Canada Ban on Cruise Ships until July 1st

[koolforkatz]

https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/canada-to-ban-all-cruise-ships-over-500-people-until-july-1.4851940

 

 

[picture]

We have a 14 day cruise leaving from Los Angeles at the end of May with a stopover in Vancouver.

does this mean our cruise will be canceled?  Anyone know ? Status of those Alaskan Cruises ?  That would just about wiped out the season?

[13cheermom]

So this pretty much wipes out Alaskan cruises from the 5/10/20 - 6/30/20 sailing dates doesn't it?  Have to visit a foreign port when doing a RT cruise out of Seattle don't you?

[Grayce]

That will kill the Alaska cruise season.

[13cheermom]

Just now, picture said:

We have a 14 day cruise leaving from Los Angeles at the end of May with a stopover in Vancouver.

does this mean our cruise will be canceled?  Anyone know ? Status of those Alaskan Cruises ?  That would just about wiped out the season?

We were posting at the same time.  We have RT out of Seattle 5/16/20, which is right after the 60-day timeline, not sure how they can get around this.  Wish they would just go ahead and make a decision to cover all these dates instead of just leaving us in limbo at this point.

[Italy52]

We have a May 20 B2B  to Alaska that leaves and returns to Vancouver.  Wonder how long it will take Princess to address this new issue and send out notifications ---- such a shame for all. 

[13cheermom]

5 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

We have a May 20 B2B  to Alaska that leaves and returns to Vancouver.  Wonder how long it will take Princess to address this new issue and send out notifications ---- such a shame for all. 

It is, and even though I felt a sigh of relief that the original dates stopped before our cruise dates, deep down inside something told me, this is only the beginning.  Just sad, because this was a family trip for us, flying across country.  Can't always reschedule  an Alaskan cruise, inside passage, with work schedules. Oh well.

[beg3yrs]

One thing the US Govt could do is create temporary waivers of the PVSA to allow Alaska cruises to work from LA, SF and Seattle.

[Tophat4321]

government likely will waive Jones act

 

[beg3yrs]

1 minute ago, Tophat4321 said:

government likely will waive Jones act

 

Jones act is for cargo, not passengers. It's the PVSA they need to waive. Two different laws.

[Astro Flyer]

19 minutes ago, 13cheermom said:

Have to visit a foreign port when doing a RT cruise out of Seattle don't you?

In some situations the US has waived the PVSA foreign port requirement on a case by case basis. Recently they waived that requirement for the Grand to not stop in Ensenada at the end of it’s Hawaii cruise r/t SF. Many years ago returning from Hawaii (r/t LA) our ship technically met that requirement for an Ensenada stop. The ship slowed down offshore for a Mexican gunboat to arrive with authorities to meet the PVSA’s foreign port requirement. 
 

Both of these could be possibilities for Seattle r/t Alaska cruises but there’s no way to know if the PVSA waivers would be granted or even if Alaskan ports will be open at that time.

Edited March 13, 2020 by Astro Flyer

[Roberto256]

18 minutes ago, 13cheermom said:

So this pretty much wipes out Alaskan cruises from the 5/10/20 - 6/30/20 sailing dates doesn't it?  Have to visit a foreign port when doing a RT cruise out of Seattle don't you?

 

Yes, you would have to visit a nearby foreign port for the itinerary to be 'legal'.

 

However, princess might be able to finagle something with Victoria where they stop for a few hours,

for a 'service call', where no passengers are let off the ship, but it meets the PVSA requirements.

 

Like Ensenada.

 

 

[Schonert]

They will allow it if the hit to the economy of Alaska is too much.

And if they do they may change the Vancouver departures to Seattle.

[13cheermom]

Well for our cruise they gave until 3/31/20 to make cancellations, so hope they decide what they want to do before then or either extend our original cancel date.  It's not fair to leave all these sailings between 5/10/20 - 6/30/20 in limbo when they know of this recent change.  I have been holding on to keeping this booking intact but I'm about ready to give up and finally surrender. 😪

[ceilidh1]

Wow - this is huge! As someone that lives walking distance to Port of Vancouver and worked many years as port agent there for Princess, I am so concerned for the many, many people that will be out of work due to this! I completely understand the reasons and health is more important than money, but for those hourly workers...bills still need to be paid. And in a city as expensive as Vancouver, most of us are already living pay cheque to pay cheque. I'm thinking it will only be a matter of days before my workplace closes it's doors, too, since we are 100% in direct contact with members of the public.

[rocklinmom]

Wow glad I already cancelled our June Alaska cruise.

[Astro Flyer]

9 minutes ago, 13cheermom said:

Well for our cruise they gave until 3/31/20 to make cancellations, so hope they decide what they want to do before then or either extend our original cancel date.  It's not fair to leave all these sailings between 5/10/20 - 6/30/20 in limbo when they know of this recent change.  I have been holding on to keeping this booking intact but I'm about ready to give up and finally surrender. 😪

We canceled our early May cruises on 3/11 a day before the 60 day shutdown was announced which included our cruises. Yesterday (3/12) my TA processed our request for Option 1 (keep our cruise fare & receive an extra 50% of FCC) which was accepted by Princess for our cruises canceled the day before our cruise. That FCC could take up to 30 business days so we won’t see it in our Captain’s Circle account for awhile to confirm everything is done correctly.

 

I’d expect all cruise lines affected by the Canadian port shutdown to eventually offer similar compensation offers. Each of us have our own level of comfort when deciding whether to cancel or not.

[Italy52]

3 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

We canceled our early May cruises on 3/11 a day before the 60 day shutdown was announced which included our cruises. Yesterday (3/12) my TA processed our request for Option 1 (keep our cruise fare & receive an extra 50% of FCC) which was accepted by Princess for our cruises canceled the day before our cruise. That FCC could take up to 30 business days so we won’t see it in our Captain’s Circle account for awhile to confirm everything is done correctly.

 

I’d expect all cruise lines affected by the Canadian port shutdown to eventually offer similar compensation offers. Each of us have our own level of comfort when deciding whether to cancel or not.

Did you have any perks (free OBC, drinks, etc.) that would be transferred to a new reservation?  Or, did you loose them (if you had them)?

[Astro Flyer]

2 minutes ago, rocklinmom said:

Wow glad I already cancelled our June Alaska cruise.

Maybe like our early May cruises being canceled yesterday after we canceled them, Princess will offer a similar compensation option for you...let them keep your cruise fare as a FCC to receive an additional 50% FCC or to keep your refund & receive a 25% FCC.

 

For passengers affected by the 60 day cancelations & who have received a refund then Princess would charge the cruise fare & provide 150% of that amount as a FCC valid until May 2022.

My client already cancelled one of the affected cruises. Can I switch them to the higher value Future Cruise Credit?
Yes, if your client cancelled one of the affected cruises between Feb 4 and Mar 11, 2020 and was already inside Final Payment, they are eligible to receive Option 1 in the table above. To receive this updated offer, they will need to pay us the original cruise or cruisetour fare on their booking first, so you or your client should contact our customer relations team. Owing to anticipated high call volumes, we ask you to defer until March 18“.

 

That was my situation & maybe you’ll eventually be eligible for a similar offer...my TA submitted our request yesterday & she forwarded us the Princess confirmation for our Option 1 request.

 

https://static.cdn.responsys.net/i2/responsysimages/content/princessus/Voluntary 60-day Pause of Global Cruise Operations Memo and QA_TA.pdf?cid=brand_email_info_internal_announcement_agentnews_se0ms053_200312_&eccn=&rrid=00131270&mi_u=00131270

 

[Astro Flyer]

15 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

Did you have any perks (free OBC, drinks, etc.) that would be transferred to a new reservation?  Or, did you loose them (if you had them)?

We had tips & $1600 of OBC (some such as military, shareholder, loyalty are on each cruise so not truly lost) which in this document my TA shared with me states amenities are lost along with answering many other FAQs in the PDF attached here.

 

What if my client had onboard amenities as part of a promotion? Are they included on their Future Cruise Credit?
Promotional items, such as onboard credit or Wi-Fi that were included in the cruise fare will be forfeited and are not transferable to a future sailing.
 

Voluntary 60-day Pause of Global Cruise Operations Memo and QA_TA.pdf

Edited March 13, 2020 by Astro Flyer

[XBGuy]

22 minutes ago, Roberto256 said:

 

Yes, you would have to visit a nearby foreign port for the itinerary to be 'legal'.

 

However, princess might be able to finagle something with Victoria where they stop for a few hours,

for a 'service call', where no passengers are let off the ship, but it meets the PVSA requirements.

 

Like Ensenada.

 

 

 

Last September, we took the 12-day Los Angeles-Alaska roundtrip on the Royal Princess.  Our final port was to be Victoria.  However, just before our departure, we were advised by Princess that we would be making a "service call" at Victoria and no passengers would be able to leave the ship.  The problem was that upgrades to the Victoria dock facilities, required to accommodate the Royal Princess had not been completed.  (The story I heard was that the steel needed for the upgrade was lost at sea when the ship carrying the steel from China encountered a storm.  It is not clear to me whether or not that story is true, but I sure did like it.)  So, instead of docking at Victoria, we anchored a few miles off-shore.  A small boat with, presumably, Canadian officials met us, and I assume that paperwork was completed.  A few hours later, we sailed away back to Los Angeles.

 

So, it looks like that kind of accommodation can be made, but a PVSA waiver also seems doable.

 

If the port of Seattle is closed, then my guess is that the only Alaska cruises will be roundtrips from other ports--Los Angeles, San Francisco, Whittier/Seward.  However, I am getting less and less optimistic about any cruising out of the west coast for even longer than the 60-day suspension that Princess has announced.

[Italy52]

26 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

We had tips & $1600 of OBC (some such as military, shareholder, loyalty are on each cruise so not truly lost) which in this document my TA shared with me states amenities are lost along with answering many other FAQs in the PDF attached here.

 

What if my client had onboard amenities as part of a promotion? Are they included on their Future Cruise Credit?
Promotional items, such as onboard credit or Wi-Fi that were included in the cruise fare will be forfeited and are not transferable to a future sailing.
 

Voluntary 60-day Pause of Global Cruise Operations Memo and QA_TA.pdf 333.41 kB · 1 download

Thank you very much.  The information you provided is very helpful.  We will wait and see what are the options presented to us but sounds like we should take Option 1 and then wait for a sale to rebook. 

[Astro Flyer]

21 minutes ago, Italy52 said:

Thank you very much.  The information you provided is very helpful.  We will wait and see what are the options presented to us but sounds like we should take Option 1 and then wait for a sale to rebook. 

You’re welcome...hopefully things work out for you.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

4 minutes ago, mellen3869 said:

This is our first cruise. We are scheduled to do RT to Alaska from Seattle on June 6. We booked ourselves online and it’s all paid for (fare, drinks, cabin upgrades, excursions flights hotels - all of it). I’m really confused as to what to do and what is happening. We don’t have a travel agent to call. I’ve tried calling princess and have been told our cruise is still set to sail as planned. I have no idea what future cruise credits are or if we are eligible or any of it.


Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

As this was just announced this afternoon I'd give Princess 48-72hrs to develop a response.  I'm sure things are insane there right now trying to sort all this out!  Once they get things sorted they will post on their webpage and/or email you directly to the email on your reservation.  Watch your inbox AND spam folder closely

[JF - retired RRT]

4 minutes ago, mellen3869 said:

This is our first cruise. We are scheduled to do RT to Alaska from Seattle on June 6. We booked ourselves online and it’s all paid for (fare, drinks, cabin upgrades, excursions flights hotels - all of it). I’m really confused as to what to do and what is happening. We don’t have a travel agent to call. I’ve tried calling princess and have been told our cruise is still set to sail as planned. I have no idea what future cruise credits are or if we are eligible or any of it.
 

Research Future Cruise Credit on Google (easier than the search function here).

If your cruise is cancelled, you'll almost certainly get the same kind of compensation that's happening now.

Don't panic and cancel ...yet.

We were booked on a cruise for May 6 and trying to decide if we should cancel or wait. We waited and now Princess has taken care of us.

 

Do you have Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) insurance? If so, you'll be able to cancel using that, if you decide to bail.

Hopefully, you have some kind of travel insurance. Never cruise without it. You don't know what could happen.