Is there a real reason you can not reserve the Sanctuary prior to your cruise?

[deultgen]

ok, so its 2023 and with my app, website and Medallion, I can reserve just about anything on the ship prior to sailing.  Surely the technology exists to be able to reserve a couple of beds in the Sanctuary for a the entire cruise, full day, half day, individual days etc.  Why do we still need to "run" to the top of the ship after boarding to make sure we can pay for a space in the Sanctuary?

 

Certainly Princess would prefer to have the $$ in advance and be able to charge a person's credit card in advance.

 

I know the Sanctuary is a limited space but there is limited space in specialty restaurants, or many excursions which can both be reserved in advance.

 

There must be a reason ?

[Rick&Jeannie]

Pure speculation on my part...but I think maybe it is to allow passengers who book very late a chance to reserve a spot.  Same thing with Chef's Table and Winemaker's Dinner.  If you *could* pre-reserve as with excursions...all possible spots would be filled before these late bookers even had a chance.  Yes...I know there will be those who take the attitude of "You snooze, you lose" as far as booking.  I'm not saying that it should or shouldn't be done either way...just my opinion as to why they *might* be doing it this way.

[PacnGoNow]

19 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Pure speculation on my part...but I think maybe it is to allow passengers who book very late a chance to reserve a spot.  Same thing with Chef's Table and Winemaker's Dinner.  If you *could* pre-reserve as with excursions...all possible spots would be filled before these late bookers even had a chance.  Yes...I know there will be those who take the attitude of "You snooze, you lose" as far as booking.  I'm not saying that it should or shouldn't be done either way...just my opinion as to why they *might* be doing it this way.

It also gives Priority guests like, suites, elites, etc to have advantages for priority booking.  JMHO

 

 

 

[capriccio]

For many of us who prefer mostly or partial shade versus full sun making a choice on board is important.  We've been in the Sanctuaries of many Princess ships and no two are exactly alike regarding the placement of the lounges (especially those not in full sun). 

[nini]

I think it is because people need to select the location which can only be done when actually seeing the arrangements.

[caribill]

On 2/9/2023 at 11:44 AM, Rick&Jeannie said:

Pure speculation on my part...but I think maybe it is to allow passengers who book very late a chance to reserve a spot. 

 

Very late? In my opinion, even much earlier than that it would be full.

 

With cruises being about to be booked 18 months or more in advance, the sanctuary might be fully booked within the first month a cruise is available. Those booking in the following 17 or more months would not have a chance.

 

Of course there might be some cancellations, so those who find no spot available can check very often to see if a spot opens up. If checking twice daily, that would be 730 times in a year.

 

So then people would want Princess to set up a waitlist where people could wait for a spot to be available for the full cruise, for selected days or for selected half-days.

 

We know how well that works for those on a waitlist for a cabin.

 

And we know how well the reservation system works for DMW.

[lx200gps]

i used to be dead set against pre-booking the Sanctuary, for all the reasons mentioned above, however yesterday's experience may change my mind. We boarded the Sky yesterday and as Elite, made sure we boarded among the very first passengers, then did the usual race up to Deck 18. There were already perhaps 6 people in front of us. Even before we got to the line, one of the Sanctuary staffers walked up to all of us and informed us that all sea days were already fully booked, even the $$$ cabanas. Apparently, there are 850 B2Bers on board who, on the previous cruise, were given the option of booking the Sanctuary for this week. Hence, none of us boarding this cruise had any chance. We had chatted with one of those B2Bers and she told us of the 850 number) who somehow had missed the notice on the previous cruise and who was in line with us and she, too, missed getting the Sanctuary

[skynight]

Just some thoughts, not solutions.

Tech does not solve everything although some think it does and develop cumbersome programs to solve problems that may not exist

Spots in the sanctuary vs the number vs demand is a far less of a percentage of the total number of passengers than something like specialty dining. 

Sanctuary spaces are very limited.

Demand varies depending on itinerary.

Sanctuary is available to all passengers which exceeds 3,000.

There are maybe enough lounges to serve maybe 2 to 3% of the total passengers.

Lounges would have to be placed in fixed diagrammable locations to allow you to select them. Specific lounges would require descriptions regarding shade, sun, view, etc on specific itineraries. They could not be moved around as they are now.

Moving the reserve time to some date or days prior to sailing would only move the demand to an on line day and hour on that date. It would also basically eliminate any customer that books late.

The Sun Princess may have some solutions. Princess has decided to separate passenger lounging areas by class.

 

 

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, lx200gps said:

i used to be dead set against pre-booking the Sanctuary, for all the reasons mentioned above, however yesterday's experience may change my mind. We boarded the Sky yesterday and as Elite, made sure we boarded among the very first passengers, then did the usual race up to Deck 18. There were already perhaps 6 people in front of us. Even before we got to the line, one of the Sanctuary staffers walked up to all of us and informed us that all sea days were already fully booked, even the $$$ cabanas. Apparently, there are 850 B2Bers on board who, on the previous cruise, were given the option of booking the Sanctuary for this week. Hence, none of us boarding this cruise had any chance. We had chatted with one of those B2Bers and she told us of the 850 number) who somehow had missed the notice on the previous cruise and who was in line with us and she, too, missed getting the Sanctuary

Anymore, I think about the only way to get loungers in the Sanctuary in the Caribbean sector is to book at least a B2B so you can have a chance on the second leg. 

[Cruise Raider]

2 hours ago, skynight said:

Just some thoughts, not solutions.

Tech does not solve everything although some think it does and develop cumbersome programs to solve problems that may not exist

Spots in the sanctuary vs the number vs demand is a far less of a percentage of the total number of passengers than something like specialty dining. 

Sanctuary spaces are very limited.

Demand varies depending on itinerary.

Sanctuary is available to all passengers which exceeds 3,000.

There are maybe enough lounges to serve maybe 2 to 3% of the total passengers.

Lounges would have to be placed in fixed diagrammable locations to allow you to select them. Specific lounges would require descriptions regarding shade, sun, view, etc on specific itineraries. They could not be moved around as they are now.

Moving the reserve time to some date or days prior to sailing would only move the demand to an on line day and hour on that date. It would also basically eliminate any customer that books late.

The Sun Princess may have some solutions. Princess has decided to separate passenger lounging areas by class.

 

 

We’ve booked the similar area on a Holland America ship prior to the cruise with full payment made at the time for the entire week.  They asked us if we liked sun or shade and told us which ones we would like.  It is very doable although, if you don’t book one ahead of time, you are out of luck.  
All was for none, though because CoVid had other plans .. that cruise was canceled so, I can’t comment on the experience.  
 

Anyway, I’d have no problem with booking the sanctuary ahead of time if full payment was required.  That weeds out those that would reserve but cancel.  As with anything, you get what you pay for and if the timing is right.  
 

[mnocket]

5 hours ago, lx200gps said:

i used to be dead set against pre-booking the Sanctuary, for all the reasons mentioned above, however yesterday's experience may change my mind. We boarded the Sky yesterday and as Elite, made sure we boarded among the very first passengers, then did the usual race up to Deck 18. There were already perhaps 6 people in front of us. Even before we got to the line, one of the Sanctuary staffers walked up to all of us and informed us that all sea days were already fully booked, even the $$$ cabanas. Apparently, there are 850 B2Bers on board who, on the previous cruise, were given the option of booking the Sanctuary for this week. Hence, none of us boarding this cruise had any chance. We had chatted with one of those B2Bers and she told us of the 850 number) who somehow had missed the notice on the previous cruise and who was in line with us and she, too, missed getting the Sanctuary

That would be very disappointing indeed!  Truth be told, I've never had a problem booking the Sanctuary on boarding day.  In fact, I haven't witnessed the "mad rush" to the sanctuary upon boarding so may talk about - not saying it doesn't happen, just hasn't been my experience.

[Princessfan20]

29 minutes ago, mnocket said:

That would be very disappointing indeed!  Truth be told, I've never had a problem booking the Sanctuary on boarding day.  In fact, I haven't witnessed the "mad rush" to the sanctuary upon boarding so may talk about - not saying it doesn't happen, just hasn't been my experience.

 

We always book the Sanctuary upon boarding and have never had a problem getting the loungers we want and have never seen a Sanctuary full.   We usually take longer cruises and often they do not lend themselves to B2B's so maybe that is why.  

[deultgen]

Thanks to all who have thoughtfully answered.  Personally, I would like to see something like:

 

1.  Past final payment date

2.  Something like 75 days prior to sailing opening up reservations for the Sanctuary only for those who want to book lounges for the ENTIRE DAY for the ENTIRE cruise, prepaid, non refundable

3.  Something like 60 days prior to cruise, opening reservations for the Sanctuary for those who want to book lounges for HALF DAY for the ENTIRE cruise, prepaid, non refundable

4.  Something like 50 days prior to sailing opening reservations for single reservations, prepaid, non refundable.

 

If we ever had the experience of lx200gps (above), I would not cruise Princess again.  The Sanctuary is that important to us and our cruise experience.

 

Finally, I agree with others above that this may be being somewhat dealt with in the planning for Sun Princess with "Cabana Rooms" "Cabana Suites", staterooms with a private "Cabana deck", rooms with the Sanctuary included, etc.  But that is another topic and another discussion.

[Buckeye10640]

7 hours ago, mnocket said:

That would be very disappointing indeed!  Truth be told, I've never had a problem booking the Sanctuary on boarding day.  In fact, I haven't witnessed the "mad rush" to the sanctuary upon boarding so may talk about - not saying it doesn't happen, just hasn't been my experience.

Do you book in the Carribean? I think tht is where the "mad rush" is....

[Buckeye10640]

6 hours ago, deultgen said:

Thanks to all who have thoughtfully answered.  Personally, I would like to see something like:

 

1.  Past final payment date

2.  Something like 75 days prior to sailing opening up reservations for the Sanctuary only for those who want to book lounges for the ENTIRE DAY for the ENTIRE cruise, prepaid, non refundable

3.  Something like 60 days prior to cruise, opening reservations for the Sanctuary for those who want to book lounges for HALF DAY for the ENTIRE cruise, prepaid, non refundable

4.  Something like 50 days prior to sailing opening reservations for single reservations, prepaid, non refundable.

 

If we ever had the experience of lx200gps (above), I would not cruise Princess again.  The Sanctuary is that important to us and our cruise experience.

 

Finally, I agree with others above that this may be being somewhat dealt with in the planning for Sun Princess with "Cabana Rooms" "Cabana Suites", staterooms with a private "Cabana deck", rooms with the Sanctuary included, etc.  But that is another topic and another discussion.

I would like to see single day, pre-paid, non-refundable reservations with a limit on how many days per cabin. Let more people have a chance at booking. 

[MustangGT]

11 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Anymore, I think about the only way to get loungers in the Sanctuary in the Caribbean sector is to book at least a B2B so you can have a chance on the second leg. 

Didn’t work for us. Maybe a B2B2B might work.

We are on our 2nd of our B2B and haven’t talked to any passengers who cruisers who weren’t booked for multiple weeks.  Very popular itinerary!

[SAKay]

Has anyone had experience booking the Sanctuary on a full transit Panama Canal cruise ?  Any hope of getting individual days after you board ?  Or will it all be booked up also ? 

[mnocket]

18 hours ago, Buckeye10640 said:

Do you book in the Carribean? I think tht is where the "mad rush" is....

Could be.  Caribbean only as part of Panama Canal transit.  The mad rush could well be a feature of shorter Caribbean cruises.

[jagoffee]

IMO the main reason Princess does not book the Sanctuary in advance is because a reservation includes a specific lounger.  It is not like a Specialty restaurant or MDR which is just a spot with no exact seat assignment.  I would want to see and select my own lounger as would most people.

[jeromep]

I think this is a legitimate thought, why can't they offer pre-bookings.  I suspect they probably can, but choose not to because of the lounger selection you get when you go to the Sanctuary and pay for your time there on the cruise.  But I wouldn't mind providing some perspective from the camping and campground booking world.

 

We started RV camping over 2 years ago.  And the first thing we noticed was limited availability of campsites to book during the camping season.  Everyone has moved to pre-booking campsites.  The idea that you are just going to hop in your motorhome or hitch up your trailer and drive someplace and park for the night or longer is no longer reality.  Every government agency, local, state, Fed, has moved to reservations for campsites.  And they are all trying to figure out if they only allow pre-booking with no first-come arrivals, or if they stage out the pre-booking months in advance, or do they do pre-booking in waves, where some sites are available early in the booking season (typically 6 months out), and more sites are opened up with shorter lead times, so held until booking 3 months out or something similar.  Do they choose to hold some sites as unreservable and are first-come where you have to get to the campground and find the open first-come site, occupy them and pay for them to secure them.

 

The problem with all of this is trying to find a balance between availability and occupancy.  With regard to Fed sites which are all booked through recreation.gov, we are finding that booking in advance is great, and planning 6 months in advance isn't a huge issue, however there are a lot of empty reserved sites in the federal campgrounds we have stayed in.  Were they not booked?  No.  They were booked, but the camper just chose to not show up.  If you are booking Forest Service campsites and your nightly fee is $20-25, and you booked it months in advance, if your camping plans fall through, why bother canceling.  You aren't going to get your full booking cost back, you are penalized for canceling close to your travel dates, sometimes as much as 50-75% of your booking fee.  So it becomes a why bother situation.  On top of that, there is no incentive for the campground to get those sites open and rebooked because they have been paid for and the cash is in the pocket of the campground operator.

 

Princess would have to map out all the loungers in a ship's Sanctuary first and put them on a deck map (a lot like campgrounds provide details about campsites and you can pick the specific one you want off a map).  After they have done that they have to determine how many loungers to reserve for on-board purchases and how many they will offer for pre-booking.  They would then need to identify each longer as a pre-book lounger or an on-board purchase lounger.  Then they would list the pre-book loungers on the cruise personalizer for somebody's cruise and you could then select the lounger(s) you wanted and reserve them online.

 

In this scenario the folks that want to pre-book can, until that inventory is exhausted, and there would still be loungers available for sale on board.  Is it worth the effort for Princess to develop this level of sophistication and functionality?  Probably not as it doesn't offer any extra revenue, unless you charge more for the pre-book loungers over the on-board booking loungers.

[jagoffee]

12 minutes ago, jeromep said:

I think this is a legitimate thought, why can't they offer pre-bookings.  I suspect they probably can, but choose not to because of the lounger selection you get when you go to the Sanctuary and pay for your time there on the cruise.  But I wouldn't mind providing some perspective from the camping and campground booking world.

 

We started RV camping over 2 years ago.  And the first thing we noticed was limited availability of campsites to book during the camping season.  Everyone has moved to pre-booking campsites.  The idea that you are just going to hop in your motorhome or hitch up your trailer and drive someplace and park for the night or longer is no longer reality.  Every government agency, local, state, Fed, has moved to reservations for campsites.  And they are all trying to figure out if they only allow pre-booking with no first-come arrivals, or if they stage out the pre-booking months in advance, or do they do pre-booking in waves, where some sites are available early in the booking season (typically 6 months out), and more sites are opened up with shorter lead times, so held until booking 3 months out or something similar.  Do they choose to hold some sites as unreservable and are first-come where you have to get to the campground and find the open first-come site, occupy them and pay for them to secure them.

 

The problem with all of this is trying to find a balance between availability and occupancy.  With regard to Fed sites which are all booked through recreation.gov, we are finding that booking in advance is great, and planning 6 months in advance isn't a huge issue, however there are a lot of empty reserved sites in the federal campgrounds we have stayed in.  Were they not booked?  No.  They were booked, but the camper just chose to not show up.  If you are booking Forest Service campsites and your nightly fee is $20-25, and you booked it months in advance, if your camping plans fall through, why bother canceling.  You aren't going to get your full booking cost back, you are penalized for canceling close to your travel dates, sometimes as much as 50-75% of your booking fee.  So it becomes a why bother situation.  On top of that, there is no incentive for the campground to get those sites open and rebooked because they have been paid for and the cash is in the pocket of the campground operator.

 

Princess would have to map out all the loungers in a ship's Sanctuary first and put them on a deck map (a lot like campgrounds provide details about campsites and you can pick the specific one you want off a map).  After they have done that they have to determine how many loungers to reserve for on-board purchases and how many they will offer for pre-booking.  They would then need to identify each longer as a pre-book lounger or an on-board purchase lounger.  Then they would list the pre-book loungers on the cruise personalizer for somebody's cruise and you could then select the lounger(s) you wanted and reserve them online.

 

In this scenario the folks that want to pre-book can, until that inventory is exhausted, and there would still be loungers available for sale on board.  Is it worth the effort for Princess to develop this level of sophistication and functionality?  Probably not as it doesn't offer any extra revenue, unless you charge more for the pre-book loungers over the on-board booking loungers.

Not uncommon for campsites.  Have you ever booked a lounger in the Sanctuary?  The sun and shade variables add a level of complexity.

[jeromep]

21 minutes ago, jagoffee said:

Not uncommon for campsites.  Have you ever booked a lounger in the Sanctuary?  The sun and shade variables add a level of complexity.

Similar to campsites, a lot of the booking systems will detail the amount of sun or coverage of a campsite, how level the campsite is, very importantly, how long the parking pad is, services available (water, sewer, power), etc.  Most sites have at least one photo of the campsite, usually a poor photo, but something.  I suspect that a Princess Sanctuary pre-booking system could also provide conditional details about how the lounger sits and a wide enough photo to get an idea of where it is located and who the neighbors are.

 

But again, I think we know that this kind of system isn't going to happen as there is little or no revenue in it for Princess.

[capriccio]

1 minute ago, jeromep said:

 

But again, I think we know that this kind of system isn't going to happen as there is little or no revenue in it for Princess.

In addition to no positive return on their investment this would be beyond the capabilities of their IT department!  

[deultgen]

43 minutes ago, capriccio said:

In addition to no positive return on their investment this would be beyond the capabilities of their IT department!  

 

I think this thread is full of thoughtful responses, thank you,

 

In my own opinion, this is 2023, surely we can figure out a reservation system with map and a "shade scale".  I also think if the window for reservations were only open in the beginning to those who wanted full day Sanctuary for the full week, without cancellations or refunds, then opened only for half day full week, etc, Princess would see some benefit both from collecting $$ upfront and selling and being paid for the most full days.  

 

Even on cruises when the Sanctuary is "sold out" there are still plenty of space available for most mornings.  Its mostly the afternoons which are sold out.

[jagoffee]

23 minutes ago, deultgen said:

 

I think this thread is full of thoughtful responses, thank you,

 

In my own opinion, this is 2023, surely we can figure out a reservation system with map and a "shade scale".  I also think if the window for reservations were only open in the beginning to those who wanted full day Sanctuary for the full week, without cancellations or refunds, then opened only for half day full week, etc, Princess would see some benefit both from collecting $$ upfront and selling and being paid for the most full days.  

 

Even on cruises when the Sanctuary is "sold out" there are still plenty of space available for most mornings.  It’s mostly the afternoons which are sold out.

Initially the Sanctuary required a full cruise booking.(at least on the first day).