It's frustrating when a company advertises one price and then charges one that's markedly different. President Joe Biden has targeted resorts that don't disclose resort fees, internet charges, or other mandatory fees that guests can't opt out of.
Most people understand that taxes will be added to most advertised prices, but they're less understanding when their cable bill is double what they expected. Comcast, Charter, and other players routinely advertise a base price that does not include the regional sports and broadcast channel fees you have to pay.
Related: Royal Caribbean makes a surprising executive change
It's a slippery slope because companies want to entice customers with low prices. The cruise industry falls into this trap, but not in the hidden fees way many resorts do. Instead, cruise lines generally don't advertise prices including taxes and fees.
Those fees are not going to the cruise line, they're the fees charged by the various ports where the ship will stop. You have to pay those fees whether or nor you get off, but unlike a resort charging you mandatory fees for amenities you may not use, the cruise lines don't make money on these added charges.
Still, these added fees can be between (roughly) $125 and $300 per person depending upon the length of the cruise and where it's going. That's not a small amount and it makes the price people pay for their cabin somewhat different from the one that was advertised.
Image source: Daniel Kline/TheStreet
Royal Caribbean makes a national pricing change
California recently passed a law that will make travel prices more transparent. Royal Caribbean shared some information about those changes in an email to its travel agent partners.
"An important change to California’s consumer protection law will go into effect on July 1, 2024. This change may have a broad impact on each of you and the way you advertise, display, or offer our products to your clients," the cruise line shared.
The cruise line has promised some changes, but it's going to make those changes nationally.
"Starting July 1, Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises will comply with California’s new law – and will do so nationally. This means that whenever Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises advertise, display, or offer pricing to consumers on any channel, anywhere in the United States, the price shown will include the cruise fare as well as any taxes, fees, and port expenses that guests will be required to pay as part of their cruise," the cruise line shared in the email.
The company's Silversea Cruises brand will not need to make any changes, because its prices already include all required taxes, fees, and port expenses.
Want the latest cruise news and deals? Sign up for the Come Cruise With Me newsletter.
Royal Caribbean makes a customer-friendly choice
In response to Biden's push on resort fees, some hotel chains have started advertising the full price, but not all have. In making this change, Royal Caribbean has done the right thing for its customers, but it runs the risk of being at a marketing disadvantage if its rivals don't do the same.
Leveraging its network of partner travel agencies can help mitigate that because travel agents can communicate why prices seemed to increase to their customers. Royal Caribbean has already begun doing the work needed to make the changes in the systems used by travel agents and the other ways people can book a cruise with the line.
Sign up for the Come Cruise With Me newsletter to save money on your next (or your first) cruise.
"In anticipation of these changes, we are working internally to update our various systems, including Espresso, the One Stop Pricing file, and more. Our application programming interface (API) feeds will be modified as well. Our changes will be live on July 1. Again, whether you call in, use our API, use Espresso or another channel on July 1, the price we will provide will be inclusive of the fare and all mandatory taxes, fees, and port expenses," it shared.
