Door-to-Door executive Transfer process

[MBP&O2/O]

"I'm sorry, SS, but until you get your act together and offer proper value we shall remain on 201 days sailed and take our custom elsewhere. "

 

Agree! I have done just that. As an aside re getting the act together .. I looked at an Alaskan cruise and at one port  the ONLY  'free" excursions were Kayaking or White Water Rafting? What is the age demographics of SS cruisers I wonder? 😀 To be fair they did state that they were not suitable for people with mobility issues!

Am I correct in thinking that when the executive transfer was brought in (as an experiment? ) the cruise prices went up £200 at the same time (pure coincidence of course) .... yet the refund was £100????

 

The other thing that bugs me is SS should be doing the legwork, not the customer! Half a dozen questions and it should be sorted.

[A Tucson Guy]

37 minutes ago, MBP&O2/O said:

"I'm sorry, SS, but until you get your act together and offer proper value we shall remain on 201 days sailed and take our custom elsewhere. "

 

Agree! I have done just that. As an aside re getting the act together .. I looked at an Alaskan cruise and at one port  the ONLY  'free" excursions were Kayaking or White Water Rafting? What is the age demographics of SS cruisers I wonder? 😀 To be fair they did state that they were not suitable for people with mobility issues!

Am I correct in thinking that when the executive transfer was brought in (as an experiment? ) the cruise prices went up £200 at the same time (pure coincidence of course) .... yet the refund was £100????

 

The other thing that bugs me is SS should be doing the legwork, not the customer! Half a dozen questions and it should be sorted.

In the US, the refund is $100 per person.

[cruiseej]

On 3/9/2022 at 8:29 PM, jollyjones said:

You ask for the credit to be applied to your balance before you make your final payment. 
I asked why it wasn’t just applied to the initial quote but was told that it didn’t work that way. Seems absurdly over complicated to add the ‘benefit’ only to subtract it again, especially since Blacklane doesn’t serve an awful lot of airports. Mine included. 
IMO it’s just a wombat but somehow SS makes money from it ???

 

And what happens if you've already paid in full, as have many of us who have rolled over from one canceled cruise to another during the past two years? 

[jollyjones]

I think you can get a refund to your original form of payment. 
 

You have to ask for it, of course. 
 

Edited March 12, 2022 by jollyjones

[Host Jazzbeau]

On 3/9/2022 at 7:05 PM, Unibok said:

Tuscon, I'm in the same boat (so to speak). Blacklane doesn't service my local airport, and I would have welcomed the early morning ride. 

 

Does anyone know how the credit works? Is it OBC? FCC? Refund?

 

On 3/9/2022 at 7:56 PM, Stumblefoot said:

 

It’s just a credit off your invoice when you book your cruise.

 

On 3/9/2022 at 8:29 PM, jollyjones said:

You ask for the credit to be applied to your balance before you make your final payment. 
I asked why it wasn’t just applied to the initial quote but was told that it didn’t work that way. Seems absurdly over complicated to add the ‘benefit’ only to subtract it again, especially since Blacklane doesn’t serve an awful lot of airports. Mine included. 
IMO it’s just a wombat but somehow SS makes money from it ???

My experience is that of @Stumblefoot – our original invoice shows the credit (on two lines, $50 per person 'PRE' and 'PST' = $200)

[Unibok]

Thank you, all, for chiming in.

 

It appears I'll have a refund coming. My SS rep extraordinaire says it's an IT issue, and that refunds will be processed. Frankly, I'd rather have it as OBC. Or FCC. The refund feels like more effort.

 

 

[gwesq]

I just looked at the Blacklane site and their charge booking privately would be less than the $100 pp credit.  OR is the credit per cabin?

[Stumblefoot]

1 hour ago, gwesq said:

I just looked at the Blacklane site and their charge booking privately would be less than the $100 pp credit.  OR is the credit per cabin?

The credit for not using the round trip SS private transfer is $100 per person, not per cabin.

[cruiseej]

1 hour ago, gwesq said:

I just looked at the Blacklane site and their charge booking privately would be less than the $100 pp credit.  OR is the credit per cabin?

 

Doubtless because Silversea wants to make a profit on each transaction.

[Asymptote1]

I think this is all really a shame and very poor marketing on the part of SS. The « door to door » transfers in the SS brochures look so tantalising with shiny black Mercedes and cream leather seats, and stress free, no worries door to door care…..and then the reality hits home after having booked, paid and longingly anticipated all this…. You discover that things are really not at all as they seem. Our home is within the mileage limit on one route to the airport but just over the limit on the three other routes to the airport. Which route will Blacklane take? Who knows! Will there be a surcharge ? Who knows! How much would it be? Who knows? How would a surcharge be paid if it were levied ? Who knows ! And so, in doubt, many SS passengers just give up and ask for the transfer credit back defeating the whole purpose of the transfer system in the first place. It’s total madness. These holidays are expensive. We are talking about luxury travel here. SS should either address this as a matter of urgency or take those slick chauffeur driven photos out of the brochures. It ends up just being additional stress and potential disappointment when that should be the last thing that SS want their customers to experience.

[gcornell]

17 minutes ago, Asymptote1 said:

I think this is all really a shame and very poor marketing on the part of SS. The « door to door » transfers in the SS brochures look so tantalising with shiny black Mercedes and cream leather seats, and stress free, no worries door to door care…..and then the reality hits home after having booked, paid and longingly anticipated all this…. You discover that things are really not at all as they seem. Our home is within the mileage limit on one route to the airport but just over the limit on the three other routes to the airport. Which route will Blacklane take? Who knows! Will there be a surcharge ? Who knows! How much would it be? Who knows? How would a surcharge be paid if it were levied ? Who knows ! And so, in doubt, many SS passengers just give up and ask for the transfer credit back defeating the whole purpose of the transfer system in the first place. It’s total madness. These holidays are expensive. We are talking about luxury travel here. SS should either address this as a matter of urgency or take those slick chauffeur driven photos out of the brochures. It ends up just being additional stress and potential disappointment when that should be the last thing that SS want their customers to experience.

It’s not much.  About $3.75 all in per mile. I was 4 miles over and the charge was $15.  You will get an email with a link 30 days prior to book your ride. It does the calculation, enter your CC and gets charged a few days before the ride. 

Edited July 18, 2023 by gcornell

[Tothesunset]

It strikes me as odd that a so-called 6 star line should expect its customers to arrange their own Blacklane transfers when they are supposed to be part of the package. Surely the SS admin should be handling these things. 

[gcornell]

1 minute ago, Tothesunset said:

It strikes me as odd that a so-called 6 star line should expect its customers to arrange their own Blacklane transfers when they are supposed to be part of the package. Surely the SS admin should be handling these things. 

SS admin is good at one thing.. taking deposits and payments very very quickly.  I’m a control freak when it comes to travel so, for me, the system works. 

[commodoredave]

On 3/11/2022 at 12:43 PM, dawntrdr said:

Query whether SS ever did a study about how many of their customers live within 50 miles of an airport of any sort, much less an airport served by Blacklane.  My rough guess is that more than half of SS customers cannot avail themselves of this service.  

 

In a perfect business plan, Blacklane should  eventually subcontract with other transfer companies in smaller markets, but maybe they just bit off more than they could chew with this deal.

New ideas are often much easier to come up with than to effectively implement. I chalk this one up to making their pitch of "Door to Door" possible rather than providing a benefit that customers were clamoring for. In addition, perhaps another way to make a few dollars on the cost of the transfers. As posters in another thread about Blacklane have noted, the company is mainly a broker and contracts out most if not all of their transfer business to other chauffeur companies. 

[Archipelago]

I have a Blacklane transfer with my voyage next year . I will need to be picked up at my house at 3:30am to go  to the airport and have time to check in . I guess Blacklane is available 24 hours a day ..my flight leaves at 7am . ( airport is an hour away ) I also have another issue ..I live in a gated  community so is there a way to call them and give them the gate code ..or call and they notify me when they are close and I can go to the gate and open it when they arrive ?  I am also about 58 miles from the airport so will have to pay the surcharge .....Yes it seems like a lot of stress doesnt it ?

 

 

[Archipelago]

This is a flight to Cartagena Colombia btw

[dawntrdr]

If I were in your shoes,  I would get a room at an inexpensive hotel nearer the airport and have Blacklane pick you up from there.  You'd have to get to the hotel of course but the surcharge you save might cover the rideshare cost.  And you'd get to sleep that extra hour rather than riding around in the wee hours.

[gcornell]

7 hours ago, Archipelago said:

I have a Blacklane transfer with my voyage next year . I will need to be picked up at my house at 3:30am to go  to the airport and have time to check in . I guess Blacklane is available 24 hours a day ..my flight leaves at 7am . ( airport is an hour away ) I also have another issue ..I live in a gated  community so is there a way to call them and give them the gate code ..or call and they notify me when they are close and I can go to the gate and open it when they arrive ?  I am also about 58 miles from the airport so will have to pay the surcharge .....Yes it seems like a lot of stress doesnt it ?

 

 

Nah. Don’t stress it’s vacation and you are paying a lot of $ not to stress and Blacklane has it all figured out. About an hour before scheduled pickup you will get an email and text message with the phone number of your driver.  You can then call or text to figure out those details.  Easy

[Archipelago]

Okay sounds good Thank You !

[LocoLoco1]

I trust my abilities and instincts; therefor I typically eliminate any/all Cruiseline middlemen for most occasions to simplify, simplify.  UBER App or a simple call for a Taxi have never failed ME. 

[canderson]

2 hours ago, LocoLoco1 said:

I trust my abilities and instincts; therefor I typically eliminate any/all Cruiseline middlemen for most occasions to simplify, simplify.  UBER App or a simple call for a Taxi have never failed ME. 

Perhaps not, but we've been zinged a couple of times when we were on an extended cruise with a lot of luggage, and it was a hassle getting something big enough to hold it.  Yes, I know you can specifically ask for a larger vehicle in some cases - though even then, that doesn't mean that's what is going to show up.  Then delay until they can find a bigger vehicle.  You might be surprised how many vehicles won't hold 3 large suitcases and 2 carry-ons, especially when they refuse to put any of it in cabin space.  So when not traveling light ...

 

With Blacklane, you do get direct contact reasonably far in advance so that they are definitely forewarned about what to expect.

[southend]

Thank you for all the valuable information. We will have a 80 mile trip to Heathrow in February  2024. My understanding  will have to pay a fairly large excess charge (approx GBP90 per each journey) the option of a refund still would not cover the costs  if we arrange separately.  Whilst i understand the disappointment with ss approach ...my question is . what is the Backlane experience, how good or bad are they? 

[canderson]

53 minutes ago, southend said:

Thank you for all the valuable information. We will have a 80 mile trip to Heathrow in February  2024. My understanding  will have to pay a fairly large excess charge (approx GBP90 per each journey) the option of a refund still would not cover the costs  if we arrange separately.  Whilst i understand the disappointment with ss approach ...my question is . what is the Backlane experience, how good or bad are they? 

The reviews are all over the map.  IF they don't cancel your service for lack of a driver/car right before it's due to arrive, the service you get tends to be quite good.  I know I'll have a plan B in my pocket for our November cruise.

 

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.blacklane.com

[Port Power]

3 hours ago, southend said:

Thank you for all the valuable information. We will have a 80 mile trip to Heathrow in February  2024. My understanding  will have to pay a fairly large excess charge (approx GBP90 per each journey) the option of a refund still would not cover the costs  if we arrange separately.  Whilst i understand the disappointment with ss approach ...my question is . what is the Backlane experience, how good or bad are they? 

My Blacklane experiences in Perth have been excellent. On time always both at home and on collection at the airport.  Drivers and their cars are contractors, so not actually employed by Blacklane. One driver did Uber when not otherwise booked.

 

Where you live might or might not have as good an experience. But I hope you do!

[commodoredave]

On 3/11/2022 at 1:30 PM, MBP&O2/O said:

. I looked at an Alaskan cruise and at one port  the ONLY  'free" excursions were Kayaking or White Water Rafting? What is the age demographics of SS cruisers I wonder? 😀 To be fair they did state that they were not suitable for people with mobility issues!

Well, if you are over 70 and didn't have a mobility issue before the white water rafting, you may have one afterwards!