Icon 2025/26 is out!!!

[Gilley]

I think it leaves May 2024.  I’m already booked on Icon in May.

[Gilley]

It’s there.  I put in wrong dates.

[Matt]

It is definitely disturbing where the pricing is for Icon in 2025 and 2026. 

I priced out for fun what is probably my kids' Spring Break in 2026 and for 2 adjacent balcony rooms, it's $12,823. That's the kind of cost I'd expect to pay for a suite.

As so many others pointed out, someone's paying those prices and I have no doubt this is an effort by the line to push the boundaries.  

Up until today, Icon hasn't just been selling well. It's been selling at record levels at every step of the way. So I get why they're trying to see what the market will bear.

What I'm truly interested in seeing is what the rest of the 2025/2026 deployment looks like. I have no doubt it will be at higher prices than last year, but are we talking 10% higher or significantly more. It's one thing to pay a premium to go on Icon, it's another to go on Independence.

I'm simply surprised at how high the prices are out of the gate for a ship that will be up to 2 years old, and will have 1 or 2 newer sibling ships in operation by this point too.

[Xaa]

I think the early release is to get out ahead of the inaugural and the flow of reviews and footage from the ship.  I think she's going to be great, but the marketing for her has really got everyone ginned up good.  Come Jan/Feb we're going to see that while a great ship, the real experience is quite similar.  By then many will be NRD into 25/26.

Smart move by them.

I'm certainly looking forward to my May 2024 trip but I expect I'll leave with the feeling "That was really great, but probably not worth 2 times around on Oasis..."  I expect that to be a theme on youtube this spring.

[tjcruisers]

They're asking these insane prices because people are booking. However have to wonder if people are booking just to get a spot and are hoping for a prices drop to reprice or are they legitimately going to pay this price. They haven't hit any of the final payment dates yet, wondering when that comes around RCL will see a mass cancellation of people

[WAAAYTOOO]

After I booked our SC cruise for 12-7-24 there were 4 Icon Loft suites remaining.  There are STILL 4 Icon Loft suites available. I made that booking on 11-2-22 so over the past 10 months not a single Icon Loft for this sailing has been sold.  So while some Icon sailings are booking well, not all of them are. And OBTW, the price on that sailing for the Icon Loft has gone up 38% since we booked.

The real surprise is that the 12-6-25 equivalent sailing a year later is actually lower than the current price of the 12-7-24 sailing.  The '25 price is 16% lower than the current '24 price !  So if you are thinking about booking an Icon loft for December, it will be cheaper to do 2025 than it is to do 2024 at the current price. 

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

priced out for fun what is probably my kids' Spring Break in 2026 and for 2 adjacent balcony rooms, it's $12,823.

For fun, I priced out what it would be for 3 of us March 2026 in a Sky Junior. The price is more than I pay normally for some star sailings! That's why I am out. Told the kids that Icon is out for now. Like others, I might be one and done after the inaugural, hopefully I don't have to cancel that one.

[Lovetocruise2002]

37 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

So if you are thinking about booking an Icon loft for December, it will be cheaper to do 2025 than it is to do 2024

I checked loft pricing for August 2025. There is no way, even if I had the budget, that I could justify the cost of the loft for 4 people. 

[Ampurp85]

I think it is still the pent-up travel frustration from all the lockdowns but also the mindset of the youths. Many people under 25 have no incentive to save. They see no issue with paying $45k to stay in suites or get this "once in a lifetime experience," paying $11/12k for basic rooms on Icon seems like a good idea. Most people booking have no real frame of reference it seems. 

I was booked on the inaugural but my brother wasn't too keen to spend $5k for an interior when things might not be up to par., I was able to get three cruises for less than half that price. Now the prices are insane even for the periods when I normally sail. I will wait until I can get a casino comp on her. 

[TheMaxRebo]

3 hours ago, Gilley said:

Do you think Harmony, wonder and symphony will make there way to New Jersey or back there if I missed them.   I. Thinking to save money I will just do cruises leaving from New Jersey, New York and Baltimore.  

 

We are thinking the same as airfare has been higher too, so have to add that on to the higher cost for the latest/greatest ships out of Miami, etc

 

So do a slightly older (but still great) ship out of New York / Bayone and we save $ on cruise and don't have to fly

[USFFrank]

Couldn't help but notice as I'm scrolling thru these reply's an ad for "cheap Carnival cruises" with a picture of the whale tail. I'm thinking of clicking on it 

[LandstromCruise]

I’m just glad I got booked when I did. While pricing was still a little high then I got a balcony for 3 people at about $4K. That same room now on that sailing is about $7K. 

[Matt]

51 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

For fun, I priced out what it would be for 3 of us March 2026 in a Sky Junior. The price is more than I pay normally for some star sailings! That's why I am out. Told the kids that Icon is out for now. Like others, I might be one and done after the inaugural, hopefully I don't have to cancel that one.

That was my reaction too, but I also had to think “is the star class I paid for a cruise booked during shutdown?” Because those prices were anomalies.

My first Star Class in Aquatheater suite was $13k, but that was booked while they were shutdown so it was a crazy good price.  I certainly don’t expect that price today.  
 

Suffice to say, star class booked since mid 2022 have all been much higher.

[Lovetocruise2002]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

That was my reaction too, but I also had to think “is the star class I paid for a cruise booked during shutdown?” Because those prices were anomalies.

Valid point. That prompted me to check my future star sailings to see when I booked them. They were all booked March 2022 and after. So that time frame is just as Royal was lifting all the pandemic restrictions. When I break it down per person, per night, the Sky Junior pricing (March 2026) on Icon is still higher than all but one of my future star sailings. Sad.

[OCSC Mike]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

“is the star class I paid for a cruise booked during shutdown?” Because those prices were anomalies.

I think too many people, in general, are comparing prices to really good deals they got at that time or whenever. Even if they understand, like you do, why they got a good deal.

When I mention that the prices I got on Wonder (booked in March-June of this year) aren't really that bad, I'm comparing them to what I used to pay historically over the years, with 2017-2019 in mind mostly. Factor in general inflation, cruise prices going nuts, and Wonder being a bit more expensive than other Oasis class ships (not counting Utopia), and it is what it is.

All that said, I book caves, not Star Class like you guys, so maybe the price differences don't exactly mirror the cheapo cabins (percentage-wise).

Sorry for the semi-tangent; I know it's not exactly Icon-related.

[OCSC Mike]

47 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

the Sky Junior pricing on Icon is still higher than all but one of my future star sailings. Sad.

So back to the Liberty WJ for you, then?

[Lovetocruise2002]

19 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

So back to the Liberty WJ for you, then?

Nah, I might be done with LB for a while. Unless she gets amped or does a spectacular itinerary.

[GatorCruiser]

What really chafes me is the pricing for DBP and UDP.  I sailed on symphony in November 2019 and got DBP for $46/day. Those prices are long gone even on older buster ships 

[ckruetze]

21 hours ago, Matt said:

It is definitely disturbing where the pricing is for Icon in 2025 and 2026. 

I agree. Due to school holidays we can't travel whenever we want to. And my girls like the Ultimate Family Suite (or the Townhouse on the Icon) but compared to Wonder or Symphony the Icon price is 3 times as much for that one. My travel agent offered me the Ultimate Family Townhouse for Christmas 2025 for just under $190.000 per week.
I'm sorry but I don't think we will be on Icon during the Christmas 2025 season.

[cruisellama]

Won't be sailing Icon in awhile.   First as a new class with new propulsion , water treatment architectures, and crew  training/reorientation, it's going to have some bugs.  For the high price, I'll wait until everyone is trained up and bugs are sorted out.  Let the market sort it out first.  As far as Coco Cay - its seems kinda redundant to what the ship offers.

[Doug_Texas]

The last investor conference call had a discussion about pricing leverage.  The discussion point made was RCCL doesn't focus a lot on their pricing vs other cruise lines, they compare with land based vacations.  Historically they were at about 40% of a land based vacation and with their 100%+ booking rates 40% is way too low.  They feel cruise lines can significantly increase pricing and still be over 90% occupancy.  I am seeing the same pricing outrage about NCL on the cruise bulletin boards.  Frank Del Rio is on board with the pricing leverage as well.  I often wonder if there had not been a pandemic would this incredible demand curve look the same.

[TheMaxRebo]

36 minutes ago, Doug_Texas said:

The last investor conference call had a discussion about pricing leverage.  The discussion point made was RCCL doesn't focus a lot on their pricing vs other cruise lines, they compare with land based vacations.  Historically they were at about 40% of a land based vacation and with their 100%+ booking rates 40% is way too low.  They feel cruise lines can significantly increase pricing and still be over 90% occupancy.  I am seeing the same pricing outrage about NCL on the cruise bulletin boards.  Frank Del Rio is on board with the pricing leverage as well.  I often wonder if there had not been a pandemic would this incredible demand curve look the same.

Definitely get that and they do need to maximize their profits for investors, etc. ... I think the frustrating part is these increased costs don't necessarily come with an improved experience and maybe a reduced experience

 

Seeing the same thing with Walt Disney World - increase costs but then shorter park hours, reduced staffing, now charging for the skip the line tool that used to be included, etc.

 

Now here, increased costs, reduced options at main dining room, specialty restaurant costs way up, the new adults only area on PDCC is an upcharge, etc. 

 

That combination can really negatively impact guest feelings 

[smokeybandit]

9 hours ago, Doug_Texas said:

The last investor conference call had a discussion about pricing leverage.  The discussion point made was RCCL doesn't focus a lot on their pricing vs other cruise lines, they compare with land based vacations.  Historically they were at about 40% of a land based vacation and with their 100%+ booking rates 40% is way too low.  They feel cruise lines can significantly increase pricing and still be over 90% occupancy.  I am seeing the same pricing outrage about NCL on the cruise bulletin boards.  Frank Del Rio is on board with the pricing leverage as well.  I often wonder if there had not been a pandemic would this incredible demand curve look the same.

I never understood how they can say they're 40% of a land based vacation, unless they're comparing only interior room prices.
 

[barbeyg]

16 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I never understood how they can say they're 40% of a land based vacation, unless they're comparing only interior room prices.
 

Agree.   I recently booked a 3 week trip next year to visit family (they live in a tourist area).  The rental is a cute 3 bedroom home, in most desirable town of the area, for about half of what we would have to pay to sail Icon in a balcony cabin for a week. And that includes restaurant/entertainment estimates. 

Icon pricing is too pricey for us. Hopefully the rest of the releases in November won’t be the same.  I understand the new ship pricing, and expect it. Not for us in this price range, however.  I hope pricing moderates at some point.

[TheMaxRebo]

17 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I never understood how they can say they're 40% of a land based vacation, unless they're comparing only interior room prices.
 

Definitely would be interested to what land based vacations they are talking about and how they compare

 

Something like a week at Walt Disney World, when adding in food, would definitely be more than the cost of an average RCL cruise - but 2.5x as much? 

 

and there are land based vacations that you can do for cheaper, so just not sure

 

given how well Icon initially sold and how well they have been doing I can definitely see them them thinking it was a bit underpriced, but I think they have swung too far in the other direction (especially when you factor in more things at PDCC costing money, signature dining going up, etc on top of the base cost)

[Cakemeister]

I saw a random article that says the average land-based vacation costs $1919 per person per week, or $3838 for two.

Average vacation cost: Breakdown of travel expenses in 2023 | Pacaso

I cruised on Allure a couple of weeks ago and I paid maybe $2300-$2500 for everything. The final bill hasn't come in yet. My transportation cost was only the cost of parking as I drove, so adding a flight could raise the cost to $3K pretty easily. I also was in an interior cabin. 

I think the 40% number is bogus. Cruising on the cheap like a lot of us do is a good value, but it costs a lot more than 40% of the equivalent land vacation.

[smokeybandit]

There are so many more variables in land based vacations. 

[Matt]

I really think when Royal says "land vacations" they mean Walt Disney World.  Maybe Las Vegas, but less so because of how variable that pricing can be.

[Rackham]

2 hours ago, Cakemeister said:

I saw a random article that says the average land-based vacation costs $1919 per person per week, or $3838 for two.

Average vacation cost: Breakdown of travel expenses in 2023 | Pacaso

I cruised on Allure a couple of weeks ago and I paid maybe $2300-$2500 for everything. The final bill hasn't come in yet. My transportation cost was only the cost of parking as I drove, so adding a flight could raise the cost to $3K pretty easily. I also was in an interior cabin. 

I think the 40% number is bogus. Cruising on the cheap like a lot of us do is a good value, but it costs a lot more than 40% of the equivalent land vacation.

 

From what I recall with their verbiage, Royal isn't saying they're 40% of the cost of a land based vacation. Rather, they're 40% cheaper than the equivalent land based vacation which would mean that they're 60% of the cost of a comparable trip. So if we're using $3,838 for land, Royal's average is $2,302. This is, of course, across the entire fleet for the entire year. So $70,000 fares on Icon are being modulated by $500 fares on Enchantment for a week aboard.  Then there's all the fares in between and those above and below these amounts. I might be misremembering the percentage, but Royal is wanting to get that percentage up to 10%-20% off the average land based vacation (80%-90% of the cost of the average shoreside vacation). With the number from the random article, that would mean their average fare for two target is $3,070 to $3,454 across the entire fleet. So older ships would still be cheaper than  newer ships. Per night costs on longer sailings, or less desirable itineraries, will still be cheaper than shorter cruises. But overall, fares will be going up especially on popular ships, during popular times, doing popular itineraries.

[Jamesszy94]

I'm sailing on Disney Wonder next year, and it was about $12,000 for a 3 night sailing for 5 adults and 2 young children. I booked because we'd never tried Disney and wanted to take my niece and nephew on board....and to be honest, it's not surprising, since it's the Disney brand. (Also this is the first time Disney Cruise Line has sent ships down to Australia)

But Icon sailings 2 or 3 years later still being 8k+ for two people is insane. 

 

[Jamesszy94]

I couldn't find plane tickets for 2025, so I inputted 2024... but usually it's around the same price right? 10k for flights + cruise and this isn't even including hotels when we get to Florida  (Australian Dollars)

[Fuzzywuzzy]

If I wanted to pay that much for a cruise I would just go back to Disney.