Irritated by the Valor/Liberty swap

[Almost Packed]

We are booked for the Liberty April 4 out of Port Canaveral and just got info that they are moving the Valor to Port Canaveral instead. No biggie but..... The Valor does not have the 2.0 upgrades and hasn't been in Dry Dock in awhile and they are offering no compensation for the loss of amenities or inconvenience.

 

I know they can move ships, change policies, etc based on the ticket contract but I don't feel that a non 2.0 un refurbished ship is an equal experience.

 

Guess we'll have to think about if we still want to take Carnival that week.

 

When they did a swap of the Conquest and Splendor I was not happy either. I cancelled my cruise. I booked a specific ship for a reason. I agree that it's not the same.

[NoDayButToday]

We very nearly booked the Liberty for March 22 for our honeymoon, but decided we wanted a different itinerary so switched to the Pride (and a little earlier to avoid Spring Break).

 

I hope everyone affected is able to find a different cruise they like or has fun on the Valor, hopefully Carnival will figure out a way to make it up to you onboard.

[RuthlessBoss]

We very nearly booked the Liberty for March 22 for our honeymoon, but decided we wanted a different itinerary so switched to the Pride (and a little earlier to avoid Spring Break).

 

I hope everyone affected is able to find a different cruise they like or has fun on the Valor, hopefully Carnival will figure out a way to make it up to you onboard.

 

I'm glad Valor is coming here. We all feel differently about ships, and Liberty and I just did not get along.

[jayscore]

I generally book according to itinerary, so this latest "bounce" by Carnival isn't the end of the world to me. This blows my chance to experience the 2.0 "upgrades", and I've been aboard the Valor before, but, it doesn't kill the deal for me.

And, my cabin assignment has remained the same, so I'm not freaking out.

 

"Half the deal is how a cruise feels!", eh?;)

[NoDayButToday]

I'm glad Valor is coming here. We all feel differently about ships, and Liberty and I just did not get along.

 

I'm sure we will try out the Valor at some point. PC is very close to home for us, so we will probably end up big fans of whatever ship is close with good itineraries.

 

IMO, the cruise is what you make of it. I spend most sea days with a (hopefully good) book enjoying ocean air, and then the nights doing whatever events the ship has to offer. As long as the cruise still has that and gets me to some tropical locations, I'll be a happy cruiser!

[Casco Bay Kid]

My TA just told me the Valor is going into drydock in Sept. (Next month) and will get the 2.0 upgrades!! :D

 

 

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I think your TA has no clue. Valor is not scheduled for drydock

 

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[Casco Bay Kid]

I'm glad Valor is coming here. We all feel differently about ships, and Liberty and I just did not get along.

 

If you didn't Like the Liberty you won't like Valor

 

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[RuthlessBoss]

If you didn't Like the Liberty you won't like Valor

 

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Things contributed to my experience on Liberty which didn't help. Long story.

 

Kind of curious, are you from Maine?

[girlscruise2011]

We have a large group that was booked on the Valor for 11/1/15. We booked the whole Aft 8. Carnival has yet to switch over the bookings to the Liberty and our rooms are "available" on their website. Our TA was assured that the rooms couldn't be booked but I was able to put my room on hold yesterday. I sailed both the Liberty and Valor and I'm excited to get back on the Liberty with the 2.0 upgrades but if they mess this up, there will be a bunch of upset people.

Edited August 30, 2014 by girlscruise2011

[christa212]

We booked a wedding on the Liberty for next year, save the dates, invitations, brochures all list the Liberty :( we have a lot of cabins booked, wonder how this will all turn out!

 

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[girlscruise2011]

We booked a wedding on the Liberty for next year, save the dates, invitations, brochures all list the Liberty :( we have a lot of cabins booked, wonder how this will all turn out!

 

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I know someone that was sailing on the Liberty in May 2015 and his booking already was switched to the Valor and he is in the same room.

 

Hopefully they will keep the rooms the same for you but unfortunately all the printing you had done will either be wrong or you'll have to have them reprinted :(

[louiseemma1000]

Hi everyone.

 

We are from the uk. We are one of those who were booked on the liberty but are now on the valor. At first we were annoyed but we have now accepted it and know we will enjoy it just as much nk matter what. That being said we feel we should get some sort of compensation for being put on what is in effect a downgraded ship - the loss of bars/restaurants etc. If it wasnt for cruise critic we would actually be non the wiser about this situation as weve had no email advising us of this. We were wondering whether anybody has been offered anything in way of compensation or is anybody planning on asking for anything. We were thinking OBC would be acceptable. What are your thoughts on this?

 

Thank you

 

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Edited August 30, 2014 by louiseemma1000

[peteukmcr]

Hi everyone.

 

We are from the uk. We are one of those who were booked on the liberty but are now on the valor. At first we were annoyed but we have now accepted it and know we will enjoy it just as much nk matter what. That being said we feel we should get some sort of compensation for being put on what is in effect a downgraded ship - the loss of bars/restaurants etc. If it wasnt for cruise critic we would actually be non the wiser about this situation as weve had no email advising us of this. We were wondering whether anybody has been offered anything in way of compensation or is anybody planning on asking for anything. We were thinking OBC would be acceptable. What are your thoughts on this?

 

Thank you

 

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Also from the UK and believe that due to our other cruise that is basically a b2b with this now Valor sailing on May 8th 2015 and our non-changeable, non-refundable transatlantic flights, we will stay with the change.

 

However, I agree with you as a gesture of goodwill Carnival should be offering OBC in lieu of the lack of choice of dining and beverage venues. I also need to be assured that I am not wait listed (as is currently showing on my reservation) for Your time dining.

 

Unfortunately on the 2 occasions I have been successful in contacting Carnival customer service, non of reps think there is an issue as twice I have now been told 'the ships are the same' and I have had to point out the lack of facilities on Valor as opposed to Liberty. They then put me on hold and basically never come back to me. I will try again once I get back to the UK from my current RCI Adventure of the Seas sailing.

[girlscruise2011]

Hi everyone.

 

We are from the uk. We are one of those who were booked on the liberty but are now on the valor. At first we were annoyed but we have now accepted it and know we will enjoy it just as much nk matter what. That being said we feel we should get some sort of compensation for being put on what is in effect a downgraded ship - the loss of bars/restaurants etc. If it wasnt for cruise critic we would actually be non the wiser about this situation as weve had no email advising us of this. We were wondering whether anybody has been offered anything in way of compensation or is anybody planning on asking for anything. We were thinking OBC would be acceptable. What are your thoughts on this?

 

Thank you

 

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Forums mobile app

 

Also from the UK and believe that due to our other cruise that is basically a b2b with this now Valor sailing on May 8th 2015 and our non-changeable, non-refundable transatlantic flights, we will stay with the change.

 

However, I agree with you as a gesture of goodwill Carnival should be offering OBC in lieu of the lack of choice of dining and beverage venues. I also need to be assured that I am not wait listed (as is currently showing on my reservation) for Your time dining.

 

Unfortunately on the 2 occasions I have been successful in contacting Carnival customer service, non of reps think there is an issue as twice I have now been told 'the ships are the same' and I have had to point out the lack of facilities on Valor as opposed to Liberty. They then put me on hold and basically never come back to me. I will try again once I get back to the UK from my current RCI Adventure of the Seas sailing.

 

I understand where you are both coming from but Carnival has it in the cruise contract that everyone signs that they are able to do this without compensation. I sailed both ships. I sailed the Valor after the Liberty and was concerned about enjoying it without the 2.0 upgrades. Honestly, I loved the ship and I didn't miss the guy burgers.

 

I read that some people who were not able to get the same room are getting a small OBC but again, I don't think that is guaranteed. You are still getting the same itinerary just a different ship. I don't believe Carnival owes anybody anything for the switch.

[louiseemma1000]

Carnival only need compare how unhappy the people that are being changed to valor are to how happy the people that are being changed to liberty are to realise there must be a difference in ship.

 

Like i say, we're going to stick with valor and I know we will enjoy our holiday. I just dont think its a completly fair ship change.

 

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[ragethjj23]

Hey now, not all that were on the valor are happy. Now I don't get my beautiful 6k. I'd switch to that room if I were you!

[RuthlessBoss]

Carnival only need compare how unhappy the people that are being changed to valor are to how happy the people that are being changed to liberty are to realise there must be a difference in ship.

 

Like i say, we're going to stick with valor and I know we will enjoy our holiday. I just dont think its a completly fair ship change.

 

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People seem to think Liberty's 2.0 is a complete theme park make over, it's not. Yes it has guys and burritos, but those new spaces took up spaces.

[Sparky2]

We are booked for the Liberty April 4 out of Port Canaveral and just got info that they are moving the Valor to Port Canaveral instead. No biggie but..... The Valor does not have the 2.0 upgrades and hasn't been in Dry Dock in awhile and they are offering no compensation for the loss of amenities or inconvenience.

 

I know they can move ships, change policies, etc based on the ticket contract but I don't feel that a non 2.0 un refurbished ship is an equal experience.

 

Guess we'll have to think about if we still want to take Carnival that week.

 

I feel your pain. We booked a B2B on Freedom for January 2015 and now we're on Conquest. At least Conquest has most of the 2.0. However, we really loved the Serenity Deck on Liberty this past January so we are somewhat disappointed. We will survive!

[Jeads323]

Hey now, not all that were on the valor are happy. Now I don't get my beautiful 6k. I'd switch to that room if I were you!

 

 

In another thread, someone called me crazy because I was upset about my room not being the same. I had a 6k as well and let me tell you I was really upset when I found out. Did they end up giving you a balcony?

 

 

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[ragethjj23]

In another thread, someone called me crazy because I was upset about my room not being the same. I had a 6k as well and let me tell you I was really upset when I found out. Did they end up giving you a balcony?

 

 

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Yes they did. On lido. I mean it is nice and u guess an "upgrade" in terms of price but I wouldn't have taken that switch if asked. I told myself I would only trade up to an aft balcony. ..guess I don't need to worry about that!

[cruzn buckeye]

We booked a wedding on the Liberty for next year, save the dates, invitations, brochures all list the Liberty :( we have a lot of cabins booked, wonder how this will all turn out!

 

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Oh my gosh. I would definetly be putting in a call to Carnival about this one. Or perhaps go to John's facebook page and post this to him. He will do whatever he possibly can to make this work.

[Jeads323]

Yes they did. On lido. I mean it is nice and u guess an "upgrade" in terms of price but I wouldn't have taken that switch if asked. I told myself I would only trade up to an aft balcony. ..guess I don't need to worry about that!

 

 

Well maybe we will get the upgrade call in a few months time for a good price aft :) we can at least hope right??

 

 

 

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[Laurin612]

What a mess! My family and I were booked on the 3/22 Valor sailing and have had our airfare to San Juan booked since April.

 

I called Carnival, and they would only pay up to $250 per person for changes to airfare, but our airline charges $285 per person. PLUS, we were considering a cruise on the Conquest out of Ft. Lauderdale but the airfare from Chicago to Ft. Lauderdale during spring break is now over $700 per person! We paid $500 per person to San Juan, so we'd be losing about $900 if we re-booked with Carnival on another Carnival cruise at the same time. Carnival was unwilling to work with us, though, because the cruise on the Conquest was 8 days and they would not honor price protection even though we offered to pay for the extra day on a pro-rated basis. No dice.

 

So, we ended up booking a cruise on Adventure of the Seas (RCI), which is leaving out of San Juan the same day the Valor was to leave and has some of the same southern Caribbean ports. It was more expensive than our Carnival cruise, but at least I'm not losing money on airfare.

 

I'm particularly mad at Carnival because my July Alaska cruise was affected by their propulsion problems with the Miracle, so Ketchikan was cancelled. We got a paltry $50 OBC and a 25% off voucher for our next cruise. Which was why we booked the Valor in the first place.

 

I have a really bad taste in my mouth about Carnival now. I haven't cruised on Royal Caribbean since 1997, but I have a feeling we may be back for good after these two Carnival faux pas.

[ragen]

I found this official reply over on the Official Carnival Facebook page, where somebody complained to them about the change,..:

 

<p>

 

"Carnival Cruise Lines - I'm sorry you're disappointed with the ship change. While I understand you were looking forward to the Fun Ship 2.0 features, The Carnival Valor is a terrific ship with a large number of balcony staterooms and a variety of other exciting features that we believe will be extremely popular on our five to eight-day program from Port Canaveral."

 

<p>

 

"The Carnival Valor will go into dry dock during the first quarter of 2016 and is scheduled to receive a number of FS 2.0 features which will be announced when finalized."

 

<p>

 

 

"- Mischelle Like · Reply · 3 hrs"

Edited August 30, 2014 by ragen

[luv2trvlnow]

What a mess! My family and I were booked on the 3/22 Valor sailing and have had our airfare to San Juan booked since April.

 

I called Carnival, and they would only pay up to $250 per person for changes to airfare, but our airline charges $285 per person. PLUS, we were considering a cruise on the Conquest out of Ft. Lauderdale but the airfare from Chicago to Ft. Lauderdale during spring break is now over $700 per person! We paid $500 per person to San Juan, so we'd be losing about $900 if we re-booked with Carnival on another Carnival cruise at the same time. Carnival was unwilling to work with us, though, because the cruise on the Conquest was 8 days and they would not honor price protection even though we offered to pay for the extra day on a pro-rated basis. No dice.

 

So, we ended up booking a cruise on Adventure of the Seas (RCI), which is leaving out of San Juan the same day the Valor was to leave and has some of the same southern Caribbean ports. It was more expensive than our Carnival cruise, but at least I'm not losing money on airfare.

 

I'm particularly mad at Carnival because my July Alaska cruise was affected by their propulsion problems with the Miracle, so Ketchikan was cancelled. We got a paltry $50 OBC and a 25% off voucher for our next cruise. Which was why we booked the Valor in the first place.

 

I have a really bad taste in my mouth about Carnival now. I haven't cruised on Royal Caribbean since 1997, but I have a feeling we may be back for good after these two Carnival faux pas.

 

They offered you way more than they offered me. They wouldn't cover airline change fees of any amount. Not $1. Our offer was a $50 OBC. Nothing else. So for us it is the Celebrity Summit sailing one day sooner and going to almost all the same ports. We are paying about $170 more but we don't have to hassle with airline change fees and increased airfare.

 

Sharon