with this math . . . I am only 43 years old

9/29/20089:39:09 AM Link 0 comments | Add comment

Let’s try and figure this out once and for all. What exactly does it mean when you are told . . . . . . 6 days – 7 night’s . . . . . 8 night’s – 7 days . . . . . . 3 days – 4 night’s . . . . . . . . well, you get the idea. Rather often we go through the following type of conversation. A customer will come in our doors and ask about going on the Carnival Glory . . . . . . . . . I use this ship because it is the discussion with my most recent Saturday morning customer.

I begin with the normal questions such as cabin type . . . . time of year . . . preferred date . . . . number of guests . . . . .and so on. I then get the rates for the cabin of choice for this 7 day cruise . . . . . . and then they hit me with it. “Your competitor down the street has the Carnival Glory for that same date doing an 8 day cruise”.

           This enormous space is a blank look on my face

So, I begin my explanation . . . . which I have done many times before.

The Glory is not adding an extra day of your vacation because of where it is booked. “No”, he tells me . . . . . . they have it for 8 days . . . . . (Saturday to Saturday), but yours is only 7 days. This is where I hand him the brochure . . . . . . . . the one which the cruise lines call this a 7 day cruise . . . . . . . and explain how traditional, old fashioned and get-rich quick (ha) travel agents . . . . . . the kind that mostly do airlines and hotels . . . . . like using the phrase – 8 days, 7 night’s and such. This gives the customer a sense of something for free. I see it as misleading, false and deceitful. Let’s take a look.

Day             Their Cruise                                 Our Cruise

 1 Sat      check in at 12NOON                board ship at 12 NOON

 2 - 6 Sun – Thu

 7 Fri                           last (actual day) of vacation

 8 Sat                         depart ship at about 9:30AM

                  Do you really want to call this a day of vacation?

Even further . . . . . . . . . break it down into hours

            Their 8 day vacation as listed above               165 hours

            GalaxSea 7 day vacation as listed above         165 hours

Well how about that. It turns out my 7 day cruise offers just as much as their 8 day. I guess we get you home a day earlier.

Or try it this way . . . . the Carnival Glory departs for vacation every Saturday – and returns every Saturday . . . . 52 times per year. 7 days in a week . . . . 52 weeks in a year. If the ship did this every week for an 8 day cruise there would be 416 days in each calendar year. Hmm.

Or . . . . look at the short cruises . . . . which depart for 3 days every Friday and 4 days every Monday. This also means the ship returns . . . every Monday and again every Friday. 3 plus 4 equals 7 which is the number of days per week. Does that mean the cruise is 3 night’s 4 days and 4 night’s 5 days? NO. That would make 468 days per year. With this math . . . I am only 43 years old. Maybe I can make it work after all.

The cruise industry does not try and deceive the public with a false day of vacation. Most travel agents do, however, like to add a false day of your well deserved vacation . . . . . . which amounts to nothing more than a travel day. A day of packing bags and heading home. Unless you stay 1 night at a hotel on the trip back. . . . . or would that be 2 days . . . . . no, maybe it’s 2 night’s and 1 day . . . . . let’s just call it 1 sleep cycle.

The next time you talk to travel agency ABC, XYZ or YTB . . . . . . or whatever they call themselves . . . . . . don’t be mislead by false statements when all you need is simple facts.