Thread: Navigating the Maze - Brilliance OS Nov 09

I am going to try something a bit different. I have decided to start my trip report now, even though I will not travel until Nov. 30, 2009. The reason is that there is information I think will help travelers in the early stages of booking a cruise. Especially if, like me, you are a first time traveler.

I am passionate about getting the best value for my travel dollar, or in my case kronor. I am also retired which means I can spend lots of time on the internet looking for bargains and helpful hints about my cruise.

For those of you who are seasoned travelers there may be information you can use as well. For example yesterday, December 7, 2008, Royal Caribbean removed the fuel surcharge from the cost of my cruise. Brilliance OS, Nov. 30, 2009. This cruise is a 13 day cruise out of Barcelona. Did you get your credit? RC Brilliance OS is now offering a 100 dollar per person on-board credit for every cabin. Did you get yours?

I have been watching the cruise offers from many different on-line agencies and I think I have a good deal. If you do not agree please let me know so I can do better next time. Also any tips you old "Sea Dawgs" might have will be gladly accepted with a smile.

I am going to mention some agencies by name. ie. Travel Agencies, Airlines, Hotels, etc. This is not intended to endorse or promote them. You must compare them yourself to ensure you get good value and service. If I am breaking any rules let me know and I will correct the problem. If you think this report is in the wrong place here on CruiseLine Fans let me know and I will consider moving it.

I have not learned how to add photographs yet but when I do I will include one of my lovely wife and I.

More to come.

Thank you for doing this report.
It will for sure be fun and informative. I am looking forward to take this journey with you

Very nice to have you aboard Lars. Much of this early stuff will be so boring for you but if you hang in there I will include some details from my cruise next year. I am sorry we just missed each other on our November cruise next year . I would have enjoyed meeting you in person. Your trip report will be very helpful to my wife and me.

There are so many thoughts that go through my head when planning a vacation. The first thing I wanted to know is what kind of boats are offered. I found a site that was very helpful to me. List of Official Cruise Web Sites This site provided a list of just about every cruise line in the world. I don't think kayaks are included. OMG there are so many I decided to narrow the search by identifying the ones with 4.5 stars ratings or more. I found this information here Discount Cruises, Last-Minute Cruises, Short Notice Cruises - Vacations To Go . These ships are operated by the following cruise lines: Azamara, Carnival, Celebrity, Costa, Crystal, Cunard, Holland America, MSC, Norwegian, Oceania, Princess, Regent, Royal Caribbean, Seabourn, Seadreams Yacht Club, Silversea, Viking River Cruises, and Windstar.

Armed with these names I returned to the "List of Official Cruise Web Sites" shown above, and bookmarked the official web-sites of the cruise lines.

I knew we wanted to cruise in Europe so by checking the destinations of each cruise company I eliminated the ships that did not cruise Europe. I also knew I wanted a cruise that was at least 12 nights and not more than 15 nights long so I eliminated the cruise lines and/or ships that did not meet this criterion. I have a strict budget of not more than $5,000 for everything including cruise, air, hotels, transfers, taxes, and surcharges. I eliminated the ships/cruises that would be too expensive. Now my list was beginning to look manageable. I reduced my list to 3 cruise lines and 9 ships (Azamara Journey and Quest, Celebrity Equinox Solstice Constellation and Century, and Royal Caribbean Brilliance OS Independence OS and Jewel OS). I was now down to only 35 cruises and it was time to take a look at departure dates. I knew I wanted to cruise some time after July 2009, so I eliminated all but the lates available sailings for each ship.

More to come.

Its not boring at all. I love reading this stuff.
Your report will for sure help many first time cruisers out there. Keep it coming

Links to travel sites etc are ok as long as you dont link to other cruise forum sites

I also realize now that it is necessary to have an on-line currency convesion site close at hand because the cruise lines can quote prices in several different currencies. I use this one, but there are lots of good ones. XE - The World's Favorite Currency and Foreign Exchange Site

More to come.

This thread is a very good idea.
I am looking forward to hearing how you decided on the ship and are planing out the rest of the details.

Nice to see you Blizzard. You would think once you got down to a few cruise lines and ships things would get easier, but then you start looking at on-line travel agencies and prices and things get really interesting.

My first search provided the following results some of which were too expensive and some of which were too early.

Royal Caribbean - Brillance OC - Barcelona - 12 nights - Balcony - 12,710 kronor pp

Celebrity - Century - Amsterdam - 12 nights - Balcony - 17,360 kronor pp

Royal Caribbean - Jewel OS - Harwich - 12 nights - Balcony - 18,490 kronor pp

Celebrity - Equinox - Rome - 13 nights - Balcony - 18,870 kronor pp

Celebrity - Solstice - Rome - 12 nights - Balcony - 18,960 kronor pp

Celebrity - Constellation - Harwick - 14 nights - Balcony - 20,030 kronor pp

Royal Caribbean - Independence OS - S.Hampton - Balcony - 21, 860 kronor pp

Azamara - Journey - Barcelona 14 nights - Balcony - 22,150 kronor pp

Azamara - Quest - Barcelona - 14 nights - Balcony - 27,800 kronor pp

I eliminated all the 14 night cruises as they were going to be outside of my budget target.

The published prices should only be used as a guideline and the final price will probably be lower. But I also had to concider the other expenses listed below:

1) The published prices did not include the fuel surcharge. (This charge has been removed now on some 2009 cruises).

2) I needed R/T air from Stockholm to the port of departure and return. (About another 3,000 kronor).

3) I wanted a hotel room 1 day prior and 1 day after. (About another 2,000 kronor)

4) I needed transfers to and from the airports, hotels, and boat. (Often included in package deals).

5) I new I would have to pay gratuities. (About 2,000 kronor).

4) I wanted the best category of balcony cabin so that if I was offered an upgrade it would be to a suite.

The result of my research left me with 2 cruise lines and 5 cruise ships, (Royal Caribbean: Brilliance OS and Jewel OS;
and Celebrity: Century Equinox and Solstice).

It was time to get more spacific on the published prices so it was back to the web-sites.

By identifing the exact cruise and cabin class I can now get a clear picture of the total published price. The result of my reasearch put three more cruises out of reach, leaving Royal Caribbean's Brilliance OS - 12 nights from Barcelona in a Superior Balcony, on Nov. 30, 2009. (31,986 kronor); or Celebrity's Century - 12 nights from Amsterdam in a Concierge Class balcony on August 25, 2009. (39,258 kronor). Since Royal Caribbean's published price gave me the best chance at remaining within my budget, I was beginning to lean that way.

It is probably a good idea to mention here that the very best prices seem to me to be last minute deals, offered after the final payment dates around 60 to 90 days before the actual cruise. One of the obvious down sides to this is that you don't have such a good selection of cabins. I discussed this with several travelers on various blogs and most felt I would be wise to book early. They tell me that if the prices change in my favor later on, I can contact my travel agent and ask for the better price.

It was time to read some reviews to see what folks thought of Royal Caribbean's Brilliance OS. and Celebrity's Century. So it was back to the "List of Official Cruise Line Web-sites". There were hundreds of cruise review from professionals and travelers. As I read these an offer appeared in my e-mail called "Crazy Tuesday" or something like that. It advised that there was a 2 day sale on Royal Caribbean sailings which included $200 on-board credit and "incredible" prices on selected sailings. I decided it was time to try and reserve a cabin.

More to come.

Steward Char note: I have edited your post a little bit since links to other cruise forums are not allowed.

Awesome ...thanks. (btw, I loved the Brilliance)

WOW what an awesome thread and it will be so informative for others, thanks for doing this

I have said this before and I will say it again and again: What you are doing here is fantastic!!!! Awesome, simply awesome.

Tusen takk for all jobb du har gjort så langt. Jeg ser frem til resten