Anthem Delay - the Latest

[Barb Nahoumi]

4 hours ago, Biker19 said:

From earlier in this thread:

 

I prefer Bermuda to Nassau.

[SWEMarcus]

The compensation from Royal is simply pathetic. For 3 missed days and loss of ports our 50% promised compensation came down to $14 per person...

 

According to Royal its paid money and because we used FCC for parts of the cruise they wont refund that.

 

We are not happy and if we knew our compensation for 3 missed days would be $14 per person we would have cancelled.

[reallyitsmema]

3 minutes ago, SWEMarcus said:

The compensation from Royal is simply pathetic. For 3 missed days and loss of ports our 50% promised compensation came down to $14 per person...

 

According to Royal its paid money and because we used FCC for parts of the cruise they wont refund that.

 

We are not happy and if we knew our compensation for 3 missed days would be $14 per person we would have cancelled.

 

You future cruise credit will also be based on what you actually spent after any FCC applied.  

[HBE4]

1 hour ago, marci22 said:

That's classic North Jersey driving conditions. Made me laugh cause I've done the same many times. Congratulations on getting there. I used to commute into Newark for a job and you do get used to it. That being said, once you're in the train station it's a quick ride into the city. 

 

I think my pride was wounded more than anything else. I kinda live locally - about an hour away - consider myself a competent driver, and gone directly to EWR plenty of times, been to downtown Newark (Prudential Center) and visited family and friends in the Secaucus and surrounding areas. The only reason I was staying overnight at the hotel was I got a good deal with 7 nights free parking and had a 5:30 am flight the next day,

 

I was probably more annoyed that I was missing the complimentary happy hours as I spent  30 minutes driving in circles.😉 Even the hotel clerks admit that many people, including taxi's,  have trouble getting there. And it's a real, national chain hotel.

 

Anyway, back to your point and what others have said, once you get to Newark Penn station or any of the other NJ Transit stations, they could have been in the heart of Manhattan in 10-15 minutes.

 

 

[Iamcruzin]

42 minutes ago, SWEMarcus said:

The compensation from Royal is simply pathetic. For 3 missed days and loss of ports our 50% promised compensation came down to $14 per person...

 

According to Royal its paid money and because we used FCC for parts of the cruise they wont refund that.

 

We are not happy and if we knew our compensation for 3 missed days would be $14 per person we would have cancelled.

That’s awful. 

[Cruiser929]

I also think their compensation is pathetic.

 

Look, I love RCCL. I'll sail with them again. But - they made a decision that negatively impacted thousands of their customers. Their compensation was either to simply return the money with a night of hotel as compensation. Or - bring people to a windy, chilly island for less days for half price, and give the other half as a FCC.

 

Why are the people who didn't wait around in Bayonne for a decision to be made, get a FCC? 

[marci22]

35 minutes ago, Cruiser929 said:

I also think their compensation is pathetic.

 

Look, I love RCCL. I'll sail with them again. But - they made a decision that negatively impacted thousands of their customers. Their compensation was either to simply return the money with a night of hotel as compensation. Or - bring people to a windy, chilly island for less days for half price, and give the other half as a FCC.

 

Why are the people who didn't wait around in Bayonne for a decision to be made, get a FCC? 

Bermuda was their only alternative. Some people still wanted their vacation. I hope they are having a good time. 

 

If you do not like the complete refund and flight change fees offer, send an email.

[bjlaac]

20 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

CDC was in control of the information flow, not Royal Caribbean.  The cruise line had to wait for results.  As far as your hotel choice, check out Jersey City next time and not hotels near EWR.  There are ferries from Jersey City that could have taken you into NYC where you would have had many things to do.  The $200 flight change fee was just that, compensation to cover your change fee for your flight.  If the flight was more expensive, you can file a claim with your travel insurance. 

 

The cruise line was in a lose lose position and they did their best to keep everyone safe,  Sometimes, when life gives you lemons, you have to make lemonade.

Please don't make things up.  We too were at the pier on Friday and handed a statement that the CDC cleared the

Anthem to sail last Friday.  Every decision to delay was RCL's no one elses.  We would also have sailed if they didn't wait so long to decide boarding would start on Sunday instead of Monday.

Edited February 13, 2020 by bjlaac

[Cruiser929]

16 minutes ago, marci22 said:

Bermuda was their only alternative. Some people still wanted their vacation. I hope they are having a good time. 

 

If you do not like the complete refund and flight change fees offer, send an email.

I understand their position, and if I was the guy making the calls, I can't say I'd do it any better or different. Except, everyone should have been provided a FCC. That is all I am saying.

[HBE4]

47 minutes ago, bjlaac said:

Please don't make things up.  We too were at the pier on Friday and handed a statement that the CDC cleared the

Anthem to sail last Friday.  Every decision to delay was RCL's no one elses.  We would also have sailed if they didn't wait so long to decide boarding would start on Sunday instead of Monday.

 

I didn't take the time to read back thru the half-dozen Anthem threads but if memory serves me correctly, Royal wanted additional time to give the ship a "deep cleaning" and to arrange an alternate itinerary.

 

I do see your point about first telling passengers that boarding was Monday, then switching to Sunday, after some passengers had left. It sucks but I would just chalk that up to fast moving events and split second decisions being made. Perhaps the communications dept was too eager to get info to the stranded passengers and announced the Monday departure when they should have waited longer?

 

43 minutes ago, Cruiser929 said:

understand their position, and if I was the guy making the calls, I can't say I'd do it any better or different. Except, everyone should have been provided a FCC. That is all I am saying.

 

Just out of curiosity, what is the advantage of FCC?  I would think a full refund would be better so you can spend you money sooner and on something else. But I'm not familiar  with the details of FCC.

 

[Cruiser929]

1 minute ago, HBE4 said:

Just out of curiosity, what is the advantage of FCC?  I would think a full refund would be better so you can spend you money sooner and on something else. But I'm not familiar  with the details of FCC.

 

Give me my money back, and give me an incentive to book again on RCCL. That is what the FCC is for

[Ourusualbeach]

1 hour ago, bjlaac said:

Please don't make things up.  We too were at the pier on Friday and handed a statement that the CDC cleared the

Anthem to sail last Friday.  Every decision to delay was RCL's no one elses.  We would also have sailed if they didn't wait so long to decide boarding would start on Sunday instead of Monday.

You are correct that the CDC did give the ship the OK to sail on Friday however, there was a huge number of guests who were rightfully concerned that they would be allowed to board a ship where they had just had 12 people in isolation and were now taking 4 to the hospital for testing.

 

Royal did the prudent thing in delaying the sailing to wait for 100% conclusive results of that testing (which due to the CDC was delayed) so that the guests that chose to sail with them knew with 100% certainty that they were boarding a safe ship.  

 

Yes things did did not go as planned, the situation was fluid and decisions were made as soon as they had the relevant information to ensure that the correct decision was made.

 

The CDC had initially said Monday for the results which is why Monday was set as the departure date.  When the test results came back early Royal allowed everyone to board a day early yet they still honoured the 50% off and 50% FCC even though guests were boarding a day earlier than planned.  

Edited February 13, 2020 by Ourusualbeach

[bjlaac]

7 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

You are correct that the CDC did give the ship the OK to sail on Friday however, there was a huge number of guests who were rightfully concerned that they would be allowed to board a ship where they had just had 12 people in isolation and were now taking 4 to the hospital for testing.

 

Royal did the prudent thing in delaying the sailing to wait for 100% conclusive results of that testing (which due to the CDC was delayed) so that the guests that chose to sail with them knew with 100% certainty that they were boarding a safe ship.  

 

Yes things did did not go as planned, the situation was fluid and decisions were made as soon as they had the relevant information to ensure that the correct decision was made.

 

The CDC had initially said Monday for the results which is why Monday was set as the departure date.  When the test results came back early Royal allowed everyone to board a day early yet they still honoured the 50% off and 50% FCC even though guests were boarding a day earlier than planned.  

My comment was in regard to someone saying it was the CDC calling the shots and not RCL,  I don't really think RCL did all that bad in this except for communication.  I don't know if you were sailing this trip or not but we were, and it was terrible from the first message on Thursday about delayed boarding it contained nothing about not boarding for day(s).  Not until there were lines of cars at the pier (about 11:30) did they send out a message they were not sailing at all on Friday but would be on Saturday.  No one was looking at their phones and even if they did, they were already making their way to the pier,

 

And then we went to the constant changing of stories about boarding times, days, itinerary, etc.  It was a mess for anyone expecting to be on vacation and it all could have been avoided on Thursday if the message said there was a chance they would not sail on Friday, please wait for the next update.  It would have been better than people spending money on transportation, hotels and food when it wasn't warranted.

[CoolNickname]

8 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

 

I do see your point about first telling passengers that boarding was Monday, then switching to Sunday, after some passengers had left. It sucks but I would just chalk that up to fast moving events and split second decisions being made. Perhaps the communications dept was too eager to get info to the stranded passengers and announced the Monday departure when they should have waited longer?

 

 

 

I would chalk it up to Royal's incompetence because that's exactly what that is. 

[morfred]

Can you give it a rest already. RCL did the best that they could. Get on with your life.

[reallyitsmema]

9 hours ago, bjlaac said:

Please don't make things up.  We too were at the pier on Friday and handed a statement that the CDC cleared the

Anthem to sail last Friday.  Every decision to delay was RCL's no one elses.  We would also have sailed if they didn't wait so long to decide boarding would start on Sunday instead of Monday.

 

38 minutes ago, bjlaac said:

My comment was in regard to someone saying it was the CDC calling the shots and not RCL,  I don't really think RCL did all that bad in this except for communication.  I don't know if you were sailing this trip or not but we were, and it was terrible from the first message on Thursday about delayed boarding it contained nothing about not boarding for day(s).  Not until there were lines of cars at the pier (about 11:30) did they send out a message they were not sailing at all on Friday but would be on Saturday.  No one was looking at their phones and even if they did, they were already making their way to the pier,

 

And then we went to the constant changing of stories about boarding times, days, itinerary, etc.  It was a mess for anyone expecting to be on vacation and it all could have been avoided on Thursday if the message said there was a chance they would not sail on Friday, please wait for the next update.  It would have been better than people spending money on transportation, hotels and food when it wasn't warranted.

 

Royal Caribbean was waiting for all the results to come back from the CDC before they sailed, thus the CDC was calling the shots.  It was out of the cruise lines control when the tests were going to be completed.  They pushed the boarding out to Monday when they were told the results were coming in late Saturday, information controlled by the CDC, not the cruise line.  The CDC then provided the information earlier than expected.  Royal Caribbean could have then said, hey, we are going to sail Sunday, but they allowed people to board and enjoy the ship and the rest could board on Monday so they didn't have to change their plans again.

 

If people weren't checking their phones for information, that is foolish.  Ships come back with norovirus, influenza and yes, coronavirus.  Situation like this are fluid and plans can change at the drop of a hat.

 

I understand that people are frustrated, but the cruise line can only do so much.  Not everyone is going to be happy.

[uvadover]

13 hours ago, marci22 said:

Bermuda was their only alternative. Some people still wanted their vacation. I hope they are having a good time. 

 

If you do not like the complete refund and flight change fees offer, send an email.

 

Are there any threads/live reviews for folks on the Anthem Bermuda sailing?  Hope they are having a great time.  I'd imagine it's a unique experience.

[marci22]

7 hours ago, uvadover said:

 

Are there any threads/live reviews for folks on the Anthem Bermuda sailing?  Hope they are having a great time.  I'd imagine it's a unique experience.

If you go to the roll call for that sailing a few people have posted. 

[bjlaac]

17 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

 

Royal Caribbean was waiting for all the results to come back from the CDC before they sailed, thus the CDC was calling the shots.  It was out of the cruise lines control when the tests were going to be completed.  They pushed the boarding out to Monday when they were told the results were coming in late Saturday, information controlled by the CDC, not the cruise line.  The CDC then provided the information earlier than expected.  Royal Caribbean could have then said, hey, we are going to sail Sunday, but they allowed people to board and enjoy the ship and the rest could board on Monday so they didn't have to change their plans again.

 

If people weren't checking their phones for information, that is foolish.  Ships come back with norovirus, influenza and yes, coronavirus.  Situation like this are fluid and plans can change at the drop of a hat.

 

I understand that people are frustrated, but the cruise line can only do so much.  Not everyone is going to be happy.

You really are a cheerleader or completely blind. No one but RCL was calling the shots after Friday.  No one but RCL chose not to sail.  Your argument is like saying the lobster delivery was not available on Friday  so the food vendor decided when RCL should sail  
 

Give all of us who lost out on a vacation some slack.  I hope one day you pull up to a pier after waiting as long as a year with anticipation and told you should be checking the phone and we don’t know when we are sailing.  Better yet I hope they tell you go home and come back tomorrow. And tomorrow I hope they tell you to come back tomorrow night abd tomorriw night I hope they tell you to come back on Monday and the day after I hope they tell you to come today if you feel like it 

[red devil]

The longer delay may have been because of the crew member death or ???? just saying.

[Cruiser929]

50 minutes ago, bjlaac said:

You really are a cheerleader or completely blind. No one but RCL was calling the shots after Friday.  No one but RCL chose not to sail.  Your argument is like saying the lobster delivery was not available on Friday  so the food vendor decided when RCL should sail  
 

Give all of us who lost out on a vacation some slack.  I hope one day you pull up to a pier after waiting as long as a year with anticipation and told you should be checking the phone and we don’t know when we are sailing.  Better yet I hope they tell you go home and come back tomorrow. And tomorrow I hope they tell you to come back tomorrow night abd tomorriw night I hope they tell you to come back on Monday and the day after I hope they tell you to come today if you feel like it 

Bravo....this is exactly how I feel. 👏👏👏

[marci22]

I don't think anyone here can say why RC acted as they did. Common sense would say that they didn't do it on purpose. They don't want to aggravate customers, they don't want to have an empty ship. On the other hand if they just went ahead and cancelled the cruise from the start, you would have people saying, 'why did they do that?!'. Just a bad situation for both the company and the customers. 

 

If I was upset with RC I would not come here and yell, I would email the company. I've had some complaints over the years and I do think they treated me fairly. I wrote my complaints out and tried to stay on topic and keep it short. I suggest anyone who still has a complaint over how this was handled do the same thing. 

 

mbaylee@rccl.com

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, bjlaac said:

You really are a cheerleader or completely blind. No one but RCL was calling the shots after Friday.  No one but RCL chose not to sail.  Your argument is like saying the lobster delivery was not available on Friday  so the food vendor decided when RCL should sail  
 

Give all of us who lost out on a vacation some slack.  I hope one day you pull up to a pier after waiting as long as a year with anticipation and told you should be checking the phone and we don’t know when we are sailing.  Better yet I hope they tell you go home and come back tomorrow. And tomorrow I hope they tell you to come back tomorrow night abd tomorriw night I hope they tell you to come back on Monday and the day after I hope they tell you to come today if you feel like it 

 

I am not a cheerleader, I am a realist.  Comparing waiting for CDC findings to a food delivery is ridiculous.  What would you be saying if Royal Caribbean did decide to sail earlier and the CDC findings showed that someone did have coronavirus?  You would be complaining about them making a rash decision.  They were in a no win situation and were not going to please everyone.  They erred on the side of caution.

 

If ranting at me makes you feel better, have at it.  I know many people who did choose to sail and had a wonderful time in Bermuda.  

 

No vacation is ever perfect, sometimes you need to adjust.  A 50% refund and a 50% FCC for those who did sail would have had us on that ship looking forward to Bermuda again.  

[ed01106]

11 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

I am not a cheerleader, I am a realist.  Comparing waiting for CDC findings to a food delivery is ridiculous.  What would you be saying if Royal Caribbean did decide to sail earlier and the CDC findings showed that someone did have coronavirus?  You would be complaining about them making a rash decision.  They were in a no win situation and were not going to please everyone.  They erred on the side of caution.

 

If ranting at me makes you feel better, have at it.  I know many people who did choose to sail and had a wonderful time in Bermuda.  

 

No vacation is ever perfect, sometimes you need to adjust.  A 50% refund and a 50% FCC for those who did sail would have had us on that ship looking forward to Bermuda again.  

Total BS saying this was a decision of CDC.  RCL went out of its way to repeatedly state that the decision to delay the sailing was 100% their choice and all relevant health and governmental agencies had cleared the ship to depart and sail on the original schedule.

 

I happen to be of the opinion that the delay was the correct choice, but the choice was 100% on them, whether you agree with the choice or not.  Stating that CDC was to blame for the delay is nonsensical.

[dcruisers]

On 2/8/2020 at 12:28 PM, Jedge said:

So if I get a refund for the cruise, what about all the money I spent flying from Kansas? It’s a bad situation for them, I get it, but they are a big business. We are small consumers that cant just eat the cost.

I sure hope you have travel insurance.  Your travel insurance would take care of any other expenses. 

We have been sailing since 1989 and never go on any cruise without insurance. And we have used it a number of times ......even got reimbursed for having to divert our flight home, hotel room and all expenses  because of blizzard at our home airport.