dleighb

If you are so convinced that they lied then exactly how did it benefit them? Give me one good reason why it would.

I must be communicating very poorly because that is exactly what I am trying to figure out. I am trying to figure out why they said it was due to fog and not Norovirus. To me and many others on the ship and who immediately went to check the weather forecasts for the area, it was very obviously NOT because of potential fog and it WAS because of the Norovirus.

I am trying to figure out why they wouldn't just tell us that we were returning early due to the Norovirus. I ASSUME there must be some reason that has to do with money. Otherwise, why wouldn't they just say we were returning for the Norovirus? The cost to them for returning a day early had to be very high. I don't think they would have risked losing all that money on a "maybe". But even after the fact, they are sticking to the fog story, so I have to think that they must have something along the lines of an insurance in place that helps mitigate financial damages due to weather. Or maybe there is some sort of legal recourse where people could sue if it returned due to illness, so they can't officially state that as the case. I don't know. I am just brainstorming and trying to figure out why we're not getting the full truth because you will never convince me that the real reason we returning was because of fog. There is little logic in that.

These lost revenues "cost" the line more than your hotel room. The Line has little benefit of getting you off the ship early and missing a Port stop that makes them money.

In your apparent love of Princess and apparently your belief that they can do no wrong and would never lie to their passengers, you are not listening to me or any of the others who have verified that the reports were for patchy fog -- which is certainly no reason to return early.

I have no doubt this was an expensive cost to the cruise line. I am sure they lost money all the way around. My only thought is that they MIGHT have lost LESS money if they have an insurance that would cover losses due to certain weather related issues. At least then they would have recouped SOME but certainly not all of their outlay of payments.

They were going to return early. That is a given. Just tell us that it is because of the Norovirus and not because of fog that can in no way be reliably predicted three days in advance. They even said that if it weren't for the fog, they wouldn't have come in early. Bull crap on that. It had to be for the Norovirus and they must have some reason to stick so firmly to their claim that it was for potential fog. I figure there must be a monetary reason for THAT.

I don't even mind that they returned early. If they had said, "We have a large number of Norovirus cases on board and feel it is in the best interest of the passengers to return a day early," I would have been upset about missing the port and returning early, but I would not have this seething anger about being lied to.

Their dishonesty is what angers me most.

Agreed. They lied. Whether to avoid a panic or for some other reason. That is why we are so irritated.

Who are you accusing of lying Princess or National Weather Service. See post above

 

Explain how the Line is doing this to "save money". Ships in home port don't make money, ships at sea do.

I do not doubt that there was a warning. There is always a weather warning in Texas over something. Heat, cold, fog. You name it. It's Texas. I believe that the real reason that Princess returned is for the Norovirus and to allow them an extra 24 hours to clean the ship. Better to end an infected cruise early fro decontamination than send the next cruise out late. Without the Norovirus on board, I believe that would have looked at the weather warning and maybe booked it faster from Belize to Houston to try and get into to the port Friday night. IIRC, they have done that before and made it, so it is possible. But with the Norovirus, they used the warning of potential fog as an excuse to return early.

This is also a reaction to the poorly handled cruise from a couple weeks ago that did have fog and they were delayed. But, even that cruise managed to arrive in on Saturday despite being told they would not. I would like to know how many times the port has been closed for 48 hours due to fog. I'm sure it has happened, but surely it can't be that often.

This move cost Princess loads of money. Loads more than having to help with people missing their flights on Saturday. So if this was weather related, wouldn't they have rather taken the financial hit of rearranging flights as opposed to putting up everyone in a hotel and reimbursing everyone for the one day? I do not believe they would have paid this price for a potential fog warning.

The comment on "saving money" is pure speculation. I would imagine (although I do not know for sure) that Cruise Lines have some sort of insurance against weather related issues -- sort of like a workers comp or home owner's insurance. They may get payment assistance if they have to delay or return early for a weather related issue or to cover damage to the ship. Who knows? I could be wrong. And while IF there was an insurance in place to handle this, it wouldn't have covered as much as they had to pay out, it might have at least helped to mitigate the costs. Again, speculation on my part.

And, I would much rather leave late due to fog than to miss a port and come in early due to fog. At least if you leave late, you know there is fog. Coming in early for a "chance of fog" and then not to have any (no surprise here) is very frustrating.

I always thought cancelling three days in advance due to "fog" was a lie. I never doubted the possibility as it is Texas and the joke here is that if you don't like the weather, just wait five minutes because it will change. Of course, that reason is exactly why cutting a cruise short due to what the weather will be in three days is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard.

Now, knowing that there is no fog (as we expected), I have proof that our suspicious were justified. I feel the compensation we received if fair UNLESS the ship outright lied to us. I would have been much more satisfied with the compensation if they had simply told us that they had to return early to decontaminate the ship because of the large cases of Norovirus. Also, that might have helped people take the warnings about sanitation more seriously. We took the captain's first announcement seriously, but I know a lot of people didn't and continued to refuse to use the sanitizers.

Really. That is my biggest gripe. There might have been a warning about possible fog, but as any Texan will tell you, that isn't enough to justify returning soon. A three day advance decision for possible weather in Texas (excluding an existing hurricane in the gulf) is quite simply dumb.

Aside from being lied to and returning early, we enjoyed our cruise. It will not keep us from sailing again. I don't feel my cruise was absolutely ruined over this. It won't even keep me from sailing again from the Port of Houston because fog was only an excuse for returning early. I am sure they have insurance and such against returning early for weather but they probably have nothing for returning early for disease and illness on board. The decision to lie to us was tied to money and not weather out of the port. Although that has been an issue and may continue to be an issue, it is one I am aware of going in. It's the lying. I truly hate that we were lied to, but everybody lies, and there really isn't much you can do about it.

So, even with a fog prediction, why did they sail in Thursday night for a Friday disembarkation? Why not push and return at least on Friday night before the port might close? At least give the current passengers their time on sea. I agree with Maritime Mom. My cruise was cut by 36 hours, not 24. I couldn't spend my last evening out on the balcony enjoying the crisp sea air. It was depressing to go to bed looking at the Bayport Terminal and smelling the oil fields of Houston. To have that on top of your cruise missing a port and being cut short is very disappointing. And I don't care if there is a fog warning. There was more to the decision to return on Thursday by 10pm than just fog. We were booking it right after they made the announcement to push in by Thursday. I don't mind the changes, but I really do feel lied to and that is what bothers me most.

Thanks!

We're trying to pack and the guys like to dress up for formal in a tux (yes, I know they will be in the minority, but when else do they get the chance to look that snazzy anymore?). How many formal nights are there on the Western Caribbean sailing? One? Two? Is there a semi-formal. Trying to figure out if they need a tux and a suit or just two tux shirts.

Thanks!

Is it recommended to bring the wine in your carry on or pack it in a suitcase?

Man, I am going to be onboard the CB before you even get onboard the CB in your review which is a bit disappointing because I would love to see you pictures and read the rest of your review. Been cracking up as I read.

Of course, it's not disappointing enough for me to postpone my departure! I'll just have look forward to reading the rest of your review when I get back!

My friend wants to know if they have yoga classes and if so, what time they are and if they are an additional cost. No worries, if you can't get an answer. We'll know soon as we sail on the sailing after yours.

Hope you are having a great time!

Awesome and much appreciated! Thanks!

So, I am a scrapbooker. I like pictures. On our Disney cruise, we were able to get a CD of all our pictures so we had digital copies. Do they have anything like that on Princess or is it you buy the actual picture and that is your only option? It just means I have to scan it for my album which I can do, but having the digital copy is easier.

We did this excursion in 2009 with Holland America. We had read the reviews, and we were very prepared. We were travelling with my parents, and I was very clear with EVERYONE in our group about what people said. We brought hand fans, snacks, drinks, and books to read while we waited (I didn't read mine because I was too busy chatting with the guide and taking pictures of every thing). We dressed in cool clothes, and I warned everyone that I didn't want to hear ANY complaining because I told them it would be hot and there would be a lot of waiting.

And there was a lot of waiting and it was HOT even though it was January. Like a reviewer above, we did the transit through the other two locks with a large cargo ship. It was slow. Very slow. The bus ride back was long. Very long. We got in a nice nap on the bus!

You can see my pictures from that day here: http://www.pbase.com/dleighb/panama_cruise_day7_panama

Because we were prepared, we had a marvelous time that day, and I am so glad that we chose that excursion over any of the others. It was fascinating.

I agree. Take the cruise. The ship is being thoroughly disinfected. Your cruise should be among the cleanest possible. They will probably do extra cleaning in any kid specific areas because everyone knows kids don't worry about germs!

If you are worried, bring some Lysol and Clorox Bleach Wipes and wipe down the stuff in your cabin on your own just for some peace of mind. Then be careful elsewhere in the ship. Wash your hands thoroughly and often--that is better than the antibacterial (which you can use to).

While there can be no guarantees, you should be fine. Have a great cruise!

My impressions from some things I've read on Roatan is that you tip just about anyone who talks to you. Any guidelines as to how much you should tip?

We have some friends who are fishing.

We are ziplining and horseback riding.

We have a private driver.

Do we tip everyone who helps us on the zipline? Or just a main guide (if there is one). The horse guide, I assume. The driver, I assume. And I assume there will be one or two people on the fishing boat for our friends?

I mainly want to make sure that I bring enough in small bills to cover the tipping, but I don't even have an idea of what is appropriate.

This almost read exactly like our trip. There are six of us. We have a private tour booked with Bodden Tours and we are dropping two members of our group off for fishing. We're not on the Carnival Magic though and we leave in 12 days (although it feels like six). It was very odd to read though. I kept checking to make sure I hadn't posted this!

I'm not even sure how we are hooking back up with our people fishing after we go horseback riding and ziplining. That's going to be an interesting logistical day for us. I hope it all goes well for you!

Several of us are hoping to do this on our CB sailing at the end of the month. We hear that the boarding for car passengers may be delayed if there is fog that causes a general delay for the arrival of the ship. As there are six of us, I hope that we won't get penalized by signing up late if we end up boarding after all of those who have flights and Princess transfers. I've heard everything from it is a lottery to you must sign up immediately, do not pass go. Guess we'll just do the best we can.

I would love to know how your day was. We are there at the end of January and would like to request someone who has been recommended. I am sure all the guides are great, but I am also sure that different guides are better for different groups, so I like to hear a little about the group, their interests (i.e. beachy people or city people), and what they thought about their guide.

Would love a report on how this day went or any other recommended guides.

Bill, I *AM* a scrapbooker, and I rather agree with you. I can't imagine staying on the ship when it is in port to scrapbook when I could be out taking pictures and gaining experiences to write about in my scrapbooks. Of course, this might explain why I am almost three years behind in making my albums!

Now, if this was an annual cruise and it went to the same ports over and over, then maybe I could see hitting a place like Belize and Jamaica where I hear people are afraid to venture out for safety concerns as an excuse to stay and scrapbook the rest of my trip!

Brick and mortar stores dedicated to scrapbooking are becoming harder to find even in the U.S as more and more people are moving toward digital options. Most supplies are either online or rolled up into a general craft store. I would imagine such a thing to be nearly impossible in a poorer country.

But, I wish the group luck in finding something for their albums. It's always exciting when you find the perfect paper and/or embellishments.

Bob, I am going to remember that!

I've been "late" to the ship a couple times, but always on a ship booked excursion, so I didn't worry (okay, I did because I worry a lot about everything). I like to book independently when possible, but sometimes, when a particular excursion is long or there is a very limited time in a port, or when you don't have a choice like in the middle of the Panama Canal, I always go ahead and pay the higher rates and go with the large groups with the cruise excursions. I chalk the extra cost up as a "safety on not missing the boat" cost.

Sometimes I wonder if the fear of not making it back to the ship on time is worth the benefits of private excursions!

I like to allow 1 hour too, or I am a nervous wreck. I usually like to allow 30 minutes prior to the all aboard time or even an hour depending on how far I am going from the ship. So, that is why I was trying to get an estimate for how Princess handles their all aboard time as this will be our first Princess cruise.

Thanks!

The itinerary on Princess lists the departure time. When should I assume is the all aboard time when making plans? An hour before?

Thank you! Our rooms are not at the 100s, so we should be all right. I was just curious as to whether or not it was an entire cruise or not option. We thought it might be a nice way to between rooms for visiting, but be able to close off should spending that much time together cause us to hate each other by the end of the cruise! I've known people who were great friends when they started a trip and wouldn't talk to each other by the end.

I didn't know if this was an easy process or something more complicated.

We are traveling with friends on the CB in January, and we have rooms next to each other on the Emerald Deck. I was told that the balconies are able to be opened up so that you can share a balcony. Is this true? If so, do you ask your steward or do you need to make the request in your reservation? Can you open them and close them yourself? We sort of did the latter on an NCL cruise, but it wasn't easy because we didn't have the right size allen wrench. On our Disney cruise, they had painted over the mechanism that allows the dividers to be opened, so we didn't really have that option on Disney even though we were told we would. Was wondering how it would be on the CB.