Might need to Cancel due to Sandy

[pjcoach]

I might need to cancel my familys cruise in February due to Sandy. My children may be required to attend school during President's week to make up for days off due to Sandy. I will find out on Tuesday morning (12/4).

 

I called Carnival today, and as of right now if I cancel before 12/4, I would lose $50pp (total of $250) from our deposit. Not terrible. My final payment is due on 12/4. If I cancel after 12/4, I will lose the entire $250.

 

Just curious if anyone else is in the same position and if so has heard anything from Carnival. I know New York politicians have sent letters to teh cruise indsutry and airlines about waiving penalties, but Carnival has not reacted as of yet.

[klmorg]

I might need to cancel my familys cruise in February due to Sandy. My children may be required to attend school during President's week to make up for days off due to Sandy. I will find out on Tuesday morning (12/4).

 

I called Carnival today, and as of right now if I cancel before 12/4, I would lose $50pp (total of $250) from our deposit. Not terrible. My final payment is due on 12/4. If I cancel after 12/4, I will lose the entire $250.

 

Just curious if anyone else is in the same position and if so has heard anything from Carnival. I know New York politicians have sent letters to teh cruise indsutry and airlines about waiving penalties, but Carnival has not reacted as of yet.

 

I haven't heard of any exceptions due to Sandy.

 

And although you didn't ask & I hesitate to start another parenting debate... I would take the kids on the cruise anyway! Many schools & teachers are supportive of an educational vacation these days, as long as the kids make up their missed assignments. We took ours on vacations during their school years & they turned out amazing, with no detrimental affects.:D

[NoobCruise]

I read a post the other day from someone in a similar situation but I don't remember which board. Likely it was on Cruise Questions, HAL or Carnival. Funny, coincidence. I just posted about it down on the thread "Sad"

 

Personally, if the kids maintain decent grades, I'd take the kids out of school anyway. If they struggle, maybe not.

 

Edit: found the other post here

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1742936

 

also this one:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1732571

[Tripper10]

I would take my kids out of school for the week.

[Havingfun2010]

Things happen in life. I would just eat my $250.00 and reschedule. I never take my kids out of school for fun items. Especially a whole week.

[finsupcruiser]

I haven't heard of any exceptions due to Sandy.

 

And although you didn't ask & I hesitate to start another parenting debate... I would take the kids on the cruise anyway! Many schools & teachers are supportive of an educational vacation these days, as long as the kids make up their missed assignments. We took ours on vacations during their school years & they turned out amazing, with no detrimental affects.:D

 

And you taught how many years ?????:confused:

[fergusonvt]

Some states and/or school districts might not allow kids to be taken out of school. Ours was ok with it but we had to bring all his assignments with us and they were due at the same times they were for all in his class. I know NY state has some special testing (Regents?) that might make this difficult to do. This makes for a difficult decision, cancel now and take the lesser hit but then it would be a bummer if they don't make up the missed time then. We had a situation where we had multiple snow days over what was allowed for so had to go for an extra week in June. It took them weeks to make the decision to go on Saturdays or to push the school year out. Vacations were not taken because many people had reservations already.

[jackson bernard]

I haven't heard of any exceptions due to Sandy.

 

And although you didn't ask & I hesitate to start another parenting debate... I would take the kids on the cruise anyway! Many schools & teachers are supportive of an educational vacation these days, as long as the kids make up their missed assignments. We took ours on vacations during their school years & they turned out amazing, with no detrimental affects.:D

 

Go ahead and take them out of school for the week to go on a cruise. As a matter of fact, take them out for 2 and do a back to back. Who cares if they and their teachers have a tough time catching up with the rest of the class when they get back. The will look so cute all sunburned with their hair braided. What's the worst that could happen? If they flunk they can just repeat the grade next year. Don't worry the government will pick up the tab.

[NoobCruise]

Go ahead and take them out of school for the week to go on a cruise. As a matter of fact, take them out for 2 and do a back to back. Who cares if they and their teachers have a tough time catching up with the rest of the class when they get back. The will look so cute all sunburned with their hair braided. What's the worst that could happen? If they flunk they can just repeat the grade next year. Don't worry the government will pick up the tab.

 

My kids both maintained straight As. They both took AP courses. Our son skipped a grade and as a junior in HS was recruited by Stanford University's mathematics dept. We often took them out of school for vacation WITH PERMISSION FROM THE TEACHERS. We took their assignments with us and they turned them in when we returned. "Catching up" was never a problem because they never really got behind.

 

I think parents should make this decision based on their children's abilities. If they struggle and will have a difficult time catching up, then you shouldn't take them out. If they are very advanced and have no problems catching up, then by all means, take them out. Our kids lives and education were greatly enriched by our travels. They actually did better in many courses like history, geography, social studies and cultural classes because of their travels. Now they're 21 and 25. Missing a week here and there did not hurt them, but certainly enhanced their lives and education, not to mention the family bonds and memories that were built.

 

BTW they also went to private schools, so the gov didn't pay for ANYTHING

[fla2nc]

Well said NoobCruise & Like!

 

jackson bernard: Shame on you for such a judgemental remark!

 

Having lived all my life in Fla & experiencing devastating losses from hurricanes, please don't pass judgement, especially those going through what the NE & others are from "Sandy".

 

OP: Do what is best for you & your family! In life, that is always the best decision!

Good luck & personally I hope you take the cruise...what better thing to look forward to!

[Bakmmo]

Here in NY the news posted that many airlines are waiving fees to change flights due to the hurrican for Feb vacations. Most schools here are allowing both teachers and children to be off due to the circumstances.

[sweetsixteencruisers]

Go ahead and take them out of school for the week to go on a cruise. As a matter of fact, take them out for 2 and do a back to back. Who cares if they and their teachers have a tough time catching up with the rest of the class when they get back. The will look so cute all sunburned with their hair braided. What's the worst that could happen? If they flunk they can just repeat the grade next year. Don't worry the government will pick up the tab.

 

Wow! Take it easy. She doesn't want to take your kids.

[Snostar]

Why can't you make the decision on Dec 4th? I'd stay on the school and make sure you will have an answer by then....many other peoples vacations will also be affected. Your refund will be the same if you cancel today or on the 4th.

 

I am not sure how long your schools were closed for, ours were closed for the week. Fortunately, our school did away with parent-teacher conference days (scheduled them in the evenings. That makes up 2 days, plus we have 3 snow days. So we are even ....until we get a snow storm. This happened with many people last year due to Irene.....the schools were late making a decision, but I didn't hear of any school that was required to make up 5 days over the February Break. A couple scheduled 1 or 2 days make up.

[Handsome58]

To my mother, among many great things she taught me one was "If you have nothing nice to say then keep it to yourself"............More people on these boards should follow that.

[fla2nc]

To my mother, among many great things she taught me one was "If you have nothing nice to say then keep it to yourself"............More people on these boards should follow that.

Like!

[kjunea]

I'm a teacher and have been one for over 27 years. I have no problems with Parents taking their kids out of class, if that is what they wish. Last year, I had a student gone for 3 weeks to Ireland to stay with an Aunt (and for her dad, who was stationed in Iraq to come visit her during that time). This year, I had a student who left for 2 weeks to go to Kenya on a mission trip with his church. The students are still responsible for the work that they miss and both did quite well. (the internet is a wonderful thing!) And then I have students who miss 4 days out of every two weeks being "sick" that never make up anything!

 

Ultimately, it's the parents decision. They know whether their child can make the work up and what works best for their family.

[paracer]

Any time you book a vacation in advance, you take a chance that you might not be able to go. It can happen for lots of reasons. School is certainly one of them. And in the winter especially, weather can often throw a wrench into the works. It's really nobodies fault.

 

If you are set on not going on the cruise, call now and cancel. Hold on to your paperwork just in case they later decide to waive the fees.

[pjcoach]

Thank you to everyone for your comments/suggestions. I will probably wait until 12/4 to make the decision. Hopefully, there is no decision to make.

 

Enjoy!

[bingomamma19]

I have no problem taking kids out for vacations. My boys are 23 and 21--every year I took them out for a week in the winter to get away. It was the only way I could afford it (traveling at off peak times). They both graduated with taking AP classes and are great students in college. I also have a 6 year old, we are all going on a cruise in jan (she will take a week off and the boys will still be on college break).

 

We always let the school know ahead of time and take the homework with us (doing a little each night). It was never disruptive or damaging to their grades or work.

 

If you think your kids can keep up, I say dont cancel. Enjoy yourselves and get away.

[bingomamma19]

Go ahead and take them out of school for the week to go on a cruise. As a matter of fact, take them out for 2 and do a back to back. Who cares if they and their teachers have a tough time catching up with the rest of the class when they get back. The will look so cute all sunburned with their hair braided. What's the worst that could happen? If they flunk they can just repeat the grade next year. Don't worry the government will pick up the tab.

 

 

Completely uncalled for and rude.

[fla2nc]

Thank you to everyone for your comments/suggestions. I will probably wait until 12/4 to make the decision. Hopefully, there is no decision to make.

 

Enjoy!

Post your decision here on Dec 4th okay? Good luck & hoping you all can cruise! Take care!

[bingomamma19]

Go ahead and take them out of school for the week to go on a cruise. As a matter of fact, take them out for 2 and do a back to back. Who cares if they and their teachers have a tough time catching up with the rest of the class when they get back. The will look so cute all sunburned with their hair braided. What's the worst that could happen? If they flunk they can just repeat the grade next year. Don't worry the government will pick up the tab.

 

Wondering why you would choose to be so incredibly rude here? I have 3 smart, wonderful kids 23, 21, 6. All well educated and smart-all taken out of school for a week each year for vacations. Really, it is done all the time.

[Gamecock_Cruiser]

I was taken out of school from time to time for vacations. If you do it, just talk with the teacher ahead of time and find out what they are covering, any worksheets that need to be completed, etc. It also depends on the types of students that they are.

[mbmbird]

I have taken my kids out of school for a whole week once. One did very well keeping up with his work, the other not so much. He just couldn't pull his head out of vacation zone. So it's always a personal choice.

 

Another thing, when we had a huge snow storm (5') and school (and most of town) was closed for the whole week. Having had a blizzard the month before, all the snow days were used and the school year was going to be extended. But, because it was considered a natural disaster in our county, the school district applied to the Governor for an exception. It was granted:)

 

I'm not sure what the laws are in your state, but maybe there is something similar. We just had a lot of snow (some damage) but it didn't take months to recover.

 

I hope everything works out for you. There is nothing better than the anticipation of a vacation.

[songbird1329]

Significant other is a high school teacher on Long Island. We just cancelled our February cruise and rebooked for the summer. They did charge the $50 per person penalty.

 

As a teacher he couldn't afford to miss the 4 days' pay.

 

I read that Chuck Schumer has asked the airlines and cruiselines to give consideration to people in our position. So far that hasn't happened. Not likely to happen, either, is my guess.

 

The district where I live also opted to open during February break, but pretty much acknowleged that a lot of kids won't be in because of vacations. they asked parents to let the teachers know if their children won't be in school that week.I was a student in that district as well as a parent, and I've never seen them give tacit permission to pull your child out of school for a vacation until now.