Costa Maya CANCELLED from our March 2013 out of Galveston????

[05mak05]

Costa Maya is absolutely not dangerous as Disney would also pull out. This link says the Costa Maya port is privately owned. http://costamayacruiseexcursions.com/Port_Costa_Maya.htm So, I'm wondering if perhaps Disney now has an exclusive. Or maybe Disney actually purchased this port. Royal Caribbean is cheaper for us as we have balcony discounts, perks, etc. It's always our first choice. Princess has the itineraries while RCI has the ships. This time we were going with itinerary. (The Princess agent that you spoke with was thinking "Mexican Riviera" rather than "Western Caribbean. They weren't fibbing, just confused.)

[beachseeker]

:rolleyes:

Costa Maya is absolutely not dangerous as Disney would also pull out. This link says the Costa Maya port is privately owned. http://costamayacruiseexcursions.com/Port_Costa_Maya.htm So, I'm wondering if perhaps Disney now has an exclusive. Or maybe Disney actually purchased this port. Royal Caribbean is cheaper for us as we have balcony discounts, perks, etc. It's always our first choice. Princess has the itineraries while RCI has the ships. This time we were going with itinerary. (The Princess agent that you spoke with was thinking "Mexican Riviera" rather than "Western Caribbean. They weren't fibbing, just confused.)

 

From the link it sounds like it is not owned by a cruise line. "The Port in Costa Maya is privately owned, a rarity in the Industry for the exception of Ports owned by the Cruise Line Companies". If I were guessing it is about saving money. Slower travel rate uses less fuel, people spending money on the boat versus in Costa Maya. Just frustrating when these decisions are made after the fact. We really wanted to go back to Majahaul for the Caribbean Flyfishing School with Nick and picked the Crown over the Mariner for that reason. Feel for the people in Costa Maya who earn a living from tourism. Nick said last December they were seeing fewer and fewer cruise ships and his business was definitely down.

[Nymue]

Well, okay....but TANZANITE International?!? That's the one that would be a deal breaker for me :rolleyes:

 

The lack of Diamonds International is not an issue for us.

 

..

[Loucat]

Hmmm. RCC started a trend where they dropped a port in every sailing. Hope Princess is not going this route. We have been to Costa Maya 5+ times and always had a great time. Last news on ownership was right after Hurricane Dean that descimated Costa Maya. It was the Mexican government who paid for most of the reconstruction. There is alot of politics there; the independent resort aka "Hole in the Wall" was always being shut down to avoid competition with the main port area. I just saw a pic of that place on another board and it is just a shell.

I agree with another poster on Maya Chan; but there are other all inclusives that are wonderful and very safe. It will be interesting to look at a port guide for 2013 and see who is saling there.

[05mak05]

I'm also wondering if Princess is following the trend of Royal Caribbean. I looked at the April 2013 RCI Jewel sailing out of Tampa. It's a 5 day cruise and one of the ports is ... Key West. Our 3 children in Florida said "Key West???" and thought I was kidding. "Hole in the Wall" ... do you have the link to the picture? Here is such a thoughtful post from 2009 after Hurricane Dean. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=918381I think that's the year we took the tour to the ruins. I remember our tour guide saying "there's not much here now ... but just wait." And, yes, there are several really fabulous, impressive all-inclusives not to mention the restaurants in Mahahual along the boardwalk. Our little 6 year old grandson had more fun playing with 3 little Mexican boys that were selling some sort of souvenirs. They had such big conversations and probably didn't understand a word the other was saying. I cherish the picture we have of the 4 of them.

[travlngar]

Our B2B Cruises of January 26 and February 2, 2013 both show a sea day instead of Costa Maya. Must be cancelled on all of these cruises.

 

It's okay with us. We are on-board for the Piano Player in Crooner's Bar.

 

I am on the Jan 26th sailing as well. I am still not sure that Costa Maya is cancelled for our cruise date? In searching cruises on the Princess website it is still showing Costa Maya on the itinerary for Jan 28th. Am I missing something? By the way who is the Piano Player scheduled that you are so looking forward to being entertained by?

 

Thanks,

 

Gary

[Starlaker]

Princess website now shows a sea day instead of Costa Maya on the March 23rd sailing. I haven't heard anything from Princess though.

[beachseeker]

I am on the Jan 26th sailing as well. I am still not sure that Costa Maya is cancelled for our cruise date? In searching cruises on the Princess website it is still showing Costa Maya on the itinerary for Jan 28th. Am I missing something? By the way who is the Piano Player scheduled that you are so looking forward to being entertained by?

 

Thanks,

 

Gary

 

We finally received an email from our TA on Saturday afternoon. I saw it earlier in the day by signing into My Princess. On the itinerary page, it was a message in very small print at the bottom of the page. We were on the Dec 29th sailing but will be canceling tomorrow. NCL Star out of New Orleans has all four ports and for the same price of a mini suite we booked an aft suite.

[caribill]

We were on the Dec 29th sailing but will be canceling tomorrow. NCL Star out of New Orleans has all four ports and for the same price of a mini suite we booked an aft suite.

 

Please be sure that Princess learns the reason for the cancellation.

[biker1972]

There are many factors to dropping a port. Costa Maya is a port created for cruise ships just as the newer Falmouth, Jamaica. Port charges to pay for port improvements and hurricane damage as well as improvements to the surrounding infrastructure are important. If these were increased it might be hard to pass them on to passengers who don't want to get off the ship. And if the timing of the call would mean cruising at a higher speed and thus using more fuel, bean counters might suggest a drop of a port. CCL is for profit so you know that the bottom line is a major factor. A sea day means that all of the on board activities are in full use; a port day means that some revenue is limited and is not made up from the fees obtained from booking shore-ex adventures. A phone rep might not be told any of this and is free to say something that will make the customer think that the company is protecting the guests interests.

[califgary]

Called Princess. They have a darn good reason The rep said Majahual was cancelled due to a high rate of crime. Princess obviously couldn't state that in the confirmation notices.

 

Disagree - Crime was the exact reason why they stopped going to Mazatlan athis year. We were originally booked on a cruise with that stop and we then got an email indicating due to high crime/safety concerns they were skippiing Mazatlan.

[caribill]

There are many factors to dropping a port. Costa Maya is a port created for cruise ships just as the newer Falmouth, Jamaica. Port charges to pay for port improvements and hurricane damage as well as improvements to the surrounding infrastructure are important. If these were increased it might be hard to pass them on to passengers who don't want to get off the ship. And if the timing of the call would mean cruising at a higher speed and thus using more fuel, bean counters might suggest a drop of a port. CCL is for profit so you know that the bottom line is a major factor. A sea day means that all of the on board activities are in full use; a port day means that some revenue is limited and is not made up from the fees obtained from booking shore-ex adventures. A phone rep might not be told any of this and is free to say something that will make the customer think that the company is protecting the guests interests.

 

a) If the dropping of this port was the only itinerary that Princess has done this to recently, some of those reasons might be acceptable to passengers. However, other threads talk about the same thing happening to itineraries that now bypass Monaco and others that bypass a Greek Island. These were itineraries that have long included these ports. Yes, eliminating a port call might increase profits for Princess, but people book these cruises to see ports that are now being eliminated. This is a disturbing trend.

 

b) Phone reps who do not know the correct answer should not make up one.

[232271]

a) If the dropping of this port was the only itinerary that Princess has done this to recently, some of those reasons might be acceptable to passengers. However, other threads talk about the same thing happening to itineraries that now bypass Monaco and others that bypass a Greek Island. These were itineraries that have long included these ports. Yes, eliminating a port call might increase profits for Princess, but people book these cruises to see ports that are now being eliminated. This is a disturbing trend.

 

b) Phone reps who do not know the correct answer should not make up one.

 

I agree with A, we specifically booked Princess due to the FOUR ports....now with only 3 they have nothing over the other THREE cruise lines that are in Galveston at the same time. I am researching them to see if I might want to switch since nothing is keeping me at PRincess now that they eliminated a port.

[05mak05]

Disagree - Crime was the exact reason why they stopped going to Mazatlan athis year. We were originally booked on a cruise with that stop and we then got an email indicating due to high crime/safety concerns they were skippiing Mazatlan.

It's not about crime. Disney continues to go to Costa Maya as does Norsweign and some Carnival ships.

[05mak05]

We'll also cancel as the scales tipped in favor of Princess only because of the itinerary. While the Dec. 30th Mariner sailing out of Galveston isn't as convenient as far as scheduling goes, it's the better option for us after all.

[PescadoAmarillo]

b) Phone reps who do not know the correct answer should not make up one.

This really should be the 11th commandment.

 

Is anyone going to fly to Houston for one of these Crown cruises? Is there enough demand in Texas, Oklahoma and western Louisiana to keep the Crown filled given the competition? This will be interesting to watch unfold...

 

I agree about Majahual and the butter knife (you again, Infi!). A more laid back town I've never seen. Love that place, and there is good diving from there too.

[big_schots]

Is anyone going to fly to Houston for one of these Crown cruises? Is there enough demand in Texas, Oklahoma and western Louisiana to keep the Crown filled given the competition? This will be interesting to watch unfold...

.

 

I definitely agree with this statement. There will be FIVE ships sailing from Galveston for the time I'm interested in cruising (January 2013). I was leaning towards Princess, but now have to rethink things. They are quite a bit more expensive than the Mariner of the Seas for the exact same itinerary. I have been watching my cruise (on the Crown) and have seen zero berths filled in the last 7 weeks for the category (FF) I've been watching. I'm expecting significant price drops to fill all the ships, especially during the slow winter months. I'll probably wait till the summer to decide. If all things were equal, I would most definitely pick the Crown over the Mariner.

[Times Prince]

We won't fly to Galveston, but we'll certainly drive to there really fast! :D

 

After catching a cold on the plane to FLL at the START of our last cruise, we're ready to stay away from those flying boxes.

 

A little disappointed about the loss of Costa Maya, but was there several times before it was devastated by a hurricane. It was nice and we enjoyed the Mayan ruins and the beach.

 

I think one of the issues is that we in the area got used to waiting for those bargain prices to come to fill the ship. Hopefully that won't be a reason for Princess going away after 2014. We do like the Elite perks, FCC, and CCL benefits, and look forward to sailing from Galveston again.

[Loucat]

I'm also wondering if Princess is following the trend of Royal Caribbean. I looked at the April 2013 RCI Jewel sailing out of Tampa. It's a 5 day cruise and one of the ports is ... Key West. Our 3 children in Florida said "Key West???" and thought I was kidding. "Hole in the Wall" ... do you have the link to the picture? Here is such a thoughtful post from 2009 after Hurricane Dean. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=918381I think that's the year we took the tour to the ruins. I remember our tour guide saying "there's not much here now ... but just wait." And, yes, there are several really fabulous, impressive all-inclusives not to mention the restaurants in Mahahual along the boardwalk. Our little 6 year old grandson had more fun playing with 3 little Mexican boys that were selling some sort of souvenirs. They had such big conversations and probably didn't understand a word the other was saying. I cherish the picture we have of the 4 of them.

 

Here is a link from someone who took MANY pics coming into Costa Maya. The Hole in the Wall is the pic where the OP says something about buying something to fix up. It is really just a skeleton of what it used to be. It is to the right of the main port area.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1550338&page=39

[Loucat]

I am new to Princess, but left RCC due in part to cutting ports.

This link is to the 3 ports in 7 days on Royal. Three ports:confused:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1614335

 

It looks like RCC happening all over again. NCL:confused: :oHAL:p??

Maybe we will try all inclusives!

I am waiting to see what is done with the 2013 Caribbean sailings.

[matj2000]

I am checking other cruises for this week.

The only reason I booked this ship because it had 4 ports..

[dforeigner]

I find it interesting that after dropping Mahahual from this itinerary, the port fees and taxes are still the same.

[232271]

That's what I thought not to mention prices went up same time too! Wouldn't u think cheaper .....

[scurvybeachy]

I find it interesting that after dropping Mahahual from this itinerary, the port fees and taxes are still the same.

Carnival built the Costa Maya port, I assume exempt from port fees and taxes. Why is crime an issue in Mahahual and not Belize City.

I say its simplely not enough room at the dock that day. If carnival owns the dock, it make $$$ by renting the slip to RCCL and NCL.

[232271]

Carnival built the Costa Maya port, I assume exempt from port fees and taxes. Why is crime an issue in Mahahual and not Belize City.

I say its simplely not enough room at the dock that day. If carnival owns the dock, it make $$$ by renting the slip to RCCL and NCL.

 

But I think it was the only ship that day??