X Strikes again! Or How Not To Make Friends!

[donnaw]

Second time that X has done it and I am not amused! First was raising the price $200/pp within an hour on a cabin that was on hold. That experience sent us straight to Grand Princess.

 

Latest is even better and may just send us elsewhere for good. X took our Century cruise that we booked while on Mercury (old on board booking plan) to charter. They offered a $100 cabin credit (for our inconvenience) if we booked a different 5 day Century and no additional credit if we decided to switch ships. We were told this last Wednesday by our TA. The Century was booked for our wedding anniversary and is not the least interesting at any other time.

 

On Friday we called to transfer the on board booking to the newly released Galaxy East Bound Trans Atlantic and thought everything was covered. Email from the TA said that there were a few things to iron out but everything would be OK. She called today to say that they said that there would be no transfer of the booking and money deposited from Century and no guarantee of pricing when we finally booked since the computer rejected the original transfer. Price on our category booked has gone up $380/pp as of this afternoon. Additionally, the Century booking can only be placed on Century now and the on-board credit is $50 based on our original booking no matter how long a cruise we book on her. We will see what tomorrow brings but I'm not very hopeful at this point. Our TA is good and is just as shocked at the lack of customer service as we are.

 

So friends, i am guessing that the odds are that I will be wishing you all well and out looking for our next Princess cruise shortly! I will see some of you on Connie next month and hope to someday meet the rest! If X keeps it up, I probably will!

[C 2 C]

So friends, i am guessing that the odds are that I will be wishing you all well and out looking for our next Princess cruise shortly! I will see some of you on Connie next month and hope to someday meet the rest! If X keeps it up, I probably will!

 

I guess we're about to cross the same bridge for the same reason: total indifference on the part of Celebrity's "customer service".

[leoandhugh]

Celebrity customer service would be better named customer non-service as more and more of us are finding out. What a sad excuse for a service department:(

[CatServants]

Gosh, I'm sorry! If I had ever had an experience like that I would change cruise lines too. I hope everything works out and that you have a wonderful anniversary!

 

Denise

[CajunLiner]

Donna, I can't believe that happened! That sounds really unbelievable. I would still be scratching my head in a kind of "how can they justify doing this?" sort of way.

 

I hope you and Joe find something comparable for your anniversary.

 

Donna

[Germancruiser]

Hi

I kind of " suffered" the same non existend customer serivce before my Hawaii Cruise earlier this year. I thought it is just their german customer service. I bet they read Cruise Critic also, so I guess they may know what loosers they have on the other end of their phones sometimes. I don´t usally use such harsh words but I was so upset last April that I even asked this uninformed, incompetent, unpolite woman on the other end of the phone, if likes hear job- and if not, she should go home and do something else.

Michael

[excitedofharpenden]

Donna, I'm sorry to hear of your woes too. I just hope I don't have to chop and change any of my trips because it sounds a very frustrating process. I really hope that these threads like yours and Arno's are read by people at Celebrity, but I suspect it would get lost in the "large corporate" void:( To quote from "The Prisoner", "You are number six". "I am not a number, I am a free man!"

 

I do however look forward to meeting you in about three weeks time.:cool: I hope it's not your Celebrity swan song!

 

Phil

[donnaw]

 

I do however look forward to meeting you in about three weeks time.:cool: I hope it's not your Celebrity swan song!

 

Phil

 

See you in 3 weeks for the best cruise ever! Not quite swan Song since we need one more for the next CC level and I still have a Century open booking. Looks like another 2 day Century may be coming up running b2b with someone else. Lots of choices!

[Texed]

Donna,

I hope all goes well.

[rcicruiser]

Second time that X has done it and I am not amused! First was raising the price $200/pp within an hour on a cabin that was on hold. That experience sent us straight to Grand Princess.

 

Latest is even better and may just send us elsewhere for good. X took our Century cruise that we booked while on Mercury (old on board booking plan) to charter. They offered a $100 cabin credit (for our inconvenience) if we booked a different 5 day Century and no additional credit if we decided to switch ships. We were told this last Wednesday by our TA. The Century was booked for our wedding anniversary and is not the least interesting at any other time.

 

On Friday we called to transfer the on board booking to the newly released Galaxy East Bound Trans Atlantic and thought everything was covered. Email from the TA said that there were a few things to iron out but everything would be OK. She called today to say that they said that there would be no transfer of the booking and money deposited from Century and no guarantee of pricing when we finally booked since the computer rejected the original transfer. Price on our category booked has gone up $380/pp as of this afternoon. Additionally, the Century booking can only be placed on Century now and the on-board credit is $50 based on our original booking no matter how long a cruise we book on her. We will see what tomorrow brings but I'm not very hopeful at this point. Our TA is good and is just as shocked at the lack of customer service as we are.

 

So friends, i am guessing that the odds are that I will be wishing you all well and out looking for our next Princess cruise shortly! I will see some of you on Connie next month and hope to someday meet the rest! If X keeps it up, I probably will!

 

Strange my agency does this all the time with no issues.

[hcat]

Maybe your TA can deal with another rep for better results--everytime we call we get diff info. It is never the same as to how many formal nights, amenities etc etc etc. We now have abt 5 diff fax #'s for others to use to reach the Century while we are on board--maybe none will work??. They should provide better training, let their employees see the actual ships & try to do a more pleasant job all around. Sometime you luck out & get a really nice & knowledgeable rep but mostly not! Sorry you have had such a bad experiencee--we are all on notice it could be us next!

[BikerAl]

Not a flame, just truly wondering why you are calling Celebrity, when you have a TA? Your TA is making very good money off of your reservation, so they should be happy to handle any questions you have, or you should fire them. My humble opinion.

 

Al

[sunpsyche]

Hi Donna!

I'm so sorry to hear of the hard time you're having with X. Did they give you any explanation of why the computer "rejected" the transfer? Or why it must be used on the Century? They appear to be the ones at fault, changing it to a charter cruise. Makes sense they'd be responsible for providing for something comparable. What's happened to taking care of the customer?? I don't blame you for writing them off after this debacle.

 

We're booked on the Millie in January, yet we've been looking into Princess also. I do remember that you liked them quite a bit. May be the time to try them for us as well.

 

Hugs to both of you!

 

Suzi

[donnaw]

Suzi, They told the TA that it was within their legal right. Can't think of any phrase less customer service oriented than that particular one. Will email but does look like Millie is out. Princess is a good overall alternative and Joe actually gives them a slight edge. I'll let you know what we think of M class when we get back from Connie which is already paid for.

 

Rcicruiser, Not the least bit strange since this agency does all the time too. They are honestly shocked and the only thing that they can think of is that something crazy went into the system related to the canceled Century cruise. We are the only ones that were on it so they haven't been able to confirm that.

 

Al, Maybe I'm confused. We are not calling Celebrity but are working through our TA who is calling Celebrity.

 

Hcat, Phone calls have been flying for days now with the TA talking to X then calling us then talking to X then back to us. The owner of the agency has talked to multiple CS reps and supervisors to no avail. We are working through one of the top producing agencies in the US and they are top producers because they provide excellent customer service. We have every faith that they have done everything in their power. As of yesterday, our girl lost it and blasted the X rep and I'm in the process of writing a letter of record to the powers that be at her request.

 

Michael, it appears to be universal!

 

Donna, Hard to type and scratch at the same time but I spent days doing that. I'm thinking we need to have a reunion cruise but will look around for alternative choices.

 

Arno, the bigger issue is your crossing that bridge and a definite sign of customer service's inability to serve their customers. If they are sending you back to Princess after a 5 year run then they have definitely messed up. Can't wait to hear about your Emerald Princess cruise and wish you the best on it.

 

Denise, Our last anniversary was two weeks after dh came home from having very difficult open heart surgery and was totally ignored so we are looking at this next one as a gift and we will most definitely enjoy it no matter what we are doing!

 

Leo, amazing isn't it?

 

Ed, have that waffle recipe?

 

Where we stand at the moment - We will not book this cruise! The cabin that we wanted (same as our last Galaxy TA) is long gone and the price of that category was up $460/pp as of yesterday morning. We are still booked on a canceled Century cruise and will not move that booking until forced to. We do need one more credit after next month's cruise to reach Elite so we will do something. That something just may be the 2 day taster cruise preceded or followed by someone else. Beyond that, I will be keeping an eye out for our next Princess cruise and building referral $ on Princess yet again. I still haven't used them all up from that last time X sent us back so our next Princess cruise will have a nice on board credit.

 

Am I happy with the resolution? Definitely not!

 

Will I stay with our current Travel Agent? Yes, we know that they have done everything in their power to make this work out.

 

Would I book X again? Once definitely. Beyond that, can't say no since you just don't know what will happen. We have some friends that are X loyal and I would hate to say that we will never sail together again but that particular group is shrinking rapidly with the latest round of dissatisfaction. Several have already asked me to let them know when we book our next cruise and I definitely will.

 

I do have one question that some of you may be able to answer. Is RCL customer service as bad?

[wvufan]

Hi Donna,

 

I have been following your predicament on several threads, and am shocked that your TA (we use her too) wasn't able to get it resolved favorably:mad:

 

Don't know if you are inclined to pursue it further, but there is a column in USA Today (usually on Friday) called Traveler's Aide by a consumer advocate named Linda Burbank. They ask that folks with a travel problem send it to: travel@usatoday.com You might look at some of the previous columns there. Perhaps she can get the original price honored and might even get an upgrade as your original choice is no longer available. I know it's a long shot, but only takes a minute to try.

 

As far as Elite status, it doens't give you much, but you are automatically eligible for Diamond status on RCL which is really nice. Please verify that the two nighter will count towards the total.

 

Happy Sails to You

 

OOOEEE:D :D Bob and Phyl

[C 2 C]

Please verify that the two nighter will count towards the total.

l

I'm pretty sure a cruise has to be a minimum of 3 days for it to count.

[donnaw]

I'm pretty sure a cruise has to be a minimum of 3 days for it to count.

 

We took the 2 day taster on Century in 2006 and it counted and took us to the next level (unless they have changed that too).

 

Arno, that is also good on Princess which is why west coasters get to the upper level so quickly.

 

Bob, thanks for the idea and I have read it before. In the realm of travel problems, this one seems rather small though it is quite important to us. Our common TA is close to pulling her hair out now that the shock is wearing off and we know they did everything that could be done through multiple levels.

[kb4683]

I was told Thursday (by a Capt. Club rep) that our upcoming 2-night Azamara Quest sailing will count as a cruise credit.

[B J]

Hi Donna, it's good to hear from you but I'm sorry you are having trouble, we have only been on Celebrity once (Galaxy Trans) and are getting ready to start a B2B on RCI (our 12th cruise) I have booked with them direct and with a TA and so far everything has been great! (Hope I haven't jinxed it :eek: )

 

Happy anniversary.

 

B J

[Alaskan Traveler]

Hi Donna,

 

Sorry to hear about your experience in dealing with Celebrity. It is true that it would appear that Celebrity is really not concerned with making friends! I hope that someone from Celebrity does read these boards and begins to realize that the great onboard experience can be more than offset by this kind of a corporate attitude.

 

Thanks also to wvufan for the information about the consumer advocate website that you posted. I also had a major problem that was just blown off by Celebrity customer service. It is indeed unfortunate that more and more people must now turn to consumer advocates to correct things that any cruise line should easily do on their own, without being forced to do the right thing. Looking forward to trying Celebrity again someday, but am going to wait until the current corporate attitude changes for the better.

[Wilcoam]

Donna W...

 

I can really relate to your frustrations. Sorry. Six of us had the same exp with HAL last year.

 

HAL bumped us from a Zuidy sailing for a charter. Inotherwords, they sold us 3 cabins, took a deposit, and then re-sold it to another party. (why this isn't illegal, I have no idea)

 

HAL offered the same future OBC, but would not give us any monies towards flight change fee's.

 

So, we did the same thing as you, we switched to a Princess Cruise leaving the same day, same time, as the original HAL Zuidy.

 

We then contacted HAL, explained the situation, asked for the OBC for a future cruise, and asked if they could honour the super bowl weekend hotels we'd also booked with them and had made a deposit against.

 

HAL refused. They would only give us a year on the OBC, and would not honour the hotels. Frustrated, I ended up booking a flea bag motel post cruise, but I decided to give HAL a taste of their medicine.

 

Despite all attempts by HAL to get me to cancel the original booking, I simply REFUSED TO CANCEL...This really really had them confused. (guess most pax give in-lol)

 

To suit their booking system, they had to re-book us on another cruise, (tying up 3 cabins for months), while I negotiated a better OCB, and longer period (2 Yrs). In the end, I WON..

 

Though, HAL long-term, may have lost a young, freespending, 3 times a year cruiser, who hasn't been back to that line since it happened, instead sailing with princess again, X, and NCL.

 

I hope you can work this all out with X, but surely if they don't come to the table, and treat you with respect as a pax, I'd understand why you

would move on to other lines, and why your story needs to be posted and talked about on cruise critic..

 

Good luck..

jc

Toronto

X Galaxy Sept 06

Prin Star Jan 07

X Xpedition Sept 07

NCL Jewel Jan 08

Prin Coral May 08

[gkm]

Donna, fingers and toes crossed that this can be resolved. Can't wait to meet you in less than 3 weeks!:D :D :D

 

Garry

[donnaw]

JC, I honestly can't say that it is nice to know that other lines can pull the same thing!! Sounds like they decided to make the ship a floating hotel and bounced all of you out. We are still holding the original but one cabin isn't mucn. TA (who happens to be used by many here) felt tht sitting on it would give us a bit of leverage.

 

Alaskan Traveler, we all hope that someone listens to the problems we have before we board the ship! No matter how good the cruise is, customer service comes first and leaves a lasting impression.

 

BJ, Glad your out here and hope your feeling great! We'll get back to RCL one of these days. Need only 1 more cruise after next month's to come in at Diamond. Rumor is that their cs is much better.

 

Garry, Can't wait to meet you and am sure we are all going to have the best cruise ever! The on board experience has never been the problem with X! Even our bleach cruise was handled beautifully by personnel and only has great memories!

 

In all honesty, i posted this with the expectation that the flame shooters would have a field day on it. The fact that it hasn't happened is really rather telling!

 

[Alaskan Traveler]

In all honesty, i posted this with the expectation that the flame shooters would have a field day on it. The fact that it hasn't happened is really rather telling!

 

Hi donnaw,

 

I have noticed that too. There are usually several who will post something like; I have used customer service twice and did not have a problem, or have excuses as to why it was the passenger's fault. Maybe the flamers are like penguins and are waiting for the first one to jump in, and then all the flamers will jump in!

[c-legs]

Your TA is making very good money off of your reservation, .

 

Al

 

:( Good afternoon,

I respectfully disagree. ""Very good money''??? NOT.

The days of fat commission cheques in the overall industry are long long gone.

While it remains true that the cruise industry still pays decent percentages, it is far from '' very good money'' and it is an embarassing fact of life that the vast majority of clients want and expect a chunk of that ''very good money'' back to them as OBC, gifts, wine, etc..etc......and TAs. end up with ''some'' money after all is said and done.

That being said, it's probably the last segment of the industry left where it is still fun and gratifying to service a client's needs all around, ''door to door'', derive $ome $ati$faction from it and still make ''$ome money'', even after factoring in the high maintenance clients, and the ''occasionnal '' troubles caused by the cruise lines themselves.

 

Donnaw has a good one.

 

Cheers

;)