Advice required - change of cabin 2 days before departure

[w3ndi]

Hi,I'm hoping you can give me some advice about options.  I had an email from TUI this morning advising that our chosen cabin (and paid extra for) is not available due to a system error.  They reallocated to a same class and refunded the additional £55 as OBC.  The cabin they've given us is the last in that style but right under the gym, which we're adamant we dont' want.  I rang this morning to sort, was promised a call back, didn't get it, rang back this afternoon to be offered an additional £200 OBC, however, we won't spend on board, we've prepaid restuarents, excursions and drinks. That doesn't take away from the fact we really don't want the cabin. I asked about an upgrade, they said I'd have to pay, I said I'd pay some of the cost, however having looked the upgraded cabin is cheaper than we paid.  My husband is adamant that we cancel.  My question is - where do we stand with cancelling as this was their error - will we get a full refund?  Or  can I argue for the upgrade at no additional cost as they're selling it cheaper than our current cabin? We fly on Sunday and I really don't want to travel with this hanging over us and not knowing what cabine we'll be in.  

[dronnygirl]

Oh dear, it does seem as they are being unreasonable. Please don't cancel though as I don't think change of cabin is classed as a major change especially as they have offered a similar alternative and you may be left very much out of pocket.

That said, I would ring them again and try to discuss the upgraded cabin especially as they have offered £200 OBC and the cabin is now cheaper than you paid.  If the cabin is still available it's unlikely it will sell before Sunday!

Good luck and please let us know how you go on.

[w3ndi]

@dronnygirl, thank you.  It's been one of those weeks!!!!! They promised a callback tomorrow so I'll see what they say.  Again thank you x

[Jim The Scot]

My experience with TUI when trying to upgrade cabin

 

The price of an upgrade is based on what it was when we booked not the price when we wanted to upgrade(cheaper)

 

Your situation is slightly different as its there ***** up that you are not getting the cabin you chose but they can stick to there guns as they have allocated you a cabin of the same grade.If there were none available they would need to have offered you an upgraded cabin at no extra cost,however the fact they have upped OBC credit to £200 its seems a bit unreasonable  they cant or wont upgrade you instead.

 

Good luck with the promised callback tomorrow

 

 

[paulatsea]

What a horrible thing to do to you at such short notice.

 

They should have offered you the option of a full refund or a suitable cabin change with obc / some money back or even a change of cruise.

Does this mean someone else has been given your cabin ? Or it was double booked ?

 

I think it’s totally out of order as it seems you (like us) carefully choose where your cabin is to avoid  noise etc.

 

good luck.

[w3ndi]

@paulatsea, thank you, we did, we spent ages trying to get a decent one.  All I can assume is it's been double booked!  When I asked for a refund they said I couldn't but that's why I asked on here.  If i've not heard by lunchtime, I'm phoning them again and putting the option of an upgrade back to them. 

[paulatsea]

7 minutes ago, w3ndi said:

@paulatsea, thank you, we did, we spent ages trying to get a decent one.  All I can assume is it's been double booked!  When I asked for a refund they said I couldn't but that's why I asked on here.  If i've not heard by lunchtime, I'm phoning them again and putting the option of an upgrade back to them. 

Let us know - best of luck - I can imagine how stressful this is for you.

[Jim The Scot]

I,d be very surprised if  they,d sanction a full refund or an alternative cruise due to a cabin change even though TUI are at fault…This will no doubt be covered in T&C

 

I know you say that you couldn,t spend the OBC of £200 they have offered but if they stick to their guns on the offer pop along to the casino,buy some chips to play the tables or machines.Winnings are paid out in chips,hand them in when finished for hard cash😉

[w3ndi]

@Jim The Scot, excellent idea, thank you

[paulatsea]

2 minutes ago, Jim The Scot said:

I,d be very surprised if  they,d sanction a full refund or an alternative cruise due to a cabin change even though TUI are at fault…This will no doubt be covered in T&C

 

I know you say that you couldn,t spend the OBC of £200 they have offered but if they stick to their guns on the offer pop along to the casino,buy some chips to play the tables or machines.Winnings are paid out in chips,hand them in when finished for hard cash😉

What a great idea ! 

[paulatsea]

7 minutes ago, Jim The Scot said:

I,d be very surprised if  they,d sanction a full refund or an alternative cruise due to a cabin change even though TUI are at fault…This will no doubt be covered in T&C

 

I know you say that you couldn,t spend the OBC of £200 they have offered but if they stick to their guns on the offer pop along to the casino,buy some chips to play the tables or machines.Winnings are paid out in chips,hand them in when finished for hard cash😉

Do the t&c say how much notice should be given for a cabin change ? To have this done 2 days before the holiday is totally unacceptable in my opinion - a real kick in the teeth.

[w3ndi]

43 minutes ago, paulatsea said:

Do the t&c say how much notice should be given for a cabin change ? To have this done 2 days before the holiday is totally unacceptable in my opinion - a real kick in the teeth.

 

this is all the T&Cs say in respect of moving cabins  - there is nothing about pre-selected/paid for choices being moved changed or notice periods 

 

Non-Transferability

The Carrier agrees to carry the person(s) named in the Passage Contract issued by the Organiser on the date and vessel and cabin type indicated, or any substitute vessel or cabin type as it may decide.

 

23.2. The Master or the Carrier may, if in his or their opinion it becomes advisable or necessary to do so, at any time transfer a Passenger from one berth to another, making a charge if he, in his absolute discretion, considers appropriate.

[paulatsea]

1 hour ago, w3ndi said:

 

this is all the T&Cs say in respect of moving cabins  - there is nothing about pre-selected/paid for choices being moved changed or notice periods 

 

Non-Transferability

The Carrier agrees to carry the person(s) named in the Passage Contract issued by the Organiser on the date and vessel and cabin type indicated, or any substitute vessel or cabin type as it may decide.

 

23.2. The Master or the Carrier may, if in his or their opinion it becomes advisable or necessary to do so, at any time transfer a Passenger from one berth to another, making a charge if he, in his absolute discretion, considers appropriate.

That’s them covered then !

[w3ndi]

Update - after being cut off twice, getting very upset, they're now saying it's a spam email but can't check who was allocated to the revised cabin.  They also say there is no record of any previous queries I've raised yesterday, despite being given a ticket reference number.  They guarantee we're back in the first cabin.  I'm not convinced.  They say they've spoken to the holiday change team who have no notification of a change.  I asked do they book the cabins, they said they did.....  I seem to think (although I could be wrong) the ship do that?????  In which case they might not know and this becomes the ships problem.  I asked why I was offered compensation yesterday, if they're certain this is a spam email.  I'm actually dreading going on this holiday now 

[Jim The Scot]

A-Z guide

 

Cabin Reservations

 

If for any reason we cant give you your reserved cabin we,ll move you to a suitable alternative and refund your booking fee on board.

You can cancel your cruise if the cabin you wanted is not available but you,ll need to pay the normal cancellations charges

 

What I would say is you should be entitled to the £55 booking fee refund in hard cash and not OBC

 

Oops you posted just before me w3ndi

 

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by Jim The Scot

[w3ndi]

genuinely, thank you everyone, appreciate the support.  I'll let you know how I get on.  I've just had an email from TUI with a booking confirmation, I'll use that on the ship if things have changed

[paulatsea]

1 hour ago, w3ndi said:

Update - after being cut off twice, getting very upset, they're now saying it's a spam email but can't check who was allocated to the revised cabin.  They also say there is no record of any previous queries I've raised yesterday, despite being given a ticket reference number.  They guarantee we're back in the first cabin.  I'm not convinced.  They say they've spoken to the holiday change team who have no notification of a change.  I asked do they book the cabins, they said they did.....  I seem to think (although I could be wrong) the ship do that?????  In which case they might not know and this becomes the ships problem.  I asked why I was offered compensation yesterday, if they're certain this is a spam email.  I'm actually dreading going on this holiday now 

This is bizarre.

 

I find it hard to believe it was a spam email as they offered you compensation and seemed to know about the cabin change so therefore about the email - as you said.

 

More like a mistake and they are backtracking.

I think they are using the term “spam” incorrectly - deliberately - instead of being straight with you.

 

Perhaps email the whole story including the original email(with the sender email address included) to customer services and say how upset and stressed this has made you.
The sender email address in the “spam” email will show that it was sent by Marella and was not “spam”.

Ask for a full explanation and ask why the people you have dealt with appear to have been dishonest.

 

If they now say you are in your original cabin then I would be very confident that that is the case.

 

can you check your cabin details again on your checkin documents online to see if they have changed ? Did you notice the changed cabin number online at all after you got the email ?

 

Might be worth taking copies of emails to the ship to see if they can take this up as a complaint as well - I have found customer service on board to be much better than on land - if you can be bothered.

 

I hope it all works out ok - you have been very badly treated and deserve an apology and an explanation at the very least.

 

 

 

[paulatsea]

PS - if it was me I would tell them I will publish what has happened online and ask Simon Calder to take this up - and I would if I didn’t get an explanation - but that’s just me !

[Pensioncruiser]

Think this is a case moving a passenger for a relative of a staff member, it has happened in the past.😖

Hope it all works out.

[paulatsea]

36 minutes ago, Pensioncruiser said:

Think this is a case moving a passenger for a relative of a staff member, it has happened in the past.😖

Hope it all works out.

Wow really ? appalling.

looks like they backtracked in this case.

[Jellifer]

There are a lot of people on the Marella Discovery FB page that have had the same email and it’s genuine. Some kind of disconnect between 2 systems is causing chaos. If someone has booked your cabin for a 2 week cruise and you’d booked from the start of their 2nd week then you get moved.
 

Some were saying if you’ve booked a cabin with a capacity for 4 people and there’s only 2 of you then you may get moved for this reason too. 

[w3ndi]

2 hours ago, Jellifer said:

There are a lot of people on the Marella Discovery FB page that have had the same email and it’s genuine. Some kind of disconnect between 2 systems is causing chaos. If someone has booked your cabin for a 2 week cruise and you’d booked from the start of their 2nd week then you get moved.
 

Some were saying if you’ve booked a cabin with a capacity for 4 people and there’s only 2 of you then you may get moved for this reason too. 

That's interesting to know! so it's more than just me which means that the call centre must have known and have fobbed me off.  I knew they were. This is a terrible way to treat customers asking someone to move halfway through, I feel bad enough and I haven't even got there yet!  I don't envy the staff on the ship dealing with the backlash of this, I imagine the desk will be very busy on departure day! I'm worn out with this, I know it's just a cabin but I've spent a lot of money and time to find this and find the right cabin for us, we even upgraded to a suite to spoil ourselves as we've been having a tough time recently! 

 

Wish us luck and thanks for the updates!  

 

[Jim The Scot]

w3ndi

 

Standing joke,if TUI told me it was raining outside I,d stick my head out the window  to make sure.In my experience you could speak to  3 call centre staff who sit next to each other and get 3 different answers.My advice,de- stress and accept whatever cabin you get and enjoy your cruise and if you still have OBC good luck at the casino😆

[paulatsea]

Good luck w3ndi !!
Hope you have a great holiday.

Please let us know how it goes.

[suech1970]

Omg, what stress for you. Please let us know how it goes but I’m sure you’ll have a great time.

 

It’s may be possible to get that OBC back in cash. You can have that £200 charged to your room, changed to chips at casino tables and then just walk away, take to cashier and she’ll give you cash back. Maybe just play a hand or two?  Haven’t tried it on Marella but it worked on NCL😉