No AC on Anthem of the Seas

[What about the customer]

I am glad to see the paper article. I pity the person who got cabin 10185 after me. 

 

I stand by what I said to the reporter about the management at Royal Caribbean - I don't think the management at Royal Caribbean cares a hoot about any of this - we were marginalized and they have their money - American with Disabilities or not, they have their money, paraplegic or other disability - they are equal opportunity  - and they were not going to stop getting it from the next passengers either under the same circumstances. You can tell a tree from its fruit.

 

Rick ...I commend you for your service and I commend you for standing up for yourself about this as well. 

 

https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/passengers-demand-refunds-after-royal-caribbean-air-conditioning-issues-on-anthem-of-the-seas-ship-11065149

[irisheileen]

18 minutes ago, Rarett said:

 

ok latest update, I see you saw the article (thanks Jessica!)

 

Official RCI Book page - I made a post there - it received a lot of action - like here - Mostly positive - some negative (mostly trolls). After 4 days of the post being up, someone replied and told their story and how RCI treated them. Odd... RCI replied with an apology to them - but I didn't receive one. When I pointed that out to the Page Admin - they said they apologized in a PM to me.... which I pointed out that I did initiate a PM to them - They just didnt send me an apology out of the goodness of their hearts,  as they lead folks to believe (More GREAT customer service)

 

Anyway - Email to the Exec's (Bailey Fain and 2 VP's) 'Thank you, we received your email.. we will investigate... a few days later a call from Mike part of the Exec Something er other group. He expressed how sorry he was, he actually inferred in a very politically and a roundabout way, that he thought the offer was poor - He did admit that the wording on the letters we received in our cabins was horribly written. The part of them not giving us a 'Comfortable place to unwind and relax in' as I stated, they were describing a pub or a dining room, NOT a cabin, how about Rest, Sleep and get refreshed in?' He did up his offer. 'I can give you the same that the suites were given $400 (we were an inside $200) I explained to him, that the offer he was authorized to give to us was also an insult and that I wished to speak with the next person up the chain of command, someone who COULD authorize a fair offer. I know Mike was unable, it was above his pay scale, I dont blame him. I told him to have his Supervisor Beth call me between 930-10am on Thursday.  OH and when he mentioned 'This call is being recorded for training purposes' I also advised him that I was recording our call so that there would be no misunderstandings. I asked him to get the recording of our conversation to the higher ups.

 

All seemed to be 'ok' I just have to wait to talk to the next person. When lo and behold there is a post from someone who was on the Anthem the week after us. And how they were also w/out A/C (couldnt turn off the heat if you prefer) for 4 out of 8 days. She received a 15% OBC (refundable)- *BUT* she talked to other passengers who received a 30% onboard credit and 30% off a future cruise.  hummm you break out the $200, its approximately 6% refund (06% not 60) The folks fought with the same issue we did, for 1/2 of the time we did (4 days vs our 8 days) and they got 5 times the refund than we did ?!?!?! - needless to say, I sent an immediate Email to Mike who I spoke with an hour earlier. (5 hours since I sent the email - no reply as of yet)

 

I have gotten their folks from their page talking/apologizing/looking into it

I have their "Royal Guest Experience | Executive Office" aware of it

I have their Twitter folk involved - when I asked her where to point others too, she gave me the 'Custome Services' number.    LOL Obviously she must be joking.

 

That is the update for today Weds Jan 30 2019 (In my best Walter Cronkite impersonation)

 

Rick

Wow! Cruisers on successive cruises with same HVAC malfunctions are readily receiving much more generous compensation? I really do hate to say it but sounds like there's a bunch of knuckleheads running the show. Such poor public relations.

[Iamcruzin]

25 minutes ago, Rarett said:

 

 

I have gotten their folks from their page talking/apologizing/looking into it

I have their "Royal Guest Experience | Executive Office" aware of it

I have their Twitter folk involved - when I asked her where to point others too, she gave me the 'Custome Services' number.    LOL Obviously she must be joking.

 

That is the update for today Weds Jan 30 2019 (In my best Walter Cronkite impersonation)

 

Rick

Well I'm happy to see that they are responding to their social media. They must realize that social media will do more damage than a local news article or a small segment on the evening news.

[Milwaukee Eight]

53 minutes ago, Rarett said:

 

ok latest update, I see you saw the article (thanks Jessica!)

 

Official RCI Book page - I made a post there - it received a lot of action - like here - Mostly positive - some negative (mostly trolls). After 4 days of the post being up, someone replied and told their story and how RCI treated them. Odd... RCI replied with an apology to them - but I didn't receive one. When I pointed that out to the Page Admin - they said they apologized in a PM to me.... which I pointed out that I did initiate a PM to them - They just didnt send me an apology out of the goodness of their hearts,  as they lead folks to believe (More GREAT customer service)

 

Anyway - Email to the Exec's (Bailey Fain and 2 VP's) 'Thank you, we received your email.. we will investigate... a few days later a call from Mike part of the Exec Something er other group. He expressed how sorry he was, he actually inferred in a very politically and a roundabout way, that he thought the offer was poor - He did admit that the wording on the letters we received in our cabins was horribly written. The part of them not giving us a 'Comfortable place to unwind and relax in' as I stated, they were describing a pub or a dining room, NOT a cabin, how about Rest, Sleep and get refreshed in?' He did up his offer. 'I can give you the same that the suites were given $400 (we were an inside $200) I explained to him, that the offer he was authorized to give to us was also an insult and that I wished to speak with the next person up the chain of command, someone who COULD authorize a fair offer. I know Mike was unable, it was above his pay scale, I dont blame him. I told him to have his Supervisor Beth call me between 930-10am on Thursday.  OH and when he mentioned 'This call is being recorded for training purposes' I also advised him that I was recording our call so that there would be no misunderstandings. I asked him to get the recording of our conversation to the higher ups.

 

All seemed to be 'ok' I just have to wait to talk to the next person. When lo and behold there is a post from someone who was on the Anthem the week after us. And how they were also w/out A/C (couldnt turn off the heat if you prefer) for 4 out of 8 days. She received a 15% OBC (refundable)- *BUT* she talked to other passengers who received a 30% onboard credit and 30% off a future cruise.  hummm you break out the $200, its approximately 6% refund (06% not 60) The folks fought with the same issue we did, for 1/2 of the time we did (4 days vs our 8 days) and they got 5 times the refund than we did ?!?!?! - needless to say, I sent an immediate Email to Mike who I spoke with an hour earlier. (5 hours since I sent the email - no reply as of yet)

 

I have gotten their folks from their page talking/apologizing/looking into it

I have their "Royal Guest Experience | Executive Office" aware of it

I have their Twitter folk involved - when I asked her where to point others too, she gave me the 'Custome Services' number.    LOL Obviously she must be joking.

 

That is the update for today Weds Jan 30 2019 (In my best Walter Cronkite impersonation)

 

Rick

 

Rick, again I don’t believe your compensation was just. What is the minimum offer you would be happy with?

 

Comparing % of compensation might actually be less than you received  based on their cruise fare. Don’t think it’s comparable. 

Edited January 30, 2019 by Milwaukee Eight

[Rarett]

4 minutes ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

 

Rick, again I don’t believe your compensation was just. What is the minimum offer you would be happy with?

 

Comparing % of compensation might actually be less than you received  based on their cruise fare. Don’t think it’s comparable. 

 

Well if you look at percentages - the cruise after us received up to 30% refund for 4 out of 8 days of being miserable

We received 6% for 8 out of 12 days of being miserable. I would say based on those percentages, 50% would be the absolute minimum of what I would consider fair.  Being 2/3s of our trip I would *LOVE* (but dont expect) 66%  and again, it wasn't just an inconvenience, we were definitively extremely uncomfortable to say the least, miserable is a better description.

 

Now does RCI want us to give them a 2nd chance ? well if they truly do, then a deeply discounted 12 day cruise is in order.  As with everyone who goes on vacation there were other expenses which we planned for and we would have to incur again (aka save money for)  ($700 for boarding our Dog for 16 days - bulldogs are expensive to board due to their medical issues, daily cleanings etc, then travel, hotels etc.)  Do I expect RCI to write a check out for our other expenses ? no.. not at all... but the deeply discounted 2nd attempt at a 12 day dream cruise would be easier financially for us to make happen. If they set a time lime 'Within a year' it probably wouldn't happen anyway as we used Dottie's saved up vacation.   Again, this last part is a dream, but it doesn't hurt to dream, because you really can not put a monetary figure on 2 years of saving money, choosing to eat in instead of out, or of waiting 2 years for a vacation.

 

Lastly, we would like to be treated as valued customers - with respect.   Is that too much to ask for? 🙂

[irisheileen]

4 hours ago, Rarett said:

 

Well if you look at percentages - the cruise after us received up to 30% refund for 4 out of 8 days of being miserable

We received 6% for 8 out of 12 days of being miserable. I would say based on those percentages, 50% would be the absolute minimum of what I would consider fair.  Being 2/3s of our trip I would *LOVE* (but dont expect) 66%  and again, it wasn't just an inconvenience, we were definitively extremely uncomfortable to say the least, miserable is a better description.

 

Now does RCI want us to give them a 2nd chance ? well if they truly do, then a deeply discounted 12 day cruise is in order.  As with everyone who goes on vacation there were other expenses which we planned for and we would have to incur again (aka save money for)  ($700 for boarding our Dog for 16 days - bulldogs are expensive to board due to their medical issues, daily cleanings etc, then travel, hotels etc.)  Do I expect RCI to write a check out for our other expenses ? no.. not at all... but the deeply discounted 2nd attempt at a 12 day dream cruise would be easier financially for us to make happen. If they set a time lime 'Within a year' it probably wouldn't happen anyway as we used Dottie's saved up vacation.   Again, this last part is a dream, but it doesn't hurt to dream, because you really can not put a monetary figure on 2 years of saving money, choosing to eat in instead of out, or of waiting 2 years for a vacation.

 

Lastly, we would like to be treated as valued customers - with respect.   Is that too much to ask for? 🙂

No, Respect as valued customers is not too much to ask for it all. I see no evidence of that yet.

[ecslady]

Thanks to those for posting updates on their continued efforts in trying to increase the compensation they received.  I have been following along since I'm booked on the Anthem in the coming months.  Wishing you luck in your efforts. 

[flvol77]

19 hours ago, What about the customer said:

I am glad to see the paper article. I pity the person who got cabin 10185 after me. 

 

I stand by what I said to the reporter about the management at Royal Caribbean - I don't think the management at Royal Caribbean cares a hoot about any of this - we were marginalized and they have their money - American with Disabilities or not, they have their money, paraplegic or other disability - they are equal opportunity  - and they were not going to stop getting it from the next passengers either under the same circumstances. You can tell a tree from its fruit.

 

Rick ...I commend you for your service and I commend you for standing up for yourself about this as well. 

 

https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/passengers-demand-refunds-after-royal-caribbean-air-conditioning-issues-on-anthem-of-the-seas-ship-11065149

 

Glad to see this hit the media, it will be shared to all my social media accounts, I have over 20k Followers and get pretty good engagement, and we are in Florida and we were considering trying RCI again because we are so close to Port Canaveral but that will not happen now. 

 

We have influenced a lot of friends and co workers into cruising and sent it to many of them.  I get it, it’s really no one’s fault, but you have to manage expectations better, I have had “ac” problems, but to be flat out lied to and days and days with out any answers is unacceptable. 

 

 

[MechE31]

In today's google news feed:

 

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/royal-caribbean-refuses-to-issue-full-refund-for-broken-air-conditioning-paralyzed-veteran-claims

[Rarett]

8 hours ago, MechE31 said:

In today's google news feed:

 

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/royal-caribbean-refuses-to-issue-full-refund-for-broken-air-conditioning-paralyzed-veteran-claims

 

The Foxnews piece is 'pretty' accurate - except we havent asked for a full refund. But the more runaround we get, I would definitely NOT refuse 1.

 

Now... my update from this morning, before this hit the news - you might find Royals way of compensating, quite, interesting --  oh and it was confirmed that Royals compensation depends on HOW MUCH YOU PAID FOR YOUR CABIN.

 

 I just spent 45 minutes on the phone with Beth Iceknogle (954-628-9323) Royal Guest Experience | Executive Office the highest person the passengers can talk to.

1- Royal Caribbean Executives admit the refund was not fair on the 1/6/19 sailing to *MANY*  inside & Ocean View cabins who suffered the most. Those cabins now will receive $400, the same as the Suites.

2- And NOTHING MORE

3- Anthem of the Seas gave 30% to a *FEW* cabins on 1/18/19 sailing due to SAME Air Conditioning Issue.

So basically  'If a lot of passengers have the same issue, here is $400, (This decision made by Exec Team in Miami) now, if it were only a few passengers that have the same issue here is 30% (Shipboard decision)'

Even though the 1/6/19 sailing and the 1/18/19 sailings HAD THE EXACT SAME A/C ISSUES, because fewer passengers had issues on the 1/18/19 sailing they get a better compensation package.

Rick     ----------- this is just a public service announcement, you may go about your business.

[What about the customer]

Thanks Rick. Royal continues to treat us as marginalized customers -  they make a mockery out of the ADA.

 

We booked during the week before it left and paid full price - no discounts. 

 

I  am glad the Miami paper did an acurate reporting ... I enjoyed talking with her.

 

Michael

Edited February 1, 2019 by What about the customer

[Rarett]

On 1/31/2019 at 12:55 PM, MechE31 said:

In today's google news feed:

 

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/royal-caribbean-refuses-to-issue-full-refund-for-broken-air-conditioning-paralyzed-veteran-claims

 

On 1/31/2019 at 12:55 PM, MechE31 said:

In today's google news feed:

 

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/royal-caribbean-refuses-to-issue-full-refund-for-broken-air-conditioning-paralyzed-veteran-claims

what is going to be interesting - Flu is running rampant on Anthem this week -- quarantines etc I wonder how much this cruise will be refunded . . . . Even though its wasnt caused by RCI...(like the AC issues)    I'm willing to bet ALOT more than we were refunded !

[reallyitsmema]

19 minutes ago, Rarett said:

 

what is going to be interesting - Flu is running rampant on Anthem this week -- quarantines etc I wonder how much this cruise will be refunded . . . . Even though its wasnt caused by RCI...(like the AC issues)    I'm willing to bet ALOT more than we were refunded !

We have heard nothing about refunds or FCC and we are quarantined. An announcement was made yesterday saying a consultation at medical was no charge but that seems to only be for those who got otc meds from the triage nurse. If you saw a doctor, you were charged. 

[Rarett]

2 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

We have heard nothing about refunds or FCC and we are quarantined. An announcement was made yesterday saying a consultation at medical was no charge but that seems to only be for those who got otc meds from the triage nurse. If you saw a doctor, you were charged. 

 

I suspect that you all will probably get something from RCCL 'for your inconvenience of being quarantined' look what they did for the Oasis -  but also look how they screwed over the 1/6/19 sailing with the crazy 80+ temps in the cabins.

[Milwaukee Eight]

On 2/1/2019 at 3:06 PM, reallyitsmema said:

We have heard nothing about refunds or FCC and we are quarantined. An announcement was made yesterday saying a consultation at medical was no charge but that seems to only be for those who got otc meds from the triage nurse. If you saw a doctor, you were charged. 

I thought one guest on current Anthem said they would be getting a FCC for being quarantined to cabin (in AC) for having the flu??

 

Also, most good travel insurance covers the expenses for reasonable medical care. 

Edited February 3, 2019 by Milwaukee Eight

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

I thought one guest on current Anthem said they would be getting a FCC for being quarantined to cabin (in AC) for having the flu??

 

Also, most good travel insurance covers the expenses for reasonable medical care. 

 

I have not seen that post. As far as insurance, we always carry it. We would have chosen to see the doctor whether we had insurance or not. We wouldn’t have been able to drive home in the morning if we didn’t get tamiflu. 

[gaylemh]

19 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

I have not seen that post. As far as insurance, we always carry it. We would have chosen to see the doctor whether we had insurance or not. We wouldn’t have been able to drive home in the morning if we didn’t get tamiflu. 

Does it seem like there are still new active cases in the last couple of days?

[Milwaukee Eight]

22 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

I have not seen that post. As far as insurance, we always carry it. We would have chosen to see the doctor whether we had insurance or not. We wouldn’t have been able to drive home in the morning if we didn’t get tamiflu. 

It appears two full pages have been deleted. Went from 7 pages to 5. No comment. 

[reallyitsmema]

1 minute ago, gaylemh said:

Does it seem like there are still new active cases in the last couple of days?

 

We had been quarantined until this morning so hadn’t seen what was going on until today. When we went to medical this morning to get cleared, the waiting room was full. We saw lots around the ship coughing when we went to get food to eat in the cabin. We saw crew coughing too. I bet they will clean more than typical but it is viral so it is hard to control. 

[reallyitsmema]

3 minutes ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

It appears two full pages have been deleted. Went from 7 pages to 5. No comment. 

Ah ok. We got dinner and had to pack. Haven’t been on in a few hours. 

[gaylemh]

6 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

We had been quarantined until this morning so hadn’t seen what was going on until today. When we went to medical this morning to get cleared, the waiting room was full. We saw lots around the ship coughing when we went to get food to eat in the cabin. We saw crew coughing too. I bet they will clean more than typical but it is viral so it is hard to control. 

What's scary is that there are probably crew walking around the ship that don't even know they have it.  The incubation period is 1 to 4 days. 

 

[reallyitsmema]

1 minute ago, gaylemh said:

What's scary is that there are probably crew walking around the ship that don't even know they have it.  The incubation period is 1 to 4 days. 

 

 

Correct. It is going to take some time. It is a tough time of year for flu everywhere. Medical really tried to help but ran out of tamiflu. We were given a 5 day course to split between us so we are out. We contacted our doctors at home on Friday and have prescriptions already filled at home. We will finish out a full course of the meds and hope the short gap doesn’t cause problems. 

[gaylemh]

Just now, reallyitsmema said:

 

Correct. It is going to take some time. It is a tough time of year for flu everywhere. Medical really tried to help but ran out of tamiflu. We were given a 5 day course to split between us so we are out. We contacted our doctors at home on Friday and have prescriptions already filled at home. We will finish out a full course of the meds and hope the short gap doesn’t cause problems. 

How long were you quarantined?  Did you get the flu shot? I heard it's only about 40% effective.

[reallyitsmema]

1 minute ago, gaylemh said:

How long were you quarantined?  Did you get the flu shot? I heard it's only about 40% effective.

We were quarantined 48 hours. Both of us got a flu shot. We had skipped coco cay because we weren’t feeling well and should have hit medical while everyone was on the island. I finally convinced my husband to go and we were lucky we did. The doctor we saw said they only had 18 boxes left of tamiflu and were rationing it. They were doing nasal swab tests and giving to anyone with a positive. They couldn’t give preventative because they didn’t have enough. Hard to plan for an outbreak.