Travel to Cuba coming to an end?

[Cruising32080]

Has anyone heard anything from Norwegian?  Radio silence from them. 

[ZandZ]

one more thing - this experience has made me respect RCI in a way I never did before - their reaction, as compared to other companies has been really on point, and their offer - NOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO despite what ppl are saying - is superb.  Just as I was getting fed up with them and looking to jump lol.  

[Wyoming2010]

57 minutes ago, Negril60 said:

We were to sail Monday September 9 on the Sensation. I waited on hold with Carnival for 35 min last night. I switched our cruise to the 9/7/19 cruise on the Conquest. The Rep asked me if we wanted our $50 per person onboard credit. I said of course. She said I have to get a Supervisor on the line. She said I wanna warn you the last person had to wait 45 min. I said I’ll wait. While waiting I called Delta got a wonderful rep. I had called earlier in the day they told me $400 change I said basically BS. The nice lady last night waived the fee. I paid $119 per person for the change. I know nothing about this ship. I haven’t sailed Carnival since 2000. I always loved it. I haven’t sailed period since 2013. They had switched us to Nassau and Princess Cayes. I am so sick of that Island. I was actually excited for Nassau. We ended up getting a $138 refund for the price difference. I’m very disappointed but we still get to cruise. Oh then I had to call hotels to change our Miami  stay. I basically planned our whole vacation on 2 phones and one computer while on hold in 2 hrs at midnight.

 

I feel ya.  We spent 18 months planning this as a road trip to Florida and the cruise -- 32 days of travel.  Book all the hotels, our condo in Key West, everything revolved around this cruise in the middle!  Now we have to start over and I am so done with this.  Such nonsense for no good cause. 

[DCGuy64]

58 minutes ago, ZandZ said:

one more thing - this experience has made me respect RCI in a way I never did before - their reaction, as compared to other companies has been really on point, and their offer - NOT BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO despite what ppl are saying - is superb.  Just as I was getting fed up with them and looking to jump lol.  

 

Well said! Not because they have to, but because they care about their passengers. I do hope other lines will do likewise. I have looked a little bit at changing our plans and switching from MSC to RCI, but the itineraries Royal proposes are kinda boring for the same time period. I can't go into it but suffice to say we have to travel the same time period, so for now we're sticking with MSC.

[ZandZ]

2 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

 

Well said! Not because they have to, but because they care about their passengers. I do hope other lines will do likewise. I have looked a little bit at changing our plans and switching from MSC to RCI, but the itineraries Royal proposes are kinda boring for the same time period. I can't go into it but suffice to say we have to travel the same time period, so for now we're sticking with MSC.

Absolutely - they are not liable for this one bit.  

 

I got lucky that one of my alternative ports is not one I have ever been to.  Also, aside from Cuba, I don't really cruise for ports - that's what land vacations are for.  Cuba was gonna be an exception for personal reasons.

[Wyoming2010]

1 hour ago, ZandZ said:

Absolutely - they are not liable for this one bit.  

 

I got lucky that one of my alternative ports is not one I have ever been to.  Also, aside from Cuba, I don't really cruise for ports - that's what land vacations are for.  Cuba was gonna be an exception for personal reasons.

 

Same here.  Unlike cruising the Caribbean where it all starts to blend in and look the same, we knew Cuba was a one-shot trip (for us) and would be a unique and unforgettable opportunity, and we planned heartily for every port and every excursion.  Now I don't even want to take a cruise because it just won't fill that hole! 

[ZandZ]

im sorry:(  yeah i feel very similar - but i am already planning my land vacation to Cuba for next Summer.  Bottom line is - its a much better way to get to know the country anyway.  I traveled to Panama on my own last Summer and really got a view of the country I would never be able to get from shore excursions.  This may be for the best.  

[Wyoming2010]

1 minute ago, ZandZ said:

im sorry:(  yeah i feel very similar - but i am already planning my land vacation to Cuba for next Summer.  Bottom line is - its a much better way to get to know the country anyway.  I traveled to Panama on my own last Summer and really got a view of the country I would never be able to get from shore excursions.  This may be for the best.  

 

I thought no one could visit from the US -- land, cruise, plane or private boat. 

[ZandZ]

Just now, Wyoming2010 said:

 

I thought no one could visit from the US -- land, cruise, plane or private boat. 

its a grey area - you can still enter Cuba from either Canada or Mexico.  There is paperwork and hassles but that is my plan.  

[DCGuy64]

1 minute ago, Wyoming2010 said:

 

I thought no one could visit from the US -- land, cruise, plane or private boat. 

 

The wording is very specific: no private or corporate planes, but commercial flights will still be allowed. I'll try and find the exact language the Treasury Dept used in its announcement.

[Wyoming2010]

1 minute ago, DCGuy64 said:

 

The wording is very specific: no private or corporate planes, but commercial flights will still be allowed. I'll try and find the exact language the Treasury Dept used in its announcement.

 

yes, but I thought that was only for business purposes or visiting families.  I don't know if the average US citizen is still allowed to just fly into Cuba from a US airport. 

[ZandZ]

https://www.tourepublic.com/blog/how-to-travel-to-cuba/#Planning-a-Trip-to-Cuba

 

[ZandZ]

12 minutes ago, Wyoming2010 said:

 

yes, but I thought that was only for business purposes or visiting families.  I don't know if the average US citizen is still allowed to just fly into Cuba from a US airport. 

no, not from a US airport.  Even before Obama allowed travel, anyone residing in the States wishing to enter Cuba would first travel to a third country.  At least that's how everyone I know did it.

[MarilynR26]

16 minutes ago, ZandZ said:

https://www.tourepublic.com/blog/how-to-travel-to-cuba/#Planning-a-Trip-to-Cuba

 

 

Thank you for sharing this. Now that my cruise was cancelled, I am going to go this route...have been reading a few things here and there but this is a pretty complete and handy list! 

[ZandZ]

Maybe things will change - until that time this is what has to be done....  😞

[princeton123211]

3 hours ago, Wyoming2010 said:

I don't know if the average US citizen is still allowed to just fly into Cuba from a US airport. 

US commercial flights are so far unaffected and will continue for the foreseeable future. The restrictions that went into place banned private aircraft, passenger ships, and recreational vessels. You can easily fly from the US to Cuba directly without having to go through the old route of Canada, Mexico, etc. 

[Granny DI]

I feel very sorry for those of you sailing on the Veendam who made final payment before the April warning was published. You were stuck and all you could do was hope things turned out OK. 

 

We canceled our Veendam cruise within hours of the warning. I was able to book a cheaper and longer cruise on the Crown Princess that stopped in some of our favorite ports.

 

We would have preferred to sail to Cuba. Cuba caught my interest after reading Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea so many years ago.  We just put off cruising there for too long because we didn’t like the ships that sailed to Cuba. Now we’re like many of you hoping things work out and we get there by ship someday soon.

 

The Caribbean had gotten boring to us and wrote it off for years but decided to do a Caribbean Cruise in Jan.  I decided we would do things we had never done before and we did.  The cruise turned out to be one of our favorites....we did a Jose Quervo tasting in Cozumel....I don’t normally drink....a cooking class in Ocho Rios.....I’m not a great cook, walked among the tree tops in Roatan....went to the Mayan Ruins in Costa Maya.......and an Escape Room in the Cayman Islands.

 

To those of you who are stuck with a non Cuba Cruise step outside the box and try something different. Make some sweet lemonade out of the sour lemons.

 

[Houndfish]

I have kept my 11-16-19 booking on Majesty hoping against hope that there may be a change before final payment date. I booked another RCI today with minimum deposit. If Cuba opens up and RCI puts Havana back on the Itinerary I'll cancel my new booking.

[Wyoming2010]

1 hour ago, Houndfish said:

I have kept my 11-16-19 booking on Majesty hoping against hope that there may be a change before final payment date. I booked another RCI today with minimum deposit. If Cuba opens up and RCI puts Havana back on the Itinerary I'll cancel my new booking.

 

They are changing all cruises for the rest of the year, and some lines even into 2020.  No one is going to put Cuba ports back on their itineraries this year, if ever at all now.  We were booked in October and were notified that they are changing our itinerary now -- not even waiting until final payment.  So we have to accept the fact that Cuba is off the table for a while.  

[cowmilker]

15 minutes ago, Wyoming2010 said:

 

They are changing all cruises for the rest of the year, and some lines even into 2020.  No one is going to put Cuba ports back on their itineraries this year, if ever at all now.  We were booked in October and were notified that they are changing our itinerary now -- not even waiting until final payment.  So we have to accept the fact that Cuba is off the table for a while.  

 

Yes, at this point I'm just waiting to see what the change is and from there we'll make a decision about whether to stay with it, or change to a different cruise altogether, or cancel and do a land-based something or other.  And we're booked for mid-December.  It isn't going to happen.

Even if government policy reversed, the cruise lines will take a good while to adjust.  They are also likely to be gun- shy, and rightly so.

[Houndfish]

Hope is eternal. As long as I am in the no charge window I'll keep my reservation.

We have seen how quickly DC can change course. The cruise lines would love to put Cuba back into their itineraries for the money.

 

[Wyoming2010]

4 minutes ago, cowmilker said:

 

Yes, at this point I'm just waiting to see what the change is and from there we'll make a decision about whether to stay with it, or change to a different cruise altogether, or cancel and do a land-based something or other.  And we're booked for mid-December.  It isn't going to happen.

Even if government policy reversed, the cruise lines will take a good while to adjust.  They are also likely to be gun- shy, and rightly so.

 

Since we planned a 35 day road trip to Florida and around, with the cruise in the middle, we will wait and see what the itinerary is.  However, if we cancel and remove the cruise from the equation, then we will have to reconfigure our whole trip and figure out what else to do with the extra 12 days.  

Edited June 6, 2019 by Wyoming2010

[cowmilker]

5 minutes ago, Wyoming2010 said:

 

Since we planned a 35 day road trip to Florida and around, with the cruise in the middle, we will wait and see what the itinerary is.  However, if we cancel and remove the cruise from the equation, then we will have to reconfigure our whole trip and figure out what else to do with the extra 12 days.  

 

We're dealing with much the same sort of thing, and I think a whole pile of other people are too. 

We do love the beach, so we'll be good.  This is simply three ports out of many that we've got planned.

That doesn't make me less disappointed or less outraged or happier. 

[Houndfish]

I would suggest booking something that fits your dates that is interesting to you. Not nec RCI but I stayed with them altho there are cheaper options. Keep your current RCI booking in case Cuba opens up.

[Wyoming2010]

5 minutes ago, Houndfish said:

I would suggest booking something that fits your dates that is interesting to you. Not nec RCI but I stayed with them altho there are cheaper options. Keep your current RCI booking in case Cuba opens up.

 

After all the hoops that all the cruise lines are jumping through to find other options for their cruise itineraries, I really find it hard to believe that they would try to switch back to Cuba IF it opens again this year.  I just don't believe it is going to open up any time soon.  In other words, I'm not holding out hope and am not going to tie up all that money just in hopes that my original itinerary might be reinstated for October. I need to plan something else since the vacation days have already been approved and I want to try to salvage some of my vacation!

Edited June 6, 2019 by Wyoming2010