Anyone know why NCL pulled their ships from St Marteen?

[deliver42]

NCL seems to "adjust" their itineraries more than other lines. Why? I don't know. Other lines may adjust due to propulsion problems, but NCL seems to do it with no explainations.

[StolidCruiser]

51 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

NCL seems to "adjust" their itineraries more than other lines. Why? I don't know. Other lines may adjust due to propulsion problems, but NCL seems to do it with no explainations.

 

I would be interested in your statistical analysis of the number of itinerary changes made by all other lines compared to NCL.  I think it would be a fascinating read to bolster your claim.

[GrammieCruising]

Our February Epic itinerary changed also. We totally lost Curaçao-got another sea day. We lost St. Kitts and St. Marten, replaced with Antigua and Tortola.

   Could it be that NCL had to find other ports for their now cancelled ships that were to port in Cuba? Making their ports of call St Marten and St. Kitts and maybe Curaçao?

   Just another guess. 

   Just happy to be getting out of the winter weather and get some 🌞 sun!

[ColeThornton]

17 minutes ago, StolidCruiser said:

 

I would be interested in your statistical analysis of the number of itinerary changes made by all other lines compared to NCL.  I think it would be a fascinating read to bolster your claim.

 

I'm guessing that if you took a representative sample of some of the bigger cruise lines and smaller cruise lines the results would probably be pretty similar.   I don't think that is the issue here, I believe the issue is that good customer service would dictate that if a change is made the guest has a valid requirement to know why the change is being made.

 

Guests have looked forward to visiting certain ports since they booked their cruise.  They have put hours and hard earned money into researching and paying for excursions.  It's a disappointment when changes are made.

 

Sure, changes are inevitable in this type of travel industry.  Weather, mechanical issues, medical emergencies, port contractual issues happen.

 

It's easy to quote the guest contract, it's right there in black and white.  It's also just as easy to provide information to their guests, especially if they want them to be repeat customers.

Edited August 18, 2019 by ColeThornton

[crazyboutdisney]

22 minutes ago, Bellapug said:

Our February Epic itinerary changed also. We totally lost Curaçao-got another sea day. We lost St. Kitts and St. Marten, replaced with Antigua and Tortola.

   Could it be that NCL had to find other ports for their now cancelled ships that were to port in Cuba? Making their ports of call St Marten and St. Kitts and maybe Curaçao?

   Just another guess. 

   Just happy to be getting out of the winter weather and get some 🌞 sun!

Now that would make me really sad. We loved Curacao!!! And that is a very good point!! I totally forgot about Cuba

[crazyboutdisney]

2 hours ago, yearsofcruising said:

Last March cruise on Gem 11day. We missed St.Kitts & went to St.Maarten...Missed Antigua and ended up with xtra slow day at sea.

Was told weather related..

This is a valid point. You can miss a scheduled port due to weather so maybe not such a big deal we lost them. 

[deliver42]

Royal, Celebrity, and Carnival have missed ports or changed itineraries due to power loss. This doesn't include changes due to the loss of Cuba. Weather is another story, and passenger safety is first and foremost regardless of cruise line.

[dongordon]

On ‎8‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 10:04 PM, Sweetnspicy said:

No reason was given but the speculation was either Port contracts ending or construction or something similar.  My January 2020 cruise also changed. 

What ship in January 2020 are you on.

I am on the Bliss in January 2020 and have not heard about any changes in our itinerary (including St. Maarten).

[Birdie And Sue]

7 hours ago, deliver42 said:

NCL seems to "adjust" their itineraries more than other lines. Why? I don't know. Other lines may adjust due to propulsion problems, but NCL seems to do it with no explainations.

 

And what difference does it make whether you get an explanation or not?

[StolidCruiser]

7 hours ago, ColeThornton said:

 

I'm guessing that if you took a representative sample of some of the bigger cruise lines and smaller cruise lines the results would probably be pretty similar.   I don't think that is the issue here, I believe the issue is that good customer service would dictate that if a change is made the guest has a valid requirement to know why the change is being made.

 

Guests have looked forward to visiting certain ports since they booked their cruise.  They have put hours and hard earned money into researching and paying for excursions.  It's a disappointment when changes are made.

 

Sure, changes are inevitable in this type of travel industry.  Weather, mechanical issues, medical emergencies, port contractual issues happen.

 

It's easy to quote the guest contract, it's right there in black and white.  It's also just as easy to provide information to their guests, especially if they want them to be repeat customers.

 

Do you have any imperical evidence that other lines better communicate itinerary changes in a way that NCL has been accused of failing to do?

[ColeThornton]

Just now, StolidCruiser said:

 

Do you have any imperical evidence that other lines better communicate itinerary changes in a way that NCL has been accused of failing to do?

Of course not but that's irrelevant.   We are discussing NCL's communications or lack of on the NCL forum and I have read many, many threads over the past years from multiple sources that show a need for NCL to do a better job of informing their guests of what is going on.  Every business has room for improvement.   I couldn't care less what Carnival or RCCL do, I don't sail with them.

 

And this is coming from a person who has oft been accused of being an NCL "Cheerleader".

[Georgia_Peaches]

39 minutes ago, Birdie And Sue said:

 

And what difference does it make whether you get an explanation or not?

Makes no difference as far as the change is concerned.  As a consumer, it's just nice to know.  Obviously, a knowledgeable cruiser such as yourself became so because of information that was available to you from one source or another.  Be it direct from the cruise line, or from others with experience with whatever the question is at hand, in this case, itinerary changes, it's JUST NICE TO KNOW!

[mugtech]

Just saw on the ABC news a passenger from Carnival went off the dock and into the water in a wheel chair on St Maarten.  Perhaps NCL has our safety in mind while skipping said island port.

[Sweetnspicy]

4 hours ago, dongordon said:

What ship in January 2020 are you on.

I am on the Bliss in January 2020 and have not heard about any changes in our itinerary (including St. Maarten).

The Epic 11 day. A bunch of people in our roll call didn’t get the email either but I did. 

[Son of a son of a ...]

That sucks.  Tortola and a sea day?  Boo

[coin ops]

Just make sure you have good travel insurance that covers missed ports or itinerary changes. 

 

[newmexicoNita]

22 hours ago, deliver42 said:

NCL seems to "adjust" their itineraries more than other lines. Why? I don't know. Other lines may adjust due to propulsion problems, but NCL seems to do it with no explainations.

I am not so sure this is an accurate statement but unless one of us wanted to do research we will never know. I do think we are seeing more adjustments as the ships get larger. Ports can only handle so many passengers and only so many mega ships.  

[TSUmom]

We loved St Martin and are always watching for a cruise that fits our vacation time with a stop there.  I know they are far and few between and now not even guaranteed.

[MrTexTJ]

We were booked on the March 15th cruise out of San Juan on the Epic going to several islands including St Maarten. We were notified a month ago the itinerary was changed to swap St. Maarten for Tortola. We had been to Tortola and was really looking forward to St. Maarten. So we changed cruises, still leaving from San Juan, but going to the ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, as well as St Lucia and St Kitts on Feb 23rd. Well this itinerary has changed, from a great itinerary to a bad itinerary.  Eliminate Bonaire, put a sea day between Aruba and Curacao, a five hour cruise, and dock at Curacao from 6 am to noon (was 8 am to 8 pm) Wow. We have cruised with NCL 15 times, Latitudes Platinum, and have never had an itinerary change before. I really don't care what the reason is...but why not improve the itinerary instead of making it worse for guests. I have called to complain but have not decided to jump ship yet. Maybe if enough people complain, they will come up with a better solution. Fingers crossed....

[newmexicoNita]

7 hours ago, MrTexTJ said:

We were booked on the March 15th cruise out of San Juan on the Epic going to several islands including St Maarten. We were notified a month ago the itinerary was changed to swap St. Maarten for Tortola. We had been to Tortola and was really looking forward to St. Maarten. So we changed cruises, still leaving from San Juan, but going to the ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, as well as St Lucia and St Kitts on Feb 23rd. Well this itinerary has changed, from a great itinerary to a bad itinerary.  Eliminate Bonaire, put a sea day between Aruba and Curacao, a five hour cruise, and dock at Curacao from 6 am to noon (was 8 am to 8 pm) Wow. We have cruised with NCL 15 times, Latitudes Platinum, and have never had an itinerary change before. I really don't care what the reason is...but why not improve the itinerary instead of making it worse for guests. I have called to complain but have not decided to jump ship yet. Maybe if enough people complain, they will come up with a better solution. Fingers crossed....

Just let me add one thing: the ABC islands are really great so don't be too disappointed. As for enough complaints, I am sure whatever the reason they pulled out of St Martin, all the complaints won't change the decision. I doubt they did it just because. The cruise lines know which ports are important and don't just randomly decide to change. 

[TSUmom]

10 hours ago, MrTexTJ said:

We were booked on the March 15th cruise out of San Juan on the Epic going to several islands including St Maarten. We were notified a month ago the itinerary was changed to swap St. Maarten for Tortola. We had been to Tortola and was really looking forward to St. Maarten. So we changed cruises, still leaving from San Juan, but going to the ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, as well as St Lucia and St Kitts on Feb 23rd. Well this itinerary has changed, from a great itinerary to a bad itinerary.  Eliminate Bonaire, put a sea day between Aruba and Curacao, a five hour cruise, and dock at Curacao from 6 am to noon (was 8 am to 8 pm) Wow. We have cruised with NCL 15 times, Latitudes Platinum, and have never had an itinerary change before. I really don't care what the reason is...but why not improve the itinerary instead of making it worse for guests. I have called to complain but have not decided to jump ship yet. Maybe if enough people complain, they will come up with a better solution. Fingers crossed....

I have a 12 day from NY booked but not until this spring of 2021...I will keep watching for itinerary changes and have plenty of time to cancel and book another if the changes ae not what I want, which is new ports to me not the same ones I have been too.  

[Alatraveler1]

Charges for different ports can vary but I believe are also based on hours docked.  So, would a shorter port call be a savings to the cruiseline?  Can substituting a closer port for a more distant one result in cost savings from fuel usage?  How hard is it to do excursions on your own at one port versus another, resulting in increased excursion bookings through the ship?  If not for safety or weather reasons which don't seem to be the case in many of these changes, I wonder how many schedule changes cost the cruiselines more and how many result in increased profits?  Regardless, I would want a legitimate reason to be given to me and not just informed the decision had been made especially if after final payment.  I've had fees go up after final payment and it does not make me hum "I've finally found my hallelujah".   

[ray98]

Obviously there is a reason or they wouldn't go through all the trouble to change it.  It comes with cruising, all lines do it at times.

[roxette]

The Bliss is supposed to be in St Marteen in the end of November this year on a Panama Canal cruise. Still no changes.

Edited August 20, 2019 by roxette

[MrTexTJ]

14 hours ago, newmexicoNita said:

Just let me add one thing: the ABC islands are really great so don't be too disappointed. As for enough complaints, I am sure whatever the reason they pulled out of St Martin, all the complaints won't change the decision. I doubt they did it just because. The cruise lines know which ports are important and don't just randomly decide to change. 

After the change to our new cruise, we are going to the AC islands. The B has been taken out of the itinerary. If you look at any of the Port Schedule sites, such as Cruisemapper, you can see the port schedules haven't changed from the original. I guess Norwegian hasn't told them yet....