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Anyone have experience with "Wait List" bookings?


kelmac
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Hello,

 

My wife and I are very experienced cruisers and have cruised Oceania only once before. We have sixty cruises total. My wife is retiring next year and we wanted to do a segment on one of the world cruises. We tried to book the New York to Sydney (51 day) segment on the Insignia, but we could only get the "Wait List" booking after paying our deposit.

My question;

Does anyone have experience with this? How long does it take to go from wait list to an official booking? How long should I wait before giving up and moving on to another cruise?

 

Thanks,

Kel:D

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We have and eventually we did get the category we wanted. How long depends on those that have confirmed bookings that decide to cancel and where you place on the wait list. Perhaps your TA or Oceania representative can provide insight on where you are on the list.

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An important factor is the type of your stateroom or suite. ...... specifically how many of that type are on your ship. The larger the more chance that some bookings will be cancelled..If O thought there was no chance they would not have accepted your wait listed booking.

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Has anyone suggested that you improve your chances by posting the deposit now?

 

Because it does.

 

Mura

 

Thanks Everyone!

 

Hi Mura -- I did make a $1,500 deposit. :D

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Excellent! The couple of times we were waitlisted we did the same and we DID get our cabin ...

 

I'm wondering if your chances are improved by booking a pretty long cruise. DH won't agree to more than 2 weeks (which I usually stretch to 3)...

 

Good luck!

 

Mura

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I also was waitlisted for a section of the 2019 world cruise. I checked the O website frequently and last week noticed there was availability in the category I wanted. I immediately contacted my TA- she secured a cabin shortly after this. I had paid the deposit so I'm sure that helped. Good luck- hopefully you too will get a cabin.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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I also was waitlisted for a section of the 2019 world cruise. I checked the O website frequently and last week noticed there was availability in the category I wanted. I immediately contacted my TA- she secured a cabin shortly after this. I had paid the deposit so I'm sure that helped.

 

I'm wondering why you had to find the cabin---it would seem like Oceania would be calling your TA once the cabin opened up or put it on hold for you (you we're wait listed).

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Oceania closes world cruise segments until they feel there is no more world cruise demand. It does not signify "sold out", only held back. They will become available.

 

Thanks st,

 

I was wondering if that's the way Oceania's bookings are controlled. All categories of the New York to Sydney segment are "wait listed", but very few of the categories are wait listed for the entire world cruise. It opens up again for the Los Angeles to Sydney segment.

 

Enjoy!

Kel:D

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I'm wondering why you had to find the cabin---it would seem like Oceania would be calling your TA once the cabin opened up or put it on hold for you (you we're wait listed).

 

 

I wondered the same thing myself. I'm only speculating that it may have been a timing issue. Perhaps they may have contacted me if I had not beaten them to the punch [emoji5]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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The greater issue for the OP, depending upon cabin category, is that once segments are released, how many cabin changes will one be required to make. Plus Cats such as PH3 sell out quickly, as do all PHs, on some cruises. Therefore, if you are waitlisted for a PH3 on a long cruise, it might not come available like a veranda might.

 

My last Marina sailing, we reserved an A2, and waitlisted a PH3. We were #23 on the waitlist. Our TA told us they never got past #2! If we hadn't booked the A2, we wouldn't have gotten on the ship. They were paying people to get off so to fill guarantees.

 

So consider your options if you really want to do that cruise!

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Thanks everyone!

 

The thing that is strange about this booking -- the NYC to Los Angeles segment is open for bookings in my CAT and the Los Angeles to Sydney segment is open for bookings in my CAT, but the NYC to Sydney segment is all CAT's "wait listed". :o

 

Enjoy!

Kel

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Thanks everyone!

 

The thing that is strange about this booking -- the NYC to Los Angeles segment is open for bookings in my CAT and the Los Angeles to Sydney segment is open for bookings in my CAT, but the NYC to Sydney segment is all CAT's "wait listed". :o

 

Enjoy!

Kel

could be more people are signed up for the full NYC to Sydney route or they are still holding some cabins so people would not be moving cabins if they book the longer cruise

 

Would not be good for business if you booked the longer cruise then when you get to LA you have to change cabins not like you booked a B2B

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could be more people are signed up for the full NYC to Sydney route or they are still holding some cabins so people would not be moving cabins if they book the longer cruise

 

Would not be good for business if you booked the longer cruise then when you get to LA you have to change cabins not like you booked a B2B

 

Good point LHT! At this point I really wouldn't mind having to change cabins in LA. Not ideal, but we've done this before on BtoB's. Maybe they have some sort of algorithm that sets the number of cabins available for each segment???

I will hang in there until HAL, RCL, NCL releases their New Zealand/Australia cruises. If no cabin appears in my reservation, perhaps we will bail to Cunard, or one of the other lines?

 

Kel:D

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Good point LHT! At this point I really wouldn't mind having to change cabins in LA. Not ideal, but we've done this before on BtoB's. Maybe they have some sort of algorithm that sets the number of cabins available for each segment???

 

Kel:D

When is the cruise ?

I would think there is a cut off time frame for the longer cruise

 

What does your TA say they might have had this situation before

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When is the cruise ?

I would think there is a cut off time frame for the longer cruise

 

What does your TA say they might have had this situation before

 

Jan, 2019. My TA is going to call them tomorrow.

 

Thanks,

Kel

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  • 2 weeks later...

I waitlisted a cabin on a cruise on the Riviera for this past April and it cleared within a day without a deposit. Friends of ours wanted to go with us, so they waitlisted with a deposit and they got cleared within a few days, so I guess it just depends on how many people cancel or take upsell offers in the category that you are looking for.

 

Regards,

 

 

Dean

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I waitlisted a cabin on a cruise on the Riviera for this past April and it cleared within a day without a deposit. Friends of ours wanted to go with us, so they waitlisted with a deposit and they got cleared within a few days, so I guess it just depends on how many people cancel or take upsell offers in the category that you are looking for.

 

That is exactly what the Waitlists do depend upon, but the unstated variable in your equation is the popularity of the Itinerary itself.

 

Unique Itineraries don't have the same cancellation rates, and passengers are also less likely to accept move off offers. This in turn puts a cap on upsell possibilities.

 

Each individual cruise really does have its own dynamic.

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I've read on this board that being on a waitlist without a deposit gets trumped by someone on the waitlist who has made a deposit.

 

My friend and I have booked a B1 veranda and paid the deposit. But we decided that we'd rather sail in a PH suite and have gotten on the waitlist for all 3 PH suites. Our TA didn't tell us that we needed to pay a higher deposit to be on the list, so my question is this: are we considered waitlisted with a deposit or without since our deposit was based on the price of a B1 cabin and not the price of a PH suite?

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I've read on this board that being on a waitlist without a deposit gets trumped by someone on the waitlist who has made a deposit.

 

My friend and I have booked a B1 veranda and paid the deposit. But we decided that we'd rather sail in a PH suite and have gotten on the waitlist for all 3 PH suites. Our TA didn't tell us that we needed to pay a higher deposit to be on the list, so my question is this: are we considered waitlisted with a deposit or without since our deposit was based on the price of a B1 cabin and not the price of a PH suite?

 

Your booking has a deposit, not the waitlisting

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I'm not sure how this answers my question. Can anyone else actually answer my question directly? Thx!

the way I understand it is the B1 you have booked has the deposit

 

if you W/L for another Cat you need to put a deposit on that to have a better chance at clearing the list

 

but I would speak to your TA as they may have an arrangement with O if they are Top seller

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I agree with LHT28's clarification. As for a 2nd deposit, perhaps you can put just put a single deposit on the waitlist but as it is not a top suite which requires a larger deposit it does not seem worth the hassle to me as the money would earn so little while out of your pocket.

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