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It’s been two years since Norwegian Cruise Line decided to experiment with an open bar on its short cruises out of Miami, a policy that set the Norwegian Sky apart from its peers.
Including free drinks on three- and four-day cruises to the Bahamas and Cuba has kept Norwegian from having to compete solely on price, helping renew agents’ interest in short cruises.
Andy Stuart, president and CEO of Norwegian, said the Norwegian Sky had always scored high in guest satisfaction surveys, but in the past 18 months it has been the company’s highest-rated ship.
The idea of an open bar on the Sky grew out of a desire to change the short cruise pricing dynamic.
“With three brands in Miami on the three- and four-day market, it had become very much a price-oriented itinerary,” Stuart said. “The ports are the same, time in ports was the same. The only difference was that we would go to our private island, and the other guys would go to their private island. It was somewhat challenging to differentiate.”
Carnival Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean International are the other two entrants in Miami’s short cruise market — Carnival with its Carnival Victory and Royal with the Enchantment of the Seas.
By including the cost of most beverages in the fare, prices for the Norwegian Sky are as much as 60% higher than Carnival Victory for a comparable cabin and date.
For a three-day Bahamas cruise leaving Miami July 7, an interior cabin is priced at $549 per person on Norwegian, $442 on Royal Caribbean and $339 on Carnival. Gaps are similar but not identical for oceanview, balcony and suite categories.
Stuart said that fare gap shows that Norwegian has succeeded.
“We feel like that differentiation has been effective,” he said.
Stuart acknowledged that for some consumers, price is paramount, but he said Norwegian has been working to offer more than just the best price.
“Certainly in the last two-and-a-half years we’ve worked very, very hard to move away from price as a decision-maker and get the customer to think about the value of the vacation as what defines the choice,” he said.
Stuart said agents stopped promoting three- and four-day cruises because low prices meant commissions weren’t worthwhile, but inclusive pricing and the addition of Havana overnights revived the segment.
Terri Howell, owner of Dream Cruises, in Baton Rouge, La., said that at the right price, there’s money in selling short cruises because the volume of customers is higher.
One problem Norwegian failed to foresee when it adopted an open bar on Sky was that it eliminated the auto-gratuities that bartenders received when customers paid with a ship card. In April, Norwegian raised suggested gratuities on the Sky to $18.99 per person per day, the highest in its fleet.
Sоurсе: travelweekly.com