I asked a Radisson executive about the high cost of hotels. I too thought they must be making a lot of $$ on the hotels and pre and post packages.

This is what I remember from that conversation. I may have a few details wrong but this was the essence of the discussion.

What he explained to me is they have to do a "block" of space at a certain price. They contract these a long time in advance. This is based on standard rates, NOT the weekend specials or special packages etc that the hotels often run. If the hotel market is soft the hotels drop their prices Radisson is stuck with the price they negotiated. Then they have to contract with the land operator for the transfers, the hospitality desk etc. These are all additional costs. It can be nice to have that Radisson rep at the hotel particularly if you have a problem. He assured me that although everyone thought it was a big money maker for them that it was not

So often you can hit a "special" and beat the Radisson rates by quite a lot. Radisson has to have a consistent rate regardless of the cruise date, whether the check in is mid week or week end etc these factors all change rates.

They do include all the extras, taxes, breakfast and of course transfers.

It is a great option for those who want the "no hassle" seamless process situation. It may also be as good a value as you can find on your own on occassion. Other times it is much more expensive.

It is pretty simple to check rates and then decide to "do your own thing" if you can beat the price and are comfortable making your own arrangements and taking taxis instead of transfers.