Do suite class bookings ever not include drinks etc

[simon stingray]

Do Celebrity ever sell bookings in suite class rooms which do not include drinks, gratuities and wi-fi.

 

I’ve been looking at booking a sky suite on Beyond and have found what looks like a great deal from a U.S. based agent.
 

Whilst the price is the same as other agents or booking direct, this agent is offering $400+ obc in addition to the $700 which you get from the cruise line.
 

My only concern is that there is no mention of it including a drinks package, gratuities or wi-fi.

 

I’ve seen other staterooms sold without drinks etc but not sure if this is also done on suites.

Edited July 28, 2023 by simon stingray

[RichYak]

At present, there is no way to "book" a suite without premium beverage/premium wifi/tips. The only possible exception I can think of is for a Blue Chip Casino booking.

[Bo1953]

28 minutes ago, simon stingray said:

Do Celebrity ever sell bookings in suite class rooms which do not include drinks, gratuities and wi-fi.

 

I’ve been looking at booking a sky suite on Beyond and have found what looks like a great deal from a U.S. based agent.
 

Whilst the price is the same as other agents or booking direct, this agent is offering $400+ obc in addition to the $700 which you get from the cruise line.
 

My only concern is that there is no mention of it including a drinks package, gratuities or wi-fi.

 

I’ve seen other staterooms sold without drinks etc but not sure if this is also done on suites.

ss - AI is the order of the day for suite level bookings...

 

Only time when it may not be, is if you purchase a 'standard' verandah cabin and win a 'move up bid'....

 

Yet to purchase a suite straight out, no way, currently to do what you are asking about.

 

bon voyage

[Jeremiah1212]

There are no suite rates that do not include drinks, Wifi and gratuities. It's totally normal for the TA to offer additional OBC. And before someone says it, they are not "sharing their commission". There are a number of offers from Celebrity that are specific to TA's that include extra OBC. 

[jelayne]

30 minutes ago, RichYak said:

At present, there is no way to "book" a suite without premium beverage/premium wifi/tips. The only possible exception I can think of is for a Blue Chip Casino booking.

Or possibly an interline rate. 

[NorthStarStateCruiser]

11 minutes ago, Jeremiah1212 said:

There are no suite rates that do not include drinks, Wifi and gratuities. It's totally normal for the TA to offer additional OBC. And before someone says it, they are not "sharing their commission". There are a number of offers from Celebrity that are specific to TA's that include extra OBC. 

You're probably the best source on info on my follow up question.  Are there any group rates offered through TAs that do NOT have AI tied to them?  I'm talking Concierge class and below.

[Jeremiah1212]

14 minutes ago, NorthStarStateCruiser said:

You're probably the best source on info on my follow up question.  Are there any group rates offered through TAs that do NOT have AI tied to them?  I'm talking Concierge class and below.

 

Eh, yes. There are group rates and discounted group rates. Two different things. To get the cruise only fare you would have to book the cruise on your own via Celebrity then transfer to an agent willing to add it to a group. 

[DCPIV]

1 hour ago, simon stingray said:

Do Celebrity ever sell bookings in suite class rooms which do not include drinks, gratuities and wi-fi.

 

I’ve been looking at booking a sky suite on Beyond and have found what looks like a great deal from a U.S. based agent.
 

Whilst the price is the same as other agents or booking direct, this agent is offering $400+ obc in addition to the $700 which you get from the cruise line.
 

My only concern is that there is no mention of it including a drinks package, gratuities or wi-fi.

 

I’ve seen other staterooms sold without drinks etc but not sure if this is also done on suites.

 

As you can see, it's rare to find a suite booking that does not include all the goodies.  Your best bet, though, is to check directly with the TA outfit you are looking at.

[FRMPEI]

YES! But, only when Celebrity screws up reservation on their end and you have to contact your Travel agent to correct Celebrity's mistake when your are less than one hour from leaving Fort Lauderdale. Another good reason to use your trusted Travel Agent.  Speaking from personal experience March 2023 Edge.

 

Regards,

Kevin Reid

[TheHawk1]

41 minutes ago, FRMPEI said:

YES! But, only when Celebrity screws up reservation on their end and you have to contact your Travel agent to correct Celebrity's mistake when your are less than one hour from leaving Fort Lauderdale. Another good reason to use your trusted Travel Agent.  Speaking from personal experience March 2023 Edge.

 

Regards,

Kevin Reid

I was originally booked on an Edge cruise earlier this year in an IV cabin with another couple.  The other couple decided we should upgrade the cruise, so they called back and changed the reservation to a Sky Suite for both reservations (which were linked). When I first got on board, I noticed that I didn't have the option to sign up for premium Wi Fi. I asked our butler about it and he said perhaps that it was you booked or you bid on a move up?  Neither of those was the case.  I had to go see the Retreat Concierge on Day 2 and get it corrected.

 

Then decided to try out one of the MDR's on night 3 instead of Luminae, because the menu was better. Ordered our usual drinks, including sparkling water.  Next day when I checked my account, I had been charged for the water.  Back up to the Retreat Concierge, who realized that the drinks package associated with the booking was not premium either.  No one had noticed that on our sea card for 2 days in Retreat bars or restaurants?

 

Eventually all was corrected, but it was clearly a major screw up by the Celebrity call centre agent at the time the reservation was made.  And worse, our butler, who I never found particularly helpful throughout the cruise, did not volunteer to look into any of this for us.  All in all, it was a really poor introduction to the Retreat experience, which was duly noted on my survey.

[Bo1953]

I just thought of an instance when, possibly, no suite AI is included and that would be a charter sailing, either in full or in part...

 

bon voyage

[Jeremiah1212]

9 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

I just thought of an instance when, possibly, no suite AI is included and that would be a charter sailing, either in full or in part...

 

bon voyage

 

There is no such thing as a partial charter. It's a group booked under the usual rates or a full ship charter. No in-between. Full ship charter clients customize what they want to include or resale. 

[George C]

We do a music charter every year on celebrity and lower suites didn’t include drink package, upper did.

[FRMPEI]

43 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

I was originally booked on an Edge cruise earlier this year in an IV cabin with another couple.  The other couple decided we should upgrade the cruise, so they called back and changed the reservation to a Sky Suite for both reservations (which were linked). When I first got on board, I noticed that I didn't have the option to sign up for premium Wi Fi. I asked our butler about it and he said perhaps that it was you booked or you bid on a move up?  Neither of those was the case.  I had to go see the Retreat Concierge on Day 2 and get it corrected.

 

Then decided to try out one of the MDR's on night 3 instead of Luminae, because the menu was better. Ordered our usual drinks, including sparkling water.  Next day when I checked my account, I had been charged for the water.  Back up to the Retreat Concierge, who realized that the drinks package associated with the booking was not premium either.  No one had noticed that on our sea card for 2 days in Retreat bars or restaurants?

 

Eventually all was corrected, but it was clearly a major screw up by the Celebrity call centre agent at the time the reservation was made.  And worse, our butler, who I never found particularly helpful throughout the cruise, did not volunteer to look into any of this for us.  All in all, it was a really poor introduction to the Retreat experience, which was duly noted on my survey.

 

I see the common connection now... we are both Canadian. LOL! Not being able to sign up for the premium wifi should of been our first clue. Then ordering drinks at Eden and handed a bill was the real reality of "hey this is not right".

 

Seriously though your story is so similar to ours. The Retreat host phoned Celebrity directly from ship and NOPE! No budge they claimed we booked as a "lift and shift" which was total BS and just pure laziness on the part of the Celebrity booking Agent. I could go on and on about this major dampening on start of our cruise. But, within 2 hours our TA had it all resolved received call from Guest service to come get new cards with all perks added.

 

Regards,
Kevin Reid

[TheHawk1]

Very eerie coincidence and clearly not an isolated situation.  But in response to the posts here, most people are indicating that someone in a suite would never have a reservation without a premium beverage and premium Wi Fi package.  So why wouldn't all the staff on board the ship actually know that and do something about it in our case, especially a butler?  To be fair, the Retreat Concierge was very helpful and sorted it all out for us, but she was the only person who really stepped up. The rest just seemed to shrug it off as our problem, not theirs. I certainly wasn't feeling the preferential suite "experience" for the first couple days of our cruise.

[RichYak]

2 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

most people are indicating that someone in a suite would never have a reservation without a premium beverage and premium Wi Fi package

On the contrary, no one is indicating that because it's not true. We're talking about present bookings for suites. There may be older reservations made when suites didn't mandate the drink package. There also may be those in a suite via move-up bid where they wouldn't have it either.

[Jeremiah1212]

5 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

Very eerie coincidence and clearly not an isolated situation.  But in response to the posts here, most people are indicating that someone in a suite would never have a reservation without a premium beverage and premium Wi Fi package.  So why wouldn't all the staff on board the ship actually know that and do something about it in our case, especially a butler?  To be fair, the Retreat Concierge was very helpful and sorted it all out for us, but she was the only person who really stepped up. The rest just seemed to shrug it off as our problem, not theirs. I certainly wasn't feeling the preferential suite "experience" for the first couple days of our cruise.

 

There are two different discussions going on. The question was are suites available with a cruise only rate, which the answer to that question is no. The other discussion about an error isn't really related - however anyone in a suite as a result of a MoveUp bid would have classic drinks and basic Wifi unless they upgraded separately. 

[neverlaysup]

4 hours ago, RichYak said:

At present, there is no way to "book" a suite without premium beverage/premium wifi/tips. The only possible exception I can think of is for a Blue Chip Casino booking.

A successful Move Up bid from a non-Retreat cabin booked with no extras would fall into this category. That being said, you can still get whatever you want to drink for free in the Retreat lounge.

[neverlaysup]

4 hours ago, jelayne said:

Or possibly an interline rate. 

My Interline rates for Suites are no better than the Cruise Line and if we book suites, I will use another agency that gives me tons of OBC. Interline is usually only good for AQ and below. Just my experience in using them. I prefer to use them to book small boutique lines that are normally super expensive.

[TheHawk1]

6 minutes ago, RichYak said:

On the contrary, no one is indicating that because it's not true. We're talking about present bookings for suites. There may be older reservations made when suites didn't mandate the drink package. There also may be those in a suite via move-up bid where they wouldn't have it either.

 

4 minutes ago, neverlaysup said:

A successful Move Up bid from a non-Retreat cabin booked with no extras would fall into this category. That being said, you can still get whatever you want to drink for free in the Retreat lounge.

I'm not trying to hijack the OP's thread but the two are related.  This reservation was less than a year old and at that time Celebrity would have only been booking a suite with premium packages included.  Apart from a Move-Up Bid, which should be indicated on the reservation somewhere I suspect, there would be no reason for a suite booking to have anything less.

 

Anyways, I'm merely pointing out that staff who provide service to the suite passengers should know how all this works and on my particular sailing, they did not.

[RichYak]

5 minutes ago, TheHawk1 said:

Anyways, I'm merely pointing out that staff who provide service to the suite passengers should know how all this works and on my particular sailing, they did not.

Sorry, but the staff is not responsible for knowing what beverage package you should have--even if you're in the Retreat. Being in Retreat without a premium package is not that uncommon and shouldn't throw up red flags to the staff.

[RichYak]

4 hours ago, RichYak said:

At present, there is no way to "book" a suite without premium beverage/premium wifi/tips.

 

15 minutes ago, neverlaysup said:

A successful Move Up bid from a non-Retreat cabin booked with no extras would fall into this category. That being said, you can still get whatever you want to drink for free in the Retreat lounge.

Winning a move-up bid is not the same as booking a suite. I even put the word "book" in quotes so a clarification like yours wouldn't be necessary.

[neverlaysup]

2 minutes ago, RichYak said:

 

Winning a move-up bid is not the same as booking a suite. I even put the word "book" in quotes so a clarification like yours wouldn't be necessary.

Plenty of TA sites that don't show the inclusions of the Suite when you book even though you get them. I just mock booked a suite from the TA I use and it does not mention all the Perks but they do exist.

[RichYak]

2 minutes ago, neverlaysup said:

Plenty of TA sites that don't show the inclusions of the Suite when you book even though you get them. I just mock booked a suite from the TA I use and it does not mention all the Perks but they do exist.

Yes. I don't understand, when did I say otherwise?

[simon stingray]

12 hours ago, neverlaysup said:

Plenty of TA sites that don't show the inclusions of the Suite when you book even though you get them. I just mock booked a suite from the TA I use and it does not mention all the Perks but they do exist.

I'm surprised that they don't all show the perks. Surely this is a big selling point and helps justify the higher cost for suites. I'm sure they would sell more suites especially to guests who haven't sailed Celebrity before if they highlighted the extra benefits which come with booking this category. 

 

Thanks for all the replies. In the end we have booked via blue Chip Club. They couldn't offer us a complimentary Sky Suite (as we expected) but did give us a nice discount which includes all the retreat perks and OBC.