sales rep each time. I've rebooked nearly all my 6 cruises (so far 3 of 4 taken and 1 of 2 for the future) and I hope to rebook the 2 later this year, if they go on sale (again for the one I've already rebooked once).

[MEFIowa]

39 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

We usually book C (OV) on Riviera/Marina and B5 (FV) on Vista....

I used an O sale in October 2022 to rebook a 9/2024 cruise in the Baltic on Sirena, from a G (60xx) to a C1 (one of the big ones on deck 7, 70xx). Cruise only. Had booked the G on 7 May 22 for $2499 PP and rebooked it into that C1 on 20 Oct 22 for $2849. So here I used a sale to pay a bit more for what we think is a far better room. Part of a 22-night B2B, where the first 12 days are in an F (70xx), booked under the Summer Sale of 2023.

 

Today that C1 is $3,899 (promotional fare, no airfare, with SM).

[thebsinmiss]

I have been watching the back and forth on this topic and now it applies to us.  Booked a June cruise on Riviera last year via a TA.  Spotted a sale before our final payment due (per the 150 day requirement) and the TA had the fare adjusted to the new lower price.

 

Just looked at the O sales yesterday and the way I read it the same cruise/ship/cabin class is about 700.00 dollars (cdn) per person lower than the adjusted price. On the website it shows the cabins as available for that price point.   I have asked our TA to ask O for an adjustment.

 

Given all the posts about O's management practices and attitudes I am guessing they will say no changes as payment is final.  Does anyone have prior experience with this scenario?

 

I would hope the TA might get a cabin upgrade (From B2 to concierge?)

 

Thoughts? Guidance ?

 

Edited February 13 by thebsinmiss

[clo]

1 hour ago, ak1004 said:

the upgrade sale doesn't mean much to us since we don't care about veranda,

We were 'given' upgrades 2x IIRC to veranda cabins. I think we walked out on them maybe twice.  Just do a thing for us.

[MarkWiltonM]

This is an interesting thread. I usually book just after itineraries open, and then I check sales to see if the fares have gone down, but they never have after my bookings. We always book a B2 or B3 veranda. Maybe it's because we book so early and usually the price either stays the same or increases. ???

 

Now that you lose an administrative fee if you cancel at any time after booking, I assume that fee would offset any savings if I found a slightly lower price and tried to cancel/rebook. But if this isn't the case before final payment, please let me know. 

[MEFIowa]

46 minutes ago, thebsinmiss said:

I have been watching the back and forth on this topic and now it applies to us....

Let us know what ends up happening. A good reminder in the real world to "always be checking O sales", esp. when you've booked a cruise. Hope something good comes out of it.

[MEFIowa]

1 minute ago, MarkWiltonM said:

This is an interesting thread. I usually book just after itineraries open, and then I check sales to see if the fares have gone down, but they never have after my bookings. We always book a B2 or B3 veranda. Maybe it's because we book so early and usually the price either stays the same or increases. ???

The better cabin-upgrade sales certainly can and do reduce prices for Bs. And that ESS did for the Bs and As.

 

I booked our 2023 Med cruise on Riviera when it first opened in early 2022. Rebooked it once during a 2022 sale and then rebooked it again in 2023 with the ESS. Got rock-bottom low prices for a B3 and an A3.

[shepherd really]

5 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

The POINT is that O has SALES after SALES each year, going back to 2021, when there was the COVID restart.

 

I booked our first cruise (12/2021) off the Presidents' Day Sale in 2021. Cabin upgrade sale. That is pretty routine. Had been around Memorial Day and Labor Day, too. There were 2 cabin upgrade sales in 2023.

 

So the KEY is to WATCH each and every SALE to see how it may apply to an already booked cruise or one you may be interested in.

So, you missed my point, which is that it doesn't matter what the previous sales told you, past is not prologue.