Carnival Liberty Evacuation

[cruiser fanatic]

It depends on what happens with the rest of the cruise. If it's cancelled, a full refund is definitely warranted and a future cruise credit in addition would be a good gesture.

 

If they leave St. Thomas this evening and continue the cruise on an altered itinerary, $150pp OBC may be satisfactory compensation for most.

 

That's why I said at this point an OBC is enough. If the cruise is cancelled Carnival is responsible for flying people home and providing refunds.

[gtalum]

We just did this cruise about a month ago. Tuesday is their only sea day, with the ship taking it's time cruising (slowly!) from St. Thomas to Barbados. If they determine everythings fine and the ship sails later today, my guess is that they will get to Barbados tomorrow and easily get back on schedule for the rest of the cruise.

I hope so for all the passengers. What a GREAT cruise and itinerary!!!

 

Just FYI, St. Thomas to Barbados is about 450 nautical miles in a straight line. The actual distance of travel will be much longer.

 

There's no way they will make Barbados tomorrow if they leave this evening.

Edited September 8, 2015 by gtalum

[toad455]

St. Thomas is always a busy port, sometimes with 6-8 ships docked. I wonder if this is affecting other ships today from docking in St. Thomas.

[tafische]

Everyone seems to be in a good mood. There was not a long line at guest services last night as some may expect. This morning passengers are waiting in line for breakfast and the energy seems to be positive. Since last night, the hotel aspect of the ship has been fully functional and the restaurants and bars stayed open into the late evening.

 

Thats funny...if you listen to the news this morning it sounded as though there was a raging inferno. They even said the Coast Guard had to come help extinguish the blaze.

[Earthworm Jim]

Who knows what compensation may or may not eventually be required based on what ends up happening. But for now, for all we know the ship is fine and they are just awaiting all the necessary inspections to verify that is the case before they can sail on to Barbados. There may not be any mechanical problem with the ship at all, but they just have to inspect it to be sure.

 

For now the $150 obc sounds reasonable enough, and if nothing else happens they may want to consider throwing the passengers an additional 25% of a future cruise as a sweetener to encourage them not to give up on Carnival going forward.

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

St. Thomas is always a busy port, sometimes with 6-8 ships docked. I wonder if this is affecting other ships today from docking in St. Thomas.

 

http://ports.cruisett.com/schedule/US_Virgin_Islands/620-Saint_Thomas/September_2015/

[gone_cruisin]

Who knows what compensation may or may not eventually be required based on what ends up happening. But for now, for all we know the ship is fine and they are just awaiting all the necessary inspections to verify that is the case before they can sail on to Barbados. There may not be any mechanical problem with the ship at all, but they just have to inspect it to be sure..

 

 

This is a little more than just an inspection. "Deeper technical assessment" is a lot more complex than just looking at the parts to make sure it's functioning. (This coming from someone that works in the airline industry and can spot key words to signal problems").

 

To me, this means they haven't identified what caused the fire and cannot depart until the identify and rectify.

Edited September 8, 2015 by gone_cruisin

[RuthlessBoss]

I have to agree. There is absolutely no reason to make an issue of it onboard while everybody is stressed, but the fact is that you didn't get what you paid for and it's Carnival's fault you didn't. Weather is not Carnival's fault, but the blame for this is directly at Carnival's feet. Somebody missed something during maintenance or whatever, but regardless, you paid for something, due to a situation that Carnival is responsible for, you didn't get what you paid for and I'm going to guess many guests even lost some money because of this...what about prepaid shore excursions (I'm talking about independent tours not through Carnival), not to mention the inconvenience of being stuck with no money, no medication, in a wet bathing suit. Yes, it's great that everybody is well and nobody is hurt, and hey if you have to be stranded, St. Thomas is a great place for that! Anyway, I would wait until I got home and then sent a nice letter explaining what my damages were and request what I would consider fair compensation. I don't think a free cruise is reasonable, but I would expect to be reimbursed for any financial obligations that I lost, and then I would have to think long and hard what the general inconvenience entailed....most likely the $150 OBC that has already been reported would do....but yes, I do believe Carnival should responsible this financially.

 

Being in a wet bathing suit deserves a full refund? No one was dressed in their elegant clothes. What have they lost monetarily at this point? They are missing a sea day, so there would not have lost excursion money.

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

This is what your ticket says about itinerary changes:

 

(d) The Vessel shall be entitled to leave and enter ports with or without pilots or tugs, to tow and assist other vessels in any circumstances, to return to or enter any port at the Master’s discretion and for any purpose, and to deviate in any direction or for any purpose from the direct or usual course, and to omit or change any or all port calls, arrival or departure times, with or without notice, for any reason whatsoever, including but not limited to safety, security, adverse weather, strikes, tides, hostilities, civil unrest, port closings, emergency debarkations of Guests or crew, late air, sea, car or motor coach departures or arrivals, mechanical breakdowns, US or foreign governmental advisories or travel warnings, all such deviations being considered as forming part of and included in the proposed voyage. Except as provided in Clause 7© with regard to early termination of a voyage, Carnival shall have no liability for any compensation or other damages in such circumstances other than as provided by Carnival’s change of itinerary policy at the time Guest or his agent acknowledges receipt and acceptance of the terms and conditions of the cruise ticket contract.

 

and 7c: In the event a voyage is terminated early due to mechanical failure of the Vessel, Guest is also entitled to transportation to the Vessel’s scheduled port of disembarkation or Guest’s home city, at Carnival’s discretion and expense, as well as necessary lodging at the unscheduled port of disembarkation, if required, at Carnival’s expense.

 

It is probably advisable for cruise passengers to actually read their ticket contracts.

 

Not to say that Carnival will strictly adhere to their legal rights and they probably will compensate individuals beyond their requirements but to think that someone is entitled to something because of unforeseen occurrences is a bit ludicrous and quite irresponsible.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Sweet Dutch Girl

[toad455]

http://ports.cruisett.com/schedule/US_Virgin_Islands/620-Saint_Thomas/September_2015/

 

thanks! luckily there's only 3 ships arriving today.

[ajtaylor29]

my bad, see - just goes to show I don't know anything?!?! I just show up on the ship and go with the flow. :) I know most of the islands on this cruise are pretty close together, but I understand that the distance on these 2 is farther than I thought.

Hopefully, they'll get back on track and not lose too much here!

[ImaginationCruiseBride]

Being in a wet bathing suit deserves a full refund? No one was dressed in their elegant clothes. What have they lost monetarily at this point? They are missing a sea day, so there would not have lost excursion money.

 

 

Where did I say full refund? I said the $150 would most likely cover inconvenience. And if today is all they miss then there is no financial loss, but we don't know if this will be the extent of it.

 

 

 

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[Blue Mudshark]

It [CO2] will kill you dead instantly.

 

This is utter nonsense. CO2 is in the air we all breathe, as well as in beer and soda pop. It is breathed out in our own exhalations, every breath. It's non-toxic. Anything can be harmful in extreme quantities; breathing pure CO2 would suffocate you from lack of oxygen. But to hype it that it will supposedly "kill you dead instantly" is pretty irresponsible.

[gtalum]

This is what your ticket says about itinerary changes:

 

(d) The Vessel shall be entitled to leave and enter ports with or without pilots or tugs, to tow and assist other vessels in any circumstances, to return to or enter any port at the Master’s discretion and for any purpose, and to deviate in any direction or for any purpose from the direct or usual course, and to omit or change any or all port calls, arrival or departure times, with or without notice, for any reason whatsoever, including but not limited to safety, security, adverse weather, strikes, tides, hostilities, civil unrest, port closings, emergency debarkations of Guests or crew, late air, sea, car or motor coach departures or arrivals, mechanical breakdowns, US or foreign governmental advisories or travel warnings, all such deviations being considered as forming part of and included in the proposed voyage. Except as provided in Clause 7© with regard to early termination of a voyage, Carnival shall have no liability for any compensation or other damages in such circumstances other than as provided by Carnival’s change of itinerary policy at the time Guest or his agent acknowledges receipt and acceptance of the terms and conditions of the cruise ticket contract.

 

and 7c: In the event a voyage is terminated early due to mechanical failure of the Vessel, Guest is also entitled to transportation to the Vessel’s scheduled port of disembarkation or Guest’s home city, at Carnival’s discretion and expense, as well as necessary lodging at the unscheduled port of disembarkation, if required, at Carnival’s expense.

 

It is probably advisable for cruise passengers to actually read their ticket contracts.

 

Not to say that Carnival will strictly adhere to their legal rights and they probably will compensate individuals beyond their requirements but to think that someone is entitled to something because of unforeseen occurrences is a bit ludicrous and quite irresponsible.

 

It should be noted that legal liability and good customer service policy are not always the same. If they cancel and send everyone home, I'll be surprised if they don't issue both full refunds and future cruise credits to everyone.

[DaytonCruiser]

St. Thomas is always a busy port, sometimes with 6-8 ships docked. I wonder if this is affecting other ships today from docking in St. Thomas.

 

We now have three ships in port. The Carnival Glory is arriving as I type. The Liberty was moved to accommodate the other ships.

 

I do not know for certain if the ship was moved by self propulsion or by tug. We are in bow of the ship on the Riviera deck. We did feel the vibrations, as if we were moving on our own, but I cannot say for certain that those vibrations were not caused by the testing of the engines. I will try to get a definitive answer.

 

 

 

Above post from op

Edited September 8, 2015 by DaytonCruiser

[RuthlessBoss]

Where did I say full refund? I said the $150 would most likely cover inconvenience. And if today is all they miss then there is no financial loss, but we don't know if this will be the extent of it.

 

 

 

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When I read it first, the free cruise statement came across to me as it wasn't enough. Rereading, it I see it differently but it took a little thought and see what you are saying.

[ImaginationCruiseBride]

When I read it first, the free cruise statement came across to me as it wasn't enough. Rereading, it I see it differently but it took a little thought and see what you are saying.

 

 

No problem. Written communication is easy to misinterpret when you can't see or hear inflections.

 

 

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[Giffer]

Like you, we're also stressed waiting to hear whether we will be cruising on the 20th or not. And just a few days ago our concerns were weather, specifically hurricanes. We are pretty much in the same situation, non refundable plane tickets and have decided to spend the time in PR if our sailing would happen to be cancelled. I've talked to DH and he suggested waiting to see for sure whether we will be cruising or not before jumping the gun and booking the hotel for a week, but I'm afraid that would be too late. I told him I think we should book, let the hotel know the reason and see if they could tentatively book without penalty for cancellation if the cruise goes on as scheduled. I'm sure there are many others on our sailing with non-refundable airfare that might also be looking for a place to stay in PR for the week.

 

This is why we always buy full insurance on a cruise. Even with non-refundable airfare, the insurance would pay for it should the cruise be cancelled by Carnival. I think I paid just at $100 for full insurance on our cruise on the Valor out of San Juan two years ago. Didn't need it but it was nice knowing that we had it. We always budget insurance into out trip cost.

[pghsteelerfan]

I booked the Courtyard Isla Verde, no deposit, can be canceled until the 17th at no charge. I was able to snag a few of the days at a "friends & family" discount so I figured it wouldn't hurt to have a backup plan in place!

 

Thanks. I think we'll probably do that as well...backup plan is key. We already have the one night, pre-cruise, booked but we need to book now if there is a chance. We should surely know something definite by the 17th.

[gtalum]

Thanks. I think we'll probably do that as well...backup plan is key. We already have the one night, pre-cruise, booked but we need to book now if there is a chance. We should surely know something definite by the 17th.

 

Book now and ask questions later. That's always the best policy with refundable hotel reservations. Do make sure that the rate is refundable, though, as many hotel chains now offer nonrefundable "advance purchase" rates.

[pauleydm]

I spoke to three crew members that said the Liberty was moved by its own propulsion. Bare in mind, that the ship only moved half a length to accommodate the two ships that arrived this morning. I was told that one of the six engines was affected by the fire last night, but no official statement has been made by the captain or the cruise director. Carnival is.providing passengers free shuttle service to the downtown area for any guest that wishes to explore the city.

[DaytonCruiser]

I spoke to three crew members that said the Liberty was moved by its own propulsion. Bare in mind, that the ship only moved half a length to accommodate the two ships that arrived this morning. I was told that one of the six engines was affected by the fire last night, but no official statement has been made by the captain or the cruise director. Carnival is.providing passengers free shuttle service to the downtown area for any guest that wishes to explore the city.

 

Thanks for the updates

But please go out and have a great time.

[CCLCruiser4321]

Being in a wet bathing suit deserves a full refund? No one was dressed in their elegant clothes. What have they lost monetarily at this point? They are missing a sea day, so there would not have lost excursion money.

 

At least a free cruise in the future yes lots of people spend lots of money cruising each year it's only right for them to better maintain their ships or to pay. At first sure but this has not been a one off situation Take a look at the least several years with carnival what is it 4-7 engine fires and the titanic experience (costa)

[pghsteelerfan]

This is why we always buy full insurance on a cruise. Even with non-refundable airfare, the insurance would pay for it should the cruise be cancelled by Carnival. I think I paid just at $100 for full insurance on our cruise on the Valor out of San Juan two years ago. Didn't need it but it was nice knowing that we had it. We always budget insurance into out trip cost.

 

We have insurance (always do) but I don't know if it's the full insurance that would cover airfare if the cruise is cancelled by Carnival, my DH is the one that handled the booking, flights, insurance, and all. We are flying to San Juan whether Liberty sails for our cruise or not as we need a vacation and this is going to be the only time for "us" for a while as the annual family vacation will be resuming next year. Our original plan was and AI, I actually wanted a week in Puerto Rico but DH said he was open to another cruise and this was one of the choices so there was no hesitation on my part. We also did Valor two years ago and this is, by far, my favorite itinerary. We are hoping to cruise, but San Juan certainly is not a bad place to spend a week if a Plan B situation arises.

[pghsteelerfan]

Book now and ask questions later. That's always the best policy with refundable hotel reservations. Do make sure that the rate is refundable, though, as many hotel chains now offer nonrefundable "advance purchase" rates.

 

I just sent DH an email at work and told him to "get on it". LOL!!!