Royal Caribbean Cancellation of Quantum of the Seas

[DawnGail]

I booked a 13-day cruise through a travel agency on the Quantum of the Seas, leaving Vancouver on October 1, 2024 to Honolulu at a price of USD$1,712. The cruise was cancelled (we still have no explanation as to why) and they offered us a 9-day cruise leaving Vancouver to Honolulu, 4 days later, for the SAME PRICE! They threw in USD$100 OBC for the inconvenience. Royal Caribbean won't talk to me, they say go through your travel agent, the travel agent won't give me the name of their Royal Caribbean contact. This is my first cruise experience, and I have to say I can't believe that Royal Caribbean can get away with this BS (13-day cruise is $132/night and 9-day is $190). I feel for the travel agency, this is not their fault - they didn't cancel cruise and they don't set the cruise fares - Royal Caribbean does.

Has anyone else experienced this type of unacceptable service from Royal Caribbean?  I finally had a telecom with RCCL and the travel agency; they still maintain they are not offering me anything (I asked about the drink package, gratuities or upgrade). They are not stopping at any ports until we get to Hawaii and we were supposed to stop at three.  Normally cruise lines give refunds when they don't stop, but not this cruise line.

[rchristie58]

I assume that you can back out and get your money back? If so, then they are under no obligation to offer any deals or incentives. If they had another similar sailing then I’d assume they would offer it. Other than that, I guess they don’t care if you cancel. 

[DawnGail]

Yes, we had three options.  Cancel, book another cruise, book the 9 day to Hawaii.  All my friends have rebooked so I don't have any choice.  Surprised that RCCL can get away with this type of customer service!  Thanks.

[leaveitallbehind]

58 minutes ago, DawnGail said:

Yes, we had three options.  Cancel, book another cruise, book the 9 day to Hawaii.  All my friends have rebooked so I don't have any choice.  Surprised that RCCL can get away with this type of customer service!  Thanks.

There really are two issues here: the cancelation of the cruise, and your perspective on the customer service - or lack thereof - you have received.  

 

As to the first part, there could be a number of valid reasons why this cancelation was made, and contractually by your booking agreement, they are within their rights to do so. It is unfortunate and unpleasant, but that is the way it is.  Canceling an itinerary is one of the last things a cruise line wants to do as it is very disruptive for everyone and always results in negative feedback about them.  Hopefully at some point some clarity will be provided for your understanding.

 

As to your thoughts on their customer service, travel agents are in essence the extended sales arm of the cruise lines.  When you book through one, they have responsibility for, and control, your booking.  By that relationship, the cruise lines cannot talk to you directly about the booking and you are obligated to go through your TA. The TA also cannot provide any direct internal cruise line call line for you, but they certainly can, and should, manage your situation with the cruise line on your behalf.  They are your advocate and this is part of their responsibility. 

 

I would contact your TA (again) to review and determine your best option and to see whatever information has been made available to them regarding the original itinerary.

 

I'm very sorry this has occurred with your first cruise experience.  It is one of the most unfortunate things that can, and occasionally do, arise.  The cruise line is trying to do the best for you given the circumstances, an you do have the three options presented.  As such, I hope this all works out to your satisfaction and that you enjoy your first cruise.

Edited February 21 by leaveitallbehind

[MCC retired]

It may be due to the 9 night cruise is currently more $$$$ than your 13 night cruise was ? Check current price of the 9 nighter.

[leaveitallbehind]

6 minutes ago, MCC retired said:

It may be due to the 9 night cruise is currently more $$$$ than your 13 night cruise was ? Check current price of the 9 nighter.

I'm also a little confused by this situation as there is still a Quantum sailing on the books, but it is a 14 night transpacific repositioning cruise from Seattle to Tokyo on 9/30 with no ports of call in Hawaii.  Perhaps this is what the original cruise canceled / changed to?  Completely different.  Prior to 9/30 Quantum is doing Seattle /  Alaska itineraries

 

The only 9-night Vancouver to Hawaii is on Ovation of the Seas on 10/4.  So if this is it, it would have been a ship change as well.  Prior to 10/4 Ovation is also showing Seattle / Alaska itineraries. Following the 10/4 Hawaii 9 night is an 18 night transpacific repositioning cruise from Hawaii to Australia. 

[JJK2008]

2 hours ago, DawnGail said:

I booked a 13-day cruise through a travel agency on the Quantum of the Seas, leaving Vancouver on October 1, 2024 to Honolulu at a price of USD$1,712. The cruise was cancelled (we still have no explanation as to why) and they offered us a 9-day cruise leaving Vancouver to Honolulu, 4 days later, for the SAME PRICE! They threw in USD$100 OBC for the inconvenience. Royal Caribbean won't talk to me, they say go through your travel agent, the travel agent won't give me the name of their Royal Caribbean contact. This is my first cruise experience, and I have to say I can't believe that Royal Caribbean can get away with this BS (13-day cruise is $132/night and 9-day is $190). I feel for the travel agency, this is not their fault - they didn't cancel cruise and they don't set the cruise fares - Royal Caribbean does.

Has anyone else experienced this type of unacceptable service from Royal Caribbean?  I finally had a telecom with RCCL and the travel agency; they still maintain they are not offering me anything (I asked about the drink package, gratuities or upgrade). They are not stopping at any ports until we get to Hawaii and we were supposed to stop at three.  Normally cruise lines give refunds when they don't stop, but not this cruise line.

Many don't know that they when you book a cruise through a TA, you are NOT the customer of the cruise line, the TA is the customer. You are a customer of the TA. That's why RCCL won't talk to you, you're not their customer. Many here on CC swear by TA. I'm sure there are good ones. But personally, we never use a TA. Prefer to book directly with the cruise line. If an issue does arise, nice to be able to deal direct without a middleman. It works for us but not for everybody. Good Luck.

[Hlitner]

My only issues with this are the lack of transparency on the part of the cruise line (they owe a custoemr some explanation) and the fact that this was cancelled within 330 days of the cruise which means some customers may have purchased non-refundable air to embarkation/debarkation ports.  

 

It is the norm, in the industry, that when things like cancelations or changes happen, it will be handled through one's travel/cruise agency.  I will not get into the debate about using travel/cruise agencies other then to say that having been cruising for over 50 years (far more then 100 cruises) we prefer to use a decent high-volume travel/cruise agency.

 

Hank

[sunseawinedine]

5 hours ago, DawnGail said:

I booked a 13-day cruise through a travel agency on the Quantum of the Seas, leaving Vancouver on October 1, 2024 to Honolulu at a price of USD$1,712. The cruise was cancelled (we still have no explanation as to why) and they offered us a 9-day cruise leaving Vancouver to Honolulu, 4 days later, for the SAME PRICE! They threw in USD$100 OBC for the inconvenience. Royal Caribbean won't talk to me, they say go through your travel agent, the travel agent won't give me the name of their Royal Caribbean contact. This is my first cruise experience, and I have to say I can't believe that Royal Caribbean can get away with this BS (13-day cruise is $132/night and 9-day is $190). I feel for the travel agency, this is not their fault - they didn't cancel cruise and they don't set the cruise fares - Royal Caribbean does.

Has anyone else experienced this type of unacceptable service from Royal Caribbean?  I finally had a telecom with RCCL and the travel agency; they still maintain they are not offering me anything (I asked about the drink package, gratuities or upgrade). They are not stopping at any ports until we get to Hawaii and we were supposed to stop at three.  Normally cruise lines give refunds when they don't stop, but not this cruise line.

I am sailing on Quantum this coming April on the transpacific cruise Australia to Hawaii, after Hawaii i believe it heads to Vancouver after which it’s apparently going into dry dock for refurbishing. I am unsure how long that process takes for a refurbishing but perhaps this could be why it was cancelled?

 

Catherine

[leaveitallbehind]

12 hours ago, sunseawinedine said:

I am sailing on Quantum this coming April on the transpacific cruise Australia to Hawaii, after Hawaii i believe it heads to Vancouver after which it’s apparently going into dry dock for refurbishing. I am unsure how long that process takes for a refurbishing but perhaps this could be why it was cancelled?

 

Catherine

In this case I don't think that is likely as routine drydocks normally only take 2-3 weeks.  If the drydock is part of the amplification program that could take 4-5 weeks.  In either case Quantum is showing itineraries available prior to the sailing date in question.

Edited February 22 by leaveitallbehind

[auntmeg]

On 2/21/2024 at 2:41 PM, DawnGail said:

Yes, we had three options.  Cancel, book another cruise, book the 9 day to Hawaii.  All my friends have rebooked so I don't have any choice.  Surprised that RCCL can get away with this type of customer service!  Thanks.

Why? Why don't you have any choice?

[Aquahound]

On 2/21/2024 at 5:33 PM, sunseawinedine said:

I am sailing on Quantum this coming April on the transpacific cruise Australia to Hawaii, after Hawaii i believe it heads to Vancouver after which it’s apparently going into dry dock for refurbishing. I am unsure how long that process takes for a refurbishing but perhaps this could be why it was cancelled?

 

Catherine

 

It moves down to Seattle after Vancouver and starts AK cruises out of Seattle on May 6.  

[Aquahound]

On 2/21/2024 at 11:28 AM, DawnGail said:

Normally cruise lines give refunds when they don't stop, but not this cruise line.

 

Your whole cruise was canceled, not ports, so I don't understand this question.  🤷‍♂️

[leaveitallbehind]

57 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

 

Your whole cruise was canceled, not ports, so I don't understand this question.  🤷‍♂️

And by offering the option to cancel they did offer a refund, so I am confused as well. 

 

And to the OP, normally cruise lines don't give refunds for missed ports of call.  They credit port fees for those missed ports.  And depending on how disrupted the itinerary was, they may offer some amount of on board credit or possibly a discount on a future cruise credit.

 

As this is your first cruise experience I don't think you have a full understanding of how the cruise industry operates and you may not aware of what they normally do in any given circumstance. Unfortunately your situation is a difficult way to be introduced to that world.

Edited February 23 by leaveitallbehind

[SelectSys]

On 2/21/2024 at 11:28 AM, DawnGail said:

Royal Caribbean won't talk to me, they say go through your travel agent, the travel agent won't give me the name of their Royal Caribbean contact. This is my first cruise experience, and I have to say I can't believe that Royal Caribbean can get away with this

I am sorry to see you off to such a poor start with your cruising experience.  I am not surprised that RCCL is directing you to the travel agent.  This is always the case if you book via an agent for any reason.  Your TA in turn is calling a general number for support when necessary and I would be surprised if they had a named cruise line representative.

 

Good luck and hopefully you don't let this initial hiccup get you discouraged about cruising. 

[DawnGail]

2 hours ago, auntmeg said:

Why? Why don't you have any choice?

If I take a refund, I will have to cruise on my own, which is not something I want to do.  Hopefully the cruise will be great and I won't be complaining any longer!  Thanks.

[DawnGail]

1 hour ago, Aquahound said:

 

Your whole cruise was canceled, not ports, so I don't understand this question.  🤷‍♂️

The RCCL offer of a 9 day cruise to Hawaii with no stops is what I was asking about.  The Quantum 13 day cruise was supposed to stop in Victoria, Seattle, San Francisco, Kauai.  The 9 day stops in Honolulu for a day and then we cruise again for two days and then end up back in Honolulu.  Each port stop costs the cruise line - how can they justify a 9 day cruise with no stops for the same price?  RCCL are not prepared to do anything about it so I guess I have to let it go and hope for a great cruise!

[Aquahound]

3 minutes ago, DawnGail said:

The RCCL offer of a 9 day cruise to Hawaii with no stops is what I was asking about.  The Quantum 13 day cruise was supposed to stop in Victoria, Seattle, San Francisco, Kauai.  The 9 day stops in Honolulu for a day and then we cruise again for two days and then end up back in Honolulu.  Each port stop costs the cruise line - how can they justify a 9 day cruise with no stops for the same price?  RCCL are not prepared to do anything about it so I guess I have to let it go and hope for a great cruise!

 

Ok.  The answer to that question is simple supply and demand.  Did you ever follow the pricing on your cruise?  I'm sure it fluctuated a lot from the time it was released until the time it was canceled.  

 

I'm booked on Quantum in a little over 2 months for 7 nights.  When I first looked, a year ago, balconies were $1300 per person.  I waited until they dropped to $650 and I booked.  Meanwhile, twin sister ship Ovation, sailing the same week, is still at over $1000 per person. 

 

Unfortunately, that is the world of cruise pricing.  

[Moltar]

On 2/21/2024 at 5:12 PM, JJK2008 said:

Many don't know that they when you book a cruise through a TA, you are NOT the customer of the cruise line, the TA is the customer. You are a customer of the TA. That's why RCCL won't talk to you, you're not their customer. Many here on CC swear by TA. I'm sure there are good ones. But personally, we never use a TA. Prefer to book directly with the cruise line. If an issue does arise, nice to be able to deal direct without a middleman. It works for us but not for everybody. Good Luck.

I feel the same way I want absolute control of my vacation and planning I don’t wanna have to deal with the middleman

[dunrobbin]

8 hours ago, DawnGail said:

The RCCL offer of a 9 day cruise to Hawaii with no stops is what I was asking about.  The Quantum 13 day cruise was supposed to stop in Victoria, Seattle, San Francisco, Kauai.  The 9 day stops in Honolulu for a day and then we cruise again for two days and then end up back in Honolulu.  Each port stop costs the cruise line - how can they justify a 9 day cruise with no stops for the same price?  RCCL are not prepared to do anything about it so I guess I have to let it go and hope for a great cruise!

Totally agree. You are being offered a shorter cruise, with less ports. I would be very unhappy as well!

Royal doesn't give a rats about its customers anymore.

In years gone by they would have offered a small cruise credit to make up for the inconvenience as well.

Now the only ones they care about are their shareholders.

 

[cruisinfanatic]

9 hours ago, DawnGail said:

The RCCL offer of a 9 day cruise to Hawaii with no stops is what I was asking about.  The Quantum 13 day cruise was supposed to stop in Victoria, Seattle, San Francisco, Kauai.  The 9 day stops in Honolulu for a day and then we cruise again for two days and then end up back in Honolulu.  Each port stop costs the cruise line - how can they justify a 9 day cruise with no stops for the same price?  RCCL are not prepared to do anything about it so I guess I have to let it go and hope for a great cruise!

What do you expect them to do?

They offered full refund as well as other options

[cruisinfanatic]

9 hours ago, DawnGail said:

The RCCL offer of a 9 day cruise to Hawaii with no stops is what I was asking about.  The Quantum 13 day cruise was supposed to stop in Victoria, Seattle, San Francisco, Kauai.  The 9 day stops in Honolulu for a day and then we cruise again for two days and then end up back in Honolulu.  Each port stop costs the cruise line - how can they justify a 9 day cruise with no stops for the same price?  RCCL are not prepared to do anything about it so I guess I have to let it go and hope for a great cruise!

What do you expect them to do?

They offered full refund as well as other options

[firefly333]

On 2/21/2024 at 1:28 PM, DawnGail said:

I booked a 13-day cruise through a travel agency on the Quantum of the Seas, leaving Vancouver on October 1, 2024 to Honolulu at a price of USD$1,712. The cruise was cancelled (we still have no explanation as to why) and they offered us a 9-day cruise leaving Vancouver to Honolulu, 4 days later, for the SAME PRICE! They threw in USD$100 OBC for the inconvenience. Royal Caribbean won't talk to me, they say go through your travel agent, the travel agent won't give me the name of their Royal Caribbean contact. This is my first cruise experience, and I have to say I can't believe that Royal Caribbean can get away with this BS (13-day cruise is $132/night and 9-day is $190). I feel for the travel agency, this is not their fault - they didn't cancel cruise and they don't set the cruise fares - Royal Caribbean does.

Has anyone else experienced this type of unacceptable service from Royal Caribbean?  I finally had a telecom with RCCL and the travel agency; they still maintain they are not offering me anything (I asked about the drink package, gratuities or upgrade). They are not stopping at any ports until we get to Hawaii and we were supposed to stop at three.  Normally cruise lines give refunds when they don't stop, but not this cruise line.

Whenever you choose to use a travel agent to book, they now own the booking. You have to go thru them for everything. You could have booked direct but choose to use a travel agent. All price adjustments and future contact its true now has to go thru the travel agent who now owns the booking. 

 

You said this is your first cruise. The travel agent is being paid a commission to handle your booking. It was by your choice. So now yes they handle future communication. Sorry, you are having to learn how this works the hard way.

 

This is true of all cruiselines, not royal in particular. 

[JJK2008]

2 hours ago, Moltar said:

I feel the same way I want absolute control of my vacation and planning I don’t wanna have to deal with the middleman

I would say we are in the minority here on CC. I have posted before about booking direct rather than use a TA and many on here get very indignant about it. Yes, I'm sure there are good TA and if everything goes as planned, the trip is great. BUT if an issue arises (which it does often) the TA is the customer. Some TA's, I'm sure put a good effort into solving the issues for the customer (the passenger). But others, not so much. Use a TA or book direct yourself, the choice is yours. In our humble opinion getting a bottle of wine in the cabin or a few hundred dollars of OBC is not worth it. To each there own. 

[superduper123]

We were booked on this cruise as well, and opted to take the refund. Disappointed for sure, as we loved the itinerary, and also planned to stay an extra week in Hawaii post cruise. Oh well, now we are just vacationing in Hawaii instead; I won't complain. 🙂