OB booking possibilities gone?

[Pingus]

Having booked all my former SB cruises as an OB category I'm looking to do the same for a cruise both later this year (Encore) and next year (Odyssey or Encore), but the OB seems to be gone? Any knowledge?

[galeforce9]

Interested in this. Few available at present but not many. Can't see any med ones for summer.

 

 

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[lincslady]

Example - we had thought of doing Quest on 15th April, Barcelona to Dover. Two weeks today. Still many suite categories available; minimum cost in a V1 is £325 per day. Presumably SB are happy to sail with quite a few empty suites rather than reduce the price at the last minute? I wonder if the situation in the USA is similar?

[Isklaar]

No inside information about this, but well spotted Pingus. I haven't looked at pricing for a couple of months so I hadn't noticed this.

 

I realised last year that I'd taken two extra cruises and still stayed within my annual holiday fund budget due to taking a chance on OB category for shorter cruises.

I've just looked at my TA website and the pricing for SB seems to be far more expensive this year, I guess it could just be my perception but it looks much higher than last year. (Looking at UK prices). I certainly wasn't able to find any cruises that appeal to me that SB were offering OB fares. Hmmm.

[wripro]

Sometimes they remove the OB category when a particular cruise starts selling better. So if you see it offered book immediately.

[jozi]

Sometimes they remove the OB category when a particular cruise starts selling better. So if you see it offered book immediately.

 

Isn't a V1 guarantee the same thing? The way the booking tool seems to work is "we pick" (less expensive) or "you pick".

[lincslady]

It is not quite the same, at least on the well known UK TA's site. Each verandah grade is at a different price (obviously increasing from V1 to V6), and I think the quoted price is for a guarantee in that particular grade. An OB used to mean it could be anywhere from V1 upwards, and often you did get a higher grade of verandah suite. Well, we were usually lucky!

[Laylam]

It is not quite the same, at least on the well known UK TA's site. Each verandah grade is at a different price (obviously increasing from V1 to V6), and I think the quoted price is for a guarantee in that particular grade. An OB used to mean it could be anywhere from V1 upwards, and often you did get a higher grade of verandah suite. Well, we were usually lucky!

 

I think we are booked with the same well known UK TA, for the 2018 42 night Pacific Arc. We are booked as a V1, which I understand to be a Verandah suite anywhere of Seabourn's choosing, which we will be notified of a week before sailing.

[marama]

Interesting, if its the one in Bournemouth then its the same TA as ours. For the first time we were not offered OB - had to book a V6. Could be that our cruise is very popular and selling well, but its the first time we have not been OB.

[Sunprince]

I received an email from Seabourn Club yesterday and it included the "Extraordinary Opportunity Event" sale starting tomorrow. That sale may include an OB offer or a three category upgrade offer which I have seen them do lately. You can preview the sale by going to the Seabourn Club website.

 

 

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[Mr Luxury]

Interesting, if its the one in Bournemouth then its the same TA as ours. For the first time we were not offered OB - had to book a V6. Could be that our cruise is very popular and selling well, but its the first time we have not been OB.

 

 

No it's the one in Reading not Bournemouth

 

 

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[galeforce9]

I received an email from Seabourn Club yesterday and it included the "Extraordinary Opportunity Event" sale starting tomorrow. That sale may include an OB offer or a three category upgrade offer which I have seen them do lately. You can preview the sale by going to the Seabourn Club website.

 

 

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Thanks. However the so called extraordinary opportunities look very poor to me.

 

 

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[sfvoyage]

We are booked as a V1, which I understand to be a Verandah suite anywhere of Seabourn's choosing, which we will be notified of a week before sailing.

 

A V1 is a V1, no more, no less. What you're describing sounds like an OB (verandah guarantee), which means you're guaranteed a V1 but may be upgraded to a higher category when SB assigns your suite, usually within 2 weeks of your sail date. If you did in fact book a V1, you would have picked your V1 suite number at booking. If you don't have an assigned suite number, you should have booked a OB.

[Sunprince]

Thanks. However the so called extraordinary opportunities look very poor to me.

 

 

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Agreed, when I booked in mid Jan the offers were more attractive.

 

 

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[jozi]

A V1 is a V1, no more, no less. What you're describing sounds like an OB (verandah guarantee), which means you're guaranteed a V1 but may be upgraded to a higher category when SB assigns your suite, usually within 2 weeks of your sail date. If you did in fact book a V1, you would have picked your V1 suite number at booking. If you don't have an assigned suite number, you should have booked a OB.

 

They've been offering guarantees at various V levels, with pricing accordingly. What's confusing is that a V1 guarantee (as opposed to reserving a specific suite) seems to be the same as an OB the minimum suite level is V1 either way.

[Laylam]

They've been offering guarantees at various V levels, with pricing accordingly. What's confusing is that a V1 guarantee (as opposed to reserving a specific suite) seems to be the same as an OB the minimum suite level is V1 either way.

Yes, that is it exactly. Our Reading TA has, under Cruise Details, listed the Category as "V1" and the Suite as "Guar.".

[purpleally]

I received an email from Seabourn Club yesterday and it included the "Extraordinary Opportunity Event" sale starting tomorrow. That sale may include an OB offer or a three category upgrade offer which I have seen them do lately. You can preview the sale by going to the Seabourn Club website.

 

 

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Our OB dropped 300.00 pp We haven't made final payment. Has anyone had experience with Seabourn honoring the new price?

[jocar3]

Our OB dropped 300.00 pp We haven't made final payment. Has anyone had experience with Seabourn honoring the new price?

 

Yes. This has happened to us several times and they always honor the new price but you need to call or have you TA call to get that done.

[lincslady]

I confess to being at a loss with this new booking arrangement - previously an OB meant SB would put you wherever it suited them, a couple of weeks before the cruise,usually, when they sorted every out. Luck of the draw if you were in a V1 or a V6, you had all paid the same. Now, you can pay a different price for what seems to be a guarantee in all the various grades, so obviously those who have paid for a V6 will get a V6, and those who have booked a V1 surely cannot expect to be a in higher grade? This means that SB can only sell the number of each grade which are available. If I had paid more to be in a higher grade I would not be very happy to find the neighbour saying they were lucky to get more than they had paid for. Or am I being completely thick? Don't all say yes, please.

[wripro]

I confess to being at a loss with this new booking arrangement - previously an OB meant SB would put you wherever it suited them, a couple of weeks before the cruise,usually, when they sorted every out. Luck of the draw if you were in a V1 or a V6, you had all paid the same. Now, you can pay a different price for what seems to be a guarantee in all the various grades, so obviously those who have paid for a V6 will get a V6, and those who have booked a V1 surely cannot expect to be a in higher grade? This means that SB can only sell the number of each grade which are available. If I had paid more to be in a higher grade I would not be very happy to find the neighbour saying they were lucky to get more than they had paid for. Or am I being completely thick? Don't all say yes, please.

 

Okay, I won't say yes. But if which suite you want is important to you then you have the option of picking it and paying for it. If you are more flexible and a guarantee is available then you can gamble on where SB will put you. That is why you are paying less, because you can wind up anywhere. And you have no right to be upset if someone else gambles and wins when you didn't have the courage to take your chances.

[galeforce9]

What is odd is that they are offering OBs on certain cruises still.

 

 

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[Isklaar]

I've now found some more OBs advertised by my TA in Reading. Have spent most of the day today on their website trying to find something that appeals at a price that isn't, IMO, completely crazy. The SB pricing appears to be all over the place this year, much more so than previously.

 

I've actually found a couple of Regent cruises that are much better priced than comparable SB voyages. So far I've always found Regent to be much more expensive. Not sure I'm ready to take the leap to Regent though.

I'll keep looking for a little while longer.

[jozi]

I confess to being at a loss with this new booking arrangement - previously an OB meant SB would put you wherever it suited them, a couple of weeks before the cruise,usually, when they sorted every out. Luck of the draw if you were in a V1 or a V6, you had all paid the same. Now, you can pay a different price for what seems to be a guarantee in all the various grades, so obviously those who have paid for a V6 will get a V6, and those who have booked a V1 surely cannot expect to be a in higher grade? This means that SB can only sell the number of each grade which are available. If I had paid more to be in a higher grade I would not be very happy to find the neighbour saying they were lucky to get more than they had paid for. Or am I being completely thick? Don't all say yes, please.

 

As I understand it, it's just a more stratified version of an OB. You'll get "at least" the level you booked. So you could book a V2 and get a V5. But if you book and pay for a V2 you would definitely not get a V1. This might be important if you don't want a steel balcony or those slightly smaller V1 suites on the Encore. According to my TA the higher you go, the higher your level of a potential upgrade is from that minimum level. Rolling dice.

[galeforce9]

I can't see the two options in price on the reading ta website at each suite category?

 

 

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[ab21au]

Now, you can pay a different price for what seems to be a guarantee in all the various grades, so obviously those who have paid for a V6 will get a V6, and those who have booked a V1 surely cannot expect to be a in higher grade? This means that SB can only sell the number of each grade which are available.

 

Is this what you mean?