Organizing a Family Reunion Cruise

[punkyhunky]

HI!

 

Looking to organize a Family Reunion cruise in 2025. Anyone have done this before? We are looking at about 50-70 people coming from the US, Canada and South America. Do you do this through the cruise line? Or find a online travel agent? Any tips would be appreciated. 

[Toddcan]

1. Stock up on Advil and hypertension meds during the planning phases of the cruise

2. Don't over plan everyone's time.  Most of the day should be "free"

3. I'd recommend a Travel Agent for this many cabins, or call the cruise line directly. You cannot book that many cabins yourself. 

[smokeybandit]

I recommend booking a solo cruise after the reunion cruise just so you can regain your sanity

[toxicfairy]

51 minutes ago, punkyhunky said:

HI!

 

Looking to organize a Family Reunion cruise in 2025. Anyone have done this before? We are looking at about 50-70 people coming from the US, Canada and South America. Do you do this through the cruise line? Or find a online travel agent? Any tips would be appreciated. 

I would defuse a travel agent and I'm not a fan of them lol. They may be able to get you group discount plus extras. Also much easier for them to link everything that needs to be linked. 

Just my humble opinion 

[firefly333]

1 hour ago, toxicfairy said:

I would defuse a travel agent and I'm not a fan of them lol. They may be able to get you group discount plus extras. Also much easier for them to link everything that needs to be linked. 

Just my humble opinion 

Defuse a TA? 

 

I agree no way would I not use one for this many people. Group rates are refundable and I can guarantee someone will need to cancel and let the TA deal it. Dont have people mad at you. 

[kitkat343]

3 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Defuse a TA? 

 

I agree no way would I not use one for this many people. Group rates are refundable and I can guarantee someone will need to cancel and let the TA deal it. Dont have people mad at you. 

This. absolutely this.

 

Also, I have no experience with this many people (just grandparents) and we picked what we wanted to do that was appropriate for our kids. The grandparents were welcome to join us on our private tour, or they picked a tour with the cruise line.

[loman]

For me , something like this would be torturous . Relatives are overrated in my opinion.

I would say yes, and then come up with an excuse not to go.🤣

[toxicfairy]

16 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Defuse a TA? 

 

I agree no way would I not use one for this many people. Group rates are refundable and I can guarantee someone will need to cancel and let the TA deal it. Dont have people mad at you. 

Lol auto correct...definitely use! 

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

OH MY GOODNESS YES, this is a job for a TA!!

 

You specifically mentioned online TAs, which I don't think is inherently a bad idea, but I would steer clear of the "big box" companies. You want personalized service for something like that. Most cities of reasonable size still have brick-and-mortar travel agencies, or you could find someone online who is self-employed--something along those lines. If I were involved in planning something like this, I would definitely want a TA on my side who is readily available and responsive. 

[RedSails1968]

17 hours ago, loman said:

For me , something like this would be torturous . Relatives are overrated in my opinion.

I would say yes, and then come up with an excuse not to go.🤣

We did it once and never again. My husband’s sister accused us of spending more time with my side of the family and wouldn’t talk to us for the rest of the cruise. My poor mother-in-law was stuck in the middle. 

[steveru621]

Pick a cruise and date, and stick to it.  Otherwise, you are going to get 35 opinions and nothing will happen.

[Krazyfuntimes]

I would Strongly encourage you to use a travel agent. There are specialist with Royal cruises or just cruises in general. It takes someone who is familiar with cruises and groups to make sure it is booked correctly. You also need to book pretty far in advance to get the best rates. When booking more than 8 cabins (and every group of 8 cabins there after) you get perks or amounts to even equal free cabins. You will also need all legal names, DOB's, special food allergies, location they prefer on the ship (and more important can everyone agree on a ship, with varied ages, I would say do an Oasis or Quantum class ship). Once you have all that information, you should be good to go. They can create the booking, while waiting for down payment. Typically up to 5 days after you have held the booking.If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me.

[bundtkate]

I used a TA for just 10 family members going on a cruise together, because I knew if I didn't have a TA, I would end up being everyone's TA and I do not need a second job I don't get paid for. Since then, my mom has my same TA booking another family cruise for us. Despite this, I still get emails from my aunt who doesn't drink worried my mom (who also doesn't drink) is going to want a drink package and force her to pay for one since they're rooming together. I've also explained to a cousin a million times that no, that 10% off for chef's table is not an amazing deal and it isn't actually ending tomorrow. It's been that price since we booked. Let a TA get paid by the cruise line to deal with the nonsense, otherwise you're going to be doing it because, "well, you're the expert ..."

Maybe you choose a few cruises and ask everyone to rank them from 1 (first choice) to whatever and choose whichever gets the lowest score (because 1 is good in this case). I used a Google form for this so all the data was in one place. Once you know what cruise you want, email a TA and let them know what you'd like to book. Give them a high estimate of number of people so they can hold a block for you. Finally, email everyone who expressed interest and let them know to contact the TA to book and that's it. Wash your hands of the whole thing, reply to any future questions from family directing them to the TA, and let the TA take it from there.

[tw0sugar5]

My family is doing one next year.  I wish my cousin chose a different ship, itinerary, or both.  He went with a TA.

[loman]

10 hours ago, tw0sugar5 said:

My family is doing one next year.  I wish my cousin chose a different ship, itinerary, or both.  He went with a TA.

You cant please all of the people all of the time , thats why we go ourselves.🙂

[steveru621]

On 10/6/2023 at 2:09 PM, punkyhunky said:

HI!

 

Looking to organize a Family Reunion cruise in 2025. Anyone have done this before? We are looking at about 50-70 people coming from the US, Canada and South America. Do you do this through the cruise line? Or find a online travel agent? Any tips would be appreciated. 

 

1. Find a TA that has group rates and suggest everyone use them to get the group discounts.

2. Do not try to get your cabins in the same area.  I know it sounds good, but it does not make any difference.  Plus pricing may be an issue.

3. You can not eat dinner at the same table and do not try to control who is together at one table.  Maximum table size is 10-12.  Even if your reservations are linked, do not assume the MDR has the links.

4. Let everyone book their own excursions.  Don't try to control their day.

5. If you really get 70 passengers, try to get your own meeting area.  You will not get 50-70 seats in any bar venue.

6. Publish a list of everyone's cabin #.

7. Suggest everyone fly in the day before and stay at the same hotel.

8. Make sure everyone has the proper documents.  (a passport and, if necessary, visas)

9. A good place for a family reunion picnic would be to book a cruise with COCOCAY as a stop.

10. Christmas and Thanksgiving cruises are very expensive.  As I posted earlier, pick a ship and date and stick to it.  If there are children book Quantum or Oasis class.

[SoloAlaska]

Make sure the TA can process everyone’s credit cards. Sometimes US companies can’t take my credit card because I have a Canadian address for example. You’ll probably be coordinating a lot of things with the cruise line including private events etc so hopefully the TA can do all the legwork for you.

[crawford]

On 10/8/2023 at 11:01 AM, steveru621 said:

 

1. Find a TA that has group rates and suggest everyone use them to get the group discounts.

2. Do not try to get your cabins in the same area.  I know it sounds good, but it does not make any difference.  Plus pricing may be an issue.

3. You can not eat dinner at the same table and do not try to control who is together at one table.  Maximum table size is 10-12.  Even if your reservations are linked, do not assume the MDR has the links.

4. Let everyone book their own excursions.  Don't try to control their day.

5. If you really get 70 passengers, try to get your own meeting area.  You will not get 50-70 seats in any bar venue.

6. Publish a list of everyone's cabin #.

7. Suggest everyone fly in the day before and stay at the same hotel.

8. Make sure everyone has the proper documents.  (a passport and, if necessary, visas)

9. A good place for a family reunion picnic would be to book a cruise with COCOCAY as a stop.

10. Christmas and Thanksgiving cruises are very expensive.  As I posted earlier, pick a ship and date and stick to it.  If there are children book Quantum or Oasis class.

I have never cruised with RCCL. We are looking at getting around 50 (ages 2-85) for our reunion next year. As a result, any help here would be greatly appreciated!

1.) Not sure how easy it is to find a TA who specializes in groups. Does this make a difference vs any TA?

2.) I am thinking that we will need 15-20 cabins. I can go on the website for approximate costs but am unsure what perks (i.e. free cabins, OBC's) will be available to obtain realistic pricing. 

3.) Will Royal set aside a meeting space for at least for a meet and greet on embarkation day? 

How about other days on a 5-7 night cruise?

I have no issues doing the legwork. Knowing the family from past experiences (hotel reunion), it will likely fall on me.

Thanks

 

[Biker19]

23 minutes ago, crawford said:

3.) Will Royal set aside a meeting space for at least for a meet and greet on embarkation day? 

You'll need to arrange that.

Any competent RCI specialist TA would work for your reunion.

Cabin pricing is dynamic - the main perk for such a big group is a discount (of one basic fare) for any multiples of 8 cabins you book.

[crawford]

51 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

You'll need to arrange that.

Any competent RCI specialist TA would work for your reunion.

Cabin pricing is dynamic - the main perk for such a big group is a discount (of one basic fare) for any multiples of 8 cabins you book.

Thanks. I've done meet and greets on Princess for groups but have no experience with RCI.

 

Do you know if it's possible for me to set up a meeting space for an hour or so 2-3 times during a cruise?

 

 

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, crawford said:

Do you know if it's possible for me to set up a meeting space for an hour or so 2-3 times during a cruise?

That likely varies by ship/sailing, but there are some spaces which could be reserved.