Galveston weather concerns

[Coopdog08]

The ship could stay in New Orleans until Monday and then head over to Galveston to be ready to enter the port on Tuesday. But, where will Galveston dock all of those ships?

 

Won't be staying in port of NO as that would mean people pay taxes on drinks and the casino can't open.

[Deptacon]

If the port is closed, I am going to assume off site parking would be closed also, like ez-cruise parking etc.

So, even if rccl thinks it can dock on Sunday

People won't be able to get their cars?

 

 

 

If the port is closed the ships not getting in. Its not some magical exception for cruise ships. Closed means all maritime traffic

 

 

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[csnarpy]

Seriously, phone back and let them know that your flight has been cancelled and won't be rebooked due to a cat4 storm coming.

 

Ya never know.

[Janet524]

Sitting in the diamond lounge and at this very minute there are two refrigerated trucks unloading. Looks like produce and milk items.

Where are you docked?

 

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[tparker0220]

Where are you docked?

 

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At that time they were docked in Cozumel as scheduled.

[Janet524]

At that time they were docked in Cozumel as scheduled.

Okay. I am behind the times. Thanks.

 

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[EBFURR]

Seriously, phone back and let them know that your flight has been cancelled and won't be rebooked due to a cat4 storm coming.

 

Ya never know.

I did that. In layman's terms I was told "It sucks to be you". He said if the ship sails I need to be there. When I pointed out the weather he kept saying things might change by Sunday. He asked me several times if I knew for sure that it would be dangerous on Sunday. A real tool.

[BarryH]

Well Royal probably didn't want to keep paying port of Cozumel and rather just sit at Sea if they can't get in Galveston.

 

I'd rather have another sea day than be in Cozumel overnight with most things on the ship shutdown. I'd bet most people like me that have been to Cozumel a dozen times would agree. Teens, 20-somethings, and hard core partiers may disagree.

[lbjen]

In all honesty there is a massive amount of uncertainty still with this storm, we just don't know where it's going to go, they keep getting surprised by it. The safe thing to do would be to just cancel all the flights and cruises, but the minute chance that it might actually be safe is keeping them from taking the loss. RC is really dropping the ball on this one.

[OSUZorba]

We enjoyed our cruise in June on the Sunshine. We are switching to the C. Truthfully, we are not fans of RCIs newer ships. We are finding that we prefer Carnival and this has pretty much sealed it. I do want to try MSC though.

 

I'm really sorry that you are having to go through this. I will say that there have been numerous situations lately that RCI has handled very poorly and have only kind of done the right thing after being shamed into it. It really turns me off of them. I'd like to try Carnival, and this only pushes me further that way. Once the baby is out of the nursery, I think we will.

 

 

At this point, not giving people the option is complete BS, imho. They shouldn't be encouraging people to travel into what will be a federal disaster area in a few days, especially when there is literally zero hope the ship will come in on Sunday.

[RCThanksgiving2018]

Absolutely. See my previous post. You would not believe the rhetoric that I am getting from them. At this point I could still make another cruise this weekend for our anniversary. They will string this out so long before making a decision that we will have no alternative. Appalling is the word.

 

Have you tried emailing Fain directly (rfain@rccl.com)? In your email explain it is a significant wedding anniversary and you are willing to take a cruise from another port to salvage this important event. It's a long shot but at this point you have nothing to lose.

 

Good luck! I feel so bad that you are having to go through this.

[perditax]

In all honesty there is a massive amount of uncertainty still with this storm, we just don't know where it's going to go, they keep getting surprised by it. The safe thing to do would be to just cancel all the flights and cruises, but the minute chance that it might actually be safe is keeping them from taking the loss. RC is really dropping the ball on this one.

 

I mean, it's making landfall as a cat 4 storm right now, there isn't that much uncertainty left.

[Cuizer2]

So why going to NO?

 

 

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The Captain's Corner is on a Royal Caribbean ship. It is the Carnival ships that are going to New Orleans.

[Cuizer2]

I have tried that. No dice. They are putting their faith in the captain's "window". The problem I have is that if the inbound flights get cancelled (my original flight already has been) and the magic window opens, will they sail off without those of us who could not get into HOU and keep our money. I firmly believe that in the circumstances they should allow us to transfer bookings or take a cruise credit. Carnival is doing that, but they have no "class" as we are told on the RCI boards.

 

Do you have insurance for this trip?

[tparker0220]

I mean, it's making landfall as a cat 4 storm right now, there isn't that much uncertainty left.

 

I mean, yes and no. If it doesn't wind up turning towards Houston overnight, the only real effect on the port this weekend will be lots and lots of rain.

 

Let's not forget that Corpus is a couple hundred miles down the coast.

 

I'm not saying it looks good for Sunday, but it's not a foregone conclusion that everything is toast.

[Cuizer2]

Would PVSA allow getting off? Hurricane/Port Closed loophole?

 

One would hope so. However, it is a government agency that enforces the PVSA. On the other hand, the fine goes to the ship, not the passengers. It is the cruise contract that allows the cruise line to send the bill to the passenger. So, it is possible that the cruise line is willing to eat the fine and is in contact with the CBP and are seeking a waiver or a reduced fine.

 

While people talk about the responsibility a cruise line has to its share holders, that includes the impact of negative PR. That is why the cruise lines don't throw misbehaving passengers overboard. At some point, the small hit one takes on the bottom line is better than losing 20% of your customers because of negative PR.

[Cuizer2]

Carnival has stated that pax can disembark in NOLA.

 

That doesn't mean Carnival obtained a waiver of the PVSA. It is kind of like speeding. You can speed. But that doesn't mean you will not get a ticket.

[lbjen]

I mean, it's making landfall as a cat 4 storm right now, there isn't that much uncertainty left.

 

Not really. We know there is rain coming, Galveston is in the same zone as me which is where the highest amount of rain is expected, but it's not coming all at once and it's not all coming tomorrow. It is where the storm is going now that is uncertain. It could be headed right for us, and retain it's strength as it comes, which is what we are really worried about right now. The storm is making landfall further north than expected, which also means that the storm surge for Galveston could be higher. Or it could do something else completely! There still really isn't a consensus about where it's going, when, or how strong it will be.

[Cuizer2]

I believe that was a Carnival ship. I'm not sure a Freedom class ship has ever stopped in New Orleans. We cruised out of New Orleans on Voyager and Liberty would be around 90' longer.

 

A valid point. I know there is room (I asked the Navigator captain a lot of question at the Captain's Corner). Nonetheless, I consede that there are more issues than just length and draft.

[Steelers0854]

First and foremost my prayers go out to those in the path of this storm, and I sincerely hope that everyone is going to be ok in those areas.

 

I have the luxury of not being on any of these upcoming cruises, I can only imagine the stress of trying to change plans and the unknown when you were expecting to be on a relaxing vacation. But here are a few things to consider, just my 2 cents.

 

Cancelling a cruise is a significant financial impact to the cruiseline in terms of lost revenues and still having operating costs, so of course they are going to wait until the last possible minute to make decisions that would negatively impact their finances. That said, we are still 2 days away from sailing, a lot can happen in 2 days where the weather is concerned especially considering they are expecting landfall to be sometime tonight. Also, the brunt of the hurricane is several hundred miles to the south. While it's possible Galveston and Houston can be badly damaged by this hurricane it's not a certainty. The Galveston and Houston port areas are one of the busiest in the US and you know they will be opening these areas as soon as it's safe to do so, and while some are speculating Tuesday, it's just a guess and they could reopen at any point in time.

 

I read the Carnival statement and update that others had posted and referenced. To me it really doesn't tell us anything that common sense doesn't already dictate. Dont come to the port until you hear from us, well if your cruise isn't for 2 days why would you go to the port anyway? And if they dock late and board late you will be refunded for the prorated portion of the cruise, seems like a given to me, but they still don't know if or when that would be, so seems to be lacking some details that they simply just don't have. So I can't blame RCL much for not releasing anything because at this point there is nothing specific to release.

 

There was also discussion about RCL allowing changes or allow credit to be applied to a future bookings. Well if they haven't cancelled the cruise, and there is a chance they can in fact sail on Sunday then why would they do so? They can't control the weather, and expecting them to take financial losses because of bad weather when they are operating normally isn't their responsibility, this is what travel insurance is for. If you are unable to make the cruise due to weather at any point in your travel to the port, the cruiseline can't be responsible for that, but you should be able to make a claim on your insurance. Just seems a little early still to be upset at their decisions when so much is still unknown and we are just under 48 hours from departure time. I would think that the bulk of the communication should come sometime tomorrow afternoon, when a lot more details will be known and more specific plans can be made.

 

It's my sincere hope that no ones life is lost in this storm, that damage to property is as minimal as it can be, and that those coming back and those leaving have as little negative impact on their vacation as possible.

[LMaxwell]

Try these

reservationroyal2@rccl.com,

RoyalGuestRelations@rccl.com,

Jvilchez@rccl.com,

DirectorGuestRelations@rccl.com,

Michael Bayley <mbayley@rccl.com>,

AGoldstein@rccl.com

ayera-rodriguez@rccl.com

 

bringing this back up, or call and get a rep with a brain.

[Cuizer2]

First and foremost my prayers go out to those in the path of this storm, and I sincerely hope that everyone is going to be ok in those areas.

 

I have the luxury of not being on any of these upcoming cruises, I can only imagine the stress of trying to change plans and the unknown when you were expecting to be on a relaxing vacation. But here are a few things to consider, just my 2 cents.

 

Cancelling a cruise is a significant financial impact to the cruiseline in terms of lost revenues and still having operating costs, so of course they are going to wait until the last possible minute to make decisions that would negatively impact their finances. That said, we are still 2 days away from sailing, a lot can happen in 2 days where the weather is concerned especially considering they are expecting landfall to be sometime tonight. Also, the brunt of the hurricane is several hundred miles to the south. While it's possible Galveston and Houston can be badly damaged by this hurricane it's not a certainty. The Galveston and Houston port areas are one of the busiest in the US and you know they will be opening these areas as soon as it's safe to do so, and while some are speculating Tuesday, it's just a guess and they could reopen at any point in time.

 

I read the Carnival statement and update that others had posted and referenced. To me it really doesn't tell us anything that common sense doesn't already dictate. Dont come to the port until you hear from us, well if your cruise isn't for 2 days why would you go to the port anyway? And if they dock late and board late you will be refunded for the prorated portion of the cruise, seems like a given to me, but they still don't know if or when that would be, so seems to be lacking some details that they simply just don't have. So I can't blame RCL much for not releasing anything because at this point there is nothing specific to release.

 

There was also discussion about RCL allowing changes or allow credit to be applied to a future bookings. Well if they haven't cancelled the cruise, and there is a chance they can in fact sail on Sunday then why would they do so? They can't control the weather, and expecting them to take financial losses because of bad weather when they are operating normally isn't their responsibility, this is what travel insurance is for. If you are unable to make the cruise due to weather at any point in your travel to the port, the cruiseline can't be responsible for that, but you should be able to make a claim on your insurance. Just seems a little early still to be upset at their decisions when so much is still unknown and we are just under 48 hours from departure time. I would think that the bulk of the communication should come sometime tomorrow afternoon, when a lot more details will be known and more specific plans can be made.

 

It's my sincere hope that no ones life is lost in this storm, that damage to property is as minimal as it can be, and that those coming back and those leaving have as little negative impact on their vacation as possible.

 

If you want to cross the street and see a car coming, do you just cross or do you wait for some indication tha the car is going to stop?

[OSUZorba]

So why going to NO?

 

 

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Liberty isn't going to NO.

[hmmorales]

We were on Mariner in 2004 when Hurricaine Jean hit Florida. We were due back in to Port Canaveral. We ended up staying at see a couple of extra days. Then we ended up in Miami because after the storm surge Port Canaveral was no longer deep enough for us to get in. Voyager Class was the largest at that time.

 

 

 

We were given free phone calls from the ship and notes from the Captain explaining our delay to give to school and employers ;) Everytime the captain announced a longer delay passengers cheered. Most people took it all in stride (until they started running out of certain beers) We had our 6 month old with us and fortunaltely I am an over packer. Had plenty of diapers and a Chef came to our table in the Dining Room and said they would start pureeing veggies if I needed food for the baby. It was great hearing the Cruise Director making announcements asking if anyone had extra diapers in various sizes.

 

 

 

Your post made me smile! Humans can be so kind every once in awhile [emoji6]

 

 

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[tparker0220]

If you want to cross the street and see a car coming, do you just cross or do you wait for some indication tha the car is going to stop?

 

The point is that the current models seem to show that the car may not be coming our way.

 

Also: Living in Boston means that everyone absolutely does just cross and assume the car will stop for them :p