The cruise industry is seeing “generally upbeat booking reports,” Cruise Week says, but pricing for sailings this month and next have dropped to “alarmingly low levels.”
One agent reports a slight uptick in bookings, but says “yields continue to be a major issue across all levels of product, and consumers are expecting unbelievable pricing for their cruise vacation."
He continued:
"It’s going to take a long time to correct this consumer mindset that has been created by the pricing made available by the cruise lines over the last year."
The rates offer little incentive for early bookings.
One example of a deeply discounted rate: Norwegian Star’s seven-day sailings for $199 –plus $200 onboard credits. Another was an eight-night Enchantment of the Seas Southern Caribbean cruise for $199 interior.
Even the recently introduced mega high-profile Oasis is not escaping some discounting.
By David Wilkening
