Tone-deaf customer service

[KurtMo]

I'll start out by saying I am not a complainer or one that easily gets irked (I normally don't take myself too seriously or think I should be treated as royalty, etc.)  With that said I wanted to share what I thought was marketing creating poor customer service.  Months ago I made reservations for Valentine's Day dinner in Murano on the Equinox, paid the required fees, and was happy to have secured a prime time slot for the evening.  Apparently, Celebrity didn't realize February 14th was Valentine's Day (a prime opportunity to charge MORE for something); yesterday I received the following email from Celebrity:

" Dear Valued Guest,
We are writing you in reference to your dining reservation in Murano on February 14 .  The ship has decided to offer a special Valentines dining event in Murano on that evening.  All reservations currently booked in Murano on February 14 will be cancelled and refunded, however a spot is being held for you for the new event. The price for the new event is 119.00 USD per person.  If you would like to keep the original Murano reservation we have to switch it to a different night.   If you would like to cancel your reservation due to the price increase you will receive a full refund.   Please call us at your earliest convenience to discuss your options at 1-888-837-5676.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Attached is the menu being offered. "

So they've been happily holding my money for months, having been paid in advance for something they offered to sell me, and now my choices are pay an extra $69 per person (above normal fee already paid) for a limited menu (!) or try to find another time/restaurant because my plans for the evening have been canceled.  I usually take the "money-grabbing, nickel and diming" posts with a grain of salt, because I HAVE a choice of whether or not to buy.  In this case, I did buy and then Celebrity thought it made sense to cancel my plans 4 weeks before sailing.  So now I am the one feeling slighted by a money grab 😖  It's a small thing, but really put a bad taste in my mouth that somebody thought this was acceptable. 

 

Minor rant over!  I feel better!

Edited January 11, 2020 by KurtMo
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[Moby Jones]

I understand your frustration. That is simply poor customer service on behalf of X. 

I can't say I'm surprised that they've done this though! 

[KurtMo]

Moby - Thanks for at least agreeing it was bad form!  We really enjoy the X product, but it's been a couple of years since we've been onboard - I am hoping this is just a bad idea executed poorly, and not indicative of overall customer service.

[jjsnonna]

Sadly that doesn't surprise me.  I would be upset too if I had made a reservation and paid for it and they cancelled it so they could charge more.

[helen haywood]

That really is upsetting!  Apparently Celebrity’s IT department doesn’t recognize obvious holidays like Valentines Day or Christmas... And someone would have to set up their calendar to know what day Thanksgiving falls...in order to charge more on these holiday dates.  Four weeks notice is certainly insulting.  I’d save my money and switch the reservation.

[KurtMo]

7 minutes ago, helen haywood said:

Apparently Celebrity’s IT department doesn’t recognize obvious holidays like Valentines Day or Christmas... And someone would have to set up their calendar to know what day Thanksgiving falls...

 

Helen - Haha, that's exactly what I thought!  Seemed funny to me that I instantly knew February 14th was Valentine's Day, but they apparently had no idea until yesterday!

[Covepointcruiser]

Guess you could change reservations to 2/15 if you don’t want to pay extra for the holiday.

[bEwAbG]

It's really poor form that they do it when you're past final payment, too.  I would send a complaint letter to the corporate office.  It may get you some additional consideration.  They don't legally owe you anything other than the refund, but it's a very cheap move on their part since this is a change they decided to institute at the last minute.

[chemmo]

You know I would feel annoyed too. I have no objection to ‘special’ date events and even accept (as with land restaurants) that I will have to pay a premium. But to ‘move the goalposts’ one month before cruising is naughty....

 

They could at least have shown some goodwill by offering you a discount....

 

I am so pleased your ‘minor rant’ is over and you are not going to let it spoil your cruise. If the Murano’s menu is limited why not just enjoy another night? 

 

Sincere best wishes for a fantastic cruise!

 

 

[39august]

I agree that you should contact LLP's office. This is shockingly poor treatment of a customer. 

[ECCruise]

This is wrong on SO many levels.

 

Most importantly is the incredible ham handed customer service aspect.  Absolutely no consideration for the customer.

But for us it is the idiocy of charging $119 per person to eat food that has been frozen for months.  We don't spend that kind of money for top notch chefs to prepare a fresh meal.  Even more telling,  Marcus Samuelsson often has special meals at one of his restaurants where HE actually is in charge of the meal and charges that kind of dough.  We've seen that in Bermuda, Harlem and other locations.

Edited January 11, 2020 by ECCruise

[KurtMo]

Faith in mankind's ability to make sense of nonsense is (at least partially) restored:  Upon a call to customer service, a very nice and efficient rep named Lisa found us a Murano reservation on a different evening, and then proceeded to refund the original reservation.  She then advised me that she added OBC to the reservation to cover the cost of the Murano dinner, so it is "free".  A good gesture which recognizes the hassle factor for the guest and at least shows that they understood the whole exercise was Celebrity's issue.

 

I wanted to be fair and recognize X for the ultimate response to the situation they created!

[MamaFej]

2 minutes ago, KurtMo said:

Faith in mankind's ability to make sense of nonsense is (at least partially) restored:  Upon a call to customer service, a very nice and efficient rep named Lisa found us a Murano reservation on a different evening, and then proceeded to refund the original reservation.  She then advised me that she added OBC to the reservation to cover the cost of the Murano dinner, so it is "free".  A good gesture which recognizes the hassle factor for the guest and at least shows that they understood the whole exercise was Celebrity's issue.

 

I wanted to be fair and recognize X for the ultimate response to the situation they created!

I'm glad it worked out for you, and that you have maintained an even keel throughout. Shame on Celebrity for the way they handled it from the beginning, and good on the CS rep you got on the phone.

 

I don't "do" Valentine's Day, personally, but I recognize and respect that it is important to some, and I definitely recognize the date. 

 

Kudos to you for moving forward and I hope you have a lovely, romantic evening in Murano.

[ECCruise]

That is a good outcome which I am sure makes you happy.

But the initial attempts at gouging still speak volumes.

[awhfy]

6 minutes ago, KurtMo said:

Faith in mankind's ability to make sense of nonsense is (at least partially) restored:  Upon a call to customer service, a very nice and efficient rep named Lisa found us a Murano reservation on a different evening, and then proceeded to refund the original reservation.  She then advised me that she added OBC to the reservation to cover the cost of the Murano dinner, so it is "free".  A good gesture which recognizes the hassle factor for the guest and at least shows that they understood the whole exercise was Celebrity's issue.

 

I wanted to be fair and recognize X for the ultimate response to the situation they created!

That’s customer service

[jrs101]

their response and correction is excellent. 

Edited January 11, 2020 by jrs101

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for the update.

I'm glad they did the right thing.

[RickT]

When I first read the title I thought "oh boy, another rant from a disgruntled passenger" but to my surprise I agreed with it.  True Customer Service would have been to allow you to keep your original reservation at the original price... but as you say, a free dinner on a different night is decent.  Unfortunately that should have been the initial e-mail from Celebrity and not "sorry, we've cancelled your reservation".

 

Enjoy your dinner and cruise.

[KurtMo]

5 minutes ago, RickT said:

When I first read the title I thought "oh boy, another rant from a disgruntled passenger" but to my surprise I agreed with it.  True Customer Service would have been to allow you to keep your original reservation at the original price... but as you say, a free dinner on a different night is decent.  Unfortunately that should have been the initial e-mail from Celebrity and not "sorry, we've cancelled your reservation".

RickT - I agree with you, if the email I received initially would have indicated this resolution, I never would have bothered you fine people on this board with my first world problem!  All is well, and I WILL enjoy my vacation.

[helen haywood]

So happy this worked out for you!  Enjoy!

[mitz18]

Sorry, but in the scheme of things the letter sounds very nice.  They (apparently) advised you as soon as the decision was made, apologized for the possible inconvenience, they offered you first choice for an event that will no doubt sell out, & they gave you several other options if you did not want to participate. I understand you were frustrated over the change but to call it "tone deaf" or a money grab (one presumes for an additional cost the dinner will be an upgraded experience, wine pairings, etc) is a bit much.  Sounds to me they did exactly what they should have.....

[Moby Jones]

15 minutes ago, mitz18 said:

Sorry, but in the scheme of things the letter sounds very nice.  They (apparently) advised you as soon as the decision was made, apologized for the possible inconvenience, they offered you first choice for an event that will no doubt sell out, & they gave you several other options if you did not want to participate. I understand you were frustrated over the change but to call it "tone deaf" or a money grab (one presumes for an additional cost the dinner will be an upgraded experience, wine pairings, etc) is a bit much.  Sounds to me they did exactly what they should have.....

And the inevitable Cruise Critic "Just shut up and suck it up because I personally am not impacted" post finally appears! lol 

OP I'm very pleased things worked out for you. Hopefully Celebrity will learn from this mistake. 

[Bretty]

1 hour ago, KurtMo said:

Faith in mankind's ability to make sense of nonsense is (at least partially) restored:  Upon a call to customer service, a very nice and efficient rep named Lisa found us a Murano reservation on a different evening, and then proceeded to refund the original reservation.  She then advised me that she added OBC to the reservation to cover the cost of the Murano dinner, so it is "free".  A good gesture which recognizes the hassle factor for the guest and at least shows that they understood the whole exercise was Celebrity's issue.

 

I wanted to be fair and recognize X for the ultimate response to the situation they created!

I’m glad this was resolved to your satisfaction. However, as I read this I can’t help but feel there would have been another option available to Lisa. She’s refunded your original reservation, rebooked and given OBC to cover the cost, thereby making the reservation free. Great. It surely would have been simpler and easier to offer to cover the cost difference and keep your original reservation, at $69pp?

Anyway, glad it’s been sorted and you will still be enjoying your cruise no matter what.

[mitz18]

8 minutes ago, Moby Jones said:

And the inevitable Cruise Critic "Just shut up and suck it up because I personally am not impacted" post finally appears! lol 

OP I'm very pleased things worked out for you. Hopefully Celebrity will learn from this mistake. 

 

No, sorry but I never said that.  I was saying that a "tone-deaf" customer service dept would have simply cancelled the reservation with no options.  The letter and the options provided do not sound like a tone-deaf reply but more the reply from a department that realized they were causing some inconveniences. 

[jelayne]

It unfortunate that the OP didn’t call  before posting as it seems to me the  Customer Service department did a excellent job cleaning up a mess they didn’t create.  The initial problem wasn’t created by Customer Service it was most likely either a Marketing or Revenue department decision.