DON"T BOOK Royal Caribbean

[Joseph2017China]

Don't try to explain, or overread the poster.  Many of us, even those loyal to Royal, have had changes in the last year.  I had a total of 3 trips canceled on cruises, and two land based trips.  Land based was with American airlines travel.  Each one, involved, the movement of money, and refunds, and FCC and OBC and other stuff.  Eventually, I went to Las Vegas, and Morocco for a land based vacation, and managed two other smaller trips in the USA, and now will be on a cruise in 24 days.  Paid for mostly with the 25% section of my free money.  I could cry, say never will be back, but you can say that for any and all vacations in the last year.  I just called RCCL and got $86 of OBC for my cruise in 24 days.  It's like I keep getting more an more free stuff.  But I also had 125% OBC for canceled stuff, so 25% of what I got on the ship so far was free.   Point is, it sucks, but it will get better and normal in 2023.  Now you just need to play around, and adapt.

[sunbrookgal]

1. RCL opened up those ships for booking while they were in cold lay-up.  

2. RCL subsequently accepted booking for those ships while still in cold lay-up.

3. RCL decides those sailings will not happen, yet accepted deposits for them. 

 

1. When did RCL know they were getting ahead of themselves? 

2. Who in RCL made those decisions, to open them up and then to close. 

 

For the dissing out there, remember someone accepting cash for a product that does not yet exist is , well, interesting at best. After 16 plus months the excuses I read here do not hold water. RCL has a solid product. I expect better from this corporation. 

[Eddie Wilson]

1 hour ago, djefferis said:

Or were you just trolling in hopes that someone from RCL would see the post - rush in and offer you a massive compensation package and make you happy? 

23 minutes ago, djefferis said:

don’t “love” RCL or have some blind allegiance to them - I just hate “Karen’s” more and their blind beliefs that the world needs to hear more from them and rally behind their battle cry of “I demand to speak to your manager

 

 

I call it the Covid ripple effect.

 

I also don’t care for Karen’s, but I think (just an opinion) the OP was just venting, exasperated by the long term Covid mess, the big anniversary, and whatever else.

I too have worn my emotions on my sleeve and needed to vent.  

 

Eddie

[BecciBoo]

10 hours ago, RoyalC said:

The best they can? Laughable

Maybe you should apply for the CEO spot and we'll see how well you do....no moccasins in your closet I'll bet.  Laughable.😆

[Biker19]

2 minutes ago, sunbrookgal said:

I expect better from this corporation. 

Shore side, one shouldn't. Set the expectations real low.

[BecciBoo]

It's amazing how one cruise season will convince someone they are being taken advantage of.  I have been almost exclusively cruising with RCCL for 25 years and never once did they not resolve a complaint for me.  Yes, it took sometimes a week or two for a refund, but never over that.  In fact their service has been superlative in most cases.  If you doubt me, why would I keep sailing with them.  Nope, much ado about nothing IMO.  That's life with covid.  Meat processors, groceries and retailers everywhere aren't doing much better if not worse than RCCL.  And you can laugh yourself sick....

[BecciBoo]

1 hour ago, PolytheneGirl said:

We've re-booked the original honeymoon cruise for our first anniversary instead 😉

Ata girl!  Great attitude

[mek]

6 minutes ago, sunbrookgal said:

1. RCL opened up those ships for booking while they were in cold lay-up.  

2. RCL subsequently accepted booking for those ships while still in cold lay-up.

3. RCL decides those sailings will not happen, yet accepted deposits for them. 

 

1. When did RCL know they were getting ahead of themselves? 

2. Who in RCL made those decisions, to open them up and then to close. 

 

For the dissing out there, remember someone accepting cash for a product that does not yet exist is , well, interesting at best. After 16 plus months the excuses I read here do not hold water. RCL has a solid product. I expect better from this corporation. 

And the counterpoint is - why were people booking cruises during a pandemic?  Many booked knowing full well the cruises were going to be cancelled and they played the  "I'll make money by getting 125% back in a FCC," game.

Anyone who has booked since March, 2020, was taking a gamble.  While that doesn't excuse poor customer service, which I do believe Royals is guilty of at times, if they hadn't booked cruises in the first place, then there would be no need to call Royal.

[NateUpNorth]

I'm sorry your plans got done in by Covid. That's a really crummy spot to be put in. I hope you can find alternate options and make the best of a bad situation. Perhaps you'll be one of the lucky ones that gets a refund in less time than anticipated.

I hear a lot of seasoned cruisers not having a lot of sympathy here, but c'mon man. "We" all read these boards enough to know RCL customer service is luck of the draw, that the past year has had a lot of shortfalls in communication and planning, the sales practices are open to interpretation sometimes, and that policies and protocols vary widely depending on the time of day.

That's not to say RCL doesn't deliver a great product when it goes smoothly - but when it's bad, it's really bad, and fixing it isn't easy.

[coldflame]

11 hours ago, Honey4BeaR said:

DON't Book Royal Caribbean. They will screw with you reservations. They will not give you a refund. IF you do get any type of refund you must wait 45-65 days for a refund!!!!!!!!

They put you on hold for hours, hang up on you and generally don't care about their guest. 

I was on hold for 1 hour only to finally talk to someone who hung up on me 30 mins into trying to figure something out. 

Got not phone call back. Called back myself waited 45 mins on hold and then the call disconnected. Asked me if I wanted to talk a customer survey and nothing. 

Called back again call dropped but I could take the customer survey after 38 minutes. Finally called and they said they will give us a refund of some kind but it will take 45-65 days our trip was supposed to be for our 10 year anniversary and now we are robbed of this trip and the money. SO we have no money for our 10 year anniversary trip all because Royal Caribbean screwed us over. THANKS FOR NOTHING!!!! heartless company who won't help. 

 

On the one hand I understand the general frustration. On the other hand I don't understand directing your anger at Royal. People knew cruising this year was a gamble and people still chose to make reservations or keep said reservations. If you're cruising as a special celebration, why risk it in a cruise this year? Royal are a "victim of circumstance" just as you and I are. I've no loyalty to any cruise line, but I sort of feel you're misplacing your anger and frustration.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

13 hours ago, Honey4BeaR said:

SO we have no money for our 10 year anniversary trip all because Royal Caribbean screwed us over.

congrats on your anniversary! Ten happy years should be a reason enough to be happy.

Our 18th anniversary is in a couple of days. But, alas, there is a pandemic going on, so we didn't celebrate our 17th with a big bang, nor will we celebrate the 18th with an equally big bang. My kid missed out on 2 birthdays thanks to the pandemic.

RCI didn't screw you over. The pandemic did. Be happy that you are still alive and well to celebrate 10 years together.

 

P.S. I've just realized that I joined cc on our wedding anniversary in 2017. 🙂 Must have been a great celebration that day!

 

P.P.S. At least you are getting a refund. My airline tickets were never refunded, when our April 2020 cruise got cancelled.

Edited August 5, 2021 by Itchy&Scratchy

[Itchy&Scratchy]

8 hours ago, 3kidsncats said:

Not everyone has the advantage of a credit card to make an unexpected expenditure of a few thousand dollars.

perhaps, it needn't be that expensive?

Good grief, we don't even cruise for a few thousand dollars. The max I've ever paid for all 3 of us is $2,500 (and that's for a 10 day cruise).

[BecciBoo]

6 hours ago, Pandamonia said:

 

Why should she given them an interest free loan of her money? All royal has to do is press a button and the money gets refunded. How about stop selling cruises they know have no way of sailing and collecting final payments... How about start acting like a decent company instead of a bunch of fraudsters hiding behind T&C's. 

They do not know all these things.  Some of these changes have only had to take place the past few days...they assume the cruise will take place UNTIL they find out differently.  They have been scrambling to juggle what's best for the customer and the company, think that's easy?  NOT  They do press a button and it gets refunded, with current logistics that may take a few days, ours have never taken over 2 weeks.  A little patience is required and maybe some compassion for a company who is trying to please thousands, including a clueless CDC, and has had no income for the same amount of time we all have had to deal with.  Ranting never solves anything, pour a little honey on it and you will find things much sweeter...that is all I am saying.  Op can take it to "resolutions dept." and it will probably be refunded tomorrow!  And by the way Op hasn't said whether she is a new cruiser.

[Sam Ting]

1 hour ago, coldflame said:

 

On the one hand I understand the general frustration. On the other hand I don't understand directing your anger at Royal. People knew cruising this year was a gamble and people still chose to make reservations or keep said reservations. If you're cruising as a special celebration, why risk it in a cruise this year? Royal are a "victim of circumstance" just as you and I are. I've no loyalty to any cruise line, but I sort of feel you're misplacing your anger and frustration.

Victim of circumstance?  How are they victims of not hiring enough people to pick up the phone or not having a system that drops calls?  How are they a victim of taking payments immediately, yet waiting 45 to 60 days to process a return?  I hope they go belly up.  Maybe the new company will provide better customer service. 

[Sam Ting]

13 hours ago, Honey4BeaR said:

DON't Book Royal Caribbean. They will screw with you reservations. They will not give you a refund. IF you do get any type of refund you must wait 45-65 days for a refund!!!!!!!!

They put you on hold for hours, hang up on you and generally don't care about their guest. 

I was on hold for 1 hour only to finally talk to someone who hung up on me 30 mins into trying to figure something out. 

Got not phone call back. Called back myself waited 45 mins on hold and then the call disconnected. Asked me if I wanted to talk a customer survey and nothing. 

Called back again call dropped but I could take the customer survey after 38 minutes. Finally called and they said they will give us a refund of some kind but it will take 45-65 days our trip was supposed to be for our 10 year anniversary and now we are robbed of this trip and the money. SO we have no money for our 10 year anniversary trip all because Royal Caribbean screwed us over. THANKS FOR NOTHING!!!! heartless company who won't help. 

Thanks for the warning. Post it all over social media, perhaps, just perhaps it will dissuade others from booking with them and running into a similar situation. 

[BecciBoo]

1 minute ago, Sam Ting said:

Victim of circumstance?  How are they victims of not hiring enough people to pick up the phone or not having a system that drops calls?  How are they a victim of taking payments immediately, yet waiting 45 to 60 days to process a return?  I hope they go belly up.  Maybe the new company will provide better customer service. 

I guess you missed the honey thing.....wishing ill on anyone is just not right.  So sorry for you if you look at life like that.  Guess my well wishes cancel your ill ones out...LOL

[OACAggie]

30 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

P.S. I've just realized that I joined cc on our wedding anniversary in 2017. 🙂 Must have been a great celebration that day!

 

🤣🤣

[Sam Ting]

33 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

I guess you missed the honey thing.....wishing ill on anyone is just not right.  So sorry for you if you look at life like that.  Guess my well wishes cancel your ill ones out...LOL

Letting companies get away with this type of behavior is absurd, regardless of ones so called status  guess what, they couldn’t care less about you, only your money and how they can get it from you 

[akcruz]

Does it suck, yes, but hey be happy they are giving you a refund.  We had a land-based trip scheduled in 2020, the tour operator refused to refund only credit.  We fought and finally months later got our money back.  Others who accepted the credit are still waiting to be able to use it as trips still cannot be scheduled.

 

We have 2 cruises booked but fully understand in the current environment they may be canceled.  Everyone is struggling right now and we all need some patience unfortunately it seems there is less and more whining which is just a downward spiral.

 

 

[xpcdoojk]

13 hours ago, Beeline Cruiser said:

 

Seriously hear you but get ready for Pom Pons because some people are TOO LOYAL TO ROYAL to read what you have to say!!

Plus never forget it is good to have a back up plan!!!!  😉

 

😂😆

[ampurp85]

Post like this and the people who agree with them are what's wrong with the world today. Nobody has any sense of accountability. Everything is someone else's fault. There was no gun to your head telling you to book a cruise during a pandemic. This is a business, there job is to make money. The fact that they try to do this humanely is a bonus. I have only sailed once with RCG, it was a decent experience. When sh!t hit the fan, I didn't book any vacations because I wasn't interested in giving interest free loans. Then to make this worst your complaining over a small inconvenience, you will be made whole by the refund...just not when you want.

[Alibaster McGillicutty]

I guess I should thank the OP.  DW and I have a cruise in Oct for her 50th b-day and if it gets cancelled, I better have a backup plan because she expects to PARTY!!

 

OP, I can understand your frustration on getting hung-up on several times.  I haven't had RC cancel on my yet so I don't know what to expect from them if it happens.  We did have an Alaskan cruise booked in May 2020 on HAL and our story like many others (at least on HAL) was a 60-90 day waiting game.

But we received every penny back.

Airfare from the airline......hotel charges.....shore excursions.....cruise fare/fees.......even the insurance we bought provided a voucher for future travel which we applied to our Oct cruise.  And they sent a refund check for the difference because of the costs difference in the trips.

 

If being out the $ for 45-60 days is an issue, well.....I can't float you a loan and I doubt anyone else on here will either.  But I ask everyone reading this, are there any stories out there of someone not receiving a refund or credits?

I don't recall any stories like that on the HAL board.....lots of frustration, yes but the $ was refunded or a FCC.

 

[Alibaster McGillicutty]

4 hours ago, sunbrookgal said:

1. RCL opened up those ships for booking while they were in cold lay-up.  

2. RCL subsequently accepted booking for those ships while still in cold lay-up.

3. RCL decides those sailings will not happen, yet accepted deposits for them. 

 

1. When did RCL know they were getting ahead of themselves? 

2. Who in RCL made those decisions, to open them up and then to close. 

 

For the dissing out there, remember someone accepting cash for a product that does not yet exist is , well, interesting at best. After 16 plus months the excuses I read here do not hold water. RCL has a solid product. I expect better from this corporation. 

I assume you didn't put any deposit down on the new electric Ford Lightning pickup or the newest Tesla prototype?

It's up to the consumer to analyze a product before they put their had earned dollars down.

Serious question, were all cruise lines doing this?

 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

3 minutes ago, Alibaster McGillicutty said:

It's up to the consumer to analyze a product before they put their had earned dollars down.

Serious question, were all cruise lines doing this?

heck, yeah!

We are booked on MSC Seashore for next year, and I booked it when the ship wasn't even finished yet.

[djefferis]

And what “behavior” are you suggesting we are letting RCL (and others evidently) get away with ?

 

Poor service from call center reps - I will give you that - it happens at an alarming rate - but that’s not what the OP is allegedly upset about here - I can guarantee no call center reps were involved in the decision to cancel the OP sailing (and I guarantee very few things). 
 

The cancellation of the OP sailing is unfortunate - but let’s be honest - everyone on here has been dealing with the same thing for over a year - as have RCL employees and stakeholders. The OP is far from alone - but seems to feel it necessary to create a new thread and attempt to rally up a boycott of NCL over something that there are countless threads on already. 
 

I find it very simple - if you want better customer service - vote with your wallet. The thing is however most of us have a tipping point financially - that being the point where we will tolerate lesser service for savings. 
 

I certainly do - and I suspect most on here do as well - otherwise they wouldn’t be sailing RCL and would be on a more “exclusive” sailings. Everyone hates corporate America and says support mom and pop - until it comes time to pay mom and pops overhead cost….then big boxes don’t look so bad. 
 

Not saying you don’t have a point here - just saying it has nothing to do with the OP. Complaining about poor service is one thing - crying because an industry wide shut down caused by a global pandemic caused them to miss out on a celebratory cruise as originally planned is another. It’s unrealistic to expect RCL to operate a ship solely for the benefit of 1 booking - just as it’s unreasonable to expect RCL to give the OP any additional compensation beyond what was announced for the thousands of other bookings made (more than a few of which I suspect might be celebrating some similarly important to them milestone). 
 

Sorry - I’ve seen this show more times than I care to count and it gets old. OP doesn’t get what they want - takes to social media trying to create a buzz and hoping to catch someone’s eye with RCL and to gain a preferential treatment. want to vent about the disease/shutdowns - there are threads open. Want to get something more than everyone else - try elsewhere. Might I suggest going to a hospital/hospice/orphanage/homeless shelter or other such place where people are dealing with REAL problems and trying to tell your tale. Perhaps there the OP can gain some REAL PERSPECTIVE about what PROBLEMS are.