Princess screwed our Med Cruise

[ucalegend]

Please read this letter I just sent to Princess regarding our Med. Cruise. They screwed up on 4 days.

 

To Whom It May Concern:

 

My husband and I chose to spend our 1st Anniversary aboard the Grand Princess (voyage information above). We chose this voyage based on two things 1) this boat went to Istanbul 2) Princess came at high recommendations from friends and family. Sadly, it is in times of adversity when we see the quality of the company we are dealing with. My husband and I can honestly say we are extremely disappointed in Princess and the quality of customer relations.

 

 

As you are probably aware, the Grand Princess had maintenance issues while at sea for this voyage. The passengers on board were made aware of a problem, but were never really told exactly what the problem was. This lack of communication was the first of many problems on board this ship and it caused a lot of animosity amongst the passengers towards the employees of the ship. The employees at the Purser’s desk had to deal with riots multiple nights in a row. The main problem stemming from the maintenance issues was a major change in our itinerary. I have outlined the changes below:

 

1) We did not go to Istanbul

 

2) We did not go to Kusadasi

 

3) We arrived in Athens one day early

 

4) We got an additional sea day added to our cruise.

 

 

The announcement about Istanbul came late into the night, which was unacceptable. Also, unacceptable was the port chosen, Samos. Samos was beautiful, but not comparable to Istanbul. The Captain waited until 10:30pm to make an announcement that we were not going to Kusadasi. This communication, again, came way too late at night. Some were in bed. We were just finishing our second seating dinner. We happened to be booked on a private tour for Kusadasi with about 14 other passengers. This left us to make a phone call late at night to our driver to tell him we were not going to be there. This was the second night in a row that we had to call that driver. He was supposed to be our driver for Istanbul too. Not only did Princess’s actions affect its passengers but it also affected others outside of the ship. The next biggest disappointment was getting to Athens one day early without tours being offered. This was a waste of our time and another let down on behalf of Princess.

 

 

Princess offered us $400 per person as a settlement for this inconvenience. This is not enough. The cruise was a 12 day cruise. Four of the 12 days were affected by the maintenance issues. This is one-third of the cruise. My husband and I paid $2103.45 per person ($4206.90 for the both of us). A proper refund of $701.15 per person ($1402.30 for both of us) would have been fair. I could have spent those 4 days at work as well since I did not get what I expected to get from Princess. We do expect a response from Princess regarding this issue. If it is not addressed we will call our credit card and dispute the charges since services promised were not delivered.

 

 

The next set of disappointments I would like to discuss was the quality of the food in both the buffet and the dining room. The first week in the dining room was sub-par. The food was something you would expect from a Marriott room service not from a cruise line dining room. I will admit that the second week onboard the food in the dining room improved greatly. The buffet was a huge let down. Every morning we were served the same exact food. This food tasted like something you could get at an all you can eat buffet in the United States. Every morning it would take anywhere from 15-25 minutes to get a Coke brought to our table (we even had the pre-paid coke card). I wish I could say that the buffet improved, but it did not.

 

 

Another point of frustration with this cruise was the level of service provided by your staff. One night in the dining room, I asked for Vinaigrette dressing. It was the only night that this dressing was not on the menu. My head waiter told me no. I know this is a slight inconvenience, but I have been on two other cruises and this has never happened. Another night in the dining room, one of our table mates was ill and did not come to dinner. His wife asked, at the end of dinner, if she could take what was left of my pot of hot tea to her husband. Again our waiter told us no. One day by the pool I ate a hot dog and fries. My plate sat for over 3 hours by my chair. I watched 7 different employees of Princess walk right past my plate. I also watched several employees of Princess walk right past a spilled daiquiri. That daiquiri baked into the deck and started to produce an odor, but no one cleaned it up. These are things you do not experience on other ships. My husband and I both went to the spa twice. I booked my husband’s first appointment and it was for 9am. I called back to confirm the day before and again they told me 9am. He showed up and they told him his appointment wasn’t until 9:30am. Later in the week, we went for a couple’s massage. We booked it last minute by walking into the spa around 2:30pm. They told us they had an opening for a couples massage at 4pm. We showed back up at 4pm and they told us our appointment was at 4:30pm. In summary, these two weeks on Princess were filled with horrible customer service.

 

 

This leads to another comment I would like to make about customer relations. When we found out we were not going to Istanbul. I contacted the purser’s desk by phone. I was then called back by Ewan. Ewan and I talked for some time. I got to the point where I told Ewan that I felt like Princess was screwing us. Ewan’s response to me was “well do feel like the people in New Orleans got screwed.” I found this comment inappropriate. I told Ewan that I was American and that I was offended by it. I also advised him to not say that again.

 

 

The last point I would like to bring up is about the upkeep of the boat. There was mildew on our shower curtain upon arrival. There was rust, mold, and mildew around the edges of the hot-tubs and pools. We also had to move a chair out from our dining room table because the floor was uneven and a chair could not sit on it without wobbling.

 

 

Unfortunately, with all of these occurrences my husband and I feel like we should have celebrated our first anniversary somewhere else. I highly doubt we will ever cruise with Princess again. This is unfortunate for Princess because we had planned on doing Asia, Alaska, and Australia/New Zealand in the next few years before we have children.

[coiran]

Sorry you had a less than an acceptable cruise. BTW - it is a SHIP not a BOAT. I hope you reported all of the bad experiences as you encountered them - they usualy correct them - If the ship had mechanical problems or rough seas that prohibited it from going to ports, this is part of cruising and you can expect that on any cruiseline - the Captain will not put the pax at risk. If you feel the compensation was inadequate you should address this with princess - don't feel bad if they do not go along with your concerns.

Don't let this one experience drive you away from Princess - try one of the smaller ships, which I think, provide a better cruise experience - or - try another cruise line.

Ron

[Pam in CA]

Stacey... sorry to hear you felt that you didn't have four full days of your cruise but in actuality, you did. This has been widely debated in another thread on this board. I strongly suggest you go back and read the contract on your cruise documents. Your travel agent should have done a much better job of explaining what you were paying for on your cruise. The bottom line is that you got what you paid for, i.e., 12 days onboard the ship with cabin service, food and entertainment.

[Toto2Kansas]

Many become upset when they miss ports, especially ones they are looking so forward to. But as said, the passenger contract covers it all. Except for the port charges paid, Princess really is under no obligation to refund anything else.

 

Sad but true! It is all in the passenger contract!

 

Let me give you a quick story of what we encountered. Many years ago we visited a port and always wanted to return. We finally choose a B2B cruise (12 days each way) so we could be sure that we would get to visit this certain port again. We even went as far as emailing the island as we knew they had been having problems with their tender pier and we were told all was fine and they were anticipating our arrival. Princess also assured us that it would be on the itinerary. Well, you guessed it. Both ways they skipped that port because they said they didn't like the way they had repaired the tender pier. This meant instead of visiting the one port we were really looking forward to we had 5 sea days in a row TWICE. Our compensation from Princess ended up being $6 per person for the refunded port charges. :(

 

This happens all of the time.

[LARGIN]

From the contract you received from Princess prior to sailing.. Princess did not have to compensate you for your inconvienence..

 

8. RIGHT TO DEVIATE FROM ROUTE AND CHANGE OR OMIT PORTS OF CALL.

Carrier may, for any reason, without notice or liability for payment or compensation: (a) deviate from the scheduled ports of call, route and timetable, (b) call or omit to call at any port or place, © comply with all governmental laws and orders given by governmental authorities, (d) proceed without pilots, tow or be towed and assist vessels, or (e) render assistance to preserve life and property. Accordingly, You should not make any important arrangements or meetings based on the proposed itinerary of the Cruise, which may change without liability to Carrier.

[Hobson's Choice]

As much as anyone might be sympathetic with your disappointment, none can refund the $1,000 dollars you are looking for and none are likely to change their plans for future cruises. Events like this happen on every cruise line, and generate the same complaints. Too bad it happened to you this time. Better luck the next, wherever you go.

[tcdtcd]

Stacy, sorry for your frustrating experience.

 

Those of you who are pulling out the cruise contract and quoting what Pricess has to do or doesn't have to do, IMHO, are missing the point. Yes, its true, it seems like the $400 is more than Princess had to do legally.

 

But the bigger issue is one of customer service and satisfaction. Airlines, hotels, restaurants, retail stores, and corporate entities often times go well above and beyond their legal requirements to make sure that when things go wrong (as they almost certainly do at one time or another) the customer walks away with a sense that there was a real effort to solve/minimize the problem/mistake/inconvenience and will want to patronize that business again some time. Airlines most times offer hotel and meal voucher when there is a delay due to mechanical problems (they don't have to) or put you on a competing airline (they don't have to). Many fine retailers and even Costco will accept returns no questions asked (they don't have to). A good restaurant will 'make good' (free dessert, sometimes even a free meal) if there was an unavoidable service problem.

 

This was a mechanical problem (not weather, not security). Its true Princess didn't HAVE to do more than they did. Its a shame they didn't WANT to do more. There is no more powerful weapon in customer service than EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS.

[Coral]

As you stated, your main problem was missing ports due to maintenance issue.

 

I can pretty much guaranttee you that Princess did not want to have maintenance problems on your sailing - they don't want it on any sailing. It is in their best interest to stay on schedule and give people what they expect. Unfortunately (for both Princess and yourselves)- this is not what happened.

 

Princess did provide some compensation for missing the ports - the problem is that everyone's expectations of what is proper comensation varies. Some would want their entire cruise money back while others may have thought $400 was generous.

 

This is one of those situation where nobody wins. I can tell you that other cruise lines also have maintenance issues and have had to cancel ports/rearrange schedules. I remember reading what Celebrity did last year when a cruise had to have a delayed start (cruise delayed 3 days in order to fix ship) - what they offered their passengers wasn't enough to cover hotels for the 3 extra days that most passengers would have to buy because they already had plane tickets for the dates of the cruise. Those people were not happy either. I look at what Carnival offered some of their people ($100 credit) when they yanked 3 ships out of service (immediately) for FEMA. I don't think what they were offered was "adequate" either.

[seattlekckckc]

HI, I am not going to get into the debate about fours days being wasted, to me, being on the ship is the best part of cruising. If a port is that important to you, choose a land based vacation.

 

That said, I want to clarify something that jumped out at me from your letter. The reason you can not take out food or drink items from the dining room is a health/sanitary issue. If your table mate had inquired further, or maybe this was said, or maybe it wasnt at all, but you can call and get hot tea delivered to your room FREE from room service, in less time than it takes to get it from the dining room! The same thing happened when my 6mo niece threw a wing ding and my sister removed her immedialty - she was bummed to miss her Love Boat Dream that had just been delivered, and when they wouldnt let her take it she was sad. BUT, our waiter asked her cabin number, and had another waiting for her in the room when she arrived.

[ucalegend]

I think most of you are missing the point becuase you weren't on the ship. #1) For 4 days in a row there were about 1000 passengers surrounding the purser's desk because they were changing things nightly. #2) I understand what my contract said about them having the right to change ports of call, however, i also have a right to know where I am going before I get there. We woke up in Samos Greece, not Istanbul Turkey. #3) For the person who suggested I take a land vacation, a European cruise isn't supposed to be about relaxation it is about the sights you visit. I paid for 2 days at sea and by the time it was done we had 3.5 days at sea. What the last week of our cruise became was a very expensive floating hotel that didn't know where it was going.

[LMCAT123]

Ship -- not boat.

 

If visiting Istanbul was the most important reason for this trip I think I would have flown to Istanbul for my vacation instead of taking a cruise. As everyone pointed out the cruise line can/and may have to alter cruise itinerary...if a particular place was so important to me that I would be that upset if I missed it I would not have cruised to that destination.

 

I do not think Princess owes you anything for the missed ports. The $400 they offered may not seem like much to you, but I think it is fair. I understand you were disappointed, but there are always some aspects of travel that can go wrong. We were on a British Airways flight that had a bomb scare one time and we were hours late leaving Los Angeles and effectively missed our first day of vacation in London. BA did not reimburse us anything (frankly I was glad to be alive). Also I was once on a plane that had an engine blow out and we returned to airport and waited 8 hours for another plane to be flown in. We got vouchers for a meal. Crap happens when you travel.

 

I am not going to comment on buffet food as I do not do buffets on land or sea. As for the dining room food we have had, it has been very good.

[sandbag7]

It's really unfortunate that you missed Istanbul; it's a great city straddling Europe and Asia, with many religious and historical sites. I would recommend that you consider a cruise that starts or ends in Istanbul; it's definitely worth several days exploration. Kusadisi is of course interesting, with the Roman ruins and a small but good museum nearby, hopefully you can see it on another cruise.

Its also unfortunate that a cruise line cannot evaluate which port is the most meaningful; accordingly they can't value your lost ports as you would like. Princess $400.00 offer seems reasonable under the circumstances; they can't be expected to pro-rate the offer based on what each person spent.

If this happened to me I would undoubtedly share your feelings; these ships are run almost continuously which probably contributes to breakdowns; I would check to see if they had mechanical issues in the recent past which could have alerted them to the need for sdome kind of additional maintenance; if so, you would have a stronger argument.

[land lover]

How disappointing your experience was....I can totally relate when I was young and I am guessing you are probably in you mid- late twenties.. I got frustrated all the time...false advertising was all around, I wrote so many letters I grew blue in the face( by the way yours is great) I took a six week tour of Europe that didn't provide what was promised,.....I had rights after all...............

 

then I had children. illnesses, etc. and now I take life less seriously, "stupid" things happen a lot, is it intentional ? we people who are type A personalities think it is, but really most people just react, few think ahead...and many run by the seat of their pants...thats life!...

 

How many people were actully leaders at the pursers desk? Most just follow the lead...........few will write letters.

 

I hope you get the reimpursement you asked for......

 

....but wait tell you have children...they seldom follow through on their commitments and I have yet to go on any vacation, cruise, to any hotel etc. that provided all that was advertised in my 48 years of life, I mean even the local target doesn't have products that they advertise on the first day of the sale, I've just mellowed with age..............

Good Luck...:)

[zductive]

This topic has been debated in other threads but I can't understand why everyone is so happy to say that Princess can take you where ever they please. The next time that I think that I am going to pay 10 - 20 k for a cruise, I will probably remember just how hard Princess tried to make me feel better about their service.

 

The next time that you don't get what you thought that you were buying, please remember that burnt steak is acceptable. That scratch in your paint job after they work on your car. That shopping cart that runs into your car is acceptable. That movie that is really rank is perfectly acceptable. Why ? In every one of the above examples, you have signed away your rights just as you did when you accepted the cruise contract. The person that did the damage has no responsibility to make things right for you. Remember also that if you fall and break your ankle when you don't see that step in the Botticelli dining room, you are still the one that is responsible. If they lose your luggage, you are responsible. If they get you to the wrong port, you are responsible. But, don't get to the dock 5 minutes late because they can't inconvenience the other passengers unless your on one of their over prices (by a factor of 3x) tours.

 

If the Grand Princess were registed in the USA, the obstacles to the handicapped and the many many floor elevation changes would be removed. I saw an awful lot of broken arms and ankles on this trip. Princess said that they would put obstacle courses on their boat and you had better be careful to avoid them. But, if you get hurt, it is your own fault because Princess doesn't care about you at all. It is right there in their contract remember.

 

If other cruise lines are just as bad, it is a real shame.

 

I have travelled on about 10 cruises over the past 40 years. The Grand Princess ranks right up there with Carnival's Fascination in quality of service.

 

I chose the Grand Princess because of the ports and not because it was the princess. If I had wanted to go on a 10 day Greek Islands trip, I could have gone there and would have been quite happy at a lower cost. So, to those of you that think that Princess did us a favor by giving us an additional day of mediocre entertainment by a band that was as lifeless as they come, a cruise director that didn't do much of anything, and a captain that shouldn't be in command - I say the following:

 

Cruising is a chance to relax and do things that you normally wouldn't do. It is a floating hotel that takes you places that you haven't been so that you can have new experiences. It is driven by the environment. In the European market, IMHO, it is all about the ports. In the Carribean (sic) it is all about the party on the ship. Cruising is not a crap shoot where you take whatever the cruise fairy is willing to dole out to you.

 

BTW - we use Boat as a derogatory term. A ship is a fine vessel that runs smoothly, is beautifully kept, where the people talk to each other and help to cause an enjoyable atmosphere. The Grand Princess didn't do that for me. Yes, I really enjoyed the time that I spent off the boat in the ports.

[chefajax]

Hi to All-except mrdawson,

No matter what line you cruise on,problems will always occur,that is the nature of sailing. Granted, missing ports is disappointing,but not life ending. Princess went above it's required comp to it's pax. Please tell me what line does more on a regular basis,in the "mass market" area?

Also, the complaints about the spa should be brought to the managing company.They are the ones who should address this scheduling problems.

 

About the dining, food is a personal thing,each to their own.If the wait staff was not adequete, then that is why they have a Maitre'd. Now, about Hot beverages being carried out of the dining room,onto moving decks, by guests should be discouraged,remember that old lady who spilled hot coffee in her lap while driving and sued McD's,resulting in NOBODY can have hot!!! coffee and now warning labels that HOT coffee is HOT. It was a foolish thing to attempt.

 

Am I a cheerleader for Princess? MrDawson, I prefer to go with the old adage my grandfather taught me."Who is more foolish, the fool or the person who argues with the fool?" :)........Dennis

[kryos]

Stacey... sorry to hear you felt that you didn't have four full days of your cruise but in actuality, you did. This has been widely debated in another thread on this board. I strongly suggest you go back and read the contract on your cruise documents. Your travel agent should have done a much better job of explaining what you were paying for on your cruise. The bottom line is that you got what you paid for, i.e., 12 days onboard the ship with cabin service, food and entertainment.

Stacey, I have to kinda agree with Pam. What happened to you is, unfortunately, the nature of the beast. I have heard of situations where people have had their weddings planned for a certain port ... family flying in ... arrangements all set ... only to have the port stop cancelled for some reason. If you really have your heart set on a particular stop on any given cruise ... where if not stopping there would cause a major problem or be a very big disappointment ... I would personally advise not using a cruise ship to see that port, but rather take a land vacation there instead.

 

If you check your documents, and your TA should have explained this to you, you will note that the cruiseline has a right to change or skip ports for a variety of reasons ... maintenance issues with the ship being one of them. Weather or political climate would be another. Of course, whenever possible, the cruiseline will substitute a different port to make up for the cancelled one, but other times they will just add a sea day.

 

You say that the $400 onboard credit was not sufficient. You felt that it should have amounted to one-third of the cost of your cruise. I would have to disagree with this for the same reason that Pam mentioned. You had the full use of the ship's facilities for those days ... entertainment ... unlimited food, etc. It's not like they kicked you off and you had to stay in a hotel on land for those four days, incurring expenses.

 

For what it's worth, I was on the Zuiderdam last August. We had multiple ports cancelled due to hurricanes. In fact, we wound up with something like five days straight at sea on a Caribbean cruise. Ships doing Caribbean itineraries generally are not set up in terms of onboard activities for so many sea days. The cruise director and his staff had to really scramble to come up with things to keep the passengers happy and occupied.

 

The ports we did stop at had all water-related excursions cancelled due to rough seas. It was very disappointing. The entire cruise got extended by two days because Port Everglades got shut down. This caused people to have to scramble to schedule new flights (there would be no charge for the changes because the FLL airport was shut down too).

 

We got some onboard credits as well ... but we still had a lot of disappointed passengers. My take on it was that you take your cruise during hurricane season and you take your chances with it. I just made up my mind to have a whole bunch of fun with what I was handed ... and I did.

 

I am sorry your cruise did not turn out to be what you wanted it to be, but I honestly can't find fault with the cruise line for that. A $400 shipboard credit, IMO, seems more than fair.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kruisey]

Have mentioned my views on another thread about this cruise.

Am very ignorant about the running of the ships engines.....but I do hope that the cruise I am saving up for next year goes into wet or dry dock or whatever and has a good check up before that time.These poor ships are run off their whatevers.......Unloading passengers in the morning then off again in the afternoon for months and months at a time .I know with a car after so many miles it goes into the Garage for a checkup...this should be the case for ships......If you look at Events at Sea several ships not only Princess seen to be having propulsion problems....maybe the Design Engineer should be questioned about this issue. :cool: From what I see none of these ships seem to be very old???????

Hum I wonder how can the cabin crew properly sanitize each cabin properly with such a quick turn around? .....Maybe this one should be the start of another thread...L---l have some wonderful canisters of Disinfecting Wipes on the market :D

[kryos]

Am very ignorant about the running of the ships engines.....but I do hope that the cruise I am saving up for next year goes into wet or dry dock or whatever and has a good check up before that time.These poor ships are run off their whatevers.......Unloading passengers in the morning then off again in the afternoon for months and months at a time .I know with a car after so many miles it goes into the Garage for a checkup...this should be the case for ships......If you look at Events at Sea several ships not only Princess seen to be having propulsion problems....maybe the Design Engineer should be questioned about this issue. :cool: From what I see none of these ships seem to be very old???????

I think the ships do get routine maintenance on a regular basis. The purpose of dry dock is to make major modifications/repairs.

 

As for major maintenance issues ... you can take perfect care of any piece of machinery and it will fail on occasion. Heck, even the space shuttle has had major problems and you can only imagine how well that piece of equipment must be maintained. :)

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[cruise182]

I For 4 days in a row there were about 1000 passengers surrounding the purser's desk because they were changing things nightly..

 

 

You know I would of been in the atrium....drinking a nice cocktail....amusing myself watching a 1,000 people get so worked up on a VACATION!!

 

Crap happens.....better on a ship then at work. Sometimes ones attitude dictates the service they receive. From reading your letter it certainly sounds like you were looking for a problem. I would of asked a bartender or waiter if they could get someone to clean up the daiquiri. I would of just handed the plate to a bar server that was on the way back to the bar. All with a big, polite, vacation smile across my face!!:)

[vmom]

Stacy,

 

RE: your response to Ewan, "I told him I was an American and that I was offended by that."

 

Don't you think you may have misinterpreted his comment. Sounds like Ewan was trying to make the point that sometimes bad things happen, (and in the case of New Orleans..tragic) that are not in our control. He might should have made his point better by saying that accidents do happen and motors do break down at times without warning, but since the hurricane was likely top in his mind at the moment due to news coverage, he used the example of NewOrleans.

 

I think your response was completely missing the point and an over-reaction of the what he was trying to say.

 

I also think it hurts the credibility of what you report that other crew members said to you. Including the incident of the hot tea at dinner. It makes perfect sense that they woudn't want someone walking around with hot water on a moving ship, especially since room service would have made more sense.

[navybaby]

I agree with most posters that a cruise should never be chosen based solely on itinerary. I also agree that Princess should have done a better job on customer service relations. But, then again, I wasn't on the ship. Perhaps their customer service was fine for the 1,500 non-rioting folks...

 

I have never been on a 'real' cruise before and cannot wait to experience the whole thing - good, bad and otherwise. Although, I can't for the life of me think of anything 'bad' enough to ruin a cruise! "A bad day cruising is better than a good day at work!"

 

I am slightly offended (haha) by the snide remark about "Navy cruises", however. While they are worlds apart from "real cruises" they should count for something! :cool:

[vmom]

I agree with most posters that a cruise should never be chosen based solely on itinerary. I also agree that Princess should have done a better job on customer service relations. But, then again, I wasn't on the ship. Perhaps their customer service was fine for the 1,500 non-rioting folks...

 

I have never been on a 'real' cruise before and cannot wait to experience the whole thing - good, bad and otherwise. Although, I can't for the life of me think of anything 'bad' enough to ruin a cruise! "A bad day cruising is better than a good day at work!"

 

I am slightly offended (haha) by the snide remark about "Navy cruises", however. While they are worlds apart from "real cruises" they should count for something! :cool:

 

Navy cruise vs Princess cruise:

 

Navy cruise: no room service, small rooms, no room steward, no big shows, instead, alot of work in not always ideal conditions.

 

Princess cruise: never have to make up your own bunk, good comedians, dancing at night, all the food you can eat when ever you want, lounging by the pool AND if you don't want to get out of bed for the day, you don't have to.

 

Just want to thank both you and the other poster who was also in the Navy for your service to our country. Hope you enjoy your cruise, you deserve some relaxation.

[mikesteg]

The next time that you don't get what you thought that you were buying, please remember that burnt steak is acceptable. That scratch in your paint job after they work on your car. That shopping cart that runs into your car is acceptable. That movie that is really rank is perfectly acceptable. Why ? In every one of the above examples, you have signed away your rights just as you did when you accepted the cruise contract.

 

In fact, in none of these examples have you signed away your rights as you do with the cruise contract. You might have trouble finding the person who let the cart run into your car, but you can send the steak back or leave the movie early and ask for a refund.

[kryos]

Navy cruise vs Princess cruise:

 

Navy cruise: no room service, small rooms, no room steward, no big shows, instead, alot of work in not always ideal conditions.

My 91-year-old father was in the Navy. He has no desire to cruise.

 

One day we were talking about cruises. I told him about the midnight chocohalics buffet on HAL. His response: "Midnight buffet? All we got were midnight bombings." :)

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[cviolante]

I'd like to respond to a few points on your letter. First, though, I'd like to say that I understand your frustration. A few years ago, we missed the port of Amsterdam while cruising Europe, which was to be one of the highlights for us. It was indeed quite disappointing.

 

However, at the beginning of your letter, you say that Princess offered you $400 per person. Please understand, this was not an "offer". There was no negotiating going on. There was a contract in place, you accepted the contract, Princess fulfilled their end of the contract, and you merely didn't like the outcome. Princess paid you MORE than their legal obligation. I truly understand that you didn't like it. That's certainly your choice. But that's my point: it your CHOICE to be so upset about this. It sounds to me like you really only had two day of your cruise materially affected: you mention you got to Athens early...I'm not understanding why you feel this issue deserves compensation.

 

The other point I'd like to make it this: it looks like you haven't cruised for over a decade. Well, the cruise industry has changed A LOT over that time. For better or worse, cruise lines have continually cut back to what you see now. You may find that cruising is not for you anymore. You say you may not cruise Princess anymore. If you do some research on these boards, you'll fund the exact same issue occuring on NCL and the Norwegian Dream. You should also read about the compensation that RCCL has given on some recent cruises that had issues. There was one that was supposed to go to Bermuda, and instead went to Canada. You'd be shocked at what those folks got. My intention here is not to complain about cruise lines, but merely to point out that if you refuse to go on cruise lines that fail to give adequate compensation, you're going to find your choice of cruise lines to be very limited.

 

I sincerely hope your next cruise, should you decide to take another, will better match your needs.