Black Friday Deals appear to be starting

[twangster]

7 hours ago, Ogilthorpe said:

I've seen prices moving, but not persisting. Perhaps they are preparing, but not ready for the upcoming deals. Oddly suggesting  updates to a production  environment outside a maintenance  window

Price changes occur all the time.  While system updates and new features might be added during maintenance windows, prices on any ecommerce website can change at any time of day.

9 hours ago, Peter2 said:

Does anyone know if $16 for classic soda package and voom internet is a good deal ?

Also is voom internet surf and stream or just surf ?

The Voom included historically has been Surf & Stream.  The verbiage of the package supports this:

• We are bundling our Classic Soda Package with VOOM® high-speed internet, so you can enjoy unlimited soda in your Coca-Cola souvenir cup, while streaming all your favorite music, movies and sharing your unforgettable moments in real time.

9 hours ago, Tamerlane said:

Does anyone know if we can expect to have these prices jump around during the Black Friday/ Monday sale event? I'm just wondering if this is the lowest it will go (I know there is no crystal ball, but just from experience)

No one here knows. 

Keep in mind sales may not apply to all items on all sail dates.  Pick your favorite retailer or their website.  Rarely if ever has a company said "Everything in the store will be 20% off on Black Friday".  Generally there are selected items offered for sale.  A store may offer a deal on one model of a camera or video game but not every camera or video game they sell will have a discount available.  

Suffice it to say not everything on the website is going to be cheaper on Black Friday.  The thing you desire is probably different from what someone else desires.  There will be winners and there will be people reporting no price change for the thing they want. 

[Vlad K]

5 hours ago, Paul Martin said:

So Monday they raised the price of the cruise I was going to take and removed the on-board credit of $75 so this Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale is going to cost me $175 more    so crossing my fingers that a real sale appears on Friday.

It is real sale, there should be no other sale. 

Waiting for black Friday. Price of my cruise I've been waiting for, went up by almost 200 on cabin. And it's like 11 months away. 

So this year royal caribbean prices are total vs, and sales at all. Now to buy my cruise. I actually need to pay more then a week ago 

[YOLO]

35 minutes ago, Vlad K said:

It is real sale, there should be no other sale. 

Waiting for black Friday. Price of my cruise I've been waiting for, went up by almost 200 on cabin. And it's like 11 months away. 

So this year royal caribbean prices are total vs, and sales at all. Now to buy my cruise. I actually need to pay more then a week ago 

You should purchase now and then if the prices goes down later, just cancel and re-book.

[YOLO]

Anthem 200308 and Harmony 201101:

Perfect Day Balloon = $51

Perfect Day Beach Club = $51

Soda Package = $6.50 (same as reported by most)

All Access Tour = $95 on Anthem and $104 on Harmony

[Sally B]

I am cruising on the VIsion of the Seas in February and the drinks package is coming out at £34.86pp plus gratuities which works out about $45 plus gratuities.  I was wondering if this is a fair price or would this probably be discounted on Black Friday?  I think the UK  RCCL site hasn't caught up with Black Friday yet!!  I have seen prices on here but not sure if they include the gratuity.

[Pima1988]

+1 YOLO.

I purchased our 2021 cruise yesterday, @ 3 pm.  Yesterday I had a choice of 5 different cabins (aft, but close to mid) on deck 9, and 4 on deck 10.  Mid was an upgrade, so I immediately said no, don't know how many were mid.  Today I did a fake booking to see if the price went down.  NOPE, it went up.  Caveat, all AFT and FWD were sold out, so mid is now included.  However, yesterday if I did elect to pay for mid upgrade it was still cheaper yesterday by 200 bucks.  

I will also state that the cabin I booked was a Spa ocean view balcony, so there are limited cabins.  Betting if I check on Thursday all of them will be gone.

[Vlad K]

13 minutes ago, YOLO said:

You should purchase now and then if the prices goes down later, just cancel and re-book.

What you mean? Can't cancel. There's penalty. 

Or you mean reprice? But not sure how that works

[USCG Teacher]

5 minutes ago, Sally B said:

I am cruising on the VIsion of the Seas in February and the drinks package is coming out at £34.86pp plus gratuities which works out about $45 plus gratuities.  I was wondering if this is a fair price or would this probably be discounted on Black Friday?  I think the UK  RCCL site hasn't caught up with Black Friday yet!!  I have seen prices on here but not sure if they include the gratuity.

The published price in the US does not include the 18% gratuity, not sure if the same holds true in the UK.  If recent trends are any indicator, you're not going to beat $45 pp. for the Deluxe Beverage Package unless a certain nameless intern returns from his or her suspension in the near future.  I'd jump on that price if you're even considering getting it, you can always cancel or reprice later.

[Pima1988]

5 minutes ago, Sally B said:

I am cruising on the VIsion of the Seas in February and the drinks package is coming out at £34.86pp plus gratuities which works out about $45 plus gratuities.  I was wondering if this is a fair price or would this probably be discounted on Black Friday?  I think the UK  RCCL site hasn't caught up with Black Friday yet!!  I have seen prices on here but not sure if they include the gratuity.

Grats are not included.  So if it is 45, add 18%.  or @ 9 bucks more.

I know last yr when we did it for our July sailing, everything stayed the same from Weds through Sunday.  Cyber Monday they did change some prices.  We purchased some things on Friday and canceled/repurchased on Monday.

 

[Pima1988]

I would add another reason not to wait.  

Some excursions are limited in number.  IE, cabanas/clamshells/beach beds at Coco Cay or even catamaran excursions, or spa times.  If you wait they could sell out.

I speak from experience,  we booked a catamaran on Weds.  By Friday a.m. it was sold out.  I hemmed and hawed on the spa, and decided to chance it for Cyber Monday.  By Monday, the times I wanted were sold out, and I was left with only the most expensive times, thus the massage went by bye and I just did a pedi.  Still at a higher price than on Weds., bc the cheaper times were also sold out, but I thought for 30 bucks for a pedi I still got a deal.

 

[YOLO]

10 minutes ago, Vlad K said:

What you mean? Can't cancel. There's penalty. 

Or you mean reprice? But not sure how that works

Cruise Planner purchases can always be cancelled and re-purchased if the price goes down (or at any other time too).  So most of us buy now and cancel/re-purchase if the price goes down...

[GrandmaAirplane]

I can confirm that the CocoCay Beach Club Day Pass has dropped significantly today:

It was originally priced at $71 CAD (bought at that price.)

This week, the price went up to $105 CAD

This morning down to $53 CAD (cancelled & re-bought.)

[Vlad K]

7 minutes ago, YOLO said:

Cruise Planner purchases can always be cancelled and re-purchased if the price goes down (or at any other time too).  So most of us buy now and cancel/re-purchase if the price goes down...

You're taking about onboard purchase items. 

I'm talking about cruise itself. You can't just cancel it and rebook. 

[Pima1988]

10 minutes ago, Vlad K said:

What you mean? Can't cancel. There's penalty. 

Or you mean reprice? But not sure how that work

You cancel and re-book.  Sometimes the penalty is you lose the OBC, but that is when you have to do the math. ''

IE the cabin is 2000 with 100 OBC.    Later on with another sale it is 1750, no OBC.  Overall, you would save $$$ to cancel and rebook, even though you lost your OBC.

This is also another reason why we always use a TA.  I check the planner.  If I see a price change, than I contact my TA and they spend the time canceling and rebooking.  One time they actually had to spend their time on the phone with RCL bc it was an excursion that was limited in numbers, and the fear was by the time I canceled, and re-booked it would be sold out.

•   Believe me when I say that.  We had a cabana for Coco Cay, purchased long b4 Black Friday.  On the cruise there was a very upset passenger in the Solarium.  The day prior to Coco Cay,  everybody was talking about their plans for Coco Cay.  He went onto vent how angry he was with RCL.  Black Friday it was lower than they had purchased.  He canceled, and by the time he got to rebooking it appeared as sold out.  He than tried for a Bungalow.  SOLD out.  I get it, it was something he was looking forward to for his vacay.   I didn't want to pour salt in the wound, but after doing my own rebooking using a TA for a different excursion, I immediately saw the benefit, since my TA was making sure that nobody was going to be able to steal away my excursion via the net.

[Pima1988]

8 minutes ago, Vlad K said:

I'm talking about cruise itself. You can't just cancel it and rebook. 

Yes, you can.

You can't if you are a specific amount of days out, but otherwise, you can.  You just are rebooking at the new price, and as I said whatever perk for your previous booking is gone, they may hit you with a cancellation fee.  You have to think about the pros and cons work out from a financial standpoint

[GrandmaAirplane]

Check prices on Black Friday - then again Cyber Monday - then again Travel Tuesday.

From a marketing point of view, each sale is considered to be different, so different things will be re-priced. Since ‘dynamic’ pricing is aimed at making more money, that too will play into prices yo-yo’ing some more in the days to come.

[WannaCruise]

8 minutes ago, Pima1988 said:

You cancel and re-book.  Sometimes the penalty is you lose the OBC, but that is when you have to do the math. ''

IE the cabin is 2000 with 100 OBC.    Later on with another sale it is 1750, no OBC.  Overall, you would save $$$ to cancel and rebook, even though you lost your OBC.

This is also another reason why we always use a TA.  I check the planner.  If I see a price change, than I contact my TA and they spend the time canceling and rebooking.  One time they actually had to spend their time on the phone with RCL bc it was an excursion that was limited in numbers, and the fear was by the time I canceled, and re-booked it would be sold out.

•   Believe me when I say that.  We had a cabana for Coco Cay, purchased long b4 Black Friday.  On the cruise there was a very upset passenger in the Solarium.  The day prior to Coco Cay,  everybody was talking about their plans for Coco Cay.  He went onto vent how angry he was with RCL.  Black Friday it was lower than they had purchased.  He canceled, and by the time he got to rebooking it appeared as sold out.  He than tried for a Bungalow.  SOLD out.  I get it, it was something he was looking forward to for his vacay.   I didn't want to pour salt in the wound, but after doing my own rebooking using a TA for a different excursion, I immediately saw the benefit, since my TA was making sure that nobody was going to be able to steal away my excursion via the net.

This is my worry when it's a drop in price for an excursion.  Don't think they would sell out of a drink package (correct me if I'm wrong), but it is possible you cancel an excursion or an activity and then by the time you try to rebook, it's sold out.  However, couldn't a TA have the same issue? It's all due to timing.

[YOLO]

45 minutes ago, Vlad K said:

You're taking about onboard purchase items. 

I'm talking about cruise itself. You can't just cancel it and rebook. 

The Cruise Planner is a RCL website page where you can book all kinds of extras, both onboard and off ship (like excursions) for any cruise you have booked.  This thread concerns these items going on sale.

Cruises themselves can also be repriced prior to you making final payment.  If the price goes down, call your agent or RCL if you booked with them.

Try searching the RCL Blog and these RCL Blog forums for more information about repricing.  There is quite a bit of info on this topic.

[coachBoris]

On my sailing Freedom of the Seas October 25, 2020; the dining package went down to 22.00 a day verses 24.00 (saving 28.00) and the deluxe beverage package says BOGO 50% but when you put it in the cart it really is 25% off each so the same as before.

[Pooch]

Got the $6.50 Soda package that others have mentioned for our 4 day Mariner Cruise.  Travelling with our grandson so won't do enough drinking to justify the Deluxe package.  We'll pay as we go.  I also got the Waterpark at Coco Cay for $24.99 each.  Is that a good price?  It's been running $29.99-31.99 until now.

[panda123]

4 hours ago, Pima1988 said:

Yes, you can.

You can't if you are a specific amount of days out, but otherwise, you can.  You just are rebooking at the new price, and as I said whatever perk for your previous booking is gone, they may hit you with a cancellation fee.  You have to think about the pros and cons work out from a financial standpoint

I don't believe this is true (for the cruise fare), if you booked under the Non-refundable Deposit, you will lose the deposit. (my deposit was $200). This is for a cancel re-book. You can reprice, which technically is a new booking, but isn't cancelling. I call all the time and reprice, done it 3 times (including today) and ask nicely for the lower advertised price, reservation number stays the same.

[lisa6191]

3 hours ago, Pooch said:

Got the $6.50 Soda package that others have mentioned for our 4 day Mariner Cruise.  Travelling with our grandson so won't do enough drinking to justify the Deluxe package.  We'll pay as we go.  I also got the Waterpark at Coco Cay for $24.99 each.  Is that a good price?  It's been running $29.99-31.99 until now.

The waterpark is $24.99 for a day pass? It's been running between $79 and $94 for our cruise!

[DaddyTheRunner]

Warning

I just noticed that for my sailing (Adventure of the Seas, July 2020), the Black Friday preview page is showing the "normal" prices (i.e. what they were earlier this week.  However, when you navigate to the specific package section (i.e. drinks page or dining page) you get to see the reduced Black Friday prices.

[Peter2]

4 hours ago, Pooch said:

Got the $6.50 Soda package that others have mentioned for our 4 day Mariner Cruise.  Travelling with our grandson so won't do enough drinking to justify the Deluxe package.  We'll pay as we go.  I also got the Waterpark at Coco Cay for $24.99 each.  Is that a good price?  It's been running $29.99-31.99 until now.

Same here but with got it with the voom stream and surf included for $16 a day.

Is this a good deal ?

[SassMaster]

I cancelled and rebooked a Labadee Jet ski ride.  Saved $50.  

Our drink package is the same price that I purchased a month ago. Bummer...I was looking forward to maybe saving a bit more.  lol  

[mworkman]

Things that make your go hmmmmm...I understand that some things don't get populated that far out in advance, but when i checked to see if i could purchase internet or drink package on my sailing as far out to 514 day...To my surprise ... Nothing was available yet.....However you can purchase spa treatment, packages or whatever under that tab   

Would it be asking too much to add some of the other items that they know are standard....Just a thought!

[Pooch]

3 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

The waterpark is $24.99 for a day pass? It's been running between $79 and $94 for our cruise!

Are you sure that does not include other things?  Zip Line?  Cabana?  Access to the (not sure of the name) Club Beach area?  I've never seen ours higher than $31.99

[twangster]

I'm seeing some banner graphics change but the price hasn't.  This typically happens when changes are slowly rippling through the system.

UDP graphic says $26 per night when it used to say $29 per night but pricing is still $29 per night.  That's a hint that the UDP might be going on sale soon.  

Check every few hours to see if price change have come through.

[twangster]

25 minutes ago, mworkman said:

Things that make your go hmmmmm...I understand that some things don't get populated that far out in advance, but when i checked to see if i could purchase internet or drink package on my sailing as far out to 514 day...To my surprise ... Nothing was available yet.....However you can purchase spa treatment, packages or whatever under that tab   

Would it be asking too much to add some of the other items that they know are standard....Just a thought!

I'm not sure you want to see that.  

Often when cruises are way out there they make stuff expensive just to see if they can rope people in at a higher rate.  If a lot people bite that can become the new price.  If no one bites then they've lost nothing and will simply reduce the price as it gets closer, like 300 days out.  It's a test.  Don't flunk it.  

[mworkman]

@twangster Funny thing is i purchased all of our excursions for Alaska when they opened up and even with the current price drop, i still have a better deal with opening day listings..i guess its a crap shoot! 

6 minutes ago, twangster said:

I'm seeing some banner graphics change but the price hasn't.  This typically happens when changes are slowly rippling through the system.

UDP graphic says $26 per night when it used to say $29 per night but pricing is still $29 per night.  That's a hint that the UDP might be going on sale soon.  

Check every few hours to see if price change have come through.

Check this break out...if you want to call it a sale break  I would hate to see full price then.  

[WAAAYTOOO]

That looks like a pretty good price, actually. The cruise planner price for an 8 day Anthem cruise has been running $229 PP. I managed to snag it for $176 but $179 is probably as low as it’s going to go. They figure Wonderland as an option (I will never go to Wonderland but others will). 
 

[Va4fam]

17 hours ago, mworkman said:

Make sure you cancel it first, then you can rebook it or you will just keep getting error messages.

Thank you so much.  Didn't realize we had to cancel first but now I know.

Was able to rebook the refreshment package for the kids and saved almost $60!

 

[MelissaM]

Just checked back and booked the photo package all digital for $119!  3 night dinning still at $105 but booked it anyway just in case it goes up and will re-book if lowered. 

[Mike.s]

18 hours ago, Sally B said:

I am cruising on the VIsion of the Seas in February and the drinks package is coming out at £34.86pp plus gratuities which works out about $45 plus gratuities.  I was wondering if this is a fair price or would this probably be discounted on Black Friday?  I think the UK  RCCL site hasn't caught up with Black Friday yet!!  I have seen prices on here but not sure if they include the gratuity.

Sally, I've just seen a slight drop in the UK for a cruise on Explorer next June, drinks package dropped from £44 to £41, better than nothing but not a great deal, I'm assuming that includes gratuities

[Sally B]

HI Mike, thanks for your help.  I am thinking now of doing the Refreshments package which is coming out at £14.44 a day (plus gratuities) about $18.67 plus gratuities which I believe is great value and then buy the occasional drink on board when we are there as we are not great drinkers and as our ship is only at sea one day we might buy the odd rum punch when we are off ship!

[Vancity Cruiser]

Anyone else having issues with the website? It has me stuck in an endless loop. I sign in to my cruise planner and get a message "Congratulations you are already booked! Sign in below to see our black Friday deals for your cruise". The only thing I can click on on the page is the sign in button which just brings me back around.

[RickinSTL]

1 minute ago, Vancity Cruiser said:

Anyone else having issues with the website? It has me stuck in an endless loop. I sign in to my cruise planner and get a message "Congratulations you are already booked! Sign in below to see our black Friday deals for your cruise". The only thing I can click on on the page is the sign in button which just brings me back around.

It was doing that to me last night.. I was using my ipad .  IM on my PC now and it seems to be fine 

 

[teddy]

4 minutes ago, Vancity Cruiser said:

Anyone else having issues with the website? It has me stuck in an endless loop. I sign in to my cruise planner and get a message "Congratulations you are already booked! Sign in below to see our black Friday deals for your cruise". The only thing I can click on on the page is the sign in button which just brings me back around.

I haven't been able to figure it out despite trying.

Sometimes clicking "log out" then logging back in works.  Sometimes clearing cache/cookies works.  Sometimes an incognito browser works.  Sometimes a different browser works.  Sometimes a different platform (PC instead of tablet) works.  Sometimes I just have to wait for a while.

[Vancity Cruiser]

I was trying from my pc. Tried logging on with mobile device and got the same issue. Logged back in with PC and able to get in now but not navigate the page :(

Good thing I have a cruise coming up to calm my frustrations

[JLMoran]

Has Royal offered the Black Friday / Cyber Monday pricing through the week of Cyber Monday? I'm kind of frosted that they have this promo going but the Northeast and Canada sailings, including Freedom's summer 2021 sailings out of Bayonne, aren't yet available and don't come out until some time this coming week. If they only offer Cyber Monday promo on the actual Monday, and those itineraries don't get released until Wednesday or Thursday like the last few rollouts, I'll be seriously frosted.