BEWARE! Read this before you book with Celebrity

[dcbiker97]

I was on this cruise and was also upset they cancelled the ports as this was the third time trying to get to Israel.  However, I am also glad that Celebrity was able to pivot at such short notice and keep us safe. I can only imagine all of the sleepless nights the backoffice staff and crew had to make sure we still were able to have a great cruise. 

 

I must strongly disagree with your statement “X told everyone they were “working on something” and we would receive an email from X regarding compensation after the cruise ended.”   I was traveling with 3 other suites, including one of the Penthouses.  At no time were any of us told this or provided any information similar to what you’re claiming.  Do you have this in writing? I read the cruise contract while on board and they can substitute ports at anytime with no compensation. None of us expected a goodwill gesture as they provided a 10 night cruise, which is all that's called for in the contract.   In this case, I’m good with that.

Edited November 28, 2023 by dcbiker97

[YukonCanadianCruiser]

The reason for my post was not to incite hateful comments. We and many other folks who spoke with staff on the cruise were promised something that didn’t materialize. The only purpose of the post was to let others know when you book with X expecting exceptional treatment (a reasonable assumption based on their marketing materials), you may leave disappointed. Take care, everyone.

[YukonCanadianCruiser]

55 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

A fair question, for sure. 

Refund of port charges seems appropriate to me

[wrk2cruise]

Which would have probably added up to less than $100 pp.  They used to do this all the time for missed ports (replaced by sea days) but that hasn't happened since the restart.

[DaKahuna]

7 minutes ago, YukonCanadianCruiser said:

Refund of port charges seems appropriate to me

 

 Those were most likely applied to the new ports of call. 

 

[CaroleSS]

1 minute ago, YukonCanadianCruiser said:

Refund of port charges seems appropriate to me

So a refund of port charges.....but would you be willing to pay the port charges for the ports you DID visit? What if those new charges exceeded the "old" charges? Would you be willing to pay the additional fees?

 

Again, I'm not sure why you are so upset over....$100.

 

You say you spoke with "staff". Who was that? Your cabin attendant? The bartender? The captain? It was said they were working on "something". Maybe that was alternate ports?

 

I think many know that X is not the "luxury" cruise line of yore. But none of the cruise lines are what they were 5 years ago.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

The Israel cruise are usually 30% more expensive than a Greek island cruise 

some FCC would have been nice to make for the difference in price 

[wrk2cruise]

^^This^^   These people paid a premium for a specialized itinerary.  They got a more generic med itinerary.  My opinion a couple hundred OBC or FCC would have been a nice good will gesture.  

 

On my last sailing they were giving larger FCC for chipped paint on the balcony and other cosmetic issues to certain individuals.

[Lena11033]

This is my opinion, I'm sure it was disappointing not to receive anything but they do have the right to change the ports (mine was changed because workers in France were striking so MSC took us to Belgium instead) but considering WHY it was changed I feel like this is a first world problem complaint considering what's going on which was beyond their control.

[prmssk]

13 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

On my last sailing they were giving larger FCC for chipped paint on the balcony and other cosmetic issues to certain individuals.

To be fair, chipped paint and cosmetic issues are all issues fully within Celebrity's control to prevent/maintain. A war in Israel is not.

[ohiojohn]

From a long time Celebrity cruiser, in my heart I believe the old Celebrity would have done some small gesture.  I believe Celebrity DOES NOT owe them anything, but I will leave you with this.  Last month we took a cruise from Montreal to Fort Lauderdale on our new primary cruise provider.  The cruise was going to be late into Port Everglades by 4 hours. This screwed up many flights as you can imagine.  This cruise was only the 2nd time over 25 cruises I used the cruise carrier's Air.   We were automatically rebooked on a direct flight at 5pm.  The cruise carrier allowed us to stay in our rooms to 10am and breakfast was open to 10am.  We were off the ship at 12:30pm.  When we got home I noticed a nice e-mail from the cruise carrier owning up to the delay and we should call a special number if we were impacted.  I was not impacted so I did not call.  This gesture was very positive.  Today, I booked another non Celebrity cruise, and today Celebrity notified me of a change in our Vancouver to Hawaii next September on the Edge.  We have the Ascent booked on Dec 10 2024 and after the Hawaii cruise, no more Celebrity.  Both of our last 2 Celebrity cruises are booked in the retreat.  Sorry for the long comment.

[RD64]

1 hour ago, YukonCanadianCruiser said:

The reason for my post was not to incite hateful comments. We and many other folks who spoke with staff on the cruise were promised something that didn’t materialize. The only purpose of the post was to let others know when you book with X expecting exceptional treatment (a reasonable assumption based on their marketing materials), you may leave disappointed. Take care, everyone.

Staff told you - but were these staff members actually in a position to do a thing about it? It seems like a lot of he said / she said but nothing concrete in writing. I am assuming that otherwise you had a good cruise but time to move on my Canadian compatriot - this case is closed

[wilmingtech]

Seeing as this was a Mediterranean cruise and probably had a larger European audience, the cruise contracts for Europeans and other countries may be different than what we have here in the US/NA.  The European contracts may state that if the trip changes the itinerary enough then it must refund a portion of, or all of the cruise costs whereas in the US/NA it may state regardless of where the ship goes (Even if it never hits a port at all) if the ship leaves the dock you pay for the cruise.

 

This may be why there is confusion on the refunds.  Europeans by law may have had received credit for the change of itinerary and crew may have said as much without clearly identifying these differences.  I am certain that with the huge losses cruise companies have suffered over the last few years, giving back money is not at the forefront of their "how do we increase the profit" agenda.

 

All that being said, I would just stop sailing Celebrity (I have not sailed them in the past and only have a single cruise booked with them in 2025) if the product they delivered (Including customer service) could be found else where for a better ROI.  It seems like a small gesture of a little FCC would go a long way to retain customer loyalty,

 

And I think that is the point that @YukonCanadianCruiser was trying to make and @ohiojohn executed on.

Edited November 29, 2023 by wilmingtech

[HeddaGarbled]

It must have been an absolute nightmare for Celebrity and all the other cruise lines sailing to those ports. Just imagine the logistical challenge and financial loss of changing it all mid-cruise. 
 

Were you not even a tiny bit grateful for them keeping you safe and giving you a lovely cruise under the circumstances?

[RD64]

@wilmingtech but sometimes life, weather, war happens.

 

I was supposed to go on a TA from Lisbon to NYC a few weeks ago but had to cancel ( not the point). Two of four ports were cancelled ( Horta and Ponta Delgada) due to weather. It is the same situation - people claiming that it is not the cruise that they were sold and demanding every form of compensation possible because this is not the cruise they were booked. To complicate matters, you get the random person that “claims” they got all of their money back plus a new kidney, and it sends people in an uproar demanding the same thing.

 

Going back to 2019 - same thing. Transat Lisbon to Boston (13 days) - port call at St. Pierre et Miquelon cancelled due to whatever hurricane was going through that September. Ship full of people playing the”Woe is Me” and “The Only Reason I Booked This 13 Day Cruise Was To Go To SPM” game. The only thing we got back was port charges - I did not expect or want anything more, even though I truly wanted to go to SPM.

 

As has been stated numerous times, in numerous posts, on numerous boards - never book a cruise if the only reason you are doing so is to go to a specific port, because stuff happens, and you should not expect any compensation, if things do not go as planned, due to no fault of the cruise Iine.

[PTC DAWG]

1 hour ago, ohiojohn said:

From a long time Celebrity cruiser, in my heart I believe the old Celebrity would have done some small gesture.  I believe Celebrity DOES NOT owe them anything, but I will leave you with this.  Last month we took a cruise from Montreal to Fort Lauderdale on our new primary cruise provider.  The cruise was going to be late into Port Everglades by 4 hours. This screwed up many flights as you can imagine.  This cruise was only the 2nd time over 25 cruises I used the cruise carrier's Air.   We were automatically rebooked on a direct flight at 5pm.  The cruise carrier allowed us to stay in our rooms to 10am and breakfast was open to 10am.  We were off the ship at 12:30pm.  When we got home I noticed a nice e-mail from the cruise carrier owning up to the delay and we should call a special number if we were impacted.  I was not impacted so I did not call.  This gesture was very positive.  Today, I booked another non Celebrity cruise, and today Celebrity notified me of a change in our Vancouver to Hawaii next September on the Edge.  We have the Ascent booked on Dec 10 2024 and after the Hawaii cruise, no more Celebrity.  Both of our last 2 Celebrity cruises are booked in the retreat.  Sorry for the long comment.

Lots of info here. 🙂

[RD64]

1 minute ago, HeddaGarbled said:

It must have been an absolute nightmare for Celebrity and all the other cruise lines sailing to those ports. Just imagine the logistical challenge and financial loss of changing it all mid-cruise. 
 

Were you not even a tiny bit grateful for them keeping you safe and giving you a lovely cruise under the circumstances?

Sadly lovely cruise does not count when the possibility of “compensation” rears its head. Sadly the C word seems to be more common lately on every single cruise line board. As an informed passenger, realize that things happen, read your contract, understand the legal terms, and do not expect the cruise line to comp your cruise because you missed a port or two. If the uncertainties of cruise line itineraries does not suit you, then people are always free to book a land vacation.

[wilmingtech]

6 minutes ago, RD64 said:

@wilmingtech but sometimes life, weather, war happens.

 

I was supposed to go on a TA from Lisbon to NYC a few weeks ago but had to cancel ( not the point). Two of four ports were cancelled ( Horta and Ponta Delgada) due to weather. It is the same situation - people claiming that it is not the cruise that they were sold and demanding every form of compensation possible because this is not the cruise they were booked. To complicate matters, you get the random person that “claims” they got all of their money back plus a new kidney, and it sends people in an uproar demanding the same thing.

 

Going back to 2019 - same thing. Transat Lisbon to Boston (13 days) - port call at St. Pierre et Miquelon cancelled due to whatever hurricane was going through that September. Ship full of people playing the”Woe is Me” and “The Only Reason I Booked This 13 Day Cruise Was To Go To SPM” game. The only thing we got back was port charges - I did not expect or want anything more, even though I truly wanted to go to SPM.

 

As has been stated numerous times, in numerous posts, on numerous boards - never book a cruise if the only reason you are doing so is to go to a specific port, because stuff happens, and you should not expect any compensation, if things do not go as planned, due to no fault of the cruise Iine.

 

My argument has nothing to do with the fact that ports were canceled and the cruise was changed. While it would be a letdown for me, I wouldn't care one bit if I got any refund at all.  My argument is rather that if you had the same exact cruise and experience with 2 different cruise lines for the same exact price and they both canceled the same ports and one offered FCC or OBC or some kind of compensation and the other offered nothing, if all is the same between the 2 lines and ships, which one do you choose to book your next cruise with?

Edited November 29, 2023 by wilmingtech

[Ex-Airbalancer]

13 minutes ago, HeddaGarbled said:

It must have been an absolute nightmare for Celebrity and all the other cruise lines sailing to those ports. Just imagine the logistical challenge and financial loss of changing it all mid-cruise. 
 

Were you not even a tiny bit grateful for them keeping you safe and giving you a lovely cruise under the circumstances?

Keeping them safe ? 
Celebrity wasn’t going to take a ship into a war zone 

 

[prmssk]

4 minutes ago, wilmingtech said:

 

My argument has nothing to do with the fact that ports were canceled and the cruise was changed. While it would be a letdown for me, I wouldn't care one bit if I got any refund at all.  My argument is rather that if you had the same exact cruise and experience with 2 different cruise lines for the same exact price and they both canceled the same ports and one offered FCC or OBC or some kind of compensation and the other offered nothing, if all is the same between the 2 lines and ships, which one do you choose to book your next cruise with?

Have you found a cruise line that consistently offers FCC or OBC in situations like this that are beyond the control of the cruise line?  I haven't.

 

Have you found any cruise lines that offer the same exact itinerary and the same exact experience for the same exact price?  I haven't.  They all have their pros and cons and different price points and even different itineraries.  

 

Personally, whether a cruise line gives me something for situations beyond their control when they don't have to isn't very high on my list of criteria when I'm choosing a cruise.  But maybe it's higher for others.

[RD64]

@prmssk thank you for being the voice of reason. What the OP may not realize is that while cruiseline XYZ may give free cruises / future OBC / FCC or whatever financial incentive in this particular situation, does not necessarily mean they will do so in the future given a similar situation. There are lots of cruise lines out there and the OP is free to find one which never cancels any ports, changes itineraries, and provides a free cruise.

 

I would still like to hear how the OP enjoyed this cruise despite the fact that they did not receive the financial compensation they feel they were entitled to.

[BOB999]

4 hours ago, YukonCanadianCruiser said:

 Guests who were scheduled on the same itinerary the following week were offered a 100% refund as a goodwill gesture if they didn’t wish to go on the revised Greek Islands itinerary. 

 

This is not true.  I was booked on the following week Apex cruise, cancelled and was not offered a refund.  I got 90% FCC because I had purchased the Celebrity insurance which includes a "cancel for any reason" provision.

 

Some customers in the UK received refunds because UK law requires it if there are "signifcant" changes in the itinerary.

[SusieAV8R]

3 hours ago, CaroleSS said:

So a refund of port charges.....but would you be willing to pay the port charges for the ports you DID visit? What if those new charges exceeded the "old" charges? Would you be willing to pay the additional fees?

 

Again, I'm not sure why you are so upset over....$100.

 

You say you spoke with "staff". Who was that? Your cabin attendant? The bartender? The captain? It was said they were working on "something". Maybe that was alternate ports?

 

I think many know that X is not the "luxury" cruise line of yore. But none of the cruise lines are what they were 5 years ago.

CaroleSS, I totally concur with your posting.  And Covid shutdown changed all the cruise lines from the way they operated pre-covid., based on numerous relevant comments.  .DH and I have researched lines post covid and X is a good fit for us.  But it may not be a good fit for others.  Fortunately, many other options exist.

[SusieAV8R]

48 minutes ago, BOB999 said:

 

This is not true.  I was booked on the following week Apex cruise, cancelled and was not offered a refund.  I got 90% FCC because I had purchased the Celebrity insurance which includes a "cancel for any reason" provision.

 

Some customers in the UK received refunds because UK law requires it if there are "signifcant" changes in the itinerary.

And we have read of the numerous differences between what UK cruisers vs US/CDN cruisers obtain from X, including base prices, perks etc.

1 minute ago, SusieAV8R said:

CaroleSS, I totally concur with your posting.  And Covid shutdown changed all the cruise lines from the way they operated pre-covid., based on numerous relevant comments.  .DH and I have researched lines post covid and X is a good fit for us.  But it may not be a good fit for others.  Fortunately, many other options exist.

 

[mayleeman]

If any customers who DID cruise the next week got compensation for the itinerary change, OP has an argument. But they are comparing to people who cancelled and did NOT cruise, and got refunds. 

 

Entirely different.