Specialty Restaurants - Entitlements and Extra Reservations

[Roland4]

1 hour ago, History&Wine said:

I did not see it posted on this thread:  It is confirmed that specialty restaurant fees are waived for full world cruise guests...just as they were with OC.

 

 

Full World Cruise Guests: All Specialty Restaurant reservation fees will be
waived. One complimentary reservation or visit per Specialty Restaurant
venue per World Cruise segment may be booked via GIF prior to the voyage.
Additional complimentary reservations or visits will need to be confirmed on
board the ship after the voyage begins.
 

I don't think that is new. On our one and only WC booking, the be-knighted 2020 Covid-shortened one, we did not pay cover charges and extra visits were on a space-available basis, Of course, after we left Sydney with only 200 guests, space was always available!!!😁😁😁

[Keith1010]

Larry, History & Wine did note  it is the same as Original Crystal (I am starting to like the name Classic Crystal) so yes it's not new.  

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

This is an excepted from the before you sail guide regarding specialty restaurants.

 

Specialty Restaurants*

Crystal provides alternative specialty restaurants to enhance the evening dining options and provide the opportunity to enjoy a variety of culinary venues.

Available on both ships, Osteria D’Ovidio features cuisine inspired by various regions of Italy. Nobu Matsuhisa’s newest sea–going venture, Umi Uma & Sushi Bar, is an exotically delicious blend of Japanese–Peruvian cuisine in a new, beautifully designed restaurant.

Our specialty restaurants are meant to be enjoyed equally by all of our guests. In order to ensure that each guest has a chance to dine at Osteria D’Ovidio and Umi Uma & The Sushi Bar at least once during their voyage, a maximum of one reservation per specialty restaurant will be confirmed per booking via our Guest Information Form (GIF). All additional reservations
or visits to these venues will be confirmed on board on a space-available basis for a nominal fee of $50 per person. Guests in Crystal Penthouse or Jr. Crystal Penthouse suites are entitled to unlimited complimentary Specialty Restaurant reservations; however, the same one (1) GIF pre-reservation per restaurant restriction as noted above will apply.

*See page 11, Guest Information Form (GIF), for details on making reservations.

· Guests on back-to-back cruises: Guests sailing on multiple voyages will receive this complimentary reservation benefit for each separate voyage.

· Guests on cruises between 12 to 22 nights: Guests will be extended two complimentary reservations or visits in each Specialty Restaurant venue as described in the Specialty Restaurant section above. The second 

complimentary reservation or visit will need to be made and confirmed on board the ship once the sailing begins and is on a space available basis (but without the $50 nominal fee).

· Guests on cruises 23 nights or longer: we extend three (3) complimentary reservations per person per cruise. You can make your first complimentary reservation for Osteria D’Ovidio or Umi Uma via our Guest Information Form (GIF) prior to the voyage or once onboard.

· Full World Cruise Guests: All Specialty Restaurant reservation fees will be waived. One complimentary reservation or visit per Specialty Restaurant venue per World Cruise segment may be booked via GIF prior to the voyage. Additional complimentary reservations or visits will need to be confirmed on board the ship after the voyage begins.

· Guests 50+ Milestone Crystal Society benefit: All Specialty Restaurant reservation fees will be waived for all guests who have achieved their 50th (or more) Crystal Society Milestone. One complimentary reservation or visit per Specialty Restaurant venue per segment may be booked via GIF prior to the beginning of each voyage. Additional reservations or visits may be confirmed when on board the ship, on a space-available basis.

[Shorex]

Chiming in on the idea of "elitism". For a few years we were "diamond" on Delta. Just meant we spent a lot of time and $$ on airplanes. Most of the time we got upgraded to first. Occasionally we will get a room upgrade at certain hotels. None of these perks made us puffed up about who we are. It's just good business to treat loyal customers with certain incentives.

 

For all the years we have cruised (mostly on Crystal) I have never witnessed the Crystal cruisers with more (and often many more) cruises than us being arrogant or cavalier about their status. And if someone behaved that way, I'd just ignore them. The worst behavior I've witnessed on Crystal has been by first time guests who got drunk and obnoxious at the bar.

 

In my experience, the majority of Crystal cruisers are pleasant, engaging, and interesting to chat with -- irrespective of their perks. And that is only one of the many reasons that Crystal is our cruise line of choice.

[ctjon]

Absolutely right  Shorex - it is the passengers and crew and how they treat each other that makes Crystal a great experience.

[Keith1010]

I just realized the subject of the thread starts with entitlements.  In the USA we would word this differently so I am starting to get some of the recent posts. Some of us might have just called it Specialty Restaurant Reservations.

 

I don't think of reservations or the fact that you have 50 cruises you can go extra times (used on space) as an entitlement.  That's not how in the USA we would normally refer to it. I guess I would have said this is a Crystal Society "benefit".

 

Keith