Carnival fantasy issie

[Nessa55]

This is just one of the reasons I love Cruise Critic. We are scheduled on Fantasy September 5 and I went on resort for a day to look at the Cozumel resort offers only to find out the itinerary was changed to Nassau and Half Moon Cay. I immediately called my travel agents who didn't know there has been a change but explained Carnival does have the right to change the itinerary. My concern is that I will now start planning for this itinerary and they will fix the problem and go back to the original itinerary. I guess I will have to stay on this site to know what is going on. Thanks for all the information.

[LMaxwell]

So if you were on the cruise, why didn't you invoke the guarantee?

 

The 110% reimbursement is for the cruise fare; the taxes are gone and not going to be refunded. Depending on the itinerary the taxes can be pretty significant to just throw away within 24 hours.

 

Also, they may get you back to your original airport "at no charge", but what if there's no flights that day from wherever you are? Does the no charge return to origin include a hotel and / or food if necessary?

 

And finally, all the associated hassle just isn't worth it 99% of the time. I can't imagine what it would take for me to ever invoke that guarantee.

[AndyT3]

The 110% reimbursement is for the cruise fare; the taxes are gone and not going to be refunded. Depending on the itinerary the taxes can be pretty significant to just throw away within 24 hours.

 

Also, they may get you back to your original airport "at no charge", but what if there's no flights that day from wherever you are? Does the no charge return to origin include a hotel and / or food if necessary?

 

And finally, all the associated hassle just isn't worth it 99% of the time. I can't imagine what it would take for me to ever invoke that guarantee.

 

And that's why they can afford to put something out there like that.

 

I'm in the same boat though (:p), I can't imagine what would have to happen that would make me just say "I've had enough", and want to get off ASAP.

[TaDaaa!]

The 110% reimbursement is for the cruise fare; the taxes are gone and not going to be refunded. Depending on the itinerary the taxes can be pretty significant to just throw away within 24 hours.

 

Also, they may get you back to your original airport "at no charge", but what if there's no flights that day from wherever you are? Does the no charge return to origin include a hotel and / or food if necessary?

 

And finally, all the associated hassle just isn't worth it 99% of the time. I can't imagine what it would take for me to ever invoke that guarantee.

 

I can't either but as mad as some people are when they come here you have to scratch you head and say "why did you stay"?

[Je Souhaite]

The 110% reimbursement is for the cruise fare; the taxes are gone and not going to be refunded. Depending on the itinerary the taxes can be pretty significant to just throw away within 24 hours.

 

Also, they may get you back to your original airport "at no charge", but what if there's no flights that day from wherever you are? Does the no charge return to origin include a hotel and / or food if necessary?

 

And finally, all the associated hassle just isn't worth it 99% of the time. I can't imagine what it would take for me to ever invoke that guarantee.

 

Yet still recoverable under that "10%". All the other things you mention ARE included. I would have been off that ship at the first sign of wood touching land.

[TaDaaa!]

The 110% reimbursement is for the cruise fare; the taxes are gone and not going to be refunded. Depending on the itinerary the taxes can be pretty significant to just throw away within 24 hours.

 

Also, they may get you back to your original airport "at no charge", but what if there's no flights that day from wherever you are? Does the no charge return to origin include a hotel and / or food if necessary?

 

And finally, all the associated hassle just isn't worth it 99% of the time. I can't imagine what it would take for me to ever invoke that guarantee.

 

So which is it? One person has stated a flight back to your home and you are saying a flight back to the embarkation port. :confused:

[LMaxwell]

So which is it? One person has stated a flight back to your home and you are saying a flight back to the embarkation port. :confused:

 

Your origin is where you started; where you flew from to get to the cruise. So by origin I mean "back home".

 

I'm looking at a $830 cruise. $300 of that is tax. $530 is cruise fare. 110% of that cruise fare is $583.

 

So if I hate my $830 cruise I can leave the next morning and get back $583.

 

So I'd eat $247 and waste my vacation time to boot.

 

That's why carnival offers $100 OBC to anyone that uses the guarantee and rebooks in a year. Even THAT "enticement" isn't worth the lost taxes and hassles.

 

I'm not saying Carnival won't honor their guarantee or stand behind it; it's just very specific what it covers, and there's a whole bunch of other costs and aggravation to deal with to get off a ship midcruise.

 

Question: If I got on a ship in Miami and the first port was Key West and I invoked the guarantee, would I be hit with a $300 govt fine for starting in one US port and ending in another US port without visiting a foreign port first? :confused:

[lnew1gd1]

Did you not know you were going to Freeport when she finally set sail?

 

Yes, we knew that the itinerary was Freeport and Nassau before we sailed. Carnival sent an email 10:15 PM the evening before offering a full refund if anyone wanted to cancel and the $50 per person on board credit for those who decided to sail.

[Pompanodeb]

We didn't know until 10AM the day of the cruise that we were not going to Key West.

[lnew1gd1]

I actually agree with this.

 

I am upset at Carnival for the ports and for missing a day of the cruise. I paid $309 per person for the cruise only. This is $77.25 per day. $50 does not cover the lost day, let alone the less desirable and less handicap accessible ports.

 

We really did not miss a day. Our original departure time was 8 PM so we actually only lost just over 3 hours.

 

I do agree though, $50 PP was not enough for all the aggravation and confusion. we did go directly to guest services but was just told to contact corporate after returning home.

[TaDaaa!]

We really did not miss a day. Our original departure time was 8 PM so we actually only lost just over 3 hours.

 

I do agree though, $50 PP was not enough for all the aggravation and confusion. we did go directly to guest services but was just told to contact corporate after returning home.

 

That may be but it was more than Carnival was required to give. ;)

[lnew1gd1]

We didn't know until 10AM the day of the cruise that we were not going to Key West.

 

We actually were not aware of the change and problem till 9AM because we were just getting off another cruise and just turned our phones back on at that time but the email arrived the night before.

 

No one was happy about the changes but we did make the best of a crappy situation. Unfortunately crap happens. We were just in Nassau 3 days before we arrived on the Fantasy!

[Pompanodeb]

we were notified that our original 11AM boarding time was changed to 3PM, but not boarded until 9:30 PM after sitting in the terminal with no food or drink for 6 1/2 hours. $50 was not enough compensation. If they had just notified us by e-mail that our boarding time had changed we would have been much less offended.

[lnew1gd1]

That may be but it was more than Carnival was required to give. ;)

 

Yes, that is very true. They are not required to give anything for that situation. We are very well aware of the ticket contract but it sure doesn't hurt to try and see. I am sure they didn't want to have to scramble and arrange new ports and I'll bet they still had to pay Kathy Griffin something due to her contract with Carnival.

[lnew1gd1]

we were notified that our original 11AM boarding time was changed to 3PM, but not boarded until 9:30 PM after sitting in the terminal with no food or drink for 6 1/2 hours. $50 was not enough compensation. If they had just notified us by e-mail that our boarding time had changed we would have been much less offended.

 

We only booked this one a month out and boarding time was 3 PM on all our paperwork right from day one so we weren't ever aware of any earlier boarding time. We sat in the terminal all day right along with everyone else. Especially since we got off one ship right down the pier early in the morning and we were starved!

Edited March 6, 2016 by lnew1gd1

[lnew1gd1]

It was on the letter they handed out at the terminal. They didn't expressly mention it and I would bet fully half the people there threw that letter away, just as they were expecting.

 

Carnival was shady as h*ll with the way they handled this whole fiasco, and I am not at all satisfied with the "compensation".

 

We were one of the first in the terminal and they did not give us any letter. We found about about a letter around 4 o'clock when we read this and went looking for one to see what it said.

Edited March 6, 2016 by lnew1gd1

[mgoswartz]

We were never given a letter.

[mgoswartz]

We really did not miss a day. Our original departure time was 8 PM so we actually only lost just over 3 hours.

 

I do agree though, $50 PP was not enough for all the aggravation and confusion. we did go directly to guest services but was just told to contact corporate after returning home.

I guess the day missed is how you view it. We were told in Ft.Lauderdale at 12:00 by carnival employee that the ship was already in Miami and we wold be on board and able to get lunch once the shuttle was there. Ended up not until much later and missed 1 or 2 meals that would have been included (with gratuitues).

 

Makes no difference. Carnival is not required to do more and passengers are free to try other lines if they so choose.

[Fydlstyx]

A juggler > Kathy Griffin

 

 

Why are people so rude here?

[Fydlstyx]

We didn't know until 10AM the day of the cruise that we were not going to Key West.

 

Exactly. And Carnival may have sent some passengers an email the night before, but I definitely was not one of them. My email arrived in the morning when I was already on my way to Florida.

[DallasGuy75219]

Question: If I got on a ship in Miami and the first port was Key West and I invoked the guarantee, would I be hit with a $300 govt fine for starting in one US port and ending in another US port without visiting a foreign port first? :confused:

 

The terms of the guarantee say Carnival would pay the fine in that case. Could be an incentive for them to work extra hard to address your issue because they will be out an extra $300 per person (actual cash expense, not forgone revenue) in addition to airfare, possible hotel., etc.

[TaDaaa!]

Why are people so rude here?

 

Rude to whom? Kathy Gifford? People are free to state their opinion.

[nwo4life]

Why are people so rude here?

 

 

I'm sorry you found that rude, but I would enjoy seeing a juggler and would never see Kathy Griffin.

[crusinpsychRN]

Hopefully all goes smoothly once you are able to get on board!

 

I also had a bad experience with a ship right before it went into drydock as they shut several areas down a few days before the end of the cruise, and another right after drydock (Things in guest areas weren't ready) - so I'm staying clear on both sides of it now!

 

I've reported the same thing, shut down of several areas, and got flamed.

[grammi]

Someone mentioned Carnival would not refund taxes and port charges when invoking the vacation guarantee, That s not true: "In addition to the 110% cruise fare refund, we will also refund the actual amount paid for government fees and taxes, VPP (Vacation Protection Plan), prepaid gratuities, unused pre-purchased services (Bon Voyage, Spa, etc) and unused shore excursions."

 

What would be a challenge is the US requirement of a passport for guests FLYING back into the country: "Applies to U.S. and Canadian residents only. Due to a U.S. Government requirement, guests must be in possession of a valid passport to return to the U.S. by air from Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, Caribbean, The Bahamas and Bermuda." So no passport no refund.