Sold out cruise experience

[BrokeMack]

We've got a 72 hold on an 8B GTY for one of the Sept 22 Wish sailings. We're going to be first timers (thanks to 3 COVID cancellations). Has anybody sailed a fully booked cruise and if so, how is the onboard experience? I fully expect Palo brunch and spa stuff to sell out before we get a chance to book. How is the rest of the experience? Kids clubs have capacity limits at booking and dining has a finite number of tables, but are the common areas just slammed all the time? Or does it still feel reasonable? Obviously the Wish is an unknown for now, but I imagine your experience with other ships will be helpful. Thanks.

 

[Trera]

I always feel like castaway cay is super crowded with a full ship.

 

[Maisie78]

With a September 22nd sailing, I'm guessing you won't actually have a full ship. Yes, every stateroom may be booked, but you'll likely have more couples and less families than you would see during a school break time.

 

[Mommb]

Most cruises I've been on have had a "Captain Mickey reports that the ship is completely full" sign at check-in (for people hoping for an upgrade). The ships are intended to sail full. Even on full ships, I've had no trouble booking spa treatments onboard, and Palo has had empty tables (although I don't know whether reservations were still available). The only time I've really noticed lots of people was at the deck parties and around the pool on sea days. Because the Wish is new, people might be more likely to wander around to see everything, but that should spread people around the ship. Also, as Maisie78 pointed out, "full" as in "not more bookings available" doesn't mean "as many passengers as possible." I'd think September will be less crowded than July and August.

 

[Dug720]

The biggest thing I've noticed is that when a sailing is sold out, the odds of getting a private table drop significantly, particularly if there are more families than couples or solos - assuming that there are shared tables planned.

Big advantage of being in an adult-only party is Serenity Bay is rarely overrun because no one under 18 is allowed (including in the cabanas there) so families either have to split up or they're all on the family beach.

 

[dmunsil]

Cruise ships almost always sail “full” in that all (or nearly all) the rooms are booked. If necessary they can fill rooms with last minute discounts, like the Florida, Military or *GT discounts, If need be, they can offer even deeper discounts for employees or other partners. They try very hard to fill every room (with a handful held back for contingencies). They don’t always completely fill every sailing but it’s rare to sail with lots of empty rooms.

The primary difference is how many people there are in each room. At high season there are somewhat more rooms with every bed in use and at low season there are somewhat more rooms with just 2 passengers. I doubt the overall total passenger count varies by more than 10-15% except in unusual circumstances like a big recession or other downturn.

Bottom line is that the ship will feel quite reasonable and not crowded most of the time, except when half the ship is trying to be in the same place all at once, like before and after main showtimes or during the deck parties. That’s going to be true no matter when you sail.

 

[lcarter0922]

We’ve done a lot of cruises in September. Still lots of kids. Top deck very crowded. We started booking concierge when we go in September to get away from the crowds. Late January and February is better for less kids more adults not so crowded feel. And our cruises with the least kids and felt less crowded was the long ones. Like transatlantic and Panama Canal,

 

[karen4546]

i looked at booking today and EVERY.SINGLE.CONCIERGE was sold out - ????? I guess it is a good thing that they didn't price people out, but I am disappointed to not be on one of the earlier cruises on the WISH in concierge. The price for concierge (FOV) for the Fall cruises is not much more than the Family OV and I am sure that is why they are all sold out. We sailed in a 1br and LOVED it! It was just DH and I but we loved the space and I personally loved the tub and balcony-we had 12000.

 

[lcarter0922]

We booked Concierge for our anniversary week late August on the Wish and it wasn’t too much more than a verandah. And I felt in a packed ship it would be nice to have the concierge lounge and deck to get away from the crowds.

 

[Intr3pid]

Cruise ships almost always sail “full” in that all (or nearly all) the rooms are booked. If necessary they can fill rooms with last minute discounts, like the Florida, Military or *GT discounts, If need be, they can offer even deeper discounts for employees or other partners. They try very hard to fill every room (with a handful held back for contingencies). They don’t always completely fill every sailing but it’s rare to sail with lots of empty rooms.

The primary difference is how many people there are in each room. At high season there are somewhat more rooms with every bed in use and at low season there are somewhat more rooms with just 2 passengers. I doubt the overall total passenger count varies by more than 10-15% except in unusual circumstances like a big recession or other downturn.

Bottom line is that the ship will feel quite reasonable and not crowded most of the time, except when half the ship is trying to be in the same place all at once, like before and after main showtimes or during the deck parties. That’s going to be true no matter when you sail.

Good summary. I should add that the opportunity cost to have a cabin sail empty on a cruise is much higher than that of a seat on a flight or a room in a hotel.

Outside of seasonal/schools-driven fluctuations, a cruise will more or less sell out to a similar capacity at some point - as early as within the first week of release to as late as on the day of.

 

[Sakura1017]

i looked at booking today and EVERY.SINGLE.CONCIERGE was sold out - ????? I guess it is a good thing that they didn't price people out, but I am disappointed to not be on one of the earlier cruises on the WISH in concierge. The price for concierge (FOV) for the Fall cruises is not much more than the Family OV and I am sure that is why they are all sold out. We sailed in a 1br and LOVED it! It was just DH and I but we loved the space and I personally loved the tub and balcony-we had 12000.

I think to get a concierge room is going to have to wait until the new itinerary comes out. At the moment everyone already paid the deposit. I've been checking back regularly to see if I can get a concierge trip for the beginning cruises. I don't want to book when its going to be more in the hurricane season.

 

[a1tinkfans]

The pools , the popular places/eats in/around are much fuller and yes more difficult to get certain reservations etc. Happy Sailing!

 

[lanejudy]

are the common areas just slammed all the time? Or does it still feel reasonable?

The ships are designed for XXXX number of passengers, so unlike the parks they don't get "overcrowded" per-se. The pools are people-soup even during off-season, but other than that you shouldn't feel the crowds as there are plenty of spaces and activities around the ship to spread people out.