What's up with Apple pricing?!

[fellman]

Hola!

I love this board - I'm looking for answers.
I've been checking prices out of BWI and Phila. Intl. on a daily basis for two weeks using the Apple Vacations website. Destination is Playacar area, a mid-sized AI using dates April 13 - 17, 2006. Every couple of days the price increases (at first just the adult price went up several hundred, now the price for children has increased by more than $200 per kid). Hard to believe that in the space of a few days the same vacation is now so so much more expensive. I don't get it! It's aggravating and now trying to plan a vacation has become too similar to the game of gambling. Thanks for letting me rant - anyone else experience this?

Susan M.

[KevKaos]

Originally Posted by fellman

Hola!

I love this board - I'm looking for answers.
I've been checking prices out of BWI and Phila. Intl. on a daily basis for two weeks using the Apple Vacations website. Destination is Playacar area, a mid-sized AI using dates April 13 - 17, 2006. Every couple of days the price increases (at first just the adult price went up several hundred, now the price for children has increased by more than $200 per kid). Hard to believe that in the space of a few days the same vacation is now so so much more expensive. I don't get it! It's aggravating and now trying to plan a vacation has become too similar to the game of gambling. Thanks for letting me rant - anyone else experience this?

Susan M.

Contact Shammy. She has 8 of us booked at the IB Tucan in Playacar in about two weeks. So far, she has been all I could ask for in an agent, and I was a part-time agent myself at one point.

[birdman]

Originally Posted by fellman

Hola!

I love this board - I'm looking for answers.
I've been checking prices out of BWI and Phila. Intl. on a daily basis for two weeks using the Apple Vacations website. Destination is Playacar area, a mid-sized AI using dates April 13 - 17, 2006. Every couple of days the price increases (at first just the adult price went up several hundred, now the price for children has increased by more than $200 per kid). Hard to believe that in the space of a few days the same vacation is now so so much more expensive. I don't get it! It's aggravating and now trying to plan a vacation has become too similar to the game of gambling. Thanks for letting me rant - anyone else experience this?

Susan M.

Supply & demand. Seems everyone wants to go to PDC, therefore the resorts & airlines will charge all they possibly can knowing that nothing, not even the threat of a cat 3 hurricane will stop a person once they have their minds made up

[Shammy]

Originally Posted by KevKaos

Contact Shammy. She has 8 of us booked at the IB Tucan in Playacar in about two weeks. So far, she has been all I could ask for in an agent, and I was a part-time agent myself at one point.

She IS a client of mine Kev!

Susan, welcome to my world! I hear ya..trust me I do. I've been looking into this for you as well and was actually going to call you last night but got tied up with other calls from people worried about...you know who (begins with an "E"!).
What I found was almost too much to type so I figured a phone call is in order.
I think I have an explaination..think I do anyway. I'll give you a call later...K?

[fellman]

Hola again.

Point of my "temper tantrum" (original post) was to vent my aggravation and see if ANYONE else experienced this price inflation over the last few days. Frustrating to observe that I could have taken my family of four (husband and two kids) for the amount I budgeted to the Riu Palace in April '06 using prices from eight days ago. Now, TODAY, I can't even afford the Riu Tequila.
Good thing I never became a stock broker - wouldn't know when to buy, fold, sell etc. I totally agree, Shammy is the best and I will await her explanation.

Susan M.

[KevKaos]

Originally Posted by Shammy

She IS a client of mine Kev!

I think I just scored some Brownie points. WOOOOO HOOOOOOOO

[KevKaos]

Originally Posted by fellman

Hola again.

Point of my "temper tantrum" (original post) was to vent my aggravation and see if ANYONE else experienced this price inflation over the last few days. Frustrating to observe that I could have taken my family of four (husband and two kids) for the amount I budgeted to the Riu Palace in April '06 using prices from eight days ago. Now, TODAY, I can't even afford the Riu Tequila.
Good thing I never became a stock broker - wouldn't know when to buy, fold, sell etc. I totally agree, Shammy is the best and I will await her explanation.

Susan M.

If you do decide to book at the rapidly inflating prices, you may want to take the Apple travel insurance. If the prices suddenly start to drop (say due to some extensive unforeseen widespread damage to the general are of your vacation) you can simply call Apple and get the lower price. As tragic as 9/11 was here in the US, my GF and I made out like bandits on a Sandals vacation to Jamaica because of it. People stopped flying and the airlines dropped their prices steeply. As a result, the resorts started dropping their prices as well.

[Shammy]

Originally Posted by KevKaos

If you do decide to book at the rapidly inflating prices, you may want to take the Apple travel insurance. If the prices suddenly start to drop (say due to some extensive unforeseen widespread damage to the general are of your vacation) you can simply call Apple and get the lower price. As tragic as 9/11 was here in the US, my GF and I made out like bandits on a Sandals vacation to Jamaica because of it. People stopped flying and the airlines dropped their prices steeply. As a result, the resorts started dropping their prices as well.

This really is only true if you take an Apple charter. Once you get into using scheduled air, such as US Air, etc...things become much more complicated. You may see the price for that flight drop, but in order to claim a refund for the difference, the seats on sale MUST be in the same class of service as the ones you booked. Chances of this happening are slim to none actually, I've NEVER had it happen to any of my people that have taken sked air. With a charter, there are no classes of service (well there are but the same rules don't apply) so if they put that charter on sale and you catch it, you can claim a refund. And Apple rarely puts a hotel on sale unless it is in conjunction with one of the charters so don't expect a refund for a hotel price drop when taking sked air either.

[KevKaos]

Thats all good information to know. Sorry I opened a can of worms that required a detailed answer/response. I know you are busy right now. Breathe deep.

[fellman]

Hola once again.

Just talked with Shammy on the telephone.
She is VERY busy as usual but took the time to explain the fluctuating price differences. I was researching on Apple Vacations website using SCHEDULED air, not a charter (example USA3000). Scheduled air (USAir, Delta etc.) prices change constantly, from day to day and sometimes hour to hour. The total package price you see one day could be much higher the next day because of the scheduled airline carrier NOT the resort. Makes sense to me now and I very much appreciate Shammy's reply.

Sincerely,

Susan M.