Upgraded to a Sky Suite- Now what???

[crkdad]

I decided to celebrate a milestone birthday for my wife (don't ask which milestone) by taking her on a cruise on the Oasis.  We enjoy travelling with friends, but also enjoy travelling with each other.  (Actually, I can only speak for me.  While I am an old boring accountant, after 36 years of marriage, I never tire of HER company). We told our friends about our cruise in case they were interested in cruising and celebrating her birthday with us.  Since we decided somewhat last minute (last minute for a cruise) and most of our friends are working, no one had the flexibility to join us. 

 

We typically like to cruise in a balcony cabin.  For us, it is the right mix of cost and benefits and typically at a price point that we are comfortable with.  I received a RoyalUp email a couple of weeks ago and, unbeknownst to my wife, I decided to bid on a Sky Class suite.  As justification, I told myself that my wife will only turn ?? once and I think she is worth it (yes, the irony does not escape me that I, too, will share in the benefits of a suite. but that is my story and I am sticking to it).  However, being the frugal accountant that I am, I only bid a low amount.  According to the needle scale, my bid had an extremely low chance of being accepted.  After submitting the bid, I thought nothing more about it.   Low and behold, my bid was accepted, but I decided to keep it secret from my wife until we got closer to the trip or ideally, when we boarded.  I am terrible at keeping anything from my wife.  She frequently knows what I am thinking before I think it, so the latter was unlikely to happen.   

 

As our trip approached, my wife talked about our cruise with more of her friends.  One of her friends decided that it sounded fun and decided that she and her husband would to join us on the cruise.  (for those of you that have not been married as long as I have, you know you did good if your wife talks about it like that to her friends.... pats self on the back..).   I do not know her friend's husband, but I am looking forward to meeting someone new and sharing the cruise experience with another couple.   When we travel with other couples, we do not expect to spend every minute with them, but typically enjoy spending part of a sea day, some meals and seeing shows together. 

 

So, here is our first world problem.  We have Sky suite benefits and they do not.  On the Oasis, this includes the suite sun deck, Coastal Kitchen, the suites lounge,  "VIP seating" for shows and a special beach area on Labadee.  Should we plan on forgoing some of these benefits so that we can spend time with our friends?  If the suite part of the sun deck is not crowded, is it strictly forbidden to invite non-suite guest? what about the suites area on Labadee?  or seating for the shows (I would feel snobbish if I abandoned them to go sit with the "Suite People", but many of the shows are accepting no more reservations)?  Are there any of these benefits that we can invite guests to "tag along" with us? 

 

How have others handled a situation where some of your party has sky suite benefits and some do not?

[Jimbo]

Your in a bad spot bud. Good Luck with whatever way it turns out. Something tells me you may giving up alot of the "Suite Life"you were looking forward to.

 

Edited March 1, 2020 by Jimbo

[molly361]

I believe that you "may" be able to have your friends join you for dinner in CK, not sure if every night.  Other than that they are not allowed in any of the other suite areas that you mentioned.  Just spend time with them in areas that are open to all.  Problem solved

[jk04]

If you book a cabana in Labadee, your friends can join. We had a suite cabana and DH’s sister and bil were allowed to join us. It was a very nice and relaxing day. 
 

Is the Sky Suite Star class?  You can always talk to you Genie

Edited March 1, 2020 by jk04

[bobmacliberty]

Shows should not be a big problem as I think you can do as well with general seating if you get there early.  We really enjoy the SL and CK so that would be a sacrifice for us...one I'd be willing to make for good friends but tougher call for someone that I haven't yet met. 😁

[MaryL31]

We were in a JS and friends were in a GS on Anthem in November  We ate dinner together in CK.  My friend was told by someone (may have been a concierge; not sure which ship or when) that we may be able to join them for breakfast or lunch in CK.  The maitre' d at CK would not allow it. 

[jalves]

Could you talk to the other couple without your wife hearing and suggest they book a suite (GS or higher) for the cruise?  Ask them to keep it a secret from your wife.  

[molly361]

10 minutes ago, jalves said:

Could you talk to the other couple without your wife hearing and suggest they book a suite (GS or higher) for the cruise?  Ask them to keep it a secret from your wife.  

There you go problem solved

[gerif]

Sticky situation. I wouldn’t worry about the suite area in the theater or pool deck and just sit with the general population (no guests allowed for either). You can probably have dinner guests in CK but definitely not in the suite lounge (where you would be served free drinks) or the suite beach area on Labadee. This could be embarrassing for your wife if she was planning to spend much time with this couple. I know I would feel awkward if I hadn’t explained to my friend upfront that I would be entitled to amenities to which she was not. 

[parrotfeathers]

Aren't you the very kind husband!!!  We know your wife is at least 51 because surely she was at least 15 when you got married and your've been married 36 years....

 

I would tell the husband if the other couple and maybe he could go for a GS.

[papaflamingo]

The biggest "sacrifice" will be the Suite Lounge and Labadee.  As for shows, remember you can sit anywhere you want, you simply walk up and show your sea pass and they wave you in.  So you can go in early and get seats for your friends (I didn't at all just suggest saving seats).  Also they release the suite seats in the shows 10 minutes prior to showtime, so if they aren't full, your friends can join you there.  

As for the suite deck, well yeah, you may need to sacrifice that.  Guess it depends if you are sunbathers or not. 

But keep THIS in mind. YOU get FULL ROOM SERVICE.  So you can invite your friends to your beautiful suite for dinner or breakfast and really wow them.  Just ask your Genie about this.  

I also believe you get unlimited specialty dining with Star Class.  So you can certainly enjoy that with your friends especially if they get the unlimited dining package. 

But the best suggestion is to see if your friends will upgrade to a Grand Suite or better.  Then you all can enjoy most of these benefits. 

Edited March 2, 2020 by papaflamingo

[gerif]

24 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

The biggest "sacrifice" will be the Suite Lounge and Labadee.  As for shows, remember you can sit anywhere you want, you simply walk up and show your sea pass and they wave you in.  So you can go in early and get seats for your friends (I didn't at all just suggest saving seats).  Also they release the suite seats in the shows 10 minutes prior to showtime, so if they aren't full, your friends can join you there.  

As for the suite deck, well yeah, you may need to sacrifice that.  Guess it depends if you are sunbathers or not. 

But keep THIS in mind. YOU get FULL ROOM SERVICE.  So you can invite your friends to your beautiful suite for dinner or breakfast and really wow them.  Just ask your Genie about this.  

I also believe you get unlimited specialty dining with Star Class.  So you can certainly enjoy that with your friends especially if they get the unlimited dining package. 

But the best suggestion is to see if your friends will upgrade to a Grand Suite or better.  Then you all can enjoy most of these benefits. 

They have Sky Class not Star. Big difference. Why would anyone want to potentially humiliate friends into asking them to book a suite when their budget might only cover an ocean view?

[papaflamingo]

29 minutes ago, gerif said:

They have Sky Class not Star. Big difference. Why would anyone want to potentially humiliate friends into asking them to book a suite when their budget might only cover an ocean view?

Sorry, I thought they said Star Class.  I see now they said "sky suite."   And it's not humiliating.  They are paying a lot of money (or maybe not) to have all the benefits.  Their friends may not even know they're in a suite.  In fact the OP says it's a secret.  How do you know that the friends can "only cover an ocean view?"  Where was that even mentioned?  We've booked GS's and our friend were in JS's or balconies.  We enjoyed our benefits, we paid for them.  We're good friends, they knew and opted not to upgrade.  No one was humiliated.  

Edited March 2, 2020 by papaflamingo

[Bradison]

This has been a limiting factor when travelling with family in the past.  No real good solution other than to save money by not booking a full suite.

[jk04]

35 minutes ago, papaflamingo said:

Sorry, I thought they said Star Class.  I see now they said "sky suite."

Sorry, that was my fault.  I saw Sky Suite and thought he meant the Sky Loft suite.  Not the Sky benefits, my bad....

[mariefisher]

What a wonderful birthday present! We went on a cruise with 4 other  couples and 2 of us had Sky Lofts and 2 had balcony rooms. This was never a problem. The suite section for the shows we never used. We just went a little early and waited in line and always got seats together. CC welcomed them and every evening we went there and enjoyed a few drinks at the bar and no one was turned away. We never ate dinner there but inquired on our first day and were told they could join us there for dinner if we made a reservation. 
One evening the guys wanted to watch football in our room so we ordered room service and had a great time. We only used the Sun Deck in the evening because of the hot tub. And since we were the only ones there it was not a problem. We did not go to Labadee so I can’t help with that. 
 I think to ask someone to get a GS is not appropriate. It doesn’t sound like you are best friends and you may put them in an awkward situation. Don’t let this ruin a great gift you have given to your wife. I am sure you will be able to enjoy their company and enjoy the beautiful room you have. Have a wonderful time! 

[papaflamingo]

9 hours ago, jk04 said:

Sorry, that was my fault.  I saw Sky Suite and thought he meant the Sky Loft suite.  Not the Sky benefits, my bad....

Me too.  

[papaflamingo]

9 hours ago, mariefisher said:

 I think to ask someone to get a GS is not appropriate. It doesn’t sound like you are best friends and you may put them in an awkward situation. 

You, and others, are missing the point. I would never say "hey, we have a cool suite with lots of benefits, why don't you get one too."  Come on.  No one said that.  But at this point, according to the OP, the friends and the wife don't KNOW that they are in a suite, they think they're in a balcony.  The suggestion was reasonable.  Of course the OP probably knows the situation the friends are in.  Maybe they would want a suite, maybe not.  There might not even be one available.  But when we cruise with friends, we don't get anything more than a Junior Suite (except twice on small ships where there were no real benefits other than room service and room size).  But if our friends get a suite, we get one too.  So how about this scenario...suppose the friends booked a balcony because they think the OP is in a balcony, but would rather go in a suite.  Come on.  It was just a suggestion.  No one was suggesting they be insensitive or rude. 

[Scoobydobe7]

What kind/category suite did you get with the Royal Up bid??

Thanks

[crkdad]

16 minutes ago, Scoobydobe7 said:

What kind/category suite did you get with the Royal Up bid??

Thanks

 

We got an Owners Suite which comes with Sky category amenities.

[shopaholic6]

21 hours ago, crkdad said:

I decided to celebrate a milestone birthday for my wife (don't ask which milestone) by taking her on a cruise on the Oasis.  We enjoy travelling with friends, but also enjoy travelling with each other.  (Actually, I can only speak for me.  While I am an old boring accountant, after 36 years of marriage, I never tire of HER company). We told our friends about our cruise in case they were interested in cruising and celebrating her birthday with us.  Since we decided somewhat last minute (last minute for a cruise) and most of our friends are working, no one had the flexibility to join us. 

 

We typically like to cruise in a balcony cabin.  For us, it is the right mix of cost and benefits and typically at a price point that we are comfortable with.  I received a RoyalUp email a couple of weeks ago and, unbeknownst to my wife, I decided to bid on a Sky Class suite.  As justification, I told myself that my wife will only turn ?? once and I think she is worth it (yes, the irony does not escape me that I, too, will share in the benefits of a suite. but that is my story and I am sticking to it).  However, being the frugal accountant that I am, I only bid a low amount.  According to the needle scale, my bid had an extremely low chance of being accepted.  After submitting the bid, I thought nothing more about it.   Low and behold, my bid was accepted, but I decided to keep it secret from my wife until we got closer to the trip or ideally, when we boarded.  I am terrible at keeping anything from my wife.  She frequently knows what I am thinking before I think it, so the latter was unlikely to happen.   

 

As our trip approached, my wife talked about our cruise with more of her friends.  One of her friends decided that it sounded fun and decided that she and her husband would to join us on the cruise.  (for those of you that have not been married as long as I have, you know you did good if your wife talks about it like that to her friends.... pats self on the back..).   I do not know her friend's husband, but I am looking forward to meeting someone new and sharing the cruise experience with another couple.   When we travel with other couples, we do not expect to spend every minute with them, but typically enjoy spending part of a sea day, some meals and seeing shows together. 

 

So, here is our first world problem.  We have Sky suite benefits and they do not.  On the Oasis, this includes the suite sun deck, Coastal Kitchen, the suites lounge,  "VIP seating" for shows and a special beach area on Labadee.  Should we plan on forgoing some of these benefits so that we can spend time with our friends?  If the suite part of the sun deck is not crowded, is it strictly forbidden to invite non-suite guest? what about the suites area on Labadee?  or seating for the shows (I would feel snobbish if I abandoned them to go sit with the "Suite People", but many of the shows are accepting no more reservations)?  Are there any of these benefits that we can invite guests to "tag along" with us? 

 

How have others handled a situation where some of your party has sky suite benefits and some do not?

You sound like a very lovely husband 😊😊

[Milwaukee Eight]

16 hours ago, gerif said:

They have Sky Class not Star. Big difference. Why would anyone want to potentially humiliate friends into asking them to book a suite when their budget might only cover an ocean view?

That didn’t take long. 

[Scoobydobe7]

20 minutes ago, crkdad said:

 

We got an Owners Suite which comes with Sky category amenities.

Congrat's... I am on Oasis end of August.. Hoping your good luck rubs off...ENJOY!!!!

[crkdad]

3 minutes ago, Scoobydobe7 said:

Congrat's... I am on Oasis end of August.. Hoping your good luck rubs off...ENJOY!!!!

 

I saw a movie once that if you click your heals while wearing red shoes and state "there is no place like home," your wishes are granted.  Dunno if it works, but it worked in the movie:)

[ownedbypets]

We are in a suite later this year and our friends are not. We told them that we would include them when we can but sometimes won't be able to be together. They understand.