jlwrinkle Posted March 7, 2017 Report Share Posted March 7, 2017 Hi everyone, I have never had this happen before. We have the 1/20/2018 Harmony of the Seas booked in the A1 Aqua Theater Suite with another couple. We booked this long ago when the sailing first opened due to these rooms going fast and the Star class perks. We got a letter today saying Harmony has been chartered for this date and we need to rebook on another sailing. They gave a few choices of dates and some onboard credit but as you can imagine this category of cabin is totally sold out. I am so disappointed. We were splurging to get this experience and have been looking forward to it. Does anyone know if they would let me book one of the 2019 sailings and bring the onboard credit to that sailing. We did use a travel agent but they are having to check and see if that would work. We would also lose the rates we reserved our original booking under and pay whatever the prevailing rates would be when they open up. There is no good solution I don't think but any suggestions or ideas would be welcomed. Thanks. Lynn PeterElicy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Wow! Can you imagine what it must cost to charter the Harmony ! Sorry. I know this isn't helpful to you...it just popped into my head. I certainly have heard of ships being chartered but it's the first O class that I've heard of -especially a brand new one ! I think they will allow you to retain the credits that they give you and my guess is they will allow you to book in 2019. After all, this is all THEIR fault. They should give you every break This totally sucks and disappointed wouldn't even start to cover how I would feel if it had happened to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 They currently list a full ship charter of Oasis Class at 6.5 to 11 million!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 http://www.royalcaribbeanincentives.com/full-ship-charter-faqs/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestingBird Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Wow...I would be beyond upset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Floski Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Sorry, jl. It's my birthday week and I wanted to really enjoy myself and my dozen or so friends... FManke and RestingBird 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 That's crazy...I would be a bunch of things to say the least. Especially when booking that kind of room and with another cpl and planning out vacations and airfare's etc......My travel agent nor RCI would be enjoying the phone calls they would be getting from me. Is it just Royal that does this or all the cruise companies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 That's crazy...I would be a bunch of things to say the least. Especially when booking that kind of room and with another cpl and planning out vacations and airfare's etc......My travel agent nor RCI would be enjoying the phone calls they would be getting from me. Is it just Royal that does this or all the cruise companies? They all do it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gears Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Not only is it poor customer relations, but I think RCL is taking a big risk with this kind of thing. If a charter is done prior to publishing a deployment schedule, sure. Or, there’s a charter request and the requesting organization can have access to all staterooms not currently booked, then fine too. In this day in age with social media and the news media drooling over abused customer stories, RCL risks some serious brand damage. Vacations are a huge issue for people…tick off a few thousand and it can cost some serious dollars beyond any revenue gained from a charter. WAAAYTOOO, MikeK and Floski 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pamw Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 This isn't right at all. I have to say they would only ever do that to me once and I would never go back to them !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gears Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 A little search finds out who's more important than you are... https://www.facebook.com/events/1855322991382927/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestingBird Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 A little search finds out who's more important than you are... https://www.facebook.com/events/1855322991382927/ Great detective work! So far 8 people are going (according to FB). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlwrinkle Posted March 8, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 Thanks for finding out who is more important than us. I was wondering and tried to find out but you are a much better detective. Lynn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 That group charters a full ship every year. RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted March 8, 2017 Report Share Posted March 8, 2017 I've got to say: The way this was handled and the overall process for chartering, quite frankly, sucks. I read the link posted earlier that gives an FAQ about chartering a ship, and they only require 9-12 months advance notice. Meanwhile, the itineraries are announced nearly two years ahead of time. So now you have a ship with some (not insignificant) number of bookings, who have been looking forward to this trip for at least several months, maybe even a year. And they're told nothing more than, "Sorry, someone just bought the ship for that week and you've all been kicked off. Figure out some other vacation plan for that time." The FAQ does say that if they have a certain percentage of the ship already booked, even if it's in the allowed time frame for making a charter, that they can deny the charter request. But who knows how full that threshold is? If they're going to allow ship charters, that should be something that's worked out before the itineraries are announced. Then no-one gets bumped because some super-wealthy group or individual decides they want to have a private party for several thousands of their members / closest friends. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gears Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 Great detective work! So far 8 people are going (according to FB). Ya...they took jlwrinkle's stateroom... RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestingBird Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 Now, could jlwinkle try to go through the group chartering and keep their cabin? Or even try rebooking it again through RCI (or is it some sort of closed booking?)? Would it even be worth the headache? Just curious. I'm not against chartering a ship, but this was definitely done rudely on RCI's part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monctonguy Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 Not sure if I can think of any other travel/tourist/vacation company or type that can do this or that normally does this? Weather of course can change things....but basically, if they get a "better" deal ie.charter...they can cancel/displace 5000 other people that have already booked and made plans etc.... I am surprised that not a bigger deal is made of these things. That being said, I would in most cases prefer to know about these charter's as most of them would not appeal to me and my only experience with a charter is that it changed the whole vibe of the ship and the cruise and not in a good way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloom9 Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 Wow! Can you imagine what it must cost to charter the Harmony ! I certainly have heard of ships being chartered but it's the first O class that I've heard of -especially a brand new one ! ....... This will be fourth Oasis class charter for Atlantis, Allure was chartered in 2011, 2012 & 2017 and 2 of these sailings were sold out. Now, could jlwinkle try to go through the group chartering and keep their cabin? Or even try rebooking it again through RCI (or is it some sort of closed booking?)? Would it even be worth the headache? Just curious. I'm not against chartering a ship, but this was definitely done rudely on RCI's part. This sailing cannot be booked direct with Royal, most book through the charter company or select travel agencies, the sailing is open to all. The suites however usually book up very quickly oftentimes before being release to open bookings, Atlantis allows booking based on past sailing history with first booking rights given to those sailing on the current charter which was Allure in January. ....... That being said, I would in most cases prefer to know about these charter's as most of them would not appeal to me and my only experience with a charter is that it changed the whole vibe of the ship and the cruise and not in a good way. This charter definitely changes the overall ship vibe compared to normal sailings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jersey Bull Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 "I have never had this happen before" This same thing Happened to me 30 odd years a go. I was able to book the week after. Then I heard the stories that happened that week. It was the first gay charter. Looking back I did pick the right week and was given the wrong one. "it's the first O class that I've heard of" The Allure has been booked three times by this chartering company. "They currently list a full ship charter of Oasis Class at 6.5 to 11 million!!!!!" And that's dirt cheep for what the ship is turned in to for the week. ."I think RCL is taking a big risk with this kind of thing" No They are not.......There is a mortgage on the ship to pay off "it can cost some serious dollars beyond any revenue gained from a charter." Read this to the end............... "who's more important than you are..." Yes we are!!!!! Keep Reading "That group charters a full ship every year." Not just one ship try at least 6 "could jlwinkle try to go through the group chartering and keep their cabin?" Definitely YES Atlantis Events http://atlantisevents.com/ All you need to do is agree to the Atlantis Community Standards "my only experience with a charter is that it changed the whole vibe of the ship" You have no idea............. We are the happy gay charter, instead of the grumpy normal cruisers We don't complain, We party all night long, We pick up after our self's. And just have fun...... AND...... our average on board charge account is 7X the "regular" Cruise Soooooooooo Who gets the ship?????? bloom9 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gears Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 "I have never had this happen before" This same thing Happened to me 30 odd years a go. I was able to book the week after. Then I heard the stories that happened that week. It was the first gay charter. Looking back I did pick the right week and was given the wrong one. "it's the first O class that I've heard of" The Allure has been booked three times by this chartering company. "They currently list a full ship charter of Oasis Class at 6.5 to 11 million!!!!!" And that's dirt cheep for what the ship is turned in to for the week. ."I think RCL is taking a big risk with this kind of thing" No They are not.......There is a mortgage on the ship to pay off "it can cost some serious dollars beyond any revenue gained from a charter." Read this to the end............... "who's more important than you are..." Yes we are!!!!! Keep Reading "That group charters a full ship every year." Not just one ship try at least 6 "could jlwinkle try to go through the group chartering and keep their cabin?" Definitely YES Atlantis Events http://atlantisevents.com/ All you need to do is agree to the Atlantis Community Standards "my only experience with a charter is that it changed the whole vibe of the ship" You have no idea............. We are the happy gay charter, instead of the grumpy normal cruisers We don't complain, We party all night long, We pick up after our self's. And just have fun...... AND...... our average on board charge account is 7X the "regular" Cruise Soooooooooo Who gets the ship?????? Didn't take long for the trolls to show up... PeterElicy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gears Posted March 9, 2017 Report Share Posted March 9, 2017 "I have never had this happen before" This same thing Happened to me 30 odd years a go. I was able to book the week after. Then I heard the stories that happened that week. It was the first gay charter. Looking back I did pick the right week and was given the wrong one. "it's the first O class that I've heard of" The Allure has been booked three times by this chartering company. "They currently list a full ship charter of Oasis Class at 6.5 to 11 million!!!!!" And that's dirt cheep for what the ship is turned in to for the week. ."I think RCL is taking a big risk with this kind of thing" No They are not.......There is a mortgage on the ship to pay off "it can cost some serious dollars beyond any revenue gained from a charter." Read this to the end............... "who's more important than you are..." Yes we are!!!!! Keep Reading "That group charters a full ship every year." Not just one ship try at least 6 "could jlwinkle try to go through the group chartering and keep their cabin?" Definitely YES Atlantis Events http://atlantisevents.com/ All you need to do is agree to the Atlantis Community Standards "my only experience with a charter is that it changed the whole vibe of the ship" You have no idea............. We are the happy gay charter, instead of the grumpy normal cruisers We don't complain, We party all night long, We pick up after our self's. And just have fun...... AND...... our average on board charge account is 7X the "regular" Cruise Soooooooooo Who gets the ship?????? The correct, and more appropriate, comment would have been something like this: Your vacation may not be lost! You are welcome to join! Contact xxxxx and see what can be worked out for you. Instead of a bunch of negativity and what clearly reads as attitude and assumptions. coneyraven 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firegal2539 Posted March 10, 2017 Report Share Posted March 10, 2017 jlwrinkle, Sorry about your cruise, I have never had a Royal cancelled but I had two NCL cruises cancelled, one in January of 2016 and one in February of 2016. I was furious but I tried to remain calm, and realize, as WAAAY TOOO said this is NCL's fault. I ended up, after many telephone and email conversations, with a totally free cruise for 14 days to the Panama Canal and $300 OBC. I originally had a 7 day California Coastal. The other cruise was a 7 day Mexican cruise and I ended up just getting my money back from them. Before I book any cruise I always look at the theme cruise finder website to see if my ship is booked with a large group and about 50% of the time, it is. Just keep calling and emailing until Royal comes up with a solution. I really tried to remember that the people I was talking to on the phone didn't cancel my cruise, they were trying to help me. Candie RestingBird and Jerel 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted March 10, 2017 Report Share Posted March 10, 2017 We had something similar happen to us on our Med cruise in 2012. A cruise tour for Venice, Florence and Rome was set up when we purchased the tour a year ahead of time. Thirty days before the tour RC cancels out due to not enough people signing up. Luckily our TA got wind of this before us and had a tour that mirrored the RC tour already set up when I called him with smoke coming out of my ears. The one our TA set up was quite a bit cheaper and much better with personal guides on the excursions for just the two of us. So a TA does make a difference If something happened to me like happened to Jlwrinkle i have a feeling that would be the end of RC for me WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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