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Would You Cancel ??

hammo

By hammo,
in Celebrity Cruises

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hammo Great Review Rare

hammo

Posted
Posted

12 Night Silhouette European Cruise September 3 2016 -- Our roll-call has just been informed that the reason there are no balcony cabins left available is due to a 1000 cabin group booking ,( 2000 cruisers :eek:) set to board.

We have cruised before with a few groups of 100+ or so and no noticeable change to our trip , but 2000 would seem to be problematic for all the obvious reasons - taking over sections of the ship , dining , bars etc etc.

We are thinking of cancelling - does anyone have experience with a group this large onboard. I have tried the usual Theme cruise sites to see what the groups agenda is without success.The Roll-Call poster has not identified the group either . May not be a problem , but it sure feels like it at the moment.:confused:

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RickT

RickT

Posted
Posted

Looks like you'll be sailing with a bunch of doctors.

 

https://www.continuingeducation.net/coursedescription.php?topic=Cardiology_CME_Mediterranean_Cruise_September_2016

 

Not sure if there would be 2,000 of them but CME (Continuing Medical Education) cruises are very popular since the physician gets to claim some of the travel costs as a deduction.

 

As far as whether or not I'd sail with such a large group (assuming they are the full 2,000) it's hard to say. If there were other choices I'd probably consider them first.

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20pluscruises

20pluscruises

Posted
Posted (edited)

Do a google search Celebrity Silhouette September 3, 2016...should be able to find out what the group is all about. We were on a cruise with a psychic group. It was great out by the pool as they met during the day. However, we were also on an insurance group cruise and they took over the martini bar, etc. I guess it all depends on the group. With 2000 you would think it would be chartered???????

FYI...I think it is a group of travel agents on your cruise. Not certain the name is allowed here on CC, but it is for worldwide travel agents.

Edited by 20pluscruises
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jagoffee

jagoffee

Posted
Posted

It sounds like it will be a lot of fun for the group, but i will never knowingly sail with a group that is larger than 50% of the total ship's capacity. If I was confident in the facts as you presented them I would have already changed to another cruise.

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chemmo Holiday Sharing Rare

chemmo

Posted
Posted

....perhaps you will get a discount on your medical insurance.

 

I have to admit I would want more details about venue exclusivity....

 

I would not cancel yet just try to find out a bit more. If they are involved in seminars, specific tours you could have a quiet cruise.

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neverbeenhere

neverbeenhere

Posted
Posted

large groups are a problem for the other cruisers. I would cancel. We have accidently been on a number of cruises with large groups. As you stated, they take over areas of the ship, tendering can be a nightmare, they disappear into seminars for hours which leaves a limited number of participants in games, trivia, dancing, partying. But, if you want to use the "hot tubs", you can have a party when the group is busy.

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hvsteve1

hvsteve1

Posted
Posted

2,000 people seems awfully large for a "group" I have been on cruises with groups that tend to be corporate type...top brokers for a Wall Street firm, award winning auto dealers, etc. Those tend to be a week at the most (as folks are away from work). I cannot picture a corporate client spending the millions necessary for a 12-day cruise. And what organization has 2,000 members with that kind of money. That means this is more likely a charter/type booking by a travel agency. Maybe a them cruise. Could be anything from nudists to certain type of music fans. On one of my cruises there was a charter from some wierd self-help group. Problem with these groups is, as you fear, you might find some public areas such as lounges and restaurants off-limits during certain periods. Or they may simply use the theater during off hours. I guess the answer would be to find out who this is.

 

I did some "detective work" on line and found you have a medical continuing education program sponsored by Stony Brook University. https://www.continuingeducation.net/coursedescription.php?topic=Cardiology_CME_Mediterranean_Cruise_September_2016

 

This kind of junket, being tax-deductible, is a magnet for professionals and could well book 1,000 cabins, especially for for practices that could have mulitiple people attending with spouses. I wouldn't see this as a family cruise as the event is timed to the start of school in most places and, while parents are always willing to pull the kids out of school for an "educational" trip, they are less likely to do it during the start of school which really screws the kids up educationally and socially. You might get some pre-schoolers.

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neverbeenhere

neverbeenhere

Posted
Posted

For US business people, the cruise is not a deductible trip.

 

Presently you can only deduct up to $2,000 per year for each person attending conventions and seminars on cruise ships, and only if the cruise trip meets all of the following requirements:

 

The convention, seminar, or meeting offered on the cruise ship must be directly related to your trade or business.

The cruise ship must be a vessel registered in the United States.

All of the cruise ship's ports of call are in the United States or in possessions of the United States.

You must attach to your tax return a written statement signed by you that includes information about:

The total days of the trip (not including the days of transportation to and from the cruise ship port),

The number of hours each day that you devoted to scheduled business activities, and

A program of the scheduled business activities of the meeting.

You attach to your return a written statement signed by an officer of the organization or group sponsoring the meeting that includes:

A schedule of the business activities of each day of the meeting, and

The number of hours you attended the scheduled business activities.

 

Accordingly, conventions and seminars offered on Caribbean cruises are not tax deductible since their ports of call fall outside the United States.

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az_tchr

az_tchr

Posted
Posted

The good thing is if you get sick or fall you can get assistance, but I would not stay on a ship with this many in a group. Every possible meeting room will be continuously be booked.

 

That said the docs should be good conversation and I can think of several other groups that would be much worse. Largest group we ever had on board was 450 Chinese. Created some difficulties with Mah Jong being set up on EVERY table all day in every eating venue.

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Fish Lover

Fish Lover

Posted
Posted
Looks like you'll be sailing with a bunch of doctors.

 

https://www.continuingeducation.net/coursedescription.php?topic=Cardiology_CME_Mediterranean_Cruise_September_2016

 

Not sure if there would be 2,000 of them but CME (Continuing Medical Education) cruises are very popular since the physician gets to claim some of the travel costs as a deduction.

 

As far as whether or not I'd sail with such a large group (assuming they are the full 2,000) it's hard to say. If there were other choices I'd probably consider them first.

 

The good new is, that if you become ill or are injured, there will be plenty of help on board! It could be worse.

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Hlitner "Live from...." Rare

Hlitner

Posted
Posted

We try to avoid any cruise with a really large group. Even if the group is a great bunch of folks it can create all kinds of issues aboard with the group taking over public spaces, lounges, etc. Some groups are to be avoided at all costs...and these are groups that have their own agenda which they try to impose on every soul aboard. One particular religious group of which we are familiar actually took over half a large RCI ship and even brought their own entertainment aboard. Members of this particular group also harassed other passengers for wearing skimpy swim suits, drinking alcohol, etc. We think it is almost criminal that cruise lines are not required to divulge the scheduling of any group that exceeds a certain percentage of passengers (i.e. 25%).

 

Hank

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ghstudio "Live from...." Rare

ghstudio

Posted
Posted (edited)

I would cancel....a) there is no way that a group that large isn't going to take over a number of venues during the day and night. b) There is no way that a group that large isn't going to get the full attention of all the officers and staff on board who will be pulled to service the smaller groups, wherever they are.

 

c) The spouses will also have events planned so it really is 2000 people disrupting the normal functioning of the ship...that's 2/3 of the passengers. That disruption includes breakfast in the MDR and due to session start times, probably will create waves of people in the buffet for breakfast as well as waves of folks in various places as the sessions end.

 

My advice....make other plans and skip that cruise. You won't regret it....

Edited by ghstudio
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DrivesLikeMario

DrivesLikeMario

Posted
Posted (edited)
I was once on a cruise with a large group who at every turn were trying to push vitamins on people. It was seriously annoying as these people were truly obnoxious.

 

I know there's a "no soliciting" clause in the cruise contract for most cruise lines that every passenger agrees to by booking a cruise. If I even pass out my business cards, I run the risk of being expelled from the cruise. I would've been complaining about those sales pitches right away if I were you.

 

OP - I would cancel. I rarely ever say that, but in this case, I would cancel and rebook another date. I've been on incentive cruises with DH's company and no matter how polite everyone in the group seems, they still tend to have the "we own this venue" mentality. Some groups can get pretty loud and wild.

Edited by DrivesLikeMario
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cynbar

cynbar

Posted
Posted

We were on a cruise once with a large group --- never again. They blocked off the best times and tables for dining, they regularly closed off popular venues for their own events, and they seemed to move in large groups even at non scheduled times (such as the buffet at lunchtime or the pool.) Cruise staff seemed to cater to them, too. We just felt overlooked and pushed aside for the whole trip, and we were paying as much as they were, maybe more. Not an experience I'd like to repeat.

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