FlyerEC

Just done another Oceania cruise , this time on M . S . Regatta .

Will hope the the RC yachts are at least similar to RC Kyoto suites , possibly RC SIN , other RCs I have stayed at are , well , I can ' t recall ..

Service like older Amans will be nice & cuisine like Oceania ' s will be acceptable , better will be appreciated - more like the original Sea Goddess

Looking forward .
Wonder how points can be used

SkiAdcock

I doubt RC points will be able to be used; rather like the RC Reserves.

Cheers.

wripro

And yet so many Ritz Carlton hotels, their primary business, are not well run.

hedoman

Will repeat what I typed on the Marriott thread. This had to happen. Silversea, Crystal, Seabourn marketing themselves as ultra luxury while being nice, upscale lines. How in the hell can they use ultra luxury with what they offer today? I expect the RC product to be closer to what Silversea offered during their first six years. They'll siphon passengers and crew from the current lineup of posers. Higher cost to get on these ships, but with low capacity, no problem to fill.

BESVISOR

Booked 4 clients for the Scenic Eclipse that's currently being built and launching in fall of 2018...Which is the same concept of luxury version of cruise and yachat hybrid. Their promotion showsoff some really slick technology, though. It's meant for exploration.

https://www.scenicusa.com/ocean-cruises

Kagehitokiri

obscure2k, isnt that mostly about rates that include everything ?

wish these were actual yachts like alila indonesia & FS maldives
[edit - or designed like actual superyachts in 13>40 cabin size]

hedoman

Why would you wish this?

Kagehitokiri

Of course that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

hopefully RC does better, but not guaranteed, unless for example they have enough staff (who are interested) that they can rotate from luxury RC/starwood/marriott, which actually would be an interesting/original idea. but what is the ownership structure of this new endeavor. "partnership with Los Angeles investment firm Oaktree Capital" if they are hiring RC/marriott to manage, what are terms. hope marriott/RC wouldnt franchise.

at least Reserve (& Cruise) concepts have fewer rooms/villas (& cabins)

some here remain regulars at RCs, some seemed to stop post marriott

seems RC reserve phulay is a lot more about owner than RC/marriott

re why cruiselines do larger, because they can
as noted, not all new ocean/river are larger size

nnn

But if the demand is so clearly there, why aren't Crystal/SilverSea/Seabourn/Regent rushing to fill it? Perhaps it is not so profitable, or perhaps the R-C won't be quite so legendary and will settle into a product on par with the new Crystal yachts etc.

hedoman

Seabourn and Silversea abandoned the luxury ship concept in favor of putting more people on board and lowering price/quality/service. I believe there is a niche market for this type ship. One that will pay 50% more than current rates on ships you mentioned. For that 50%, there will be much more value than what is currently being received by the few people that are needed to fill RC ships.

But, who knows how Marriott will manage this venture? Not much margin for error and if they blow it, they will end up being more like Crystal yachts. Including competitive pricing. Either way, if it happens, a win for consumers.

The designers have studied Europa2. A beautiful piece of hardware that falls short of a perfect German cruise experience because they cannot fill all crew slots with proper people.

bhrubin

I question the veracity of this statement, I'm sorry to say. I may not love the styling of many RC properties, but I've been to too many RC properties, along with StR, FS, Pen, MO, and Aman, to know better. RC generally runs a very good hotel.

scented

Generalisation doesn't work too well in hospitality, but isn't R-C like most groups? They have their superstar properties (think Tokyo) and then some solid properties, but the majority are a bit lackluster. Sadly they also have points ("Loyalty Program"), which makes it really hard to run a great hotel. In this regard I tend to think lesser of them, as they are caught in Marriott's structures. I know you might scream reading this

bhrubin

The comment was that RC wasn't well run. This wasn't about newer superstar properties and older less glam properties; this was about how well managed and well "run" the hotels are, and I don't agree with the previous assessment.

I also think your assumption that points hotels making "it really hard to run a great hotel" is utter nonsense.

I believe that you "tend to think lesser of them" but I believe that sentiment is far more about you and your own idiosyncrasies and has little to do with the quality of hotels. There are too many incredible points hotels that you simply dismiss out of hand because of your outdated and outmoded assessment. I stay at too many top hotels that both do and don't use points to know you're just wrong.

I usually agree with you. On this, unfortunately, I think you're dead wrong. The StR and RC San Francisco both are better than the FS and former MO. The Imperial and PH, and RC, are tops in Vienna. The Gritti is nearly or as good service wise as the Aman Grand Canal Venice. The PH, RC, and WA Chicago all compete easily with the Pen and FS. The StR, PH, and RCs compete with all of the best in NYC. The RC Shanghai and Hong Kong are easily among the best, competing easily with the FS and Pens in both. The FS isn't as good as the PH Sydney. The RC Tokyo competes with the Aman Tokyo. The StR Mexico City is superior or at least as good as the FS. Point loyalty program hotels are in no way inferior--that's a stereotype you cling to based on inaccurate information and prejudice. I don't need to scream; I just need to remind you of the facts and evidence.

DSI

I have never stayed at an RC, but have stayed at several St. Regis's/luxury hotels and have had lots of positive experiences. The points thing, to me, is akin to Virtuoso and/or negotiating upgrades.

offerendum

Agree. Some RCs are well run. In fact I never had at a RC a totally bad experience. But of course I had some mediocre ones and I some properties I woudn't stay again.