Ovation extends Australian season in 2016/217

[woodscruise]

Royal Caribbean also confirms mega-ship will return to Australia in 2017/18.

Royal Caribbean International has just announced that its Ovation of the Seas will extend her maiden season down under, with four additional departures during the upcoming 2016/17 season.

Ovation is "Australia's very first new-build cruise ship" and RCI also confirmed that she will return for a second season in summer 2017/18 "due to the extraordinary demand for the ship from Australians".

RCI said final deployment details for both new programs will be released in the coming weeks, with guests encouraged to register their interest online at http://www.ovationoftheseas.com.au/newsletter.

"The level of interest for Ovation of the Seas has exceeded all of our expectations; we're currently over 90 per cent sold for next summer's sailings," said newly appointed Royal Caribbean Australasia managing director, Adam Armstrong.

"She is a true game-changer and such was the high demand for the ship that we've been able to secure four extra cruises from Sydney which will extend the season into late February 2017," he said.

Guests who are currently booked on the 23 January 2017 repositioning cruise from Sydney to Singapore will be contacted and offered first choice of sailings to rebook, including the revised repositioning itinerary now scheduled for four weeks later.

 

Source Cruise Weekly breaking news

[RosieCanberra]

Wow! Shows the level of demand in Oz but I feel sorry for the people booked on the cancelled cruise. I hope they are offered a good sweetener to change.

 

Thanks for the update, we are booked on the 30 Dec 2016 NZ cruise and the prices are about twice what we paid.

Cheers

Rosie

[Cruise ship fan]

I am on the cancelled cruise and am really not happy. The main reason we did that cruise is because it wasn't a NZ cruise which we have done many times before. Plus we cannot push our cruise back to the new relocation cruise due to other commitments. Hopefully there is some good stuff in their offerings to make up for it.

 

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

[GUT2407]

Good news for the industry, not so good for those whose cruise is cancelled.

[avalon007]

Also received the email this morning & feel sorry for those on the cancelled repo cruise.

 

Good news though she is returning for the 2017/18 season - hopefully with some varied itineraries.

 

If they are fitting 4 extra cruises though into 1 month as they say they must be shorter Australian based cruises like QLD or Tasmania??

 

It takes 4 days min to get to & from the first port in NZ or the South Pacific Islands so given they can only average 7 days per cruise if they are adding 4 in that timeframe seems likely be itineraries close to home?

[MicCanberra]

http://www.cruisecritic.com.au/news/news.cfm?ID=6929

 

A shame for those whose repo cruise has been pushed back.

[rwil111]

Also received the email this morning & feel sorry for those on the cancelled repo cruise.

 

Good news though she is returning for the 2017/18 season - hopefully with some varied itineraries.

 

If they are fitting 4 extra cruises though into 1 month as they say they must be shorter Australian based cruises like QLD or Tasmania??

 

It takes 4 days min to get to & from the first port in NZ or the South Pacific Islands so given they can only average 7 days per cruise if they are adding 4 in that timeframe seems likely be itineraries close to home?

 

 

Would love a QLD cruise like Rhapsody used to do - Newcastle, Airlie Beach, Cairns, Willis Is, Brisbane - but assume Newcastle and Brisbane are the only ports that could take Ovation.

 

Probably only a capital city tour is possible. Sydney, Brisbane, down to Melbourne, Hobart - maybe Adelaide back to Sydney.

[Maxit]

5th April 2016

 

Dear Ovation of the Seas Guest,

As you may know Royal Caribbean International has today confirmed Australia’s very first new-build cruise ship, the ground-breaking US$1 billion Ovation of the Seas, will extend her maiden season down under with an extra four cruises, to meet the incredible demand from Australian travelers.

This unfortunately does mean that there will be changes to the 23rd January 2017 repositioning cruise from Sydney to Singapore that you currently have reserved. Whilst we can confirm the new departure date for this repositioning cruise will be 20th February 2017, we are currently in the final stages of confirming the new itinerary and therefore we are not yet ready to make any changes to your existing booking.

We would however, like to assure you that you will have the first opportunity to move to the new repositioning cruise – or an alternate cruise of your choice. Rest assured the new and amended voyage itineraries will not be made available for general sale until you have been accommodated.

We thank you for your patience whilst we finalise the details for the extended season and we will be in contact very soon to confirm the options available to you including the revised repositioning itinerary. We understand you will want to start making changes to your air and accommodation however we recommend no changes are made until we confirm the itineraries and are in contact with you to finalise your options.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this change to your cruise and we look forward to working with you to minimise the impact to your travel plans.

Sincerely yours,

 

Redeployments and Itinerary Changes Royal Caribbean International

 

This is what you will get if your on the cancelled cruise

[The_Big_M]

Also received the email this morning & feel sorry for those on the cancelled repo cruise.

 

Good news though she is returning for the 2017/18 season - hopefully with some varied itineraries.

 

If they are fitting 4 extra cruises though into 1 month as they say they must be shorter Australian based cruises like QLD or Tasmania??

 

It takes 4 days min to get to & from the first port in NZ or the South Pacific Islands so given they can only average 7 days per cruise if they are adding 4 in that timeframe seems likely be itineraries close to home?

 

Good points.

 

Note that there isn't any capacity at OPT over the remaining period. That means the options are:

1) Swap with another ship - unlikely.

2) berth at Athol buoy

3) visit other ports

 

I also wouldn't be surprised if they have a short sampler in there, which means that the other cruises can be a bit longer to average out.

[MicCanberra]

Good points.

 

Note that there isn't any capacity at OPT over the remaining period. That means the options are:

1) Swap with another ship - unlikely.

2) berth at Athol buoy

3) visit other ports

 

I also wouldn't be surprised if they have a short sampler in there, which means that the other cruises can be a bit longer to average out.

 

I would agree, instead of 4x 7 days, in may be two 3n Samplers with two 10 night cruises Melbourne, Hobart & NZ.

Edited April 5, 2016 by MicCanberra

[Valmac]

Have checked our NZ port schedules but not showing any extra bookings as yet for 16/17 season but showing 5 cruises booked for NZ port for the 17/18 season.:)

[timtam2]

hmmm- I haven't received that email yet. But - no biggie - I was going to cancel anyway because I'm off to Singapore next week on Voyager.

 

I'll wait and see what the new itineraries are - maybe they'll give some OBC too - but I doubt it.

[DrewAU]

So disappointed. Was booked on the repo cruise and so looking forward to it. Hopefully there will be some sort of kickback for putting up with a later repo cruise.. it may mean I'll have to do another cruise earlier in the season as well so the wait doesn't feel so long.

[cassamanda]

Would love a QLD cruise like Rhapsody used to do - Newcastle, Airlie Beach, Cairns, Willis Is, Brisbane - but assume Newcastle and Brisbane are the only ports that could take Ovation.

 

Probably only a capital city tour is possible. Sydney, Brisbane, down to Melbourne, Hobart - maybe Adelaide back to Sydney.

 

From a Captains corner session last week on Radiance, my understanding is that Ovation cannot dock at Melbourne and also would have trouble entering Port Phillip.

[MicCanberra]

From a Captains corner session last week on Radiance, my understanding is that Ovation cannot dock at Melbourne and also would have trouble entering Port Phillip.

 

Interesting, that excludes Melbourne off the itineraries as well. I wonder if the new P&O ship will have the same issues.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

She could end up being a ferry service from Sydney to Hobart.:eek:

 

 

[GUT2407]

She could end up being a ferry service from Sydney to Hobart.:eek:

 

 

 

Might just tempt me.

[Fletch1]

We are also booked on this cruise and have heard nothing from RCI. Only found out today through Cruise Critic.

[Fletch1]

From a Captains corner session last week on Radiance, my understanding is that Ovation cannot dock at Melbourne and also would have trouble entering Port Phillip.

 

This would explain why RCI have sold the maiden voyage to Australia cruise disembarking in Melbourne.....only problem is they fly you to Melbourne after you get off the ship in Hobart.

[MicCanberra]

This would explain why RCI have sold the maiden voyage to Australia cruise disembarking in Melbourne.....only problem is they fly you to Melbourne after you get off the ship in Hobart.

 

A bit strange really, the bay must be too shallow or poses too much risk due to wind and currents.

[LuckiePuris]

We have been advised that for those affected on the cancelled repositioning the cruises, these passengers will get first access to the new itineraries when they are finalised as well as first access to the adjusted repositioning cruise, before it's released to the general public.

 

Apart from the inconvenience of those that have been affected by the cancelled repositioning cruise, it's a good sign to see the demand is so high they have added extra sailings and she is coming back for the next season.

Edited April 5, 2016 by LuckiePuris

[FSUNole]

Good news for the industry, not so good for those whose cruise is cancelled.

 

No kidding... folks who paid for air are screwed. Another reason for trip insurance, I suppose.

[The_Big_M]

She could end up being a ferry service from Sydney to Hobart.:eek:

 

 

 

I may be down for that. ;):p

[The_Big_M]

Apart from the inconvenience of those that have been affected by the cancelled repositioning cruise, it's a good sign to see the demand is so high they have added extra sailings and she is coming back for the next season.

 

Demand was good given the very limited visit, whereas it's off-season where she is based in China.

 

A bit of a commerce no-brainer, but the disruption was an issue, as it will always be to cancel bookings.

[MicCanberra]

No kidding... folks who paid for air are screwed. Another reason for trip insurance, I suppose.

 

Yes, Travel insurance is a good idea if you want to cover yourself for mishaps and such..