BWIVince

What a bizarre backpedal... It repeatedly says "As you wish credit OR Cruise fare savings" over and over again all over the doc -- that intent couldn't be clearer. This is pure speculation, but it feels like they got pushback on the fare savings option from external stakeholders (I can think of some potential cases) and need to scratch the prior plan. Vince

I don't know if they've done the true-up yet with MM&A (or even if they definitely will, considering the marketing value of the promotion)... My remaining credits (such as they are) are still valid too. If anyone wants to use them, now's the time. Vince

Where are the pics of him visiting the Chez while he's making his rounds around town?? Vince

Very valid observation, and one I support entirely! 🙂 I think Vistaman was asking about the Vintage Room experience that OC was offering during the lunch timeframe in more recent years prior to the shutdown, though. Vince

Prior sailings count towards future awards, if that’s what you’re asking? Several people have confirmed they have credit for past sailings already, including myself. Unredeemed milestone awards earned under Genting will never be redeemable, for several reasons, but I think that is perfectly understandable and doesn’t impact one’s ability to pick back up where they left off before Crystal shut down. To your question about A&K, according to the materials Terry posted, it looks like they’re working on a new unified loyalty program long-term. Vince

haha. I forgot about that! Off the top of my head I don't remember what year that was, except it was in the early 2010's... They had the fountain shut off to re-string all the leads. The deafening silence in the Crystal Plaza in the morning and afternoon, except for the occasional echo of voices), was really creepy! I'm so glad that was my only Symphony cruise without the fountain running. 🙂 Vince

Thanks... The bridge has been gone since the late 90's though, so at least that's not recent. 🙂 Vince

Thanks for taking and sharing the photos, Larry! Random question that is totally unimportant if you don't have time to respond to it... Is the water feature still there inside the Umi Uma entrance? I was just curious, since the half of it that's remained in recent years is pretty much the only original feature left in the room, and it's had quite a run. haha I'm glad to hear Andrew is back! I was glad to see him again on our 2021 Bermuda sailing, and have known him around as long as you two have. He's a great asset to Crystal. Vince

I'm sure they will adjust on other channels too, but I see this across most travel suppliers, and even many types of companies these days. Within marketing, email, social media and web teams often have vastly different turnaround times these days. (At my company the disparity is about 7 calendar days from the fastest to the slowest.). 10 Years ago it was common for almost every communication to be held for the slowest team's work so everything was released at once. These days with the shift towards social media, I only see the biggest, most strategic or confidential releases held for release together. At my company, stuff goes out on social media almost immediately as long as it doesn't require follow-up on a web page, and when the email and web teams can catch up with their work, then great. An announcement to minor changes in a loyalty program would fall into that bucket. Vince

In the context that this is a temporary stop-gap, I think that the changes made sense and the program is in a serviceable state for the time being. Much like it’s been for the past 30+ years I’ve participated in it, it’s kind of no-harm, no-thrill kind of general benefit for where the masses fall into the chart. Vince

It’s a whole new technology…. The website is using AI and millions of historical Paragon Pixel onboard photos to determine the best suggested dress code for each individual guest. 😆 (In my case it just says, “Don’t bother, it’s hopeless either way” nightly.) 🤷🏻‍♂️ 😆 Vince

I've been perusing the full list a couple of times in the past few months, and I've been pretty impressed with it. It's nice to see a lot of new names and faces, but it's also awesome to see some beloved favorites in there too. I'd still love to see a little more diversity perspectives, backgrounds, and subjects on the lecturer side, but overall it's a step in the right direction. BTW, I had the same reaction to that speaker... I was like, "That's definitely not "that" Melinda Gates... And sure enough when I clicked in, it's not any Melinda Gates. lol Vince

Some info is available on Crystal's website, at this point... It looks like they have some of the folks assigned for Symphony's July 11th sailing. If you go to the "Ship Overview" tab and scroll down, there's a section titled "Entertainment on this Ship" under the dining that has preliminary lecturers and entertainers (when available). Here's what they have so far: https://www.crystalcruises.com/cruises/none-csy-007-240711?menu=ship_overview As it's always been, subject to change. Vince

Hi! 😊 I may have also returned to the board for a status update from the Chez! 😉 For a line like Crystal, with only two ships, an operator that’s going to provide labor, management, and accounting control staff to such a tiny room, and if history is any indication get light (volume) and limited (duration) usage at best out of the equipment they’re leasing, and without any actual profitable operations (like their competitors) to help balance and bolster the contract terms, Cristina Levis is completely right and honest. It’s very likely that this will actually cost Crystal money overall, and that they’re trying to evaluate just how much they’re willing to consider this a cost of doing business to be competitive, and how much passengers really care. The operators OTOH always profit, guaranteeing the cruise line covers all the expenses and only shares a minor portion of the profits. That leaves the cruise lines 100% in the squeeze. Vince

The story of the windows isn’t that cut and dry… I’ve seen about half a dozen windows replaced on Symphony over the years, and most of those were in the hull. The glass they used met all these great technical specifications for flexing stress, and impact, and thermal fluctuations…. But then to do it for almost 30 years (or over 10,000 days), they do sometimes, eventually crack from things they’re supposed to originally sustain. If the window was shot out/through or shattered I would say that would be a different story, but just a crack tracks for me. Vince