January 16,2014 Bookings Under Maintenance??

[FamilyCruiseDiva]

Hi....

I was looking at this Constellation 4-night cruise since I got back from Connie's 2-nighter this past MLK weekend. We finally decided that weekend next year will definitely work for us, so I went online to book it this morning and.....

IT'S GONE!!!:eek:

 

That sailing date is not showing up on any cruise site at all!

So I called X and got told that the "booking for that sailing is UNDER MAINTENANCE and cannot be booked at this time".:confused:

 

 

I asked, Does that mean the sailing is no longer happening?

Reply: "That sailing cannot be booked now."

 

I asked if it will be available again, and she replied "It is closed".

 

And more of the same, no straight answer.

 

So does that mean it is closed for NOW, during the 123 GO promotion, and they'll open it up again once that's over?:rolleyes:

 

Pretty sneaky, if that's what the case is.

[Andy]

Hi FamilyCruiseDiva,

 

While it could be anything... a few weeks ago, Connie had a couple of charters, one was to a financial institution, and another was for a Cable Channel movie event. My guess is, one or both parties may be considering again, and that's why the sailing is closed for new bookings.

 

Sorry, but it's not sneaky at all. Charters are a big part of the Cruise business. As it's about a year away, it's reasonable for the Cruise line to welcome charter bookings. I only have a big problem with it, when it's on rather short notice, which occasionally happens.

 

I hope that everything works out in your favor.

[FamilyCruiseDiva]

Hi FamilyCruiseDiva,

 

While it could be anything... a few weeks ago, Connie had a couple of charters, one was to a financial institution, and another was for a Cable Channel movie event. My guess is, one or both parties may be considering again, and that's why the sailing is closed for new bookings.

 

Sorry, but it's not sneaky at all. Charters are a big part of the Cruise business. As it's about a year away, it's reasonable for the Cruise line to welcome charter bookings. I only have a big problem with it, when it's on rather short notice, which occasionally happens.

 

I hope that everything works out in your favor.

 

OK, so what happens when a sailing you've booked becomes chartered?

Do those who are booked get bumped out?

 

Sorry, I am still new to cruising and didn't realize they would remove a sailing date AFTER they already sold cabins for it.

 

I don't feel that practice is sneaky, but rather what I suspected X might have been doing; i.e. making that cruise unavailable so as not to honor the 123 GO promotion for that particular sailing.

[Essiesmom]

I suspect there is some glitch with the site. Since yesterday, I have been trying to add credit card info for my sister on our May 1 TA, but I get Site Maintenance and cannot do it. but I was able to do it for the other two cruises I have booked. Now, I am sure they haven't chartered the TA! EM

[Andy]

OK, so what happens when a sailing you've booked becomes chartered?

Do those who are booked get bumped out?

 

Sorry, I am still new to cruising and didn't realize they would remove a sailing date AFTER they already sold cabins for it.

 

I don't feel that practice is sneaky, but rather what I suspected X might have been doing; i.e. making that cruise unavailable so as not to honor the 123 GO promotion for that particular sailing.

 

Hello again,

 

Yes, Cruise lines do offer sailings to the public, and occasionally pull them for charters. Guests do not like this, but it's important to note that charter business is extremely profitable, and makes sense from a corporate standpoint. If it's a full charter, you would get bumped out, as cabins will not be available to the public. In this scenario, you would need to select another sailing. I absolutely do not feel this sailing is being blocked to avoid the 123 GO offer.

 

BTW - it seems a new 3 night sailing has been added on 1/13/14. This now leaves a 7 day window open from 1/6 - 1/13, which almost certainly means Connie has been chartered for 7 days (as it was last month). At the very least, I'd suggest considering a back-up plan. A word of advice - do NOT cancel your current booking. Why ? if you book another Celebrity sailing, you may be entitled to compensation. Once you cancel, you wont get anything.

 

I hope this helps !

[FamilyCruiseDiva]

Hello again,

 

Yes, Cruise lines do offer sailings to the public, and occasionally pull them for charters. Guests do not like this, but it's important to note that charter business is extremely profitable, and makes sense from a corporate standpoint. If it's a full charter, you would get bumped out, as cabins will not be available to the public. In this scenario, you would need to select another sailing. I absolutely do not feel this sailing is being blocked to avoid the 123 GO offer.

 

BTW - it seems a new 3 night sailing has been added on 1/13/14. This now leaves a 7 day window open from 1/6 - 1/13, which almost certainly means Connie has been chartered for 7 days (as it was last month). At the very least, I'd suggest considering a back-up plan. A word of advice - do NOT cancel your current booking. Why ? if you book another Celebrity sailing, you may be entitled to compensation. Once you cancel, you wont get anything.

 

I hope this helps !

 

Thanks so much for all the great information!

 

I'd prefer it if the cruise line could have just been a little more forthcoming with the information, but I understand that revealing such info could have a negative effect for them.

 

After discussing it with DH, we called our TA and booked the Connie for February (Valentine's Weekend!) instead. :)