What is Club Orange?

[Florida_gal_50]

45 minutes ago, albingirl said:

For the very first time, we will have club orange on our next cruise.  I have no idea why, since I didn't ask for it in the booking process.  I have no need of priority boarding or tendering but they have kind of a nifty carryall bag that I'll be sure to use. As far as dining goes, I'm pretty much open to new experiences, so that should be fine by us.  I know you can upgrade within your cat. but I'm pretty much where I want to be right now.

That’s odd.  If you are before final you could ask that they remove it.  The bags are very nice and strong.

[albingirl]

21 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

That’s odd.  If you are before final you could ask that they remove it.  The bags are very nice and strong.

Past final.  It seemed to come with the booking.  I saw no extra charges. Odd indeed.

[Florida_gal_50]

5 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Past final.  It seemed to come with the booking.  I saw no extra charges. Odd indeed.

I thought my club orange was a separate line item but since I’ve gotten home I’ve checked.  It’s rolled into my cruise fare so it’s impossible to see.  Hopefully they threw you a bone for free.  It does show as a separate line item with the perks.

[Vict0riann]

47 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Past final.  It seemed to come with the booking.  I saw no extra charges. Odd indeed.

 

If you really don't want it, could you ask for it to be refunded?  Maybe even just as an OBC?  Which ship are you on?  I see  no benefit to it except on the Pinnacle ships, especially if you don't want a room upgrade...

[albingirl]

1 hour ago, Vict0riann said:

 

If you really don't want it, could you ask for it to be refunded?  Maybe even just as an OBC?  Which ship are you on?  I see  no benefit to it except on the Pinnacle ships, especially if you don't want a room upgrade...

I'll be on a pinnacle ship and I think I will leave it alone. It seems to be rolled in with fare so I see no advantage to removal. Plus, I  like the bag .

[Vict0riann]

1 hour ago, albingirl said:

I'll be on a pinnacle ship and I think I will leave it alone. It seems to be rolled in with fare so I see no advantage to removal. Plus, I  like the bag .

I like it on the Pinnacle ships because you can have your mimosa (or two)  for breakfast in CO, on the other ships you can only have a mimosa if you order room service for breakfast and DH doesn't like that).

I do think the CO dining room has to be a little safer, Covid-wise, than the MDR.

 

The bag I'm not crazy about, but some like it because of the zipper.  

[Florida_gal_50]

45 minutes ago, Vict0riann said:

I like it on the Pinnacle ships because you can have your mimosa (or two)  for breakfast in CO, on the other ships you can only have a mimosa if you order room service for breakfast and DH doesn't like that).

I do think the CO dining room has to be a little safer, Covid-wise, than the MDR.

 

The bag I'm not crazy about, but some like it because of the zipper.  

I agree about it feeling safer whether it is or not.  There were a lot of people coughing up a lung and saying they felt sick roaming around the ship. Brilliant.  I can't say I noticed that in club orange.  Pure luck maybe.  I thought for sure I would get covid his time but I lucked out.

[REOVA]

6 hours ago, albingirl said:

For the very first time, we will have club orange on our next cruise.  I have no idea why, since I didn't ask for it in the booking process.  I have no need of priority boarding or tendering but they have kind of a nifty carryall bag that I'll be sure to use. As far as dining goes, I'm pretty much open to new experiences, so that should be fine by us.  I know you can upgrade within your cat. but I'm pretty much where I want to be right now.

If you have a TA, they may have comped you. Someone posted about keeping their booked cabin by having TA redo booking to less expension cabin in that category and doing CO free upgrade to the desired cabin and saved money. But you would need to be careful that none of your other perks change if rebooking. 

[knitter]

While b'fast in the Pinnacle Grill is nice (the upgrade fairy once gifted us a Neptune Suite), it seems it really depends on the ship/itinerary if the extra $25 pp cost (under 13 days) is worth it. IMHO, the best benefit is the cabin upgrade, but I can't tell if you book a top price veranda cabin, say, would they bump you to the next category ( a suite?) - you really would have to do the math, or have a TA who would.

Thanks for information, folks.

Sandy

[Florida_gal_50]

1 minute ago, knitter said:

While b'fast in the Pinnacle Grill is nice (the upgrade fairy once gifted us a Neptune Suite), it seems it really depends on the ship/itinerary if the extra $25 pp cost (under 13 days) is worth it. IMHO, the best benefit is the cabin upgrade, but I can't tell if you book a top price veranda cabin, say, would they bump you to the next category ( a suite?) - you really would have to do the math, or have a TA who would.

Thanks for information, folks.

Sandy

I don't think it's a possibility to move to the next category.  I have heard of someone getting obc but that was a while ago definitely pre covid.

[highland cruiser]

On 12/2/2022 at 6:03 PM, Florida_gal_50 said:

I generally find comments such as yours from people who have never tried it.   Actually the food is not the same.  It’s actually hot, something I rarely experience in the mdr.  They do have a daily special for dinner which was really nice when I tried it.  It’s actually every bit if not more comfortable than the mdr and usually you are not sitting there for hours.  Not once did anyone watch me.  Did you see people peering in for extended periods?  I just find that odd.  I’m very cognizant of people that stare and I can’t say that I’ve ever noticed it.  All that said I’m happy if people don’t like it.  It was oversold on the koningsdam in November.

Curious about your comment about it being oversold on the Koningsdam.  We have used club orange on the NS in September and February when the ship wasn't near capacity at all and we were in a Neptune.   We will be on the Koningsdam in January and I assume that ship will be sailing near capacity.  We have purchased club orange as we are traveling with my sister and husband and thought they would enjoy it.  We had a VC room and were able to get a VS  with the purchase of club orange for $255 pp or an extra $15 pp per day.  So a good deal with our room upgrade.  On the NS we never waited for a table.  Is it possible to reserve a table for 4 at a specific time or do we just show up and hope there is a table ready for us.  Thanks.

[Florida_gal_50]

28 minutes ago, highland cruiser said:

Curious about your comment about it being oversold on the Koningsdam.  We have used club orange on the NS in September and February when the ship wasn't near capacity at all and we were in a Neptune.   We will be on the Koningsdam in January and I assume that ship will be sailing near capacity.  We have purchased club orange as we are traveling with my sister and husband and thought they would enjoy it.  We had a VC room and were able to get a VS  with the purchase of club orange for $255 pp or an extra $15 pp per day.  So a good deal with our room upgrade.  On the NS we never waited for a table.  Is it possible to reserve a table for 4 at a specific time or do we just show up and hope there is a table ready for us.  Thanks.

No, it's not possible to reserve a table.  This came from from the mouth of the person I call the hostess.  Not sure if that is the proper title.  The  first week of my cruise it was reasonable at night.  I went there around 6 and it was no problem.  The second week I went at 5:40 and it was jammed already.  I saw the hostess all over the ship.  She worked in the pinnacle and also the Lido.  We chatted when I was in the Lido and we talked about how busy club orange was.  She would tell me the numbers that went through there normally and how many they were going through nightly and it was a lot more.  I didn't keep notes so I can't say what they are now.  It was clear that crew were feeling the pinch without outing anyone.  In the morning of the second week I had one day when I waited a half hour to be seated for breakfast around 8:30 after waiting a half hour for my coffee in the explorations Cafe. The first week i maybe waited 10 minutes one day.  I really hope hal puts a cap on club orange but I'm wondering.  It didn't appear to  be the case on the Nov 19 sailing.

Edited December 4, 2022 by Florida_gal_50

[highland cruiser]

12 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

No, it's not possible to reserve a table.  This came from from the mouth of the person I call the hostess.  Not sure if that is the proper title.  The  first week of my cruise it was reasonable at night.  I went there around 6 and it was no problem.  The second week I went at 5:40 and it was jammed already.  I saw the hostess all over the ship.  She worked in the pinnacle and also the Lido.  We chatted when I was in the Lido and we talked about how busy club orange was.  She would tell me the numbers that went through there normally and how many they were going through nightly and it was a lot more.  I didn't keep notes so I can't say what they are now.  It was clear that crew were feeling the pinch without outing anyone.  In the morning of the second week I had one day when I waited a half hour to be seated for breakfast around 8:30 after waiting a half hour for my coffee in the explorations Cafe. The first week i maybe waited 10 minutes one day.  I really hope hal puts a cap on club orange but I'm wondering.  It didn't appear to  be the case on the Nov 19 sailing.

Thank you for that information.  We  are all early risers so breakfast shouldn't be too bad.  Will just be patient and see what happens at dinner.  We did enjoy the smaller venue with Club Orange.  Staff was awesome.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

19 minutes ago, highland cruiser said:

Thank you for that information.  We  are all early risers so breakfast shouldn't be too bad.  Will just be patient and see what happens at dinner.  We did enjoy the smaller venue with Club Orange.  Staff was awesome.

 

I am an early riser too.  I just like to be too lazy so that doesn't help.  In the past I haven't had much of a wait in the morning.  It's been non existent at night even though I don't eat there much at night.  I've really enjoyed it in the past so this was a jolt to the system.

[vicd1969]

1 hour ago, highland cruiser said:

 Is it possible to reserve a table for 4 at a specific time or do we just show up and hope there is a table ready for us.  Thanks.

Technically, there is no table reservation. However, if you meet with the host on the first night, and let them know your time preference, there is a good chance they'll have a table for four waiting for you when you arrive at the Club Orange room. Like most things in life, things get easier when there is there is a lot of communication among both sides. They were very accommodating for our group of 11 on the Rotterdam, but we tended to eat early around 530ish.

[vicd1969]

1 hour ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

The first week i maybe waited 10 minutes one day.  I really hope hal puts a cap on club orange but I'm wondering.  It didn't appear to  be the case on the Nov 19 sailing.

Probably due to overcrowding on the ship in general for a Thanksgiving sailing. Likely will be as crazy for Xmas and New Year's sailings, but back to being reasonable passenger numbers afterwards. 

[Florida_gal_50]

16 minutes ago, vicd1969 said:

Probably due to overcrowding on the ship in general for a Thanksgiving sailing. Likely will be as crazy for Xmas and New Year's sailings, but back to being reasonable passenger numbers afterwards. 

I'm hoping so.  I remember a person on cruise critic saying on a sailing maybe a week or two before mine that they felt club orange was oversold because it was crazy busy.  That should have been normal.  That had never been my experience so it was hard to fathom. Well I got to see first hand what it was like but the first week wasn't like that so I have hope.

[oaktreerb]

3 hours ago, vicd1969 said:

Technically, there is no table reservation. However, if you meet with the host on the first night, and let them know your time preference, there is a good chance they'll have a table for four waiting for you when you arrive at the Club Orange room. Like most things in life, things get easier when there is there is a lot of communication among both sides. They were very accommodating for our group of 11 on the Rotterdam, but we tended to eat early around 530ish.

Of course they would be accommodating to a group of 11!  The dining room would be accommodating to a group of 4.  I don’t think CO would.  In Club Orange every diner has a lot of communication with the hostess and CO manager.  If you dine at 5:30 in the MDR it is really easy to work with the Maitre’d what ever size table you require.    If you were in Club Orange with a group of 11, they would use the two 6 person tables or maybe the bar height tables which both fill up last.

[oaktreerb]

4 hours ago, highland cruiser said:

Thank you for that information.  We  are all early risers so breakfast shouldn't be too bad.  Will just be patient and see what happens at dinner.  We did enjoy the smaller venue with Club Orange.  Staff was awesome.

 

In November on a full ship there was a line outside the CO dining room prior to opening at 5:15 and at breakfast.  The manager opened early and people were seated quickly.  If your group rises early, be there when the dining room  opens to secure your table.  At dinner be aware that for early dining you need to be there at opening most evenings.  There are small tables for two along the CO ocean view walkway.  You can also walk to the nearby Ocean Bar and ask the CO hostess to notify you when your table is ready.  

[Damcruiser]

We used CO on our recent NS sailing.  I liked the bag, great for carrying my laptop.

We got on early in Port Everglades but don't need early disembark nor tender..

Our first waiter was not up to HAL standards, the second absolutely wonderful.

However, the overall service was no better than our September experience in the MDR.

We will not book club orange again.

That was our experience; yours may differ.

By the way, I did get a mimosa spilled across my back and front as the server lost control of her tray.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

7 minutes ago, Damcruiser said:

We used CO on our recent NS sailing.  I liked the bag, great for carrying my laptop.

We got on early in Port Everglades but don't need early disembark nor tender..

Our first waiter was not up to HAL standards, the second absolutely wonderful.

However, the overall service was no better than our September experience in the MDR.

We will not book club orange again.

That was our experience; yours may differ.

By the way, I did get a mimosa spilled across my back and front as the server lost control of her tray.

 

I don’t blame you.  If that was my experience I wouldn’t do it either.   The less people that want to experience club orange the better.  It’s way overused already.

[Mary229]

With Club Orange what is the evening dining time?  Can you request fixed time of your choice, can you request fixed table for two?  
 

I am on a grand voyage segment, is their a difference in amenities or are they even offered?

[DaveOKC]

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

With Club Orange what is the evening dining time?  Can you request fixed time of your choice, can you request fixed table for two?  
 

I am on a grand voyage segment, is their a difference in amenities or are they even offered?

As I recall, the dining times were the same as the Main Dining room, which varies a bit by ship and for breakfast by day (sea or port).  No fixed times (I think due to the limited seating area).

[AFNavigator]

On 12/3/2022 at 5:05 PM, REOVA said:

If you have a TA, they may have comped you. Someone posted about keeping their booked cabin by having TA redo booking to less expension cabin in that category and doing CO free upgrade to the desired cabin and saved money. But you would need to be careful that none of your other perks change if rebooking. 

I believe that was me discussing my experience with booking Club Orange.  I did it fully through HAL--no TA involved--and did get the "free" cabin category upgrade.  Club Orange wasn't comped though--it cost $350 ($25/day/person/7 days) and is stated as non-refundable.

 

The "savings" we experienced was on the original V-category cabin we had booked.  We contacted HAL about Club Orange and they permitted a temporary downgrade to an Obstructed Balcony, then upgrade through Club Orange back to our preferred V-category balcony.  Our original booking of the cabin was $410 higher than the lowest balcony category so in spending $350 on Club Orange, we got our V-category cabin for $60 less than originally booked.

[oaktreerb]

6 hours ago, Mary229 said:

With Club Orange what is the evening dining time?  Can you request fixed time of your choice, can you request fixed table for two?  
 

I am on a grand voyage segment, is their a difference in amenities or are they even offered?

The evening dining time is the same as the MDR as is the breakfast time.  You can not reserve a table at a time of your choice but you can have a table for two.  There are tables for two along the window or you can have only  two people sitting at a table for four.  There is no pressure to share a table with other diners.  

 

I would expect CO to be the same regardless of the length of cruise.  The per day rate is less on the longer itineraries.