Super Cheap Deluxe Drink Package price

[Skid 1,593]

3 minutes ago, mom2mybugs said:

there were many people hours after the knew it wasn't real, booked it anyway and now are some of the most vocal complainers... Not talking on this site but on Facebook and the internet. 

So true. Too many people let their sense of entitlement override their common sense (if they had any to begin with).

[Rose City Cruiser 464]

This reminds of Cathay Pacific's pricing error on First class tickets to HKG last year.  They honoured the pricing.  Too bad I was not able to travel during those times.  It would have been great mileage run.

[MicDay 93]

I booked it, like Matt said "You have to play to win"

We don't even drink but love the refreshment package and the deluxe was way cheaper (if I got to keep it)

My daughter and her boyfriend will be 21 this trip, so IF they would like to try a drink or two (or more), this is the way to go.

I will not be mad they cancel it, just checked still there, but would be nice if they got a better IT team.

Let the big complainers go, less on the boat to deal with!

[DChapetta 5]

1 hour ago, mom2mybugs said:

I guess what I'm having difficulty with us why people are so irate.  They knew it was a mistake and they are infuriated that it won't be honored.  I get that RC initially said they would, and that it's annoying....another reason for us to shake our heads at the IT department and how the different departments aren't talking.  But I'm not going to stop cruising royal like some people are threatening.  Good grief.  This company was immensely fair over my Cuba trip and this drink thing doesn't remotely impact my experience on the ships.  Wish people would get a little perspective.  Jane

I'm not irate at this, and will have no problem if it is cancelled and refunded. However, I, for one, did not know it was an error.  This is the first RC cruise I have booked and I have read everywhere that prices change and fluctuate and I check, usually, before bed if there are any new activities added. When I saw this, I booked it.

Just last week I looked and cabanas for my trip were still available but I was waiting for some possible sale. The next day some were up $200 and others $100; I booked immediately.  So when I saw a drink package dropped in price, around the 4th of July holiday, I jumped because I did not want to miss it. 

I can see how some people can be upset.  One item can unexpectedly jump in price by about 40% overnight and it is ok; but if it drops by too much, it is an error / glitch. 

A good way around this would be to have a single  set price that never goes down. 

[columbus_cruiser 9]

6 minutes ago, DChapetta said:

A good way around this would be to have a single  set price that never goes down. 

It's what other lines do, and makes the pre-cruise purchases much easier to plan and execute.

[mom2mybugs 1,637]

6 minutes ago, DChapetta said:

I'm not irate at this, and will have no problem if it is cancelled and refunded. However, I, for one, did not know it was an error.  This is the first RC cruise I have booked and I have read everywhere that prices change and fluctuate and I check, usually, before bed if there are any new activities added. When I saw this, I booked it.

Just last week I looked and cabanas for my trip were still available but I was waiting for some possible sale. The next day some were up $200 and others $100; I booked immediately.  So when I saw a drink package dropped in price, around the 4th of July holiday, I jumped because I did not want to miss it. 

I can see how some people can be upset.  One item can unexpectedly jump in price by about 40% overnight and it is ok; but if it drops by too much, it is an error / glitch. 

A good way around this would be to have a single  set price that never goes down. 

That might totally be an option. I totally find the inconsistency in their sales annoying.  However,  my concern is that they would set it at a high number that makes me not want to get it! 

[Pima1988 715]

I doubt they would ever do that.  Look at JCPenney's several yrs ago they tried that theory, their sales plummeted and the CEO was fired within a yr.   

[RWDW1204 313]

30 minutes ago, Pima1988 said:

I doubt they would ever do that.  Look at JCPenney's several yrs ago they tried that theory, their sales plummeted and the CEO was fired within a yr.   

 Our local JCP has had the same 1/2 price sales prices on clothing for 4 years running now. That's why we don't shop there. 

[Skid 1,593]

Worked in Macy's part time many years ago. They had men's coats at the regular price of $100. When they got inventory down to just a few, they put them on sale for $110. Sometimes "on sale" is no different than "for sale".

[mom2mybugs 1,637]

42 minutes ago, Skid said:

Worked in Macy's part time many years ago. They had men's coats at the regular price of $100. When they got inventory down to just a few, they put them on sale for $110. Sometimes "on sale" is no different than "for sale".

Gets people to buy though!  It's all about marketing!  Jane

[JohnK6404 887]

... just a brief change of topic, but also related to RC website glitches!

We have Harmony booked for 4/18/21 out of Port Canaveral... for the last 2-3 days, the APR 2021 schedule for Harmony has completely disappeared on Royal's website!

I contacted Royal via phone and Facebook IM and they assured us there is no change to Harmony's APR 2021 itineraries and they can view and book the sailings on their end... We still have access to our reservation...

 

... but when you try to search the Harmony calendar on the website, APR 2021 is not available! 

Just very strange!

 

[Skid 1,593]

6 minutes ago, JohnK6404 said:

Just very strange!

And you're surprised?  Just kidding. Your best bet to double check this is to Facebook Messager them. As we talked about before, that group is great and usually very accurate.    oops-despite the drink package message information they may have given.

[twangster 21,452]

 

2 hours ago, DChapetta said:

A good way around this would be to have a single  set price that never goes down. 

Too many variable in cruising.  A 14 night sailing is very different than a 3 night sailing over a weekend.  A ship based in Southhampton will have different consumption trends than a smaller, older ship in Baltimore.  

Fixing on one set price would benefit some and penalize others.  Sales would plummet on 9 night or longer cruises.  

Royal has at any given moment over 70,000 guests on board their ships every day of the year.  They've been selling drinks for years.  They know our drinking habits better than we do.

Adjusting prices to suit cruise length, time of year, region and a number of other factors is smart business based on analytics. 

[AshleyDillo 3,387]

30 minutes ago, JohnK6404 said:

We have Harmony booked for 4/18/21 out of Port Canaveral... for the last 2-3 days, the APR 2021 schedule for Harmony has completely disappeared on Royal's website!

I would suspect you will need to rebook this one.  HOS is going in for routine maintenance during April 2021.  You should get an email about the cancellation with your options.

[JLMoran 5,519]

2 minutes ago, twangster said:

Fixing on one set price would benefit some and penalize others.  Sales would plummet on 9 night or longer cruises.

Adjusting prices to suit cruise length, time of year, region and a number of other factors is smart business based on analytics.

Exhibit A on this is Royal's own sister brand Celebrity. From what I have seen and read around the web, their drink package prices do not vary based on sailing, period. The "Basic" Beverage Package (most limited selection of beers and wines, and bottom-shelf cocktails) is $49/night on every sailing, while Classic Beverage Package is $59/night and Premium Package is $69/night. No one bought the packages on transatlantic or transpacific sailings because the cost would be exorbitant, and it was an extra-harsh penalty up until recently because you could never get the "Sail Better" / "Sail Best" perk offer on any cabin in a TA / TP cruise.

It's a bit better now, because about a month ago Celebrity instituted perks for any level cabin of any sailing, including TA/TP itineraries. In a way, it's like Celebrity took the NCL model and just left the drink package price prohibitively high as an inducement for people to just choose that perk with their booking if they weren't already Elite level. And of course, the cabin prices with the perks are enough higher than the NRD rates with no perks that there's no question you're still paying for them, although if you do the picks right you'll still break even or (mostly on longer sailings) come out ahead.

[Skid 1,593]

6 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I would suspect you will need to rebook this one.  HOS is going in for routine maintenance during April 2021.  You should get an email about the cancellation with your options.

@JohnK6404, if they do cancel your cruise, tell them you want an $18/day deluxe drink package for your entire party as compensation!😁

[AshleyDillo 3,387]

9 minutes ago, Skid said:

@JohnK6404, if they do cancel your cruise, tell them you want an $18/day deluxe drink package for your entire party as compensation!😁

Seriously though..his experience is another reason why you can't assume anyone in Royal customer service has any clue what is going on.  They don't even know that Harmony's schedule got pulled for April 2021 for her 5-year drydock.  I don't get why they wouldn't think about this before they released itineraries..but it seems the left hand doesn't speak to the right hand when doing anything.  Consistently inconsistent.

@JohnK6404 looks like you will get some OBC and price protection on a bunch of alternative cruises.  Keep pushing for them to send you that email so you can get rebooked into something that works for you!  The email that I saw from someone that got booted from their 4/21/21 sailing included Allure, Oasis, and even Symphony as alternatives.

[columbus_cruiser 9]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

 

Too many variable in cruising.  A 14 night sailing is very different than a 3 night sailing over a weekend.  A ship based in Southhampton will have different consumption trends than a smaller, older ship in Baltimore.  

Fixing on one set price would benefit some and penalize others.  Sales would plummet on 9 night or longer cruises.  

Royal has at any given moment over 70,000 guests on board their ships every day of the year.  They've been selling drinks for years.  They know our drinking habits better than we do.

Adjusting prices to suit cruise length, time of year, region and a number of other factors is smart business based on analytics. 

Other cruise lines don't seem to have an issue with knowing drinking habits, and pricing the package at one price before you step onboard.

I find the Royal process of buying, watching for a sale, cancelling, purchasing, and repeating tedious. But, as a sale can have a significant cost savings I do it. I would much rather know that for my upcoming Serenade voyage the price is $XX.XX per day vs checking daily on sales.

I also wonder what type of transaction costs they have to eat because people do this; on my last Transatlantic voyage we purchased and cancelled the beverage package five times, because rates would drop, and it was a better deal.

Edited July 2, 2019 by columbus_cruiser
added a semicolon in the last paragraph

[JohnK6404 887]

2 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

... looks like you will get some OBC and price protection on a bunch of alternative cruises.  Keep pushing for them to send you that email so you can get rebooked into something that works for you!  The email that I saw from someone that got booted from their 4/21/21 sailing included Allure, Oasis, and even Symphony as alternatives.

Thank you for the info!

My gut was telling me it might be the maintenance dry-dock. Ugghhh... You're right, no one seems to know what's going on... horrible communication within the company. RC customer service by both phone and by Facebook IM insisted there is no change to the Harmony APR 2021 itineraries (as of this morning) and that they see all of them available for booking on their end (even told us our friends can call today to book the same cruise if it's not showing on the website - I white lied, our friends will use a TA when they book 😎).

Either way, I will definitely wait for some official communication... we have the refundable deposit so I could cancel anytime with no drama, but let's see what they offer! We just prefer a sailing out of Port Canaveral this time since our friends live in the Orlando area. Amped Oasis (as long as we don't go next year!) or Symphony will be nice... or we can wait until May or so for Harmony, if/when it returns to FLA. Just got off of Allure this past May so we want to try another Oasis class ship for sure (at least until Allure is Amped)!

[Skid 1,593]

4 minutes ago, JohnK6404 said:

friends can call today to book the same cruise

So let them call (or their TA) and book it, knowing that they'll get something when it's cancelled. Hey, let's all call and book it....they're busy doing cancellation letters anyway, right?🍹

[JohnK6404 887]

8 minutes ago, Skid said:

So let them call (or their TA) and book it, knowing that they'll get something when it's cancelled. Hey, let's all call and book it....they're busy doing cancellation letters anyway, right?🍹

Wait, this sounds familiar... 😜

[Andrew3232 6]

4 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

... just a brief change of topic, but also related to RC website glitches!

We have Harmony booked for 4/18/21 out of Port Canaveral... for the last 2-3 days, the APR 2021 schedule for Harmony has completely disappeared on Royal's website!

I contacted Royal via phone and Facebook IM and they assured us there is no change to Harmony's APR 2021 itineraries and they can view and book the sailings on their end... We still have access to our reservation...

 

... but when you try to search the Harmony calendar on the website, APR 2021 is not available! 

Just very strange!

 

Hi John, Those sailings for the Harmony of the Seas were cancelled due to the drydock the ship will be at. Call the redeployment desk to get more info about the compensation being offered.

[JohnK6404 887]

Latest in the saga... another updated RCI message response after 6:00 PM this evening... pulled it from a post on Facebook (Twitter response). Response states that you will get the 30% off the DBP (which is the current July 4th sale price), but will be offered for all affected sailings! 😱

I guess until the folks that purchased it at $18 start receiving those promised "official" e-mails, it's just another response from customer service to be taken with a grain of salt.

Now, to find out what's up with my Harmony cruise! (start the Jeopardy theme music!)...

 

[Skid 1,593]

6 minutes ago, JohnK6404 said:

it's just another response from customer service to be taken with a grain of salt

But now we'll pay more for the margaritas that go with the salt.

 

[Skid 1,593]

3 hours ago, AshleyDillo said:

Seriously though..his experience is another reason why you can't assume anyone in Royal customer service has any clue what is going on.  They don't even know that Harmony's schedule got pulled for April 2021 for her 5-year drydock.

 

4 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

We have Harmony booked for 4/18/21

John, didn't JUST book that a week ago? This is amazing.