False 30% Off Advertisement of Voom 2 Device Package

[pjb]

Good afternoon,

Has anyone else had any experience with Royal Caribbean regarding their false advertisement via a banner on the 2-Device Zoom Package claiming it is "30% OFF ONBOARD PRICES"? I have spent over an hour on the phone with them and emailed about it, and they still have the misleading banner tricking users into thinking they are actually getting 30% off the 2-device package when it is really only 20% off. The 1-device package is apparently 30% off, which is why it's cheaper than half of the 2-device package.

I really expected better customer service from Royal Caribbean - which is why I made sure to book with them for this upcoming cruise. I'm so disappointed that they apparently care more about $28 than a loyal customer...

Any suggestions?

Thank you,

Paola

 

[Atlantix2000]

Sorry, I don't understand your complaint.  Here's my math:

You show the price for a 1 device plan is $113.31.  If that is 30% off, then the on board price for 1 device plan is $161.87.  If we assume there is no discount for multi-device plans, that would mean a 2 device plan should cost twice as much or $323.74.

You show the price for a 2 device plan is $230.22.  If that is 30% off, then the on board price for a 2 device plane is $328.89 which is very close to my previous calculation.  If that is 20% off as you claim, then the on board price would be $287.78 (a difference of $41.11).  I have no idea where you got $28 from.

Looking at it another way, $230.22 / 2 = $115.11.

These numbers are simply too close to be an error of 20% vs 30% discount.

It seems to me that the banners are correct unless you can show that a multi-device plan should be cheaper than multiple single device plans.

[pjb]

The math comes directly from the Royal Caribbean representative after being on hold for 40 minutes, actually. They told me the 1-device plan was coming up 30% off while the 2-device plan was only coming up 20% off. They took all the 30% off banners down for a few days and have now put them back up. This is extremely misleading.

It makes NO SENSE to charge MORE for a 2-device plan than it would cost to get two 1-device plans. Even two of the representatives I talked to admitted that. I'm not sure why I should have to "show that a multi-device plan should be cheaper than multiple single device plans",  that is just common sense.... But if you want to get into the details - which it appears you do... given the information given to me by the representative,  if $230.22 represents a 20% discount, then the regular price would be $287.78 ($31.98 a day). If they were really offering a 30% discount as they are advertising, the price would be $201.44, and  $230.22 - $201.44 = $28.78.

Why are they so willing to alienate a customer over 28 dollars and change? Is this really how they do business now? It's been a few years since I have sailed on Royal Caribbean, but I don't remember the company being this dismissive and crooked before. As I said before, I find this unethical, disappointing, and extremely misleading.

 

[Matt]

What ship? I see this pricing for Harmony

 

[pjb]

Thanks, Matt.  This is for the Grandeur of the Seas Oct 19 sailing. See how your 2-device plan is about 10% cheaper than two 1-device plans, though? That's what I would expect. And yours doesn't even have the false banner claiming 30% off. :-(

 

Thanks, again.

[monctonguy]

Sounds about standard for Royal and their BOGO sales or 30% off each guest..or the bogo 50% off whatever sale......99% of the time its the same amount/price, just advertised a different way each time to make it look like a sale or a deal.

 

I cant bother getting into the math and details as it drives me crazy with them....BUT, 2 devices should NOT be more than the cost of 2 individual plans for sure.....no matter how small the amount is.

 

 

[Atlantix2000]

10 hours ago, pjb said:

It makes NO SENSE to charge MORE for a 2-device plan than it would cost to get two 1-device plans. Even two of the representatives I talked to admitted that. I'm not sure why I should have to "show that a multi-device plan should be cheaper than multiple single device plans",  that is just common sense.... But if you want to get into the details - which it appears you do... given the information given to me by the representative,  if $230.22 represents a 20% discount, then the regular price would be $287.78 ($31.98 a day). If they were really offering a 30% discount as they are advertising, the price would be $201.44, and  $230.22 - $201.44 = $28.78.

I agree it would be normal (or even common) for there to be a discount for multiple devices, but that doesn't mean it's true for your specific sailing.  These forums (and others) are full of posts about inconsistencies in answers and prices between ships and sail dates.

The price shown in the cruise planner is always supposed to be the price AFTER the discount is already applied.  In other words whether they applied a 20% or a 30% discount, the discounted price is $230.22.  That would mean the original price was either $287.78 or $328.89.  The representative may or may not have been able to see what the original price actually was regardless of what they said to you.

In my opinion, you should simply look at the current price and decide whether or not that is worth paying.  You can always cancel and repurchase if a better deal comes along so why not lock in the cheapest option currently available?  Right now that's two single device plans.  It might be different next week!