Bramcruiser

Can we change the thread title to This is what you get for changing cruise lines? 🙂

We made it to Iceland and to the ship only to find out inclement weather has cancelled our voyage to Greenland and so we're being re-rerouted to Norway.  So much for bucket lists. The irony as I said to my partner is that if I wanted to go to Norway I would have booked with Holland America as we originally had done in 2020 (before it was cancelled due to Covid).

I have to be careful what I say onboard as I know NCL has a lot of fans. However, if anything can go wrong on day one it happened. The rerouting of our voyage was only the start. I feel more like I am on more of a glorified ferry rather than a cruise ship.

Oh well, lesson learned. I have to find a future sailing on the |Nieuw Statendam.

Since when did I ever said I was complaining and majorly pissed off?

I am just stating the general feeling of people on the ship but I too agree that safely comes first and we are all subject to forces that are outside of our control.

The irony for me is that we had originally planned this retirement gift for my partner two years ago - on another line - to take in a Norwegian Fjord cruise along with weeks of European land travel. That was the infamous 2020 so you can guess everythng was cancelled then. When we booked this Iceland/Greenland trip it was the replacement because I really had no interest in trying to replace what we originally lost. Now all of a sudden we going to Norway after all even if that was not the revised intent. LOL! 

No doubt Norway is extremely beautiful and I will make the most of it. However, from what I have been hearing from those who have done Norway several times before it is a disappointment for them as Greenland was something that was on their bucket list and they already have grown tired of visiting Norway again for the upteenth time. I am more willing to go with the flow as we have never been to Norway.

This is not a complaint thread. Consider it more of an observation from one innocent caught up in all this.

The Norwegian Star left Reykjavik today on its next 11 day cruise. However, instead of heading to Greenland as planned the ship has been re-routed to Norway. It seems that the weather gods have been playing games with us. Huuricane force winds are predicted in Greenland along with a strong ice flow so the Captain made the decision not to try. NCL head office approved the re-routing.

Biggest issue is that no passengers were informed early enough about this and most of us only found out seconds before stepping onto the ship when the key cards were handed to us. No one said a word as we all entered the terminal, got checked for Covid and went through all the check in formalties. Too late now to do anything about it. 

Most of us have learned to accept the fate befallen on us but it is a disappointment. The majority of passengers said the same thing - that they booked this voyage because of Greenland. A lost opportunity for some.

As for compensation. 30% FCC towards another cruise booked before December 31, 2023. For some this is not going to be much of an incentive or will end up being a lost cause. The biggest scramble has been the shore excursions - private operators in Greemland are without passengers and the ship's shore excursion desk if handling about 2,000 passengers who are flooding them with bookings for Norwegian ports that are likely to sell out fast and leave some passengeres without. There were only 3 tickets left on one excurision of which I decided to go for so its was only one left after that . I am sure its gone now.

Topsy turvey day!

Thanks everyone. We originally had a cruise on the Nieuw Statendam planned as well as a week and a half of European land travel booked for 2020. In all we were supposed to do The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Portugal as the blow out retirement gift. Unfortunately events in 2020 made it impossible to move forward with any of it. So this cruise (my first on NCL) is our makeup despite my partner being retired for 2 years now and I am working from home these days.

I wasn't able to find something exactly the same in 2022 as the cruise we lost so I decided go in a totally different direction and mindset. We love Iceland (been there twice before) and the visit to Greenland is an added bonus. We fly out Monday and plan to do some sightseeing before boarding the ship on Thursday. Really looking to returning to sea after not being on a ship for 4 years now.

Looking forward as well to eating that great Icelandic lamb. 🙂 Have a great summer sailing everyone.

64 days! The Star out of Reykjavik, Iceland.

Signed by "Our  Vacation Center" sends warm and fuzzy thoughts. NOT! I also notice that they want your info but are basically asking you NOT to call the call center. Scam is written all over it.

Yes, I am actually looking at alternatives should NCL cancel my July cruise. Everyone said "Don't worry. That is down the road and things will be better then". But its the same message we heard back in 2020 and who would have thought we would have to go through this all again 2 years later.

So if my Iceland/Greenland cruise is cancelled I am glad I paid the mega buck to buy refundable airline tickets. I will either shorten the dates away and do a land trip in Iceland or pick some other place where its safe to go.

What I won't be doing is booking yet another cruise to go through it all again. I would have thought by now the Star would have been sailing. HA HA HA! the joke is on me!

The cancelled 2020 cruise was also supposed to be a retirement cruise for my other half who retired then.

I have been on both Celebrity and HAL and find them somewhat comparable. As some pointed out, it really depends on the length of cruise, the makeup of the passenger list, where in the world the ship is travelling, etc.

I realize that HAL is not noted for a wild night life but we had never been big on the party scene. We rather eat in the late sitting and, after a brief walkaround, go back to our cabin, check our emails, watch a bit of TV and go to sleep. I am more of a morning person - when the sun comes up I can't figure out why no one else is up on the ship. LOL! I don't think there has ever been an arrival at a port I slept through.

If one is worried about the older crowd, don't fret about it. Only once did we ever have a table where it was obvious a couple was uncomfortable with a gay couple at their table. They conveniently made other arrangements on day two onwards and we found out that the other couple that remained with us at the table thought exactly the same about those two who departed. 

In fact, one of the not planned gayest trips was a transatlantic crossing we did on HAL. 

Nowadays I board a ship not worrying about whether or not I will be stared at or talked about. 9 out of 10 times we put that thoughts into our heads ourselves.

As for Princess? Its one line I have yet to try. So someone else will have to compare.

Not truly impressed. After my cancellation due to Covid in 2020 I am not seeing my cruise itinerary being repeated in 2022 so I had hope that maybe....just perhaps 2023. At flirst, glance the answer is no. Glad I asked for a refund and not a future cruise credit.  Oh well, three cruises on HAL before that but its time to move on.

Air Canada can be crappy one flight and beyond wonderful the next. Generally, overall I think its a fine airline. We used up our Aeroplan points this past August for a quick getaway to France and I must say it was the best service we had in a long time going in both directions. The customer service director came by and was really interested if we were all happy and things were going well. Despite the Covid uncertainties, Air Canada excelled on that vacation.

To the OP, I am sorry you had such a bad experience but its far from the worst airline out there. I agree that its too easy an excuse nowadays for people in the airline industry to throw up their hands and say "abusive passenger". Clearly the people you were dealing with were ignorant but did you deal with them with finess or yell and scream? 

As for reserving seats. I always reserve the seat at the time I make a booking whether in Business or economy class. 

We sailed on HAL three times over the course of a decade and a half and have never had a problem with any of the other passengers we encountered. What I tire of is the photographer coming around the dining room table asking for me to get closer to my brother when its obvious we are not brothers and everyone at the table knows. The cabin stewards are smarter as, without asking, they already made one bed and not separated them. Anyway, being a member of the LGBTQ+ community is not too much of a problem even with the generally older demographics on HAL.

But I am not rallying around the HAL flag right now. Other unrelated issues I won't go into here.

We've made our first pandemic booking last summer for July 2022 - NCL 11 day cruise out of Reykjavik exploring Iceland (my favourite country) and Greenland. Keeping fingers crossed that the cruise goes ahead.

I haven't been on a ship since 2018. We took a break in 2019 and were supposed to be on a cruise in 2020 but I guess everyone can figure out that it didn't go ahead. Wasn't sure that I was ready to travel again amidst the pandemic but we decided on a last minute land vacation in France in late August and it went well.

Perhaps its best I didn't see it as I would have started crying. Like ski ww, we were supposed to sail with her in 2020 which ended up getting cancelled. The ship is no longer doing the itinerary we were intent on doing. Oh well, time to move on. 

If my July 2022 cruise gets cancelled that will likely be it for a long time with cruising and I will definitely chase for a refund. What a rollercoaster this wait has been. One minute it looks like the cruiselines are finally finding a way through the mess and then the Covid rates jump up and everything is back in turmoil again. The ever changing situation is making it really hard to plan. 

Then again what do I know? So tired of being locked down for 2 years we are off for a week land trip to France from Canada. Keeping my fingers crossed the green zone status stays the same for at least another two weeks. 

We're fully vaccinated and I can put up with the mask and social distancing. What I dislike is being stuck at home doing nothing. Might as commit a crime and go to prison. 🙂

Just so glad that we are double vaxxed with Moderna. I would have accepted a mix if that was what the health authorities in my area was offering but I was hoping to stick to one and not switch. Thankfully we were lucky. Especially now finding out some places are having issues with Canadians with a mix of vaccinations. At least I can feel comfortable knowing I have a better chance of flying into France in August and then doing our NCL cruise out of Iceland next summer.

Instead of making fun of people perhaps its better just to celebrate the return of cruises to Alaska.

2 hours ago, Rockit said:

I was on the Nieuw Statendam a couple of weeks before the pandemic shutdown and it was my favorite ship to date. I really like the Pinnacle class ships..

 

 

I was supposed to be on the Nieuw Statendam last year as part of a big European vacation and then the pandemic hit. So when sailings resume the new ship on the block will not be the new ship anymore. Happy sailings for those who are booked on the Rotterdam though. 

I am beginning more and more to think like the OP. I booked a 2022 cruise last year after a cancellation of a 2020 cruise and asking for a refund. I thought: What the heck, its way, way off so surely we must be going back to normal by then. Not in my wildest dreams did I expect that 2021 would just be a continuing rollout of cancellations. One year later, with lockdowns and vaccines, everything feels the same as it did a year ago. So now I am wondering about 2022 and the cruise I booked. If I don't see cruising return by the end of this summer (or at least looking like it will be happening shortly) I think its just safer to cancel my cruise, take the money and wait for a land vacation. This year I have ignored the tons of flyers and emails I have been bombarded with from the cruise lines.

I booked a whole different cruise on a different line in late 2020 for 2022 well after my planned 2020 trip was cancelled. I would not suggest a future cruise credit in these difficult days. Always go for the refund. Anyway, if my 2022 cruise is cancelled I'm done until the lines that are still around get back to a routine and we put the revolving door of cancellations behind us. Its one thing to remain positive but another to completely ignore reality. I already have $5K of flight credits with European air carriers that I have to rebook by the end of this year of lose them. They come first unless someone here is willing to reimburse me $5K. 🙂

Never got the chance to sail on her. 2020 cruise was cancelled and I see it is not sailing on any similar offerings in 2022. Such a disappointment when you lose both the itinerary and ship at the same time. Oh well. Can at least enjoy her on these cam shots.

I believe this is it. Yes, it does allow for the order to be rescinded but I agree with those who said the sailing season for Alaska and New England are short. Also, no one wants to publicly admit it, but Canada is way behind in the vaccination progress and so there are no guarantees on their promised deliveries. More excuses and finger pointing than anything. It would be more of a surprise if Canada allows cruise ships in this year. I count 2021 as a write off. As a Canadian, I am disappointed.

I've had this message for a few days now. I'll wait to see if its just a glitch or a more ominous sign of things to come (cruise is Europe in July 2022). However, if cancelled I'll take the refund and end cruising for quite some time (until they can show they can re-establish a schedule that actually is working). Last cruise was in 2018 and a 4 year wait is long enough. A cruise with a different line and different itinerary was cancelled in 2020. If cancelled I'll use my money for a land vacation. Hoping its a go for 2022 as this was going to be my first time on NCL. 

Sadly no. We spent two years planning our Norwegian fjord cruise and European vacation for the summer of 2020 (almost three weeks of travelling). Well, I don't have to mention what happened. Cancelled the hotels. Got the refund for the cruise and credits for the airfare. Still, not trusting 2021 enough to book as I just see an endless round of cancellations and voyages being moved around once cruising restarts. I put a small deposit on a totally different cruise for 2022 (different voyage and different cruise line) with hopes things will be more stable then. As for Norway? Maybe one day. Maybe never. No telling at this point.

On 11/23/2020 at 11:00 AM, SeaWatch12 said:

I have to say, I can't believe the Celebrity Edge class bashing I have seen on the Holland America board. 

Truly hope not all HAL passengers are so inconsiderate. It's kind of making me rethink my HAL reservation.

Perhaps the original poster was being sarcastic.🙂

I have travelled quite a few times on HAL and only once on Celebrity but I must say I actually like the new design of the Edge. Unfortunately, these boards have a number of people who defend their favourite lines by bashing another. Take it with a grain of salt. I like what I like. I travel on what I like and in which class I like. I am travelling to please myself not others.

While most likely necessary given the current state of the virus and the border closures around the world it is disheartening. I am beginning to feel like we are being made offers to buy into future cruises in much the same way we make cats chase those red laser lights. Will always go after them but never catch them. Can't completely blame the cruise lines as they are damned if the do and damned if they don't. They are sailing through uncharted "waters" - excuse the pun - with no helpful guidance and they need to start up sometime or else face the risk of completely being bankrupt. But still the stubbornness of the virus - or is it just the people carrying it - seems to have dragged this to the point where a month here and a month there no longer works.

I remain hopefully over my 2022 cruise that I broke down and booked this past summer. Having had no cruise vacation in two years is starting to get to me and now I have to wait another two years. Got unused flight vouchers for Europe that I want to use but can't given the current state of affairs. Hate to see us all throw money down the tubes.

Sadly can't even go home to visit family at Christmas and with my father having cancer, I may not have the chance to see him alive again. 2020 will go down as a horrid year. I guess its good having the "do gooders" still try to keep us going with thoughts of being lucky to have a job, food on the table and a place to sleep every night and be thankful for no wars. I feel like this is all the twilight zone. 

If my 2022  cruise goes ahead I will enjoy it completely! Well, at least for the first day - 🙂