Suite Lounge

[BB1]

There has been a problem with Pinnacles in the suite lounge for a long time and unfortunately I don't know what the answer is. I myself am closed to becoming Pinnacle but I know what is like to pay extra for a suite only to find all the chairs in the lounge lined up and filled with Pinnacles,  sometimes even giving nasty stares when my wife and I try to find a seat.

[smokeybandit]

I never minded the pins in the suite lounge. It was tight when the lounges were midship, but since they've moved elsewhere, I've never had an issue getting a seat

[BB1]

12 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I never minded the pins in the suite lounge. It was tight when the lounges were midship, but since they've moved elsewhere, I've never had an issue getting a seat

You're fortunate.  On almost all my sailings pre- pandemic, it had become way too crowded. After the first dinner seating it did get better but unfortunately I felt like I was treading on Pinnacle territory.  Since I soon will be one, I will try to be more gracious. Sometimes I think of them as the angry cruisers and I don't want to be like that. 

[twangster]

With Pinnacle numbers growing it is something they'll need to address long term.  

It's a good problem for them to have.  It means they have a lot of repeat guests and for any business that is a good thing.

One solution to address the waste would be a threshold where below X Pinnacle and they let them in the SL.  The problem with that is the inconsistency one cruise to the next.

6 minutes ago, BB1 said:

Since I soon will be one, I will try to be more gracious. Sometimes I think of them as the angry cruisers and I don't want to be like that. 

In my experience there are angry cruisers in each level of the program.  I think once you become Pinnacle you'll find there are a majority who are not "Painiccles".  I see many whiners in the D+ tier for example but you can't paint everyone in any tier by the minority who stand out for all the wrong reasons.

[BB1]

There are whiners and angry people in every group. In my experience, they stand out so much because the ones I've seen are so loud and vocal. I almost cringe when I go by guest services, almost everyone is irate about something.  Nevertheless, the problem still remains. Suite guests pay substantially more and will want to use the lounge. I  can't think of a solution that will please everybody. 

[smokeybandit]

In my experience the stiffest Pins you just have to try a little harder to crack, and once you do they're as jovial towards non-pins as anyone else.

 

I'll give them the benefit of the doubt in that they see too many splurger suite occupants that won't ever do it again and get a bit jealous when they see them act with a "I'm in a suite!" entitlement.   

[BB1]

14 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

In my experience the stiffest Pins you just have to try a little harder to crack, and once you do they're as jovial towards non-pins as anyone else.

 

I'll give them the benefit of the doubt in that they see too many splurger suite occupants that won't ever do it again and get a bit jealous when they see them act with a "I'm in a suite!" entitlement.   

I guess I see things differently.  If you pay extra for a suite you should get the perks. Isn't that why they're so much more expensive and guests pay more? 

[BB1]

One more observation.  The fact that we're discussing suite lounge issues must mean things are getting back to normal.  

[twangster]

I'm still baffled that Royal doesn't create a unified or standard suite product in as much as they can.  In particular the lack of Voom in GS and above on Freedom class and older.  Not all ships have a Coastal Kitchen so I understand them stopping short of rolling out Sky and Sea class on the older ships but including Voom like they do in Sky class seems like an easy thing to do, yet they don't.  

I've never felt compelled to book a GS or better on the older ships because for my needs the perks of a suite don't justify the cost.

The old Concierge Clubs on the Freedom and Voyager class were never compelling spaces.  I suppose allowing D+ and P into those venues wasn't an issue because they were rarely used by anyone.  In introducing Suite Lounges onto the older ships they had an opportunity to rethink the suite perks yet they didn't, they simply moved the venue and gave it another name banning only D+.  Now with exploding P numbers they need to ban P from the SL yet that leaves many SL mostly empty often and that equates to wasted real estate which is never a good idea on a ship.  

Perhaps they should allow the so called double or triple Pinnacle (1,400 or 2,100) back in to the SL as a means to limit the impact yet recognize the most loyal.  Plain old Pinnacle is way too common now.