Cruise cancelled!!!

[wrp96]

Just some advice for everyone in case your ship gets chartered and you have to change cruises (this also applies if your cruise has mechanical issues that delay getting back etc). If your airfare change fees, extra hotel fees, etc are more than RCCL is saying they will reimburse (or will give you in onboard credit), don't assume that is all they will give you. Keep all your receipts for the additional costs, and write a nice, polite letter to RCCL asking for reimbursement of the additional costs. If they say no, then all you are out is the time it took to write the letter and the postage fees. But in the past, they have reimbursed some people that have written in with requests for reasonable amounts of additional airfare and hotel fees so it can be worth it to write the letter.

[vthompson]

What cruise were you scheduled for that got cancelled? We have reservations for the Navigator - 2/28/09 - Hope it's not that one!:eek: We haven't heard anything and according to the RCL website, we have no messages attached to our reservations.

Hi Tootts,

we were on Granduer of the seas but now we are on the same cruise with you!!!!!!

[The Big Booper]

Hi Tootts,

we were on Granduer of the seas but now we are on the same cruise with you!!!!!!

 

The Navigator is a much newer and bigger ship than Grandeur with lots more to do.

[vthompson]

Thanks everyone!! WE Got our cruise changed from the Granduer of the Seas to the Navigator of the seas sailing 2-28-09. with only a couple of phone calls from our TA they were nicer to work with. Yea RCL we will sail with them again.:) :D

[tootts]

Hi Tootts,

we were on Granduer of the seas but now we are on the same cruise with you!!!!!!

 

So glad it all worked out for you - we will have a great time:D Look forward to meeting you:)

 

Big Booper - thanks for the feedback - this will be our first time on the Navigator - only sailed the Monarch and Vision on RCL before - looking forward to it - is it February yet :D ;)

[cruiseco]

I've booked a few charters over the years, one of which was cancelled by the chartering corporation. Theoretically, they would lose 100% of their money (it was about 6 months out) but all parties were working toward some sort of settlement of the issue.

 

Anyway, we got to look at a lot of paperwork that was flying back and forth and part of that was a full accounting of every nickel the cruise line had paid as compensation to clients who had been bumped. It was amazing how many got way more than was originally offered to move to another sailing. Some got paid the full price for their air tickets, come got hotels paid for, some got very nice OBC over and above the norm. Apparently, it was all a matter of how much of a fight they were willing to put up. It's all negotiable so don't be shy about asking for what you think is fair and be persistent. This was Carnival by the way -- don't know if other cruise lines would act the same.

[dougp26364]

I have to disagree. Im coming from Australia to the US for my cruise and have had both my cruise and flights booked since april and my cruise isnt till the end of nov.

 

For me booking my flights early meant i got a cheaper price. And if they cancelled my cruise now and only offered me $200 that would not even come close to the amount i have spent of airfares (over $3000)

 

I'm like you but we're going from the U.S. to Europe. It's the same concern about booking airfare when the price is right. Often that means booking several months out.

 

It was concerns like this plus the fact the airlines keep consolidating and changing schedules that finally led me to book my airfare through RCI. I've locked in a reasonable price and transfered some of the responsiblity to RCI's travel agency. At least I no longer feel an urgency to book flights early and won't have to worry about constantly checking to see if the flight times have changed or been cancelled all together. Of course, there are other issues that will come up doing it this way but overall I'd say there will be less stress for us this time around.

[Tucker in Texas]

Last year, Rosie O'Donnell set up a "family" cruise charter on NCL's Dream for July of this year. The ship usually goes to Bermuda, but Rosie wanted Canada and when you charter a ship, it goes where you want to go. HOWEVER, several months after Rosie announced her sailing opportunity on her web-site, tv. program, whatever, NCL was still selling that date to sail to Bermuda on a regular cruise. I didn't see it dropped off their cruise schedule until about five months before it was due to take Rosie's families. Obviously, NCL wasn't about to turn away passengers until Rosie paid up for the entire charter.

 

We were booked on NCL's Norway which blew up. We had no problem getting our non-refundable air back from Access America. In fact, if I was dishonest, I could have canceled the air and rebooked it with a $50 charge for up to the next year. But, alas, I have to look at myself in the mirror every day.

 

Tucker in Texas