4 Millie cruises now cancelled (8/23, 8/30, 9/6, 9/13)

[frugaltravel]

You state in one line you have "cancel for any reason insurance" then follow with "unfortunately I don't think it covers the cruise line for canceling for mechanical failure" Are not those two statements diametrically opposed?

 

Even with third-party travel insurance, "cancel for any reason" has limitations. Obviously travel insurance comes with a lot of fine print as well. The most frequent limitation I have seen on "cancel for any reason" puts a limit on how much they will cover "for any reason" and it is usually quite limiting - maybe $500 or less. Other than that, you need a "covered reason" to claim travel insurance. But as greatam mentioned above, most good travel insurance policies will cover things like mechanical failures. I have had a Travel Guard insurance policy for years that covers almost everything. They even paid for a 4-day "deviation" from my original itinerary because I couldn't land in the place in Alaska I was booked to. So they paid for me to go somewhere else and basically paid for everything, even though I would have paid at least as much if I had visited my original destination.

[C 2 C]

Total trip cancellations due to mechanical breakdown, illness, etc. etc. are what you purchase insurance for. Private third party insurance rarely will exclude a mechanical breakdown other than missed ports (for which you may only be covered for non refundable excursions or other non refundable expenses).

 

Hi greatam:

 

Ozymandius in a former incarnation, was not as successful in insurance coverage as you were on our canceled Infinity cruise.

I do not see many Infinity Orphans posting on the Celebrity threads anymore.

 

These Millennium Orphans will have many tales to tell as the years roll by.

[CarpeCerevisi]

The voyage from Ketchikan to Freeport is approximately 5700 nm and another 4200 nm back to San Diego. It might take 2 1/2 weeks or more to get to Freeport at reduced speed and that's assuming that no hurricanes get in the way. This may be a close run thing in regards to getting to San Diego for the 9/22 sailing. I certainly hope they make it since I'm booked on that sailing!

 

Whatever happens, this is going to be costly to Celebrity what with six weeks of cruises cancelled or refunded, two extra Panama Canal transits, compensation to the crew (we hope!), future credits to cancelled cruisers, lack of on-board revenue, etc., not to mention additional fuel and repair costs. I wonder how much is covered by their insurance.

[K.T.B.]

I would recommend the train from Vancouver to Seattle. I can't remember if there is one in the morning, but there is one in the evening. We did this after our Millie cruise and it really was a beautiful relaxing ride. We did get in around 10pm though. If you have a AAA card, be sure and use it. It saved us a good chunk of change.

 

Glad to see that you will still be able to experience Alaska. Maybe not in the way you had originally planned but you still get to have that experience with your mother. I, too, took my mom to Alaska and that only enhanced our experience - we still laugh heartily about many things that happened on vacation.

 

Enjoy your cruise and the time with your mom.

 

There are numerous trains in the morning from Vancouver to Seattle, but only 1 after noon. :)

[ilovetexas]

It's not that we think it will happen to us again, it's just the timing of getting the right price, the right itinerary, time off from work, and the stigma.

 

I literally spent my last 6 months planning this thing for 6 adults with different interests etc. and I just lost all of that. There is no refund that effort.

 

Apologies if you've already addressed this and I missed it but is it possible for you to check and see if there is another Alaskan cruise at the same time as the cancelled one that you can book? It may not be on the same line, or with the same ports, etc., but it will still be a cruise in Alaska which is beautiful and you will still have a lovely time.

 

I hate for you and your family/friends to lose your vacation.

[DougH]

I'm not sure that travel insurance would cover this risk of the cruise line cancelling.

 

I've had major problems with two of my cruises. After Sept 11 I was scheduled on a Hawaii cruise and less than 10 days before sailing the cruise line went bankrupt. (Obviously no compensation from them) I had travel insurance but had paid by credit card and the CC company actually refunded as "services were not provided". Some might want to try this option. The insurance did cover airlne change fees.

 

Second problem was I was scheduled to sail on a 30+ day cruise form Santiago (Valpariso) Chili sevreal years ago and the morning I was to fly down the big earthquake hit and devestated the area. The ship ended up sailing sevarl days late with 90% of the passengers unable to get to her. I met her 10 days into the cruise in Buenos Aires and ultimately Princess was very generous with compensation but it sure was a mad scramble to rearrange schedules etc and deal with the disappoinment. Insurance did cover what Princess didn't.

 

Short answer is I always buy insurance. Long answer is the related story about Mom falling and breaking her hip on a cruise with a $150K bill for the air ambulance trip back home. Buy insurance, it is cheap in the long run.

[vbmom87]

Short answer is I always buy insurance. Long answer is the related story about Mom falling and breaking her hip on a cruise with a $150K bill for the air ambulance trip back home. Buy insurance, it is cheap in the long run.

 

So sorry to hear about your mother breaking her hip on a cruise. I hope she recovered well.

 

This is the main reason I buy insurance....for the medical transport coverage. I have learned that lots of things are not covered by travel insurance. Someone back many posts said mechanical issues are covered. I know not all travel insurance plans cover travel delays due to mechanical problems on airplanes. I wouldn't be surprised to read of the same thing with cruise ships. It is something I will be sure to ask the next time I plan a cruise. Also, I also learned that just because a plan you have been buying for years used to cover certain problems, there is no guarantee they still do. I have made a list of what issues are most important to me. Each time I buy travel insurance, I go over my list with a rep from the tripinsurancestore.com. More than once I have found that coverage has changed from a plan I bought before. It is a shame we have to be so vigilant, but as always, "buyer beware."

[ghstudio]

I have made a list of what issues are most important to me. Each time I buy travel insurance, I go over my list with a rep from the tripinsurancestore.com. More than once I have found that coverage has changed from a plan I bought before. It is a shame we have to be so vigilant, but as always, "buyer beware."

 

You are one of the few wise travel insurance buyers....congratulations. A few years ago we discovered MedJet Assist and we now buy that policy on an annual basis with an AARP discount. It provides a unique advantage on medical evacuation. Everyone should read that policy...and the key difference is who has to approve transport and what the requirements are for transport to the hospital of your choice. If you are in a foreign hospital...who do you want to have to agree to transport you home or back to the hospital of your choice. With medjet assist, you request transport and the only agreement needed is that you are medically stable enough for the trip. Compare that to the policy you now have...

 

Note: they have started to sell an all inclusive travel insurance policy which, as hard as it is to believe, does NOT include their own travel assist. Don't buy it.

[timbom]

Celebrity sucks. Tried to book the solstice out of Ensenada to make up for my cancelled Mili cruise. When I called just now the price had gone from 749 at 7 am to 1250 at 3 pm.

 

Talked to everyone I could about this issue and there was nothing they could do.

 

Guess celebrity just doesn't care they are going to loose 8000 good customer over their stupid refunds policy.

 

 

Never Never Never Again

[Iamthesea]

Apologies if you've already addressed this and I missed it but is it possible for you to check and see if there is another Alaskan cruise at the same time as the cancelled one that you can book? It may not be on the same line, or with the same ports, etc., but it will still be a cruise in Alaska which is beautiful and you will still have a lovely time.

 

I hate for you and your family/friends to lose your vacation.

 

I mentioned the above on the first page when this first came out last night.

 

There are several cruises in Alaska right now. My cruise on the Century leaves on September 8 and has several staterooms available.

 

There were several staterooms as of last night. Currently, the site that I check for availability is not letting me see that. Celebrity may have pulled all of their upcoming Alaskan availability to hold it for those wishing to switch.

[Cindy]

I spent the better part of my day squeezing the heck out of some lemons, and I think I managed to make some very acceptable lemonade!:) I kept part of our pre-cruise trip, changed departure ports, changed cruise lines, changed itineraries, rescheduled plane tickets:mad:, cancelled some things, booked others, and added a train ride! At one point this morning I had a browser open for Celebrity, HAL, RCI, Princess, and NCL…all at the same time!

 

At the end of the day, I’m very thankful I was able to get things rescheduled to piece together a vacation we will love. My goal now is to focus on enjoying what we have instead of longing for what is gone. Oh, and I guess I should pick some shore excursions too!

[drarill]

I spent the better part of my day squeezing the heck out of some lemons, and I think I managed to make some very acceptable lemonade!:) I kept part of our pre-cruise trip, changed departure ports, changed cruise lines, changed itineraries, rescheduled plane tickets:mad:, cancelled some things, booked others, and added a train ride! At one point this morning I had a browser open for Celebrity, HAL, RCI, Princess, and NCL…all at the same time!

 

At the end of the day, I’m very thankful I was able to get things rescheduled to piece together a vacation we will love. My goal now is to focus on enjoying what we have instead of longing for what is gone. Oh, and I guess I should pick some shore excursions too!

Really happy for you!! Enjoy your vacation!!

[greatam]

Hi greatam:

 

Ozymandius in a former incarnation, was not as successful in insurance coverage as you were on our canceled Infinity cruise.

I do not see many Infinity Orphans posting on the Celebrity threads anymore.

 

These Millennium Orphans will have many tales to tell as the years roll by.

 

Hi!!!

 

Weren't we sharing a party limo from Ensenada???? That is something I missed because it would have been a hoot with all the champagne we were going to get, the music and party atmosphere. GREAT way to end the trip that was not to be.

 

I was treated EXTREMELY well by X. 36 hours ALL money was back on my credit card. They paid the change fee for the tickets. 100% cruise cert good for the same cabin category for the same number of days. I am sorry your insurance didn't treat you as well.

 

The very few things that were non refundable were paid by my Travelex policy. AND as you know, we went ahead and just basically duplicated the cruise by flying island to island. Other than the relaxation of the long sea days, I think we had every bit as good (maybe actually better) a vacation because we were able to stay longer in places than we would have with the ship. The one thing I did miss was cruising by the volcano at night but I had seen that before when I lived in Hawaii.

 

I like your phrasing-Infinity orphans. That we all were.

 

I was also on the Infinity repo in 2006 when they had pod problems and X was going to make some customers VERY unhappy because they were going to miss their VERY EXPENSIVE Machu Pichu ship sponsored trip due to traveling at a very slow speed to Valpo and missing Arica where the passengers were going to rejoin the ship.

 

I convinced quite a few of them to get off the ship in Lima, helped them make arrangements to fly to MP, helped them find hotels and tours and got communication later from some that they had a heck of a good time at 1/2 the price as the ship excursion. They missed a couple more days of their cruise but with the money they saved and the cheaper airfare some got flying home from Lima rather than Santiago (some flew back to Santiago from Cusco via Lima because they couldn't change their flights or had cruise air), most were very happy.

 

Good to see your post.

[Christine Frances]

I spent the better part of my day squeezing the heck out of some lemons, and I think I managed to make some very acceptable lemonade!:) I kept part of our pre-cruise trip, changed departure ports, changed cruise lines, changed itineraries, rescheduled plane tickets:mad:, cancelled some things, booked others, and added a train ride! At one point this morning I had a browser open for Celebrity, HAL, RCI, Princess, and NCL…all at the same time!

 

At the end of the day, I’m very thankful I was able to get things rescheduled to piece together a vacation we will love. My goal now is to focus on enjoying what we have instead of longing for what is gone. Oh, and I guess I should pick some shore excursions too!

 

Way to go Cindy:D:D

[nafanny29]

Celebrity sucks. Tried to book the solstice out of Ensenada to make up for my cancelled Mili cruise. When I called just now the price had gone from 749 at 7 am to 1250 at 3 pm.

 

Talked to everyone I could about this issue and there was nothing they could do.

 

Guess celebrity just doesn't care they are going to loose 8000 good customer over their stupid refunds policy.

 

 

Never Never Never Again

 

I bet if were a different line that price would be 3000.

 

From what I have read on here Celebrity have gone "above and beyond" what most lines would ever do!

[wvufan]

I spent the better part of my day squeezing the heck out of some lemons, and I think I managed to make some very acceptable lemonade!:) I kept part of our pre-cruise trip, changed departure ports, changed cruise lines, changed itineraries, rescheduled plane tickets:mad:, cancelled some things, booked others, and added a train ride! At one point this morning I had a browser open for Celebrity, HAL, RCI, Princess, and NCL…all at the same time!

 

At the end of the day, I’m very thankful I was able to get things rescheduled to piece together a vacation we will love. My goal now is to focus on enjoying what we have instead of longing for what is gone. Oh, and I guess I should pick some shore excursions too!

 

ATTA GIRL!

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE :D:D Bob and Phyl

[MicCanberra]

. Buy insurance, it is cheap in the long run.

Great advice, note: also make sure your insurance covers what you want it to.:D

[luv2fish]

Hay this is great 3hrs before flight to celebrate my wife finishing chemo and radiation for the last year I get a call that my back to back trip is canceled been on the phone for the last day canceling things taking off work and celebrity will give me a credit of 50% the first week and 25% for the second week if you think that is a good deal your nuts you should see the cost to change and make last minute plans to try to do something before she has to go back to work in three weeks will get one week on the oasis for twice as much but I should be grateful for that its just hard right now maybe Saturday I will be able to be happy about this but don't think so john

[MicCanberra]

ATTA GIRL!

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE :D:D Bob and Phyl

Ditto, have a great cruise Cindy.:D

[olemissreb]

I spent the better part of my day squeezing the heck out of some lemons, and I think I managed to make some very acceptable lemonade!:) I kept part of our pre-cruise trip, changed departure ports, changed cruise lines, changed itineraries, rescheduled plane tickets:mad:, cancelled some things, booked others, and added a train ride! At one point this morning I had a browser open for Celebrity, HAL, RCI, Princess, and NCL…all at the same time!

 

At the end of the day, I’m very thankful I was able to get things rescheduled to piece together a vacation we will love. My goal now is to focus on enjoying what we have instead of longing for what is gone. Oh, and I guess I should pick some shore excursions too!

 

 

Congratulations Cindy for truly making lemonade out of lemons! I hope your Alaska trip exceeds your expectations! Have fun and I hope you make some magical memories with your mom!

[specialdiet]

Was on the last (Aug 16) Millenium voyage; just got off the second flight they chartered leaving Ketchikan. Now at Vancouver airport, waiting for a flight I booked us for Edmonton (home).

 

Onboard situation for the Aug 16 passengers I think was going well until the travel booking team got started late last night, as people ended up being sent to places like Vancouver that they didn't necessarily want, but hadn't been asked and there was no communication about the process or the rationale. We were happy with it by accident, but many weren't. But if I were the customer service people, who were great and did what they could to help answer questions and take down requested plans, I'd probably want to strangle the travel booking people.

 

Having said that, I think getting people out of Ketchikan as fast as possible to anywhere where there were lots of connections is the smart thing to do.

 

With all the (understandable) griping of people onboard plus those on the now cancelled sailings, there's actually one thing that really bothers me more than anything else.

 

As a preamble, this is what I've heard from a number of sources, but would love to get any kind of official confirmation.

 

It's not in regard to the passengers, but the crew.

 

As should be known, the boat is out of commission for four weeks, heading to repairs in Bahamas.

 

Apparently, the vast majority of the crew (who are I assume under contract only indirectly to Celebrity) will NOT be getting paid for the down time. They will continue to receive their room and board, but not only are they foregoing the tips they'd get from passengers, but their actual salary.

 

Needless to say, most of them do not have the financial resources to just fly off home for the down time.

 

While we all suffer with our "first world problems", these are people working their collective butts off whose families are often counting on them for financial help. Taking that kind of bite out of their income is to me far more tragic than anything I've heard with regard to passenger hardships.

 

If I am misinformed about this, I would dearly like to know.

[MicCanberra]

Was on the last (Aug 16) Millenium voyage; just got off the second flight they chartered leaving Ketchikan. Now at Vancouver airport, waiting for a flight I booked us for Edmonton (home).

 

Onboard situation for the Aug 16 passengers I think was going well until the travel booking team got started late last night, as people ended up being sent to places like Vancouver that they didn't necessarily want, but hadn't been asked and there was no communication about the process or the rationale. We were happy with it by accident, but many weren't. But if I were the customer service people, who were great and did what they could to help answer questions and take down requested plans, I'd probably want to strangle the travel booking people.

 

Having said that, I think getting people out of Ketchikan as fast as possible to anywhere where there were lots of connections is the smart thing to do.

 

With all the (understandable) griping of people onboard plus those on the now cancelled sailings, there's actually one thing that really bothers me more than anything else.

 

As a preamble, this is what I've heard from a number of sources, but would love to get any kind of official confirmation.

 

It's not in regard to the passengers, but the crew.

 

As should be known, the boat is out of commission for four weeks, heading to repairs in Bahamas.

 

Apparently, the vast majority of the crew (who are I assume under contract only indirectly to Celebrity) will NOT be getting paid for the down time. They will continue to receive their room and board, but not only are they foregoing the tips they'd get from passengers, but their actual salary.

 

Needless to say, most of them do not have the financial resources to just fly off home for the down time.

 

While we all suffer with our "first world problems", these are people working their collective butts off whose families are often counting on them for financial help. Taking that kind of bite out of their income is to me far more tragic than anything I've heard with regard to passenger hardships.

 

If I am misinformed about this, I would dearly like to know.

If I am not mistaken X will look after their crew, apparently this has happened previously and the crew were compensated for lost wage and tips, I hope the same applies.:D

[Montana]

Cruise scheduled for the 13th, refund for all but insurance . No compensation for $ spent on insurance for future cruise not even on board credit. This seems unfair to me . Anyone else with celebrity purchased insurance

[Christine Frances]

I have never heard of insurance being refunded for any reason but maybe you can transfer it to your next cruise.

[Avalon35]

Cruises on other cruise lines are selling out. Star princess sept 7 just sold out. If you need to book other lines, should move quickly.