loriva

At least one of the NCLH brands is admitting the obvious--this itinerary is not sailing this year.  Will Regent do the same shortly?  Or make us wait it out until Halloween?  (Or early November, now that they've slipped monthly updates to the beginning of the month, not the end?)

4 hours ago, anniesh said:

All the countries on this itinerary are closed to visitors.

Other major cruise lines have cancelled voyages.

Why is Regent/NCL not following?

 

We are literally in the same boat.  Regent just seems like they just don't want to cancel the holiday cruise even though there is no chance this itinerary will sail.  (Singapore Airlines cancelled our flight to meet this sailing on Monday--plus our return from Sydney in January 2021--and processed our refund Tuesday.  They may be receiving government funding from Singapore, which cruise lines are not.  But it is still a stark contrast in transparency and responsiveness to customers than what we've seen from Regent.)

As anniesh noted, other cruise lines have hit pause for cruises through the end of 2020, with the exception of some leaving from Florida ports.  But Regent now looks like they are stuck on cancelling only about 30 days out.  This is not even enough time to get the ship to its starting port, gather a full crew, and do necessary checks to sail.  I don't know if Regent doesn't think we can figure these things out or they just don't care.  As a new cruiser to Regent--albeit with three bookings out there--and a NCLH shareholder, I'd expect better corporate behavior.

On 01 October, Singapore Air cancelled our flight to Singapore on 17 December 2020 to join our cruise on Explorer.  All the ports on the itinerary--Singapore, Bali and other ports in Indonesia, and Australia--are closed to foreign visitors through 2020.  And yet Regent STILL hasn't cancelled this cruise.  As a new cruiser to Regent, this just baffles me.  My previous mainstream cruise line has been much more transparent and consistent in its communication.  C'mon Regent, your turn!   At least keep your promise for monthly updates.

So a bit of a long story, but maybe it will help others understand some of the process.

On 13 May we requested FCCs under Princess's "Double your Deposit" offer for our Canada and Greenland cruise cancelled by Princess in Phase III.  We chose this option as we had paid for a substantial part of the cruise early.

In late June, Princess erroneously refunded our deposit rather than process the FCCs.  I contacted Princess Customer Relations in early July when the refund showed up on my credit card, forwarding the email from Princess also dated 13 May documenting the request for FCCs.   I was told we would be contacted to repay the refund.

On 18 August, a member of Princess's Payment Team sent an email about repaying the money Princess erroneously refunded us.  I reached the person at Princess the next day (after a few attempts) but my travel companion could not reach her until 28 August, due to the odd hours Princess staff were working due to furloughs.

On 11 Sep I sent an email back the person in Payments asking for the status.  As others had noted, Princess had tied up one of my FCDs as a "holding account."  When I did not hear back from her, I sent an email on 16 Sep to Colin Steinke, Princess's Director of Customer Relations, using the email address kindly provided by others here on CruiseCritic:  csteinke@princesscruises.com. 

Two days later I received a call from the agent I'd first spoken to in Customer Relations back in July.  She noted a third, unidentified team--i.e., not Customer Relations and nor Payments--had the responsibility of creating the FCCs.  She promised to research further and keep in contact.

On 22 Sep, she called again to say the FCCs were hung up as my travel companion had not repaid the amount Princess had erroneously refunded her.  My travel companion supplied the date and the transaction number from her credit card from the payment on 28 August.  A few hours later, we received a call from the Payments Team explaining the repayment had somehow not been recorded in the correct location in Princess's system.  Shortly thereafter, we received an email that the FCCs had been created and applied to our CC accounts to the replacement cruise of the same itinerary in August 2021.  I verified this in my CC account.  I also had to send a follow-up email to Princess (addressed to both Princess staff who had contacted me) as they had not released my FCD tied up for a holding account, which appeared never to have been needed.  Finally, in applying the FCC, Princess also took off the FCD used for the initial booking--I had to call my TA to have this reapplied.  I also requested an updated invoice from the TA.  All amounts paid plus the FCCs had been applied and are the correct amounts.

For those keeping track, the whole process took about 130 days.  If we'd accepted the error of the refund, it would have been under 60 days.  It was definitely more complicated than it needed to be and took a lot of follow-up and intervention on my part.  But, done and looking forward to a wonderful cruise next August!

38 minutes ago, Anchorbuoy said:

As of today, Regent appears to be releasing SSS loyalty program night credits for terminated cruises.

Yes, they have.  Thanks for posting!

Recommendations 55-58 on destination planning and itineraries also struck me.  Regent does not have many itineraries--outside of the Caribbean--that fit the parameters of visiting only private islands or under 10 days.  Perhaps we'll see some updated itineraries after the CDC makes its announcement about the "no-sail" order, in line with Frank Del Rio's statements about staggered start-up of operations within 30 days of being allowed to return to sailing.

13 minutes ago, anniesh said:

Thank you all for your prompt comments.

I have spoken to the TA .

We have been given an extension.

Glad to hear, anniesh!  In the United States, Regent forced payment for that same cruise on Explorer (Singapore to Sydney) in July--the usual 150 days out.  We asked for--and were refused--an extension given conditions in the world.

Given quarantines or outright bans on foreigners entering any of the ports on our cruise for the rest of 2020, it is unbelievable Regent hasn't cancelled--and is, in fact, still selling space on that cruise.  As a first-time cruiser with Regent, this is providing a poor customer-service experience before we even have the opportunity to set foot on a Regent ship.  Time for  Regent to cancel all remaining cruises for 2020 and let us all move on with plans for 2021.

4 hours ago, mrlevin said:

One thing for FdR to be enraged at CDC; however, NCLH still hasn't submitted a plan to CDC; why not?

Based on the article, it looks like they are waiting for the public comment period on cruising to close on 21 Sep.

26 minutes ago, Anubi said:

Susancruzs, can you please send that info to wandatp at outlook dot com?  We were on the Crown and now we're on the Sky and my TA hasn't any info.  TIA

Here's the link to the updated Sky itineraries--all tentative and subject to change, per Princess:

https://static.cdn.responsys.net/i2/responsysimages/content/princessus/YP_2021_Southampton.pdf

We received an email today from Princess with the tentative new itineraries.  The Baltic is dropping Berlin, Oslo, and Helsinki (mostly)--now has a total of five sea days for the 12 night cruise.  The email said they were still working to finalize the itineraries, so hope they are planning on adding some or all of those ports back.  Oddly, one--and only one--of the itineraries over the summer has Helsinki.  If it could be on one sailing, you'd think it could be on all.

2 minutes ago, Roberto256 said:

 

 

Is 10-April the first 2021 cruise scheduled for Sky Princess?

 

Princess is showing holiday cruises and early 2021 cruises in the Caribbean on Sky.  But, who knows?  The ship is currently sitting in Cyprus, so it would have to do an empty TA to do the Caribbean cruises.

How far out can you ask Regent Air for a quote--as soon as flights become available or do you need to wait until 270 days out?  We have booked through the big box TA--do we need to make our request through them or can we contact Regent Air independently?  If the latter, can we find their contact info on RSSC.com?  

Sorry for all the questions--we're looking forward to our first cruise on Regent after having what would have been the first cancelled this year and waiting for the second to be cancelled in the next month or so.

We were scheduled to sail on Navigator, departing 30 October 2020.

Regent cancelled the cruise on 28 July 2020.

Received FCC (100 percent of cruise (minus taxes and fees) plus 25 percent) on 04 Sep and applied it to a Regent cruise booked for September 2021.

I made three calls to my TA checking status of the FCCs.  Should also see SSS credits applied (as this cruise was cancelled prior to Regent's change in policy on these) but not yet reflected in RSSC.com account.  Waiting for Regent to cancel our cruise in December 2020 as none of the ports on it are open to tourists.

NCLH cancelled the cruises for October on 28 July.  And pledged monthly updates.  I believe Pcardad previously predicted we'd see November sailings cancelled in August, December in September, rinse and repeat until?

Regent is, however, still showing the Explorer cruise from Singapore to Sydney available for sale.  While Bali and Australia are closed to tourists until after the cruise.  How is that possible?

On 8/19/2020 at 12:00 PM, Pcardad said:

PS - if you re-book, Regent will process the FCC in a day or 3.

How does one know if Regent has processed the FCC?  Regent cancelled our Navigator cruise that was supposed to sail on 30 October on 28 July.  We opted for FCCs and told Regent we wanted to apply it to a cruise booked for September 2021.  But nothing yet when our TA called them earlier this week.

Many thanks,

10 hours ago, GOARMY said:

Bottom line.  Be prudent.  Stay with your assigned group.  Do NOT wander away.  And, this is serious:  you must consider being  under constant surveillance  by local authorities.  They do not tolerate  deviation(s)  of any kind.   That was drummed into me  constantly when spouse and I traveled in  "the olden days"  in East Germany on a sanctioned visit before the Wall fell; and much later throughout China.  "Stuff" does happen when on foreign travel.  Just do not put yourself in a situation of possible problems.     

Sounds like Marc is already aware of potential problems (including what needs to be reported on the SF-86--for non-former Feds or USG contractors, that is the form one needs to fill out for a security clearance), but just to add one item for general consumption.  Do not take any personal electronic devices (smart phones, tablets, anything that connects to the internet wirelessly) ashore unless you don't care what data is on them.  If you want a phone for security, buy a new, pay-as-you-go one that will work overseas.  Program emergency numbers into it--the local embassy, the overall citizen consular number (the U.S. Department of State has one and I think the UK FCO has one as well, likely the Canadians, Aussies, and NZ also), etc.  Use it only in Russia, China, etc. and only for emergencies.

1 hour ago, SusieQft said:

I am thinking about booking flights for Navigator, Miami to New York in May 2021.  I am guessing maybe there is a 50% or less chance it will sail, but the current booking terms allow no penalty cancellations.  I am not in a Gateway City, so the cost of doing it through Regent is much more than I can do on my own, especially since I plan to use miles.  But I have a question about what airports to choose.

 

I assume that when my itinerary says Miami, that means Miami and not Port Everglades.  Is that a safe assumption?

 

We end up in New York, but I have no idea where the port would be or which airport would be the closest or easiest.  Right now the flight options out of EWR look slightly better than JFK or LGA, but I could go with any of those.  I am looking at flights leaving just after 2 pm from any of the three, connecting through ORD.  I could instead get a nonstop flight out of JFK at 11 am, but that sounds like it would be cutting things a bit too close.  Any advice?

 

I assume that Regent offers disembarkation transfers for a price for those not booked on Regent Air.  Do they stage you at a hotel somewhere with snacks and beverages available, or just take you straight to the airport?

Susie,

We were scheduled to be on the reverse itinerary on Navigator in October, which Regent cancelled.

In New York, we were scheduled to depart from the Manhattan Cruise Terminal:  https://www.nycruise.com/manhattan-terminal/  The closest airport is La Guardia.

Yes, Miami is different from Port Everglades.  Its cruise terminal website is here:  http://www.miamidade.gov/portmiami/cruise.asp

I know transfers from the airport to the cruise terminal and return were offered, but we never reached that stage.  I don't know about the Regent transfer "experience" as we have not yet sailed with Regent.

Hope this helps, and that you can sail!

We are "nothings" on SSS (just had first cruise with Regent that was to sail in October cancelled two weeks' ago and waiting for our sailing on Explorer in December to also be cancelled), but received this email today as well.  In both the email and on RSSC.com (if you follow the link in the email on amenities), it says the following:

"Have your clothing picked up, safely laundered, carefully pressed, folded, then returned to your suite each day."  This suggests same-day service to me, which is what we receive on Princess when we sail in a suite. 

In being new to Regent, I found it odd that an all-suite line that billed itself as "Every Luxury Included," did not include free valet laundry.  I understand it is a perk with status in the SSS, but it seemed like something that should have been included for all from the beginning--why drinks, which not everyone imbibe, but not laundry?  The latter seems more basic than the former.  But happy to have to find a new plan to spend some of that $1K "Return with Regent" OBC on this with our booked 2021 and 2022 cruises!

Ten days too late for me, but glad for others!

Well, there goes our much-anticipated first cruise with Regent.  We have three additional bookings, one we anticipate being cancelled for December this year and one each in 2021 and 2022.

Question for those who have taken the FCC during these COVID-19 pauses, how long did it take for Regent to apply FCCs?  Do we need to wait until after the deadline to request refunds or can we call our TA immediately?

Many thanks,

16 hours ago, howiefrommd said:

I actually applaud Princess for making this decision.  Unless one has been on the international space station,  the reality is that there will a considerable pause in cruising.  I personally find it unconscionable to take deposits and final payments for cruises a line knows (with pretty much certainty)  most probably will not happen.  

In addition, Princess has changed the final payment date for all cruises departing before 01 May 2021.  Final payments are now all due 60 days prior to sailing, versus previous policy of 90 to 150 days depending on the length of the cruise.  Given ongoing uncertainty of conditions for sailing, both of these moves seem sensible for the company and passengers.

To anyone who received an email from Regent this week, what did it say?  We did not receive anything although we have three cruises booked (two fully paid) and are NCLH shareholders.

Many thanks (and Go Nats--MLB starting today!),

29 minutes ago, minotaur said:

I understand why they are continuing to accept bookings - to keep money flowing in, but I feel that Regent would enhance their reputation by saying something along the lines of:

 

"We are not taking further bookings until we know when our ships can sail again, and to which destinations."

And extend the final payment deadline to closer to sailing date when they will have more confidence of when and where.  Keeping with the 150-day date--when other cruise lines have moved to 90- or even 60-day deadlines--seems disingenuous.  There are a lot of unknowns, so moving the date would give everyone more time to see what might transpire.  (We've paid Regent in full for two cruises in 2020 that are unlikely to sail, so Regent making this change does not apply to me personally--looking for some rationality for others.) 

3 minutes ago, flossie009 said:

Rather than comparing one cruise company with another I would be more interested in how the cruise sector compares with other companies in the travel & hospitality industry regarding the potential for virus transmission.

Are the CDC and other regulatory bodies being as pedantic and bureaucratic with airlines, hotels, restaurants & bars? 

Not sure if any study has been done yet focused on the different sectors of the travel and hospitality industry, but this study paints a grim picture of transmission on a ship:

https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/covid-19-asymptomatic-in-over-80-per-cent-of-ceases-cruise-ship-study-finds/

Speculation--again speculation--is also that COVID-19 is spreading so rapidly in states that reopened indoor dining, bars, gyms, etc. and are also experiencing the highest summer temperatures.  As outside temps increase, more people congregate inside where air conditioning systems are recirculating the virus.

13 hours ago, SusieQft said:

This will not matter a bit to the CDC.  No line is going to get special permission to open sooner than the others.  They are all slow walking the resumption of cruising because the pandemic is still out of control, and in that context it is dangerous to be on a ship.  All it takes is one asymptomatic carrier, or exposure on a shore excursion, to cause ship-wide problems on any cruise line.  I don't like that reality any more than you do.

While we are all speculating, I believe Susie is correct.  For the CDC, it will be a "one size fits all" solution.  I know CCL ships have come under fire as being the poster child for COVID-19 on ships, but CCL--as the largest cruise line in the world--will tell you it had fewer per capita cases than other lines.  Statistically, as the largest cruise line it would also be expected to have the largest gross number affected.  (From CCL conference with financial analysts on 10 July as posted on Princess board:  Carnival Corp ships had less than their market share of Covid-19 incidents, but being the largest company received the most media attention..)

Here is a chart showing cases reported on ships around the world.  It is not 100-percent accurate nor current--the two cases on Navigator were later determined to have been false positives as the ship traveled to repatriate officers and crews.  But it does serve to underline the point that the CDC will not likely allow any ocean-going ship to sail before others.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_on_cruise_ships#Summary_of_confirmed_cases_on_board