Offer from O for an oversold cruise

[jjeffjb]

We were booked on a November Caribbean cruise on Sirena, cruise only, that Oceania oversold.  O offered us the same cruise on Riviera for either Jan, Feb or March with all 3 O Life perks (OBC, included excursions, and bev package).  We accepted the offer as we prefer the O class ships and have flexibility with our schedules.  We were surprised that Sirena was oversold as many recent voyages have been sailing under capacity.  Good news for Oceania and for us!

[MEFIowa]

Who knows the "why"? I'm wondering if this isn't more crew related. Issues with new and changing crew. Their numbers. Tied to a full ship. Moving some off makes it easier for the crew? Just my initial thought.

 

I, too, wish I could do this! Rather have a B2 on Riviera than on Sirena, and considering I booked while on Riviera 12/21 to save the $200 per and there were two $100 price increases afterwards, I'd be getting the bigger room and ship at a steal. Booked this Sirena cruise because it was so much less expensive than Riviera in early 2023 for the same itinerary. 

[ORV]

The why is pretty simple, they sold more rooms than the ship has. It's pretty common in the travel industry. Historically there are always quite a few cancels around final payment, and of course always some no shows. This used to be a fairly common occurrence with Oceania, but in the past 3 or 4 years before Covid they seemed to have better algorithms happening in the revenue dept. 

 

The best bet would be what someone said on the other thread. With all the FCC that has to be used up by years end, people are not cancelling at the normal rate that the system is set up for. 

[MEFIowa]

17 minutes ago, ORV said:

The why is pretty simple, they sold more rooms than the ship has. ...

That's a claim, an assertion.

 

Someone on a FB O group posted this AM they had the same offer for their upcoming Insignia cruise, too. Fascinating to see this arising suddenly like this, when not seeing it earlier in 2022.

 

The complaints about passenger service in 2022 have been seemingly consistent about inexperienced crews. There are rules on how long crews can stay aboard. Thinking Sirena was last to reenter service in early 2022 and her crew may be time limiting out, for example.

 

IF there are crew issues, better to have 500 or 550 passengers on an R-class than 650. And O seems to be selective in who they are offering the option to, not just some blanket anyone want to move offer. For some are mentioning they didn't get the offer.

[ORV]

OK😄

 

 

[seachelt]

Nice move😋 Enjoy your cruise.

[MEFIowa]

29 minutes ago, ORV said:

OK😄

 

 

Keep in mind our final payment was due AUGUST 20, 2022 and only suddenly in October 2022 are they offering this. They would've known since Aug they were overbooked from people who had PAID in full.

 

And I've been paying very close attention to cabin availability on this particular cruise, for I wanted to move from forward to aft, but couldn't. There were still some open Cs in August prior to final payment day. 

[ORV]

5 minutes ago, MEFIowa said:

Keep in mind our final payment was due AUGUST 20, 2022 and only suddenly in October 2022 are they offering this. They would've known since Aug they were overbooked from people who had PAID in full.

 

And I've been paying very close attention to cabin availability on this particular cruise, for I wanted to move from forward to aft, but couldn't. There were still some open Cs in August prior to final payment day. 

I'm sure with your vast experience of the way Oceania has dealt with this in the past you're right. Carry on. Enjoy your cruise. 

[LHT28]

Maybe  an issue getting crew

Not all previous crew  will be able to return so new hires must be found

Some may have  found other employment  during covid 

 

Oceania will work it out  at some point

 

[MEFIowa]

43 minutes ago, ORV said:

I'm sure with your vast experience of the way Oceania has dealt with this in the past you're right. Carry on. Enjoy your cruise. 

Well, you must think O is really quite stupid, for O had already mailed out the Cruise Vacation Guides with Luggage Tags! Nearly 7 weeks AFTER final payment was made! NOW they ask if I want to change cruises? Because they are "overbooked"? Right!

 

So IF this is just "oversold", O has a history of delaying long after final payment was received to try to fix the issue until it has already informed every one of their room and given them their luggage tags?

 

If your assessment is correct, then those "corporate idiots" should all be fired for wasting company time, resources, and ticking off customers. That would be utter fiscal and customer service incompetence.

[ORV]

I guess I missed where they asked you to change. 

[LHT28]

The  offer to changes  happened a lot in the past  as ORV said  they cut back on overselling  the few years before covid  so the offers were not as frequent

What ever the reason 

O will figure it out

Lots pf pax & just wanting to cruise again  & with the limited capacity in the past year or so things were  slim picking it you did not jump in right away

 Other lines  play the same game

JMO

[mauibabes]

I know there are a lot of very knowledgeable Oceania cruisers on this Board but IMHO, it happens more than one would expect.  When we have sailed, there is quite often Private Travel Agencies or College Alumni groups on board and they block quite a few rooms. Sometimes they even overbook their allocation from O and expect O to bail them out, which O does if possible.  Hence the buy outs!  
While the timing may not quite fit to everyone’s liking, it is the last minute, and I do not consider a December 2022 cruise buy out offer to be last minute,  We just got off a cruise on another premium line and they lost guests virtually up to the Embarkation date.  
 

Again, IMHO the folks in the head offices at Oceania are not the “Village Idiots” as some might suggest.  What we do know is STUFF HAPPENS and those of us who read and post to these Boards are well aware that change is inevitable..Oceania does not make money with empty staterooms so whatever they can do today to ensure a room is sold for today or tomorrows cruise, they will do it. Just because we have not heard of a special promotion or a private offer is made does not mean it isn’t happening with some regularity. While FB may be the end all for Fact and Fiction, there are times when CC posters can be as I’ll informed.  Just my 2 Cents.

We happen to love Oceania and after our recent experience on a 5 Star line sailing, I can assure you even they don’t get everything perfect.  Can you believe it, the soup was barely warm for days on end. OK, maybe my 3 Cents.

Ciao, Mauibabes

[MEFIowa]

21 minutes ago, mauibabes said:

I know there are a lot of very knowledgeable Oceania cruisers on this Board but IMHO, it happens more than one would expect. ... OK, maybe my 3 Cents. Ciao, Mauibabes

I read your words thrice and other than mentioning 2022 once, you'd think you were writing in 2019. BEFORE what? COVID. Did COVID impact O and its ships regarding when they returned to sailing? Yes. Did COVID impact O's crews? Yes. Did COVID impact O's ability to get supplies? Yes. Did COVID impact O on quarantine issues on ships? Yes. IS COVID still impacting these same issues today? (Yes)

 

But IF "quite often Private Travel Agencies or College Alumni" issues seem more plausible in late 2022, then to each their own.

 

IIRC Sirena was the last to reenter O service in Spring 2022. And she'll be making a transatlantic to Miami shortly. Sirena has been getting many a scathing review of poor service and poor experience this past summer. And that's tied to crew. Who have to rotate in and out.

[LHT28]

Most of the crew have 6 to 10 mths contracts  so always some will be coming & going

 

[zalusky]

Maybe they decided they had to allocate more rooms to quarantine possibilities.

[GeezerCouple]

3 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

Keep in mind our final payment was due AUGUST 20, 2022 and only suddenly in October 2022 are they offering this. They would've known since Aug they were overbooked from people who had PAID in full.

 

And I've been paying very close attention to cabin availability on this particular cruise, for I wanted to move from forward to aft, but couldn't. There were still some open Cs in August prior to final payment day. 

 

2 hours ago, MEFIowa said:

Well, you must think O is really quite stupid, for O had already mailed out the Cruise Vacation Guides with Luggage Tags! Nearly 7 weeks AFTER final payment was made! NOW they ask if I want to change cruises? Because they are "overbooked"? Right!

 

So IF this is just "oversold", O has a history of delaying long after final payment was received to try to fix the issue until it has already informed every one of their room and given them their luggage tags?

 

If your assessment is correct, then those "corporate idiots" should all be fired for wasting company time, resources, and ticking off customers. That would be utter fiscal and customer service incompetence.

[Emphasis added]

 

I must be missing something... !

 

Why are you *s* upset about the timing, about whether/when they "knew" or "made the offer"?  Why is the timing of such importance to you?

As far as I can tell, it is indeed an OFFER, like others that some of us have received in prior years.  The offer can be accepted (unless someone else took the offer...??) or declined.

 

Why in the world does it matter what terminology they are using, such as "oversold".  Perhaps it's "oversold" because they want to keep some cabins empty in case of quarantine; that could make sense.  Or perhaps there was some serious repair needed. and due to supply chain issues, they doubt the proper widgets will be available in time.

Or it could indeed be a staffing problem, which means fewer cabins can be serviced, which means... they may be, yes, "oversold" for what they can handle.  And perhaps they really didn't know any earlier.  Or perhaps they did, but hoped the situation could be fixed and now realize that's unlikely to happen, etc.

 

Also, what is this "history of delaying long after final payment" that you mention?

Has this happened to you frequently in the past?  (IF it has, then why are you having trouble understanding why they'd do something like this?)

And IF so, still... why is there any *problem*?

 

They could make an offer at any time.  (Or is there some reason why this actually cannot be done!?)

There might be someone eager to jump at the chance, even on short notice.  Or perhaps for someone, "especially" on short notice, if they couldn't have known whether they could make the change sooner or such.

 

We had a wonderful "offer" one time, although I forget the timing.  We would have LOVED to take what would have been a longer cruise, and not only no extra charge, but some credit back!  Alas, we couldn't get away at the time of the replacement cruise.  Such a shame! 😞 

 

I'm not understanding what your *problem* is here, why you seem so upset about receiving a *offer*...

What am I - or others - missing?  (The definition of "oversold"!? 😱)

 

GC

[roger b]

On 10/13/2022 at 8:09 PM, jjeffjb said:

We were booked on a November Caribbean cruise on Sirena, cruise only, that Oceania oversold.  O offered us the same cruise on Riviera for either Jan, Feb or March with all 3 O Life perks (OBC, included excursions, and bev package).  We accepted the offer as we prefer the O class ships and have flexibility with our schedules.  We were surprised that Sirena was oversold as many recent voyages have been sailing under capacity.  Good news for Oceania and for us!

I don't  think it was much of an offer you accepted  as all you got was an O life ultimate promotion. 

 This happened  to me once on a cruise  from LA to Tahiti I held out and finished  up with a free cruise just move down to a window  on deck 4 from a concierge on 7.was no brainer.

Edited October 15, 2022 by roger b
Spelling

[Mura]

On 10/13/2022 at 3:09 PM, jjeffjb said:

We were booked on a November Caribbean cruise on Sirena, cruise only, that Oceania oversold.  O offered us the same cruise on Riviera for either Jan, Feb or March with all 3 O Life perks (OBC, included excursions, and bev package).  We accepted the offer as we prefer the O class ships and have flexibility with our schedules.  We were surprised that Sirena was oversold as many recent voyages have been sailing under capacity.  Good news for Oceania and for us!

We had a similar offer that we accepted back in 2011.  Marina was new.  We were booked on an Alaska cruise o an "R" ship.  They upgraded our room on Marina, gave us how much credit I don't recall, and it was a great deal.  We had already booked our air to Vancouver but were able to change it over to visiting my family in L.A.  So all it all, it was a great deal.

 

More recently we received a downsell that paid for a VS on our next cruise (both on "R" ships) ... these offers don't seem as prevalent as they used to be, but they can be well worth the deal.

 

Mura

[jjeffjb]

11 hours ago, roger b said:

I don't  think it was much of an offer you accepted  as all you got was an O life ultimate promotion. 

 This happened  to me once on a cruise  from LA to Tahiti I held out and finished  up with a free cruise just move down to a window  on deck 4 from a concierge on 7.was no brainer.

For us, it was an excellent offer.  We're retired and live in FL so no air changes required.  We prefer O class ships to R.  And we received 6 shore excursions, house bev package and $600 OBC.  To us, that has a value of at least $2,000.  It practical terms, we can to the Dom Perignon dinner and still come off the ship with no bill.

[MarkWiltonM]

We are also on Sirena 11/18 - 11/28/2022 and got this offer. We declined because (1) we don't drink alcohol and (2) we don't do many shore excursions in the Caribbean. We would have considered switching to Riviera but we're on Riviera in March so it didn't make a lot of sense in terms of timing.

 

However, I am surprised to hear that Oceania could have "overbooked" the cruise. We got our cruise documents and luggage tags last week. I assume no one is suggesting that Oceania would have booked our cabin to two parties and sent them both cruise docs and luggage tags. Isn't that what the wait list is for?

 

 

[PhD-iva]

2 minutes ago, MarkWiltonM said:

However, I am surprised to hear that Oceania could have "overbooked" the cruise. We got our cruise documents and luggage tags last week. I assume no one is suggesting that Oceania would have booked our cabin to two parties and sent them both cruise docs and luggage tags. Isn't that what the wait list is for?

 

 

Some cabins are sold on a “guaranty”basis without a specific state room assigned until some later point.

[LHT28]

19 minutes ago, MarkWiltonM said:

We are also on Sirena 11/18 - 11/28/2022 and got this offer. We declined because (1) we don't drink alcohol and (2) we don't do many shore excursions in the Caribbean. We would have considered switching to Riviera but we're on Riviera in March so it didn't make a lot of sense in terms of timing.

 

However, I am surprised to hear that Oceania could have "overbooked" the cruise. We got our cruise documents and luggage tags last week. I assume no one is suggesting that Oceania would have booked our cabin to two parties and sent them both cruise docs and luggage tags. Isn't that what the wait list is for?

 

 

They might  be trying to clear the waitlist  for specific categories

it may be surprising to some but people will actually take a move over offer  or upsell offer

People will sometimes cancel even after final payment  for various reasons

There is a great demand for cruises right now ..post covid  people want to sail  

JMO

[tvandfriend]

On 10/14/2022 at 8:31 PM, Mura said:

We had a similar offer that we accepted back in 2011.  Marina was new.  We were booked on an Alaska cruise o an "R" ship.  They upgraded our room on Marina, gave us how much credit I don't recall, and it was a great deal.  We had already booked our air to Vancouver but were able to change it over to visiting my family in L.A.  So all it all, it was a great deal.

 

More recently we received a downsell that paid for a VS on our next cruise (both on "R" ships) ... these offers don't seem as prevalent as they used to be, but they can be well worth the deal.

 

Mura

Mura, I too was booked on an Alaska cruise quite a few years ago (could have been 2011) and started getting offers for my Penthouse suite on Marina.  I kinda wanted the cabin we had so I didn't accept.  but, the offers kept coming and in the end I traded a 10 day Alaska cruise with no air for a 17 day cruise BA to Valpariso with air.  They really really really wanted our suite!  And we had an amazing cruise around South America!

[PaulMCO]

Why is anyone surprised at this.  Cruising has returned to normal with ships nearly full.

Holiday (Nov/Dec) cruise are always full.

 

Oceania has always done this at last minute and always after final payment.   They will make an offer, and if no takers will make another with more incentives.  Have had this happen two weeks before sailing.