Urging Oceania to sponsor CC M & G

[pacheco18]

Heads up -- the folks on the Regent board have written to Mark Conroy to urge Regent to sponsor CC Meet & Greets. They did get a response and the issue is being considered.

 

It's all one company. I think we should make an effort to do the same with Oceania. We have over 300 cruisers for our Marina transatlantic in November and we are not getting much cooperation in just giving us a location to meet so we can notify everyone before departure.

 

Seems silly to me. Oceania should want to cultivate its CC fans.

 

I am going to call, write or email. I encourage others to do the same.

[pacheco18]

Perhaps those of you who have contacts at O can help as well

 

 

Dear Mr. Himelstein:

 

I am an avid cruiser and I am about to take my third Oceania cruise with my fourth already booked. I imagine there will be many more in my future. I am an Oceania fan and a Cruise Critic devotee.

 

I write to ask you to reconsider Oceania’s policy of not hosting the Meet & Greet for Cruise Critic members. I understand that Regent Cruise Critic members have made the same request to Mark Conroy.

 

Your Cruise Critic customers are among your biggest supporters. We not only sing the praises of Oceania on the boards, but also to our friends and acquaintances. Most of us are repeat cruisers and are likely to be Oceania cruisers for years to come.

 

As an example, I am organizing the Cruise Critic gathering for the November 2011 Passage to Paradise on the Marina. We have more than 300 participants and counting. We thus far have been unable to identify a location where we can meet. Obviously we need this information before we leave so that we can notify everyone.

 

Other cruise lines happily host these events, and include a process to notify guests, provide refreshments and even have the executive staff welcome the Cruise Critic passengers. At the very least, I hope Oceania will consider identifying locations where we can hold our Meet & Greet and perhaps consider making a full-fledged effort to support this Cruise Critic activity going forward.

[sitraveler]

Oceania has made a corporate decision not to do this.

 

There were meet and greets several years ago, for a short time they would do the meeting with a minimum number of passengers, and then decided not to.

 

Many of us, with clout, attempted to reverse this decision, no luck

[pacheco18]

Decisions and policies can be changed - remember they did not always included bottled water! LOL Corporate can certainly have a change of heart.

 

Times change - directly competitors do this for CCers. Makes good business sense.

 

The Regent people are making the same request - same parent company - might be good timing.

 

Seems like a good time to try again.

 

Why would O ignore 300+ CCers who want a space to get together on an upcoming cruise?

 

Worth a try.

[ORV]

Heads up -- the folks on the Regent board have written to Mark Conroy to urge Regent to sponsor CC Meet & Greets. They did get a response and the issue is being considered.

 

It's all one company. I think we should make an effort to do the same with Oceania. We have over 300 cruisers for our Marina transatlantic in November and we are not getting much cooperation in just giving us a location to meet so we can notify everyone before departure.

 

Seems silly to me. Oceania should want to cultivate its CC fans.

 

I am going to call, write or email. I encourage others to do the same.

 

You've got a 1/4 of the passengers on your Roll Call? WOW

[pacheco18]

You've got a 1/4 of the passengers on your Roll Call? WOW

 

Oops - my bad -- around 200 - Still a fabulous number and enough not to be ignored.

[Jancruz]

I was the one who started the original M and G when O was a start up..I sincerely doubt they will do it again..no reason to..

Jancruz1

[pacheco18]

[quote name=no reason to..

Jancruz1[/quote]

 

 

Good will?

Make good customers happy with little effort?

 

I think those are pretty good reasons.

 

As I said, there is no harm in trying.

[hondorner]

The information I received from headquarters was not official; it did not come directly from the "top" and it wasn't in writing.

 

Cruise Critic members, while knowledgeable, enthusiastic and supportive, and therefore appreciated by management, nevertheless never numbered more than 5% of the passengers (the most optimistic estimate). To treat them differently than the other guests is to possibly slight 95%, an untenable position for the cruise line. Additionally, special events such as a meet and greet would possibly negatively impact the other events that Oceania offers, the Captain's welcome party and the past guest party.

 

They are perfectly willing to arrange special events for smaller groups, and in fact, do so for special groups arranged by travel agents, special cruises for organization members or enthusiasts such as wine enthusiasts, but someone -- the agent or group organizer -- pays for such events.

 

In the past, Oceania has always been willing to work with Cruise Critic members to facilitate meet and greets -- in the sense that they will suggest a time that doesn't interfere with much else going on, that they will suggest a location appropriate for the number of attendees, and they will provide adequate servers to take possible orders. Individual staff officers, such as the cruise director, have occasionally visited these meets on their own time.

 

Other cruise lines do have provisions for CC groups, but some have strict rules. On Celebrity, for example, there must be 25 people signed up on the official list ahead of time in order to have an event. On the one Celebrity cruise I took (not to be repeated), there were no more than 8 people signed up, despite an energetic campaign on the roll call forum and on the general Celebrity forum.

 

We did have about 40 people in a more casual event held on my one NCL cruise (which may be repeated), in which there was a morning meeting attended by the Cruise Director, members of the entertainment staff, the Hotel Director and the Captain, all of whom took questions. They provided Danish rolls and pastry, but no drinks. Later the Captain invited the entire group for a tour of the bridge. He made it clear, however, that this was his personal prerogative, not condoned by many other captains.

 

There is no doubt that the NCL event was appreciated, especially by Betsy (who really liked the Captain and Hotel Director), and was a large factor in our decision to give NCL another try at some future date, providing we can find an interesting itinerary.

 

However, according to my friendly discussion with a PCH executive, most of the other cruise lines that offer CC meet and greets wish they had a graceful way to get out of them.

 

Regent is a special case, because it is an all-inclusive luxury cruise line which already provides an open bar for all passengers at all times. Still, I seriously doubt whether a special Cruise Critic meet and greet will be offered there. First of all, the percentage of people who participate in the roll call is very, very low, and many of them are very well-traveled cruisers who don't participate in these types of events. On my two Regent cruises, the number of roll call participants was fewer than 10, and attempts to put together a meet and greet for these tiny groups fell apart. Generally, they just aren't interested. A few of us still managed to get together at some point during the cruise.

 

Second, having the officers at an unofficial event (not one of the two parties offered by Oceania or Regent) is always going to be the prerogative of the officer. Some are gregarious (like Regent's John McNeil) and some are reclusive, more interested in their primary function, which is running the ship.

 

And, finally, the same attitude is going to prevail -- that treating fewer than 5% favorably (or fewer than 1%, in the case of Regent) could negatively impact the vast majority who have never heard of Cruise Critic.

[RetiredFL]

I also wonder if it would then open the ship up to hosting all sorts of groups.

Conceivably they could have requests for the Shriners, Elks, Alumni groups, church groups, etc, all wanting a party.

As long as they will help arrange a time and space that is fine with me.

I can certainly afford to buy my own drink.:D

[LHT28]

A little different on Regent where the drinks are already paid for upfront

 

I would be happy just to have space set aside (early in the cruise) for a M & G ...maybe invites sent out

We can buy our own drinks

 

 

Lyn

[pacheco18]

As long as they will help arrange a time and space that is fine with me.

I can certainly afford to buy my own drink.:D

 

That's the problem. They generally do not help arrange a time and space before the cruise -- only once you are on board, making it impossible to contact everyone. I had the same problem on my Nautica cruise in January. We took a guess and guessed wrong -- the venue was not vacant at the time of our meeting.

 

We have someone working with OCeania on it now for the November TA because of the very large number. We do not need drinks or food or even representatives of the cruise line. All we are asking for is a space to meet where we will not conflict with O activities and to know about it before we sail so we can tell everyone. I think that's a pretty reasonable request.

 

I do not buy into the other "reasons" suggested for Oceania's refusal even to cooperate with identifying a suitable location. Bad business decision IMO. What we are asking for costs them nothing and buys a lot of good will.

[pacheco18]

A little different on Regent where the drinks are already paid for upfront

 

I would be happy just to have space set aside (early in the cruise) for a M & G ...maybe invites sent out

We can buy our own drinks

 

 

Lyn

Totally agree.

 

But we're not even asking for invites or drinks! We just want to know where we can meet!

[Jancruz]

That's the problem. They generally do not help arrange a time and space before the cruise -- only once you are on board, making it impossible to contact everyone. I had the same problem on my Nautica cruise in January. We took a guess and guessed wrong -- the venue was not vacant at the time of our meeting.

 

We have someone working with OCeania on it now for the November TA because of the very large number. We do not need drinks or food or even representatives of the cruise line. All we are asking for is a space to meet where we will not conflict with O activities and to know about it before we sail so we can tell everyone. I think that's a pretty reasonable request.

 

I do not buy into the other "reasons" suggested for Oceania's refusal even to cooperate with identifying a suitable location. Bad business decision IMO. What we are asking for costs them nothing and buys a lot of good will.

 

If you contact the right person a location is not a problem..

Jancruz1

[pacheco18]

If you contact the right person a location is not a problem..

Jancruz1

 

Unfortunately, that has not been my experience -- and I am not shy about much. I have been told that we must check with the concierge once on board-- not a good solution. The person who is handling this for the November TA has contacts at O corporate and is having difficulty getting an answer.

 

Maybe if FDR is reading this he will want to help our very large group! LOLOL

[studebhawk]

If you contact the right person a location is not a problem..

Jancruz1

 

I have a M & G for Splendid Escapes 14 Nov 11.

 

We just need a place, we don't care about having the staff come in & we can buy our own drinks.

 

Who can we contact ???

 

Thanx,

 

jsl

[pacheco18]

And a friend of mine is organizing the M & G for the Marina cruise just before ours - same problem -

[JimandStan]

If you contact the right person a location is not a problem..

Jancruz1

 

That is a problem in itself, Jan.

Oceania has to stop with this "old boys club" mentality where one needs to "know" wink/wink nudge-nudge the right person to "take care of it".

 

That said, and I have planned SIX of them, it really isn't a good idea to schedule your M&G before you are on the ship.

 

From the comfort of home, I agree that it seems to make sense to plan ahead. I too wanted to have "all my ducks in a row" and even bring my own pre-printed invitations with me. Please, take it from me, it is just a BAD IDEA.

 

Even if Oceania helps you to plan the occasion in good faith, there are just too many variables involved. If push comes to shove, events like the Captains Coctail Party, the Oceania Repeaters Party, or even Bingo, simply HAVE to come first, and you will be left out in the cold.

 

By the way, you don't EVER want to be the planner of a Meet & Greet where the date and time have been announced and a conflict has forced you to change it. :eek:

 

You will be greeted with all the warmth of Jeffrey Dahmer at a Vegetarian Convention for the rest of your cruise.

 

I've had the greatest success with giving the Concierge my list of Cruise Critics (WITH CABIN #'s) and asking that they be notified of the date and time of the meeting.

[pacheco18]

That is a problem in itself, Jan.

Oceania has to stop with this "old boys club" mentality where one needs to "know" wink/wink nudge-nudge the right person to "take care of it".

 

That said, and I have planned SIX of them, it really isn't a good idea to schedule your M&G before you are on the ship.

 

F

 

You may a little more clout then some of us LOL

 

We are 200 or so -- a very large group -- and not everyone wants to give out cabin numbers so asking O to contact everyone is not possible. I am sure O could identify a venue that is not being used for any activity for an hour or 2 on the first sea day. Then all we have to do is post on the roll call where to meet.

[LHT28]

They are perfectly willing to arrange special events for smaller groups, and in fact, do so for special groups arranged by travel agents, special cruises for organization members or enthusiasts such as wine enthusiasts, but someone -- the agent or group organizer -- pays for such events.

 

They have Meet & Greet for special groups by nationality

I have never been asked for payment so I wonder who foots the bill for the free Hors D 'oeuvres :confused:

 

If all people are asking for is a time & space (early in the cruise not the last night) then maybe they can set aside a space knowing full well there WILL be a CC Group onboard

 

Saves people showing up at a bar or lounge en masse without notice only to find the place short staffed

 

Lyn

[LHT28]

 

I've had the greatest success with giving the Concierge my list of Cruise Critics (WITH CABIN #'s) and asking that they be notified of the date and time of the meeting.

 

I did on the R-ships on past cruise but on Marina we finally got a space on the 2nd last night of an 18 day cruise :eek:

 

Not good

 

Lyn

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

I'm impressed that JimandStan and others bother to get cabin numbers at all. On previous cruises we just set up a time and place to meet, based on experience with the different venues, via the Roll Call. Seemed to work out OK. Admittedly, we've only been on smaller ships than Riviera.

 

I think the combo of sending invites to those that provide cabin numbers and an update to the Roll Call would cover 99% of CC'ers. Word of mouth would probably catch the rest. And if there are a few non-CC'ers in the venue at the appointed time, they can be brought over to the dark side, or chased out :D

 

It might be a nice courtesy to O. to let them know in advance which venue will be taken over.

 

A side question, would they charge a corkage fee if CC'ers brought bottles of wine to the CC'er M&G? Might be a good way to make a lot of new friends :rolleyes:

 

------------

[Jancruz]

That is a problem in itself, Jan.

Oceania has to stop with this "old boys club" mentality where one needs to "know" wink/wink nudge-nudge the right person to "take care of it".

 

That said, and I have planned SIX of them, it really isn't a good idea to schedule your M&G before you are on the ship.

 

From the comfort of home, I agree that it seems to make sense to plan ahead. I too wanted to have "all my ducks in a row" and even bring my own pre-printed invitations with me. Please, take it from me, it is just a BAD IDEA.

 

Even if Oceania helps you to plan the occasion in good faith, there are just too many variables involved. If push comes to shove, events like the Captains Coctail Party, the Oceania Repeaters Party, or even Bingo, simply HAVE to come first, and you will be left out in the cold.

 

By the way, you don't EVER want to be the planner of a Meet & Greet where the date and time have been announced and a conflict has forced you to change it. :eek:

 

You will be greeted with all the warmth of Jeffrey Dahmer at a Vegetarian Convention for the rest of your cruise.

 

I've had the greatest success with giving the Concierge my list of Cruise Critics (WITH CABIN #'s) and asking that they be notified of the date and time of the meeting.

 

Unfortunately if you dont want to wait until you get on the ship, most people at O are:

 

1) to busy to look for a place to meet

2) AND If they wanted to they could not as they have no access to any info on the ships schedule..

 

If you want to do it before hand it still falls in the following:

"old boys club" mentality where one knows the right person to call!!

 

IMHO there is nothing wrong with "knowing the right person" Many times in my life I have called the president of Sears, Blue Cross, Marriott and many more through the years and I find you can really get things done that way even if you only speak the the Executive Assistant. (in fact I have a long list of executive assistants and some presidents)

The last time I called the Hyatt President to complain I got 50,000 points. It was a legitimate complaint and I liked the solution!!

Jancruz1

[hondorner]

...I've had the greatest success with giving the Concierge my list of Cruise Critics (WITH CABIN #'s) and asking that they be notified of the date and time of the meeting.

 

I'm impressed that JimandStan and others bother to get cabin numbers at all

 

And, I'm here to tell you that getting cabin numbers from some folks is like pulling teeth. Apparently the fear of ever giving any personal information is so ingrained in some folks that they don't want their real names associated with a cabin number on a secure ship in the middle of the ocean. I can't imagine what any reader of Cruise Critic could do with such earth-shattering personal information!

 

I've gathered the list for several cruises, and the best solution I've come up with is having those folks send a private email with their last names and cabin numbers, information that will never be published and only turned over to the concierge once aboard the ship (even that doesn't work all the time; I've had folks say they would rather miss the event than send their information privately).

 

It's really simple; regardless of whether Oceania sponsors the even or some members of Cruise Critic take on the task, there will be no event unless the invitations can be sent once on board. To do that, the concierge needs to know who is coming (and he won't recognize screen names) and where they are on the ship. Sure, with the names, he could have staffers look up all the cabins, but that's a real burden with a large group. And, even if they found the cabin numbers, they need last names to do so.

 

Like Jim said, there are too many things that can go wrong when trying to set a location before embarkation. Think about it -- the folks in Miami often get the answers incorrect when asked about shipboard activities, and you want to rely on them to tell the concierge on board the ship how to do his job? Not likely.

 

It's been alluded that Jim has "connections", and some folks believe the same about me, largely because he and I were recognized for clear, concise and tolerant writing on cruise critic. We were selected to attend the float-out of Marina and the 3 day friends and family cruise on Marina in Miami. That's pretty much the extent of it, although FDR did call me in the hospital when I had a small stroke last year, and we made friends with Tim Rubacky (who has left PCH). I can assure that I have no influence with Oceania or PCH and have no regular communication with them. I can further assure everyone that once on board, no one has a clue who we are, except maybe the bartender at Martinis.

 

Jim and I handled the meet & greet on Marina's second voyage last January, and you can consider it a textbook on how to do it. We kept a public list of first names on the roll call forum and a private list with last names and cabin numbers via private email. We prepared a list with that information. Once on board, we approached the concierge, Bruno, who initially took the company line and said they could do nothing to help us. We made clear we were not asking for anything but cooperation, and after thinking it over, he handed us off to his assistant concierge, Keith.

 

Keith contacted the restaurant manager, general manager and cruise director and cleared a time and location (Horizons Lounge).

 

He also asked us to hand write the text of an invitation (Who, What, Where, Why and When), which he had typed up and duplicated on Oceania letterhead -- nothing fancy. Using our list, they quickly checked the manifest and made a couple of corrections, then sent bell boys around the ship (the same ones who deliver the restaurant reservations and such) to deliver the invitations.

 

Once everyone was gathered, Jim welcomed them and suggested we go around the tables introducing ourselves. We then mingled and made further acquaintances with others. Those who wanted refreshments ordered them.

 

Easy to do, effective and problem free. I'm certain that anyone who approaches the situation in a friendly, non-aggressive manner will achieve the same results (I've also made the same arrangements on other cruises, including a larger number on the Marina's maiden voyage and smaller numbers on other voyages). I'm past 71, cutting back a little on the number of cruises and retired from meet and greet management, but Jim and others are doing it for Riviera's maiden voyage.

[Jancruz]

And, I'm here to tell you that getting cabin numbers from some folks is like pulling teeth. Apparently the fear of ever giving any personal information is so ingrained in some folks that they don't want their real names associated with a cabin number on a secure ship in the middle of the ocean. I can't imagine what any reader of Cruise Critic could do with such earth-shattering personal information!

 

I've gathered the list for several cruises, and the best solution I've come up with is having those folks send a private email with their last names and cabin numbers, information that will never be published and only turned over to the concierge once aboard the ship (even that doesn't work all the time; I've had folks say they would rather miss the event than send their information privately).

 

It's really simple; regardless of whether Oceania sponsors the even or some members of Cruise Critic take on the task, there will be no event unless the invitations can be sent once on board. To do that, the concierge needs to know who is coming (and he won't recognize screen names) and where they are on the ship. Sure, with the names, he could have staffers look up all the cabins, but that's a real burden with a large group. And, even if they found the cabin numbers, they need last names to do so.

 

Like Jim said, there are too many things that can go wrong when trying to set a location before embarkation. Think about it -- the folks in Miami often get the answers incorrect when asked about shipboard activities, and you want to rely on them to tell the concierge on board the ship how to do his job? Not likely.

 

It's been alluded that Jim has "connections", and some folks believe the same about me, largely because he and I were recognized for clear, concise and tolerant writing on cruise critic. We were selected to attend the float-out of Marina and the 3 day friends and family cruise on Marina in Miami. That's pretty much the extent of it, although FDR did call me in the hospital when I had a small stroke last year, and we made friends with Tim Rubacky (who has left PCH). I can assure that I have no influence with Oceania or PCH and have no regular communication with them. I can further assure everyone that once on board, no one has a clue who we are, except maybe the bartender at Martinis.

 

Jim and I handled the meet & greet on Marina's second voyage last January, and you can consider it a textbook on how to do it. We kept a public list of first names on the roll call forum and a private list with last names and cabin numbers via private email. We prepared a list with that information. Once on board, we approached the concierge, Bruno, who initially took the company line and said they could do nothing to help us. We made clear we were not asking for anything but cooperation, and after thinking it over, he handed us off to his assistant concierge, Keith.

 

Keith contacted the restaurant manager, general manager and cruise director and cleared a time and location (Horizons Lounge).

 

He also asked us to hand write the text of an invitation (Who, What, Where, Why and When), which he had typed up and duplicated on Oceania letterhead -- nothing fancy. Using our list, they quickly checked the manifest and made a couple of corrections, then sent bell boys around the ship (the same ones who deliver the restaurant reservations and such) to deliver the invitations.

 

Once everyone was gathered, Jim welcomed them and suggested we go around the tables introducing ourselves. We then mingled and made further acquaintances with others. Those who wanted refreshments ordered them.

 

Easy to do, effective and problem free. I'm certain that anyone who approaches the situation in a friendly, non-aggressive manner will achieve the same results (I've also made the same arrangements on other cruises, including a larger number on the Marina's maiden voyage and smaller numbers on other voyages). I'm past 71, cutting back a little on the number of cruises and retired from meet and greet management, but Jim and others are doing it for Riviera's maiden voyage.

 

Sounds like you have it down pat! Its fun to be with you and Jim and Stan on a trip as you are so organized!!

Jancruz1