What has happened when you missed your ship after booking cruiseline air?

[RickT]

There are a lot of very negative and positive opinions on cruiseline air (Choice Air/Easy Air/Flight Ease/etc). The purpose of this thread is obtain anecdotal information on what has actually been done for passengers who have experienced a delay that caused them to miss the boat. This anecdotal information won't be a guarantee for others choosing to use cruiseline air, but hopefully some actual details will help fellow cruisers feel more comfortable with their decision to use cruiseline air or to perhaps avoid it.

 

The delay may have been weather/equipment related or perhaps a connection that was just too tight.

 

This is not a thread to argue for/against cruiseline air, nor is it a thread to discuss the benefits of flying in early, it's a thread to hear from actual passengers who missed the boat to see what assistance (if any) was given by the cruiseline providing the air (and not what was given by travel insurance).

 

Please let us know which cruiseline you booked with and what happened. Was this free of charge to you or were you charged change fees/etc to finally reach the ship?

 

I've used Choice Air a number of times and only had one issue with a connection in Frankfurt. Even though I was on a Choice Air ticket I was offered a number of different flight/route options to get me to the ship. This was done by the airline (Lufthansa) so really didn't involve Choice Air. It was interesting to note that I was offered flights on Lufthansa and other airlines that are not part of the Star Alliance. I had no issues reaching the ship although it was a little tight for my liking. I did touch base with Choice Air to advise what them that I missed my connection and had been rebooked on a later flight and the rep advised me "Not to worry, we'll get you caught up with the ship if you wind up being late". While I can't say what would have happened if I had, I was treated well by Lufthansa and Choice Air.

Edited September 28, 2015 by RickT

[Gizmo88]

I have had the cruise line book my air for many years, until I started to go a day or two early before the cruise. Overall experience has been good with it.

 

There was one cruise where the line did booked it and was forced to miss the ship departure in homeport. This was due to lightning at the home airport and missed the connecting flight when I arrived there. The airline did give me boarding passes for the next available flight, but it would not work as I would have arrived many hours after the cruise line's check-in cut off time.

 

So I called the cruise line's travel hotline at the home airport about the situation. At the connecting airport called again and the cruise line rep spoke to the airline rep and got me booked to the first port of call to meet the ship. Airline provided hotel and meal vouchers in the connecting city I was in. The cruise line provided a nice hotel with meal and transport allowance (reimbursed as on-board credit, since i saved the receipts) in the port of call. The fines that were under the Jones Act for catching up in the first Port of Call were paid by the cruise line since they booked the air.

 

This was Carnival and the airline that they booked was Air Canada. I got to the Port of call using Air Canada and its Star Alliance partners.

 

There were no extra costs to it.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Gizmo88

[1982CruzStart]

thank you for starting this thread. I hope there are lots of helpful replies as i am very interested in what has happened when something has gone wrong.

[em-sk]

thank you for starting this thread. I hope there are lots of helpful replies as i am very interested in what has happened when something has gone wrong.

 

The Air Canada policy, is if you miss a cruise because of a problem in their control then its Air Canada responsibility to fly you to the next port of call. (Details are in this PDF if you search for the word cruise).

 

https://www.aircanada.com/en/agents_na/reference/documents/Irregular_Operations.pdf

 

The rules defined in the PDF state they apply to all fare classes and booking channels. That would mean it applied equally to booking done using consolidators as well as directly with the airline.

 

I would hope other airlines do the same.

Edited September 30, 2015 by em-sk

[pmcubed]

 

Mechanical difficulties caused us to miss our connecting flight (we had a three hour lay-over - still missed it!) to Fort Lauderdale.

 

I called HA - they put us up at a hotel in Ft Lauderdale and a gentleman met us in the lobby the next morning to take us to Miami to catch a flight to Grand Cayman - we had two days in Grand Cayman. The breakdown in communications came there - we were told there was a room for us there - there wasn't. Neither was there someone to meet us at the airport to take us to said room.

 

Not only had we purchased our flights - but also the insurance.

 

But, it all worked out and the HA crew on ship could NOT have been nicer nor more accommodating to us. We had a huge obc for the hotel and meals (without even showing receipts).

 

Pat

[waterbug123]

The Air Canada policy, is if you miss a cruise because of a problem in their control then its Air Canada responsibility to fly you to the next port of call.

 

The rules defined in the PDF state they apply to all fare classes and booking channels. That would mean it applied equally to booking done using consolidators as well as directly with the airline.

 

I would hope other airlines do the same.

 

Keep hoping. If you buy a ticket to city X from the airline, then often the ticket is just that- a ticket to city X. If there's a problem, you may or may not be able to change the ticket to one that goes to city Y, and if you can, it may or may not cost you extra to do so. At least in the US, airlines will typically tell you that they are not responsible for whatever losses you may experience because your flight was delayed or canceled and you missed some subsequent event as a result. Got tickets to the big game but missed it because of flight delays? They aren't going to reimburse you for the game tickets. Got cruise tickets, or tickets on another airline to continue your journey to another destination and missed the cruise or other flight? Too bad, you're not getting reimbursed for those either. The airline's responsibility is simply to get you to city X on another flight as soon as they can.

[fbgd]

The Air Canada policy, is if you miss a cruise because of a problem in their control then its Air Canada responsibility to fly you to the next port of call. (Details are in this PDF if you search for the word cruise).

 

https://www.aircanada.com/en/agents_na/reference/documents/Irregular_Operations.pdf

 

The rules defined in the PDF state they apply to all fare classes and booking channels. That would mean it applied equally to booking done using consolidators as well as directly with the airline.

 

I would hope other airlines do the same.

 

Not sure why my post on this was deleted.

 

My interpretation of that wording is that people who booked through a cruiseline company are entitled to be moved to the next port of call, not anyone who happens to be going on a cruise.

[Globaliser]

The Air Canada policy, is if you miss a cruise because of a problem in their control then its Air Canada responsibility to fly you to the next port of call. (Details are in this PDF if you search for the word cruise).

 

https://www.aircanada.com/en/agents_na/reference/documents/Irregular_Operations.pdf

Not sure why my post on this was deleted.

 

My interpretation of that wording is that people who booked through a cruiseline company are entitled to be moved to the next port of call, not anyone who happens to be going on a cruise.

It was also interesting to see an explicit instruction to re-book on airlines with which AC has no interline agreements (although as a last resort). So it shows that the existence of an interline agreement with a different airline is not a sine qua non for getting rebooked onto the other airline. Of course, that depends on the agent in question being prepared to do what they are allowed to do.

[az_tchr]

We booked cruise and air thru Princess. THe blue flu was going on and our flight was cancelled. American Airlines got us to San Juan but we missed our ship. Princess rep forgot - his own words - to meet us and we spent the night in the airport as it was New Years Eve and no flights. Spoke with Princess 7am next morning and were on a noo flight to Barbados. That was fine but once again nobody met us at the airport and it took 4 ^*%&$ hours to leave airport as we had no passports (pre 9/11 days). Princess agreed to prorate our cruise to the penny. Not one cent more. American after lots of talking gave us a free R/T ticket anywhere in N. America.

 

We fly American, we no longer cruise with Princess.

[em-sk]

It was also interesting to see an explicit instruction to re-book on airlines with which AC has no interline agreements (although as a last resort). So it shows that the existence of an interline agreement with a different airline is not a sine qua non for getting rebooked onto the other airline. Of course, that depends on the agent in question being prepared to do what they are allowed to do.

 

I also found that surprising. Quite happy to see it.

[kenish]

We booked cruise and air thru Princess. THe blue flu was going on and our flight was cancelled. American Airlines got us to San Juan but we missed our ship.

 

This brings up a related point that bears repeating. If your cruise visits any ports outside the US where a PP card suffices, you will need a full PP to fly to that port instead. The airline (and cruise passenger) have no assurance they will re-enter the US by ship with the PP card. Since returning by air requires a full PP, the airline will not board you on the outbound flight. This happened in a post on this board about 3 years ago...their flight landed in the midwest with an engine problem; they were last to be rebooked due to their restricted and non-reroutable Cruise Air tickets. They arrived in Florida 24-48 hours late. Their vacation ended there because they only had PP cards and the airline couldn't board them on the flight to St. Martin (IIRC).

 

Another reason for a full PP (instead of a PP card) is if an emergency requires leaving the cruise early to fly home to the US. You won't be able to do this quickly or easily with a PP card.

Edited October 2, 2015 by kenish

[6rugrats]

Spoke with Princess 7am next morning and were on a noo [new?] flight to Barbados. That was fine but once again nobody met us at the airport and it took 4 ^*%&$ hours to leave airport as we had no passports (pre 9/11 days).

 

Even pre 9/11, how were you able to fly to Barbados without a passport?

Edited October 2, 2015 by 6rugrats

[RickT]

Hmmmmmm, 2 weeks, a dozen responses (a few slightly off topic) and so far no responses saying the Pax was left high and dry (although definitely one or two less then exemplary examples of good customer service).

 

This probably relates more to the fact that regardless of what kind of ticket you are on, more than likely you will make it to the ship (conjecture more than fact). May post a link on Celebrity/HAL/Princess forums to see if more responses are available.

[waterbug123]

 

This probably relates more to the fact that regardless of what kind of ticket you are on, more than likely you will make it to the ship (conjecture more than fact).

 

Most in this forum who caution about cruise air have never disputed that the vast majority of pax will have no issues on travel day and will make it to the ship just fine. They simply point out the possible differences between cruise air and "regular" air and caution people to consider their own level of risk tolerance, JUST IN CASE things do go wrong on travel day.

[RickT]

Most in this forum who caution about cruise air have never disputed that the vast majority of pax will have no issues on travel day and will make it to the ship just fine. They simply point out the possible differences between cruise air and "regular" air and caution people to consider their own level of risk tolerance, JUST IN CASE things do go wrong on travel day.

 

Agreed, and that "Just in case" things go wrong is the main point of my asking the question on this thread. It's implied by many that since you are on a cruise air ticket that "may" have additional restrictions and conditions that should anything go wrong your options of getting to the ship on time may be reduced.

 

So, even though it is still a low number it should be marginally higher for those booking through the cruiseline which then begs the question "What did the cruiseline do to help you".

[Photofinish4]

There are a lot of very negative and positive opinions on cruiseline air (Choice Air/Easy Air/Flight Ease/etc). The purpose of this thread is obtain anecdotal information on what has actually been done for passengers who have experienced a delay that caused them to miss the boat. This anecdotal information won't be a guarantee for others choosing to use cruiseline air, but hopefully some actual details will help fellow cruisers feel more comfortable with their decision to use cruiseline air or to perhaps avoid it.

 

The delay may have been weather/equipment related or perhaps a connection that was just too tight.

 

This is not a thread to argue for/against cruiseline air, nor is it a thread to discuss the benefits of flying in early, it's a thread to hear from actual passengers who missed the boat to see what assistance (if any) was given by the cruiseline providing the air (and not what was given by travel insurance).

 

Please let us know which cruiseline you booked with and what happened. Was this free of charge to you or were you charged change fees/etc to finally reach the ship?

 

I've used Choice Air a number of times and only had one issue with a connection in Frankfurt. Even though I was on a Choice Air ticket I was offered a number of different flight/route options to get me to the ship. This was done by the airline (Lufthansa) so really didn't involve Choice Air. It was interesting to note that I was offered flights on Lufthansa and other airlines that are not part of the Star Alliance. I had no issues reaching the ship although it was a little tight for my liking. I did touch base with Choice Air to advise what them that I missed my connection and had been rebooked on a later flight and the rep advised me "Not to worry, we'll get you caught up with the ship if you wind up being late". While I can't say what would have happened if I had, I was treated well by Lufthansa and Choice Air.

 

We booked a Baltic cruise using choice air through RCCL 2 years ago With connection from LA to San Francisco and SF to London boarding ship in Harwich. The problem started in LA when OBAMA flew in for a golf game and froze the entire LAX up for an hour and a half. We did not know what the problem at the time but the flight desk attendant assured us that we would make our connection. When we boarded the flight attendant advise us that the gates were to far apart and there is no way we will make the connection. Our first mistake was not notifying choice air immediately. Instead the passenger sitting behind us handed me her phone and advised the she over heard our dilemma and had dialed up the airline tickect desk and they will help me with the solution. I explained and they were looking in to it for me while I was in flight. In the middle of the flight the attendant came back and handed me a new flight connection. This connection rerouted me to Frankfurt then to London. As we were passing our original flight connection we saw that our original flight had not left yet so we tried to get back on that one but they said our luggage was already directed to other flight so they would not allow us to board. The Frankfurt connection arrives an hour after our original flight so I called the choice air contact # that was on our choice air tickets, They advised that that delay would not allow enough time to make it to the ship. They told us to get on an eirlier flight which was boarding at the far end of the airport. I forgot to mention I was traveling with my wife and 3 Octagenarians for our church that like to travel with us because we can help them if there is a problem. WELL after running through the airport like an OJ Simpson commercial and flagging down a shuttle to go back and give the others a ride I made it to the Gate by the time I got to the checkin counter the shuttle arrived and dropped off the others. Everything looking good until they found out that we had luggage on the other plane and would not let us board. We had just enough time to make it bake to the connecting flight that our luggage was on. Mistake #2 We should have recontacted choice air and they would have flown us directly to Copenhagen to wait for the shipv In stead we boarded and went to London thinking we could catch a private cab for a speedy trip to Harwich before the ship sailed. That did not happen. The over seas number that they have you call suggested that we stay in London over night and they would fly us to Copenhagen in the am the wait for the ship. they also suggested we pay for this out of pocket and get reimbursed later as we did have travel insurance also. PAY ATTENTION TO THIS. I did not like this plan so I called the Miami Air choice desk. I advised them that the reason I used choice air was so they would be responsible for getting us to where we were supposed to be. without added expense. They took care of our hotel in London the flight to Copenhagen and Hotel to airport transfer and transfer to the ship.

 

Your travel insurance has a ceiling of reimbursement based on 1 and 1/2 times your original airfare at time of purchase. Berkeley Care which is who allot of the cruiselins use will only reimburse up to that limit. Had I used oui of pocket money to make those arrangement as suggested by the overseas contact # I would have been way over that limit in the hotel bills not to mention meals and transfers

 

I forgot to mention that I had advised my CC company of my Itinaery and Germany was not included so when CC charges started coming from Germany they put a block on my card. So among all this turmoil I had to deal with getting the card unblocked so I could use the phones. Note Frankfurt has no public phones in the secured arrival area and the airlines don't have outside lines at the counters. You have to go out into the public areas to use phone and then come back through security. Try that with out any boarding passes and see what problems that causes.

 

All worked out as we got to tour Copenhagen a whole day before the ship arrived and was reimbursed for missing 2 days of the cruise.

LESSON in all of this. Your 1st call should be to Miami Choice air desk and skip everyone else. The number that they have you contact in London is a catch all # for travel problems and most of the cruise lines use them it is not line specific thats why they suggest you pay out of pocket and get reimbursed.