Are Blocks of Suites Scooped Up By Travel Agents?

[JimmyVWine]

I've often noticed that Suites are usually the first category of cabins to sell out. For an upcoming cruise of ours, this was no exception. When the final payment date came and went, just for kicks I thought I would check out the ship's bookings to see what cabins were still available. Somewhat to my surprise, a large percentage of Suites (which had been showing as "Sold Out" for months) had been thrown back into the pool, including both forward Premium Suites on Lido Deck and 8 out of 12 mid-ship Penthouse Suites on Riviera. While this could be the result of 10 out of 14 people independently deciding not to take this cruise, it seems more likely that these Suites went unsold by one of more large Travel Agencies who scooped up these Suites as soon as the sailing became bookable. If the latter is the case, then these Suites were never really available to the general public, and now must be sold in the next 70-some-odd days, perhaps at a significant discount. Or "upsold" at a discount. Or given away as an upgrade. None of these options seems terribly appealing to Princess which begs the question why they would let this happen. Anyone know if this is a common practice?

[dtb55]

Maybe, but I was told by my Princess rep that they hold a number of suites for upgrades. Actually, two of my kids were once upgraded from their mini suites to sharing a suite two days before sailing because the cruise was oversold. It also came with a quite healthy OBC.

[fishywood]

Has a lot less to do with blocks of Suites being "held" and more to do with the propensity of those who book only suites to put a deposit on a whole bunch of different cruises the day bookings open and then deciding which one(s) to take just before final payment. I doubt they even care whether or not the deposit is refundable. A "suite" life if you can afford it.

[john_galt]

I always check availability at the final payment date. My TA used to refer to this as 'turn back day'. Suites come open. That's how I got into my first Vista Suite.

 

I think it's silly to let someone hold a Penthouse for $200 (Celebrity) when they aren't serious about making final payment. The website claims they are supposed to get 20% to hold premium rooms but I haven't seen it enforced.

[Babr]

I've often wondered about suite availability, also. I watched one cruise where several mid-ship suites and an owner's suite became available after final payment but disappeared soon after.

 

Seventy something days out seems too early for upgrades or upsells. Maybe there was a waiting list, but if that is the case, why make them available for booking on the website?

 

I don't know why Princess would hold out suites to give away as upgrades, as one poster suggested. Makes sense to try to sell them first.

 

I can't expalin it, but it seems unlikely to me that someone would just wake up some morning and decide at the last minute to book an $8200pp aft suite when there are not even any sales or promotions as an incentive.

Edited August 30, 2016 by Babr

[XBGuy]

I've often noticed that Suites are usually the first category of cabins to sell out. For an upcoming cruise of ours, this was no exception. When the final payment date came and went, just for kicks I thought I would check out the ship's bookings to see what cabins were still available. Somewhat to my surprise, a large percentage of Suites (which had been showing as "Sold Out" for months) had been thrown back into the pool, including both forward Premium Suites on Lido Deck and 8 out of 12 mid-ship Penthouse Suites on Riviera. While this could be the result of 10 out of 14 people independently deciding not to take this cruise, it seems more likely that these Suites went unsold by one of more large Travel Agencies who scooped up these Suites as soon as the sailing became bookable. If the latter is the case, then these Suites were never really available to the general public, and now must be sold in the next 70-some-odd days, perhaps at a significant discount. Or "upsold" at a discount. Or given away as an upgrade. None of these options seems terribly appealing to Princess which begs the question why they would let this happen. Anyone know if this is a common practice?

 

Jimmy, I have no inside information, but, based only on conversations and reading, I do think that travel agents can, somehow, get allocations of cabins for them to exclusively sell. I also think that these allocations can be of any cabin class--not just suites. In May, I booked a balcony cabin for the 2018 Los Angeles-Alaska cruise. Now, Mrs. XBGuy and I are somewhat unique in our preference of cabins. We like to be fairly high up, and as far forward as possible. We booked the most forward cabin on Deck 12. Because I'm retired and have nothing better to do, I would monitor sales on this cruise to see if I had any neighbors. As of, I'm going to say the third week of July, not one other cabin was booked in the forward section of Deck 12--balcony or inside. My coffee shop buddy, who has also booked on that cruise, mentioned to me that the Roll Call for that cruise was reporting that all the suites and most of the balcony cabins have been sold. Well, I had just completed one of my checks two days prior, and, nope, still no neighbors in the area I had boooked. What the heck, though, later that day I checked again, WHOA! Every balcony and most inside cabins in that section were now booked.

 

Which seems more likely:

 

1. Within three days 40 or 50 people independently decided they wanted to take this Alaska cruise and each one of them happens to be the type of cruiser who wants the cabin far forward and high so that they can feel the most motion, be as far away as possible from the food venues, and (this is the winner) be able to most clearly hear the foghorn as it goes off at 3:00 am.
    
   
2. One or more travel agencies realized that this cruise is going to be quite popular. So, if they can get access to cabins, they can sell them. Presumably, favored customers would get first choice.
   

 

Again, I do not have any privieged insight, but #2 seems more likely to me.

 

Then, again, I'm really not that bright. So, maybe there are other options that should be added to my list.

 

 

Maybe, but I was told by my Princess rep that they hold a number of suites for upgrades. Actually, two of my kids were once upgraded from their mini suites to sharing a suite two days before sailing because the cruise was oversold. It also came with a quite healthy OBC.

 

Dbt, I would not be surprised about anything that a Princess rep might say, but this just doesn't sound right.

 

As I mentioned in my comment, above to Jimmy. Princess is a "for profit" company. In fact, I am sure that one of their stated goals is to "maximize profit." Why would they reserve a suite and not sell it for maximum price in order to save it and sell it at a discount? If they want to maximize profit, why would they not maximize revenue?

 

The story about your kids is interesting. I'd never heard of that kind of upgrade--where the occupants of two cabins were combined into one. I really think that was a very unique, and, perhaps, serendipidous circumstance for Princess. I can see a scenario where a suite occupant had to cancel at the last minute and that is how that suite became available. To me, that just seems more likely than the idea of Pricess holding back a suite, because maybe, the ship might be otherwise oversold and two sisters are traveling on this cruise in two cabins but would be OK traveling together if the price is right.

[dtb55]

The story about your kids is interesting. I'd never heard of that kind of upgrade--where the occupants of two cabins were combined into one. I really think that was a very unique, and, perhaps, serendipidous circumstance for Princess. I can see a scenario where a suite occupant had to cancel at the last minute and that is how that suite became available. To me, that just seems more likely than the idea of Pricess holding back a suite, because maybe, the ship might be otherwise oversold and two sisters are traveling on this cruise in two cabins but would be OK traveling together if the price is right.

 

 

You are probably correct that it was a unique situation considering the amount of OBC given.

Edited August 30, 2016 by dtb55
edit

[RJ2002]

IMO, I think there are types of cruisers who simply prefer suites, and often they may the first to go. It is like that over at HAL quite a bit from what I have noticed.

[JimmyVWine]

IMO, I think there are types of cruisers who simply prefer suites, and often they may the first to go.

That's always been my assumption. But to have 8 out of 12 Penthouse Suites and 2 out of 2 Forward Premium Suites "turned back" on final payment day? Sounds like way too much of a coincidence to think that so many "regular passengers" all independently decided to ditch this cruise all on the exact same day. Looks more like a mass cabin dump by someone holding lots of them.

[Corfe Mixture]

I suspect they do.

 

We normally book a suite and try to do so early in order to get our choice of location.

 

However, as we cruise at Christmas on two occasions, even though we booked over ten months outwe were not quick enough and booked a mini-suite wait listed for a suite, On both occasions although I never saw any suites come up on general sale, we got off the wai list in a matter of a few weeks, many months before final payment day.

 

I may be wrong, but, at the time, I concluded that the reason I had got off the list so quickly was because Princess got an unsold suite back from a TA who was holding it.

[Coral]

When Travel Agents "reserve group space" - full suites are not an option for having rooms "saved for their group".

 

The only way for a TA to "hold a suite" beyond the standard complimentary holding time is to put a name and money on the cabin.

[Colo Cruiser]

I don't think that TA's hold suites.

[easyboy]

That's always been my assumption. But to have 8 out of 12 Penthouse Suites and 2 out of 2 Forward Premium Suites "turned back" on final payment day? Sounds like way too much of a coincidence to think that so many "regular passengers" all independently decided to ditch this cruise all on the exact same day. Looks more like a mass cabin dump by someone holding lots of them.

I agree with your observation. Not on exact same day.

[Brisbane41]

Could be a free suite upgrade for people. If someone over sells a cruise and they need to bump passengers off the ship they will get offers of a full suite on another cruise for the price of an inside.

[Mountaineer cruiser]

My wife and I decided years ago that if we were going to cruise - we were going to go suites all the way. We book a couple and put a couple hundred on them.

As you age, you'd think things slowed down and you'd have time to cruise when ever you felt like it. Then, work schedules grow, grandkids come into the world or a brother goes on a transplant list... Life happens. We end up releasing the suites one at a time until --- wow! Nothing is scheduled!! and that's the one you throw money at for weeks to pay off in the nick of time.

We always go through a TA and they do not hold suites until $$$ are put on it with the guests name.

But I'd say that there are a bunch of people like my wife and I trying to find that little bit of time through the year where everything lines up and a date can be nailed down.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Cruiser411]

IMHO, I think that people with FCC's reserve the suites and then when final payment day comes around they cancel when they realize they can't pay for them...:rolleyes:

[caribill]

Probably does not apply to the OP's cruise, but if a cruise can be booked more than one way, when you look at a specific cruise, only the cabins allocated to one way will be shown as available, even if other similar cabins are not yet booked the other ways.

 

OK, That sounds confusing.

 

I was on a cruise this year that could be booked four ways:

 

(a) Point A to B to Point C as a single segment.

 

(b) Point B to Point C as a single segment.

 

© same as (a) with the addition of the next segment making it a B2B.

 

(d) same as (b) with the addition of the next segment making it a B2B.

 

So if you looked at balcony cabins for (a), balcony cabins that had been allocated for (b), ©, and (d) would be shown as sold even if not one of them had been booked yet.

[boca7]

I don't think that TA's hold suites.

Your absolutely right, high rollers are the priority.

[JF - retired RRT]

The story about your kids is interesting. I'd never heard of that kind of upgrade--where the occupants of two cabins were combined into one. I really think that was a very unique, and, perhaps, serendipitous circumstance for Princess. I can see a scenario where a suite occupant had to cancel at the last minute and that is how that suite became available. To me, that just seems more likely than the idea of Princess holding back a suite, because maybe, the ship might be otherwise oversold and two sisters are traveling on this cruise in two cabins but would be OK traveling together if the price is right.

 

It happened to Pam in CA and her sister on the 50th Anniversary cruise.;)

[Colo Cruiser]

It happened to Pam in CA and her sister on the 50th Anniversary cruise.;)

 

 

That cruise was unique.

[caribill]

I can see a scenario where a suite occupant had to cancel at the last minute and that is how that suite became available. To me, that just seems more likely than the idea of Pricess holding back a suite, because maybe, the ship might be otherwise oversold and two sisters are traveling on this cruise in two cabins but would be OK traveling together if the price is right.

 

It happened to Pam in CA and her sister on the 50th Anniversary cruise.;)

 

The situation was slightly different than what XBGuy theorized.

 

The suite was booked by the President of Princess. But the ship was so oversold with GTYs that she cancelled being on the cruise just so the two cabins booked by Pam and her sister could be assigned to GTYs.

[Corfe Mixture]

Deleted. Just realised I quoted a post which is over 12 months old

Edited August 27, 2017 by Corfe Mixture

[Woobstr112G]

That cruise was unique.

 

Especially since it was on a ship that only held 600 passengers.....:):):)

 

Bob

[cflutist]

Especially since it was on a ship that only held 600 passengers.....:):):)

 

Bob

Yes, this is an old thread, but I think Bob is on to something. There are only 10 suites on the Pacific Princess. I called at 7:55 am the morning that European cruises were released, by 8:05 am both suites on deck 7 were sold and we took our third choice 8067 on deck 8 for our 18-night Norway cruise. By 2 pm, 6 of the 10 suites were booked. Just returned from that cruise and talked to two Club Class Dining couples who wanted a suite but could not get them. More availability on Grand and Royal class ships but the best locations are snapped up pretty quickly.

[boca7]

I was told some suites are held for high rollers.