Priority Boarding for Upper Suites, Poll and Discussion

[Travelcat2]

Which sums up my feelings precisely.

 

On our last Oceania cruise we could not get to the port until 1500 which is when our train arrived from Switzerland. Boarding was due to have started at 1100 and by the time we arrived there was NO ONE waiting. We could have been in an inside cabin and still walked right on to the ship!

 

But bottom line for me is I expect to be treated according to the category of suite I have booked. If I book a "normal" cabin I do not expect any perks. If I book a top suite - I do. Boarding is only one of them. There are dinner reservations in speciality restaurants, tour reservations etc etc. "High End" suites get priority for those and no one complains. So why not for boarding as well.

 

1. There is never a line if one arrives at 3:00 p.m. (1500).

 

2. No one complains about priority dinner reservation, etc. because this is an invisible perk. In terms of dining reservations, everyone onboard gets the opportunity to dine in each speciality restaurant. Many Seven Seas Society levels also have priority excursion and dining reservations.

 

As a reminder for people voting "I don't see why not, as long as it's not flaunted.", keep in mind that this is not a proposed policy, it is in place and is very "flaunted" and "in your face" (the "in your face" comment is from someone on the cruise we are on and posted it on the live thread.

[Hambagahle]

1. There is never a line if one arrives at 3:00 p.m. (1500).

 

2. No one complains about priority dinner reservation, etc. because this is an invisible perk. In terms of dining reservations, everyone onboard gets the opportunity to dine in each speciality restaurant. Many Seven Seas Society levels also have priority excursion and dining reservations.

 

As a reminder for people voting "I don't see why not, as long as it's not flaunted.", keep in mind that this is not a proposed policy, it is in place and is very "flaunted" and "in your face" (the "in your face" comment is from someone on the cruise we are on and posted it on the live thread.

 

 

 

And I think it is a great policy. Others seem to agree...

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Travelcat2]

And I think it is a great policy. Others seem to agree...

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

Just realized that you were talking about Oceania - not Regent. My response about 3:00 p.m. boarding probably applies to both cruise lines.

 

Yes - many Oceania passengers seem to accept the policy but they also accept private areas for PH staterooms and above and other rather class-oriented separation. Regent customers are not accustomed to this and I still cannot find a reason why we need to be.

[Hambagahle]

Just realized that you were talking about Oceania - not Regent. My response about 3:00 p.m. boarding probably applies to both cruise lines.

 

 

 

Yes - many Oceania passengers seem to accept the policy but they also accept private areas for PH staterooms and above and other rather class-oriented separation. Regent customers are not accustomed to this and I still cannot find a reason why we need to be.

 

 

 

For the latter - the Concierge and Executive lounges on Oceania - I do not understand why they exist and the spaces could be used for another 4 or even 6 inside cabins. They offer nothing you cannot get elsewhere on the ship. The Concierge Lounge seemed to be quite popular on our last cruise but the Executive Lounge was deserted. Well - that's not really a fair thing to say! I only walked past it once and no one was in there. But on previous cruises I have gone there to get a quick cup of tea before a class...I was the only one there. All that said I don't think they are something anyone gives any thought to. One way or another...

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Hambagahle]

Sorry - I got cut off by my iPad.

 

To me the Oceania boarding system is rational and works in that it gets everyone on board in an orderly fashion. In my experience with Regent (maybe 6 cruises? I have lost count - could be more) boarding was a zoo. I prefer not to experience a zoo. So I hope the new policy for Regent's boarding will continue and you know what? A year from now no one will remember it was done another way.

[Travelcat2]

Gerry, a year from now, some very loyal cruisers could leave Regent over this change. Our TA has an especially high number of Gold, Platinum and Titanium customers (some of their escorted cruises have over 100 of their customers). Almost 100% of their clients stay in lower suites. IMO, there is no way they will forget how things were prior to this new policy. These same cruisers absolutely do not want to be like Oceania. After all, Oceania is not even a luxury cruise line. Also in my opinion, if you want priority boarding, Oceania is a wonderful option. However, for us, the class system is a bit too over the top on Oceania.

 

I must say that I am interested in learning how Silversea does this special boarding. I MIGHT be part of the 25% that could accept invisible special boarding for Seven Seas Suites and above, and top* Seven Seas Society members if it were truly invisible (no carpet - no signage -- just a discreet special line that does not designate suite categories - just some designation that "special" passengers are aware of that is not shared with others (information that would be included in their documentation).

 

 

* Excluding top Seven Seas Society members in this policy is the worst possible slap in the face.

[fizzy]

I'm wondering if small little step by step, Regent is trying to appeal to a different group of customers who may be impressed with the sense of self importance that this move seems to portray. Although we have never been on the Explorer, my feeling is that the decor may be a little too much for me... a little glitzy. I prefer the simple and understated taste that we always felt on Radisson...then Regent and very similar to Silversea. I guess we are old classics ourselves. Looking at the photos of the Explorer leads me to believe that not everyone would be all in for the glam style but there most certainly is an "in your face" market for people who are impressed with these things.

[Pamela1]

In my opinion, i would be extremely surprised if loyal Regent clients stopped sailing with them because of the priority boarding issue.

I can only say for myself but why would you not sail that line for such a petty issue when we all have the same service onboard? Also, wouldn't it actually make it easier on all non *high suite categories* as the check in line would be shorter? Just a thought.

 

Pam.

[Travelcat2]

In my opinion, i would be extremely surprised if loyal Regent clients stopped sailing with them because of the priority boarding issue.

I can only say for myself but why would you not sail that line for such a petty issue when we all have the same service onboard? Also, wouldn't it actually make it easier on all non *high suite categories* as the check in line would be shorter? Just a thought.

 

Pam.

 

IMO this is a huge issue - not a petty one. OTOH, I do understand that in the U.K. and some other parts of Europe it could be looked at that way.

 

I counted the "top" suites on the Mariner and the passengers that have priority boarding totals around 40. Since the ship holds 700, this would not have any affect on the check-in line. And, based on prior experience, passengers have left Regent for smaller issues than this. A good example is included excursions. While some people love them, quite a few loyal customers left Regent because of it (and would return if they could opt out of excursions for a credit).

 

fizzy - you could be right but not many of us want to sail with people that are full of themselves and think that they are better than others. Many people that sail Regent could afford a larger suite but prefer saving money since the experience is almost the same. IMO, Regent does not need more snobs or people that are elitist (thankfully there are not many of them onboard most sailings).

Edited December 10, 2017 by Travelcat2

[Boatmans Lady]

I LIKE (a lot!) the system Oceania has... three "lanes" according to cabin reservation but when there are no people waiting in the Suite category anyone else waiting to board is waived forward.

 

This is precisely what I said in my previous post, but used the airlines model at check in.

I too prefer an ordered check in, rather than a scrum. So if it is the case that most people want to turn up and board at the same time, we will sit quietly until the melee abates, or just turn up little later for boarding.

[irishwitchy]

I could care less how folks board the ship, the color of the carpet, etc. However, this does give the common folks a chance to "see" who are the folks in the expensive cabins and possibility try to hang out with them. With everyone in the same line, you have very little idea, what cabins anyone is in. Unlike the airplane line, you only see them or maybe you are one of them for only a few hours, not days, weeks and months. Could this be a possible security issue in the making? Just a Sunday afternoon thought.

[Dolebludger]

I have no surveys or statistics. All I can say is that if the upper suites were given priority boarding, the inconvenience to those of us in the lower suites would be very minimal, due to the small capacity of the ships. Further, It has been our recent experience that guests arrive to embark at different times, and not all at once, as many of us chose to make our own air and land travel arraignments because those that are "free" from Regent are not always desirable to some. So I don't believe anybody would really notice if Regent gave priority boarding based on suite class. In other words, I don't think it would, in practice, make a real difference in anybody's embarkation experience.

 

Now, let me give you a contrast. Once we boarded the MSC Divinia, a ship with 4000 guest capacity. The waiting area looked like the population of a small city all crammed together. Thank heavens we had booked the Yacht Club, which gave us priority, escorted embarkation. Otherwise, it would have been as if we were cattle being herded -- slowly. But when we have embarked Regent, which offered no priority, it was very smooth and fast due to the much smaller number of people going through the process.

[xrvlcruiser]

I agree with Dolebludger - the Regent ships are small and it doesn't take all that much time to board.Very different than a ship with thousands of passengers.

Also, I agree with the comment that once a person leaves his/her cabin, we are all the same. The fact that many level of cabins are on most floors only increases that position.

Peggy

[Silver Sweethearts]

Even someone that pays $100,000 for the Regent suite once may not become a loyal Regent customer. It may be a one time thing while other passengers sail with Regent for years.

 

You do the math. A Regent passenger and partner (read: party of two) could sail over a dozen times on certain seven-day cruises and still not pay a total of what Regent can get in one booking of the Regent Suite. Repeat business does not mean profit in this case.

[Travelcat2]

I could care less how folks board the ship, the color of the carpet, etc. However, this does give the common folks a chance to "see" who are the folks in the expensive cabins and possibility try to hang out with them. With everyone in the same line, you have very little idea, what cabins anyone is in. Unlike the airplane line, you only see them or maybe you are one of them for only a few hours, not days, weeks and months. Could this be a possible security issue in the making? Just a Sunday afternoon thought.

 

Enjoyed your post and hadn't thought of that.:D

[Travelcat2]

You do the math. A Regent passenger and partner (read: party of two) could sail over a dozen times on certain seven-day cruises and still not pay a total of what Regent can get in one booking of the Regent Suite. Repeat business does not mean profit in this case.

 

When comparing a Regent Suite (which I did), what you say makes sense (although it doesn't take many cruises to reach the cost of one Regent Suite cruise). However, when you look at Gold, Platinum, Titanium and Diamond Seven Seas Society members, the amount of money they have paid is more than one may think (assuming a mid-level suite).

 

Also, I just looked at a 7 night sailing on Explorer next year. The cost (for 2) on this 7 night sailing is $78K while the cost of a Concierge Suite is $17.8K. So, if the couple in the Explorer Suite takes only one cruise and the Concierge Suite passengers sails a dozen times, they would have paid over $200K.

 

This can obviously be skewed many different ways. Is a one time booking in the Explorer Suite more profitable for Regent than 12 cruises in a Concierge Suite? Only Regent knows. I can only imagine how much it costs Regent for the private shore excursions and unlimited Canyon Ranch Spa treatments for the Regent Suite.

[Sunviking]

IMO this is a huge issue - not a petty one. OTOH, I do understand that in the U.K. and some other parts of Europe it could be looked at that way.

 

I counted the "top" suites on the Mariner and the passengers that have priority boarding totals around 40. Since the ship holds 700, this would not have any affect on the check-in line. And, based on prior experience, passengers have left Regent for smaller issues than this. A good example is included excursions. While some people love them, quite a few loyal customers left Regent because of it (and would return if they could opt out of excursions for a credit).

 

fizzy - you could be right but not many of us want to sail with people that are full of themselves and think that they are better than others. Many people that sail Regent could afford a larger suite but prefer saving money since the experience is almost the same. IMO, Regent does not need more snobs or people that are elitist (thankfully there are not many of them onboard most sailings).

I don't see how included excursions are a smaller issue than a separate boarding line for a small number of passengers in upper level suites. People who choose to book an upper level suite vs a lower one make a choice on the cost they are willing to pay. If I choose to pay less and have to board in a different line that's a choice I make not Regent. Included excursions increased the cost of cruises for everyone in every category of suite whether they wanted them or not. For people who prefer doing their own thing I can see that the included shore excursions would be a reason to consider another line.

I also find it difficult to understand what constitutes elitism. If someone has booked the grandest suite on the ship and takes advantage of a special boarding line as a result but never mentions his cabin otherwise, is he an elitist or a snob as opposed to the passenger who is in a lower level suite who lets everyone know at every opportunity that he is a titanium member with hundreds of days sailed? Just wondering.

[Travelcat2]

I don't see how included excursions are a smaller issue than a separate boarding line for a small number of passengers in upper level suites. People who choose to book an upper level suite vs a lower one make a choice on the cost they are willing to pay. If I choose to pay less and have to board in a different line that's a choice I make not Regent. Included excursions increased the cost of cruises for everyone in every category of suite whether they wanted them or not. For people who prefer doing their own thing I can see that the included shore excursions would be a reason to consider another line.

I also find it difficult to understand what constitutes elitism. If someone has booked the grandest suite on the ship and takes advantage of a special boarding line as a result but never mentions his cabin otherwise, is he an elitist or a snob as opposed to the passenger who is in a lower level suite who lets everyone know at every opportunity that he is a titanium member with hundreds of days sailed? Just wondering.

 

Obviously we see things differently which is what it is.

 

IMO, it isn't elitism to be excited when you reach a significant level in a cruise line's loyalty program (it is mentioned on other boards all of the time). Whether you have become Silver, Gold, Platinum, Titanium, Diamond or Commodore it is a big deal to that person (and obviously to Regent as well.) I'm always happy for posters that have reached any of these levels.

 

What I do consider elitism (and this is my definition and may not be others), is when someone says (for instance) 'I pay more money and therefore I deserve to board first. These same people tend to complain the loudest onboard the ships because they want every possible thing be done for them and they likely want it done immediately.

 

We sail in all different suite levels on Regent and I hope that I act the same when we are in a F1 suite on Explorer as when we were in a Master Suite. I know that I share the suite type with people that want to know about the various categories of suites. I'm as happy to discuss the F1 suites as the larger ones. And, when I walk outside of the suite, no one knows what suite level we are in. The information that I share is for Cruise Critic members only - not for other passengers.

[Dolebludger]

Again, because of Regent's small number of guests and large space per guest, I feel that this issue is "a solution in search of a problem". Regent has no priority boarding now and never has. Yet we have never had a boarding problem in 15 years. According to what I've read on this board, neither has anybody else.

 

Conversely, because of the same factors, I can't see a problem if upper level suites were given priority boarding, even though we usually book a more ordinary suite. Not that many guests would be let on before us to matter. Especially as not all guests seem to get to the port at the same time. I can't see that priority boarding would be of much benefit to those in upper level suites, or much of a bother to the rest of us. If Regent's ship had thousands of guests, I can see the point. We take one of those huge ships occasionally for music cruises, and won't go unless we get a near the top level suite with priority boarding (and other benefits beyond standard mass market). But Regent is a different world, and I just can't see a problem, one way or another.

[Sunviking]

Obviously we see things differently which is what it is.

 

IMO, it isn't elitism to be excited when you reach a significant level in a cruise line's loyalty program (it is mentioned on other boards all of the time). Whether you have become Silver, Gold, Platinum, Titanium, Diamond or Commodore it is a big deal to that person (and obviously to Regent as well.) I'm always happy for posters that have reached any of these levels.

 

What I do consider elitism (and this is my definition and may not be others), is when someone says (for instance) 'I pay more money and therefore I deserve to board first. These same people tend to complain the loudest onboard the ships because they want every possible thing be done for them and they likely want it done immediately.

 

We sail in all different suite levels on Regent and I hope that I act the same when we are in a F1 suite on Explorer as when we were in a Master Suite. I know that I share the suite type with people that want to know about the various categories of suites. I'm as happy to discuss the F1 suites as the larger ones. And, when I walk outside of the suite, no one knows what suite level we are in. The information that I share is for Cruise Critic members only - not for other passengers.

 

You're right. We do see things differently and It is what it is. Based on the unscientific poll at the beginning of this thread, more than 60% of the respondents don't object to separate boarding for some higher level suites.

 

I do really take exception to your broad generalization regarding people who have paid more for their accommodations. In our 40 + cruises we have encountered many people who were sailing in the largest cabins who were unassuming, undemanding and delightful people. On the other hand we have also seen people who felt entitled regardless of their cabin, sometimes just because they had cruised with the specific line many times. These latter passengers treated the staff rudely and disrespectfully and complained at every opportunity. (I'm not in any way implying that you are in that category despite the fact that you have an elevated status with Regent.) I'm just saying that one shouldn't equate an individual able to pay more for a cruise to a demanding and obnoxious snob.

[ronrick1943]

You do the math. A Regent passenger and partner (read: party of two) could sail over a dozen times on certain seven-day cruises and still not pay a total of what Regent can get in one booking of the Regent Suite. Repeat business does not mean profit in this case.

 

I would agree with you, just think of how much extra food, drink, air and tours that are taken compared to the person in a upper suite spending $$$$. As I said before once, Regent knows what a suite consumer wants, Regent also wants to sell those suites at full price, they don't want to up sell people at a lower cost. Once Regents up sells a suite at a lower price they are saying that suite isn't worth what they charge (and Regent doesn't want that to happen).

Rick

[ronrick1943]

You certainly may, we’re all friends here.

 

 

UUNetBill,

 

Look at your poll, 62% YES and 38% NO

[morneau]

Could not agree more with Sunviking's comments regarding one's definition of elitism. We have only cruised with Regent one time (previously on Silversea, Seabourn and Crystal) but we loved our last cruise on the Explorer and have booked another one this summer. We opt to stay in the Grand Suite because we don't travel that often and it's a nice splurge for us. My husband and I are very low key - we keep pretty much to ourselves on the cruises and certainly don't flaunt our cabin number or status. We are truly grateful for all the perks that come with the suite, most especially the guaranteed reservations in the specialty restaurants. We don't host parties in the suite, or do the caviar set up. It would be uncomfortable for us to do so. As I've mentioned before, we would love a laundry benefit, or at least the offer of a reasonable laundry package. I do plenty of laundry at home. Not a deal breaker but would be nice. Travelcat has argued that laundry should only be a benefit one earns with loyalty. I'm happy for Travelcat that she has "worked" herself up the loyalty chain and now enjoys elite status, but her point of view regarding benefits for those cruisers who choose to "pay up" seems to be completely self serving. In between her otherwise informative and interesting posts I detect a whole lot of judgement toward her fellow cruisers.

Edited December 11, 2017 by morneau
grammar

[xrvlcruiser]

One thing which is different on all the Regent ships - as opposed to some other lines - is that the cabin types are mixed on most deck so telling someone your cabin number may not be telling them the type of cabin you're in - one of the things I like best about Regent.

 

Having said that, I just got off the Explorer and rode up in the elevator with someone who pushed the button for deck 14. I must say I was curious if that person was in the Regent suite!

 

Now back to the original subject of this thread.

 

Peggy

[grandmommy987]

My 2 cents says it doesn't bother me in the least if there are separate lines for upper suites. Just add that perk to the cost of that suite. In one way, it makes sense, as the upper suites have earlier access to their suites. As I have posted before, "if you have the choice of being right or being kind, choose kind." I believe Bill just wanted to poll this forum and hear reasons for a choice..not attack others who do not agree with them.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums