Seabourn and the current issues surrounding the Corona Virus

[DWF]

I have found Seabourn's communications during this crisis to be appalling.  They have over $20K of my money for a trip scheduled in May that is clearly not going to happen.  The last update on their website was almost two weeks ago.  I have emailed them to inquire about the situation.  There has been zero response.  I know I can cancel and theoretically get future cruse credits.  But these have to be used by next year and that is a busy work year for me.  This would have been my first trip with Seabourn.  I wish I had not gotten involved with this company.  

[SLSD]

44 minutes ago, Hanoverian said:

Thanks, norm2002, and Jenidallas, for bringing this story to our attention.  We don't live near Dallas but DW may be headed there this summer, the Fates willing, for her organization's board of directors' retreat.  I am sure that she will make every effort to get to TJ's now.  What a wonderful staff!

We know the owner of TJ's Fish Market!  He was a high school friend of our older son and he has catered several parties for us. Great guy--wonderful restaurant with delicious food.  The shopping center that houses one of his restaurants was almost demolished by a tornado last fall.  His restaurant was mostly undamaged but surrounded by devastation--which made it hard for him to reopen.  Just a few days ago, we received an email from him pleading for people to order take out to keep him in business.  With the shut down of all restaurants in Dallas, he is in danger of going under.  I'm so happy that Jon, the owner, got this great publicity.  I hope his restaurant survives.  

 

Edited March 24, 2020 by SLSD

[jenidallas]

Sorry for the bad link... I’m glad someone fixed it.  My days have been quite busy helping health system clients who are all responding to COVID-19.

 

I’ve never dined at TJ’s restaurant but I used to buy fresh fish there when I lived in Dallas.  Nice people!

[ab21au]

13 hours ago, Ubiquiti said:

Sorry Seabourn. You blew it. We will wave at you from our future suites on SilverSea/Regent as you go past.

 Obviously you haven’t read the Silversea board. IMO it is so sad that I has gone this way for guests, crew and cruise lines but I think that all the cruise lines are in the same position. Things are changing hourly not daily. 

[zimflyer]

5 hours ago, DWF said:

I have found Seabourn's communications during this crisis to be appalling.  They have over $20K of my money for a trip scheduled in May that is clearly not going to happen.  The last update on their website was almost two weeks ago.  I have emailed them to inquire about the situation.  There has been zero response.  I know I can cancel and theoretically get future cruse credits.  But these have to be used by next year and that is a busy work year for me.  This would have been my first trip with Seabourn.  I wish I had not gotten involved with this company.  

That is exactly my point DWF.

 

Even in this extraordinary situation, I am/have been able to go online and alter, amend, refund or cancel most of my hotel and air travel. Hell, even my supermarket lets me interact/order/refund online to my credit card...

 

These are basics. Even my tyre shop has sent me messages about changed hours, etc.

 

So why the heck do any of us who have:  

1. booked months ago

2. Paid months ago

3. Paid in full

4. NOT even seen the ship never mind boarded, or had a drink of water from SB

5. Not been offerred any refund until those who waited till last minute were  able to choose that option instead of FCC.

6. Not communicated with at all in response to requests for information

7. STILL have no idea when we will get

our refunds....

 

Interesting that even those such as Westmount on Sojourn are not delighted with matters now that they are back on shore and again...

 

SEABOURN LEAVES EVERYONE IN THE DARK. PATHETIC CORPORATE ETHIC.

 

WHY BE DEFENSIVE ABOUT SUCH BEHAVIOUR. DOES NOBODY VALUE CORPORATE ETHICS ANYMORE?

 

PLEASE CONSIDER...

[3418ahl]

50 minutes ago, zimflyer said:

That is exactly my point DWF.

 

Even in this extraordinary situation, I am/have been able to go online and alter, amend, refund or cancel most of my hotel and air travel. Hell, even my supermarket lets me interact/order/refund online to my credit card...

 

These are basics. Even my tyre shop has sent me messages about changed hours, etc.

 

So why the heck do any of us who have:  

1. booked months ago

2. Paid months ago

3. Paid in full

4. NOT even seen the ship never mind boarded, or had a drink of water from SB

5. Not been offerred any refund until those who waited till last minute were  able to choose that option instead of FCC.

6. Not communicated with at all in response to requests for information

7. STILL have no idea when we will get

our refunds....

 

Interesting that even those such as Westmount on Sojourn are not delighted with matters now that they are back on shore and again...

 

SEABOURN LEAVES EVERYONE IN THE DARK. PATHETIC CORPORATE ETHIC.

 

WHY BE DEFENSIVE ABOUT SUCH BEHAVIOUR. DOES NOBODY VALUE CORPORATE ETHICS ANYMORE?

 

PLEASE CONSIDER. We were originally schedule for the Singapore to Athen Ovation cruise. Our airfare was not changeable. When the embarkation port was changed to Sri Lanka, with no guarantee from Seabourn of reimbursement for airfares, we chose to take the FCC. If we had hung on, the cruise was cancelled about 24 hours beforehand.  We requested a refund rather than a FCC, but were told that we cancelled too early.  Meanwhile, we have heard nothing on the FCC and my travel agent cannot get an answer either.  Very poor service.

I agree wholeheartedly. 

[rallydave]

On 3/22/2020 at 9:21 AM, 3418ahl said:

It is my understanding that although the ships are registered outside the US to avoid having to follow US regulations, Carnival, Royal Caribbean and other corporations call the US home. "The US entity Carnival Corporation is incorporated in Miami, and its operational headquarters are located in the city of Doral, Florida."

Incorrect, the companies have their home office in the US however are registered  and incorporated outside the US.

[Dusko]

When all this is over I hope that Seabourn and other cruise lines have survived. If they have to go into some sort of financial reorganisation in order to survive and I lose the FCC I've been promised I won't celebrate but it won't be life threatening. With any luck I will have avoided getting sick or dying. I will then cruise again with Seabourn. I believe they will provide once again the exceptional cruise experience that I have known in the past and will be appreciative that I believed in them. I hope that I meet some of the people who have posted on this board and demonstrated understanding and empathy. I would like to thank them. I wish well to others who have promised to follow a different approach. I hope you stay safe during these difficult times and may your cruise on another line be perfect.

[zimflyer]

30 minutes ago, Dusko said:

When all this is over I hope that Seabourn and other cruise lines have survived. If they have to go into some sort of financial reorganisation in order to survive and I lose the FCC I've been promised I won't celebrate but it won't be life threatening. With any luck I will have avoided getting sick or dying. I will then cruise again with Seabourn. I believe they will provide once again the exceptional cruise experience that I have known in the past and will be appreciative that I believed in them. I hope that I meet some of the people who have posted on this board and demonstrated understanding and empathy. I would like to thank them. I wish well to others who have promised to follow a different approach. I hope you stay safe during these difficult times and may your cruise on another line be perfect.

Dusko, it sounds wonderfullly pro Seabourn...

 

Unless you have moneys being held and due to be refunded as the xruise never came to commencement...

 

Never been in SB,

Never set foot aboard yet,

SB agrees to refund me but WON'T  GET ON WITH IT.

 

You're entitled to your beliefs and such.

 

I am talking ethics, in any situation this is appalling. Why dont you address that...?

 

I am quite able to have "understanding and empathy etc.." but I would only have that IF this company actually contacted me once by email to offer ecplanations and reasons for the hold ups, waiting etc 

 

This has NOT happened.

Not to people who have cxd and are awaiting FCC credits...

 

Not to people promised credits for disrupted cruises...

 

Not to people who are awaiting reimbursement for added travel costs to amended itineraries...

 

Not to people who are allowed to cancel for refund to source...

 

IT WOULD TAKE LITTLE EFFORT TO COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY TO ALL CONCERNED "AS VALUED CUSTOMERS".

 

Apparently our money is valued but we are not. Unethical. No more platitudes please....

[Thecat123]

Can anybody tell me of any other cruise line who have sorted out the passengers  cruise payments, FCCs etc  to date?

I read that some cruise lines still have passengers on board

At least Seabourn got us home
Personally I would rather all the different cruise lines worry about getting their passengers and crew home before worrying about my Future Cruise Credit, of which I paid on board just before the shut down, and my promised future credit for the part of our cruise which was cut short

Edited March 25, 2020 by Thecat123

[HappyFeet13]

They are in desperate trouble: Thousands of employees, stuck in out of the way places. Should they send them home? How? Should they put them up in ports they are in? Where? Do they keep paying them? How? They can't keep them aboard ship, too close. Then they have passengers stranded everywhere, and others asking if their cruise is still on for May...June, etc.  Meanwhile, the are losing about $1 million a week. They have to find a place for their ships, they have people booked by the tens of thousands in the upcoming year. Everyone's asking:   Will they sail again? When and from where? How and when will they resume?  In the great scheme of things, giving us folks our money back RIGHT NOW just doesn't make their priority list (even if they did have the money..which they don't). They are doing triage...and have decided that we can wait. We're like a patient in the ER with a broken finger...they'll take care of the guy with chest pain first.  We should all understand that. I think we should cut them some slack. A great company with great people.  I hope I get to sail with them again.  I'll be first in line when they're ready to go.  

[Dusko]

Let's remember that Seabourn's Head Office is in Seattle.  That's King County https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/communicable-diseases/disease-control/novel-coronavirus.aspx .

 

With 94 dead at the moment I hope their employees, the ones who still have a job, are desperately trying to work from home during the lock-down. They have a problem. I have an inconvenience. 

[freddie]

HappyFeet & Dusko - Even though I will admit that I was among those who have judged SB harshly for its clear emphasis upon delaying refunds and playing with FCC's in order to deal with cash flow, I very much appreciate your having pointed out that we should also look at priorities in a larger sense.   

 

We live an hour north of Seattle and about 45 minutes north of the epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in this area.  These are indeed not normal times by any measure.  I think that HappyFeet's analogy to waiting one's reasonable turn in an ER is quite apt in this matter, particularly in view of Dusko's accurate depiction of the dilemma faced by SB employees in Seattle trying to work from home and handle thousands of account adjustments.

 

I entirely agree that while at the end of the day SB must step up and handle all of these adjustments correctly, the suggestion that we should all immediately hold SB's feet to the fire in that regard is rather extreme, considering that we in this part of the country are facing a far more potent fire.

 

Edited March 25, 2020 by freddie

[Thecat123]

These are the ones I feel sorry for and for others much in the same situation

https://thewest.com.au/news/coronavirus/coronavirus-crisis-more-confusion-over-sick-cruise-ship-msc-magnifica-as-route-shows-return-to-wa-ng-b881499238z

Edited March 25, 2020 by Thecat123

[DWF]

11 hours ago, freddie said:

HappyFeet & Dusko - Even though I will admit that I was among those who have judged SB harshly for its clear emphasis upon delaying refunds and playing with FCC's in order to deal with cash flow, I very much appreciate your having pointed out that we should also look at priorities in a larger sense.   

 

We live an hour north of Seattle and about 45 minutes north of the epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in this area.  These are indeed not normal times by any measure.  I think that HappyFeet's analogy to waiting one's reasonable turn in an ER is quite apt in this matter, particularly in view of Dusko's accurate depiction of the dilemma faced by SB employees in Seattle trying to work from home and handle thousands of account adjustments.

 

I entirely agree that while at the end of the day SB must step up and handle all of these adjustments correctly, the suggestion that we should all immediately hold SB's feet to the fire in that regard is rather extreme, considering that we in this part of the country are facing a far more potent fire.

 

I think everyone gets it's a tough time for the cruise industry.  It's the lack of communications on the part of Seabourne that most people find offending.  Rule one in corporate communications is talk to your customers---frequently during a crisis.  I get daily emails from my car dealer, dry cleaner, grocery store, utility company, insurance company, bank, etc. etc., advising me of their status during the Caronavirus crisis and how it will affect me--their customer.   Seabourne has over $20K of my money and I have heard nothing.

[HappyFeet13]

I was wrong earlier. They are not losing a million dollars a week...they are losing more than $1 million a day. Not only is their home base in Seattle (thanks for reminding us of that, DWF), which makes it difficult for them to deal with their headquarters operation, but they have employees scattered all of the world, asking "how do I get home?", and "Do I have a job?", "When do you want me back? And where?" And travel agents hounding them for updates on upcoming cruises. I paid Seabourn and Seabourn Air for the cruise and 1st Class tickets on Qantas (no longer doing any international flights) from Florida to Auckland (no longer accepting cruise ships), for my April 29 "Polynesian Pathways". I bought travel insurance...but it doesn't cover this.  I have $50,000 at risk, so I certainly take this seriously. It is also a lifetime dream trip, crossing the Pacific. I'm unlikely, because of age, health, and upcoming grandchildren's HS and college graduations that occur in late May for the next three years, to have a chance to take the voyage again.  I am disappointed in many, many ways. But I'm not mad at the President, Seabourn, or anyone else. They are doing the best they can. We can help by getting out of their way for a bit, and not clogging their phone lines and wasting their time by asking "What about MY trip next month?" or "When do I get  MY money back?". We are making their jobs more difficult, and distracting them from much more urgent matters. They'll get to us. 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

11 minutes ago, HappyFeet13 said:

I was wrong earlier. They are not losing a million dollars a week...they are losing more than $1 million a day. Not only is their home base in Seattle (thanks for reminding us of that, DWF), which makes it difficult for them to deal with their headquarters operation, but they have employees scattered all of the world, asking "how do I get home?", and "Do I have a job?", "When do you want me back? And where?" And travel agents hounding them for updates on upcoming cruises. I paid Seabourn and Seabourn Air for the cruise and 1st Class tickets on Qantas (no longer doing any international flights) from Florida to Auckland (no longer accepting cruise ships), for my April 29 "Polynesian Pathways". I bought travel insurance...but it doesn't cover this.  I have $50,000 at risk, so I certainly take this seriously. It is also a lifetime dream trip, crossing the Pacific. I'm unlikely, because of age, health, and upcoming grandchildren's HS and college graduations that occur in late May for the next three years, to have a chance to take the voyage again.  I am disappointed in many, many ways. But I'm not mad at the President, Seabourn, or anyone else. They are doing the best they can. We can help by getting out of their way for a bit, and not clogging their phone lines and wasting their time by asking "What about MY trip next month?" or "When do I get  MY money back?". We are making their jobs more difficult, and distracting them from much more urgent matters. They'll get to us. 

 

Very nicely said.  I was reminded of all those hapless agents on phones who are trying to keep it together for us in so many ways. I feel for your risk--here I am on hold with my internet operator in Florida trying to get a seasonal disconnect set up so I can save $35/month.  Not important in the scheme of things.  I have $30K tied up in a Regent deposit, but thankfully don't have to pay for the cruise until July, for January 2021.

[JP1320]

14 hours ago, Dusko said:

Let's remember that Seabourn's Head Office is in Seattle.  That's King County https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/communicable-diseases/disease-control/novel-coronavirus.aspx .

 

With 94 dead at the moment I hope their employees, the ones who still have a job, are desperately trying to work from home during the lock-down. They have a problem. I have an inconvenience. 

An excellent response to an awful dilemma, and that is just in the Seattle area. One has to keep this in mind instead of bleating about how the lack of responses are from the Seabourn employees. We are all safe and snug perhaps in our own self imposed lockdown, with time to kill on our hands, hence the heavy responses on CC. Try siting at home with multiple phones ringing from all over the world, well at least from within the USA and wondering how do we, possibly as a family, survive another two weeks or more. End of my soap box, comments. Oh and incidentally we have a considerable investment in cruises which we see as a no go.

[westmount]

Yesterday, Royal Caribbean’ took care of their finances with the aid of their major shareholders, and I expect Carnival to do the same thing shortly. Once done, the cruise industry will so p.y have to sit on the sidelines While the health issues of the virus is figured out. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, everyone will be made whole at some point, as the cruise lines want their best clients back, and will figure out once they can breath how to fix the various issues. 
  There are still passengers stuck on ships out there, so I’m just happy right now in being home, although in quarantine. Based on how the airlines have treated passengers, the cruise lines look like saints, so give it a bit of time. If it’s up to President Yoda, those who want to cruise in two weeks just might be able to, but I doubt you could find five ports that would take you in nor a crew that wants to see you without a test certificate. 
  If there is a cruise that goes anywhere, it looks like you’ll have to be under 60 and traveling between Mexico and Brazil, so relax, they know where to find you. Lastly, if you booked and paid in full for a cruise that hasn’t left yet, much of the threat of the virus was out there, so if wait, you’ll probably have a canceled cruise and refund, or simply take the fcc and you’ll get a bonus. 
   I know there’s not much I can do at this stage, but with time and patience, I’m sure those of us who sailed to nowhere and enjoy Seabourn will be satisfied, as I doubt any of the lines want their passengers to switch lines, especially since they were all in the same boat. 
  First things first, let’s get everyone on land and home. 

[ab21au]

22 hours ago, zimflyer said:

SB agrees to refund me but WON'T  GET ON WITH IT.

I am still waiting on one of the refunds (as advised by SB) but I think that is because of logistics not that they want to keep the money. Several other refunds have been performed within days, and these are of far more value than the one I am waiting for. 

[Paulchili]

3 hours ago, ab21au said:

I am still waiting on one of the refunds (as advised by SB) but I think that is because of logistics not that they want to keep the money. Several other refunds have been performed within days, and these are of far more value than the one I am waiting for. 

I submitted my claim for airline ticket change fees refund on 3/2 but have not heard back from SB.

I called them yesterday and left a message. The call was returned today and after investigating my claim, the rep found it as being received on 3/6 and they are currently working on claims from around 2/27 or so. In addition, she is working from home and EVERYTHING is done mannually so it takes a lot longer.

At least I know that they have the claim and I know it will be a while before they get to it.

Probably the same for my tax refund.

[ab21au]

6 minutes ago, Paulchili said:

I submitted my claim for airline ticket change fees refund on 3/2 but have not heard back from SB.

Shouldn’t be too long, I submitted mine near the end of Feb and it was approved and I received an email a few days ago. 

[Paulchili]

4 minutes ago, ab21au said:

Shouldn’t be too long, I submitted mine near the end of Feb and it was approved and I received an email a few days ago. 

Fingers and toes crossed 😃

If you can comment - did you receive the full amount of your claim and was it in 3 or 4 digits? I am just wondering if they have a “ceiling” for these claims.

[Ubiquiti]

23-Feb: We submitted our claim (Air and misc)

 

Today: Recieved two offers. 100% refund (check/cheque), or 125% FCC, of the claimed amount.

[Paulchili]

19 minutes ago, Ubiquiti said:

23-Feb: We submitted our claim (Air and misc)

 

Today: Recieved two offers. 100% refund (check/cheque), or 125% FCC, of the claimed amount.

May I ask which cruise? Was it cancelled by you or the SB?

We cancelled on 2/27 when a significant change in itinerary was announced - our only offer was for 100% FCC.

How much was your air & misc amount, if you feel comfortable sharing this.

I ask this as amounts of cruise fare refunds (where offered) are not in dispute. Question is whether they have a limit on air & misc expenses.

Edited March 26, 2020 by Paulchili