Sluggish sales for 2017?

[squirk]

So I see on The DIS that DCL is offering only a 50% deposit on all seven-night cruises for the latter half of 2017.

Granted, it's not nearly as good as OBB, but I don't recall seeing this offered in recent memory (though I could be wrong?).

It seems to have been the consensus around here that DCL will keep raising prices until they feel resistance in the form of fewer bookings. I wonder if this new-ish discount is indicative that DCL is feeling some of that resistance?

Discuss among yourselves.

 

[GoofyLovingFamily]

They offered half off deposit last year.

 

[Confederate Scott]

I think the half off deposit is common this time of year. It really isn't a discount- just less at the time of booking.

 

[DCLDVC1]

Pay now or pay later. A 50% discount on the deposit isn't a discount at all.

 

[cmph]

When we booked in Feb for our cruise that leaves Friday (whee!!), they had that same offer. Not that it made a difference to us, to be honest, but I guess for some folks - it's nice to avoid a larger deposit right after the holidays.

 

[squirk]

Fair enough - "discount" is a misnomer. My bad.

But nonetheless, it's an incentive to book now vs. later. Are bookings traditionally slow this time of year?

I am just amazed that it covers the entire second half of 2017. Did last year's reduced deposit offer have such a large window?

 

[cmph]

Did last year's reduced deposit offer have such a large window?

I don't know the answer to that. We want from tossing around the idea of booking to actually booking in about 4 days and were only interested in late December... I'm sure my TA would know the answer so maybe a TA on the boards will see this and remember?

If I had to guess - it's probably similar to the timing last year.

 

[Shanti]

So I see on The DIS that DCL is offering only a 50% deposit on all seven-night cruises for the latter half of 2017.

Granted, it's not nearly as good as OBB, but I don't recall seeing this offered in recent memory (though I could be wrong?).

It seems to have been the consensus around here that DCL will keep raising prices until they feel resistance in the form of fewer bookings. I wonder if this new-ish discount is indicative that DCL is feeling some of that resistance?

Discuss among yourselves.

It might be related to the fact that prices are starting higher than they used to. Instead of starting moderately high & gradually getting high, now they're starting high & staying high, with less of an increase over time. The reduced deposit might help the reluctant to accept higher prices early in the game.

 

[squirk]

It might be related to the fact that prices are starting higher than they used to. Instead of starting moderately high & gradually getting high, now they're starting high & staying high, with less of an increase over time. The reduced deposit might help the reluctant to accept higher prices early in the game.

That's what I was thinking. Maybe bookings are slowing down because of the price increases over the last few years - people are thinking about it longer, maybe opting for a GTY to trim the expense, etc. Ships are taking longer to fill, maybe? Again, the beginnings of "resistance" that necessitate such an incentive.

 

[Shanti]

That's what I was thinking. Maybe bookings are slowing down because of the price increases over the last few years - people are thinking about it longer, maybe opting for a GTY to trim the expense, etc. Ships are taking longer to fill, maybe? Again, the beginnings of "resistance" that necessitate such an incentive.

I'd like that, but am not counting on it. I have noticed that the pricey Christmas week Dream cruise we've booked for next year still has a ton of availability across categories, and there isn't even a cruise meet thread for it yet. Hope it doesn't get cancelled.

 

[MUN]

I'd like that, but am not counting on it. I have noticed that the pricey Christmas week Dream cruise we've booked for next year still has a ton of availability across categories, and there isn't even a cruise meet thread for it yet. Hope it doesn't get cancelled.

I don't think your Christmas week cruise on the Dream will be canceled due to lack of bookings.

 

[cruiser21]

Jan- March is known as wave season in the cruise industry. It's the 3 months out of the year when most people are likely to book a cruise. Therefore you will see many deals being offered reduced deposits are one of them. I would guess just about every cruise line will be offering this. It does make it easier to book cruises or multiple cruises if your someone that cruises often.

 

[truck1]

Something I was just thinking about. Disney reads all of the forums. Here CC 3.... etc. I'm wondering if they are starting to catch on that the number of people that are saying that DCL is pricing them out and the number of bookings are down (I'm just hypothesizing) that they are taking notice. But then again if the rest of DCLs lurkers are like the one I talked to theyd prob never notice. (I mentioned to one about the certain balconies on the Dream class where you can see into the room next you all the way to the cabin door, because of the setback. There was a 15 page thread on it. She tried to tell me that there are no rooms like that on the Dream class even though there were pictures showing it)

 

[squirk]

Something I was just thinking about. Disney reads all of the forums. Here CC 3.... etc. I'm wondering if they are starting to catch on that the number of people that are saying that DCL is pricing them out and the number of bookings are down (I'm just hypothesizing) that they are taking notice.

I was wondering the same thing. We nerds on these cruise boards probably represent a very small percentage of the DCL cruising population, but might we be "canaries in a coal mine" as well? The first to fall over when the atmosphere is less than perfect?

Are we, at least in part, subjective "barometers" for DCL - giving them a "feel" for how things are going, and watching for positive or negative trends here before they eventually trickle down into the broader cruising market?

 

[truck1]

I was wondering the same thing. We nerds on these cruise boards probably represent a very small percentage of the DCL cruising population, but might we be "canaries in a coal mine" as well? The first to fall over when the atmosphere is less than perfect?

Are we, at least in part, subjective "barometers" for DCL - giving them a "feel" for how things are going, and watching for positive or negative trends here before they eventually trickle down into the broader cruising market?

Could be. It could be me but I noticed a lot of DCL priced us out and this is our last DCL trip, or switching to xxx, threads and posts, since the latest pricing came out. Add to the increased pricing, same basic itins, and shorter time to pay off a cruise, I'm not surprised that people are moving on.