Lawsuits and high fuel cost effect Carnival and others

[san007]

Do uthink dozens or more lawsuits and high fuel cost will damage the cruise industry; esp. Carnival. I am afraid the lawsuits are brewing. Everybody wants a piece of Carnival since the recent incident on Crown Princess. I've read many are seeking legal presentation. It wasn't enough that the cruiseline offered 50% off there cruise and a full refund. We as cruise finatics will have to pay the cost of the frivalous lawsuits in addition to the legitmate ones.
The high fuel cost alone is damaging the cruise industry. How much longer could they continue to sell the cruises at fantastic prices. 4nt All-Inclusive cruise for 199.00. You see my point. Don't stress yourself about this but look at the bigger picture.
Speaking of fuel cost, you would think you need a second job to pay for gas these days. I saw on the news the other day some people were pawning things from there homes just to buy gasoline. I also saw where activist were leading protests against high gas prices. Here in Atlanta, gas is at 3.00 a gallon.

san

[Dorothy]

Believe me, Carnival and all the other cruiselines factor in the possibility of lawsuits. I doubt very much if lawsuits will up the price of a future cruise.

High fuel is another matter....The cost of GETTING to the port is going to raise the cost of my next 2 cruises (I drive).

You need to come mto my side of town san, gas is "down" to $1.91!

dorothy

[skymaster]

Hey Dorothy. Is it really $1.91, or did you mean $2.91? If it's really $1.91, I'm getting a tanker and heading up there!
Ken

[Dorothy]

Must be wishful thinking on my part - it's really $2.91!!

dorothy

[Sea Trekker]

All gas costs are gong up, My yard man has a fuel charge tacked on to his monthly bill, airlines to, and how about the grocery store? It cost more to deliver to your area. We need alternative fuel source. but that gets into politics, so I woun't go there.

[Irish]

I find it truly amazing that the fuel companies can make billions off of us and not reduce their price of fuel. I wonder where they fuel up.

John 8)

[UConn1]

Believe me when I say that every large corporation has a liability account in place for lawsuits and unforseen disasters, etc. This is included in their yearly budgets and we will see little, if any, affect from it. However, the fuel surcharges could begin to appear.

Jodi

[cruisinforever]

My take on it is that they want us to get used to paying $3.00 a gallon. I even got gas this week at $2.95 and said wow. See how it works? Then they thumb their noses at us with their exorbitant earnings. We are being affected at the pump, grocery store, airlines, cruising and right down to the roofing and paving of the roads at our condo complex (megabucks).

Betty

[Joey Troutt]

Hummm, where to begin. First, I usally don't try to wade into these types of conversations but this ones getting too good to pass up.
As for the cruise industry they will survive the lawsuit barrage unless the blood sucking lawyers can get 12 people together on a jury and convince them to look at the giant company instead of the law suit itself (But of course getting a couple of million for spilling hot coffee on oneself, anything is possible) Therein lies the problem, its not so much the the people that sue (what have they got to lose) its the people who sit on the juries. How in the world you can award these types of judgements is beyond me, but then again the lawyers are good......
As for big oil and fuel prices, let's put it this way. If the cruise lines could fill their ships at $2000 per passage why in the world would they sale the same passage for $1000 dollars. When we pull up to the pumps in our SUV's and large pickups and pump $80 to $100 worth of fuel into them and just complain about it why would big oil sale for $2 dollars a gallon when they can get $3. Until the American buyer stands up and not only says enough but changes our habits it will only get worse. How far it goes is up to us. Herein lies the second problem, Its always someone eles fault, big oil is gouging us, its not that we are extremely wasteful of this resource and haven't had the courage to stand up and demand more altnertive fuel choices.
Now I've vented, I hope that I haven't stepped on anyones toes. You can see why I don't jump in more often
Joey

[Mean Dean]

Don't worry -- the cruise lines are well positioned to weather lawsuits of this sort. As someone mentioned, these sorts of costs are factored into their operating budgets. As for fuel costs, those would just get passed along to the customers if they become too high.

If you're interested in why the cruise industry is the most profitable industry in history I suggest you read a book entitled "
Devils on the Deep Blue Sea: The Dreams, Schemes and Showdowns That Built America's Cruise-Ship Empires" by Kristoffer Garin.

In it you will discover why cruise lines pay no income taxes whatsoever, pay their non-officer crews virtually nothing, and force their ports-of-call into extremely beneficial deals for themselves.

In addition, you'll also learn some interesting stories, like how Carnival out manuevered Royal Caribbean in aquiring Princess.

Dean

[gambitscuba]

Originally Posted by Mean Dean

In addition, you'll also learn some interesting stories, like how Carnival out manuevered Royal Caribbean in aquiring Princess.

Dean

Im slightly glad RCI didn't acquire Princess... horrible cruise line, Princess :gags:

[san007]

Originally Posted by Mean Dean

Don't worry -- the cruise lines are well positioned to weather lawsuits of this sort. As someone mentioned, these sorts of costs are factored into their operating budgets. As for fuel costs, those would just get passed along to the customers if they become too high.

If you're interested in why the cruise industry is the most profitable industry in history I suggest you read a book entitled "
Devils on the Deep Blue Sea: The Dreams, Schemes and Showdowns That Built America's Cruise-Ship Empires" by Kristoffer Garin.

In it you will discover why cruise lines pay no income taxes whatsoever, pay their non-officer crews virtually nothing, and force their ports-of-call into extremely beneficial deals for themselves.

In addition, you'll also learn some interesting stories, like how Carnival out manuevered Royal Caribbean in aquiring Princess.

Thanx for the info. I will lookfor the book this weekend.

san

Dean

[Mean Dean]

Gambit -

Interestingly enough, Royal Caribbean and Princess would have made a better pairing. They would have been much like siblings in the same family.

Carnival's management style over it's acquisitions seems to be to let them operate as they always have. Even though Princess is now under the Carnival umbrella, it is still Princess.

Royal Caribbean, on the other hand, almost ruined (in a business sense) Celebrity when it acquired them. RCCL tried to make Celebrity into RCCL instead of letting Celebrity continue to be the fine operation that it was.

It's been a combination of RCCL missteps, and Carnival business savvy that's led to the current state of the cruise industry. That being Carnival as the largest cruise line company, as opposed to Carnival and RCCL being roughly equals.

I'm a RCCL fan, but as much as it pains me, I have to call it like I see it!

Dean

[gambitscuba]

i can't speak from ultimate experience because i never traveled on celebrity before the merger.... but i can sense a very distinct difference of the atmosphere on both lines.... RCCL has a more family feel a more "fun" sense to it... where celebrity has a more elitist feel where the activities are geared to a more educated and informed audience...