Ship Convention, Yikes!

[TinaLee]

I'd definitely go along with the "not all groups are the same" mindset. I have an 18 y/o daughter who went thru a "Buffy and Angel" phase, along with an Anime phase, conventions included. Expect exaggerated/provocative dress, costuming, "play acting", etc. all over the cruise.

I don't know how many are booked in this group, but I'm guessing it could easily be over a couple of hundred folks.

The following is from one of the Slayercruise info sites - to give you an idea of what they're offering the folks booking the group cruise.

All Slayercruise passengers will receive (at no extra charge) upon embarkation: signed color photos of all our celebrity guests, a souvenir SlayerCruise Badge (needed for admission to all our Slayercruise events), souvenir Slayercruise T-shirt, a photo session with the stars, a souvenir SlayerCruise photo album, invitations to 2 cocktail parties with open bar (including one on the beach at Halfmoon Cay), and a Tropical Paradise Party by the Lido Pool, which includes: daiquiris, pina coladas, rum punch, and assorted hot & cold hors d'ouevres.

Add to this all our "Slayercruise Passengers Only" activities on board ship, (which is in addition to all the normal cruise ship activities!) And you have the vacation experience of a lifetime!

 

I don't think they'll be bothersome... think of them as colorful background! LOL!!

[TYMAN]

Kelmac.....We're still saving a cabin for you on the June 4th sailing..;) Bill

[sail7seas]

All Slayercruise passengers will receive (at no extra charge) upon embarkation: signed color photos of all our celebrity guests, a souvenir SlayerCruise Badge (needed for admission to all our Slayercruise events), souvenir Slayercruise T-shirt, a photo session with the stars, a souvenir SlayerCruise photo album, invitations to 2 cocktail parties with open bar (including one on the beach at Halfmoon Cay), and a Tropical Paradise Party by the Lido Pool, which includes: daiquiris, pina coladas, rum punch, and assorted hot & cold hors d'ouevres.

Add to this all our "Slayercruise Passengers Only" activities on board ship, (which is in addition to all the normal cruise ship activities!) And you have the vacation experience of a lifetime!

 

 

 

It is safe to say that Lido Pool will be closed to any other pax on the ship (who paid their fare for use of the entire ship) during the Tropical Paradise Party.

 

 

Wonder which bar will be banned to other cruise 'guests' at Half Moon Cay during their open bar party?

 

These large groups have an impact on everyone not part of their group.

 

If anyone booking is informed of the group and offered a large discount, if they choose to still go on that sailing....fine. They made an informed decision.

 

My point is we are not being informed.

[Oceanwench]

S7S: I agree with you 100 percent. I certainly wouldn't want to be booted out of any of my favorite spots [the Lido pool being one of them] b/c certain pax were having a private event.

 

As far as a previous post about a group taking ove rthe Pinnacle:

Actually, I posted that we were unable to get a table for 6 [or 3 tables for 2] in the Pinnacle on the first night of our May cruise.

DH was told to fax his request, and then he received a call saying "several large groups" are aboard the ship and the restaurant was booked solid that night.

 

The Red Hat Society is one of the groups booking the Zuiderdam 5/14.

I got that info from their Web site.

 

The good news is that DH called again today to see if he could book a table -- and he could! This time he was not asked to fax his request.

Not sure what this means ... why it was "booked solid" as of last week, but not as of today.

[cactuslady]

If there were an easy way to find these things out in advance, I certainly wish I would have found out. Besides using the ship's resources, such groups use x number of slots that ordinary cruisers one might be delighted to meet would otherwise use. For example:

 

When I was a late 40's single lady (not that long ago) and interested in just maybe perhaps becoming acquainted with a suitable cruise-loving gentleman, my TA booked me on a cruise that featured a large number of members of the NERDs group (yes, that was their name). They dressed flambouyantly at dinner (Cat In the Hat hats, red sneakers, t-shirts with tuxedos printed on them, etc. at formal night), upstaged the featured entertainer (juggler) by doing their own juggling on stage, and spent the cruise occupying the lounges with their laptop computers. Entertaining, but disappointing. :(

 

The next year, the same TA booked me on a Thanksgiving cruise, in the continued hope that some suitable single cruise-loving gentleman might be aboard. When I boarded, I learned that the large numbers of men aboard was because the Washington D.C. Gay Men's Chorus had booked a large group cruise. Disappointing again. :( They did dress much better for dinner, however, and put on a very good passenger talent show (being professional singers and, in one case, a professional fan dancer).

 

Luckily for me, the issue has not come up again. There was at least (perhaps only) one suitable gentleman aboard over Thanksgiving, and we have been married a year and half now. As we cruise as a couple these days, and on longer cruises, I never had to seriously ponder what to do to avoid similar groups in the future.

[SerenityGap]

As the person attending the convention, I thought I would weigh in.

 

At present there are about 250 people attending the convention. That is less than 14% of the Zuiderdam's passenger capacity. I doubt the entire staff will revolve around us. Will they go out of their way to accomodate us? Entirely possible. After all, we are 250 potential repeat customers who may never have tried this cruise/line if not for this convention.

 

I don't know how our presence will affect the other PAX. While I know my children and I will do our best to be mindful of other passengers and I hope ALL my fellow cruisemates will do the same, my family is going to, first and foremost, relax and have a good time. We are paying a quarter of our annual salary for this vacation and I believe that entitles us to enjoy the amenities provided us by both the cruiseline and the tourgroup. My understanding is that Rita (kryos) is correct about the goings on but, I cannot say definitively as I have never vacationed with a large group that extended beyond my own relatives.

 

To those who questioned company policies regarding group information disclosure, I agree HAL should release information to passengers about large groups. People pay alot of money for these cruises and deserve to have all the information they can get. I understand (after reading this thread) why the company would not offer such information unless asked but, I feel that deception is unacceptable.

 

By the way, Jhannah was right, "You just might be surprised at the group's demographics." From the message boards, the group seems to be fairly evenly divided between twenty-somethings and forty-something year old women. If anything, age is not the primary distinguishing factor, gender is.

Also, there seem to be a surprising amount of educators in the group. Perhaps, initially, their students turned them on to the show or they heard about one of the college courses or symposiums dedicated to it.

 

I find it interesting and extremely disheartening that the demographics of this group is even being discussed. Perhaps I am just a younger generation female defiantly asserting my independence but, I like to believe that my character ought not to be in question because I am devotee of a particular television program. Isn't there an "ism" for that? People can judge others for whatever they like. It is their right. I was taught, however, that it is their responsibility to not do that. Kelmac, for instance, has stated that he is 55 and his wife is 34. There are great many people who would and I'm sure have judged his character based on that criteria alone. I know this from my own experience as my husband is 20 years my senior. As RuthC said, "There are groups, then there are groups." The big difference I see between her group and mine is that I go into every situation hoping for and expecting the best. She seems to follow an adage my mother was fond of quoting at me. If you go into a situation determined to have a bad time, you most certainly will achieve it. While I can't guarantee that I will have a fantastic trip, I can't guarantee that I won't.

 

By the way cactus lady, I was horrified to see your statement, "such groups use x number of slots that ordinary cruisers one might be delighted to meet would otherwise use." You would not be "delighted" to meet me because I am a member of a group? That is preposterous. Incidentally, the reason I would be less than thrilled to meet you has nothing to do with any of your group affiliations.

 

Kelmac, you said that you "have never really watched these programs on TV, and are not sure what the whole fan base is all about." I have never attended a convention before, so I can't tell you how that goes. There is a book about it that you can find online. The name escapes me now but, it is by the author "kissmejane." As to what people see in this show, you might want to try http://slayage.tv/ . It contains links to many essays about the show ranging from topics such as (the following randomly selected titles):

"Generation Lapse: The Problematic Parenting of Joyce Summers and Rupert Giles.”

"Wow they’re all so identical. Choosing conformity or death as an adult learner in the Buffyverse"

"Sensibility gone mad: or, Drusilla, Buffy and the (d)evolution of the gothic heroine.”

"Why Can’t We Spike Spike?: Moral Themes in Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

"Staking in Tongues: Speech Act as Weapon in Buffy."

"Greening the Buffyverse: Raising Environmental Awareness in the Fourth Season of BtVS"

There are also books discussing how the show promotes or doesn't promote morality, about using the lessons of the show as spiritual guide in your life. From what I can tell, most people started watching the show because they either heard it was great, were interested in vampires, or thought Sarah Michelle Gellar was hot. But, why they started watching the show does not in any way define its fan base, what they took from it, I hope, does.

 

Dakrewser and bellebaby, I am pleased to hear that you each had positive interactions with groups of cruisers and hope, as I do for all of you, that all your cruises are enjoyable whether they are filled with the old, the young, the tragically misshapen, the stunningly gorgeous, the straightlaced, the drunk, or even (sic!) the Buffy fans.

 

GA Girl and again Kelmac, I look forward to cruising with both of you.

[bepsf]

CactusLady--

 

 

It took only two cruises to snag one husband?

That's a darn good batting average!!!:D

 

Maybe there's hope for me yet!

;)

[sail7seas]

This is what I posted earlier in this thread:

 

 

 

 

 

 

A group of 200 on Zuiderdam (which carries 1,800+) pax would have little to no impact on the rest of the pax.

 

A group of 800 on Ryndam (which carries 1,200) had a tremendous impact.

__________________

[cactuslady]

CactusLady--

 

 

It took only two cruises to snag one husband?

That's a darn good batting average!!!:D

 

Maybe there's hope for me yet!

;)

Three cruises, actually, but still a fine result! :D (I was part of the group taking the cruise the first time (which was not mentioned), so it would be unwise for me to complain about that one.) ;)

[GA girl]

Just a bit of information re the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" group which will be on the 6/11 Zuiderdam sailing. I sent an email to the group sponsoring this (thanks for the web page Kelmac) and got an immediate response - they are expecting 250 so I doubt that they will have a great impact on the rest of us. We're expecting to have a wonderful time and this may make it even more interesting!

[dakrewser]

Groups can be and often are annoying, some more than others depending on their activities and members. Experienced cruisers don't care to take the chance.

 

Then "experienced cruisers" should give up cruising - there are groups (and frequently large groups) on just about every cruise of 10 days or less. Most of the time you really don't notice them. Yet it's almost impossible to tell beforehand which will be a problem and which won't.

[cactuslady]

By the way cactus lady, I was horrified to see your statement, "such groups use x number of slots that ordinary cruisers one might be delighted to meet would otherwise use." You would not be "delighted" to meet me because I am a member of a group? That is preposterous. Incidentally, the reason I would be less than thrilled to meet you has nothing to do with any of your group affiliations.

I'm so sorry that you are horrified by me when you express so much tolerance of others. The fact is that, in my experience, group members mostly tend to interact and socialize with others within the group, and also tend to present a more or less unified "group" persona to the rest of the passengers (which may be annoying, charming, boring, entertaining, frightening or otherwise--it depends). Thus, they tend to be exclusive of others, rather than being as open to forming other acquaintances as they might otherwise be. Therefore, as a result of a large group comprising a large percentage of the passengers, an individual hoping to find some social interaction with persons with similar interests will find the opportunities for the same dimished--precisely because the numbers of similarly motivated and available individuals is diminished. This is particularly true if the interests of the large group do not have much in common with one's own interests, or the group is limited to those with a specified demographic.

 

Thus, regardless of how delighful or multifaceted you are, I will have less of a chance to either meet you or find out what we might have in common if you are spending all your time with a group whose focus is something I know little or nothing about. You'll be unavailabe -- too busy having fun with your own crowd, which I have no way of getting into, at the private parties, to which I will be denied admittance. I can see that I made a mistake -- I should have used the word "individual" rather than "ordinary," as that is what I meant. But I see nothing wrong with wanting to avoid cruising with large groups where I have a good chance of spending my vacation feeling like an outsider.

[kelmac]

SerenityGap,

 

Excellent post! Lauren and I are actually having a lot of fun researching, and learning more about the whole Buffy/Angel phenomenon. Lauren is an Honors English teacher and is getting information from her students, as well as the teacher next door (her and her daughter are huge fans).

I hope this thread did not cause any discomfort to you, or your family!? My intention was to start a dialogue about an interesting situation that I had to deal with. A situation, I thought to be a negative (at least, for 15 minutes I thought that)--became something I'm looking forward to; something fun and positive.

 

Looking forward to meeting you, your family, and any other fans!

 

Kelly:D

[SerenityGap]

I will have less of a chance to either meet you or find out what we might have in common if you are spending all your time with a group whose focus is something I know little or nothing about. You'll be unavailabe -- too busy having fun with your own crowd, which I have no way of getting into, at the private parties, to which I will be denied admittance. I can see that I made a mistake -- I should have used the word "individual" rather than "ordinary," as that is what I meant. But I see nothing wrong with wanting to avoid cruising with large groups where I have a good chance of spending my vacation feeling like an outsider.

 

My apologies. With the continued explanation of your statement, I see that my offense was caused by a simple grammatical (usage? I am never sure which) error. It is not that you would not be "delighted" to meet me because I am a member of a group. It is that you would not be likely to have the opportunity to be delighted to meet me because I am a member of a group.

 

You are probably right. There will be lots of activities for my family to participate in and we will get to meet people who we know have commonalities with us. It is sort of why I signed up here, to meet others attending the same cruise. To get to know them and maybe meet some interesting people with both different and similar life experiences. I wouldn't want to spend my vacation feeling like an outsider either. I am trying to make friends everywhere I can before we sail off to lands uncharted (okay, pretty much charted, but still).

 

 

Kelly! (and Lauren!)

 

I am glad you are having fun doing a research project! I know I never did. (Just teasing cause of the teacher part ;) )

 

I am completely okay with this thread. There were a couple of moments when I doubted the wisdom of my elders but, I believe in everyone's right to have an opinion (even if they are wrong LOL).

 

To be honest, I was initially hesitant about telling you that it was a Buffy convention. I do get that rolled eyes response alot from people who have never seen the show (or just never understood the layers in it). But, I figured you were likely to figure it out on the cruise, so I confessed up front.

 

And the situation may very well be a negative. For all I know, we could be a raucous, rude, flourescent hawaiin shirt wearing group of freaks. I know that my family will do our best to have exemplary manners but, there are four of us in one stateroom, I am sure there will be moments of grumpiness.:rolleyes:

 

We are definitely looking forward to meeting you and your wife!

[KatUK]

Hello one and all!

 

I am flying out from the UK to join this cruise and have been reading the comments here with interest.

 

I booked this particular cruise and convinced a friend to join me as we both regularly attend "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" conventions here in the UK, and loved the idea of "a 7 day convention at sea"! We first attended a convention in 2001 for the sole purpose of meeting the stars of one of our favourite TV shows. We enjoyed ourselves at that first event and made some good friends; to the point that conventions now are also an opportunity to meet up with those friends and just have a good time.

 

Unfortunately, most people who have never attended a convention based around a TV show tend to automatically think the worst. Granted, there is usually a fancy dress competition and people often wear costumes every night just for the fun of it......but they are the minority (here in the UK anyway). Just because the particular TV show in question has the word "vampire" in the title, it doesn't mean that all of it's fans dress in black and drink blood!

 

My friend and I know only 2 other people travelling from the UK for this cruise so we'll be looking to socialise with anyone at all...whether they're attending the convention or not. We'll attend some of the convention events, but probably only the ones to which the guests are attending. The rest of the time we'll be in whichever bar we feel most comfortable.

 

For those who like to know such information....I'm almost 30 years old and have cruised 5 times (all with P&O Cruises) and my friend is 27 and has never cruised before. Will anyone pick us out in a crowd and label us as "Vampires"? I can assure you here and now that that won't be the case. The only frightening thing about us is our normality!

 

Now I'm not saying that there won't be a few "freaks" wandering the decks, because there probably will be.....but they won't neccessarily be with the convention! ;)

 

For the sake of those still concerned about being over-run with convention attendees, I can only add that I hope you won't find any of us to be a problem and that the organisation of convention events does not interfere with your enjoyment of your vacation.

 

I look forward to sailing with you.

 

Kat x

[kelmac]

Welcome Kat!

 

I'm glad you found this thread and the Cruise Critics' board. We would love to have you join us on our "Roll Call" thread!

Here is a direct link:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=78091

 

Enjoy!

Kel

[jcrandle]

CactusLady--

 

 

It took only two cruises to snag one husband?

That's a darn good batting average!!!:D

 

Maybe there's hope for me yet!

;)

That's why I only have $20,000 of life insurance. I figure that is eight to ten cruises, and if she hasn't found someone by then, she's too darn picky.

[jcrandle]

I'm glad I found this thread, as I am a fan of Gilligan's Island. Now I'll spend my time looking for group cruises around that theme. Ginger was a beautiful lady, but my sweetheart was Marianne.

[SerenityGap]

LOL I am not sure it is safe to pick a cruise associated with Gilligan's Island. Make sure you get travel insurance and someone you really trust to watch your pets while you're away.

[heyabbott]

I'm glad I found this thread, as I am a fan of Gilligan's Island. Now I'll spend my time looking for group cruises around that theme. Ginger was a beautiful lady, but my sweetheart was Marianne.

 

It's probably a better bet than the The Poseidon Adventure.

[kelmac]

heyabbott,

 

LOL--how "cheesey" does that movie seem now?:p

 

Kel

[jaguarstyper]

For all I know, we could be a raucous, rude, flourescent hawaiin shirt wearing group of freaks.

 

Hey SerenityGap, sounds to me like like a fun group to cruise with :D

 

I thought your response was well thought out and well written. Early on, I made the comment about all this being silly. I still stand by that premise. I was referring to the fact that some people were so spooked out about Vampires being on the ship. How preposterous! However, I do agree a group that makes up a large majority of the passangers could have negative impacts on those outside the group. That doesnt sound like the case with the slayer group.

 

I'm certain you and your group will have a great time. You'll love the ship!

 

Tim

[kryos]

LOL I am not sure it is safe to pick a cruise associated with Gilligan's Island. Make sure you get travel insurance and someone you really trust to watch your pets while you're away.

Yeah, but on HAL it could be a great cruise. Imagine getting "shipwrecked" on Half Moon Cay!?!?!?!?!

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kelmac]

nita,

 

 

I could do a couple of weeks on Half Moon Cay, with, or without MaryAnn or Ginger.:D :D

[fdlacey]

I just discovered this thread. I had been asking questions regarding this cruise on another thread. I have called HAL and found out that there are reservations for 375 people for this slayer cruise. After reading all of this, I know that you are going to think that I'm not very nice, but going on a slayer cruise wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I decided to go with HAL instead of Carnival in the hopes of having a nice, quiet cruise with my husband for our anniversary. I'm most upset about the fact that HAL has told my TA that the Lido pool will definitely be closed to anyone who isn't part of the group for their private pool party. HAL told me that there would be several activities throughout the ship that will be exclusive to the group. While this group does seem to have a small number compared to the rest of the passengers on the ship, does the actual number matter if they are going to have exclusive use of certain parts of the ship, keeping the rest of us from being able to enjoy those areas? Unfortunately, HAL couldn't tell me which areas or on what days, but the fact that I am paying good money for this cruise and won't be able to go wherever I want truly irks me. This is my first cruise, so I don't know much about any of this. I truly hope that someone can tell me that it won't be that bad or I'm going to be switching to the Caribbean Princess. I also apologize to any of you that I may offend. While I don't like the TV shows that you are fans of (yes, I have watched them), it truly is not the people that I'm upset about, it is the idea that one group could keep me from truly enjoying everything the cruise has to offer. I would love it if anyone out there could give me a reason that I shouldnt switch ships. I was truly looking forward to cruising with HAL.