What's it like to be on a low occupancy cruise?

[will773]

I have not been on Princess, but I was on the Inaugural cruise for the Oasis of the Seas. There were "only" around 3,700 people or so on the ship, but it was shockingly empty. There were never any crowds, except for after shows and things, but that's normal for any cruise. Even on sea days, there was NO ONE on the pool deck. I have pictures to prove it. I never saw that many people.

[airlink diva]

I sailed on a cruise the Friday after 9/11. Due to no flights, most people opt to rebook their cruise for a later date instead of driving to Miami.

Our ship was under 50% and it was strange. It was very quiet on board. They also combined the dining into one time instead of two. There were no lines or wait for anything.

While I love the feeling of a half empty ship,I enjoy my fellow cruisers.

[runnerodb83]

You might expect to see more heavier maintenance. They may move the schedule of some more intrusive repair and maintenance from a repositioning cruise to this one. I know on a repo I'm scheduled on, from day one, no one has been able to book an inside or outside room, balconys and suites only.

[Tikibird]

I think the odds of filling the ship with Mexican nationals is low. The cruise ends in Ft. Lauderdale (part of the US). This would require a visa and this is not easy for Mexicans to acquire. Yes, many of them have them already, but you are now looking at a few factors. 1) Visa requirement - can't get it at the last minute. 2) Expensive return flight, not a round trip cruise like San Juan. 3) Income inequality in Mexico - the ones that can afford a trip probably already have something planned.

 

Too bad, because Mexicans are great people - would make a good trip!

That's a good point, I didn't even think about the visa issue. My husband is on an Australian passport and he gets his USA visa online in about 5 seconds.

 

Either way, there is at least one flight to pay for which starts at around $200 for a basic MIA-MEX but a lot more to fly direct to Acapulco.

 

It's a real shocker to compare the Coral Princess cruises on the Princess website alone! The FLL 10 day RT cruises start at $1299 and the FLL-ACA and ACA-FLL 10 day cruises are starting at $799 which doesn't take into account travel agent discounts or OBCs.

[Tikibird]

You might expect to see more heavier maintenance. They may move the schedule of some more intrusive repair and maintenance from a repositioning cruise to this one. I know on a repo I'm scheduled on, from day one, no one has been able to book an inside or outside room, balconys and suites only.

LOL, if they want to do maintenance on my interior room, I suppose I could be persuaded to move to a balcony! I'm actually happy with the location on Baja deck because I chose one right near the forward open deck.

[lollypopj]

Very interesting discussion..:)

 

Intelligent passengers like to "seek the truth"..re prices, ships capacity, maintenance etc..

 

Curiosity is the root of intelligence..

(Or did it kill the cat?)lol..:D

[caribill]

It's a real shocker to compare the Coral Princess cruises on the Princess website alone! The FLL 10 day RT cruises start at $1299 and the FLL-ACA and ACA-FLL 10 day cruises are starting at $799 which doesn't take into account travel agent discounts or OBCs.

 

Current flash sale rates on 10 day FLL-ACA and ACA=FLL start at $499 for inside and $799 for balcony. 20 day round trip FLL-ACA-FLL is twice that ($998 inside, $1598 balcony).

[Latitude 20]

Wonder what the record is for fewest passengers on a sailing?

 

We sailed from Venice to Manaus on the Pacific Princess with only 290 passengers (less than half full). We did the bridge tour and saw on the chart up there that there were actually more crew than passengers onboard! Because of the low passenger load and tons of sea days, we pretty much knew everybody (at least by sight) by the end of the three-week cruise.

 

It was kind of quiet but it allowed us to be completely spontaneous. We could book or change tours at the last minute (the tour guy didn't even bother to hold office hours, he just hung out at the purser's desk and if anyone had a tour question, he'd help them out). Sabatini's and Sterling Steakhouse didn't need reservations. Spa took walk-ins even on sea days. Basically, the staff had so little to do that they'd fall all over themselves to do anything special for a passenger.

 

We did notice some heavy-duty cleaning going on. The suites on our deck (unoccupied) were getting a major sprucing-up.

[Jacqueline]

Nowadays, it is easier to do last minute promotions. I think that the people in Mexico with money to spend are just like the people here. There are certainly a few hundred people who could take a last minute cruise if it is marketed to them (just as it is done in Florida).

Yes, there are visa issues, unless it is a back to back cruise.

From what I have seen, people from other countries are much more likely to do these as they represent a good value and most other countries have much more vacation time than we do.

[RMM34667]

Current flash sale rates on 10 day FLL-ACA and ACA=FLL start at $499 for inside and $799 for balcony. 20 day round trip FLL-ACA-FLL is twice that ($998 inside, $1598 balcony).

 

WOW 20 days for $998.... if only I were retired...

[snaebyllej]

I've been on a couple of cruises that were around 1/3 full, including a 9 night Golden Princess Transatlantic. Yes they reduced the price, but it didn't help; there were serious war/terroism concerns at the time. We ended up getting a balcony cabin for $227 per person. It was nice not having to wait to eat or to take an elevator, but they did keep one side closed up at the buffet and they only used one of the two Anytime dining rooms. I don't remember any unusual maintenance going on.

[kendon]

The ship will be filled with Spanish speaking people as Princess will offer very very low rates to residents of Mexico.

 

Yup...happened on our Caribbean cruise out of San Juan. Princess had special entertainers/entertainment in Spanish that cruise. It certainly had a different feel. Not a complaint mind you.

[Talisker92]

I was on the Seven Seas Navigator right after 9/11. All US flagged airlines were not flying yet, and the ship had to be at least half empty. We were moved up to a balcony cabin so they could consolidate the work of the stewards and stewardesses.

It was a little eerie though.

When we docked in Venice one of the Renaissance ships was docked across from us and was totally dark.

[Tikibird]

WOW 20 days for $998.... if only I were retired...

If we didn't have air tickets booked on FF miles (from Australia), I would have totally gone for the b2b at that price! The majority of people on our roll call are doing the b2b already. It's probably the best strategy Princess can employ to fill the ship as it circumvents the need to fly to Acapulco and those who are afraid of the town can simply remain on board.