sarahj145 Posted July 11, 2012 #1 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Hello Does anyone have any advice as far as wait lists with oceania go? My husband and I are looking to book our honeymoon Jan 16 roundtrip Papetee on the marina and it is completely waitlisted. The agent advised paying a 100% refundable $1500 deposit to be on the priority wait list. We obviously do not want to wait a few weeks before sailing to receive a last minute opening. Is it worth it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted July 11, 2012 #2 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Hello Is it worth it? How much do you want to do the cruise ?? Only you can can say if it is worth it or not ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted July 11, 2012 #3 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I guess you are asking what are the odds of getting a booking at the last minute. I guess we can't really answer that, other than to say that last minute openings DO come up. People have emergencies and have to cancel. You just don't know what the likelihood of that IS. Back in November 2005 we got an upsell to an OS on Regatta because somebody had to cancel a week or two before the sail date. But for your honeymoon, is it worth the risk to YOU? As Lyn said, only you can answer that. Do you want to hold out for your "dream" honeymoon, or pass on the chance and book some other wonderful trip that you CAN get? In your position, I don't know what I would decide. My honeymoon was spent on a business trip with my husband to Denver, Colorado ... our real honeymoon took place two months later to idyllic Monhegan Island off of Maine. (Definitely not a typical honeymoon location but we loved it.) Is there a chance of delaying your honeymoon for a cruise you KNOW you can book? So many decisions ... I wish you luck and a lovely honeymoon, whatever you decide! Mura Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sarahj145 Posted July 11, 2012 Author #4 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I am not concerned with the deposit fee. Its a question of the odds of us getting a booking. Do most people get in off the priority wait list? We do not want to wait last minute Has anyone had any experiences with being on the wait list Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted July 11, 2012 #5 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I am not concerned with the deposit fee. Its a question of the odds of us getting a booking. Do most people get in off the priority wait list? We do not want to wait last minute Has anyone had any experiences with being on the wait list As Mura said you will not know it all depends on the people on your cruise whether they all decide to go on the cruise or cancel at final payment time or have a reason to cancel after final payment ...things happen each cruise is different It is a 50/50 chance you will clear the list Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted July 11, 2012 #6 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Another point -- when is the pay-up date? The odds are that most people cancel then. For whatever reason, they decide not to take the cruise. Howard and I have been booked several times when we concluded around the pay-up date that for whatever reason we didn't want to take the cruise. That time is when you will generally see things open up. If they do NOT, then your chances probably won't be good. At the last minute cabins can open up, but the risk is great that they won't. If you can wait until pay-up date to make your decision, you MAY have a good chance. We booked the July 2010 Norway cruise relatively late because I just didn't see the itinerary in time. We usually book a PH, but by the time we booked they were all wait listed. We ended up in our booked A3 because nobody cancelled. But as I said earlier, in November 2005 on the non-Libya cruise we ended up in an OS at the last minute. (It is possible that more openings occurred on that cruise because we all booked for Libya and at the last minute we weren't going to be going to Libya. So I'm sure some people cancelled for that reason alone, even though the itinerary change happened after the final pay-up date.) It can be the luck of the draw. Mura Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted July 11, 2012 #7 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I am not concerned with the deposit fee. Its a question of the odds of us getting a booking. Do most people get in off the priority wait list? We do not want to wait last minute Has anyone had any experiences with being on the wait list Personally I can't imagine adding the worry of getting or not getting on a cruise ship to all the other pressures of planning a wedding. You may not know if you have a cabin until the last minute. I would book something for a honeymoon that is guaranteed. Best of luck.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dorisis Posted July 11, 2012 #8 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I have been on the Oceania wait list only once and did not get on the cruise. I doubt if I would do it again. ~Doris~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wannaberetired Posted July 11, 2012 #9 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I am on the wait list for an Oceania suite for my cruise in September. The final payment was due in mid-June and I am still on the wait list. Chances are not good I will get the Oceania suite at this point. I agree with Mura - if you are still on the wait list after the final payment date, you may want to book something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benita Posted July 11, 2012 #10 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Sarah - you may want to consider the Paul Gauguin. It is permanently in French Polynesia and does roundtrip cruising from Papeete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy The Wanderer Posted July 11, 2012 #11 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Sarah - you may want to consider the Paul Gauguin. It is permanently in French Polynesia and does roundtrip cruising from Papeete. I was just going to suggest this as well. It is a dream cruise for a honeymoon. Don't know how exact your dates have to be, but there's a 10-day Societies and Tuomotus trip on Jan.23. We have spent both our 20th and 25th anniversary on this ship, on top of a couple of other trips. It truly is sublime. Try to get to Papeete a day or two in advance at least, if you can't manage a longer pre-cruise stay on one of the islands. Here is the link: http://www.pgcruises.com/destinations/itineraries/10-night Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balloon Man Posted July 11, 2012 #12 Share Posted July 11, 2012 My wife and I spent our honeymoon on the Paul Gauguin. Much as I now love Oceania the PG would get my vote for that area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook1 Posted July 11, 2012 #13 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Blocked space held by a TA has a shelf life and is redeemed by the cruise line if unsold. Dates vary but the nearer the sail date to more space will become available. A little investigation could uncover this date for your cruise.:cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grmmybtty Posted July 11, 2012 #14 Share Posted July 11, 2012 When I spoke with Oceania regarding the waitlist, the rep said that there are 2 waitlists, those who paid the whole deposits and those that did not put anything down. She said that those who placed a deposit were more of a sure thing, so they would be at the top of the list before those who didn't. She also told me how many people were waitlisted before me. I placed a deposit and within a few months, I received a GTY room for the level I requested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacmom Posted July 11, 2012 #15 Share Posted July 11, 2012 grmmybtty, this also happened to us on the upcoming Black Sea cruise. and we are going, maybe not as close to midship as we would like but we're going. Pat:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobndee Posted July 11, 2012 #16 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Groups will have a TA reserve a block of cabins. This will cause the ship to seem fully booked and start the wait list. Later, after the group's booking period expires, the unsold cabins are released back to the cruise line for general sale. I happen to know that my university alumni association is promoting the January 27 cruise out of Papeete and has a block of cabins reserved. Then, my wife and I got confirmed reservations on the April 7 cruise out of Papeete when the whole ship was listed as wait-listed. That's because her college sorority has a block of cabins reserved and we got one them, as did my sister and her husband. That same TA also lists the Jan. 16 cruise on their site, so they may still have cabins available. If you can find out what group has a block, you may be able to get confirmed through them. Otherwise, when their booking window expires, all unsold cabins will be available for those on the wait list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeanine Posted July 11, 2012 #17 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Our first cruise was on the PG in a balcony cabin. It was worth every penny! Since then we have cruised on Oceania 4 times, with another cruise in Spring of next year. If I was going back to French Polynesia I would go on the PG. As far as wait listing. We were wait listed for our next cruise. Within a month we had a guaranty. Good luck! Enjoy your honeymoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisedreamer1 Posted July 14, 2012 #18 Share Posted July 14, 2012 My husband called our agent about a cruise on the Riviera and was told our category was sold out and then we received a call the next day offering our a guaranteed cabin in our class(run of the ship-you either get an upgrade or what you paid for) plus some extra incentives. We booked. Maybe your agent needs to try a little harder. I also agree that Paul Guaguin would be wonderful if it fits your time frame. We will be going our 6th PG cruise in September. We love the crew and of course the beautiful waters of French Polynesia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbacat Posted July 23, 2012 #19 Share Posted July 23, 2012 As much as I love cruising, (#6 on Riviera in Sept), I believe Tahiti should not be visited from a cuise ship. Instead, find a reputable travel agent and book several days on each island: we did this over 14 days in 2003, ABSOLUTELY AWESOME. After 7.5 hours in the air from LAX, only spend one day in Papeete, then do 3-4 days on Moorea, 2-3 on Huahine, 2-3 on Raitae (sp?) and as much time as you can afford on Bora Bora, in an over-water bungalow. You will then wish you were French and could stay forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simbacat Posted July 23, 2012 #20 Share Posted July 23, 2012 As much as I love cruising, #6 on Riviera in Sept, I believe Tahiti should not be visited from a cuise ship. Instead, find a reputable travel agent and book several days on each island: we did this over 14 days in 2003, ABSOLUTELY AWESOME. After 7.5 hours in the air from LAX, only spend one day in Papeete, then do 3-4 days on Moorea, 2-3 on Huahine, 2-3 on Raitae (sp?) and as much time as you can afford on Bora Bora, in an over-water bungalow. You will then wish you were French and could stay forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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