Spirit Review -April 12-19

[UKCruiseJeff]

I'm glad Jeff shared his VIP experience. It was told in context of a previous post. Why would any frequent SS sailor not think there is a VIP list that ranks above someone that has 600 days? And that someone with 600 days ranks above those with 200? That the owners suite aces 500 days? It's usually so discreet, you need to know the person on the receiving end to see it. And anyone with more than 300 days knows that they are not treated the same as lesser mortals. Restaurants requiring reservations being the prime example.

 

Many thanks. It would indeed be a shame if people with some interesting or useful background information decide not to do so simply because they are dissuaded by the expectation of a bit of nasty posting.

 

As it happens, as I understand the process, it normally starts with a TA proposing VIP status to the individual companies. It happens with all travel companies.

 

If you think about it, all SS back office people do is process bookings. The names are probably both invisible and irrelevant and originate from so many different countries they wouldn't even probably recognise the name of a head of state. It is the TA who knows who is who, and that is where the name is originally put forward. As I understand it the request is reviewed by someone in SS in order to decide both if the person warrants it and the level of facility provided. In my case it happened to be reviewed by the VP who I happened to be dealing with - who has since moved on - and he called to tell me. Actually he was a bit peeved and puzzled that I hadn't told him - most people would and do - so that he could have handled it directly. I didn't want it because in a way it compromised my ability to be professionally critical even though it was a holiday and not work related ... you can't entirely detach yourself.

 

I often travel with people considerably more important than me ... in fact it's impossible to imagine someone less important. :D

 

I'm constantly surprised at how this works. Some time ago I was travelling with a long-term friend and his wife who was senior in government. It was quite astonishing how BA treated him compared to everyone else. It didn't hurt that he was on Transport sub committee in Parliament and latterly a cabinet minister. He was use to it. I found it odd. Also - if you really want to see weirdness you should see how people in films and music are treated and how that can vary depending on where they happen to be on the list in any particular month. I have been to Cannes for example one year with a friend who couldn't get a room, and two years later he was in the top suite in the best hotel ....

 

It is all about lists and your current currency.

 

Ask Luxury ... he'll tell you! :D

[UKCruiseJeff]

Thanks Jeff ...

We are really looking forward to our first cruise.

I am very surprised that no one on this board is on the same cruise .. I put a Mix & Mingle for it up a long time ago, being that it's taking in both the Cannes Film festival and the Monac Grand Prix :confused:

 

You are going at the very best time .... I hope you get a chance to be in Cannes for Palm D'or night - it is magical. Also don't overlook the minor Monaco races if you are there before. The atmosphere of seeing some of the older drivers driving their original cars ... proper racing cars ... is wonderful. I don't know the current arrangements but your pass should allow you late night wandering around the track ... meeting technical crew and drivers who are all pretty chatty. I've been there on a private boat, Seadream and SS during Grand Prix and the atmosphere outside of F1 race times is special. I posted some pictures on the Watercooler thread if I remember correctly.

 

Enjoy your special trip.

 

:)

[PRWeezer]

Disclaimer - we really enjoyed our cruise, but also faced some frustrations as the OP on dinners/excursions, so I will weigh in here vs. starting a new tread. This was our second Silver Spirit cruise and there were notable differences, perhaps due to the larger crowd, but surprising to us.

 

As for reservations, to our detriment, we didn't realize you couldn't make reservations (for dinner or excursions) within 7 days of sailing, so the lack of pre-planning was our mistake. At roughly 10 days out there were plenty of openings, so we didn't feel any urgency, but then checking at 5 days prior we were locked out.

 

We stood in line for an hour in STARS/Supper Club on embarkation day while 2 agents took/confirmed reservations and/or addressed glitches in pre-cruise online reservations (a third agent was added at some point). We boarded around 1:00 and the line was much longer when we finished. This same process on our first cruise (pre online reservations) took only a few minutes to finish, and with minimal wait time prior to seeing one of the 4 agents. We were able to reserve La Terrazza for the first night & the Pool Grill for the second, after that only waitlists were possible. When we asked about LT/PG for later in the week the agent explained that, at that time, they were only allowing one confirmation per restaurant, to allow others the chance to secure reservations. That's totally fair but I don't think other agents were communicating it as well, based on others walking out saying that they had a lot of waitlists and/or what they thought were confirmed reservations made online were not actually confirmed. We didn't ask anyone if multiple online reservations were honored or if the one-confirmation rule applied there as well. Instead of taking up too much of the agent's time we opted to have our butler request waitlists for later in the week (we told him we'd be open to any restaurant/any night, ideally in the 8:00/8:30 timeframe).

 

To their credit, we were offered last-minute options at two restaurants, but due to conflicts/short notice we declined. One afternoon we got a call that we could be confirmed at the Supper Club, but we wanted to attend the show that night so an 8:30 start wouldn't allow us to be finished in time. We did that on our last sailing, informed our servers that we wanted to be finished by 10. They achieved it in great form, but looking back it felt too rushed to really enjoy the experience, music, etc. Another night we got a call at 6:30 for an opening at Seishan at 7:00 but I still needed to shower, fluff & puff, so we declined. Looking back we should have inquired about shows/activities on given days to plan requests around what we wanted to do, but kudos to our butler for putting in a multitude of requests for each night.

 

We were successful walking into LT & the Pool Grill on other nights, taking advantage of either no-shows or a lighter-than-expected crowd. Our one attempt at The Restaurant was so slow we asked for our entrees to be served in our suite after an hour and a half without the second course being served. The restaurant wasn't even half full, possibly just an off night? Yes, we had a conversation w the server & manager about it and they were apologetic.

 

I asked the cruise director about this and mentioned that on our first sailing there were 450 guests vs 550+ on this one - could 100 people really make that much of a difference in lack of dinner availability? We secured all the reservations we wanted the first time around. He said that 100 more people, plus 3 fewer nights (first sailing was 10 days) really does make a difference...good to know.

 

We had tried to book one excursion online and were waitlisted. On arrival we learned they had added a second group but we had since made prior arrangements for the same excursion independently, so we cancelled with no problem. The other excursions we wanted were fully booked, but they did add a beach excursion in the Dominican Republic that we confirmed and it seemed popular, 2 boats of roughly 40 people/each taken to a beach for a few hours.

 

The shore concierge desk wasn't overly helpful when asking about independent options on shore. I had researched renting motor scooters in St. Bart's but did not hear back from an email inquiry, so I asked a concierge if there was a provider they recommended. She simply said, 'I do not recommend that you do that, the roads are hilly'. We have scooters at home and are comfortable on them in midtown Atlanta traffic...how bad could it be? In the end an on-shore information desk pointed us in the right direction and we had a great day (but yes, the roads are hilly, and twisty, so not for the fainthearted!). Another day I asked if there were any recommended beaches on Nassau for snorkeling and the concierge looked a bit on his computer and said, 'I don't see anything that mentions snorkeling' then pointed out some beaches marked on a map. We had done some research on Tortola, and asked friends who have been there, and as recommended took a taxi to Brewer's Bay for a few hours. It's a small beach with good snorkeling. Taxis were plentiful at the pier and as recommended we arranged for the driver to come collect us at an appointed time as they don't actively pass by that area. We shared with 3 other people and it was $8/pp each way. Brewer's Bay had one small bar/restaurant open that day, and the beach wasn't very crowded so we enjoyed it.

 

As mentioned on another thread, there were 40+ children (toddlers to teens) on board. From hearing many of them talking/interacting w others, most were not from the U.S. We don't have children but weren't bothered by it, we don't tend to spend time sitting around the pool which is where they seemed to 'take over' as it were. And one tot was particularly helpful when my husband wanted some ice cream at the Pool at lunchtime and he didn't see the serving scoop at first. :) When getting information from the shore concierge one day I did overhear a Mother complaining that an excursion they signed up for was cancelled due to lack of response and what were they going to do with their teenage daughter who was bored? On the other hand, another family we met and shared an excursion with were pleasantly surprised their teen daughter was finding plenty of fun things to do even without a planned children's program.

 

I don't mean to harp too much on our challenges, overall we had a very nice trip and are fans of Silversea. Our butler and room attendant kept everything ship shape and kept our provisions stocked as requested. Service at the bars was efficient, of course tending slower when crowds were bigger. One bartender remembered my husband from our earlier sailing and came over to say hi with his preferred drink in hand. And my husband came out a little ahead at the casino, which is always good. Typical of Silversea, the other guests we met were well traveled and made for interesting and entertaining conversation.

 

Perhaps by calling to light some of our planning failings others can learn and be better prepared in the future. I hope that as the online system becomes more familiar they can work out the glitches. At least now we know to make our plans well enough in advance that we aren't locked out, and hope for the best that the reservations hold. Based on the crowds we'll also likely aim for longer itineraries in the future and avoid school holiday periods simply to better the odds that our preferred dining and excursion options are available. We're also interested in sailing on one of SS's smaller ships. Thus far it's happened that Spirit itineraries fit within planned vacation times and desired ports, but we look forward to comparing these experiences with those of the smaller ships that seem so beloved.

 

Happy sailing, all.

Edited April 22, 2014 by PRWeezer

[UKCruiseJeff]

Lovely review, thanks.

 

I wonder whether the online booking system isn't a booking system at all, but simply collects requests which are forwarded to the restaurant or spa or excursions people who then deal with them manually. In other words people think they have a booking when all they have done is sent a request?

 

By the way ... couldn't send em a "Meet me on Peachtree" teeshirt could you .. my one doesn't fit any more! :D

[PRWeezer]

Lovely review, thanks.

 

I wonder whether the online booking system isn't a booking system at all, but simply collects requests which are forwarded to the restaurant or spa or excursions people who then deal with them manually. In other words people think they have a booking when all they have done is sent a request?

 

By the way ... couldn't send em a "Meet me on Peachtree" teeshirt could you .. my one doesn't fit any more! :D

 

There was some chatter about that in the line, if reservations were simply requests. But there were also some who had 'booked' only to receive confirmations upon check-in that didn't match what they booked.

 

I used to live on Peachtree Street, of course! Had a funny conversation with a seatmate on a plane who said he once found himself on the corner of Peachtree & Peachtree and did I know where he was....I said there were maybe a dozen places he could have been. Also once overheard a radio argument between 2 police officers during the annual July 4th Peachtree Road race:

-You're supposed to be stationed on the corner of Peachtree & West Peachtree, where are you?

-Sir, I'm at the corner of Peachtree & West Peachtree, where are YOU?

 

I said - you're about 100 yards apart, the roads intersect twice...wave that way! :cool:

[UKCruiseJeff]

There was some chatter about that in the line, if reservations were simply requests. But there were also some who had 'booked' only to receive confirmations upon check-in that didn't match what they booked.

 

I used to live on Peachtree Street, of course! Had a funny conversation with a seatmate on a plane who said he once found himself on the corner of Peachtree & Peachtree and did I know where he was....I said there were maybe a dozen places he could have been. Also once overheard a radio argument between 2 police officers during the annual July 4th Peachtree Road race:

-You're supposed to be stationed on the corner of Peachtree & West Peachtree, where are you?

-Sir, I'm at the corner of Peachtree & West Peachtree, where are YOU?

 

I said - you're about 100 yards apart, the roads intersect twice...wave that way! :cool:

 

I am envious of you. I so love Atlanta. Use to visit once a month. Fantasised about moving there. Love the Southern accent of those lovely girls! Do you remember Joe Dales Cajun Station?

 

Dreamt of panning for gold in Dahlonega as we once found a spec there!

[PRWeezer]

I am envious of you. I so love Atlanta. Use to visit once a month. Fantasised about moving there. Love the Southern accent of those lovely girls! Do you remember Joe Dales Cajun Station?

 

Dreamt of panning for gold in Dahlonega as we once found a spec there!

 

Joe Dale's was great. Atlanta has changed a lot in the 23 years I've lived here, but since I've always lived 'in town' I don't have to deal with the sprawl on a daily basis. And the airport is only 15 minutes away when the next cruise calls. :)

[Stumblefoot]

I wonder whether the online booking system isn't a booking system at all, but simply collects requests which are forwarded to the restaurant or spa or excursions people who then deal with them manually. In other words people think they have a booking when all they have done is sent a request?

I have a sneaking suspicion you may be right. I remember when we made all of our reservations I found it odd that you could only "book" a pre-determined time period and it was the exact same time each and every night regardless of venue. Why they didn't just license the OpenTable (TopTable in the UK) technology is beyond me. Real-time inventory, 15-minute time frame availability, and menus make for a quick, easy, and enjoyable experience.

[beckaboo]

Because in the minds of IT leaders, they always make the math work to build rather than license... Even if it has to be rebuilt to fix the inevitably deficient initial release (I deal with this kind of silly thinking all day every day).

 

That being said, on our March sailing, they encouraged everyone in a note in the embarkation Chronicles to stop in to La Champagne to confirm reservations... Which was made a bit easier since I had printed out the summary page from the website. No line for us and we were able to adjust times as needed, and there wasn't an issue with booking La T more than once online at reconfirmation time (but this may be because we were on a 12 day sailing).

 

We also reconfirmed spa treatments in person... And had to chase down shore excursion tickets, which were delivered to the wrong cabin (not a website problem!)

 

I suspect too that it's a request system at this point, with a target of making into a "real" scheduler in the future...fortunately, they aren't too difficult to build - assuming the $ are allocated to do so ;)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[UKCruiseJeff]

It was obviously intended to impress rather than actually function as a booking system. I also suspect that it was intended to stop people from calling them either directly or via TAs to make bookings prior to the cruise.

 

If no one had received a warning which says "You have already made a booking and so you cannot make any further bookings .... contatc the restaurant directly after embarkation ..." then it is clearly non-functional but a rather facile request only system. On a less than full ship isn't a problem because more people's requests can be fullfilled. The fact that so many different days and times have been booked - or some missed completely heavilly implies manual "intervention".

 

SS have simply developed another way of irritating customers by promising one thing and providing another. :)

[UKCruiseJeff]

Joe Dale's was great. Atlanta has changed a lot in the 23 years I've lived here, but since I've always lived 'in town' I don't have to deal with the sprawl on a daily basis. And the airport is only 15 minutes away when the next cruise calls. :)

 

 

You don't have to fight "The Big Chicken"!

 

:D

[Mr Luxury]

SS managed to master the opt out only charity grab.

Organising a seating plan for a restaurant should not be too much trouble surely

[UKCruiseJeff]

SS managed to master the opt out only charity grab.

Organising a seating plan for a restaurant should not be too much trouble surely

 

The impression increases of a closely rigidly overly controlled family business who no longer have their finger on the pulse. The very worst of all worlds.

[Mr Luxury]

The impression increases of a closely rigidly overly controlled family business who no longer have their finger on the pulse. The very worst of all worlds.

 

Sounds like the Glazer family with Man United

[Ravenscroft]

Thanks Jeff ...

We are really looking forward to our first cruise.

I am very surprised that no one on this board is on the same cruise .. I put a Mix & Mingle for it up a long time ago, being that it's taking in both the Cannes Film festival and the Monac Grand Prix :confused:

 

Hi again myc6toy, we talked a few months ago about the Monaco GP cruise on Spirit, it had been my first ever cruise too, back in 2011.

 

Don't worry about any lack of response on Roll Call/Mix & Mingle here at CC. Most SS cruisers have never even heard of CC for a start. Secondly, we found it very easy to meet people on the cruise because most cruisers on that particular sailing have something in common - love of F1 racing.

Our cruise had a very large group from South America but we still managed to meet plenty of people.

 

Have a fabulous time, I'm still a bit envious, would love to do Monaco by cruise ship again some day.

[rojaan19]

SS managed to master the opt out only charity grab.

 

 

But it took them a very long time !!! :o

[UKCruiseJeff]

But it took them a very long time !!! :o

 

Today ... several more virus attempts to email addresses provided only to SS. Two email addresses.

 

:mad:

[Silver Spectre]

Well said - I agree -- this doesn't do anyone any good except the poster -tho he may need to feel superior and special -- and creates ill-will towards management - imo.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth.