Recovering from a pandemic must be a marketing professional’s dream.
There are a million different promotions out there, all trying to attract people to travel again.
For those of us in the trenches, it seems like a full-time job to keep track of who is marketing what, and identifying companies that are actually sending out value-added offers rather than just generating noise.
While sorting through all of this in the past few weeks, I’ve discovered another dimension: how multiple or varying offers from the same company combine.
I went looking to see if there was a secret password or a decoder ring that would allow me to figure this all out. Alas, the only path through all these offers is to simply cross-check one against the other and look through the fine print for exclusions and/or combinability.
Sound confusing? Yes, it really is.
However, the effort is worth it.
Specifically, I found some interesting opportunities with Seabourn that expire at the end of July, with multiple offers that have turned out to be combinable.
Here are two cruises that really stood out in terms of the value:
Alaska – May 28, 2021 ($3499 per person)
Juneau to Vancouver (7 nights), with Glacier Bay and Misty Fjords.
What makes this combination of deals stand out:
- Sensational Suite Sale means you get a Veranda Suite for the price of an Ocean View room. Remember all staterooms on Seabourn are suites.
- Shipboard credit of $250 per guest
- Air Credit of $750 per guest
- 300 internet minutes
- Virtuoso Voyage with a host on board, and exclusive events, PLUS an additional $150 per person on board credit.
- Our agency has a group on this sailings to get you an additional $125 per person on board credit (if you’re keeping track, that brings your total OBCs to $525 per person).
- 10% off if you pay in full at the time of booking.
- They have also adjusted their cancellation policy to account for the COVID-19 situation. You can cancel your trip with no penalty up to 30 days in advance of sailing.
With all these combined offers layering on top of each other, you can go to Alaska on a luxury small ship for what you normally pay to go on one of the mega-ships.
If you’d rather not fly to Alaska for just one week, here are some common (and highly recommended) add-ons available for this cruise:
- 6-day extension to Denali National Park (Includes a ride on Alaska’s famed domed rail car, and a flight-seeing tour over Denali)
- 7-day cruise (to make it a 2-week cruise) visiting Ketchikan, Sitka, Glacier Bay, Icy Strait Point, and Haines.
- Rocky Mountaineer (Luxury Rail journey through the Canadian Rockies between Vancouver and Calgary).
Baltics & Russia – July 10, 2021 ($4699 per person)
Stockholm to Copenhagen (7 nights) including 2 nights in St. Petersburg, Russia.
What makes this combination of deals stand out:
- Sensational Suite Sale means you get a Veranda Suite for the price of an Ocean View
- 300 internet minutes
- Virtuoso Voyage with a host on board, and exclusive events, PLUS an additional $150 per person on board credit.
- Our agency has a group on this sailing to get you an additional $125 per person on board credit (bringing your total OBCs to $275 per person).
- 10% off if you pay in full at the time of booking.
- They have also adjusted their cancellation policy to account for the COVID-19 situation. You can cancel your trip with no penalty up to 30 days in advance of sailing.
Here are some common add-ons for a Baltic cruise:
- Stay on the ship for an additional 2 weeks, and sail up the coast of Norway
- 10-day post-cruise extension: UNESCO Imperial Heritage of Europe (Copenhagen/Berlin/Dresden/Vienna/Budapest)
If you’re unfamiliar, here’s a little background on Seabourn. The first time we went on Seabourn, it became very clear, very quickly, that this wasn’t like other cruise ships we’d been on. It was really our first small ship experience, and once you get hooked, it’s hard to go back:
- All suites. All the staterooms on Seabourn are in fact suites that are 300 square feet or larger. The in-suite bathrooms all have a full soaker tub, and double sinks, with granite counter tops. It’s nicer than our bathroom at home!
- Small Ship. There is a huge difference sailing with only 450 guests as opposed to 4500 guests. Besides the added service and intimacy, there are also logistic issues – like NOT having to line up to embark and disembark.
- All inclusive. It’s nice to have everything in the price, but it also changes the culture on board the ship. When you order a glass of wine, they’re not asking for your key card, they just bring your wine (and top it up regularly). This is different than other cruise lines where SOME passengers have beverages included.
- Great value. Given that the best-priced suite on Seabourn is larger (and better appointed) than the highest cabin category on the premium lines, the value per dollar is quite evident.
- Thomas Keller Grill. I’ve never eaten at the French Laundry in San Jose, or Per Se in NYC. Perhaps because I’ve never gotten around to it, or perhaps because paying $350 each, and waiting 6 months for a table reservation is a bit beyond me. I’d rather experience Thomas Keller’s food on a Seabourn ship, where it’s included in the fare.
- Ventures by Seabourn. I like the option to be able to do some expedition offerings right off a luxury ship. These active options are particularly good if you’re going back to place you’ve already been. It is also much less spartan than many expedition ships.
If neither of these cruises stand out for you, there are other options as well, where multiple offers overlap and combine like the examples given above.
You’ll want to get in touch soon if one of these cruises interests you – these prices expire on July 31st.
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I look forward to hearing from you.
Sue Bradley
Sue Bradley
