why so few on roll call for holy land itinerary?

[amanda blake]

even the originator of our roll call has vanished...

 

the sailing is for Oct 25...there are about 3 couples left on roll call...

 

wondering what has happened to all the others..and so many cabins unsold...

 

is it the uncertainty of the middle east? the uncertainty of the economy something else? a combination of all factors most likely....

 

too bad...it was always so much fun in the past to be able to develop the comaraderie on roll call and benefit from the shared experiences....

 

yes there are still 6 months to go and things could pick up of course....but wondering if placing it here on the general site could spark some interest....

[orchestrapal]

We were on the roll-call for October 8th and cancelled in favor of an Oceania cruise for 36 days in May which will also take us to Israel which was the main reason for booking the Azamara cruise.

Hope your roll-call fills up as it is great to meet folks after corresponding for a while.:)

[greeneg]

No idea, but having done essentially the same itinerary on the Journey last September, I can tell you that it's a great itinerary at what looks like a bargain price--about $1200 less than we paid.

[What A Market]

similar story for the september 13 journey cruise in the med. we have only four couples making a valiant effort to keep each other motivated about our trip (particular kudos to Kathy and Sue).

 

i've never participated in a roll call, so i wasn't sure what to expect. regardless, the lack of involvement seems pretty bleak. we don't have a "middle east" factor to contend with either.

[fpat]

Same here Roll Call for 6/28 Best of Italy is on life support:confused: There are a few very active Roll Calls for AZ but they are sporadic to say the least

[greeneg]

Interesting. Our Best of Italy ( Quest, May 16 sailing) has 964 posts as of a few minutes ago.

[ptcellen]

We finally heard from 2 other couples on our roll call for the Nov.8,2009 Holyland cruise. We are now up to 8 people. Hope to hear from more people in the coming months.

 

ptcellen

[Jancruz]

We finally heard from 2 other couples on our roll call for the Nov.8,2009 Holyland cruise. We are now up to 8 people. Hope to hear from more people in the coming months.

 

ptcellen

 

Give it time, it is still early and tax time is coming up!!

Jancruz1

[amanda blake]

yes I can see the pattern...

 

thank you everyone who has piped up here...

[California Native]

Hi Holyland Cruisers....

I just started a roll call for the 5/3/2010 sailing..

Once my DH and I return from our 2009 Adventure which is this April/May ...

maybe we can touch base with each other and still share tips, research, etc. if our respective roll calls aren't picking up!

Just throwing out the idea for consideration...:)

K.

[fpat]

Interesting. Our Best of Italy ( Quest, May 16 sailing) has 964 posts as of a few minutes ago.

 

 

I know I have been lurking on your roll call for awhile, you have a great group going may 16th and I can not wait to hear all about when you get back. I got some great info also.

[amanda blake]

K,

 

thats a great idea....maybe we can here collectively share ideas...

 

amazing how the may 16th roll call is going...but seems to be the only one...

[greeneg]

I just think that we ( the May 16th Group) are unusually fortunate in having a very, very congenial group.

 

Also a talkative one.....:)

 

Ed

[amanda blake]

very fortunate indeed...

 

but more than talkative...they have not cancelled..

 

that is what I think has happened on ours...people who started the thread have vanished...

 

that is unusual...

[greeneg]

It's really hard to tell, I actually looked at Expedia and I would have to say that the occupancy looks pretty good ( appears to be 1 SS and 7 2A available, no 1A) so someone has done some booking or so it appears.

 

I think that I'd be patient, all sorts of reason why people stop posting for a while. You would expect it to pick up as time gets a little closers-- still early days, IMHO.

[amanda blake]

yes of course it is still early...but trips as long as this one and as comprehensive usually are booked early because of the air and all the other arrangements that have to be made...hotels, tours, transfers etc....

 

not like the carib...you book and you go....

 

so 6 months in advance is really not that early....

 

and on the oct 25 sailing....the oceanviews are wide open....lots available even mid ship...the inventory has not budged for months....they say that inside is all sold out...but a week ago it was all available and almost at the same price as oceanview...so it is just a ploy to sell the oceanview cabins...

 

anyway....this is the first time that we have not been able to get a roll call group going...we dont bother for the carib, but would have been nice to share for this one as it is our first time in all the ports...we have done the med, been to rome and athens but none of the other ports...

[Zimmy]

We are booked on the 10/25 sailing, and have been for quite a while. Since I am always checking the website for price reductions, I have observed a lot of booking/canceling/booking, at least in our cabin category (Skysuite). The pattern has been that there will be a few rooms available, then a couple of days later the category is sold out. After another few days, there will be one or two rooms available. Then a few days later the category will be sold out. This has happened at least 5 times. My assumptions from this, which certainly could be incorrect, is that there have been considerable cancellations, followed by new people booking, on a somewhat regular basis. I am attributing this to the economy, but who knows?

[amanda blake]

yes a few of the regulars on our roll call have vanished....no explanation....so I am assuming there have been many cancellations...but no rebookings..or very few...the same cabins still appear as available...but the price fluctuates...

 

the line is hoping to attract new passengers by raising and lowering the price to make it seem like a "deal"....