Securing a Sanctuary Spot on Discovery

[Buckeye10640]

17 hours ago, Dar & Bob said:

Honestly, we have boarded a little before 11 and not been able to get one.

Yup.I was in the  Enchanted Sanctuay line before 11am. All booked or a 10 day cruise.But anytime I looked in during the cruise (as I spent time on 18)....lots of empty chairs!

[PescadoAmarillo]

On 12/9/2022 at 12:58 AM, Steelers36 said:

One time, even doing this, pickings with shade were slim and I couldn't really get what I wanted due to B2B'ers. 

Darn those rascals!  Best Sanctuary spots, best dining room tables. It’s almost like we need a warm up cruise before the real cruise. 
 

16 hours ago, donaldsc said:

If someone is ahead of you in the race to the sanctuary are you allowed to trip them to make them fall down thereby getting ahead of them.  How about pushing them down the stairs. 

If they’re in line ahead of you, just tell them their dog misses them SO MUCH and they’d better return home before the ship sails. 

[Steelers36]

17 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Darn those rascals!  Best Sanctuary spots, best dining room tables. It’s almost like we need a warm up cruise before the real cruise. 
 

 

Yes.  I do recall that being the case once when we tacked on a 5-nighter ahead of our 7-nighter.  It was NP getting chair space for the second leg, but almost nothing we wanted for the first leg.  (This was in Caribbean of course - the very toughest sector to secure space in).

[Steelers36]

20 hours ago, Dreamcruiser185 said:

This will be my first cruise with Princess in March.  We are booked on the Sky Princess,  I know B2B and preferred guests board first.  What are my chances for a cabana if my boarding time is 1 or 2 pm?

If it is one of the expensive cabanas you are after, then it should be much easier since they aren't as much in demand.  Are you able to arrive and board sooner (by that I mean based on where you are coming from and nothing to do with what it says in the App)?

[lx200gps]

1 hour ago, Steelers36 said:

If it is one of the expensive cabanas you are after, then it should be much easier since they aren't as much in demand.  Are you able to arrive and board sooner (by that I mean based on where you are coming from and nothing to do with what it says in the App)?

I would also have thought that they aren't in as high demand, based on previous experience. On the Sky a few weeks ago, we only had one day in the Sanctuary (it being a port-intensive itinerary) and the day we were there, the cabanas were at least 80% booked which is something we had never seen before. Admittedly though, if someone makes a big effort to board as early as possible, then they certainly would have a better chance of booking a cabana than one or two loungers.

[Buckeye10640]

22 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Yes.  I do recall that being the case once when we tacked on a 5-nighter ahead of our 7-nighter.  It was NP getting chair space for the second leg, but almost nothing we wanted for the first leg.  (This was in Caribbean of course - the very toughest sector to secure space in).

I have decided this is what I need to try.  2 B2B  5- night cruises. 

[shubsens]

We just got off Discovery 7Night and my wife rushed up on embarkation and all sea days were already gone (loungers) and was able to get one day in port however they were in the sun. If you want a Gazebo you can pretty well book those anytime as far as I could tell. Our room is underneath so I checked it out the days were were not doing excursions.

[Teeara]

On 12/10/2022 at 11:49 AM, Buckeye10640 said:

But anytime I looked in during the cruise (as I spent time on 18)....lots of empty chairs!

Must be nice to be able to drop $40 a day for a chair you aren't using.  

[RNRcruisers]

We have only done the Sanctuary once and it wasn't hard to get a seat so I was hoping for a few afternoons on our upcoming cruise. Sounds like I better lower my expectations. 😬 

[TheMichael]

On 1/19/2023 at 9:13 AM, RNRcruisers said:

We have only done the Sanctuary once and it wasn't hard to get a seat so I was hoping for a few afternoons on our upcoming cruise. Sounds like I better lower my expectations. 😬 

Afternoons seem more difficult, as it's warmer, people who are prone to frequent the Sanctuary likely value their morning sleep, and of course Afternoon Tea. Although we got on the ship by 11:30, my gf made the dreaded error of not getting her bearings and went aft instead of forward, and by the time she'd corrected the afternoons were already booked solid.

 

We did get in on a cancellation for one afternoon, though. I didn't think I'd want to pay $20 just for solitude, but remember that some people pay much bigger bucks to relax in the spa, and I do go out of my way to find beaches without other tourists. No kids, no chair hogs, no loud whatever-is-on-the-big-screen, no groups doing shots (sometimes a "feature" of the Retreat). Just a chair with your name (metaphorically) on it, pointed at the ocean, with ambient music and a less-busy hot tub. Only downside was that our fellow Sanctuarians all tripled up on scones at afternoon tea, making us lucky to get just one, and they're delicious. 

[rnr4thatsme]

On 12/8/2022 at 2:30 PM, lx200gps said:

We're regular Sanctuary users, most recently a few weeks ago on the Sky. As other have pointed out, you have to board early, among the very first, to have a chance of snagging decent loungers. We're Elite and try to check in as early as possible, so as to be among the very first to board once boarding starts. Keep in mind that there is a priority to boarding, with B2Bers first, then Elites and Suites, then Platinum etc. so there will be a lot of people ahead of you in the line. On the Sky a few weeks ago, we arrived very early, about 9 or 9:30, sat in the lounge until boarding started around 11, and were probably the fifth and sixth Elites to reach the Sanctuary, but the B2Bers had arrived well before any of us, and we had little selection to choose from.  The newer ships like the Sky and Discovery, have different Sanctuary layouts from the older ships, with more empty wasted space, hot tubs, sofas and expensive cabanas reducing the number of basic loungers. They also have far more loungers in full sun, which is a show-stopper for us, further reducing the number of decent loungers available.  Of course, sea days are far more popular than port days for Sanctuary booking.  Although it's far more expensive, you may want to consider a cabana; loungers are $40/pp/day so $80 per couple, while a cabana is $220 total and you should have a better chance of getting a cabana.

Is it $220 per person?   We are on a 4 day cruise on Discovery Princess.   And to confirm, there is no booking in advance?   Can we use onboard credit?   New to this cruise line, many thanks...

[lx200gps]

3 hours ago, rnr4thatsme said:

Is it $220 per person?   We are on a 4 day cruise on Discovery Princess.   And to confirm, there is no booking in advance?   Can we use onboard credit?   New to this cruise line, many thanks...

It's $220US for the cabana for the day (unless the price has gone up in the last few weeks). The simple loungers are per person, but the Cabana is for the whole space, the two associated loungers, the sofa, the TV etc.. As I understand it, it's also possible to get a cabana but share it with friends, as they can hold  more than two. No, there is no booking in advance, you can only board ASAP, I mean EARLY, then race upstairs and hope. AFAIK, you can use OBC, as they will charge the cabana to your room, so you can "pay it off" with the OBC as it will show up as just another room charge.

 

We got off the Sky a few days ago. We always board early, among the very first on the ship, and raced upstairs to try and book either loungers, or failing that, a cabana. By the time we arrived, the ENTIRE Sanctuary had already been sold out for all sea days. Apparently there were over 800 B2Bers who were given the option of booking on our cruise during the previous cruise, so pretty much every "new" passenger like us was shut out. That had never happened to us before. We didn't ask about port days, but the chances of getting something is probably better than on sea days.  Best of luck, I hope you can book what you want.

[capriccio]

34 minutes ago, lx200gps said:

Apparently there were over 800 B2Bers who were given the option of booking on our cruise during the previous cruise, so pretty much every "new" passenger like us was shut out. That had never happened to us before.

When we have been on B2Bs in the Sanctuary, we have always been asked on the last day if we want to reserve for the next cruise.  I didn't know that other B2B passengers who had not been in the Sanctuary could also just walk up on the last day and reserve for the next cruise.  That certainly explains why sometimes those who are the first to arrive at the desk upon embarkation can find the Sanctuary for the days/times they want unavailable.

[milolii]

When we booked a cabana a few years ago, I think the limit was six people.  There was a group who tired to bring more, told no.  Then tried to rotate folks in and out, told no, then left.  Price was $220.00.  It was wonderful.  One piece of advice I can give is head for the front or rear elevators (depending on the location of the Sanctuary) after boarding.  Take those elevators up to the right deck.  

If directed to the central elevators go up a floor and over.  I know some folks will book an afternoon on a port day and visit after their trip ashore.