Need advice

[lakedweller64]

We have booked and paid for three cruises back to back which Hal considers one cruise.San Diego to Fort Lauderdale on to Montreal ending up in Boston.Just got an email from Hal saying we were in violation of passenger service act.they are going to cancel the Montreal to Boston leg with no refund.we talked to our Hal pvp she said she would take care of it.However she also said that Hal has hired a lot of new people.it is very obvious that this is a mistake but still worried our cruise will get cancelled.Is there another contract department or number we can call to make sure this is resolved? Thanks 

[CruiserBruce]

Call back and ask to speak with a supervisor. If this is under one booking number, I am not seeing the possible violation...your are going from from one US port to another with a stop in a distant foreign port, on the San Diego to Ft Lauderdale leg. If it is under multiple booking numbers, then yes, it is possibly a violation.

 

If HAL booked this and it is a violation, no doubt they should be refunding any monies.

[horseymike]

Call Seattle phone number and ask to speak with the resolution department.

I think you have to call Monday thru Friday, I am not sure if they are in on the weekends.

Insist on being connected to that department.

Good luck 🍀.

[lakedweller64]

It is under separate booking numbers since we booked each leg at different times. It just amazes me that HAL would have let us book & take our money then wait a month to tell us about the violation.also they are going to keep our payment for the Montreal to Boston leg??

[lakedweller64]

What is the best phone number for the Seattle office?

[richwmn]

A couple of notes. I am with you on everything except the Montreal to Boston on various booking numbers. The cruise, for you, does not violate the PVSA. In an abundance of caution (I am beginning to hate that phrase) HAL sends everyone on the FLL -> Montreal Cruise an email that they can't add Montreal -> Boston due to the PVSA. The act applies per person, so your being on the San Diego -> FLL Cruise makes it compliant. Push to talk to the correct person at HAL and you will be able to complete the cruises you booked.

 

[CruiserBruce]

2 minutes ago, richwmn said:

A couple of notes. I am with you on everything except the Montreal to Boston on various booking numbers. The cruise, for you, does not violate the PVSA. In an abundance of caution (I am beginning to hate that phrase) HAL sends everyone on the FLL -> Montreal Cruise an email that they can't add Montreal -> Boston due to the PVSA. The act applies per person, so your being on the San Diego -> FLL Cruise makes it compliant. Push to talk to the correct person at HAL and you will be able to complete the cruises you booked.

 

The issue is, if the OP is on separate booking numbers, that makes the OP being transported from Ft Lauderdale to Boston without a stop in a distant foreign port. That would be a violation.

[richwmn]

18 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

The issue is, if the OP is on separate booking numbers, that makes the OP being transported from Ft Lauderdale to Boston without a stop in a distant foreign port. That would be a violation.

booking numbers don't matter to as far as the PVSA is concerned. What matters is where a particular passenger boards and disembarks. Each guest is considered separately.

 

[lakedweller64]

not sure what I am missing here? if I fly from Fll to Boston which I do a lot no problems.But if I go by ship then that’s a violation? is this correct?

[VMax1700]

1 minute ago, lakedweller64 said:

not sure what I am missing here? if I fly from Fll to Boston which I do a lot no problems.But if I go by ship then that’s a violation? is this correct?

You are missing the boat!  PSVA applies to passenger vessels only and not aircraft.

[CruiserBruce]

20 minutes ago, lakedweller64 said:

not sure what I am missing here? if I fly from Fll to Boston which I do a lot no problems.But if I go by ship then that’s a violation? is this correct?

Is this correct? Yes.

[richwmn]

26 minutes ago, lakedweller64 said:

not sure what I am missing here? if I fly from Fll to Boston which I do a lot no problems.But if I go by ship then that’s a violation? is this correct?

 

23 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

You are missing the boat!  PSVA applies to passenger vessels only and not aircraft.

 

5 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Is this correct? Yes.

The difference is that you are flying FLL -> BOS on a US FLAGGED Vessel. There are laws similar to the PVSA that control airlines. KLM can not transport passengers between US cities either. Holland America, like all cruise ships, are flagged in countries other than the US. Holland's ships are all flagged in the Netherlands. Most Cruise ships are flagged in Panama and the Bahamas.

[lakedweller64]

On this cruise I board in San Diego stop in a number of foreign ports and end in Boston.Hal states that they consider this one continuous cruise per there email.

[richwmn]

16 minutes ago, lakedweller64 said:

On this cruise I board in San Diego stop in a number of foreign ports and end in Boston.Hal states that they consider this one continuous cruise per there email.

That is correct, but according to the terms of the PVSA in order to go from one US port to another you must stop at a DISTANT foreign port which is defined as one basically outside North America and the Caribbean. The port that qualifies is Cartagena, Colombia which is South America. The ABC islands also qualify as they are considered to be part of South America.

[lakedweller64]

Thank you for all of your replies I will let you know how I make out.

[1025cruise]

My guess is because you booked the legs separately, they are only seeing the FLL to Boston, which is illegal. They aren't seeing beforehand.

[lakedweller64]

I am sure that’s the case in the email they said I had five days until they were going to cancel the Montreal to Boston leg.with the holidays just not sure who to contact 

[OlsSalt]

By the Twelfth day of Christmas, I hope this all gets worked out for you.  What a stessor right now. Can this be rebooked in toto as a single cruise? 

[RuthC]

The PVSA considers where the passenger starts, and where the passenger ends up. How many legs of the cruise does not matter, so long as there are no breaks. 
I'm not seeing a reason why your itinerary, assuming you do have a distant foreign port on the first leg, doesn't meet the requirements. 

The only piece of advice in this thread that I disagree with is supporting you dealing with it. You got your TA involved in resolving this so, let your TA do the work they get paid to do. 

Good luck, and it does sound like a nice itinerary. 

[retird]

8 hours ago, richwmn said:

That is correct, but according to the terms of the PVSA in order to go from one US port to another you must stop at a DISTANT foreign port which is defined as one basically outside North America and the Caribbean. The port that qualifies is Cartagena, Colombia which is South America. The ABC islands also qualify as they are considered to be part of South America.

But on a transpacific you can go from Honolulu to Seattle with no stop in between.  Isnt that the same?

[CruiserBruce]

14 minutes ago, retird said:

But on a transpacific you can go from Honolulu to Seattle with no stop in between.  Isnt that the same?

But you can't start a cruise in Seattle and end it in Honolulu,  or vice versa. You can visit Honolulu,  but you can't disembark there.

[lakedweller64]

The end of this saga is after talking to numerous Hal representatives.i had to cancel the Fll to Montreal and the Montreal to Boston.I did get them to promise a full refund.this was their mistake I should have been told at time of booking about the Jones act.Lesson learned I hope it may help someone else in the future thanks for all your help.

[richwmn]

Sorry you had to cancel as the itinerary IS legal under the PVSA. If you want to do the cruise as you booked it, get in touch with someone during the day tomorrow.

[RuthC]

59 minutes ago, lakedweller64 said:

this was their mistake I should have been told at time of booking about the Jones act.

This has nothing to do with the Jones Act; it is rooted in the Passenger Vessel Services Act. If you were told it is a violation of the Jones Act by someone at HAL, they don't know what they are talking about, so may not know what they are talking about when they say it is a violation. 
In what way does your itinerary violate the PVSA? Did the representative explain just what the violation is??? 

I agree with richwmn, that you need to talk to someone tomorrow. Or, let your TA handle it, as they have more contacts than you do, and possibly have worked through this before. 

[retird]

2 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

But you can't start a cruise in Seattle and end it in Honolulu,  or vice versa. You can visit Honolulu,  but you can't disembark there.

But the OP can start in San Diego and end in Fort Lauderdale?   I understood the OP was departing FLL and visiting various ports on the way to Montreal and ending in Boston.   Wouldnt Montreal and the other ports visited qualify as foreign ports under PVSA?

Edited December 22, 2023 by retird