Agents have revealed their frustration at customers rebooking cruises after lines “significantly” drop prices, resulting in “more work and reduced commission”.
The Cruise Room director Robbie O’Grady noted a growing trend since the pandemic of lines reducing fares in promotional campaigns, “undermining” the original price of the cruise.
He said he has customers who regularly check to see if the price of their cruise has come down. If it has, they will cancel and rebook if they feel it is worth losing their deposit.
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“We always want to do the best by our guests and we don’t want them to feel they’ve paid over the odds, but seeing our commission dwindle is frustrating,” said O’Grady.
“We do all the extra paperwork to cancel and rebook the sailing on our system and all the while we watch our commission go down.”
O’Grady also reported a “knock‑on effect” of customers sharing the “tip” with their friends, prompting them to rebook cruises at a reduced cost as well.
His thoughts were echoed by Broadland Travel owner Nick Lee, who said price reductions in the cruise sector had become more prevalent, resulting in agents spending more time rebooking sailings.
“I’ve never seen so much price dropping in the cruise sector,” he said. “A customer recently lost a deposit worth £1,500 because the saving was so great, and I spent nearly five hours sorting it.
“Losing commission you have already made and then getting commission on a lower-value holiday is extremely frustrating.”
Travel Counsellors agent and cruise specialist Emma Otter said lines had “inflated” their prices post‑pandemic in a bid to recoup losses, prompting them to drop prices when capacity is not filled.
She said some passengers create and join Facebook groups for specific cruises to get to know other guests in advance, but the conversation often shifts to how much everyone has paid, prompting demand for reduced fares.
Otter recounted a recent experience where she rebooked a client on a sailing after the price dropped by £2,000 but said the customer “still expected the same discretionary discount I gave him from the first booking”, leaving her £200 out of pocket.
“It leaves a bad taste in the mouth,” she said. “He lost his early‑booking perks, but for the £2,000 saving it was worth it, so it belittles the early-booking savings.”