CENTURY Being Redeployed...........

[kelmac]

Hi Lois,

 

Lauren and I were booked on the June 2nd Century cruise. I have airline tickets, prepaid hotel rooms..., I'm going to have to fill the void with something, as too much is on the line with non-refundable tickets. I understand the move (I'm a stock holder), but it still kind of sucks.

Oh well, lemons to lemonade time! Hang in there!

 

Kel

[dkjretired]

LP:

 

Another suggestion would be to check with your TA and see if they can schedule you for one of the Royal Caribbean ships which might be sailing the same time as your previously scheduled Century trip.

 

Don

[FreesiaE]

Hmm, I wonder if there is any connection between this move and the recent CDC scores given. Maybe not, but it is an interesting thought!

[jezzdogg]

Sorry to hear about everyone's disappointment's. We find latley that when we cruise in Europe there are always great iternaries on Celebrity, however to cruise the caribbean ........they have been leaving that to RCI (which is what we are sailing in Feb.) However, we really perfer the look and service on Celebrity. Maybe if the information we were told aboard ther Millie this past summer is correct.........2006 will see at least one new ship for Celebrity followed by 4 others. So far the person who worksk for Celebrity was accurate when he told us that they have leased the Horizon and would stop sailing her in Oct 2005, so maybe ????

[Andy]

Sorry to hear about everyone's disappointment's. We find latley that when we cruise in Europe there are always great iternaries on Celebrity, however to cruise the caribbean ........they have been leaving that to RCI (which is what we are sailing in Feb.) However, we really perfer the look and service on Celebrity. Maybe if the information we were told aboard ther Millie this past summer is correct.........2006 will see at least one new ship for Celebrity followed by 4 others. So far the person who worksk for Celebrity was accurate when he told us that they have leased the Horizon and would stop sailing her in Oct 2005, so maybe ????

 

Hu Jezzdogg !

 

We can only hope we will hear something about new ships very soon. I wouldnt mind all of these changes so much, but it would be MUCH easier to tolerate, if they had 2-4 additional ships to fill the gaps, without hurting other markets.... when sudden opportunites arise.

 

At this moment, It looks Celebrity is assuming that everyone will switch over to Royal Caribbean, and we all know that Royal Caribbean is NOT Celebrity. We also know what happens when we assume :)

 

Right now, the Caribbean is getting down to almost nothing by Celebrity, and I truly hope they know what they are doing. They are going to give their competition a tremendous opening, and to me, that's just a very bad idea.

 

Regards,

Andy

[Lois R]

Hi folks:) .......well, you know how you hear about Celebrity folks reading these boards....I have always wondered if that is true......not that it matters really, because this is all about the BOTTOM LINE.......which we all know is $$$$$$.....

They may read it.....but if they know they will make more money in Europe....it won't matter to them if we are sad:( ........

 

Andy.....wanna go to Europe?;)

[C 2 C]

 

At this moment, It looks Celebrity is assuming that everyone will switch over to Royal Caribbean, and we all know that Royal Caribbean is NOT Celebrity. We also know what happens when we assume :)

 

Andy

 

My latest Celebrity newsletter states that my elite status with Celebrity is transferrable to RCL.... and we will be platinum / elite there..

[alpal1993]

Lucky for me I live in Ft Lauderdale,so I don't have to worry about cancelling or changing any reservations.We were booked with Kelmac for the June 2 sailing. I guess I will have to call mt T/A when I get home.Iwas really lookig forward to seeing Aruba and Sharing Curacao with my DH.

I have cruised 14 times and this is the first time this has happened to me.If we get a credit Bermuda Alaska and Europe all sound great to me.

I will be on a cruise ship somewhere this June.

[mii]

Lois: I just posted at the floataway lounge to you on Cat's thread as I was also on the Sapphire with him last Oct. Cat, Wanda, my DH and I are going next May to Alaska on the Infinity on May 28th. It might be too far for you to come but it would be fun to have you with us. As I understand though the ship is filling up fast so I am not sure what category is available but would love to have you come with us. Even though I have always sailed Princess this will be my first time with Celebrity and looking forward to it. Talk at you soon.

 

Marilyn

[Lois R]

hi Marilyn:) ....thanks......but I cannot sail at the very end of a month~May 28th cuts it too close for me....Month end closing........

 

I am sure we will find something.......cannot go without a cruise for a whole year...and this year of 2004 I have been very blessed.....4 cruises........

[chessbriar]

What is being offered it a couple of choices.

 

1) Rebook same cruise to occur between Oct 29 2005 and December 15 2005. They will honor the price (price protection) you paid and give you $100 shipboard credit for regular rooms and $200 for Concierge Class and higher.

 

2) Rebook and cruise RCL or X to occur between now and Decemer 31 2005. You pay going price, but they will give you $200 shipboard credit for a regular cabin and $400 for Concierge Class and higher.

 

With regard to airfare, if you provide proof to them for the airfare, they will pay up to $100 to cover rebooking airfare to a different date.

 

They are trying to help as mcuh as they can, but Caribbean sales ahave been weak and Europe sales have been incredibly brisk. They did the reverse of this back in 2002 whe European sales were week, they brought the Galaxy back to America to do a run of Caribbean cruises from Baltimore. That's how that itinerary got it's start.

[Ine]

I feel sorry for you guys who had reservations or at least plans for the Century this summer.

 

But....for us it might be good. We have (yet) no plans for the summer, so who knows...

At least I will see Century sailing through the North sea channel, which is quite close to our home.

[Andy]

What is being offered it a couple of choices.

 

1) Rebook same cruise to occur between Oct 29 2005 and December 15 2005. They will honor the price (price protection) you paid and give you $100 shipboard credit for regular rooms and $200 for Concierge Class and higher.

 

2) Rebook and cruise RCL or X to occur between now and Decemer 31 2005. You pay going price, but they will give you $200 shipboard credit for a regular cabin and $400 for Concierge Class and higher.

 

With regard to airfare, if you provide proof to them for the airfare, they will pay up to $100 to cover rebooking airfare to a different date.

 

They are trying to help as mcuh as they can, but Caribbean sales ahave been weak and Europe sales have been incredibly brisk. They did the reverse of this back in 2002 whe European sales were week, they brought the Galaxy back to America to do a run of Caribbean cruises from Baltimore. That's how that itinerary got it's start.

 

Hi Rick !

 

Not very generous options if you ask me, but then again, just how much can they do for you, with most of these sailings several months away. Tough call.

 

As I have said before, I am not surprised at all that Century's Caribbean sales were "weak" as you mentioned.

 

I have said from the moment this itinerary was annonced, that this itinerary was going to be a near impossible sell. Celebrity had options to correct it, but they did not. So, it is no surprise that sales were weak. They simply dropped the ball on this.

 

What they should have done with Century was any of the following :

 

1. Lower prices for the 9 night sailing - they were MUCH too high for a 9 year old ship.

 

2. Adjust the itineraries so they didnt have odd, weekday departure dates... some of the itineraries were very difficult for those of us who have to work.

 

3. Change the itinerary back to alternating 7 night Eastern/Western Caribbean (with a newer, updated itinerary). This would have been my choice. I just cannot see Century as a 9/10 night ship. Those runs should be left to the M-Class ships.

 

And while they saw bookings were slow, they should have put the ship into this long awaited Drydock for a week or 2 to spruce up the ship. As we know, it is needed.

 

While I do not agree with the Redeployment, I will say that is a nice itinerary. I do feel that with the VERY weak US Dollar, I have to ask... why would anyone want to go to Europe this Summer ??? Any Europe trip will be very expensive this year. The only folks this really benefits is passengers who live overseas. With this decision, I would imagine Celebrity is making a major effort, to capture more of the European Market.

 

While this may work out well for them, it is another bad move in alienating their passengers who want to sail closer to home. For their sake, let's hope it works out, but I am not holding my breath.

 

Happy Holidays !

Andy

[Mary El]

Just heard the news about Century moving to Europe. The Century is our favorite ship. Went to the Celebrity web site to see how much a transatlantic for next fall would be but there's nothing there for Century past April 2005. Does anyone know when Celebrity will update their website? SHEESH! They really ought to keep their website up to date: they make an announcement about moving the Century to Europe but no way to book it!

[CGTNORMANDIE]

So...the Americans build the cruise industry up...5 years ago you couldn't sell a European cruise to Europeans. Now the Europeans want to cruise and the euro is at an all time high...do the math. It is ironic that we Americans built the cruise industry and now it is all sailing off to Europe. 2005 will be the first year that we will have a hard time finding the right cruise for Octobe/November. Now you know why the RCI stock took another jump to an all time high this week...sad but true.

 

ROSS

[chessbriar]

Actually the weak dollar helps this situation. How many people will now choose to cruise Europe as opposed to doing land tours or finding hotels. Price all stays in USD

As to when the itineraries will show up for the customer and be available for sale. January 6 2005

[Andy]

[quote name='chessbriar']Actually the weak dollar helps this situation. How many people will now choose to cruise Europe as opposed to doing land tours or finding hotels. Price all stays in USD[/QUOTE]

Hi Rick !

Good point. But, what I was referring to in my post, is that items "while on land" in Europe, would be very expensive. I should have been more clear about that.

Your point is well taken... that for the person determined to see Europe, perhaps they will do a Cruise, instead of a fully land-based vacation. That is probably why Celebrity is seeing increased demand.

Regards,
Andy

[Sky Sweet]

[b]In light of the fact that summer is prime season for tourists in Europe and off season in the Carribean, I can certainly understand why Celebrity made this decision. [/b]

[rcicruiser]

They are sending it to Europe because Europe is selling out. The people who are booking them are Americans. The October 29 sail will be in the Caribbean. You have to send your ships where they are making the money.

[Tatka]

Prices that they list for Europe are VERY high... You gotta remember that you are also paying for transatlantic flight, and tours...It's not your Caribbean ports where you can do sightseeing on your own or pay $20 - 50 for ship tours...

We did 7 days Med cruise this May on RCI Splendour of the Sea + 1 night in Barcelona and day in London. Tried to be cheap on everything except tours/excursions. Took cheapest category on the ship and paid only $720 pp. Didn't have any ship bill (well if we had it was under $100) Found pretty cheap and rare airfair to Barcelona, only $570pp and still paid 5000+ for our trip. (only 2 of us). I can't imagine how much it would cost if only cruisefare will be $2100 pp for the cheapes accomodations.:eek:

[Lp56]

We are all set. We changed from the canceled Century to a 10 day sailing on the Summit. Celebrity is paying for the cost of changing our airfare plus $200 cabin credit. My insurance is just rolling over to this new cruise. I also was able to get our room changed at half price entertainment rate of $70 plus tax for the La Quinta. So, my friend and I are happy again.
LP56

[Andy]

[quote name='Lp56']We are all set. We changed from the canceled Century to a 10 day sailing on the Summit. Celebrity is paying for the cost of changing our airfare plus $200 cabin credit. My insurance is just rolling over to this new cruise. I also was able to get our room changed at half price entertainment rate of $70 plus tax for the La Quinta. So, my friend and I are happy again.
LP56[/QUOTE]

Hi Lp !

So glad to hear that you were able to work it all out. Which sail date are you on, on Summit ? I am on the 4/1/05 Summit sailing.

I am sorry your Century Cruise was cancelled, but again, nice to hear it all worked out to your satisfaction !

Regards,
Andy

[Lois R]

Hi again:) been researching other cruises........but I haven't looked outside of X....
Babette, thank you for the Horizon out of Tampa suggestion.....that might be the one......I see it only sails one way...I am guessing that is why it is so reasonable........

This one is 8 nights........and the price is really good.....have an email in to Terri and to my TA......I wasn't looking for April.......but I have been re-thinking things.......

IF Century had stayed in FLL, that would have made everything so much easier:eek:

[Lp56]

Andy,
We are on the April 1st cruise on the Summit. We need to start a thread. I tried to find one today and could not find one. So, I will start one on the roll call section. Are we able to sign up for a cruise party yet? I read that they have been having trouble with that.
Lp56

[rcicruiser]

The reason they sent the ship to europe is because there is a big demand for Europe next year ships are selling out. You go where the money is. They are given compensation so talk to you travel agent.