Passport Fail - Cruise Line Unforgiving

[ollienbertsmum]

23 hours ago, SeaShark said:

 

 

In two different posts you attempt to paint of picture of an ultra-small font that nobody would ever read. I was curious as to how small this "very fine print" actually is. 

 

Surprising to say, but it appears to be the exact same font used for all of the other text. On top of that, the 6 month requirement is mentioned FIRST, not buried where you wouldn't see it.

 

 

And to complete the picture, for non-US Citizens (such as yourself) they even put that requirement in a BOLD font.

 

Not sure how this falls under "very fine print that nobody normally would read".

 

OK SeaShark I don’t think that I thought that the font was that small.   I think that, as I had already done the same cruise three times I thought that this was ‘small print’ such as telling you that you could not take knives or drugs on board.  I had (incorrectly as I found out) thought that I could stay within a Schengen area with 3 months left on my passport.  I was lucky to have been browsing  which alerted me to the issue in time.  That was not really my gripe. 

 

My serious  gripe (and for this I felt the pain of the OP) was that, given all the information that we submit when we do online check in, surely there should be some sort of alert  of the issue.  It happens all the time if bank cards fail or when we input wrong info in all sorts of situations.  

 

I am a small print nerd, but for me I had been on the ship before and genuinely forgot how small print works.  Really am I the only person who goes on a cruise for the 4th time does not actually sit through all of the small print that needs you to actually click on it? 

Edited January 16, 2020 by ollienbertsmum
I forgot to supply information

[ray98]

LOL....a 'technicality'.

[ollienbertsmum]

2 hours ago, smplybcause said:

 

Yes. US citizens cruising out of the US don't have that requirement. The requirement of 6 months is US citizens sailing out of a non-US port. There's also different rules depending upon holding another country's passport. 

 

I still think that a computer could make that calculation

 

but thankfully in my case i read the rules 

Edited January 16, 2020 by ollienbertsmum

[SeaShark]

12 minutes ago, ollienbertsmum said:

 

OK SeaShark I don’t think that I thought that the font was that small.   I think that, as I had already done the same cruise three times I thought that this was ‘small print’ such as telling you that you could not take knives or drugs on board.  I had (incorrectly as I found out) thought that I could stay within a Schengen area with 3 months left on my passport.  I was lucky to have been browsing  which alerted me to the issue in time.  That was not really my gripe. 

 

My serious  gripe (and for this I felt the pain of the OP) was that, given all the information that we submit when we do online check in, surely there should be some sort of alert  of the issue.  It happens all the time if bank cards fail or when we input wrong info in all sorts of situations.  

 

I am a small print nerd, but for me I had been on the ship before and genuinely forgot how small print works.  Really am I the only person who goes on a cruise for the 4th time does not actually sit through all of the small print that needs you to actually click on it? 

 

Do you mean an alert other than the BOLD FONT WARNING NCL uses as line #1 on the screen where you enter your passport information during check in?

 

Although this is nothing but a red herring as the OP never got anywhere near the Port or the Ship...something that is NOT NCL's fault. This is all about the OP's quest for...in their own words (ironically delivered in small print)...a "modest discount on a future cruise".

 

 

[ollienbertsmum]

4 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

Do you mean an alert other than the BOLD FONT WARNING NCL uses as line #1 on the screen where you enter your passport information during check in?

 

 

did i miss this?  If i did so, then i apologise for my gripe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

 

[SeaShark]

1 minute ago, ollienbertsmum said:

 

I still think that a computer could make that calculation

 

True...but having the computer make that calculation also creates responsibility for that information on the owner of the computer. That computer could be programmed perfectly and if 1 country changes their rules and then denies a passenger before the computer is updated...or if the change comes between entering the information and the date of travel (think about how long it is between online check in and actual embarkation)...then the denied guest is screaming that  company x's computer gave them bad information and therefore company x is 100% liable.

 

This is why document requirements and validation are the sole responsibility of the traveler. 

 

 

Still think this is easy and without risk? Then create an app where you enter your travel plans and your document information and the app tells you if you're good or not. Great business idea for someone willing to deal with the risk.

[SeaShark]

1 minute ago, ollienbertsmum said:

 

 

did i miss this?  If i did so, then i apologise for my gripe.

 

No worries...it has been a busy thread. I posted a screen shot back on page #3 in post #71 if you want to see it.

 

[lanceholt]

38 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

Do you mean an alert other than the BOLD FONT WARNING NCL uses as line #1 on the screen where you enter your passport information during check in?

 

Although this is nothing but a red herring as the OP never got anywhere near the Port or the Ship...something that is NOT NCL's fault. This is all about the OP's quest for...in their own words (ironically delivered in small print)...a "modest discount on a future cruise".

 

 

More and more people seem to be looking for a discount/refund/whatever for any sort of problem.  NCL is not going to give anything that was not their fault.

 

[julig22]

NCL does send out visa information prior to your cruise:

 

"Thank you for choosing Norwegian Cruise Line. We are thrilled you've chosen to sail with us and can't wait to welcome you aboard. As your ship will be calling to a Canadian port, we have important visa and passport requirements for your sailing. US citizens may sail with either a valid passport or original proof of US citizenship. Non-US citizens must present their passport and applicable visas. Due to strict Canadian entry requirements, citizens from certain countries require a valid Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) in order to sail. For your convenience, we are pleased to offer the service of VisaCentral, the fast and easy way to obtain a visa, passport and other documents for travel anywhere in the world. As a reminder it is the responsibility of the traveler to obtain the necessary visas for this itinerary. Please visit http://www.visacentral.com/ncl for information or http://www.cic.gc.ca to check if your nationality requires a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV). Failure to have the required visas may result in denial of boarding for your cruise, and we will be unable to extend any refund of your cruise fare. For more information on Norwegian's documentation requirements, please visit www.ncl.com/traveldocs. Again, thank you for choosing Norwegian Cruise Line. Sincerely, Vivian Ewart Senior Vice President, Passenger Services

 

I have received the same notice for both Alaska cruises, plus something similar for sailing to Australia & NZ - and those requirements did change between the time I booked and the actual cruise.

 

And while on the subject, Real ID becomes effective in the US on October 1, 2020 and US citizens cannot fly at all without  compliant ID.  So if your DL hasn't been renewed in the last few years, depending on where you live, you will need to have a valid passport even for domestic travel.  There should be a star in the upper-right corner on your license.

[April42749]

1 hour ago, ollienbertsmum said:

 

 Really am I the only person who goes on a cruise for the 4th time does not actually sit through all of the small print that needs you to actually click on it? 

No you're not.  I never do.

 

With that being said, as I wrote before but it got buried...if they do for documentation what they do for insurance....just one line where the passenger has to confirm:  It is your responsibility to check all visa and passport requirements.  You can't proceed unless you acknowledge and if you mess up you can't blame the TA, the cruiseline the airline or your spouse!

For all we know, since his passport was only short by a couple of days, he may have known but done the risk/reward...and assumed it would be okay instead of spending $$$ for a new passport.

 

[mugtech]

1 hour ago, Akumal said:

I refuse to read small print.  Can someone tell me if I should bother trying?

[hallux]

8 minutes ago, mugtech said:

I refuse to read small print.  Can someone tell me if I should bother trying?

I'll sum up - the OP reiterated that they expected NCL to consider the circumstances and offer a refund of the cruise not taken when the passenger was unable to because of a lack of attention to detail on the part of the passenger.  As a result of that lack of consideration the OP has chosen to no longer be a customer of NCL even though the problem was the passenger's fault for not checking travel document expiration in relation to the laws of the countries they would be visiting.

[Sweetnspicy]

Personal responsibility. What a new concept. 

[mugtech]

1 hour ago, hallux said:

I'll sum up - the OP reiterated that they expected NCL to consider the circumstances and offer a refund of the cruise not taken when the passenger was unable to because of a lack of attention to detail on the part of the passenger.  As a result of that lack of consideration the OP has chosen to no longer be a customer of NCL even though the problem was the passenger's fault for not checking travel document expiration in relation to the laws of the countries they would be visiting.

Thank you

[Oakman58]

16 hours ago, Akumal said:

 

 

You've been a member of Cruise Critic since 2013 so by now you should realize that no cruise line would have given you compensation or credit on a future cruise when you were a "no-show" at the port.  Since you've been reading these forums for 6 years you should have already read many times over about the 6 month rule for foreign travel.

 

You've learned a tough lesson and thanks for this reminder about passports.  Next time purchase cancel for any reason travel insurance.

 

[DinaS]

17 hours ago, Akumal said:

 

I "value" the fact that I take personal responsibility for reading the rules, terms and conditions when I invest my hard-earned money and/or sign ANY contract.

 

If you receive an item from Amazon, and you drop it when taking out of the box and break it, and they don't replace it, will you find another company and blame them for not having ethical values?

 

The ice cream cone scenario isn't exactly the same as a cruise worth several thousand dollars.

 

Seriously. 

[phillyguy31]

The thing that gets me is no one knows if he even would have been denied boarding since the OP never really gave us the details, like from where to where. So should NCL have refunded his fair if he got a flat while on his way to the airport and missed his flight. 

The other point is everyone is saying that NCL should have a warning pop up, but obviously the airline didn’t either. 

[April42749]

3 minutes ago, phillyguy31 said:

The thing that gets me is no one knows if he even would have been denied boarding since the OP never really gave us the details, like from where to where. So should NCL have refunded his fair if he got a flat while on his way to the airport and missed his flight. 

The other point is everyone is saying that NCL should have a warning pop up, but obviously the airline didn’t either. 

But the airline should have had a pop-up too.  In this day and age, when 99% of people do everything on line, programming a pop-up would be an easy way to make sure everyone was warned

 

Ultimately it's all about responsibility.  But it's also about "the agencies" covering themselves.  I doubt NCL cares if the OP sails with them again, but if had "just clicked a button" he'd have nothing negative to post about NCL.

[pghflyer]

Very sorry this happened to you. About 10 years ago we got caught in a blizzard (snowmageddon) and our state declared a disaster, but we also lost 100% our cruise fare and got nothing back from Princess. Expensive lesson learned that a significant part of the cruise line business model is selling insurance to their customers, so they are absolutely ruthless in not giving that product away for free. Everywhere else in the tourism industry is a lot more customer friendly, but cruises are not. So now I make sure to have travel insurance (never from the cruise companies - not as good).

[smplybcause]

23 minutes ago, April42749 said:

But the airline should have had a pop-up too.  In this day and age, when 99% of people do everything on line, programming a pop-up would be an easy way to make sure everyone was warned

 

Ultimately it's all about responsibility.  But it's also about "the agencies" covering themselves.  I doubt NCL cares if the OP sails with them again, but if had "just clicked a button" he'd have nothing negative to post about NCL.

 

But as someone else mentioned, all the laws regarding who and how one can enter a country can change all the time. You're expecting the airline to know the rules for every country on how a citizen every country is allowed in, then code it, and continuously updated it!! Besides it not actually being "that easy" that's a lot of room for error on the airlines part that people would undoubtedly hold them to. 

 

That said, some airlines actually have a warning that shows a link who sends you to a company whose entire purpose is to know those laws. 

[April42749]

34 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

 

But as someone else mentioned, all the laws regarding who and how one can enter a country can change all the time. You're expecting the airline to know the rules for every country on how a citizen every country is allowed in, then code it, and continuously updated it!! Besides it not actually being "that easy" that's a lot of room for error on the airlines part that people would undoubtedly hold them to. 

 

That said, some airlines actually have a warning that shows a link who sends you to a company whose entire purpose is to know those laws. 

No, I'm not expecting any company or any person to know anything.

The traveler should be made aware that there are rules and acknowledge that he has been made aware......and that it's his responsibility to find these rules and comply.

 

[hallux]

2 minutes ago, April42749 said:

The traveler should be made aware that there are rules and acknowledge that he has been made aware

Is it in the cruise contract?  I think someone said it is.  If it is, the traveler agrees to the cruise contract when checking in.  It's on them if they did not read it.

[DrSea]

Thanks for the post. I will now know to renew it soon. 

[DinaS]

5 hours ago, pghflyer said:

Very sorry this happened to you. About 10 years ago we got caught in a blizzard (snowmageddon) and our state declared a disaster, but we also lost 100% our cruise fare and got nothing back from Princess. Expensive lesson learned that a significant part of the cruise line business model is selling insurance to their customers, so they are absolutely ruthless in not giving that product away for free. Everywhere else in the tourism industry is a lot more customer friendly, but cruises are not. So now I make sure to have travel insurance (never from the cruise companies - not as good).

 

Insurance is a business like any other, and you have many choices when it comes to purchasing insurance.  

 

If someone chooses NOT to purchase insurance, and they can't get to their cruise for a reason that would have been covered - whose fault is that?

 

We always buy insurance - but NOT from the cruise line.  We buy insurance that covers what we need it to cover.

 

We take responsibility for our actions, just as people should take responsibility for their INACTIONS.

Edited January 17, 2020 by DinaS

[April42749]

4 hours ago, hallux said:

Is it in the cruise contract?  I think someone said it is.  If it is, the traveler agrees to the cruise contract when checking in.  It's on them if they did not read it.

We should take a poll....how many people read contracts, terms of service etc?

I don't.

Honestly....do you (not directed at any particular person....just to everyone on this thread)?

 

PS...I always buy medical insurance.  As long as I have something like $250,000 in evacuation coverage I don't bother reading the rest....until I need it.

Edited January 17, 2020 by April42749