NCL Sky - complaints

[SSLaura]

Hello, does anyone know where I can write to file a complaint?  My husband and I recently went on a 9 day Caribbean cruise on the NCL Sky.  On the second night of the cruise, the smell of raw sewage was so nauseating that we were unable to set at our balcony for the remainder of the cruise.  I went to guest services and told them about the problem, but it did not get resolved until the last night of the cruise when they started dumping all the garbage into the ocean.  I would like to write a letter to NCL.  Does anyone know how I can reach out to them and get results?  I filled out the online form but haven't heard back from them.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions!

Laura

[sparks1093]

16 minutes ago, SSLaura said:

Hello, does anyone know where I can write to file a complaint?  My husband and I recently went on a 9 day Caribbean cruise on the NCL Sky.  On the second night of the cruise, the smell of raw sewage was so nauseating that we were unable to set at our balcony for the remainder of the cruise.  I went to guest services and told them about the problem, but it did not get resolved until the last night of the cruise when they started dumping all the garbage into the ocean.  I would like to write a letter to NCL.  Does anyone know how I can reach out to them and get results?  I filled out the online form but haven't heard back from them.

 

Thanks for all the suggestions!

Laura

What sort of result are you looking for? These types of complaints are best to get resolved onboard. If you are expecting an apology or even some sort of remuneration the chances are good that you won't receive what you are looking for. I believe that NCL publishes their corporate address on their website so you could try writing to that address.

[leaveitallbehind]

1 hour ago, SSLaura said:

On the second night of the cruise, the smell of raw sewage was so nauseating that we were unable to set at our balcony for the remainder of the cruise.  I went to guest services and told them about the problem, but it did not get resolved until the last night of the cruise when they started dumping all the garbage into the ocean.

If they were in fact dumping garbage into the ocean, I highly doubt that would have any connection to your sewage odor concerns.  Sewage odor issues are typically the result of foreign objects being flushed into the system resulting in clogs and other related issues.  It is not uncommon and typically resolved by maintenance in relatively short order.  Some odors can also be caused by in stateroom showier drain issues that can also be addressed by maintenance.

 

There are others on these boards far more qualified than I do discuss this in detail, but I believe my response is, at least in general terms, accurate.

 

But agree as well with @sparks1093 in wondering what it is you are hoping to be the result of your complaint letter now regarding something that would have been addressed on board?

 

Regardless, I hope you find the satisfaction you seek.

Edited May 10, 2022 by leaveitallbehind

[George C]

If you had pictures of them dumping garbage into sea they could be in trouble.

[rkacruiser]

Ships do NOT in the 21st Century dump garbage into the ocean!  I witnessed trash being dumped into the ocean in the 1970's, but, when some of that stuff ended up on some East Coast beaches, regulations were passed that ended the practice.

 

Sewage odors that the OP experienced indicates a malfunction of the plumbing system.  Maybe, just in their cabin.  A much more experienced CC poster than me who has dealt with such issues recently explained that the odor could have been coming from a floor drain in the bathroom that had dried out.  A probable solution:  dump some water down that drain.  

 

Unsure what the OP wants NCL to do to satisfy her concern, but, a politely written letter to Corporate might generate a satisfactory response for the OP.  

Edited May 10, 2022 by rkacruiser

[leaveitallbehind]

6 minutes ago, George C said:

If you had pictures of them dumping garbage into sea they could be in trouble.

I agree.  I kind of glossed over that as IMO it would be highly unlikely that they would be doing that. As you are probably aware most cruise ships have a rather extensive garbage handling system on board where recycling is separated, and materials compressed and bailed for removal at port, and that which can be, incinerated.  Not aware of any dumping of garbage at sea. Processed food waste maybe?  Pretty stiff environmental fines if caught otherwise.

[George C]

3 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

I agree.  I kind of glossed over that as IMO it would be highly unlikely that they would be doing that. As you are probably aware most cruise ships have a rather extensive garbage handling system on board where recycling is separated, and materials compressed and bailed for removal at port, and that which can be, incinerated.  Not aware of any dumping of garbage at sea. Processed food waste maybe?  Pretty stiff environmental fines if caught otherwise.

Agree I have read that you can get a nice reward if you can prove that .

[SSLaura]

Thank you all for your replies.  I have video of the stuff that was being dumped.  It was probably processed food, and human feces (clear in the video), along with chemicals.  But that is not the problem.  The problem was when we sat on the balcony, the stench was nauseating.  It was also noticeable in other parts of the ship.  I DID go to guest services and they said they would report it; however, the odor lasted for 7 more days.  I will try to right them a letter to their corporate HQ.

[rkacruiser]

8 minutes ago, SSLaura said:

I will try to right them a letter to their corporate HQ.

 

May I suggest that you do a bit of research and try to determine the name of the person who is an Executive of NCL that deals with issues such as yours.  Sending a letter, addressed directly to a cruise line executive (and not some generic "dear NCL type letter") may provide more of a response.  Sending the letter Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested, will also draw more attention than a letter with a 58 cent stamp on the envelope.  

 

If you do have a video showing what you described, the USCG and USPH would probably like to hear from you.  

[SSLaura]

21 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

May I suggest that you do a bit of research and try to determine the name of the person who is an Executive of NCL that deals with issues such as yours.  Sending a letter, addressed directly to a cruise line executive (and not some generic "dear NCL type letter") may provide more of a response.  Sending the letter Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested, will also draw more attention than a letter with a 58 cent stamp on the envelope.  

 

If you do have a video showing what you described, the USCG and USPH would probably like to hear from you.  

3 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

If they were in fact dumping garbage into the ocean, I highly doubt that would have any connection to your sewage odor concerns.  Sewage odor issues are typically the result of foreign objects being flushed into the system resulting in clogs and other related issues.  It is not uncommon and typically resolved by maintenance in relatively short order.  Some odors can also be caused by in stateroom showier drain issues that can also be addressed by maintenance.

 

There are others on these boards far more qualified than I do discuss this in detail, but I believe my response is, at least in general terms, accurate.

 

But agree as well with @sparks1093 in wondering what it is you are hoping to be the result of your complaint letter now regarding something that would have been addressed on board?

 

Regardless, I hope you find the satisfaction you seek.

 

4 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

What sort of result are you looking for? These types of complaints are best to get resolved onboard. If you are expecting an apology or even some sort of remuneration the chances are good that you won't receive what you are looking for. I believe that NCL publishes their corporate address on their website so you could try writing to that address.

 

I DID go to guest services on board.....on more than one occasion, but that was useless.  They said they would report it but nothing was resolved.  I don't want any specific remuneration, but a future cruise discount would be nice.  Thanks again, everyone, for your suggestions.

 

[chengkp75]

27 minutes ago, SSLaura said:

I have video of the stuff that was being dumped.  It was probably processed food, and human feces (clear in the video), along with chemicals.

I would very much like to see this video.  I also have questions:

 

How was this being dumped?  Dropped over the side?  Pumped out from under the water?

You were close enough to get a clear image of human feces?  What were the chemicals in?  How did you know they were chemicals?  Having a lot of experience with ships, cruise ships, NCL, and the Sky in particular, I have to say I am intrigued by your claims.

 

When you sat on your balcony, was the door open?  Was the smell also in the cabin?  When you say it was evident elsewhere, was this inside or outside?  What areas?

[chengkp75]

And, for the OP, Sarah Ferguson-Brown is the Senior Director, Environmental Operations.  This is who your complaint should be routed to, but she may not be the one to get compensation from.  But, if your video shows what you claim it does, then linking that to her will certainly get their attention, and a future cruise credit would be the least of their concerns.

Edited May 10, 2022 by chengkp75

[SSLaura]

Thank you, chengkp75, for the information.

 

To answer your questions:

 

1.  The door to the cabin was closed (we never leave it open) - the smell was coming from the outside of the ship, not inside the cabin.  It was also evident in some areas of the open decks, especially toward the aft portion of the ship.

 

2.  The stuff that being dumped seemed to be coming from the waterline at the starboard side of the ship.  We were standing at the very aft of the ship by the Great Outdoors Cafe.

 

3.  Not sure what type of chemicals, but the water had almost chunky white foamy stuff in it, and the brown stuff looked like floating feces.

 

I'd be happy to share the video with you, send me your email.

[chengkp75]

31 minutes ago, SSLaura said:

Not sure what type of chemicals, but the water had almost chunky white foamy stuff in it, and the brown stuff looked like floating feces.

That "chunky white foamy stuff" is the ground up food waste that goes overboard every night.  It looks like an aerated oatmeal.  The "brown stuff" is the solids left over from the waste water treatment plant.  There is no feces in it, it is 98% paper fibers from the toilet paper, mixed with poly-aluminum chloride (a chemical that coagulates these fibers, but is not considered harmful to the environment), which the waste water plant cannot "digest" in the short time the waste water is being treated.  This also goes overboard every night.

 

38 minutes ago, SSLaura said:

I'd be happy to share the video with you, send me your email.

I don't hand out my email, so if you could post it here, I could confirm things.

 

The Sky had an incinerator installed to dry out and incinerate the waste water solids, but we never got it to stop stinking, so we shut it down.  They may have been using this, and having troubles, and when they finally decided to discharge the solids instead of incinerating, the odor stopped.

[joyy7403]

Next person should have been the Hotel Director. Always resolve problems before getting off the ship.

[SSLaura]

That was my mistake. Now I know for the future.

[SSLaura]

On 5/10/2022 at 5:23 PM, chengkp75 said:

That "chunky white foamy stuff" is the ground up food waste that goes overboard every night.  It looks like an aerated oatmeal.  The "brown stuff" is the solids left over from the waste water treatment plant.  There is no feces in it, it is 98% paper fibers from the toilet paper, mixed with poly-aluminum chloride (a chemical that coagulates these fibers, but is not considered harmful to the environment), which the waste water plant cannot "digest" in the short time the waste water is being treated.  This also goes overboard every night.

 

I don't hand out my email, so if you could post it here, I could confirm things.

 

The Sky had an incinerator installed to dry out and incinerate the waste water solids, but we never got it to stop stinking, so we shut it down.  They may have been using this, and having troubles, and when they finally decided to discharge the solids instead of incinerating, the odor stopped.

Thank you for the explanation. I was worried they were releasing waste into the ocean.