How to get "in the loop"

[joeinsb]

After many phone calls to Celebrity in Miami, we finally got ourselves booked on the new and improved Century for a cruise in March 2007. We had heard a lot about this refit. We also wanted to try a back-to-back-to-back cruise, which we thought would be easy to do, since the ship hasn't sailed yet. Alas, we found out that it ain't as easy as it looks. Because we wanted a Concierge Class cabin that we could stay in for the duration, located on a specific deck, up high, midship and with no connecting door, we were astonished to learn that even at this early date, we couldn't get our first choice. We finally settled on a 4-day and a 5-day a week after our desired sailaway date.

 

So here's my question: how do people find out about "new" ships so quickly--early enough so that they book up all the rooms? February 2007 on Century is sold out, we're told.

 

How do we get in the loop?

[ocngypz]

What dates did you pick? Many agencies have group space blocked?

[TEXASMUNK]

Your first response is the answer!

 

TA's block space immediately. It is how they can offer special pricing, it is how they compete in the marketplace.

 

We all read about how some folks do it all themselves, do it direct, etc.

Well, there are times to "never say never" One needs to explore all options.

[Spender Nui]

I thought Celebrity no longer would let agents take blocks of space.

[hajekfam]

The early (Jan - April) 2007 schedule has been out for some time - since early last summer. In fact people are waiting for May 07-April 08 schedule to come out.

In order to be sure of booking the same cabin for a back to back or even getting a preferred cabin, you need to book early. We have booked our past two transatlantics the day bookings opened - booking direct with Celebrity so that we could get the cabin we wanted and then transferring the booking to our TA.

[chessbriar]

The early (Jan - April) 2007 schedule has been out for some time - since early last summer. In fact people are waiting for May 07-April 08 schedule to come out.

In order to be sure of booking the same cabin for a back to back or even getting a preferred cabin, you need to book early. We have booked our past two transatlantics the day bookings opened - booking direct with Celebrity so that we could get the cabin we wanted and then transferring the booking to our TA.

 

Hajekfam has nailed it on this one. With the itineray being out for nearly a year now and cruises booking fast especially when you get the best rates by booking early, it makes it tough when you have a special request such as a certain room or trying to find one open for b2b cruises.

 

As for tas blocking up cabins, they now limit how long tas can put them on hold.

[K&RCurt]

We booked one of the soon to be added veranda cabins on the Century back in August. There were several threads here regarding the plans for the upgrade and I kept an eye on the Celebrity web site to see when they would start booking dates after the refit.

[joeinsb]

Jeez Louise! Now I know why we are out of the loop. So tell me, when should we hear/see something on Solstice? More important, when can we book our cabin?

 

BTW, so far, we have a back-to-back (but not a back-to-back-to-back, as we originally requested) a bit after the date we wanted--around March 1, 2007. Celebrity said they would let us know if something opened up (those darn TA-held cabins, presumably). We're OK with 9 days, but our 14-day plan would have been better. We'll see...

[hajekfam]

I check Celebrity's website weekly come March - and even daily if schedules aren't out by June. I also check with this board daily, usually someone here knows ahead of my TA what is going on - especially when there are problems. Somebody will post a notice of the new schedules available and I rush right to the Celebrity website and book.

[chessbriar]

The Solstice itineraries won't be out until the spring of 2007.

[dmk]

I booked a B2B on the new Century last summer for Jan. 2007 as soon as it came out. I just keep checking the Celeb site and take heed from the wonderful people here who are in the know and share the neww schedules before it comes out.:D

[Andy]

Hi Everyone !

 

I can relate to all of this. I tried booking a B2B on Century for Feb '07. While I did get the dates I wanted, I was not able to get the same 2 cabins for both sailings. While its not horrible, I am sure most of us would rather not change cabins.

 

From what I am reading here, it looks like the shorter sailings are doing quite well. I will say that I am somewhat surprised at their success. I still feel that Century was the wrong ship for this assignment. I feel that after all the $$$ that is being put into her, she is being wasted on shorter sailings.

 

I would have rather seen Zenith continue to do this itinerary in 2006/2007, or perhaps Mercury or Galaxy, before they are updated. It would have made more sense to let a ship do shorter sailings before it is updated, instead of a ship that has just had a ton of money put into it. Just my .02 cents though.

 

While it appears the shorter sailings may be around for a while, I do hope another Celebrity ship will be doing it for the 2007/2008 season.

[joeinsb]

Hey now, Andy! Don't go ruining it for me. I like to try new (or new to me) ships and after sailing on Infinity to Alaska last summer, and being booked on LA to San Juan this November, I'll have all the MISC (Millenium, Infinty, Summit, Constellation) ships I can handle for a while. That's why I wanna go on Century. So don't go givin' Celebrity no ideas.:)

 

This morning my wife and I--discussing our mid-summer 2007 cruise--both agreed that if you are a Celebrity frequent cruiser, as many of you are, you have an inside track. When we sailed to Alaska last year, I picked up a Xerox-coppied schedule that went out for well over a year. Maybe two, I don't remember. So you would have known what was sailing where and when, pretty early in the game. I'm just sayin'...