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Suite guest, want an over the water cabana in Labadee? Read.

Rat2274

By Rat2274,
in Royal Caribbean International

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Rat2274

Rat2274

Posted
Posted

Sorry to tell you all this, but RCL has done it again.

 

My wife and I are sailing Oasis on 4/11/15. We are in a suite and my wife had only one request of me,

 

An over water cabana on barefoot beach. RCL site says "no online reservations, check on board"

 

So I play by the rules, and will check in on board first thing, in fact I'm rather smart, so when the concierge contacts me the week ahead of our cruise, I'll ask to reserve one then. ....Today I'm surfing cruise critic, and see a post from months ago about a concierge reaching out to a future guest. The letter says "Cabanas are first come first serve, and all of the over water are already gone."

 

Wait, I didn't read that right. How could they be gone? You need to check on board,per their site. In my concern I track down an e mail for the Oasis concierge and make my request. Two hours later, you guessed it...... Sorry sir, they are gone.

 

Now that I have vented my frustration, this is my point. Do not follow the web site rules.

 

If you are a suite guest, and want an over the water cabana, call, email and bother them early and often.

 

Had I known this , I would have booked it months ago when I booked the cruise.

 

Lesson learned.

 

Thanks RCL

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4cats,1dog

4cats,1dog

Posted
Posted

We were in a grand suite on Liberty a month ago. I requested an OTW cabana about two months out. The concierge e-mailed back to contact her 1-2 weeks from departure date. So I e-mailed 2.2 weeks out. She confirmed my reservation then.

Maybe because Oasis class ships have many more Suite guests. I would still reach out to the concierge regarding cabanas, the worse that could happen is they say Nope- they're all gone!

So sorry, I would ask to be put on wait list in case someone changes their mind.

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Merion_Mom

Merion_Mom

Posted
Posted
We were in a grand suite on Liberty a month ago. I requested an OTW cabana about two months out. The concierge e-mailed back to contact her 1-2 weeks from departure date. So I e-mailed 2.2 weeks out. She confirmed my reservation then.

Maybe because Oasis class ships have many more Suite guests. I would still reach out to the concierge regarding cabanas, the worse that could happen is they say Nope- they're all gone!

So sorry, I would ask to be put on wait list in case someone changes their mind.

 

Happens a lot. Do this.

 

:)

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Rat2274

Rat2274

Posted
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Posted

If my wife was not so mad right now, this would be funny.

RCL says book on board, no wait, concierge says, contact me 2 weeks out.

No wait, ask 3 to four weeks out and concierge says "sorry, all gone"

Get your S&!$ together RCL.

Sorry don't mean to offend anyone, but she is mad, so as the saying goes,

"If momma isn't happy, nobody is happy"

I'm gonna be on an Oasis class ship in a suite, in the Caribbean in three weeks!

Oh... to have my problems, right?

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maryjaden

maryjaden

Posted
Posted

Yes to keep it light....to have such problems....great ship..caribbean..suite...cabana! But I can sympathize with your wife, when on vacation and you have your heart set on something and you don't get it, it is disappointing. Especially when you did exactly what they told you to do to get it.

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trev71

trev71

Posted
Posted
If my wife was not so mad right now, this would be funny.

RCL says book on board, no wait, concierge says, contact me 2 weeks out.

No wait, ask 3 to four weeks out and concierge says "sorry, all gone"

Get your S&!$ together RCL.

Sorry don't mean to offend anyone, but she is mad, so as the saying goes,

"If momma isn't happy, nobody is happy"

I'm gonna be on an Oasis class ship in a suite, in the Caribbean in three weeks!

Oh... to have my problems, right?

 

 

Buy her a few labadoozie :D That will cheer her up

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setsail

setsail

Posted
Posted (edited)

I think there are only 4 or 5 OTW cabañas at bb and 90 suites on oasis. If you add a second ship with another 40 or 50 suites or more then it becomes even harder plus you have 2 different C's trying to keep bookings organized

Edited by setsail
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gjkubel

gjkubel

Posted
Posted

I agree with OP in that RCCL's handling of when reservations can be booked is simply atrocious. This corresponds with the complete and utter failure that is RCCL's website.

 

There should be a simple and established timeline for when things can be booked. Moreover, I believe, though this is not necessary, that the timeline should be influenced by one's loyalty status or whether sailing in a suite. This is how Disney does it and it makes complete sense. If I recall correctly, bookings for restaurants/cabanas/excursions opens at 120 days for Gold members/concierge passengers, 90 days for Silver, and 75 for all other guests (I think that's the breakdown).

 

Regardless of whether RCCL adopts a tiered system or not, setting a clear and consistent timeline for when things can be booked would alleviate a lot of frustration...

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Scotty G

Scotty G

Posted
Posted (edited)
I think there are only 4 or 5 OTW cabañas at bb and 90 suites on oasis. If you add a second ship with another 40 or 50 suites or more then it becomes even harder plus you have 2 different C's trying to keep bookings organized

 

This is an excellent point! These Barefoot Beach cabanas are the most in demand and the Suite guests have first dibs. This is usually done by email with the Concierge. His or her response to requests is dependent on their workload at the time of request. They are busy taking care of their current guests as it should be. Future guests are usually handled a week or two weeks before their scheduled cruise.

 

When trying to reserve a cabana one should always state an alternative if your first choice is not available.

 

The Concierge takes requests once on board and will confirm that you have been selected the evening before Labadee. This includes requests from C&A members who are not in a Suite.

 

This is not a matter that is handled by RCI, Miami directly or through their website but by their shipboard management via the Concierge.

Edited by Scotty G
clarify
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papaflamingo

papaflamingo

Posted
Posted
Sorry to tell you all this, but RCL has done it again.

 

My wife and I are sailing Oasis on 4/11/15. We are in a suite and my wife had only one request of me,

 

An over water cabana on barefoot beach. RCL site says "no online reservations, check on board"

 

So I play by the rules, and will check in on board first thing, in fact I'm rather smart, so when the concierge contacts me the week ahead of our cruise, I'll ask to reserve one then. ....Today I'm surfing cruise critic, and see a post from months ago about a concierge reaching out to a future guest. The letter says "Cabanas are first come first serve, and all of the over water are already gone."

 

Wait, I didn't read that right. How could they be gone? You need to check on board,per their site. In my concern I track down an e mail for the Oasis concierge and make my request. Two hours later, you guessed it...... Sorry sir, they are gone.

 

Now that I have vented my frustration, this is my point. Do not follow the web site rules.

 

If you are a suite guest, and want an over the water cabana, call, email and bother them early and often.

 

Had I known this , I would have booked it months ago when I booked the cruise.

 

Lesson learned.

 

Thanks RCL

 

I certainly understand your frustration. First come first served means first come, first served. They need to keep it fair for everyone. But look at it this way. Now you don't have to be the first one on the ship to get the cabana. We had a cabana at Nellies Beach in Feb. It was fantastic. We weren't suite guests so I had to book under shore excursions and got really lucky. But 2 years ago we were in a CL on Oasis and went to Barefoot Beach. We got 2 lounges under some palm trees, and to be honest, I wouldn't have wanted a cabana. The beach is private, gold card only, the lunch is upgraded, shrimp and steak, and there just weren't that many people there so we had lots of shade to ourselves. It was wonderful. I would book a suite just to get access to Barefoot Beach. And I wouldn't spend the money for a cabana if I could have the beach.

Cabanas are fantastic. Even more so if your in the "cheap seats" like we were. Email the Concierge, get your name on the list ASAP. Good luck.

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njm5378

njm5378

Posted
Posted
Sorry to tell you all this, but RCL has done it again.

 

My wife and I are sailing Oasis on 4/11/15. We are in a suite and my wife had only one request of me,

 

An over water cabana on barefoot beach. RCL site says "no online reservations, check on board"

 

So I play by the rules, and will check in on board first thing, in fact I'm rather smart, so when the concierge contacts me the week ahead of our cruise, I'll ask to reserve one then. ....Today I'm surfing cruise critic, and see a post from months ago about a concierge reaching out to a future guest. The letter says "Cabanas are first come first serve, and all of the over water are already gone."

 

Wait, I didn't read that right. How could they be gone? You need to check on board,per their site. In my concern I track down an e mail for the Oasis concierge and make my request. Two hours later, you guessed it...... Sorry sir, they are gone.

 

Now that I have vented my frustration, this is my point. Do not follow the web site rules.

 

If you are a suite guest, and want an over the water cabana, call, email and bother them early and often.

 

Had I known this , I would have booked it months ago when I booked the cruise.

 

Lesson learned.

 

Thanks RCL

 

We booked early and that helped. I will caution you that early doesn't always mean guaranteed. They are first come first served, sometimes. In talking with one concierge, he stated that if someone in a royal suite or an aqua theater wants a cabana they will get one and someone will get bumped, same goes for that pinnacle member that has 1500 nights at sea. It is up to the concierge who get what or gets one at all.

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