Unfair Sanctuary Practice

[wowzz]

4 minutes ago, Kay S said:

How is it better than a personal balcony?

Well, for a start, you can't get a full size sunlonger on the vast majority of balconies.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Step 1) raise pricing significantly to curb demand

Step 2) make full cruise Sanctuary passes available at a set # of days prior to sailing, requiring full payment and non-refundable, including cabanas

Step 3) allow single day bookings pre cruise  at a set # of days prior to departure on a limited non-refundable basis at a premium price as opposed to the newly increased full cruise price

Step 4) eliminate 1/2 day passes

Step 5) grab a bucket of popcorn and watch as the cruise critic community lose their ever bleeping minds over this “unfair and extortionate money grab by greedy Princess”

 

The only real solution is raising prices and having pre-cruise online bookings be allowed on a set # of days to departure to level the playing field. Until then - May the odds be ever in your favor!

[coo359a2]

12 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

Step 1) raise pricing significantly to curb demand

Step 2) make full cruise Sanctuary passes available at a set # of days prior to sailing, requiring full payment and non-refundable, including cabanas

Step 3) allow single day bookings pre cruise  at a set # of days prior to departure on a limited non-refundable basis at a premium price as opposed to the newly increased full cruise price

Step 4) eliminate 1/2 day passes

Step 5) grab a bucket of popcorn and watch as the cruise critic community lose their ever bleeping minds over this “unfair and extortionate money grab by greedy Princess”

 

The only real solution is raising prices and having pre-cruise online bookings be allowed on a set # of days to departure to level the playing field. Until then - May the odds be ever in your favor!

As I was reading each item, I was thinking that people on CC would be complaining about gouging, nickel and diming, leaving Princess and then I came to #5.  You had it covered😁

Edited May 4, 2023 by coo359a2

[PescadoAmarillo]

8 hours ago, caribill said:

 

Although a summer project by a high school student would no doubt produce a better outcome than the professional folk who have set up the fantastic app, this is not a simple task.

 

Options:

o full cruise morning and afternoon

o full cruise morning only

o full cruise afternoon only

o individual days

o individual mornings

o individual afternoons

o special days such as Glacier Bay or Panama Canal

o if booking full cruise willingness to accept different lounge positions if a single position is no longer available full cruise

 

And for each of those:

o Full shade

o Full sun

o Partial shade/sun

o option of willingness to accept a different choice if first choice of location is not availabile

 

And, of course, waitlists for each of these options and the automatic applying of the waitlists as cancellations are made with notifications to those who get moved from waitlist to confirmed.

 

And, of course, logic to work with the different number of lounges on each ship

 

And add logic to deal with what happens when itineraries get changed in advance of a cruise and sea days become port days and vice versa.

 

The complexity is at least equal to that of the DMW software and we know how well that has turned out.

I hear you, but I am also reminded of a regional VP I worked for, and learned so much from. He was a former Green Beret, and his most memorable line was “Don’t tell me it can’t be done. Figure it out and tell me when it’s done”. And thusly challenged, we usually did. 
 

In this case, Princess could simply bid out half days.  That’s it…no further details needed. Once on the ship, highest bid chooses first, both location and days. Looking at this from the Princess viewpoint, I think this would extract far more revenue from the Sanctuary than they are currently getting. From a guest perspective, there is no more rushing to get on the ship. If Sanctuary seating is really important to me, I will bid high enough that I get to be among the first to choose the spot and days I want.

[gerig]

3 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

I hear you, but I am also reminded of a regional VP I worked for, and learned so much from. He was a former Green Beret, and his most memorable line was “Don’t tell me it can’t be done. Figure it out and tell me when it’s done”. And thusly challenged, we usually did. 
 

In this case, Princess could simply bid out half days.  That’s it…no further details needed. Once on the ship, highest bid chooses first, both location and days. Looking at this from the Princess viewpoint, I think this would extract far more revenue from the Sanctuary than they are currently getting. From a guest perspective, there is no more rushing to get on the ship. If Sanctuary seating is really important to me, I will bid high enough that I get to be among the first to choose the spot and days I want.

I agree get rid of the half day option which would eliminate a lot of people.  If you can't get a reservation, go back daily to check for cancellations.  It happened to us on the enchanted in March.

 

[Cruise Junky]

It’s been like this for over a decade. It needs to be handled with online booking like a shore excursion. It’s the only way everyone gets a fair shot.  

[neverbeenhere]

Book b2b2b… 

[XLVIII]

1 hour ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

I hear you, but I am also reminded of a regional VP I worked for, and learned so much from. He was a former Green Beret, and his most memorable line was “Don’t tell me it can’t be done. Figure it out and tell me when it’s done”. And thusly challenged, we usually did. 
 

In this case, Princess could simply bid out half days.  That’s it…no further details needed. Once on the ship, highest bid chooses first, both location and days. Looking at this from the Princess viewpoint, I think this would extract far more revenue from the Sanctuary than they are currently getting. From a guest perspective, there is no more rushing to get on the ship. If Sanctuary seating is really important to me, I will bid high enough that I get to be among the first to choose the spot and days I want.

Sorry, but this doesn’t sound simple at all. Where do you do this? When? You’re going to have to spend a great deal of time educating passengers on how this works. Someone will be unhappy because they had dinner reservations during bidding.

Like everything else on the ship, just raise the price to real market value. You want a better room, drink package or dinner, you pay more.

Change some signs, the notice in the patter and one line in the website.

 

Simple. 
Capitalism 101. 

[XLVIII]

32 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

It’s been like this for over a decade. It needs to be handled with online booking like a shore excursion. It’s the only way everyone gets a fair shot.  

When do you open up booking? Do those that book early get a better shot? Not fair. Do you wait til the day of the cruise? What about those on their way to the pier without internet? On the ship? What about those without wifi?

It’s still going to be unfair, just to a different group. 

[polmcs]

10 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

They don't have to make anything equitable. They need to give the highest paying passengers first dibs IMO.

So the poor “Schmuck” in a club class mini suite (can’t recall the new name for it) on say a b2b2b2b2b itinerary has to defer on all 5 of the cruises to those in a suite. I’ll wager the “schmuck” paid a heck of a lot more to Princess, than each of the suite passengers who may have only booked a single cruise. 
 

Yes, I’m being pedantic here! 😝

[startedwithamouse]

39 minutes ago, polmcs said:

So the poor “Schmuck” in a club class mini suite (can’t recall the new name for it) on say a b2b2b2b2b itinerary has to defer on all 5 of the cruises to those in a suite. I’ll wager the “schmuck” paid a heck of a lot more to Princess, than each of the suite passengers who may have only booked a single cruise. 
 

Yes, I’m being pedantic here! 😝

Yes, just like Princess offers the 360 experience to suite passengers when they book. 

[Cruise Junky]

55 minutes ago, XLVIII said:

When do you open up booking? Do those that book early get a better shot? Not fair. Do you wait til the day of the cruise? What about those on their way to the pier without internet? On the ship? What about those without wifi?

It’s still going to be unfair, just to a different group. 

Same as specialty dining, same as shore excursions, same as a sale. It’s the only way that everyone is on the same playing field. If I want to check daily for it opening, that’s on me and everyone can do the same. Any other way, certain people get preferential treatment.  

[polmcs]

16 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

Yes, just like Princess offers the 360 experience to suite passengers when they book. 

Right now, you can’t buy a reservation to 360, so not exactly apples to apples here. Princess is offering the Sanctuary for general sale.

 

I’ve been fortunate enough to experience 360 by staying in a suite and some of my fellow diners at the dinner were in mini suites and in balconies, but were elite and were also invited, so it’s not exclusive to suites at the moment. That said, if I were on a 5 cruise b2b, though not in a suite and didn’t get an invite, I might be more than a little miffed about that! 😜

Edited May 5, 2023 by polmcs

[LACruiser88]

IMHO it is time to put this thread to bed, it has been beaten to a pulp!  🥺

[XLVIII]

33 minutes ago, Cruise Junky said:

Same as specialty dining, same as shore excursions, same as a sale. It’s the only way that everyone is on the same playing field. If I want to check daily for it opening, that’s on me and everyone can do the same. Any other way, certain people get preferential treatment.  

What about people who book after that? Not fair to them. 

[Cruise Junky]

55 minutes ago, XLVIII said:

What about people who book after that? Not fair to them. 

Snooze you lose.  They had every opportunity to book whenever everyone else did.  If you wait around until after final payment you run the same risks of good cabins being gone and the best shore excursions being gone as well as your preferred dining times. That’s a risk you take by booking late. 

[cr8tiv1]

7 hours ago, Kay S said:

So I guess there is more demand for the Sanctuary than I thought.  What's the attraction?  How is it better than a personal balcony?  How is it worth the extra money?  Never been there, so I am clueless.

I’ve never used the sanctuary either, but I’m not a sun lover. 

[Nicole&Pete]

Is the real issue why people want to use the sanctuary in the first place;

 

1. Guaranteed lounger that you can walk away from and come back to

2. A quiet adults only spot

 

In my opinion people pay for the sanctuary to experience something on vacation that should be part of their vacation anyway.
 

Should cruise lines actually try to incorporate more areas that can facilitate quiet relaxation in the first place? This could include more inside lounge spots with good views for colder cruises as well.

[caribill]

5 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

I hear you, but I am also reminded of a regional VP I worked for, and learned so much from. He was a former Green Beret, and his most memorable line was “Don’t tell me it can’t be done. Figure it out and tell me when it’s done”. And thusly challenged, we usually did. 

 

I did not say it could not be done, only that it is more complex than many people think it would be.

 

I do not know how much $$$ has been spent on software for DMW, but there is general agreement it is still not a quality software product. Just look at the multiple posts which say they made DMW reservations at a table for two at the same time in one dining room only to arrive on board to find they are at a table for 4 or more split between different dining rooms on different nights.''

 

Software for Sanctuary reservations would be just as complex, so it will cost a bunch of $$$ to develop.

 

5 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

 

Once on the ship, highest bid chooses first, both location and days.

 

When would the selection start?

o Once boarding is complete so it can be certain that the highest bid person is on board? 

o Or at a designated time where there are no competing activities (dinner, showtimes,etc.) that might keep a successful bidder from showing up?

o Or assuming everyone that has a successful bid also has a digital device with a functioning Princess app, let the app notify the next in line when they can go to the sanctuary to select a spot, allowing x minutes for them to get to the sanctuary to select their spot?

[caribill]

5 hours ago, gerig said:

I agree get rid of the half day option which would eliminate a lot of people.

 

 

It would, because many people, for example, on a port day would do an excursion in the morning and want the sanctuary for just the afternoon that day.

[XLVIII]

2 hours ago, Cruise Junky said:

Snooze you lose.  They had every opportunity to book whenever everyone else did.  If you wait around until after final payment you run the same risks of good cabins being gone and the best shore excursions being gone as well as your preferred dining times. That’s a risk you take by booking late. 

The same could be said about “just book a B2B2B” to get the good sanctuary spots. 

[Guest ldtr]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

I did not say it could not be done, only that it is more complex than many people think it would be.

 

I do not know how much $$$ has been spent on software for DMW, but there is general agreement it is still not a quality software product. Just look at the multiple posts which say they made DMW reservations at a table for two at the same time in one dining room only to arrive on board to find they are at a table for 4 or more split between different dining rooms on different nights.''

 

Software for Sanctuary reservations would be just as complex, so it will cost a bunch of $$$ to develop.

 

 

When would the selection start?

o Once boarding is complete so it can be certain that the highest bid person is on board? 

o Or at a designated time where there are no competing activities (dinner, showtimes,etc.) that might keep a successful bidder from showing up?

o Or assuming everyone that has a successful bid also has a digital device with a functioning Princess app, let the app notify the next in line when they can go to the sanctuary to select a spot, allowing x minutes for them to get to the sanctuary to select their spot?

There was a bug, maybe still is, where if you assign same time for the entire cruise with a private table, the system actually assigned as shared table. The work around was to make the reservations each day. A bit more work, but prevented the problem.

 

I suspect that with that bug they made their reservation, but never went in to one of the days to check what was actually generated.

[Guest ldtr]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

It would, because many people, for example, on a port day would do an excursion in the morning and want the sanctuary for just the afternoon that day.

They could still do that. They would just have to book the entire day.

[Guest ldtr]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

I did not say it could not be done, only that it is more complex than many people think it would be.

 

I do not know how much $$$ has been spent on software for DMW, but there is general agreement it is still not a quality software product. Just look at the multiple posts which say they made DMW reservations at a table for two at the same time in one dining room only to arrive on board to find they are at a table for 4 or more split between different dining rooms on different nights.''

 

Software for Sanctuary reservations would be just as complex, so it will cost a bunch of $$$ to develop.

 

 

When would the selection start?

o Once boarding is complete so it can be certain that the highest bid person is on board? 

o Or at a designated time where there are no competing activities (dinner, showtimes,etc.) that might keep a successful bidder from showing up?

o Or assuming everyone that has a successful bid also has a digital device with a functioning Princess app, let the app notify the next in line when they can go to the sanctuary to select a spot, allowing x minutes for them to get to the sanctuary to select their spot?

As with the coffee card, easier and cheaper for Princess to do away with the Sanctuary as it exists today, then to spend a lot of money on such a system, for a product that might get turned into private area for Suites in a couple of years.

[Musky Ike]

7 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

IMHO it is time to put this thread to bed, it has been beaten to a pulp!  🥺

I am thankful that we are is back to big discussions about little things. It almost seems like a return to "normal".