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Guaranteed cabin and rci have downgraded us


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I think that most of you here are missing an extremely important point and that is that the OP is from the UK and was almost certainly booked on the RCL co.uk web site by a UK Travel Agent. The Cruise Contract that has been quoted a number of times is from the US site and is not applicable in this case.

UK and EU consumer law is much more strict than the US law and gives the consumer much greater protection when a company changes what they have paid for. 

 

Nobody has mentioned that RCL took their deposit and their final payment without ensuring that they held an Oceanview or higher Cabin for them.

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2 minutes ago, TTFromSommersTown said:

I think that most of you here are missing an extremely important point and that is that the OP is from the UK and was almost certainly booked on the RCL co.uk web site by a UK Travel Agent. The Cruise Contract that has been quoted a number of times is from the US site and is not applicable in this case.

UK and EU consumer law is much more strict than the US law and gives the consumer much greater protection when a company changes what they have paid for. 

 

Nobody has mentioned that RCL took their deposit and their final payment without ensuring that they held an Oceanview or higher Cabin for them.

Then if they did book through a UK agent or on the UK site they should file a claim.

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9 hours ago, Suemorganrose said:

If we were regular cruisers we probably wouldn't find it such a big deal but 1st time cruisers and it's to celebrate a big birthday, unlikely to be able to afford it again for a long time if ever 

To be honest, this would actually be a bigger deal to people who have cruised before.  Let me explain.  We began cruising in 1998.  We could only afford inside cabins.  We loved every second of it.  We've been on 37 cruises and as we get older we want more luxury and amenities so we'd be less interested in cruising at all if we had to have an inside cabin.  But no cruise has been as awesome as the very first one in that tiny inside cabin near the bow where we could hear the anchor dropping at 6 am.  It was just such a wonderful experience.  

It's a shame you lost your oceanview cabin.   By all means you are entitled to compensation for this.  Work with your TA and get  what you can for it.  Even if no more money, maybe the TA can get you complimentary Speciality Dining to celebrate the birthday thrown in.  But don't let this affect your cruise experience.   Since it's your first cruise it will all be so new for you.  Unless you booked a balcony, the cabin is for sleeping and dressing.  You'll be spending your time at other than your cabin.   Use the OBC and enjoy some special things on the ship.   If you can't find anything else, book a massage, book a shore tour, go to a specialty restaurant.  The money will get spent.  But most of all, look forward to this great adventure.  If you're like the rest of us you'll get hooked.  But whatever you do, don't let this very unusual event diminish your enjoyment of the cruise. 

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Well the TA got back to us and it sounds as thought we are stuck with an inside cabin, going to try and push for more compensation though, even if it's just a higher amount of obc. We've decided not to let it dampen our spirits as we have been looking forward to this cruise for months.

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18 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Yep, especially after booking non-refundable airfare.

Mind exploding🤪   Nothing says customer loyalty than paying 200$ to Delta to "change" a ticket.  Makes me want to go Southwest(which has awful flight connections for me).

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7 minutes ago, Suemorganrose said:

Well the TA got back to us and it sounds as thought we are stuck with an inside cabin, going to try and push for more compensation though, even if it's just a higher amount of obc. We've decided not to let it dampen our spirits as we have been looking forward to this cruise for months.

"You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din."

I like your attitude.🙂

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31 minutes ago, Suemorganrose said:

Well the TA got back to us and it sounds as thought we are stuck with an inside cabin, going to try and push for more compensation though, even if it's just a higher amount of obc. We've decided not to let it dampen our spirits as we have been looking forward to this cruise for months.

I really hope you enjoy your cruise 😊 come back here and let us know how you got on 😊😊

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45 minutes ago, Suemorganrose said:

Well the TA got back to us and it sounds as thought we are stuck with an inside cabin, going to try and push for more compensation though, even if it's just a higher amount of obc. We've decided not to let it dampen our spirits as we have been looking forward to this cruise for months.

Did you book through a UK agent?  Can you file a claim through ABTA?

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We were on a NYE 2019 cruise where our balcony guarantee turned into a (non-balcony) oceanview. The RCL revenue department called and offered a complimentary balcony on a NYE 2020 cruise as compensation. We thought it to be fair and accepted.  I would not be satisfied with what was offered to you.

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1 hour ago, TTFromSommersTown said:

I think that most of you here are missing an extremely important point and that is that the OP is from the UK and was almost certainly booked on the RCL co.uk web site by a UK Travel Agent. The Cruise Contract that has been quoted a number of times is from the US site and is not applicable in this case.

UK and EU consumer law is much more strict than the US law and gives the consumer much greater protection when a company changes what they have paid for. 

 

Nobody has mentioned that RCL took their deposit and their final payment without ensuring that they held an Oceanview or higher Cabin for them.

 

I was curious and looked up the UK Terms and Conditions.

 

The section that applies to this situation is section 5.5: "Can you change or cancel my holiday?"

 

The short answer is yes.

 

I was also interested in section 1.9 "Will my price change?" That section gives the right to levy a surcharge for price increases. 

 

That would certainly prompt scream of outrage by those who thinK price changes should only work in their favor.

 

The UK T and C also includes information of Guaranteed rates (I didn't write down the section number).  That section states that once a cabin is assigned, no changes to the assigned cabin can be made.

 

That is certainly different from the expectations of some US cruisers  that they pay guaranteed rates and can call up to change their cabin if not happy with assignment.

 

Perhaps the fact that Royal Caribbean seems to be assigning the guarantee cabins shortly before sailing is the line's way of dealing with those who expect to still be able to select their cabin while paying guaranteed rates.  

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31 minutes ago, livylotte said:

Enjoy your cruise!  I hope it doesn't spoil it for you.  Perhaps a post on RC Facebook or Twitter warning people of the perils of booking a guarantee cabin?

Good idea with the title.

When Is A Guarantee Not A Guarantee??

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Gotta love how businesses claim they "can't" change a decision they have made when that decision is entirely discretionary. And that goddawful letter looks like some customer service person took the TA's email home to have a 9 year old draft an answer.

 

OP, keep writing. Go up the chain even after your cruise. Write the line CEO (email has been posted somewhere) and reference this thread with the link. Note the examples of people having been treated far better, and ask why you were treated instead by a rep saying RCI "can't" do better.

 

That reply was no reply. It was an insult.

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This seems to be a more common issue with royal - I suspect the OP is on the trip on the ship immediately after ours (we’re currently on the last day of the cruise heading back to Southampton). We booked a suite guarantee - we were not assigned until 5 days before sailing and on board it’s obvious our room was a cancellation as the previous occupants details are everywhere. What would have happened to us if no cancellations for suites happened? The same paltry offer of a few hundred dollars on board credit?

 

i seriously wonder if the new royal up system is to blame and royal are keeping cabins unassigned longer to try to maximise upgrade potential (why assign anything less than the minimum cabin type in the guarantee if higher types can be used with paid upgrades?). If this is the case, we may start to see this issue more and more and it seems royal is no longer prepared to compensate well. 

Edited by beardedladies
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6 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

As Ken pointed out, while it's within Royal's legal right to downgrade anyone (not just guarantees), this occurs very rarely, and Royal has compensated those that have reported the downgrade here on CC. 

 

It's not just guarantees that get changed, any other booking can get changed. No one has a 100% chance of no changes, up to and including the entire cruise being cancelled.

So basically, it's sort of like buying a lottery ticket, only MUCH more expensive. :classic_ohmy: You pay for the chance to have a cabin on a cruise ship on a given date and itinerary and hope it will be available on the date you planned.  It sounds like they can do this down to the very last moment too. 

 

Now that most people have established that the "upgrade fairy" no longer exists, I guess now we all have to wait anxiously to see if we get visited by the "downgrade fairy." 

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1 minute ago, legaljen1969 said:

So basically, it's sort of like buying a lottery ticket, only MUCH more expensive. :classic_ohmy: You pay for the chance to have a cabin on a cruise ship on a given date and itinerary and hope it will be available on the date you planned.  It sounds like they can do this down to the very last moment too. 

 

Now that most people have established that the "upgrade fairy" no longer exists, I guess now we all have to wait anxiously to see if we get visited by the "downgrade fairy." 

The number of times that this has happened is so few that I for one am not in the least bit concerned.  You could take any business out there and find horror stories if you looked hard enough, it’s not an indication that that is common practice 

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6 minutes ago, beardedladies said:

This seems to be a more common issue with royal - I suspect the OP is on the trip on the ship immediately after ours (we’re currently on the last day of the cruise heading back to Southampton). We booked a suite guarantee - we were not assigned until 5 days before sailing and on board it’s obvious our room was a cancellation as the previous occupants details are everywhere. What would have happened to us if no cancellations for suites happened? The same paltry offer of a few hundred dollars on board credit?

 

i seriously wonder if the new royal up system is to blame and royal are keeping cabins unassigned longer to try to maximise upgrade potential (why assign anything less than the minimum cabin type in the guarantee if higher types can be used with paid upgrades?). If this is the case, we may start to see this issue more and more and it seems royal is no longer prepared to compensate well. 

The thing that concerns me is that apparently this is not just an issue with "guarantee" rooms but also with assigned rooms. They can just randomly re-assign and downgrade.  I can see how you take your chances with a guaranteed room but from what I am seeing in these responses, even assigned cabins are just as likely to be wiped out.

I do think it's pretty unfair for those of us who book well in advance to choose the cabin we really want (some people book as soon as itineraries are announced a couple of years in advance) and now we can be bumped by people who pay extra to overtake that cabin?  

A huge grab for money and definitely not one that is going to sit well with faithful planning types.

 

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4 minutes ago, legaljen1969 said:

So basically, it's sort of like buying a lottery ticket, only MUCH more expensive. ...

 

It is VERY rare that we see a report of a guarantee booking that does not get the minimum category booked.

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