Cruise prices are based in part on demand: when a lot of people want to travel on a specific ship or cruise, cabin prices rise quickly.
When demand is lower, cruise lines set prices based on a variety of objectives. Some cruise lines do not use promotions or incentives to fill their ships because they believe this reduces the value of the product in the long run.
In other cases, a cruise line will lower its prices to expose its product to more customers. MSC Cruises, which is looking to increase its market share in the U.S., typically has lower prices than Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian for ships of comparable size.
Related: MSC Cruises has a plan to offer fresher and better quality food
In many cases, MSC Cruises voyages also include a drinks package and WiFi for one device. The price a cruise line can command depends, at least in part, on its costs. For example, fuel prices are lower and operating a cruise ship costs less.
MSC Cruises has been testing new technologies that will make its cruises more efficient. The goal was not to reduce costs (at least that goal has not been explicitly stated), but it is certainly an added benefit.
Image source: Daniel Kline/Come Cruise With Me
MSC Cruises optimizes its routes
Cruise lines rarely make a decision based on making or saving money for the company. Instead, it's easier to promote the positive environmental benefits of certain changes.
“MSC Cruises will see emissions from its fleet of ships reduced by up to 15% by 2026 thanks to the introduction of a new itinerary planning optimization tool called OptiCruise,” the cruise line wrote.
“The line has developed a new mathematical model with OPTIMeasy, a research company affiliated with the University of Genoa, which has exhaustively examined numerous factors that influence the planning of each of MSC Cruises' itineraries in order to achieve the optimum level of efficiency of a sailing, while maintaining or improving guest satisfaction.”
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Yes, emissions will be lower and some operating costs, such as fuel, should also decrease. That is something pointed out by Michele Francioni, director of energy transition at MSC Cruises.
“The OPTIMeasy team estimates that the average fuel savings achieved and emissions reduced through the use of OptiCruise are in the range of 10% to 15%, which is a significant step forward in our ambition to achieve our goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 for our marine operations,” he wrote.
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