Flower Power cruise 2020
-
Yankeefan2 wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This cruise has been postponed twice, but hopefully we'll be able to sail next year. I had to get AA tickets when it was 2021 because they moved the port of sailing to Miami and at that time Delta didn't fly non-stop to Miami (they do now) So I ended up with a $246 credit that they told me was only good until Mar. 31, 2022, but the cruise ends Apr. 4th!! So what I did was got a one-way from Atlanta to Miami on Mar. 27th and used part of the credit. Then a couple nights ago I got a one-way on Delta from Miami to Atlanta using my Delta Sky Miles points. AA prices were insane for a one-way on Apr. 4th - $972!! (The ticket on Mar. 27th was $130!) I will NEVER use AA again! They have since said I can use the rest of my credit through May 2022, but Delta is allowing all credits to be used through Dec. 31, 2022.
Good luck !! I think you will see cruise ships return to sailing this summer so I think you will be good for 2022. We have Alaskan cruise that has been canceled twice and now rescheduled for June 2022. If something happens to it, I give up !! I assume AA is American Airlines. In my town (Charlotte NC), American is a hub and has about 90% of the flights that leave Charlotte. We had flight to Seattle canceled due to our cruise being canceled and got full credit. We used part of it for a flight to Florida and still have several hundred dollars left to use . We were told there is no expiration date on the remaining credit but we will use it later in 2021 or early 2022 to make sure -lol. That transaction went very easily with thankfully no hassles.
Yes, AA = American Airlines. I noticed that a lot of their 1-stops out of Atlanta layover in Charlotte. I usually only fly Delta because I accumulate the Sky Mile points with my AMEX card and Atlanta is their hub. Only in 1971 and 1973 I flew a different airline from Cleveland to L.A. Moved to Atlanta in 1973 and it's been Delta ever since!
I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA.
P.S. I agree, if this cruise cancels a 3rd time, I'm getting a refund! (they offered that when the 2021 canceled)
-
"I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA. "
That AA price makes no sense. Our roundtrip flight from Charlotte NC to Seattle, Washington was under $1,000 - weird.
-
Yankeefan2 wrote:
"I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA. "
That AA price makes no sense. Our roundtrip flight from Charlotte NC to Seattle, Washington was under $1,000 - weird.
This makes even LESS sense: I checked earlier today and that same AA flight that was $972 is now $130!! (+$30 bag fee)
I am keeping my Delta reservation for several reasons: the flight time is better (earlier) and I won't have to pay any more money (I only have $117 credit left) Plus with Delta I get priority boarding Zone 1 and free 1st bag. Not sure I could cancel it now anyway. They only give you 24 hours to cancel for refund. The ticket is changeable, but would only be refundable if Covid caused the ship not to be able to sail. I have insurance for anything else.
-
Nancy R wrote:
Yankeefan2 wrote:
"I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA. "
That AA price makes no sense. Our roundtrip flight from Charlotte NC to Seattle, Washington was under $1,000 - weird.
This makes even LESS sense: I checked earlier today and that same AA flight that was $972 is now $130!! (+$30 bag fee)
I am keeping my Delta reservation for several reasons: the flight time is better (earlier) and I won't have to pay any more money (I only have $117 credit left) Plus with Delta I get priority boarding Zone 1 and free 1st bag. Not sure I could cancel it now anyway. They only give you 24 hours to cancel for refund. The ticket is changeable, but would only be refundable if Covid caused the ship not to be able to sail. I have insurance for anything else.
Sounds good. We have a similar plan with American because as I said they fly the most flights from Charlotte. I personally like the "perk" of boarding early so I will have no issues with overhead space for carry on. I think you will be fine with cruise in 2022 , I can't imagine cruise industry being shut down much longer especially when you read cruise line employees are getting the vaccine.
How do you like Celebrity Cruise line? I have heard good things about them from friends/family. My wife and I usually cruise with Royal or Princess. We have been on other cruise lines like Holland America and Disney. Well, crossing my fingers for you, we all need to get away and see the world again -lol.
-
Yankeefan2 wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
Yankeefan2 wrote:
"I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA. "
That AA price makes no sense. Our roundtrip flight from Charlotte NC to Seattle, Washington was under $1,000 - weird.
This makes even LESS sense: I checked earlier today and that same AA flight that was $972 is now $130!! (+$30 bag fee)
I am keeping my Delta reservation for several reasons: the flight time is better (earlier) and I won't have to pay any more money (I only have $117 credit left) Plus with Delta I get priority boarding Zone 1 and free 1st bag. Not sure I could cancel it now anyway. They only give you 24 hours to cancel for refund. The ticket is changeable, but would only be refundable if Covid caused the ship not to be able to sail. I have insurance for anything else.
Sounds good. We have a similar plan with American because as I said they fly the most flights from Charlotte. I personally like the "perk" of boarding early so I will have no issues with overhead space for carry on. I think you will be fine with cruise in 2022 , I can't imagine cruise industry being shut down much longer especially when you read cruise line employees are getting the vaccine.
How do you like Celebrity Cruise line? I have heard good things about them from friends/family. My wife and I usually cruise with Royal or Princess. We have been on other cruise lines like Holland America and Disney. Well, crossing my fingers for you, we all need to get away and see the world again -lol.
The cruise I'm taking is a charter, so it is a Celebrity ship and crew, but all the guests booked through StarVista (The Flower Power cruise) The only complaint I had was the bed was hard (was warned about this by a friend who had gone on the 1st FP cruise 2 years earlier) Asked for an eggcrate mattress topper and that solved the problem.
Royal Caribbean was definitely nicer - comfortable bed, fantastic buffets for breakfast and lunch, and delicious meals in the dining room. On the FP cruise I didn't want to miss the bands, plus I went alone, so I never took the time to eat in the dining room. On the RC Beatles cruises, we were only a small group of about 75-100 but they "rented out" parts of the ship for us for private concerts and allowed time to eat in dining room so we never missed anything.
-
Nancy R wrote:
Yankeefan2 wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This cruise has been postponed twice, but hopefully we'll be able to sail next year. I had to get AA tickets when it was 2021 because they moved the port of sailing to Miami and at that time Delta didn't fly non-stop to Miami (they do now) So I ended up with a $246 credit that they told me was only good until Mar. 31, 2022, but the cruise ends Apr. 4th!! So what I did was got a one-way from Atlanta to Miami on Mar. 27th and used part of the credit. Then a couple nights ago I got a one-way on Delta from Miami to Atlanta using my Delta Sky Miles points. AA prices were insane for a one-way on Apr. 4th - $972!! (The ticket on Mar. 27th was $130!) I will NEVER use AA again! They have since said I can use the rest of my credit through May 2022, but Delta is allowing all credits to be used through Dec. 31, 2022.
Good luck !! I think you will see cruise ships return to sailing this summer so I think you will be good for 2022. We have Alaskan cruise that has been canceled twice and now rescheduled for June 2022. If something happens to it, I give up !! I assume AA is American Airlines. In my town (Charlotte NC), American is a hub and has about 90% of the flights that leave Charlotte. We had flight to Seattle canceled due to our cruise being canceled and got full credit. We used part of it for a flight to Florida and still have several hundred dollars left to use . We were told there is no expiration date on the remaining credit but we will use it later in 2021 or early 2022 to make sure -lol. That transaction went very easily with thankfully no hassles.
Yes, AA = American Airlines. I noticed that a lot of their 1-stops out of Atlanta layover in Charlotte. I usually only fly Delta because I accumulate the Sky Mile points with my AMEX card and Atlanta is their hub. Only in 1971 and 1973 I flew a different airline from Cleveland to L.A. Moved to Atlanta in 1973 and it's been Delta ever since!
I got a one-way nonstop MIA to ATL for 4/4/22 for 18, 000 points (would have been about $275) Even a round trip on AA would have been $1072! I lucked out with the $130 one way to MIA.
P.S. I agree, if this cruise cancels a 3rd time, I'm getting a refund! (they offered that when the 2021 canceled)
Just so you know, when seats are running out on a plane, with a one way ticket you get into what’s called a full “y” class fare which is often $1,000 or more. I used to work for an airline. That’s a shame you had to use 18,000 points for a $275 fare, the flights must be full. I only used 11,000 points to fly east coast to the west coast last November. Of course there was more Covid then so possibly that’s why it was cheaper. You can often buy points for not too much money, to get to the level of a free ticket. Also, the best time and usually the lowest cost to upgrade to first class is the day of the flight, or late night the day before. (If there are seats open) I’ve been upgraded to first class the morning on the day of for $200 or less, flying cross country, also saving money on the extra bag. If not there’s always Premium Economy for a larger seat and a few other perks. Register for frequent flyer of every airline and car rental you are using. It all adds up, offers extra opportunities. It’s just a good idea to be a part of “the frequent user” club.
-
I know about how one way flights can sometimes be more expensive. But you must have missed my post earlier where I said they lowered the one way from MIA to ATL from $972 to $130. Scroll up/down and find that post. I was answering Yankeefan.
Btw, the flight on Delta was 20,000 points the first time I checked! I had over 40,000 points, so 18,000 didn't seem that bad. We paid 50,000 points each for round trip to U.K. (fly into London, fly home from Manchester) Same # of points as in 2016! In 2011, I "paid" 75,000 points! (flew into Manchester and home from London) I have bought points a couple times on Delta. I think I upgraded to premium economy in 2011. I always use either AARP or Delta for discount on car rentals. Rented in 2013 in Cleveland and 2017 in Las Vegas.
I always get one free checked bag on Delta (and priority Zone 1 boarding) since I pay with my Delta Sky Miles AMEX. I also belong to American and Southwest's frequent flyer programs, but Delta has been the best for me, especially since Atlanta is its hub and I live near Atlanta.
