F1guynz Posted September 26, 2017 Report Share Posted September 26, 2017 The Royal Caribbean Australian website currently has a 40% off birthday sale on at the moment. Some pretty good deals to be had. I cancelled our booking and rebooked the same cabin for $600 less. This is on top of the $500 I saved by rebooking a couple off weeks ago. When the cruise launched a GS was $5600 NZD and now it can be purchased for $4500 NZD. I think this is the best price we will see. The website has also been updated to a new design but I am not sure whether I prefer it or not. It probably is better (it couldn’t have got much worse) but it will just take a little while to get used to. EmersonNZ and RestingBird 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted September 26, 2017 Report Share Posted September 26, 2017 This is wonderful news ! Hopefully everyone can save some money. It's been so long since the US had any REAL sale I've forgotten what it feels like. Good for you guys ! F1guynz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted September 26, 2017 Report Share Posted September 26, 2017 Sounds like it might be a real sale. F1guynz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul&Karen Posted September 28, 2017 Report Share Posted September 28, 2017 Pretty good prices, just booked Ovaition 23 Dec 18 to 3 Jan 19 JS Deck 9 $6700 AUD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmersonNZ Posted October 1, 2017 Report Share Posted October 1, 2017 Unfortunately it doesn't look like suites were included this time around for our Dec 30th cruise (Just as well as today is final payment day...) I think I prefer the new look over the old one.... just Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F1guynz Posted October 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2017 12 hours ago, EmersonNZ said: Unfortunately it doesn't look like suites were included this time around for our Dec 30th cruise (Just as well as today is final payment day...) I think I prefer the new look over the old one.... just Definitely I find the further out the better as once the cruise starts to sell out the rack rate goes up substantially which negates the discount. That said there was one Superior Grand Suite on our Ovation cruise in November that was originally $2000 more than our standard Grand Suite that is now $200 cheaper than ours. It is past the final payment date so it wasn't possible to change without penalty. It is also on deck 6 and we are on deck 12 and I also think the life boats may have interfered with our view. EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCKiwi Posted October 2, 2017 Report Share Posted October 2, 2017 On 9/26/2017 at 10:00 PM, F1guynz said: The Royal Caribbean Australian website currently has a 40% off birthday sale on at the moment. Some pretty good deals to be had. I cancelled our booking and rebooked the same cabin for $600 less. This is on top of the $500 I saved by rebooking a couple off weeks ago. When the cruise launched a GS was $5600 NZD and now it can be purchased for $4500 NZD. I think this is the best price we will see. The website has also been updated to a new design but I am not sure whether I prefer it or not. It probably is better (it couldn’t have got much worse) but it will just take a little while to get used to. We are planning Caribbean out of FLL late Sept 2018 on Oasis class for 3 pax can balcony. Heard there is a BOGO 100% promo often in October although this often does not include the third person. From history could anyone advise when the best discount and on board credit offer is likely to come up EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F1guynz Posted October 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2017 I have always found that RCI is always on sale in Australia and New Zealand. I have never seen a cruise at full price. The sales seem to alternate between BOGHO, 30% off, South Pacific and the odd flash sale. I suggest that you book your cruise when you see a price you are happy with. Then If you have your email preferences set they will send you an email each time a new sale starts. If one of the sales has your cruise cheaper and it is before your final payment date you can cancel and rebook at the cheaper price for no penalty. (assuming you have booked through RCI direct, some travel agents will charge $200 to cancel). I normally cancel on the website and rebook the same cabin again as it will go back into the pool of available cabins straight away. EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmersonNZ Posted October 3, 2017 Report Share Posted October 3, 2017 I agree with F1guynz... I'm not sure I have ever not seen a sale of one sort or another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted October 3, 2017 Report Share Posted October 3, 2017 3 hours ago, EmersonNZ said: I agree with F1guynz... I'm not sure I have ever not seen a sale of one sort or another. So in other words, it's not any different than the US site. Does seem, though, like you guys still get actual changes in price that could be lower than originally paid for when one of these new promotions comes along. Whereas here in the US, Royal has now fully implemented the "price integrity" policy, and it seems more or less that the price when the itinerary is first released is the best it's ever going to get. EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F1guynz Posted October 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2017 4 hours ago, JLMoran said: Does seem, though, like you guys still get actual changes in price that could be lower Yes I booked our 2019 South Pacific cruise on the day it came out and with the current promotion it is $1100 cheaper than the launch price. If they were a NZ company their pricing model would be illegal as you can't state a permanent price and then never sell it for that. If something is always on sale then that becomes the standard retail price and the discount should be off the "actual retail cost". The other differences I notice between here and the US is that the pre-paid gratuities are included in the base fare cost so there is nothing extra to pay apart from extra services like the spa. I have also never seen the $100 non-refundable deposit0 for suites but I guess it will come at some point in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmersonNZ Posted October 4, 2017 Report Share Posted October 4, 2017 I think it is fair to say that cruising in NZ/Aust is still an 'untapped market'. Up until very recently, most New Zealanders would believe cruising was for 'old people' or something that happened on 'The Love Boat'. ost of my friends would never consider a cruise holiday and there is very very little advertising around talking about cruises. Due to this I think they are still having to drive demand by having regular sales. IN NZ the market is certainly growing and growing rapidly. In Dunedin where I live the number of cruise ship visits (and the number of passengers due to the likes of Ovation) has tripled in the last 4 years and this season is apparently going to smash last years record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCKiwi Posted October 4, 2017 Report Share Posted October 4, 2017 On 10/2/2017 at 3:48 PM, RCKiwi said: We are planning Caribbean out of FLL late Sept 2018 on Oasis class for 3 pax can balcony. Heard there is a BOGO 100% promo often in October although this often does not include the third person. From history could anyone advise when the best discount and on board credit offer is likely to come up Thank you to all those who have responded. Agree there is always a promo of some type going. The BOGO discounts, deposits and on board credits vary and we are just trying to get a consensus on which is likely to be the best deal or month when the best promos are likely to be offered. We prefer to use a travel agent which can limit the ability to cancel and rebook once a deposit has been paid. The other issue for NZ and AU residents is that RCI now makes pre paid gratuities mandatory. This often explains price differences from the USA market where they are not included in the quoted price. We have a booking under the current BOGO 40% promo with no OBC but would like to see a BOGO 50% and decent OBC - perhaps Sept 2018 7 day Caribbean dates are selling well. EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F1guynz Posted October 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2017 Hi, In that case then I think the 40% off sale that is on now is the best I have seen over the last few years. I find 30% off with onboard credit is usually the next best offer. Usually the 50% off one traveller is the most expensive relative to the other prices. I can't help you with when the best month to book is as I just check the price whenever a new sale starts to see if it is cheaper than what I have currently paid. That is why I have rebooked our South Pacific cruise 2 times already. It was originally booked under the South Pacific Sale, then the 30% off sale and now the 40% off sale. I don't think it will get any cheaper than it is now but I will continue to keep an eye out. There is a chance if the cruise is unpopular then the pricing may come down more to move stock. We only book ever for 2 so I am not sure how the pricing changes for more people than that. EmersonNZ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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