Silversea Air Screws Up Again

[Lois R]

26 minutes ago, A Tucson Guy said:

Here is a case where it may seem like SS Air screwed up, but maybe not. We are using SS Air for Bus. Air from Tucson to Venice and then Florence to Tucson this August for the Nova. When SS Air first booked the flights, we had Florence back home connecting in Heathrow (uggh!!) with a 2 hour layover and going from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5. This seemed just fine. I checked on the British Airways website for my trip a couple of weeks later and suddenly the Heathrow to Dallas flight got changed and now we have a 40 minute connection- that ain't going to work. I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times. I contacted my TA and his comment was, "Since SS booked the flights, it must be a valid connection time". I then reminded him that the flight got changed to a new and not improved shorter connection time. My TA is now contacting SS Air to see what can be done. Hopefully SS will figure this out and do the right thing. "The jury is still out on this one!". I will report back on what has been done. Anybody else that has gone through Heathrow think that a 40 minute connection from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5  is gonna work?

Nope.......that 40 minutes will not cut it....they need to change your flight.

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

24 minutes ago, A Tucson Guy said:

I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times.

You assumed correct.  They do not review connection times, either when they originally book the flight or afterwards when the carrier changes the flight schedule.  You will find countless people who aren't happy with Silversea's flight offerings and the main concern is short connection times or extremely long connection times.  Also, I don't think 40 minutes is enough of a connection time anywhere.  

[A Tucson Guy]

23 minutes ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

You assumed correct.  They do not review connection times, either when they originally book the flight or afterwards when the carrier changes the flight schedule.  You will find countless people who aren't happy with Silversea's flight offerings and the main concern is short connection times or extremely long connection times.  Also, I don't think 40 minutes is enough of a connection time anywhere.  

Thank you Lois and Cruzin.

[silkismom]

It usually takes almost that long to get off a plane.

[Silver Spectre]

3 hours ago, A Tucson Guy said:

Anybody else that has gone through Heathrow think that a 40 minute connection from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5  is gonna work?

Not a hope in hell. That’s insufficient for a transfer in the same terminal at Heathrow!

[Gourmet Gal]

9 hours ago, A Tucson Guy said:

Here is a case where it may seem like SS Air screwed up, but maybe not. We are using SS Air for Bus. Air from Tucson to Venice and then Florence to Tucson this August for the Nova. When SS Air first booked the flights, we had Florence back home connecting in Heathrow (uggh!!) with a 2 hour layover and going from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5. This seemed just fine. I checked on the British Airways website for my trip a couple of weeks later and suddenly the Heathrow to Dallas flight got changed and now we have a 40 minute connection- that ain't going to work. I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times. I contacted my TA and his comment was, "Since SS booked the flights, it must be a valid connection time". I then reminded him that the flight got changed to a new and not improved shorter connection time. My TA is now contacting SS Air to see what can be done. Hopefully SS will figure this out and do the right thing. "The jury is still out on this one!". I will report back on what has been done. Anybody else that has gone through Heathrow think that a 40 minute connection from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5  is gonna work?

40 min. will not work and you should also consider finding another TA!

[les37b]

18 hours ago, A Tucson Guy said:

Here is a case where it may seem like SS Air screwed up, but maybe not. We are using SS Air for Bus. Air from Tucson to Venice and then Florence to Tucson this August for the Nova. When SS Air first booked the flights, we had Florence back home connecting in Heathrow (uggh!!) with a 2 hour layover and going from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5. This seemed just fine. I checked on the British Airways website for my trip a couple of weeks later and suddenly the Heathrow to Dallas flight got changed and now we have a 40 minute connection- that ain't going to work. I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times. I contacted my TA and his comment was, "Since SS booked the flights, it must be a valid connection time". I then reminded him that the flight got changed to a new and not improved shorter connection time. My TA is now contacting SS Air to see what can be done. Hopefully SS will figure this out and do the right thing. "The jury is still out on this one!". I will report back on what has been done. Anybody else that has gone through Heathrow think that a 40 minute connection from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5  is gonna work?

I’d think you 2 hopes for that working…. No hope and Bob Hope. I would have said the same if you were in the same terminal, but that change make it impossible.

 

The response from your TA was pretty poor with their first response. Hopefully you get the expected outcome and a longer connection at LHR or a different airport / airline.

[A Tucson Guy]

On 2/9/2023 at 2:00 PM, A Tucson Guy said:

Here is a case where it may seem like SS Air screwed up, but maybe not. We are using SS Air for Bus. Air from Tucson to Venice and then Florence to Tucson this August for the Nova. When SS Air first booked the flights, we had Florence back home connecting in Heathrow (uggh!!) with a 2 hour layover and going from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5. This seemed just fine. I checked on the British Airways website for my trip a couple of weeks later and suddenly the Heathrow to Dallas flight got changed and now we have a 40 minute connection- that ain't going to work. I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times. I contacted my TA and his comment was, "Since SS booked the flights, it must be a valid connection time". I then reminded him that the flight got changed to a new and not improved shorter connection time. My TA is now contacting SS Air to see what can be done. Hopefully SS will figure this out and do the right thing. "The jury is still out on this one!". I will report back on what has been done. Anybody else that has gone through Heathrow think that a 40 minute connection from Terminal 3 to Terminal 5  is gonna work?

SS never ceases to amaze me. I sent Barbara Muckermann an email this morning explaining the problem above. In THREE HOURS I got an email back from Barbara and the name of one of her associates that is going to help me solve the problem. Barbara agreed that the 40 minute connection was not doable and she recommended a minimum connection time of 90 minutes, also. I call this excellent customer service!! I will post the "rest of the story" when I have it.

[FlyerTalker]

On 2/9/2023 at 2:00 PM, A Tucson Guy said:

I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times.

 

There is an urban legend out there that cruiseline air departments are constantly monitoring passenger flight status, both for schedule changes and for operational issues.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

 

On 2/9/2023 at 2:00 PM, A Tucson Guy said:

I contacted my TA and his comment was, "Since SS booked the flights, it must be a valid connection time".

 

Your TA doesn't know the airline industry and air travel.  Sounds more like an order taker than a knowledgeable agent.

 

 

On 2/9/2023 at 2:00 PM, A Tucson Guy said:

I then reminded him that the flight got changed to a new and not improved shorter connection time. My TA is now contacting SS Air to see what can be done. Hopefully SS will figure this out and do the right thing.

 

May I suggest that you do some research on your own and be proactively making recommendations for alternatives.

 

 

[A Tucson Guy]

14 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

There is an urban legend out there that cruiseline air departments are constantly monitoring passenger flight status, both for schedule changes and for operational issues.  Nothing could be further from the truth.

 

 

 

Your TA doesn't know the airline industry and air travel.  Sounds more like an order taker than a knowledgeable agent.

 

 

 

May I suggest that you do some research on your own and be proactively making recommendations for alternatives.

 

 

I have taken this problem to the president of SS and she responded immediately and SS is working on it. Please see my respond earlier.

[FlyerTalker]

2 minutes ago, A Tucson Guy said:

I have taken this problem to the president of SS and she responded immediately and SS is working on it. Please see my respond earlier.

 

Nice that you're one of the people with a direct pipeline.

 

I was responding not just to you, but to all of the readers of your post.

[A Tucson Guy]

6 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Nice that you're one of the people with a direct pipeline.

 

I was responding not just to you, but to all of the readers of your post.

All the readers have the same direct pipeline. We all know the presidents email. I don't have 1,000 days with SS, I just passed the 65 day threshold, so I am not anybody special. If I had a special direct pipeline, I would never post this information on a public forum. I posted the info for everybody to know about.

Edited February 10, 2023 by A Tucson Guy

[cruiseej]

On 2/9/2023 at 4:00 PM, A Tucson Guy said:

Here is a case where it may seem like SS Air screwed up, but maybe not... I checked on the British Airways website for my trip a couple of weeks later and suddenly the Heathrow to Dallas flight got changed and now we have a 40 minute connection- that ain't going to work. I have to assume that SS Air was not looking at the new changed flight times.

 

From your description, British Airways changed your flight, not SS Air, so why would you figure SS Air screwed up? Yes, the new flight times are unworkable, so SS Air should work to change your booking. It hasn't been ticked yet, so changes should be possible. Now, is SS Air comes back and tells your TA that the flights are fine and they won't make any changes, then you can properly blame SS Air! 😉 Meanwhile, have you researched what flights you could book on your own, if you take the SS air credit? It may be more expensive, but if you can find flights that work, and SS Air won't put you on them because they don't have availability under their contracts, you might prefer to spend more but get flights you're more confident about. And whichever way you go, you have to remain aware that with 6 months to go before your cruise, their airline schedules might change again. (Once they publish their final schedules for August, probably about 3 months in advance, then it will be unlikely for there to be further changes.) 

Edited February 13, 2023 by cruiseej

[A Tucson Guy]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

 

From your description, British Airways changed your flight, not SS Air, so why would you figure SS Air screwed up? Yes, the new flight times are unworkable, so SS Air should work to change your booking. It hasn't been ticked yet, so changes should be possible. Now, is SS Air comes back and tells your TA that the flights are fine and they won't make any changes, then you can properly blame SS Air! 😉 Meanwhile, have you researched what flights you could book on your own, if you take the SS air credit? It may be more expensive, but if you can find flights that work, and SS Air won't put you on them because they don't have availability under their contracts, you might prefer to spend more but get flights you're more confident about. And whichever way you go, you have to remain aware that with 6 months to go before your cruise, their airline schedules might change again. (Once they publish their final schedules for August, probably about 3 months in advance, then it will be unlikely for there to be further changes.) 

You may have misread my post- I said that maybe SS screwed up and maybe they didn't. As it turns out, my email to the president of the company got me almost an immediate satisfactory response. My flights are now being changed to a legal connection time through Heathrow. I am very happy with SS Air Desk. 

[bubbulz]

On 1/28/2023 at 4:54 PM, Gourmet Gal said:

Sometimes if the airline is not contracted with SS you may still be able to pay a (sometimes hefty) deviation fee and still come out ahead compared to booking on your own.

This is what I've decided to do with my flights to Santiago later this year. I didn't like the airlines/flights that SS was coming up with so I told them specifically which flights I wanted. Even with the extra fees I'm paying less than I would with a commercial ticket bought on my own. And this way there's less risk to me if they change the port of embarkation for my trip, etc. They also booked the specific seats I requested. So far, so good ... All of that said, I'm glad that I transferred my booking to a TA so they're acting as the intermediary with SS.

[boccenana]

We have had a great experience with Silversea Air.

Gave us our preferred flight over the one they gave us originally. 

Our TA is fantastic, no problem with communications between him and SSAir.

[dougburns]

I am a month out from departure for the Silver Dawn. This morning I got the link from Barbara Zuckerman to Blacklane for my limo transport going and coming home. I found the Blacklane site very easy to work with and booked both trips easily. We'll see how that works out, but the outfit seems very professional. The link to Blacklane came from Silversea and not from our TA.

[dawntrdr]

I wish they would change the title of this thread to make it less judgmental.  There have definitely been some real problems for some customers that need to be addressed but it appears that just as many or more people are happy with Silversky.  

[dougburns]

I have to apologize, the link to Blacklane was from Barbara Muckermann at Silversea. Sorry Barbara!

[Port Power]

I’ve just received my flight allocations for Perth to Vancouver in September, and home from Tokyo.  They are direct flights with Cathay Pacific and probably what I would have chosen myself. Alternative flights with Qantas would have cost an extra $4,000.  There is a 12 hour layover in Hong Kong, but that is the airline’s scheduling, not SilverSky.  I have to spend one night post cruise in Tokyo in a hotel, again due to flight schedules, but transfers are included, so no problems there.

[Port Power]

18 hours ago, Port Power said:

I’ve just received my flight allocations for Perth to Vancouver in September, and home from Tokyo.  They are direct flights with Cathay Pacific and probably what I would have chosen myself. Alternative flights with Qantas would have cost an extra $4,000.  There is a 12 hour layover in Hong Kong, but that is the airline’s scheduling, not SilverSky.  I have to spend one night post cruise in Tokyo in a hotel, again due to flight schedules, but transfers are included, so no problems there.

Further to this, my excellent TA asked SilverSky about using Singapore Airlines.  S/S came back with a schedule at no extra cost as Singapore Air is in the same price bracket.  So instead of a 9 hour layover in Hong Kong, I now leave at 1:00am 😒 with only a 1 hour stopover in Singapore.  This way I arrive a day early into Vancouver and will have two hotel nights there, rather than one night in Vancouver and one night in Japan after the cruise.

 

No deviation charges anywhere along the way and both sets of flights are direct and uncomplicated.  However, a good TA makes the difference in that he looked at alternatives and asked the question of S/S.  I'm a happy camper!  Er....cruiser! 😊

Edited February 23, 2023 by Port Power

[zqtchas]

My TA told me yesterday that it’s taking 2 weeks to get a response from Silversky.

Edited February 23, 2023 by zqtchas

[Luv2Cruise1016]

Our experience has been great so far, 1st time using Silversea Air.  Notified of a schedule change on original air booking by airline, contacted my Silversea PCC and had answer from Air Dept. the very next day.  Easy, peasy.

[Cahmuty]

I will never use Silversea air again.  On a milk run to Japan tomorrow from Miami.  Last and long leg of trip to Osaka, LAX to KIX, booked on AA 8414 has not assigned  our business class seats.  No seats available that means to me, esp since when I call JAL(code share partner) and they say all other seats assigned, just not to us. Tried calling everyone.  No help whatsoever.  If seats open up I am sure they will be middle seats(yes that plane has 2-3-2 configuration in business class)

 

Service has gone way down, in my opinion, with Silverair

[HappyCamper777]

On 3/10/2023 at 8:04 AM, Cahmuty said:

No seats available that means to me, esp since when I call JAL(code share partner) and they say all other seats assigned, just not to us. Tried calling everyone.  No help whatsoever.  If seats open up I am sure they will be middle seats(yes that plane has 2-3-2 configuration in business class)

What seats did you end up in?