cruiser69420

Confirmed, you can't book any westjet flights to San Juan until Jan 13th.

This is directly from their website:

 

Enhanced Flexible Change & Cancel is in effect for:

- San Juan, Puerto Rico

We're here to help you, so we've implemented enhanced flexible change and cancel rules for those guests who booked on, or before October 11, 2017 for travel until January 13, 2018. To review your options, please call:

WestJet (air-only): 1-888-937-8538 (1-888-WESTJET).

WestJet Vacations: 1-877-737-7001.

If you have made an air-only booking through a travel agent, please contact your travel agent directly.

We advise all guests travelling to or from these cities to check the status of their flights prior to leaving for the airport.

Additional updates will be posted as they are available.

Flights are not cancelled as of now, but they are permitting changes and cancellations

Yes, I switched my flights from San Juan to Orlando and actually got a credit of $350 lol.

Westjet is awesome

I don't blame you LOL.

 

You have to balance it with how much extra you would spend on flights too, and how much it would cost to book a last minute vacation somewhere else instead.

 

Hope you enjoy your honeymoon, wherever you end up!

Thank you very much.

Got my flights changed to Orlando for no cost, staying there for two weeks. Got a 6 day Disney pass (Military Discount) for almost 50% off. Using an aunt's timeshare to stay at a nice resort for two weeks for $0(she doesn't use the timeshare).

Just need to rent a car $500 and we're good to go for 2 weeks, its better than wasting $2000 on flights to Puerto Rico, booking possible hotels ($500)+ and dealing with that whole headache.

Anyways, I'll stop blogging/venting on here. Sorry :p

1929.12 CAD to fly from Halifax to San Juan for my cruise, when I paid $400 with Westjet Originally

Plus they never over sell. I love westjet and fly with them whenever possible. If you don't have it yet look into the rbc westjet mastercard. It definitely saves us money every year - pays for itself in 1 flight with free checked bags.

Yes, thats how I got my flights to Puerto Rico for incredibly cheap.. Now that the flights are cancelled I would have to pay a bunch and fly with Air Canada. I rather take the 50% loss, lol.

Since you've cancelled, that will be good news for you as you will get a refund and not a flight credit (if you haven't already canceled your air ticket)

Yeah, I'm going to just switch my ticket over to fly from Halifax to Orlando instead.

I sure don't know what your problem is. Your cruise is not cancelled and won't be.

 

Cruises as of last weekend are going as scheduled. The things you quote about port not being ready for the rest of the year are coming from who knows where.

 

Insisting that you will only use a particular airline as an excuse to cancel is silly!

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/royal/US/en_US/cruise-ships/itinerary-updates

October 12, 2017 at 2 PM EDT (next update tomorrow at 2 PM EDT)

 

Royal Caribbean leadership just returned from visits to San Juan and St. Thomas, and are planning a visit to St. Maarten on Monday. We were very impressed with the progress the islands are making to rebuild, and all three destinations are looking forward to welcoming back Royal Caribbean guests before the end of the year. In the next two weeks, working in conjunction with the local governments, we will announce the specific dates of our return to each of the islands.

You mean this quote that clearly states that the Island isn't ready for passengers until the end of the year? Why should a port be ready for embarkation/debarkation but not ready to accommodate port guests?

I just contacted Westjet and they confirmed first flight to San Juan from Toronto is January 13th

I also asked them about return on th 28th which is a Sunday and they said that the flight will be coming home that day even though website shows no Sunday flights We are on the Jewel B2B

And booked on these two flights. SO PLEASE CHECK YOUR FLIGHTS DIRECTLY WITH WESTJET

Ontario Cruiser

Thats my issue, I won't fly with any other airline other than Westjet as I lost my baggage with Air Canada 3 times already and that was a huge headache on its own. I didn't get confirmation yet that my November 18th flight has been cancelled yet?

I did cancel and took a 50% loss as I'm not dealing with this crap.

I literally had no clue about hurricane season, this is an expensive lesson learned and while pouring my heart out to Royal and explaining my situation and them not offering me a future credit or anything at all, I just won't sail with them again(I'm sure they don't care) but theres a reason why Royal has a 1.6* out of 5 on consumer affairs.

Hello,

 

Thank you for your most recent e-mail.

 

The below statement is in reference to itineraries that had affected islands as one of the ports of call. It does not apply to itineraries that included San Juan as the boarding and departure port. Once again, our response remains the same.

 

Royal is the first company I've encountered that could care less about their customers.

Royal Caribbean leadership just returned from visits to San Juan and St. Thomas, and are planning a visit to St. Maarten on Monday. We were very impressed with the progress the islands are making to rebuild, and all three destinations are looking forward to welcoming back Royal Caribbean guests before the end of the year. In the next two weeks, working in conjunction with the local governments, we will announce the specific dates of our return to each of the islands.

With Royal saying that, why are they even sailing out of San Juan if the port isn't even ready for passengers until 'end of the year'?

I'm waiting until last minute to lose 50% on my Nov 19th cruise incase they decide to cancel it (I doubt they would).

I am just hoping as I can use that 50% towards a real honeymoon, not a game of survivor.

Your trip isn't for over a month. Why not take a wait and see attitude, or do you just need to move on emotionally and plan something else?

The longer I wait around.. the more money I lose.. and less of a chance to find another vacation to go on a honeymoon on. Its a gamble but I trust the locals predictions/their local media when they say that things won't be normal until after Jan.

I also have severe anxiety/depression/PTSD and OCD, lol.

I am actually going to take a 50% loss and cancel my cruise leaving November 19th(Jewel of the seas), our hotel at Sharaton San Juan is closed and I don't want to deal with finding a hotel before and after the cruise, I also don't want to deal with the increased crime rates, possible power outages, fending for essentials like food and water and whatever else the media is telling us. I served in the navy and I'm just making a judgement call as I know how things can get. Unfortunately I don't have any travel insurance. I'm going to take a 900USD loss + Airfare losses in return for my sanity. Lesson learned.

I contacted Royal numerous times and they basically don't care and can't make any exceptions.

I asked politely if I could get 75% back instead of 50% and they said no.

Kind of ridiculous as they're going to possibly resell my room to someone else and double dip.

I'm going to go have our honeymoon in Orlando (try to stay at a Disney resort or something) instead. RIP bank account lol.

I hope any of you that are travelling in the next month or two.. be careful and let us all know how it goes.

FYI: saw your post and just to let you know, Sheraton OSJ cancelled our reservation. For 24/25 November. It is not accepting any reservations or confirmations until after 31 Dec 2017...or later.

 

So we had booked a new reservation through the CONUS website for Starwood (Sheraton), got the confirmation number and then I called the actual property this morning and was informed that the reservation managers were cancelling ALL reservations through 9 Jan 2018. Apparently, many rooms were damaged by the storm and all of the others are booked on long term contracts for Government first responders. There will be no room at the Sheraton properties for your vacation.

 

Go to See Puerto Rico and read the list of hotels that are open or will be open after a certain date and then, my advice, contact the property directly rather than go through a reservations office somewhere in the CONUS.

 

And good luck!

 

VR,

 

T Lex

What, my reservation is cancelled?

This is giving me so much anxiety. I might just take a loss and cancel this stupid trip, screw Royal for not giving me any refund what so ever.

Ugh, that's not good...but with SJU reporting as of today that they're back to full regular operations, hopefully in the next day or two Liat will switch your flight from suspended to confirmed.

 

I'm also concerned about my flight from Canada to San Juan in late November. Originally, there were only four flights per week from Canada to San Juan (two on Air Canada, two on Westjet)...Westjet recently dropped down to one per week, but I'm worried with the impact on tourist facilities and the resultant drop in demand for flights, and both Canadian airlines may just pull out of the island for the rest of the year...that's exactly what Westjet already did with St. Maarten.

 

However, for you with Liat, I would expect they'll be trying to get flights up asap, with San Juan being a major transit hub for across the Caribbean to places beyond.

I'm Flying Halifax -> Toronto -> San Juan Saturday 18th November with west jet.. To catch the Jewel of the seas Nov 19th cruise.

I paid $1600 USD for a balcony suite that can now be had for $700 USD... friggen rip off.

I have a hotel booked but I don't even know what the status of that hotel is(Sheraton Old San Juan Hotel).. and I'm 'stuck' hanging around Puerto Rico from November 26th to December 3rd as the next Westjet flight out is December 3rd.

I have a car rental set up, I was going to head to Rincon and try to find an Airbnb thats safe and has electricity.

This is all a train wreck (Our honeymoon) and we would love to cancel our whole trip but we have too much money invested in it.

:(

Hi,

To any locals who read this, I am sorry to hear about the recent hurricane and I hope you and your family are okay :(.

Coming November 17th I'll be flying into San Juan and taking a 7 day cruise, afterwards from Nov 26th to the 2nd of December I have a week to waste until we catch our flight.

We were thinking of Rincon as we like to feel safe(we heard the west coast is safer than the east coast, last time we were in San Juan there was a drive by shooting close to where we were staying), has seaglass, be someplace that is chill and rent a nice AirBnB by the ocean.. this is our honeymoon :)

Saying that, if the island does recover from the hurricane, I guess the best way to get from San Juan to Rincon would be to rent a car? I checked car rental prices and they're like $500CAD for the week which is quite pricey. I checked out Charlie Car Rental but they seem to be away due to the hurricane.

Any suggestions or recommendations of a different place to stay thats closer?

Hi,

I'm leaving 19-Nov-2017 out of San Juan and I went to go check out the list of shore excursions for my ports:

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

Basseterre, St. Kitts

St. John's, Antigua

Castries, St. Lucia

Bridgetown, Barbados

I checked out the shore excursions and not one has a review, why is booking a shore excursion with Royal a gamble?

With other cruise lines I ALWAYS looked at the reviews as thats the most important to me.

Now I have to try to find the same excursion on Viator, try to find reviews and that can take hours or days.

Incase you can recommend anything for our cruise...

We like snorkelling, hiking, adventure stuff or just exploring different beaches.

I actually decided for all 3 of us to sleep in one cabin and I essentially saved us $1000

Unfortunately my credit card didn't go through to book it through a travel agent and now theres an imaginary 'hold'. I hate credit cards sometimes, I hope this figures itself out so I can get this cruise booked!

I'm definitely shopping around but trying to figure out what our best bang for our buck would be.

I'm almost tempted to book flights straight for St.Maarten for a week and just stay someplace by a beach as that would essentially be cheaper for the 3 of us.

I'm in a bit of a Jam

We're leaving out of either Halifax or Fredericton and it has to be after May 26th.

So its going to be my spouse and I (2) people in one inside stateroom and my mother-in-law in her own stateroom (1).

We're looking at taking the Carnival Splendor on May 27th leaving out of Fort Lauderdale, and I'm getting quotes of $2200 CAD per room. I think thats a bit pricey.. $4400 for 3 people to cruise around for 8 days?

I'm trying to figure out a more affordable budget here and not trying to spend a small fortune. My spouse and mother-in-law love beaches and beach hunting for seaglass and stuff..

Anyone in the Southampton region have a spare jacket, tie or anything? I'll gladly pick it up.

Pretty much yes. Did you bring a sport coat? That's really all you need to complete the code. No one is really going to take notice, if you have a sport coat. They are found pretty much everywhere & can be quite inexpensive. Add a tie & you'll be fine. I know you said you're kind of "cashed" out. Easy to do when touring, still a sport coat can be had pretty cheaply.

Thank you all for the help and advice, this is what I wanted to hear.

Could someone post a picture of this 'coat' I should be buying and/or will I look stupid with a black collared golf shirt underneath?

Can anyone recommend some stores to check out in Southampton, thrift or not where I can try to scrounge some last minute stuff? I'll also need shoes as I don't think I can get away with wearing runners with my attire.

Hi cruiser69420

 

As I read it, and I apologise for being direct, but as I understand it, this is a situation of your own making.

A little research before handing over large sums of money... You say that you thought that all cruise ships were the same.

Are all cars the same? (etc)

As has often been mentioned here previously, booking Cunard and complaining about the dress-code is similar to booking Disney Line and then complaining about the number of children on board. Or booking Aida and complaining that all the announcements and signs are in German, or Costa and the large number of Italians on board.

Clearly and obviously, all cruise ships are not the same (or there would only be one cruise line catering for everyone).

People are not all the same, we have different likes and dislikes. One size does not fit all.

 

But, to end on a positive note. You can still really enjoy your crossing, dressed casually night and day, making the most of what the ship offers.

 

During the day almost all of the ship is open to you.

Breakfast and lunch (free) can be enjoyed in the main Britannia Restaurant (you should try the Golden Lion pub for lunch (free) at least once) or Kings Court (also free).

For no charge you can enjoy the superb lectures, Planetarium, Afternoon Tea in the Queens Room (free), Winter Garden lounge, Commodore Club, Chart Room, Sir Samuels, gym, pools (both indoor and outdoor), hot tubs, the Bridge viewing gallery, trivia quizzes, & the many day-time activities organised on board. You'll have a splendid time I'm sure (and I haven't mentioned the sheer pleasure of simply walking the open decks and promenade). You'll never be bored or in want of something to do.

 

And after 1800, for dinner either use the (free) buffet or order (free) room service (the menu is a little restrictive, so add variety with occasional visits to the buffet is my tip). Drinks (chargeable) can also be had via room service. Then settle back in the comfort of your cabin for an evening reading, or watching a movie on TV, splendid. You could view all your photographs taken in Europe to re-live some happy memories from your holiday.

 

Hope this helps, have a wonderful time on board :)

Thank you, that was some good information and will keep note of all that.

One question for you, if I have a collared shirt and some slacks, can I roam about the ship at 6pm, can we go for a walk on the top deck? Can we go to a show or anything?

We don't care much about the fancy dinners, we ate enough different and yummy foods all throughout Europe the last 3 months, we just want to keep ourselves occupied.

No I'm not going to go out of my way to ruin anyone else's vacation but if they see me out of dress a bit I hope they look the other way instead of being judgemental or appaled

I'm going to go about my business and if someone wants to be rude so be it, I'm not going to sink to their level. If they want to be rude to two individuals who can't afford dresswear then so

be it.

We were raised to not comment or make fun of the unfortunate kids at school who couldn't afford clothes ( I was one of those kids ).

Why is it so difficult to understand that I didn't know you had to dress up every night after 6pm just to walk around the ship, I thought like any other ship, you can wear what you want outside the dinning areas. I only read about 3 weeks ago that there is a dress code for the ENTIRE ship, I called my travel agent asap to ask if I can do a refund and she said that I'd lose 100% if I cancel.

What a way to be disrespectful,

"You and your fiancee can't afford dress wear? You're not a human anymore and can't enjoy your trip"

Thanks for not understanding my situation.