Booking the Sanctuary

[trbarton]

Can you book the Sanctuary from you Medallion App or do you have to wait until you’re on the ship?

 

Thanks!

 

Tom😀

[jwattle]

You still have to wait until you are onboard. 

[avonlady6390]

You have to book on the ship it is suggested to go immediately up to the sanctuary to book there will probably be a long line you will have to wait in.

[trbarton]

4 minutes ago, avonlady6390 said:

You have to book on the ship it is suggested to go immediately up to the sanctuary to book there will probably be a long line you will have to wait in.

Thanks. I’m there at the terminal & am usually one of the 1st to board so I’ll rush right up there so that I can get the lounger that I want. Do you remember what the charge was?

 

Thanks to everyone. 
 

Tom😀👍

[canadarocks]

$40 per day, $20 per half day, and $30 per day if you book the whole cruise. 

[Lucky TGO]

5 hours ago, jwattle said:

You still have to wait until you are onboard. 

Hi Jo & Tom,

You forget to mention even if you are the first one on the ship and you run like your life depended on it there will still be someone there before you. 😳

The Captain of The Rowboat,

Tony

[trbarton]

43 minutes ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi Jo & Tom,

You forget to mention even if you are the first one on the ship and you run like your life depended on it there will still be someone there before you. 😳

The Captain of The Rowboat,

Tony

Perhaps I’ll get an award as the 1st newly boarded passenger to book the sanctuary. The only people that might have beaten me are the ones doing a B/B. I wonder what award that I will receive from Princess that I can proudly display for the whole 15 day cruise?

 

Tom🤔

[Lucky TGO]

On 10/22/2023 at 4:03 AM, trbarton said:

Perhaps I’ll get an award as the 1st newly boarded passenger to book the sanctuary. The only people that might have beaten me are the ones doing a B/B. I wonder what award that I will receive from Princess that I can proudly display for the whole 15 day cruise?

 

Tom🤔

Hi Tom,

If you’re really lucky you may receive for your award a bottle of that GREAT Champagne 🍾 🥂 that the boys make fresh every Tuesday in the boiler room 😳 😀 😋 Princess only gives it to the winner of all the onboard games.. Now you have to know I’m just kidding you. Have a great cruise.

The Captain of The Rowboat,

Tony

 

[coops14]

Routing for you Tom, I’ve never been successful yet, I’m going to try again on my next cruise. Our problem was we had a Princess shuttle that was delayed. We are getting there under our own steam next time. 

[lx200gps]

On 10/22/2023 at 3:14 AM, Lucky TGO said:

Hi Jo & Tom,

You forget to mention even if you are the first one on the ship and you run like your life depended on it there will still be someone there before you. 😳

The Captain of The Rowboat,

Tony

Sad but true. Earlier in the year, on the Sky, we were among the very first to board thanks to Elite priority boarding. We raced upstairs in the faint hope of getting decent loungers and found that only two or three folks had beaten us up there. ALL of us were told that the Sanctuary was completely sold out for our entire cruise, because the 800 B2Bers on the previous trip had been given the opportunity to book for our voyage the previous week, thereby shutting out all arriving passengers.

[Lady Arwen]

2 hours ago, lx200gps said:

Sad but true. Earlier in the year, on the Sky, we were among the very first to board thanks to Elite priority boarding. We raced upstairs in the faint hope of getting decent loungers and found that only two or three folks had beaten us up there. ALL of us were told that the Sanctuary was completely sold out for our entire cruise, because the 800 B2Bers on the previous trip had been given the opportunity to book for our voyage the previous week, thereby shutting out all arriving passengers.

What a huge disappointment!  I think some spaces should be held back to accommodate at least a few people embarking on the second leg.

[lx200gps]

7 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

What a huge disappointment!  I think some spaces should be held back to accommodate at least a few people embarking on the second leg.

It was disappointing, given that it was a warm weather cruise and the Sanctury is our go-to place for peace and quiet. On our last trip, two weeks ago on the Discovery, we didn't even bother with the Sanctuary given it was a California Coastal, but we're on her again in February down to Cabo etc. We'll certainly be trying again, with very low expectations ;o( One thing in our favor is that one of the days we will want it is the Mazatlan port day, which hopefully won't be as heavily booked as a sea day, of which we have three anyway.  And yes, I certainly agree with you that some spaces should be held back for arriving guests, as they do with specialty restaurant and excursion reservations.  Allowing passengers from the previous cruise to fully book the place out is unfair.

[CruisinChris]

I'm Elite, among the first onboard, and also one of those running.  Our new competition in Fort Lauderdale are the Suite passengers who have the new embarkation lounge on 17th St.  They are being offered guaranteed Sanctuary reservations.  Nice perk.

[Steelers36]

How many held-back loungers would be fair?  Still going to disappoint a lot of people.  It seems one needs to book B2B in the Caribbean now in order to get a lounger for the second voyage!

[Lady Arwen]

12 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

How many held-back loungers would be fair?  Still going to disappoint a lot of people.  It seems one needs to book B2B in the Caribbean now in order to get a lounger for the second voyage!

I think 50% go to the b2b guests, first come first serve,  and the same to newly boarding guests.  Not perfect, by any means, but it’s nice to know you at least have a chance. 

[Steelers36]

Just now, Lady Arwen said:

I think 50% go to the b2b guests, first come first serve,  and the same to newly boarding guests.  Not perfect, by any means, but it’s nice to know you at least have a chance. 

If I was a B2B2B..etc as some number do in the Winter, I'd be smokin' upset if I could not secure a lounger over someone taking a single cruise. 

 

Besides, there is nothing to prevent a B2B'er from lining up at the Sanctuary for the other 50% inventory and be there well ahead of the boarding guests.

[Lady Arwen]

33 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

If I was a B2B2B..etc as some number do in the Winter, I'd be smokin' upset if I could not secure a lounger over someone taking a single cruise. 

 

Besides, there is nothing to prevent a B2B'er from lining up at the Sanctuary for the other 50% inventory and be there well ahead of the boarding guests.

I hear you, but I don’t think the b2b guests should have it all their way.  This way second leg guests have zero chance, or close to it, of securing any spot.  Surly, there must be a more fair way to give everyone an opportunity.  Guests on the second leg are out of luck before they even board.  They paid for their cruise, too.

[voljeep]

1 minute ago, Lady Arwen said:

I hear you, but I don’t think the b2b guests should have it all their way.  This way second leg guests have zero chance, or close to it, of securing any spot.  Surly, there must be a more fair way to give everyone an opportunity.  Guests on the second leg are out of luck before they even board.  They paid for their cruise, too.

It 'SHOULD' become a premier package add-on perk to be able to 'BID' on "A" spot in the Sanctuary - your order of picking the location would depend on your bid - how bad do you want it??

 

you are now 32nd in order to pick 20 spots - would you like to increase your bid? - Bidding stops 3 days before the cruise and you know your spot - be at the Sanctuary 1 hour after boarding ends, or forfeit your non-refundable bid.

[Steelers36]

16 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

I hear you, but I don’t think the b2b guests should have it all their way.  This way second leg guests have zero chance, or close to it, of securing any spot.  Surly, there must be a more fair way to give everyone an opportunity.  Guests on the second leg are out of luck before they even board.  They paid for their cruise, too.

Sure they did - but so did the B2B'er.  

 

Here is the only truly fair way IMO.  Works the same way for concert tickets or to get into "the pit" area.

 

Everyone interested must be in a line by a cut-off time.  Say 10 - 15 mins after boarding commences (no point in giving late arrivers an opportunity - you have to be early or out of luck as it is today).  This includes B2B'ers and new guests. 

 

As guests arrive to line up, they are handed a ticket number - one per cabin.  Numbers go 1 thru whatever.  The other half of the ticket goes into a bucket.

 

At the appointed hour, a Sanctuary crew member draws a ticket from the hat so to speak.  That number is the first person in line - say 32.  The next person in line is 33, then 34, etc until the final ticket handed out - say 65.  The next person in line is ticket #1, then 2 and so on up to unlucky 31 who is the last in line.

 

Then the reservation process begins until all seats exhausted. 

 

PS - Anyone arriving after the cutoff time simply goes to back of the line and if anything left, they may get a shot.  Same as today for late arrivees.

Edited October 24, 2023 by Steelers36

[Steelers36]

6 minutes ago, voljeep said:

It 'SHOULD' become a premier package add-on perk to be able to 'BID' on "A" spot in the Sanctuary - your order of picking the location would depend on your bid - how bad do you want it??

 

you are now 32nd in order to pick 20 spots - would you like to increase your bid? - Bidding stops 3 days before the cruise and you know your spot - be at the Sanctuary 1 hour after boarding ends, or forfeit your non-refundable bid.

How could Suites and Reserve guests be excluded from this rather exclusive opportunity? 

 

Sorry, I don't like it and I don't see it ever being implemented.  I can see them making efforts to make sure that any Suite guest that wants a lounger or cabana has a good chance to get one.  (Not that I like that much either as it excludes me, but they seem to be perking things up for a suite guest).

 

Edited October 24, 2023 by Steelers36

[voljeep]

18 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

How could Suites and Reserve guests be excluded from this rather exclusive opportunity? 

 

Sorry, I don't like it and I don't see it ever being implemented.  I can see them making efforts to make sure that any Suite guest that wants a lounger or cabana has a good chance to get one.  (Not that I like that much either as it excludes me, but they seem to be perking things up for a suite guest).

 

face it - suites pay for the cabin and breakfast in Sabatini's and Reserved dining - do they get unlimited casual dining? - do they get 2 specialty dinners each - or just the one on embarkation day? reserved seating in the theatre for production shows? - pictures? door prizes? specialty deserts? fitness classes?

 

It's not about cabin status - it's about the Premier package

[Steelers36]

12 minutes ago, voljeep said:

 

 

It's not about cabin status - it's about the Premier package

Hear ya.  Then perhaps a Super Premier package?  I do know I would not pay $56.50/day or $565 for a 10-nighter in Caribbean just to get access to book a lounger.  (That is my net after deducting Internet and CA).

 

Still creates even more of a status structure than exists today for Suites and Elites.  Only thing I can think is the B2B'ers generate more revenue for PCL than a single voyage booker.  It's never going to be enough on certain voyages in certain sectors.  Perhaps a lottery of some sort is a fair way to go.  

 

Same shortage exists for CTL and WMD and now 360.

[Host CJSKIDS]

1 hour ago, voljeep said:

It 'SHOULD' become a premier package add-on perk to be able to 'BID' on "A" spot in the Sanctuary - your order of picking the location would depend on your bid - how bad do you want it??

 

you are now 32nd in order to pick 20 spots - would you like to increase your bid? - Bidding stops 3 days before the cruise and you know your spot - be at the Sanctuary 1 hour after boarding ends, or forfeit your non-refundable bid.

 

Wouldn't work because though I have been very lucky to enjoy the Sanctuary on just about every cruise since it started, I wouldn't book a chair in the shade.  Many wouldn't want to be in the sun at all.  Making the bid non-refundable and then someone getting on that can't be in the sun and that's what they ended up with, wouldn't work well.  They would have to add categories, especially with the Sanctuary being configured differently on the ships, so that would complicate things even further. 

 

[chamima]

1 hour ago, Steelers36 said:

How could Suites and Reserve guests be excluded from this rather exclusive opportunity? 

 

Sorry, I don't like it and I don't see it ever being implemented.  I can see them making efforts to make sure that any Suite guest that wants a lounger or cabana has a good chance to get one.  (Not that I like that much either as it excludes me, but they seem to be perking things up for a suite guest).

 

 

 

I read on another thread that Princess is testing a program in Fort Lauderdale where suite guests go to a separate boarding area in a different building with a lounge and can sign up for the Sanctuary among other amenities there before boarding.

 

 

***

Edited October 24, 2023 by chamima

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, chamima said:

 

 

I read on another thread that Princess is testing a program in Fort Lauderdale where suite guests go to a separate boarding area in a different building with a lounge and can sign up for the Sanctuary among other amenities there before boarding.

 

 

***

Yes, this is true.  But word is that not all Suite guests will be invited due to space limitations. 

 

As I mentioned on that thread, I'd want to at least drop in for a couple of minutes to get a Sanctuary booking.