changing ships and date with Costa???

[kits]

:eek: Has anyone had any dealings with Costa, on their own? We booked over a month ago through a travel agent. Our documents came today....and guess what...we are not going where we thought we were. A misunderstanding between our agent and who ever she called to book our trip. We are going to all of the same islands that we have already been to. Because it is less than 21 days before departure, there is no refund. Had we received our documents earlier...the error would have been caught.All we want is to rebook another date, or another Costa ship. Has anyone out there had dealings with Costa? Our agent will try tomorrow...but says she does not expect positive results. Any ideas???

[ILov2cruise]

I didn't have the same problem as you but was not happy with the info i had got from Costa before I booked with a TA they recomended.

 

I called Costa and they made me happy.

 

Did TA just book wrong ship. Out of fla one ship goes eastern other western. Does it say anything on the paper you were sent from the TA when you made your deposit. I it's her mistake than she needs to make it right.

[cruzdreamin]

Now that you have received your documents and have the booking number you should be able to call Costa directly. I booked my reservation with Costa directly from the beginning and made a change to a different ship and itinerary, but this was prior to receiving my docs. I'm not sure how that works, but I personally wouldn't trust that TA any more.

[joetrizeo]

My advice, get a new agent!

 

It's their job to get these things right. When they mess up they will always blame it on the cruise company and say 'there's nothing that can be done'.

 

Talk directly to the cruise company and you'll get a different story.

 

I read about these mess ups all the time.

[kits]

:) Thanks guys for your replys. Today our agent called Costa...and apparantly they will do nothing. It definetly is not Costa mistake...but what the heck...we are all human. I can understand if the customer changes their mind...they would constantly be changing things...and at great expense. I believe this was our ta's mistake...though she blames it on Air Transat.cruise. I don't care who's mistake it is. What I really would like to see happen...is that confirmation be sent to the customer asap...when trip is paid for. It was more than 21 days prior to departure...and we could have gotten a good refund...and the TA or Air Transit, cover the rest. I also will look for a bit of retribution from our TA. Thanks for your thoughts...and I will try phoning Costa myself. See you all on the ship...I am sure. We will just have to make the best of it...and try to have things changed in the future. I am sure we are not the first...nor the last. But, they won't brush me off easily. I don't want to see the TA raked over the coals. I believe the whole system needs to be changed...and will devote many hours to it. In the line I work, it is accepted that we all make errors...but you learn, and you eliminate the chance that it will happen again. Thanks guys for letting me vent. See you there!:eek: :eek:

[ILov2cruise]

What system has to be changed, I'm lost.

 

My TA always sends a confirmation after i send in my deposit. If you didn't get or ask for a confirmation when booking this trip than I'd say this is your fault. My Ta sends me trip info than I decide if I'm putting a deposit down. If your TA sent you a confirmation after deposit with a different ship than she needs to fix the problem.

 

Didn't she have a file on your trip, she should have checked all the info before taking your final payment. I would not let her get away with this or allow her to blame someone else, she recived a confirmation from the cruise line after turning in your deposit. Didn't she check to make sure there were no errors.

[mom and wife]

When I paid my deposit they sent me a sheet saying where when and how many days, where is that? I would also be very up set if it is her ,she should take care of it and the company should have insurance for this. I am so sorry I hope it all works out. We are going in April on Magica we booked throw Costa.

[shipaddict]

If your TA doesnt help you report her/him to the American Society of Travel Agents at

http://www.astanet.com or www. travelsense.org.

[kits]

I didn't have the same problem as you but was not happy with the info i had got from Costa before I booked with a TA they recomended.

 

I called Costa and they made me happy.

 

Did TA just book wrong ship. Out of fla one ship goes eastern other western. Does it say anything on the paper you were sent from the TA when you made your deposit. I it's her mistake than she needs to make it right.

Hi all... yes, a communication error between our ta and Air Transat Cruise Dept....who she booked with. Our invoice says only the date and the ship. Ta did not have a book for us to take home, If she had...I would have caught the error right away. She...and we thought we were booking for the Eastern on Med...and ends up it was on the Western...which we have already done, just last year.

[kits]

I didn't have the same problem as you but was not happy with the info i had got from Costa before I booked with a TA they recomended.

 

I called Costa and they made me happy.

 

Did TA just book wrong ship. Out of fla one ship goes eastern other western. Does it say anything on the paper you were sent from the TA when you made your deposit. I it's her mistake than she needs to make it right.

Yes, an error between TA and Air Transat...who she booked through. Our TA...and us thought we were booked to the Eastern...turns out it is the Western, which we did last year.

[ILov2cruise]

As a TA why didn't she book right through Costa???

 

 

Did you call Costa, I would think they would transfer your booking to the other ship if they have cabins, it's not like they would be losing money.

[kits]

Hi all...thanks for all of your thoughts. Today, we were finally advised that Costa has agreed to transferring us to another ship....yea! So, instead of leaving on the Med on Mar 4...we leave on the Magica on Mar 18. We will be doing the eastern rather than the western. It is costing us nearly $300.00 more than we originally pay. When we return I will try to have our Agency reimburse us for at least half. In answer to some of your questions. Our ta supplied us only with ship and dates...so no destinations, and she had no book to send us home with. Hope all is right this time. Hubby and I both managed to rebook our vacation week at work. Very grateful to Costa...because this certainly was not even remotley their fault.:o :o :o

[ILov2cruise]

Glad it all work out.

 

Have a great vacation.

[mom and wife]

I am happy for you!!

[suzeq71]

Hey Kits!

 

We're sailing on the Magica March 18 also! I wanted to respond because of that, and also because I'm a travel agent, and I just feel compelled to comment on your situation.

 

Your TA screwed up. Costa is OBSESSIVE about faxing TA's confirmation of their bookings - they do it practically every day - so much in fact that it annoys me because it burns so much ink! That's the first thing that went wrong. The second thing that went wrong was that your agent didn't send you a confirmation letter upon your initial booking stating all the facts of your booking - INCLUDING a detailed itinerary.

 

You should NOT have to pay more money out of your pocket - PERIOD. What state are you in? I don't know about other states, but I am in Florida - and we (TA's) are required to abide by certain laws that protect consumers from this type of thing. For example, I am registered as a "seller of travel" with the state of Florida, and I carry a bond (for many thousands of dollars) that the state can "attach" to if there is a consumer complaint about me or my agency (I am the owner) that results in money out of a client's pocket (I'm proud to say this has never happened). That's a very broad explanation of how it works, just to give you an idea. I recommend you familiarize yourself with the laws for a "seller of travel" in your state, and be ready to quote those laws when you approach your TA about reimbursement.

 

With that said, you are absolutely right - we are human, and we all make mistakes. I've done it in my business (although usually caught in time because I am very detailed oriented - my husband prefers to call it "obsessive"). When a mistake is made, the first thing a TA should do is take ownership, and be honest, which I don't believe your agent has done. Your agent is getting a commission on this booking (I can tell you roughly how much if you want to tell me what you paid) so there are funds to cover this error. Sure, it cuts into her (or his) commission, but that's part of the cost of doing business - being accountable is a huge part of that! It happens, and it sucks, but the priority should be the client - not the $$. Conducting business with the attitude that the client is the priority will always result in more earnings in the long run!

 

If there ends up being a meet and greet for all of us on the boards that will be on this sailing (I've been watching the roll call and the other postings about this date but it seems the discussions have fizzled out!) we can meet and I can help you figure out how to get your money back for what you additionally had to pay for the change. :-)

[joetrizeo]

wonderful information suzeq71

 

i hate intermediaries who foul up then take advantage that the average person won't (or can't) contact the true source of the situation in order to get away with their screw up.