Are we going to be bumped?

[sbgrace]

Our 5/29/05 AOS cruise has disappeared from Royal Caribbean's website. Last night, icruise listed all the categories as "closed." Only five minutes later, the sailing disappeared from icruise all together. Does this sound like the ship's been chartered to you? [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif[/img]

We've emailed RCCL and also left a message for our TA to check. I'm really afraid we'll be looking for a different cruise...

Chris

[dougp26364]

It could just be sold out.

Future cruises
Explorer OTS - Easter Caribbean 11/04
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=CD20CD&cdt=2004;11;14;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0600[/img]
Monarch OTS - Mexico Baja 1/05
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=CD20CD&cdt=2005;01;14;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0600[/img]
Brilliance OTS - Mediteranian 10/05
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=CD20CD&cdt=2005;10;15;20;00;00&timezone=GMT-0600[/img]


Past cruises
Vision OTS - Alaska 7/03
Legend OTS - Alaska 7/02

Never regret growing old. Many are denied the privilege

[jezzdogg]

It seems like cruises have been selling out like crazy. We have a deposit with RCCL for our Navigator cruise in Feb. Trying to price from some TA to see who to hand the booking over to( not telling them of course I already had a booking) they came back(more than one) and told me the cat, I wanted was completely sold out and that the ship is almost booked solid. Called RCCL and ask them directly about the sailing you want, sometimes people have 48-72 hr holds on a room just as a courtesy of their TA.

norm

[imsulin]

It could be that a large group has booked this sailing.

[sbgrace]

As far as the ship being sold out... This sailing is [B]one year[/B] from today. I find it extremely hard to believe that a non-holiday sailing would be sold out a year in advance. It's also not peak of summer; a lot of schools in the US will not even be out for vacation at the time.

A large group could have booked the -what?- 90% (being generous) of the ship that hadn't been reserved yet, I guess.

Pessimistically,
Chris

[imsulin]

A [B]non-holiday[/B] sailing? Gee, Memorial
Day 2005 is on May 30 - the day after your cruise sails! And, many schools, like the ones in our area, let out in mid-May. Also, since hundreds of Colleges and Universities graduate their students in early-mid May, you are also dealing with graduates and their families, as well as Honeymooners. I won't even mention the thousands of families who book their cruise vacations at this time of year, since the "peak of summer" is during hurricane season. You also know, of course, that many cruise ships leave the Caribbean in May to reposition to do Alaska and Europe sailings during the summer, and this reduces the number of available ships doing Caribbean cruises. It may be that RCI is thinking about re-positioning the Adventure, and removing it from doing Caribbean cruises during the summer season. Another thing is that very large groups will book well over a year in advance. It happens all the time, and some corporate groups can charter entire ships. I've been cruising since the 80's and in 1999, I was told that my cruise had been chartered by a large corporation, and was offered an alternate cruise on another ship. I'm part of a very large group booking doing the Carnival Spirit Alaska cruise in August of 2005, and we booked two months ago. I've been on over 20 cruises. And you?

[mconthehighseas]

Since your cruise is a year away, it is very possible that one or more TA's have a hold on the remaining rooms, and that is why the cruise doesn't show up.
Our next cruise is in Dec, and we've been seeing categories of rooms disappearing and reappearing for a few months now. It may be that TA's are taking a new approach.

Counting down to the Rhapsody OTS - 12/05/04
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=0000ff&cdt=2004;12;5;18;0;00&timezone=GMT-0600[/img]

[hdawson]

A couple of other issues to consider. Ships now are sailing at 97% to 103% of capacity even with all the new ships (12 this yr) and cruising is growing by about 10% per yr. Next yr only 3 new ships coming. About 60% of cruisers are repeaters. It may be a good idea for next yrs cruise to book early. And you can expect fares to be steadily increasing I think.
The economy is good, people are less fearful of travel and even at higher fares, most think cruising is a good value.

[flamingosun]

This happened to us.
In the fall of 2003, we booked the Radiane for late October of 2004.
I got a call from my TA saying the entire ship had been chartered. Seems like that call was 10 or 11 months out.
So we ended up enjoying the Radiance last month instead of waiting until October.

[url="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=939097554&m=765101151"]Drive-a-thon for Roatan details here![/url]


Sovereign 01/02, 11/02, 6/03, 08/03, 09/03
Fantasy 06/2002
Mariner 12/03 , Radiance 04/04

[sbgrace]

imsulin, I don't see a lot of folks here on cruisecritic anxiously preparing for or posting about their Memorial Day cruise, as opposed to Christmas, New Years, or Thanksgiving. Obviously, those holidays are high-travel holidays and cruises are very popular then.

flamingosun, may I ask what sort of alternative arrangements were offered to you? Were you offered alternatives when you were notified of the charter, or did you have to wait? How much flexibility did you need to take advantage of the changes? (Our party's not very flexible as far as dates, which is one of the reasons we booked 14 months in advance.)

Chris

[Hoopster3145]

It could be sold out, or a large travel agency could have booked the rest of the rooms for a promotion/sale or somthing.

Scott

1/01 NCL Majesty
1/02 NCL Majesty
1/03 RCCL Brilliance of the Seas
3/03 Carnival Jubilee
8/03 RCCL Navigator Of the Seas
1/04 RCCL Adventure of the Seas
3/04 RCCL Radiance of the Seas


8/15/04 Rhapsody of the Seas
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=228b22&cdt=2004;8;15;18;00;00&timezone=GMT-0600[/img]

14 DAY LEGEND OF THE SEAS PANAMA CANAL CRUISE (12/26/04)
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=800080&cdt=2004;12;26;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]

3/13/05 SPRING BREAK on the Explorer of the Seas
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=ff0000&cdt=2005;3;13;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]

6/12/05 ALASKA ON SERENADE OF THE SEAS
[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=ffd700&cdt=2005;6;12;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0800[/img]

[flamingosun]

sbgrace -
We were offered another sailing on the Radiance, original price. Our choice of dates, excluding holiday sailings.
We also got a shipboard credit.
RCL was really wonderful about it.
[url="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=939097554&m=765101151"]Drive-a-thon for Roatan details here![/url]


Sovereign 01/02, 11/02, 6/03, 08/03, 09/03
Fantasy 06/2002
Mariner 12/03 , Radiance 04/04

[imsulin]

I guess I'll say this again, sbgrace. Memorial Day [B]is[/B] a major Holiday, because we honor our military veterans and those who have served our great country. Look at the celebrations that are taking place this weekend in D.C., to present the (long overdue) WWII Memorial! It marks the beginning of the summer travel season, as well. I've been on a couple of Memorial Day cruises (one was last May), and the ships were completely sold out both times. It is a very popular time for cruising, as people who work usually get that day off with pay. Same thing for President's Day and MLK Jr. birthday, Veteran's Day and 4th of July. The ships are usually full whenever kids get out of school and people get a day off of work. Many cruisers book a year in advance, but anything can happen during that time. A full-ship charter or large group booking will take priority over individual bookings. It's happend for years, and will continue. Schools in Georgia may not get out until June, but here in Alabama, they got out two weeks ago. Same thing all over this country and Canada. Just because you book a year in advance does not guarantee that your ship will not become chartered or re-positioned. Hope this makes it easier for you to understand what might have happened with your sailing. On the other hand, it could be a glitch on the website.

[sbgrace]

flamingosun--thanks very much for the info. That puts my mind at rest a bit.
Chris

[This message was edited by sbgrace on 05-30-04 at 01:09 PM.]

[sbgrace]

imsulin--fine, you're right and I'm wrong. Happy now?
Chris

[imsulin]

Sorry, Chris. I'm not into being right or wrong. I'm just trying to give you reasons (as have other posters) for why your cruise - even though it's a year away - may be filled. Many of us are long-time cruisers, and are aware of the cruising pitfalls that may occur. Didn't mean to upset you - just trying to give you some information that might be useful. Have a nice day, and let us know how the whole thing turns out, OK?

[atonal1]

Here's something to consider: The Tom Joyner Fantastic Voyage sails this time of year. I think they have sailed eastern (2003) and western (2004) routes. They may be trying the southern route in 2005.

Just a guess.

Inspiration 6/96, 12/01
Carnival Destiny 7/97, 11/00
Rhapsody of the Seas 11/98
Norwegian Sea 7/00
Norwegian Star 6/02
Paradise 11/02
Sovereign of the Seas 8/03
Serenade of the Seas 12/03

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=0000ff&cdt=2004;8;7;17;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img] until Carnival Triumph 8/04

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=0000ff&cdt=2004;11;21;22;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img] until Adventure of the Seas 11/04

[sbgrace]

Thanks, atonal. The dates for 2005's Fantastic Voyage are the dates of our cruise, but I can't find (in the quick search I've done) any itinerary. My guess is they would announce it on this year's cruise, going on now.

DH talked to RCCL today, but the rep couldn't tell us if it's a charter--just that it's totally sold out. She also couldn't locate our reservation or any of our party's reservations. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif[/img]

Our TA is off this weekend. Next step has to be through her.
Chris

[imsulin]

Just another piece of information, sbgrace. If this sailing has been booked by a large group, RCI will not tell your TA about it. Cruise lines are under no obligation to inform TAs or individual passengers about group bookings on their cruises.

[sbgrace]

I don't have definitive info yet, but I don't think this cruise is sold out because a large group has booked. I expect to find the whole ship has been chartered and my (small) group and I will be bumped.

If I'm wrong, I will be very pleased.

Chris

[Diane&4girls]

Tom Joyner has the Mariner chartered for May 29, 2005 but the AOS is a Code Red, which means someone has a charter contract on but it hasn't been confirmed.

Diane
Check out our cruise pictures:
[url="http://community.webshots.com/user/thebowers"]http://community.webshots.com/user/thebowers[/url]

Email: [email]dbower@carolina.rr.com[/email]

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=ff0000&cdt=2004;08;08;17;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img] 'Til the Mariner
Again!


Carnival Fantasy 7/28/2000
Carnival Triumph 9/22/2001
Carnival Imagination 4/21/2002
Carnival Triumph 5/29/2002
Carnival Legend 9/20/2002 (Inaugural)
Explorer of the Seas 10/19/2002
Navigator of the Seas 12/10/2002 (Inaugural)
Explorer of the Seas 12/14/2002
Navigator of the Seas 5/03/2003
Adventure of the Seas 7/27/2003
Serenade of the Seas 8/23/2003 (Inaugural)
Mariner of the Seas 11/12/2003 (Inaugural)
Mariner of the Seas 12/14/2003 (Golden Anchor Cruise!)
Navigator of the Seas 4/10/2004
Mariner of the Seas 8/8/2004
Star Princess 11/21/2004

[West Coast]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by flamingosun:
sbgrace -
We were offered another sailing on the Radiance, original price. Our choice of dates, excluding holiday sailings.
We also got a shipboard credit.
RCL was really wonderful about it.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
flamingosun,
We're in the same situation with our Jan 29/05 AOS sailing. It's been chartered but RCL is not communicating with TA's.
Sounds like you got an ok deal. Can I ask how much shipboard credit they provided?

Thanks!

[West Coast]

ps. nice pics, Diane.

[RSGS315]

What's going on with the Mariner on October 31? The sailing has been closed for some time now. Hope it's not a charter. RCCL doesn't say much about it, just that the ship is sold out.

[sbgrace]

Diane, thanks for the information! Guess I just have to wait (not something I'm very good at... [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]).

Chris