Disappointing New Years

[cruisequeen4ever]

Well, Princess went against their own word of replacing ports with "similar Eastern Caribbean ports" and gave us a SEA DAY in place of Dominica!! DH is LIVID and wants to cancel. All surrounding cruises had Dominica replaced with Martinique except ours. If there was an issue with Martinique on that day, then Princess should have found a different island then. To take away one of our port days completely away on a special New Years cruise was not cool. My only hope is that the Sea Day is a place holder while they search for an alternative port. I just hope I can convince DH to wait a little bit and see if they do come up with a port. Has anyone seen a Sea Day used as a place holder?

 

 

 

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[dickinson]

There are a lot of ships trying to change their itineraries. Not all the ports can handle a lot of ships so I am sure it is a difficult job for the cruise lines to do. Don't know if they use a sea day as a place holder but if it is so important to you to visit ANY port other than another sea day then cancel before final payment.

 

When we book cruises we have to be flexible as ports can be changed for others or just sea days in a moments notice. If that is not acceptable then cancel at final payment because after that you have to be happy with whatever happens.

[jakey2004]

Wasn't Dominica slated for New Years Day? The combo of New Years day and being on a larger ship is truly a difficult task for a cruise line to manage a change like this.

[tcdcruiser]

Quite a surprise that Princess would give their "word" that they would find a replacement port-of-call. Would have expected, given the horrific impact to the islands, that their communication would have used phrases like " will attempt", or "hopefully can"....

 

Please share the misleading communication.

[1emerald1]

Personally, I wouldn't mind another sea day at all.

[land lover]

Disappointing for sure......but such is life.......just glad I am not picking up the pieces like so many people are after these acts of nature.

 

Have you ever been to a replacement port after a reroute...with extra ships it really can be unbearable...I've experienced it and what a mad house..many chose to stay on the ship.

 

I agree with DH cancel...

[cruisequeen4ever]

VERY good news!! Princess has now changed it to Martinique!! :D I'm trying to delete this thread as a result, but it's not letting me thus far.

[land lover]

and just one other thought.....even if they would have listed another port..it is still possible you might not make it do to weather, a strike, etc.etc.

 

In your cruising career, I guess you have been fortunate enough never missing a port.

 

Recently I was on a cruise, and we had inclement weather I was remarking to another woman how happy I was that we had made port and were able to board tenders even thought the rain was falling in buckets and sea rather rough. She responded with I never thought about not making a port?

 

Edit...glad to hear your good news...but as you know no guarantees....Enjoy

[skynight]

Been to Dominica many times. A nice port, but not a great port. If this was a New Year's Day call then a sea day would be nice. I expect New Year's eve will be a late evening.

[pms4104]

Talk about a First World problem ... at a time when Harvey, Irma; Maria brought so much devastation and misery to s7o many!

 

Good grief ... cancel NOW.

 

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[DaveinWhales]

VERY good news!! Princess has now changed it to Martinique!! :D I'm trying to delete this thread as a result, but it's not letting me thus far.

 

Neither should it let you delete it. Shame on you for such selfishness.

[whatcruiseisnext]

Well, Princess went against their own word of replacing ports with "similar Eastern Caribbean ports" and gave us a SEA DAY in place of Dominica!! DH is LIVID and wants to cancel. All surrounding cruises had Dominica replaced with Martinique except ours. If there was an issue with Martinique on that day, then Princess should have found a different island then. To take away one of our port days completely away on a special New Years cruise was not cool. My only hope is that the Sea Day is a place holder while they search for an alternative port. I just hope I can convince DH to wait a little bit and see if they do come up with a port. Has anyone seen a Sea Day used as a place holder?

 

 

 

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Glad you finally got the port you and your hubby wanted.

 

It certainly would have been tragic given that your husband was LIVID if you had to spend an extra sea day on a ship in the Caribbean celebrating your good fortune in being able to cruise while many on Dominica (or any of the hard hit Caribbean Islands) will have NOTHING to celebrate this coming New Years. Good grief!

[DH.]

Neither should it let you delete it. Shame on you for such selfishness.

 

It wasn't for her, it was for a frustrated husband for whom she does her best. If selfishness is expecting a company to secure a comparable replacement port (which is what they state on their website) instead of just another day at sea for the same price then so be it. If I pay for ports then I expect ports, not a sea day as a replacement. Is anyone really happy when they pay for a product or service and receive something other than agreed upon? Selfish and shameful to expect one to uphold their end of a deal? I don't think so. It seems the post from the company was in error anyhow so it's nice to see they've resolved it.

Edited September 29, 2017 by DH.

[DH.]

Glad you finally got the port you and your hubby wanted.

 

It certainly would have been tragic given that your husband was LIVID if you had to spend an extra sea day on a ship in the Caribbean celebrating your good fortune in being able to cruise while many on Dominica (or any of the hard hit Caribbean Islands) will have NOTHING to celebrate this coming New Years. Good grief!

 

I believe this website is called "Cruise Critic", not "Guilt Trip fellow cruisers about unfortunate happenings in the Caribbean because they expect a company to uphold their end of a deal." Nice try. While I do feel great sorrow for those people, this is not about anything happening on other islands. It's about a mistake a cruise company made and promptly corrected. You could easily guilt trip any number of people on this forum for offering criticism about a cruise line during a time in which people are going through great hardship. It makes no sense.

[DH.]

Talk about a First World problem ... at a time when Harvey, Irma; Maria brought so much devastation and misery to s7o many!

 

Good grief ... cancel NOW.

 

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Aren't most cruisers "first world" people? Isn't this a cruise critic forum? You may want to copy and paste your reply to the many other users posting concerns as well. There are always people experiencing hard times and it is indeed sad, but to expect everyone to roll over to any company not upholding their end of a deal is a bit ridiculous. At least that is how it appeared this morning, but seems it was just a web error anyhow.

[DH.]

Personally, I wouldn't mind another sea day at all.

 

Haha neither would she; she loves them! My ideal is 0 sea days so I love when we do the Mediterranean, but she wins in the Caribbean. :)

[DH.]

There are a lot of ships trying to change their itineraries. Not all the ports can handle a lot of ships so I am sure it is a difficult job for the cruise lines to do. Don't know if they use a sea day as a place holder but if it is so important to you to visit ANY port other than another sea day then cancel before final payment.

 

When we book cruises we have to be flexible as ports can be changed for others or just sea days in a moments notice. If that is not acceptable then cancel at final payment because after that you have to be happy with whatever happens.

 

Yeah that's the constant battle we have between cruises vs resorts, although I must say I have come quite a long way since the very first cruise on which she dragged me. :)

[DH.]

Wasn't Dominica slated for New Years Day? The combo of New Years day and being on a larger ship is truly a difficult task for a cruise line to manage a change like this.

 

Agreed. Personally I don't know why they wouldn't make Jan 1st a sea day and visit the port another day. One time we visited a British port, but it was boxing day so we were rather limited on options.

[pms4104]

Aren't most cruisers "first world" people? Isn't this a cruise critic forum? You may want to copy and paste your reply to the many other users posting concerns as well. There are always people experiencing hard times and it is indeed sad, but to expect everyone to roll over to any company not upholding their end of a deal is a bit ridiculous. At least that is how it appeared this morning, but seems it was just a web error anyhow.

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

People are experiencing way more than hard times.

 

Suggest you review the cruise/passage contract we all agree to when we book a cruise ... pretty much explains the lines' policies.

 

Have a good day.

 

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[DH.]

Well, Princess went against their own word of replacing ports with "similar Eastern Caribbean ports" and gave us a SEA DAY in place of Dominica!! DH is LIVID and wants to cancel. All surrounding cruises had Dominica replaced with Martinique except ours. If there was an issue with Martinique on that day, then Princess should have found a different island then. To take away one of our port days completely away on a special New Years cruise was not cool. My only hope is that the Sea Day is a place holder while they search for an alternative port. I just hope I can convince DH to wait a little bit and see if they do come up with a port. Has anyone seen a Sea Day used as a place holder?

 

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Sorry for having a short fuse about this issue this morning. I realize there's a lot going on. I've worked hard to adjust to cruising over the years and have come a long way as you know. Thanks for your patience :) For me it's always about the amount of money spent compared to the limited time in each port. The sights I prefer to see are so often just out of reach due to time constraints. That's the one thing I loved about the 2 overnights with Celebrity this previous summer. I think I saw Princess is doing that in some places too, just not as often, but I do understand that a cruise line is a business and must follow their customer base. I'd personally much prefer to spend an hour, via ferry or flight, hopping between islands and more time exploring the islands themselves, but for what they do with their resources I believe Princess does a great job.

[ksm77]

I am also on a New Years cruise on the Regal. I really hoped they would give us a sea day for Dominica. We had been there many years ago. It was not a favorite of ours. We are so sorry for the people there, but not a great place to visit in MHO so not really upset we will miss it. Now we are going to Martinique. We also went there about 10 years ago. My advice is to do a ships tour or stay on the ship. People had problems with taxi drivers not taking them where they were asked to take them. People do not speak English. The town close to where the ship docks has nothing for tourist to do. No shopping, restaurants, or bars that looked tourist friendly. We should have taken a tour. We walked around town went to a beach in town where some children through mud at us. We did not have a good feeling went back to the ship after a couple hours. We have traveled all over the world and this was one of the most unwelcoming places I have ever been. Not sure what we will do here. We are traveling with a group of friends so will depend on what others want to do. Princess has not put up any tours yet so maybe something will appeal to us, if not we will stay on the ship. I am not mad at Princess for this at all. I am sure this is a nightmare for them. If you read your cruise contract they have the right to change any stop for whatever reason. We are looking forward to a great cruise with great friends.

[DH.]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

People are experiencing way more than hard times.

 

Suggest you review the cruise/passage contract we all agree to when we book a cruise ... pretty much explains the lines' policies.

 

Have a good day.

 

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Thank you for the welcome.

 

 

I'm familiar with the contract so I do know they can change ports, I just didn't expect to see a port completely removed and a sea day added. From what I've seen fewer port days usually reduces the cost of the cruise. Thankfully it was just a website error.

 

 

Regarding the devastation, I agree, it's much more than hard times and I in no way meant to reduce that. To me it was a matter of price vs service provided by the cruise line.

 

 

You have a good day too :)

[HleeCruiser]

I am also on a New Years cruise on the Regal. I really hoped they would give us a sea day for Dominica. We had been there many years ago. It was not a favorite of ours. We are so sorry for the people there, but not a great place to visit in MHO so not really upset we will miss it. Now we are going to Martinique. We also went there about 10 years ago. My advice is to do a ships tour or stay on the ship. People had problems with taxi drivers not taking them where they were asked to take them. People do not speak English. The town close to where the ship docks has nothing for tourist to do. No shopping, restaurants, or bars that looked tourist friendly. We should have taken a tour. We walked around town went to a beach in town where some children through mud at us. We did not have a good feeling went back to the ship after a couple hours. We have traveled all over the world and this was one of the most unwelcoming places I have ever been. Not sure what we will do here. We are traveling with a group of friends so will depend on what others want to do. Princess has not put up any tours yet so maybe something will appeal to us, if not we will stay on the ship. I am not mad at Princess for this at all. I am sure this is a nightmare for them. If you read your cruise contract they have the right to change any stop for whatever reason. We are looking forward to a great cruise with great friends.

 

 

I agree with you. Martinique is a dreadful place. Mose unfriendly natives I have ever met. That is one reason it is on so few itineraries.

[Lucky TGO]

VERY good news!! Princess has now changed it to Martinique!! :D I'm trying to delete this thread as a result, but it's not letting me thus far.

Don’t worry about it. Have a great time on your cruise. Happy New year:champagne-toast:.

Tony

[EightFurryPaws]

I am also on a New Years cruise on the Regal. I really hoped they would give us a sea day for Dominica. We had been there many years ago. It was not a favorite of ours. We are so sorry for the people there, but not a great place to visit in MHO so not really upset we will miss it. Now we are going to Martinique. We also went there about 10 years ago. My advice is to do a ships tour or stay on the ship. People had problems with taxi drivers not taking them where they were asked to take them. People do not speak English. The town close to where the ship docks has nothing for tourist to do. No shopping, restaurants, or bars that looked tourist friendly. We should have taken a tour. We walked around town went to a beach in town where some children through mud at us. We did not have a good feeling went back to the ship after a couple hours. We have traveled all over the world and this was one of the most unwelcoming places I have ever been. Not sure what we will do here. We are traveling with a group of friends so will depend on what others want to do. Princess has not put up any tours yet so maybe something will appeal to us, if not we will stay on the ship. I am not mad at Princess for this at all. I am sure this is a nightmare for them. If you read your cruise contract they have the right to change any stop for whatever reason. We are looking forward to a great cruise with great friends.

 

I'm on the Regal for Christmas and New Years. 21 days. I haven't heard of any firmed, changed itinerary, Where did you find that information?

 

Thanks.