Ship Excursion - Don’t Believe the Ship Won’t Leave You

[Florida_gal_50]

7 minutes ago, Level six said:

Well for everyone defending HAL in this case, saying that HAL did all they could.  Imagine if it were you in that man's position......would you feel they did all the things right and all that they could?  It is easy to comment when we were not the ones who were affected. 

If that were my husband, not only would he have been miserable, I would have too.  Face it, this ruined their cruise, no amount of nice hotel, first class plane can make up for being on the cruise you planned for along time being derailed like that, no amount.  They should have gotten more compensation or a make up cruise free.  Giving them a makeup cruise would not cost HAL a penny.  They have empty cabins all the time.  They should have given the OP the option of a few free cruise dates and they could have either taken it or not.  

That's my point too.  People are quick to say it's not a problem when it's not them.  That said I'm not sure hal has many open cabins lately.

[Destiny0315]

1 hour ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

The $600,000 "saved" by leaving when they did, was not all part of the budget. $300,000 had been spent. The other $300,000 would have been extra costs, not in the budget. Divide that by 40 people--should they pay $7500 each to make the ship wait for them? 

 

Of course not! First off forget the $300,000 up front and the $300,000 additional they would have had to pay the PC authorities for a new transit time slot. They also would have had to pay additional port fees to stay overnight and have to deal with the wrath of the nearly 2,000 other passengers who would now have their future cruise plans disrupted. Now how do you get these 40 pax back to the ship safely when the area they were in has impassable roads, still having serious weather conditions and it is now dark out. The local authorities are dealing with the locals and helping them who have damaged homes and businesses and injuries. Was HAL supposed to contact the Costa Rican military and arrange and pay for non-emergency helicopter flights back to the ship? What's most ironic about this whole thread is that the OP just came off a b/b cruise with Celebrity and in their forum was complaining about Celebrity making them wait for an hour and a half during the switchover boarding process and described that as "Epic fail Celebrity". Go figure...

[ontheweb]

8 minutes ago, Destiny0315 said:

Of course not! First off forget the $300,000 up front and the $300,000 additional they would have had to pay the PC authorities for a new transit time slot. They also would have had to pay additional port fees to stay overnight and have to deal with the wrath of the nearly 2,000 other passengers who would now have their future cruise plans disrupted. Now how do you get these 40 pax back to the ship safely when the area they were in has impassable roads, still having serious weather conditions and it is now dark out. The local authorities are dealing with the locals and helping them who have damaged homes and businesses and injuries. Was HAL supposed to contact the Costa Rican military and arrange and pay for non-emergency helicopter flights back to the ship? What's most ironic about this whole thread is that the OP just came off a b/b cruise with Celebrity and in their forum was complaining about Celebrity making them wait for an hour and a half during the switchover boarding process and described that as "Epic fail Celebrity". Go figure...

Yes, and how many complaints would we be hearing from the thousands of other passengers if they had waited. As you pointed out in the situation it would not at all be feasible for HAL to somehow get those stranded passengers back in any reasonable time frame.

[DCThunder]

37 minutes ago, sprockie said:

Totally agree.  HAL should be responsible and accountable for all it's tour partners - just like a General Contractor is responsible for their subtrades.  

So what, exactly, did HAL or the tour partners do wrong that makes them liable for damages?  Are you saying that they should have preemptively cancelled the trip because there MIGHT have been exceedingly heavy rain that would cause road flooding and prevent the tour from getting back on time?

 

I'm not trying to put words in your mouth but based on the "facts" that have been presented, I'm failing to see the negligence that would make HAL or the tour operator as being at fault.

 

I will concede that it's easy to be dispassionate about the events and the compensation since I wasn't personally involved, but it's also easy to say "blame the big evil corporation", when something truly beyond their control, goes wrong.

 

I'll also concede that additional OBC might have gone a long way to restoring good will, but how much extra should that have been?

[OlsSalt]

2 hours ago, sprockie said:

No, we were on our own.  

 

Why did you try to link your independent shore experience with the HAL shore excursion promise, when you chose to malign HAL policies?

[sprockie]

Just now, OlsSalt said:

 

Why did you try to link your independent shore experience with the HAL shore excursion promise, when you chose to malign HAL policies?

I didn't.  I meant when one is not able to make it back to the ship - whether it is though a ship sponsored excursion or not - HAL is not that useful or helpful or generous in the aftermath.

[OlsSalt]

Did not passengers going on this shore excursion also have access to weather reports? And chose not to cancel on the outside chance there might be weather trouble.  Does signing up for a shore excursion obliterate all independent judgement.

 

Agree, there is comfort signing up for these excursions assuming HAL will cautiously monitor their viability; but they are not the sole source of judgement in these matters, which are now eliciting so many continued wounded howls and demands for extraordinary compensation ...for "good will".

[OlsSalt]

1 minute ago, sprockie said:

I didn't.  I meant when one is not able to make it back to the ship - whether it is though a ship sponsored excursion or not - HAL is not that useful or helpful or generous in the aftermath.

 

Still not following. What does HAL owe you, if you leave the ship on your own and fail to come back at the assigned reboarding time?

[sprockie]

17 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

Did not passengers going on this shore excursion also have access to weather reports? And chose not to cancel on the outside chance there might be weather trouble.  Does signing up for a shore excursion obliterate all independent judgement.

 

Well people do put their faith in HAL for making a judgement call as to whether an excursion should proceed as planned  - especially since if you decide to cancel yourself you are not refunded.

 

Agree, there is comfort signing up for these excursions assuming HAL will cautiously monitor their viability; but they are not the sole source of judgement in these matters, which are now eliciting so many continued wounded howls and demands for extraordinary compensation ...for "good will".

 

Edited February 20, 2023 by sprockie

[Florida_gal_50]

29 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

Did not passengers going on this shore excursion also have access to weather reports? And chose not to cancel on the outside chance there might be weather trouble.  Does signing up for a shore excursion obliterate all independent judgement.

 

Agree, there is comfort signing up for these excursions assuming HAL will cautiously monitor their viability; but they are not the sole source of judgement in these matters, which are now eliciting so many continued wounded howls and demands for extraordinary compensation ...for "good will".

Did hal not have access to weather reports?  I find the weather reports on hal are pretty limited that passengers could see.  I would think hal would be privy to great information because it could provide valuable information for them to get out of the port.  

[OlsSalt]

Just now, Florida_gal_50 said:

Did hal not have access to weather reports?  I find the weather reports on hal are pretty limited that passengers could see.  I would think hal would be privy to great information because it could provide valuable information for them to get out of the port.  

 

HAL had access to weather report and concluded it was a go. But HAL is not omniscient. This was a "force majuere" Act of God - in legal contract terms. Happens. 

[Florida_gal_50]

Just now, OlsSalt said:

 

HAL had access to weather report and concluded it was a go. But HAL is not omniscient. This was a "force majuere" Act of God - in legal contract terms. Happens. 

Yet you expect the passenger to know better.  Think about that one for a minute. 

[OlsSalt]

1 minute ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Yet you expect the passenger to know better.  Think about that one for a minute. 

 

Exactly, it was an unprecedented event. No one knew or expected it. Time to let go of blaming HAL. 

[Florida_gal_50]

3 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Exactly, it was an unprecedented event. No one knew or expected it. Time to let go of blaming HAL. 

And cheerleading for the same.

[OlsSalt]

1 minute ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

And cheerleading for the same.

It's a deal.

[SilvertoGold]

6 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Yet you expect the passenger to know better.  Think about that one for a minute. 

Where do the operators of the shorex come into this?  I expect the locals who run shorex for cruiseships would monitor weather reports.  They would likely live there and be aware of typical weather patterns for the area.  They probably do not want to get caught in this type of situation any more than pax do. Don't they report to the company who arranges HAL shorex?  

[Arizona Wildcat]

Certainly are a lot of experts here.  I am a TA that organized land tours over the last 20 years in Australia, Europe and North America.  Things happen.  A spring tour in Arizona had 10" of snow.  The roads were open but not safe.  Each driver made their own decision and I provided the best options I could find - they were barely ok.

On shore excursions the ship will wait a couple hours - not more.  The rain forest in Costa Rica has unpredictable weather and the tour re the OP dod not make it back to the ship.  Things happen.  They eventually got back on board with expenses paid.

I do agree the compensation offered was insulting.  At the least they should have been refunded the cost of the days (or portion thereof) missed.

On a shore excursion I organized there was an injury accident involving a participant.  The cruiseline was contacted as assisted with arranging medical treatment.  Two others stayed with the injured person and all flew at our expense to the next port - 2 days later.  The cruiseline port manager coordinated transportation, meals and accommodations- at our expense.  Things happen.

Similar is booking airfare THROUGH the cruiseline.  They will assist you in getting to the ship if things go sideways, but you might arrive in a strange manner.  Recently a couple from the UK had flights delayed in mid December to LAX so arriving the morning of their cruise.  The cruiseline forgot them and they actually watched their ship depart.  Their paid transfer went sideways.  The UK branch said cannot fly LAX to Cabo (oops) and sent them to Mexico City then Acapulco then via a BUS!! to Hautalco.  All expenses paid and credit for 4 days cruising missed.  The couple said they had a tiring and "unforgettable " experience.   Things happen. 

A force majure can happen with any activity.

[Destiny0315]

16 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

I do agree the compensation offered was insulting.

What's most insulting is that this thread continues despite the fact that the OP left it two days ago after people pointed out some mis-leading things about her posts now and also when comparing them to other peoples posts about the incident when it originally happened 4 months ago. We have no idea accept from her as to what exactly was offered to these passengers from HAL above and beyond the effort made to get them back onboard. She was currently more disgruntled with the offer the insurance company made on her claim about it. And as for those who think that "cheerleaders" abound in here well to what purpose? As far as I know unlike certain social media sites there is no benefit either way when posting positive or negative comments in this forum or any of them about billion dollar cruise lines.

[Host Kat]

FYI to all,

 

This thread has been closed.

 

Host Kat