Celebrity scraps some East Med cruises

[LunaSeaRetreat]

Andy,

As you probably know, I am one of those deeply disappointed cruisers. Celebrity has never stated any safety concerns. That is speculation. If they had of started their press release. Due to concerns about unrest in the area...

I would not be happy but I would understand.

 

They just released it as Inspired by guest interest, and to continue to offer the best vacation experiences in Europe, Celebrity Cruises has modified a portion of its European lineup in 2012 to present a series of new and distinct vacations designed to appeal to wine enthusiasts, as well as those who simply love the beauty and culture of the top-producing wine regions in Europe...

 

If you or anyone has direct information that Celebrity did change for safety reasons please post it.

 

My travel agent called early this morning and said the cruises would not be updated until Monday. Who knows, certainly not Celebrity.

Cynthia

[uktog]

Hi Uktog,

 

Im not certain how Celebrity is handling this specific situation, but in the past, they've held previously booked cabins until the stated deadline. I will see if I can find out for you.

 

Thanks Andy

I have actually just spoken to them and I had been given duff by another cruiser, yes indeed our staterooms are protected - I have to say the gentleman I spoke to in the UK (James) was extermely helpful and had all the options to hand. Now I have to wait until DH comes home and give him the good/bad news

Interestingly I had assumed our Holy Land trip went because of the situation there, what I have discovered now is they have retained the Holy Land for several sailings so we may yet still make it

[ghstudio]

 

My travel agent called early this morning and said the cruises would not be updated until Monday. Who knows, certainly not Celebrity.

Cynthia

 

This is so typically Celebrity. Each time anyone calls to find out something, they get a different answer....how can they continue to function as an ongoing business with such poor internal communications.

 

I wonder if anyone knows that their press release said schedules would be available today....or perhaps I should ask if anyone inside Celebrity cares that they committed to a date.

[bling19572010]

Before X's press release I was looking at booking a cruise on Solstice on Oct. 2nd and at that time the itinerary included the Greek Islands. I just checked and they have a new itinerary for this cruise so it looks like at least this new itinerary has been posted.

[Christine Frances]

Yep - Itineraries are up:D

[4774Papa]

I think we have to be a little patient. Celebrity certainly doesn't want to publish a schedule and then find that they can't use a port that day amd have to change a schedule again; they have to figure out pricing and they have to figure out how to handle those who were already booked on one of the cruises effected. That's not just something you do in a couple of days.

 

They had to make the announcements when they did....otherwise folks would have booked airline tickets creating a bigger (compensation) problem. Airlines were just opening up their flights for the cruises in Sept. (you can only buy an airline ticket so many days in advance).

 

I am hopeful that Celebrity meets their commitment to publish the new schedules (with fares) today, as their press release said....that is today, not this morning.

I just found out on cc this morning that the 5 Sept Repo cruise from Amsterdam to Istanbul was cancelled. I have heard NOTHING from X. I am not real happy.

I emailed them, but they should have notified us by now.

Not sure about the replacement Wine cruise from Southampton?

[letsgo39]

I do not for 1 minute believe this is about safety. It has got to be about $$$$$$. Perhaps Istanbul increased some port charges OR the cruises from Istanbul to the Holy Land were not selling well. Who Knows.If it was about safety the cruises out of Rome to Istanbul and the Greek Isles on Equinox would have been cancelled too. Some posters are assuming it is about safety but nowhere does Celebrity say anything about safety.

[TourDeCruise]

Good itinerary with two full days in LeHavre, Bordeaux, and Bilbao.

 

I don't see the September 7th cruise listed, but just the Wine cruises for September 19th and for October, plus the September 5th 2-night re-positioning cruise from Amsterdam to Southhampton. I thought I saw the September 7th on my first search, but second look, it had disappeared.

 

http://www.celebritycruises.com/search/vacationSearchResults.do?_=1318615072584&isWidget=false&dest=EUROP&sailStartDate=201208&sailEndDate=201209&ship=CS&port=ANY&duration=ANY&promoid=&promoType=&promotionTypeId=&priceProgram=&sortBy=4&startRow=0&count=10&cruiseType=CO&cruiseInt=Y&isCrieriaExcluded=false

 

Well, we're still going to Antarctica on the Infinity in 2013 although we have not yet received our cruise confirmation from our TA showing the cabin #, Passages deposit, cancellation compensation of $200 obc, and $300 obc for the Passage Certificate that has to be transfered from the canceled cruise to the Antarctica cruise.

 

Kathy

[LunaSeaRetreat]

I do not for 1 minute believe this is about safety. It has got to be about $$$$$$. Perhaps Istanbul increased some port charges OR the cruises from Istanbul to the Holy Land were not selling well. Who Knows.If it was about safety the cruises out of Rome to Istanbul and the Greek Isles on Equinox would have been cancelled too. Some posters are assuming it is about safety but nowhere does Celebrity say anything about safety.

 

I was thinking about the Istanbul connection too. I checked for departure ports on Celebrity and there are none after November 11. I don't think there is an easy to check if they are stopping there at all.

Cynthia

[Andy]

Andy,

As you probably know, I am one of those deeply disappointed cruisers. Celebrity has never stated any safety concerns. That is speculation. If they had of started their press release. Due to concerns about unrest in the area...

I would not be happy but I would understand.

 

They just released it as Inspired by guest interest, and to continue to offer the best vacation experiences in Europe, Celebrity Cruises has modified a portion of its European lineup in 2012 to present a series of new and distinct vacations designed to appeal to wine enthusiasts, as well as those who simply love the beauty and culture of the top-producing wine regions in Europe...

 

If you or anyone has direct information that Celebrity did change for safety reasons please post it.

 

My travel agent called early this morning and said the cruises would not be updated until Monday. Who knows, certainly not Celebrity.

Cynthia

 

Hi Cynthia,

 

You are correct. My previous comment was opinion, not fact. I cannot be certain whether the itinerary changes were motivated by unrest/safety reasons or other factors. With that said, one would think it was some part of the equation. I highly doubt Celebrity would share the reasons behind the move, so I cannot offer any additional insight.

 

As for Constellation's new itineraries - they are now posted on Celebrity's website. I wish you all the very best !

[greeneg]

All I can add is to say that the Amsterdam to Istanbul repo this year was definitely one of Celebrity's better Itineraries and that the ship seemed to be pretty much "full".

 

I still think that this is about selling wine, the stuff that they have on board, and reducing distance sailed ( fuel expenditure).

 

I think that the current itinerary for the Constellation for September has no appeal at all.

[Bruin Steve]

I still think that this is about selling wine, the stuff that they have on board, and reducing distance sailed ( fuel expenditure).

 

It has to do with a LOT of reasons...just about everything EXCEPT Ed's hypothesis...Well, that and the notion aliens from Mars are forcing it or that it's part of a CIA plot...

 

The "safety" issue has many sides...Yes, there is the concern about traveling places with State Department advisories and the insurance issues that go with it...and watching out for the customers' safety...

 

But this is also tied into an economic issue...

When the riots broke out in Egypt earlier this year, there was a rash of reservation cancelations along with it...

 

People become hesitant to travel to areas with conflict or unrest. It affects cruise sales and it affects prices.

 

The fact that Celebrity kept SOME later itineraries in the region is indicative of two things:

1) Existing but decreased demand.

2) Reserving final judgment on all such routes this season until a later date.

 

As to Ed's contention, if Celebrity really had fuel costs and selling wine as major considerations, and they really though that cruising to a wine region would increase wine sale to any significant amount, then they would permanently station a ship in Los Angeles and run a cruise LA to Ensenada to Santa Barbara to Monterey to San Francisco (overnight) to Los Angeles year round!!

[astrocat]

We have just come off (1st Oct) the Connie from Istanbul and all I can say is that it was a wonderful cruise, fantastic itinerary. Istanbul is brilliant, you definitely need the overnight there and more. When you see the new itinerary it is not exactly appealing, seems there will be a lot of stops in not exactly "pretty" ports overnight and lots of extras, line the wine pairing etc. Such a shame for everyone who had booked to go. I would be bitterly disappointed.

 

Totally agree on all fronts, WG. Istanbul was a revelation to us ... loved it.

 

Looking ahead to 2012, I can only live in hope that our Adriatic cruise (Silhouette, July) remains away from the firing line, and commiserations to all who had done so much forward planning for their cancelled trips. I hope you find a succesful resolution.

[buggins0402]

My guess is they had their first season with a number of ships in the Med. Numbers came in, they saw what was profitable, what was less profitable and what lost money - and measured that against the known angst of changing itineraries. No business wants to make people angry - I'll trust it was a hard business decision, but had to be done due to supply/demand experience this year. In this fragile economy you have to do what you have to do to stay viable and in business.

 

That said, it seemed last year there was too much industry capacity moving into Europe - probably part of the problem.

[Toronto Guy]

NO!!!!!!!!! I was just about to book the Oct 1, 2012 RT from Istanbul!!

Crap! I knew I should have gone this year. It was such a fantastic itinerary. :mad:

[LunaSeaRetreat]

Hi Cynthia,

 

You are correct. My previous comment was opinion, not fact. I cannot be certain whether the itinerary changes were motivated by unrest/safety reasons or other factors. With that said, one would think it was some part of the equation. I highly doubt Celebrity would share the reasons behind the move, so I cannot offer any additional insight.

 

As for Constellation's new itineraries - they are now posted on Celebrity's website. I wish you all the very best !

 

Thanks for your good wishes. I'll let you know how it turns out. My TA said that she won't know what she can do until Monday even though they are now posted. The deal for honoring the category and price is the term "like cruise." Since as far as I know all the "like cruises" have been cancelled, I don't know what will happen. I'll just wait until Monday and see what happens. Hopefully, I'll be cruising to Venice with Celebrity.

Cynthia

[greeneg]

It has to do with a LOT of reasons...just about everything EXCEPT Ed's hypothesis...Well, that and the notion aliens from Mars are forcing it or that it's part of a CIA plot...

 

The "safety" issue has many sides...Yes, there is the concern about traveling places with State Department advisories and the insurance issues that go with it...and watching out for the customers' safety...

 

But this is also tied into an economic issue...

When the riots broke out in Egypt earlier this year, there was a rash of reservation cancelations along with it...

 

People become hesitant to travel to areas with conflict or unrest. It affects cruise sales and it affects prices.

 

The fact that Celebrity kept SOME later itineraries in the region is indicative of two things:

1) Existing but decreased demand.

2) Reserving final judgment on all such routes this season until a later date.

 

As to Ed's contention, if Celebrity really had fuel costs and selling wine as major considerations, and they really though that cruising to a wine region would increase wine sale to any significant amount, then they would permanently station a ship in Los Angeles and run a cruise LA to Ensenada to Santa Barbara to Monterey to San Francisco (overnight) to Los Angeles year round!!

 

I guess, as with College Basketball, Steve and I will have to respectfully disagree on this one. I will say that our cruise did go to Athens, we had lunch with friends there, and while concerned about Greece's economy and future, neither he nor his wife were concerned about public safety in Athens. Certainly any sort of unrest does give reason for concern, but things were quiet while we were there.

 

I have seen what I consider a "bean counter mentality" in a number of Celebrity's decisions over the past couple of years which is why I raise the question of fuel costs. Since I did not sit in on the decision sessions, it's all speculation, but, hey, could be.

 

It's also possible that I am getting cynical in my old age......:)

[TourDeCruise]

Thanks for your good wishes. I'll let you know how it turns out. My TA said that she won't know what she can do until Monday even though they are now posted. The deal for honoring the category and price is the term "like cruise." Since as far as I know all the "like cruises" have been cancelled, I don't know what will happen. I'll just wait until Monday and see what happens. Hopefully, I'll be cruising to Venice with Celebrity.

Cynthia

 

Cynthia,

 

"Like cruises" might mean the same sailing date but of course with a different itinerary. Celebrity would honor the category and price from the canceled cruise and you get $200 obc (more for a suite) for the cruise of the same sailing date. Otherwise you get the $200 obc for booking an "alternate" cruise on another sailing date, but pay regular price. This is the way it was explained to me, but then I have not received this in writing yet. I transfered the Passages certificate yesterday to an "alternate sailing," but have not seen the confirmation email for the cruise and the combinability of $300 obc for Passages + $200 obc from Celebrity for re-booking on an alternate sailing. I think Celebrity might still be working on the booking details for the new itineraries.

 

Kathy

[goldiemom]

I was booked on the Connie for RT Istanbul Oct. 13, 2012 Greek Islands/Turkey Cruise. I found out it was cancelled and the Connie was being redeployed elsewhere from CC. Called my TA Thursday morning (I had sent him an email Wednesday night.). No way was I going to do a wine cruise to France /Portugal. Itinerary was not even close. Long story short, X will only guaranteed rate and category if you sail on the Connie. Soooo, I had to pay the prevailing rate, but I am booked on the Equinox leaving Oct. 26, 2012.

 

DH and I will fly to Istanbul/Cappadocia prior to the cruise out of Rome. I am really pissed that X did this. I had booked my original cruise the day they opened the bookings to get a sweet 16 cabin. Now, I've got a run of the mill cabin. All I got for my trouble/inconvenience was a $200 OBC. Thank goodness they cancelled prior to my booking my flights with FF miles.

 

Ok, I am now going to have a glass of wine.

[jcrandle]

Not only has X cut itineraries involving Middle Eastern ports, but IMO they have REALLY jacked up their prices for the MED cruises. We are booked on the Solstice 12 night BCL to BCL Nov 16 in a C3 cabin for a cruise fare of $1199 per person. When I look at the Med cruises in 2012, it is almost 80% higher. I think that they are dreaming, and will wait till after final payment to consider booking one of these!

[TourDeCruise]

I was booked on the Connie for RT Istanbul Oct. 13, 2012 Greek Islands/Turkey Cruise. I found out it was cancelled and the Connie was being redeployed elsewhere from CC. Called my TA Thursday morning (I had sent him an email Wednesday night.). No way was I going to do a wine cruise to France /Portugal. Itinerary was not even close. Long story short, X will only guaranteed rate and category if you sail on the Connie. Soooo, I had to pay the prevailing rate, but I am booked on the Equinox leaving Oct. 26, 2012.

 

DH and I will fly to Istanbul/Cappadocia prior to the cruise out of Rome. I am really pissed that X did this. I had booked my original cruise the day they opened the bookings to get a sweet 16 cabin. Now, I've got a run of the mill cabin. All I got for my trouble/inconvenience was a $200 OBC. Thank goodness they cancelled prior to my booking my flights with FF miles.

 

Ok, I am now going to have a glass of wine.

 

I think nearly all of us found out from Cruise Critic first, not Celebrity or our TAs. We had to call our TA to get more information. We knew before she did.

 

From what I understood from our TA, to get the same category & rate, we had to book the same sailing date for the Constellation "Wine" cruise or it was considered an "alternate" cruise.

 

What is your understanding or the information you received? Could we book ANY Constellation cruise to get the same category & rate (doubtful), ANY Wine sailing on the Constellation to get the same category & rate, or just our same sailing date on the Constellation Wine cruise to get the same category & rate? Not that it makes a difference to us because we already transfered our booking to the Infinity and the category wasn't a big deal to us and the rate was about the same as (maybe less than) our Sept. 5 sailing. But your information or understanding may help clarify for others who have not received answers from their TAs yet.

 

 

Kathy

[goldiemom]

Kathy: It was my understanding (I may be wrong) that it had to be same time period on Connie. I did not get too much info as I wanted a Med cruise in October, so I had to switch ships. I'm sad that we will miss some of the ports in Turkey (and not boarding in Istanbul).

[Waihekean]

Hi, I'am another one that found out through CC (notified in roll call) that my Sep 5-Sep19 Amsterdam - Istanbul is cancelled and got changed to a two day sail Amsterdam to Southampton (duh) and then the 12 day wine and food cruise. First it showed the first two days as a booking on my Celebrity, then it was completely gone.

 

Received e-mail today from American TA that my cruise got cancelled, no offers of OBC or anything else. Just that it is cancelled.

Have to wait till Monday to be able to communicate.

 

I am really disappointed as I had booked a "hump" cabin with the larger balcony and now I find that if I want to go on another Connie cruise that the fees are a lot higher. Instead of 14 days now a 12 day cruise and instead of a great balcony on Deck 7, now an Oceanview on deck 2!!!!:eek:

 

Now have to go to the whole ritmarole again of finding the right cabin or to decide to go with HAL (now the same price as Celebrity) or go for a MSC cruise.

 

BTW think that the rationale of safety is a whole lot of baloney, as out of ten ports of that itinary, Athens is the only one with unrest.

[LunaSeaRetreat]

Not only has X cut itineraries involving Middle Eastern ports, but IMO they have REALLY jacked up their prices for the MED cruises. We are booked on the Solstice 12 night BCL to BCL Nov 16 in a C3 cabin for a cruise fare of $1199 per person. When I look at the Med cruises in 2012, it is almost 80% higher. I think that they are dreaming, and will wait till after final payment to consider booking one of these!

 

You're are correct. If Celebrity doesn't consider it a "like" cruise, changing ships but still in the same time period, same category, same # of days will cost us $1889 more. Giving us $200 OBC doesn't even put a dent in that. Plus we won't be departing and returning to the airport. I'm going to make myself crazy by Monday.

Cynthia

[TourDeCruise]

Kathy: It was my understanding (I may be wrong) that it had to be same time period on Connie. I did not get too much info as I wanted a Med cruise in October, so I had to switch ships. I'm sad that we will miss some of the ports in Turkey (and not boarding in Istanbul).

 

That was my understanding too (and I could be wrong). Same with us that we were focused on information that pertained to us as we wanted to switch to a different sailing date and itinerary. We're still waiting to hear back as to our original $300 Passages obc and Celebrity's compensation obc (TA said $200 obc but no written confirmation from Celebrity yet) for our transfer to the Antarctic cruise. I see the cruise in My Celebrity, but have no written confirmation from the TA. I suspect she is waiting for Celebrity to confirm their obc and the combinability of Passages and their obc. Celebrity most likely has a lot to address with changes in itineraries, transfers of bookings, determination of compensation, complaints, etc.

 

Hopefully Celebrity recognizes that impacted cruisers are expecting some compensation (nice obc or upgrades for example & ability to combine obcs in this case) for the disappointments and hassles the cancellations have caused and to entice them to re-book with Celebrity and not abandon Celebrity for a cruise on HAL, Princess, or another cruiseline. Celebrity usually comes through for all of us, albeit a little slowly sometimes, so let's hope this is another case that they demonstrate why it is that so many of us choose to cruise with them.

 

Best wishes to all. I hope we all get answers by early next week. Some TAs are hard at work today, so some of us could get answers today. Please post if so.

 

Kathy