Are ships back to "full"?

[Bruin Steve]

I always check the website often after booking.  First, to see if opportunity exists to upgrade or to get a price drop...but, second, out of curiosity to see how close we may be to being "sold out".

 

We are sailing a week from today on Navigator of the Seas--Monday, June 27--4 nights to Baja, round trip from Los Angeles.

 

Curiosly, after sailing on near-empty ships on our first four post-pandemic cruises, this one MAY be close to sold out.  Right now, the website is showing zero availability on all categories other than promenade view --and they, somehow, have 29 of those left showing as available.  They are also selling "guarantees" on interiors and "virtual" interiors--I suppose if none of those open up, they'll assign those people a promenade view and call it an upgrade--which it probably is.  I also assume they MAY still be holding a few guarantees yet to be assigned.  And they may sell some very last minute cruises...or give them away just to have someone--RCCL employee, travel industry professional, big gambler, etc. just to have someone onboard generating revenue.

 

Of course, there are a few possibilities for this cruise being less than full:

1)  They may have more last minute drop-outs than usual due to positive Covid tests.

2)  They may be holding cabins or a section of cabins for emergency quarantine use.

3)  They may have made a secret decision to sail less than full to appear to be supporting "social distancing".

 

In any event, it, at least, appears like a fairly full ship.

 

Has anyone been on one of these very recently that can confirm whether or not the ship is actually sailing full? 

[OCSC Mike]

17 minutes ago, Bruin Steve said:

Has anyone been on one of these very recently that can confirm whether or not the ship is actually sailing full? 

 

Many/most are close enough to full you might as well consider them full.

[Ourusualbeach]

Varies by ship.

 

Ovation in Alaska in July is almost sold out while Voyager in Europe is not even half full

[molly361]

A lot seem to be as full as they can be yet still keeping some covid cabins open

[sdrocks]

We just got off Symphony the 18th and it was at max capacity.  We don't normally like to cruise in the summer but we took family with school age children and this was their preference.  It was pretty crowded especially at the pool on sea days.  All of this was not unexpected for a summer cruise, but I will not cruise again in summer or school vacations.  It was a madhouse everywhere.  I normally don't go to the pool on sea days but because our family was there I went.  Way, way too crowded for me. Ugh.

But being with family was fun.

[Tatka]

We sailed on Oasis May 29th. Initial capacity was projected 90%. Even with people cancelled due to failed Covid test there was 5800+ people.

[topnole]

They are probably near as full as they used to be pre Covid.  Or at least close enough for it to matter to the average person worried about crowds.  So yes, on most ships and itineraries expect they will be near full.  There will be exceptions here and there.   

[taglovestocruise]

Our son sailed Navigator two weeks ago.  Weekend cruises were at 100%, Mid week cruises were At 75%. Only the bottom two MDR decks were being used.  Early seating was very full, late traditional was pretty empty.  All Shows and lounges were open. A bartender told him the midweek cruises would be close to 100% as schools went into summer break. 

[Corby114]

I sailed on the Adventure Of The Seas five day sailing to Bermuda from Cape Liberty on June 9th. The ship sailed at approximately ninety five percent capacity. I was told by various crew members that they were short help and short on some items. During the five day sailing they either ran out or had limited inventory of orange juice and lemonade. The first day at the Pool Bar I asked a bar waiter for a glass of Pinot Grigio for my wife. He told me that they had absolutely no white wine available at that location because they had no one available to go down to storage to get it. Hours later I went to the Solarium Bar  for an Absolute Screwdriver. When he started to make the drink he pointed to either Gray Goose or Belvedere Vodka. I settled for the Gray Goose. One night we went up to the Viking Crown and spoke with a female bar steward. She told me she worked for the company for over twenty three years. She told me she had two more short cruises left before he contract ended in mid June. She told us that managers were begging her to extend her contract for a minimum of ten more weeks because they were so shorthanded. She told them no and stated that she was considering it was time to retire.

[smokeybandit]

6 minutes ago, topnole said:

They are probably near as full as they used to be pre Covid.

We're not there yet but pretty close.   They won't be able to get back to pre-covid levels until they no longer have to set aside covid jail rooms

[topnole]

Just now, smokeybandit said:

We're not there yet but pretty close.   They won't be able to get back to pre-covid levels until they no longer have to set aside covid jail rooms

Yea.  But I don’t think you can tell by the crowds.  Our last cruise felt totally normal based on crows.  Big lines, packed pools, no towels even available by the pool, etc.  The difference between 5600 and 5100 on oasis class isn’t going to be noticed imo.  They will both feel pretty crowded.  

[karena1]

Love that they are back to almost full capacity!!!! About time!!!! We neve have problems getting a lounger at the pool b/c we are out there by 7:30 am and sit there all day.  I do not feel sorry for  people in the least that get out there at noon and think they are going to get a lounger right by the pool.  We love people watching and have a great time on pool days just chilling out and watching the world go by. 

[renza]

15 minutes ago, karena1 said:

Love that they are back to almost full capacity!!!! About time!!!! We neve have problems getting a lounger at the pool b/c we are out there by 7:30 am and sit there all day.  I do not feel sorry for  people in the least that get out there at noon and think they are going to get a lounger right by the pool.  We love people watching and have a great time on pool days just chilling out and watching the world go by. 

Totally full in the days before Covid was ok. Now it’s another story, full but not enough staff  is not like it was. 

[karena1]

11 minutes ago, renza said:

Totally full in the days before Covid was ok. Now it’s another story, full but not enough staff  is not like it was. 

I agree, but patience is a virtue!  Do you get the same service at home when every restaurant under the sun is looking for help?  Or stores, or bars, etc.  EVERYONE is trying to find help.  I just believe in the positive (I get to cruise again!!!!) than the negative.

[Ashland]

2 hours ago, Bruin Steve said:

I always check the website often after booking.  First, to see if opportunity exists to upgrade or to get a price drop...but, second, out of curiosity to see how close we may be to being "sold out".

 

We are sailing a week from today on Navigator of the Seas--Monday, June 27--4 nights to Baja, round trip from Los Angeles.

 

Curiosly, after sailing on near-empty ships on our first four post-pandemic cruises, this one MAY be close to sold out.  Right now, the website is showing zero availability on all categories other than promenade view --and they, somehow, have 29 of those left showing as available.  They are also selling "guarantees" on interiors and "virtual" interiors--I suppose if none of those open up, they'll assign those people a promenade view and call it an upgrade--which it probably is.  I also assume they MAY still be holding a few guarantees yet to be assigned.  And they may sell some very last minute cruises...or give them away just to have someone--RCCL employee, travel industry professional, big gambler, etc. just to have someone onboard generating revenue.

 

Of course, there are a few possibilities for this cruise being less than full:

1)  They may have more last minute drop-outs than usual due to positive Covid tests.

2)  They may be holding cabins or a section of cabins for emergency quarantine use.

3)  They may have made a secret decision to sail less than full to appear to be supporting "social distancing".

 

In any event, it, at least, appears like a fairly full ship.

 

Has anyone been on one of these very recently that can confirm whether or not the ship is actually sailing full? 

Enjoy Navigator....We did a 7 nighter in January and there were 1100 onboard...We'll never see that again but am very happy and hoping RCI keeps her here. We'll be on her again Jan 2023

[grandgeezer]

3 minutes ago, karena1 said:

I agree, but patience is a virtue!  Do you get the same service at home when every restaurant under the sun is looking for help?  Or stores, or bars, etc.  EVERYONE is trying to find help.  I just believe in the positive (I get to cruise again!!!!) than the negative.

In some cases yes. These are the ones that truly care about their customers and only allow in the number of guests they can serve promptly. The ones that have the same mindset as the cruise lines, pack them in do what you can, are the ones we avoid like the plague.

[karena1]

4 minutes ago, grandgeezer said:

In some cases yes. These are the ones that truly care about their customers and only allow in the number of guests they can serve promptly. The ones that have the same mindset as the cruise lines, pack them in do what you can, are the ones we avoid like the plague.

I agree to disagree.  We just went to a restaurant here in town and it took 20 minutes to get a waiter and another 20 to just get a drink.  So it is all over the place.  Royal is doing their best.  It will get better.  Been on 9 cruises since startup and we have not been disappointed, but we understand the issues and work with it. 

[F27TW]

Full passengers? Yes.    Full staff .. definitely not.   

 

Another reason I'm waiting at least another year to book our next cruise.   Too many bad stories about crap service due to understaffing, the BS about the covid testing, etc.   It's just too soon (for me, anyway).

[time4u2go]

1 hour ago, grandgeezer said:

In some cases yes. These are the ones that truly care about their customers and only allow in the number of guests they can serve promptly. The ones that have the same mindset as the cruise lines, pack them in do what you can, are the ones we avoid like the plague.

Agreed.  I've noticed empty tables at restaurants because the restaurant cares enough to not stuff people inside only to have them wait a long time for service.  The cruise lines continue to just pack them in, regardless of the level of service.

 

Edited June 20, 2022 by time4u2go

[MississippiMom]

19 hours ago, F27TW said:

Full passengers? Yes.    Full staff .. definitely not.   

 

Another reason I'm waiting at least another year to book our next cruise.   Too many bad stories about crap service due to understaffing, the BS about the covid testing, etc.   It's just too soon (for me, anyway).

It is your vacation time and your vacation dollars, so if you aren't ready to cruise, it is understandable.

 

We just got off of Mariner on Saturday.  There were 11 of us in five cabins.  (There would have been 13 of us in six cabins, but one married couple had to stay home due to one testing covid positive.)  We enjoyed our time together, making great vacation memories.  But . . . 

 

The ship felt full. I never heard the total passenger count, but I did hear the cruise director say there were 700 children on board.  There was one 6 year old in our group, who got turned away on three different occasions, because the kids club was full.  (I do not have young children, so I have no idea if that is a common occurrence or a staffing issue.)  

 

Cafe Promenade and the adjacent coffee counter were never staffed sufficiently, and the lines were crazy, no matter what time of day or night you wanted something from there.  They did a good job of quickly cleaning up the tables in that area, though.

 

Johnny Rockets was a HUGE cluster, and I do plan on writing to RCCL to complain.  I didn't mind the surcharge, although it was annoying that the RCCL app said it was $11.95, but we were each charged $14.95.  We went in on a Sea Day and spent almost two hours in our outdoor booth, due to slow service and incorrect food being delivered.  I think there were only two servers for the entire restaurant, and I have to assume no more than two cooks.

 

I expected (walking around) drink service in the large Star Lounge and the even larger Royal Theater, but we had to walk up to the respective bars to get our drinks.  Not a huge ordeal, but not what I have experienced in the past on other cruise lines.

 

The dining room service was fantastic, both for dinner and breakfast.  Staffing seemed to be fine there.

 

Every staff member was polite and helpful, even if they might have been overworked.

[BND]

23 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Varies by ship.

 

Ovation in Alaska in July is almost sold out while Voyager in Europe is not even half full

Isn't it more common to not sail at 100% on European sailings anyway?  

 

Ships out of Baltimore have always sold out (prior to Covid) and currently our Bermuda sailing on EN hasn't had balcony or suites available for a while and not many inside or OV left.  NJ is the same way usually.  

Edited June 21, 2022 by BND

[Ourusualbeach]

4 minutes ago, BND said:

Isn't it more common to not sail at 100% on European sailings anyway?  

 

Ships out of Baltimore have always sold out (prior to Covid) and currently our Bermuda sailing on EN hasn't had balcony or suites available for a while and not many inside or OV left.  NJ is the same way usually.  

It's very much itinerary dependant. 

[barbeyg]

23 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Varies by ship.

 

Ovation in Alaska in July is almost sold out while Voyager in Europe is not even half full

I think there is a hesitation by some of us Americans to travel to Europe with Covid lingering.  We considered a European cruise this year, but decided that long flights where we could pick up Covid, then possibly test positive before a European cruise, etc. kept us from doing it this year.

 

Of course, instead we flew to Seattle, took an AK cruise, and came home with Covid. 🙃

[BirdTravels]

Our cruise on the Quantum a couple of weeks ago had 4095 passengers (the ship's double occupancy capacity is 4180). It was plenty full. 

[CGinMTL]

On 6/20/2022 at 2:31 PM, Corby114 said:

I sailed on the Adventure Of The Seas five day sailing to Bermuda from Cape Liberty on June 9th. The ship sailed at approximately ninety five percent capacity. I was told by various crew members that they were short help and short on some items. During the five day sailing they either ran out or had limited inventory of orange juice and lemonade. The first day at the Pool Bar I asked a bar waiter for a glass of Pinot Grigio for my wife. He told me that they had absolutely no white wine available at that location because they had no one available to go down to storage to get it. Hours later I went to the Solarium Bar  for an Absolute Screwdriver. When he started to make the drink he pointed to either Gray Goose or Belvedere Vodka. I settled for the Gray Goose. One night we went up to the Viking Crown and spoke with a female bar steward. She told me she worked for the company for over twenty three years. She told me she had two more short cruises left before he contract ended in mid June. She told us that managers were begging her to extend her contract for a minimum of ten more weeks because they were so shorthanded. She told them no and stated that she was considering it was time to retire.

I was on adventure for b3b ( June 4 th to 18,)

I agree. I realize that I am not ready for these crowds .

The last 4 day cruise, my patience was running low.