Oversold...Hal wants me to share room..

[redhot1]

No I have not read her contract and unless there is specific language that gives that specific right then the answer is still the same go to law school and learn the law as to contracts before you make remarks like that then I guess because you have cruised you know all about thier policies and contracts. i have read thier contracts and the posters comments.:)

[serendipity1499]

Does the same hold true for military, teacher, firefighters, regional, etc. discounted rates? Are they also "standby fares" :confused:

 

I am not aware of any standby cruise fares. I have only seen and booked confirmed interline fares. With the ships having to have their passenger lists a few days prior, I don't know how it would be possible to go standby the last minute like you are able to do on airlines. And I agree that on airlines, if you are traveling standby you may or may not get on a flight. It is even possible to be assigned a seat and then asked to leave the plane if the seat is needed by a non-interline passenger.

 

First of all I don't understand why you are quoting me...The poster I quoted was saying that this was a standby fare & I said this was not a standby it was a confirmed fare..

I never discussed standby's at all..

I don't believe that cruise lines have standby fares any more..Years ago we were able to standby for cruises, but I have never heard of it in the last 10-12 years or so..

This OP was on a confirmed Interline Discounted Fare..

Airline Employees also get Interline Discounts on Cruises..My first two cruises were booked on an Interline Discount..Any Psgr confirmed on an Interline Discount is subject to different rules & regulations..Each Airline makes an agreement with different Cruise Lines & all those agreements are basically the same..If a Carrier over books a Cruise or a flight the first ones to be bumped are Interline Discounts followed by Travel Agents Discounts..Although we tried NEVER to bump TA's as it would be very bad for business..LOL;).

You are not correct about the cruise lines being required to transmit to Homeland Security their Departing Psgr manifests a few days prior to departure..

 

Airlines must transmit manifests 30 min prior to departure & Cruise Lines must transmit their Psgr lists 60 minutes prior to departure..

This is the Quote from the Dept. of Homeland Security: PAGE 7 RULE B Vessel requirements..

Federal Register /Vol. 72, No. 163 /Thursday, August 23, 2007 /Rules and Regulations 48325

"Thus, CBP proposed that vessel carriers transmit passenger and crew

manifests for vessels departing from the United States no later than 60 minutesprior to departure. This timing requirement will remain the same in this final rule. This change will achieve the level of security sought by CBP for these vessels and thereby meet the purposes of the governing statutes, including the pre-departure vetting mandate of IRTPA."

 

No I have not read her contract and unless there is specific language that gives that specific right then the answer is still the same go to law school and learn the law as to contracts before you make remarks like that then I guess because you have cruised you know all about thier policies and contracts. i have read thier contracts and the posters comments.:)

 

redhot, It seems you still have not read this thread & never read the posters last comments! Also we are not sure which of us you are answering..Perhaps if you quoted the poster you are answering we would all understand..

An Atty. usually does not give advice until all the facts are known..The Psgr returned & stated she was confirmed on an Interline Discounted Fare...Interline Discounted Psgrs have completely different contracts, & are not subject to the same rules full fare Psgrs are!

When overbooking occurs, the Cruise line &/or Airline has a right to Bump any Discounted Psgrs including Interline Discounts & Travel Agents..No carrier wants to bump a Psgr, even Discounted Psgrs, but occasionally problems like this occur..As I said before I believe that HAL was very nice to these Psgrs & gave her more than they were required to give her...

It looks like you still do not know that her problem was resolved..May I suggest that you take the time to read this thread again..

 

Cheers...:)Betty

[redhot1]

Serendipity, I appreciate your comments and advice. Have you actually experienced that contract and situation therefore are able to comment as to advice?. I havn't and unless your privy to the actual contract and its specific language then all you can give is an opinion. Atty's make assumptions all the time and by the way its an guess at best unless you have read what the OP was actually reading from. The OP bargained with HAL I believe and got OBC and was at this time happy with her situation.I thought the best line of approach was to stand her ground and bargain and that I still believe. I also would have done an indepth study of her case and would not have lost that case for sure.There is alot of boilerplate in some contracts and cruiselines fall into that catagory and thats why we have courts and trials to determine if its enforceable and many times its not. I will say I wouldn't be afraid to take on a cruiseline on this issue because jurors are going to hear the evidence and say was this fair and contract law is probably the most fair and equitable of all law in terms of what the parties expected when they entered into an agreement. Also if the contract is all based on only what the cruise line wants to do then why have a contract why not just say we will do whatever we want when ever we feel like it. They are in court all the time and the trend in the past 5 years hasn't been favorable as it was in the prior years. What happen in the real world is that they are held accountable for the things they do and they are very aware of these boards and public opinion and are not looking for a public nitemare in terms of cruise relations with passengers and future passengers. You have an opinion and it may be a very good one based that you have had that actual contract and languge specific to this situation and if so then you may be right but I would still say the same as my opinion said , bargian with them and she did and good for her. I''m not trying to be argumentive with you and do respect your opinion based on the fact you have had the very same contract as the OP has. Thank you for your comments and insight.:)

[redhot1]

Serendipity I stand corrected, I was writing as you were posting, I am aware of contracts and not as informed as you are on interline contracts. I will say you make a good argument as to airlines but are cruise contracts the same as airlines that I don't know.Yes you can be bumped but again if you went to court equity would still come into play if you arrived for your cruise and they said sorry we can at any time just refund your money,and there is no recourse, I wouldn't want to be the atty for the cruise line on that one and to aslo have to address public comment as to what they did, it would be a marketing nitemare. Sory no argument here as to what you say about that contract. Again thank you for the enlighenment.:)

[tacrum43]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is an interline rate? How can make sure that's not what you have? Would hate to get bumped.

 

And sorry to the poster who did get bumped. I don't see how cruise lines can do that. Vacation time is inflexible for many and it's just not fair.

[jakkojakko]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is an interline rate? How can make sure that's not what you have? Would hate to get bumped.

 

If you don't know what it is you will never have that rate.

It is a (very) reduced rate for personel working in the industry, especially airlines.

The downside is the standby nature of the ticket. You will only fly/sail if the trip is not fully booked.

[styles27]

I am not aware of any standby cruise fares. I have only seen and booked confirmed interline fares. With the ships having to have their passenger lists a few days prior, I don't know how it would be possible to go standby the last minute like you are able to do on airlines. And I agree that on airlines, if you are traveling standby you may or may not get on a flight. It is even possible to be assigned a seat and then asked to leave the plane if the seat is needed by a non-interline passenger.

 

That's not what HAL's website says. It's less than a 2 hr window now. I'll find the info and post it.

 

EDIT to add...text taken from HAL's main website.

 

"New U.S. government security regulations require us to submit certain guest information to law enforcement authorities at least 60

minutes prior to departure. To meet this requirement, we must have the necessary information in our records at least 90 minutes before departure. If we do not have your information by this deadline, you will be unable to sail. Guests are urged to complete the Online Check-in process before leaving home. Guests who wait to check in at the terminal risk being unable to sail even if they arrive at the terminal before the vessel leaves. You will be responsible for all costs you incur to join the vessel at the next port."

[serendipity1499]

][/color]Serendipity' date=' I appreciate your comments and advice. Have you actually experienced that contract and situation therefore are able to comment as to advice?. I havn't and unless your privy to the actual contract and its specific language then all you can give is an opinion. [/color']Atty's make assumptions all the time and by the way its an guess at best unless you have read what the OP was actually reading from. The OP bargained with HAL I believe and got OBC and was at this time happy with her situation.I thought the best line of approach was to stand her ground and bargain and that I still believe. I also would have done an indepth study of her case and would not have lost that case for sure.There is alot of boilerplate in some contracts and cruiselines fall into that catagory and thats why we have courts and trials to determine if its enforceable and many times its not. I will say I wouldn't be afraid to take on a cruiseline on this issue because jurors are going to hear the evidence and say was this fair and contract law is probably the most fair and equitable of all law in terms of what the parties expected when they entered into an agreement. Also if the contract is all based on only what the cruise line wants to do then why have a contract why not just say we will do whatever we want when ever we feel like it. They are in court all the time and the trend in the past 5 years hasn't been favorable as it was in the prior years. What happen in the real world is that they are held accountable for the things they do and they are very aware of these boards and public opinion and are not looking for a public nitemare in terms of cruise relations with passengers and future passengers. You have an opinion and it may be a very good one based that you have had that actual contract and languge specific to this situation and if so then you may be right but I would still say the same as my opinion said , bargian with them and she did and good for her. I''m not trying to be argumentive with you and do respect your opinion based on the fact you have had the very same contract as the OP has. Thank you for your comments and insight.:)

 

Yes, redhot I have actually cruised on Interline Cruise fares..Once in Greece on Hellenic Cruise Lines & once on NCL out of Miami.. On our first HAL cruise, we contemplated using an Interline discount, but it was too restrictive, since we were traveling with Friends & our Sailing Club, so we opted to pay the full fare..I'm retired now after 31 yrs in the International Airline Field, based in New York.. I've seen the contracts between the Cruise Lines & the Airlines for Interline Cruise fares...Many of my Employees also cruised or flew on Interline discounts.. One of my jobs was to approve my Employees Interline requests & also to caution them about being back to work on time..

If they were bumped & not back to work on time, we docked their pay which was also in their Employment contracts..When I first started in the Airline field, I spent 5 days with 10 other employees, in Copenhagen airport because we could not get on a flight..We were finally put on a Cargo Flight, but we were all docked..:eek::eek:

 

I can assure you that Interline Discount rules are completely different than Full Fare Psgrs rules & every single one of them stated that if a Cruise line or Airline was oversold they would be the first ones to be bumped followed by TA's...In our Company we made it a point to not bump TA's, only because we needed the good will as they booked most of our Psgrs.. However, Interline discounted fares, even confirmed ones were subject to being bumped on an oversold flight..

Cheers...:)Betty

P.S. Suggest you consult your Friend, who you mention is an Atty for another cruise line, if you don't believe me!

[serendipity1499]

Serendipity I stand corrected, I was writing as you were posting, I am aware of contracts and not as informed as you are on interline contracts. I will say you make a good argument as to airlines but are cruise contracts the same as airlines that I don't know.Yes you can be bumped but again if you went to court equity would still come into play if you arrived for your cruise and they said sorry we can at any time just refund your money,and there is no recourse, I wouldn't want to be the atty for the cruise line on that one and to aslo have to address public comment as to what they did, it would be a marketing nitemare. Sory no argument here as to what you say about that contract. Again thank you for the enlighenment.:)

 

Whoops...I'm so sorry redhot...I quoted your previous post without reading any further..So please forgive me for doing exactly what I have cautioned you & others not to do:o:o

BTW: I once wanted to be an Atty. as was on my HS debating team... My Adviser suggested I go for it, but in those days had to think about financing..

Instead, I was offered an Airline job & I've really been blessed with a wonderful career & a fulfilling life of travel..I've never regretted my decision..:)

Cheers....:)Betty

 

I

[serendipity1499]

Sorry for my ignorance, but what is an interline rate? How can make sure that's not what you have? Would hate to get bumped.

 

And sorry to the poster who did get bumped. I don't see how cruise lines can do that. Vacation time is inflexible for many and it's just not fair.

 

Actually the poster was not entirely bumped..She was asked to accept one Cabin for all four of them..At that time we did not know it was an Interline Discount, so we all said to her..Stand your Ground & refuse to take only one cabin..She later came back to the thread &stated she was on an Interline Reduced Rate fare..Then we all realized that she could have been bumped..Instead HAL gave her, Her Mother & 2 kids a larger & better cabin, which they really were not required to do..But HAL in this situation came through & we all realize that they are human after all..LOL

 

If you don't know what it is you will never have that rate.

It is a (very) reduced rate for personel working in the industry, especially airlines.

The downside is the standby nature of the ticket. You will only fly/sail if the trip is not fully booked.

 

Jakkojakko...I agree with you with one exception..Not all Interline Discounts are Standby..In addition to Standby there are Confirmed Interline Discounts at a higher fare, than standby's..

When I brought my Mom to Fla, I flew up to N.Y. on a confirmed Interline Discount...If there was an over sale problem, I too could have been bumped on my Confirmed Interline Ticket.. If I'm not mistaken & paid 50% of the regular fare instead of either a service charge or a 75% discount..

However, since Mom was frail & was in a Nursing Home at that time, I opted to pay full fare for her & me on our return flight to Fla..

 

I was also able to get a confirmed cabin discount on both Hellenic & NCL, but I was still subject to the Interline rules which were all the same..

Cheers...:)Betty

[redhot1]

Serendipity, know what you mean, finance's are always a consideration. When I went to law school it was UCLA and in "those days" it was $60 a semester today I don't see how these young people comming out of any school are ever going to recoup any of the money they have spent. You made the right choice and you have enjoyed what you have been doing, that I can tell from your post. Nice chatting with you and sorry again for any misinterpration that we may have had. I must say I did learn form your explanations and was enlightened from it, always a good sign of any conversation.:)

[Penton]

As an airline employee I have booked many cruises at interline rates and although we know that we probably would be the first to be bumped we have always had confirmed bookings with cabin assignments at very well discounted rates. The best discounts have been offered by HAL and we are expected to be flexible and also discreet, HAL quite rightly have a code of coduct for interline passengers which includes not discussing rates paid with fellow passengers. A few years ago I found myself in exactly the same situation as the op although we were contacted 10 days before sailing and asked to give up our 2 inside cabins in exchange for 1 deluxe verandah suite because they had oversold the cruise, we accepted the offer and had a wonderful time whilst being careful not to reveal our interline status.

Many industries have their perks and I just feel hugely thankful for the many opportunities I have had to see the world, meet fabulous people and explore different cultures. Yes there are uncertainties and I have on occasion been left standing at the departure gate without a seat but as one poster mentioned it is necessary to be flexible and have a plan A, B and possibly C! We recognise that commercial passengers will always come and go first.

[BassettMom]

This happened to me on a Princess cruise. I had booked an inside cabin and my parents booked a mini-suite. Princess called 3 days before our flight saying they were overbooked and asked if I would be willing to share a cabin with my parents. We ended up with an upgrade to a full Penthouse suite, a refund of my solo supplement (in the form of shipboard credit), and a $500 shipboard credit for each of us (my parents got $1000 and I got $1500 total). We had a wonderful time together....luckily, I get along great with my parents.

 

Overbookings do happen, and the best thing to do is negotiate the best deal you can.

[iancal]

I have know a number of people over the years who were/are airline employees or had access to interline rates.

 

An increasing number of them, when travelling with family during peak periods, actually buy low cost tickets in preference to travelling standby or run the risk of being bumped.

 

The risk of being bumped goes with the territory. Where there is risk, there is also reward. If you take the reward, you have tacitly agreed to the 'risk'.