It's that time of the year when the second quarter financial reports, and the cruise lines and tour operators start scratching their heads as to different strategies to increase sales or devise new promotions to make more bookings, thereby making more money.
Initial reports for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines is that their net income increased 61% to a net income in that quarter of $369 million. Double Wow!!! Officials cited several reasons for that, not the least of it being they are currently operating the largest ships in the market with three Oasis Class ships with one more already taking reservations for next years debut. These ships carry around 5,000 passengers, which quite naturally will be more lucrative than a 2,500 passenger ship.
Additionally, with more people on board the ancillary income from drinks, purchases, spas, excursions, and specialty restaurants and other such revenue will naturally increase the income. Too, the larger ships have more space for more bars, restaurants, casinos, and spas.
Another aspect of making more money on each ship is that they have enough capacity at the initial booking window to offer the lowest prices to give incentives to early bookers, then adjust the prices upwards as it gets closer to each sailing.
One other policy that RCCL initiated last year was the practice of offering lower prices early, and ceasing making last-minute offerings within 30 days before sailing. With this policy, if a guest called at the last minute they would be given the best price at that time, but it would be a lot more than had they booked 3 months before. Travel agents applauded that move because we could still compete with those last minute booking prices.
Of course, this strategy has certainly encouraged travelers to consider booking early, and it is certainly happening, especially in this travel agency. Over the past few months we've seen a good many folks booking early especially for our Alaska and Canada/New England trips in 2018. So....we always encourage our readers to consider doing the smart thing and get those reservations made!!!
Here's an example of Princess early booking incentive strategy. On our Alaska and Canada/New England trips next year, the current deposit is only $100 a person, and in addition, the traveler has the option of either the all-inclusive beverage package or $150 per person on-board-credit for those booked in a balcony room. Heck of a deal!!
Other lines are also following suit. Carnival Cruise Lines reported earlier that their second quarter earnings were quite positive, and Norwegian Cruise Line has not reported the earnings, but all signs point to having a positive report. They both report that early bookings for 2018 are at an all-time high.
The best tip of the morning is to call the experienced, professional travel counselor at The Travel Factory at 325-698-1421 or toll-free 800-760-4040; better still drop in for an eye-to-eye visit where our agents can interview you and help you determine the best cruise and company to suggest. You can also visit our website and look at our cruise and tour offerings for 2018. Look at:
www.thetravelfactoryabilene.com. Call us and let's help these cruise lines make some more money!!