My first post and I am upset with Carnival

[glavine4746]

This is my first post. YEH. I am traveling with a group of 8 families. I was the one who picked to use Carnival. We are on the Legend Oct. 19. on the western carribean. This is my third cruise with Carnival. Here is my problem. I was going to let my business pay for my sister and my room. When the bill came she had a balcony room,where we have OV room. The price difference is 260.00, so I thought I would upgrade. Ok we booked 9/20/2007 almost a year ago. The adviser we were using said he could not do it with out the superviser approving it. He also said he would let me do it if it was up to him. He transfered me to an a advisor and OMG she was the most hateful lady I have ever spoken to. I dealt with alot of people in my life and I AM NOT EXAGERATING she was so rude. I asked if I could upgrade;because at the time of booking I was not aware of the small price difference. I was under the assumption that you are elligble to change just because of the special you booked under. She then went off on a rant that I was basically stupid and did not understand anything. She told me I would have to pay todays rate and she said that would be 260.00 per person and then she said "that is 260.00 times 4 if you didn't now". I was just blow away by her attitude. My life is at a point where we are starting to travel alot. This is our 4th cruise this year 2-disney carribean and 1-ncl hawaii and this may be my final cruise with carnival. I know money is tight in the travel industy but customer service should still be a priority. O.K. what do you guys think am I being unreasonable about paying a reasonable price for an upgrade?

[G'ma]

I'm not clear on what the problem is.

 

Was your reservation handled by the groups department? Was your reservation simply 8 cabins?

 

If it was a group booking made with the groups department, there is a contract in place covering everything like upgrades, rates, amenities, etc.

 

Maybe you could give more information.

 

Why did you wait almost a year to try for and upgraded cabin?

 

There is no excuse for rudeness, but perhaps there was some miscommunication involved.

[jetskier]

Other than working on her attitude in dealing with people, she is correct. When you change your booking, it is done at the current rate NOT what you paid initially. Also since you booked so long ago, you will also be hit with the fuel charge increase if you make the category change.

 

Now had the price gone down, you probably could have done a category change with no money out of pocket. But when it goes up, they are not flexible on the price increase. You either pay it, or dont get upgraded.

Dave

[DreadPirateRobert]

Sorry to see you have had a bad experience with a person in the sales office for Carnival. She was right to charge you the current rate for a cabin but should not have been rude about it.

That person must have been in the middle of a really bad day or just doesn't belong in customer service.

Don't judge all of Carnival based on one bad experience with one bad employee. That's a little unfair.

I have used the same Carnival PVP (personal vacation planner) for years and she is fantastic. We've made multiple changes or requests and to the extent that it was possible to make them she has always done so cheerfully.

The one thing I hope you won't do is go into your cruise with a bad attitude toward Carnival. Make your changes, let the bad experience go and i hope you have a wonderful trip.

[LHP]

While it is always irritating to get someone in "customer service" that is less than appealing....if you start eliminating entire cruise lines based on one experience...I am afraid your "life of travel" will be short lived....(at least in the cruising world) because you will run out of cruise lines.

 

Most phone calls are recorded by large corporations. I would suggest that you file a complaint with her supervisor.

 

Now this recommendation of course is "assuming" that she was a "rude" as you said she was and that it wasn't just a case of you not liking what she was saying...which was correct. Once you start upgrading, your original pricing goes out the window. It is based on what the market is getting at that time.

 

Unfortunately, we on these boards only get to hear one side of the story.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

This is my first post. YEH. I am traveling with a group of 8 families. I was the one who picked to use Carnival. We are on the Legend Oct. 19. on the western carribean. This is my third cruise with Carnival. Here is my problem. I was going to let my business pay for my sister and my room. When the bill came she had a balcony room,where we have OV room. The price difference is 260.00, so I thought I would upgrade. Ok we booked 9/20/2007 almost a year ago. The adviser we were using said he could not do it with out the superviser approving it. He also said he would let me do it if it was up to him. He transfered me to an a advisor and OMG she was the most hateful lady I have ever spoken to. I dealt with alot of people in my life and I AM NOT EXAGERATING she was so rude. I asked if I could upgrade;because at the time of booking I was not aware of the small price difference. I was under the assumption that you are elligble to change just because of the special you booked under. She then went off on a rant that I was basically stupid and did not understand anything. She told me I would have to pay todays rate and she said that would be 260.00 per person and then she said "that is 260.00 times 4 if you didn't now". I was just blow away by her attitude. My life is at a point where we are starting to travel alot. This is our 4th cruise this year 2-disney carribean and 1-ncl hawaii and this may be my final cruise with carnival. I know money is tight in the travel industy but customer service should still be a priority. O.K. what do you guys think am I being unreasonable about paying a reasonable price for an upgrade?

 

Welcome to CC!

 

Tom

[Ken076]

glavine4746 - I can only tell you that that was not the typical behavior of Carnival reps - generally they are courteous and very cooperative and inventive in working the system to save you $$$. The rep behaved poorly, but she was correct that any changes you make ARE at the current market rate. ken

[lovinthesea123]

All I can say is judging a worldwide, multi-million dollar corporation that has tens of thousands of employees by one of its phone representatives is probably not a good idea. Take a look at your own workplace...there is probably that one "bad apple" that occurs once in a while too...heck, it may even be me or you!

 

So take a step back, and look at the situation reasonably. :)

[laurenfl15]

First thing to point out is they were correct in what they told you. You cant just get an old price when there is a new higher price now. Thats like bringing an old expired coupon to a grocery store and expecting them to accept it.

 

Perhaps you got an attitude with them because you didnt understand this and that is why she gave one back? Trust me.. im not saying she should have.. AT ALL. I work in the insurance field and constantly have people yelling at me b/c they are uninformed and I have to take a deep breathe and be civil. Im just saying.. it was probably very frustrating for her.

 

What i find sad is that you are letting one person affect your feelings about an entire cruise line.. seriously?! What about all the fun youve had on your previous cruises with them? What about all the courteous and polite employees who have gone out of their way for you? What about the awesome food and entertainment?

 

Dont be a sour puss.. yes.. it was a bad experience and no one deserves to be treated badly.. but most people would let this slide and not affect their entire experience.

[dan40]

WHERE is there "GOOD" customer service today. Cruiselines, Carnival included are far from the worst. At least they are not "off shore" yet!

 

Since you have already cruised a variety of lines, why are you dealing with any cruiseline at all?? You should be looking for a good professional Travel Agent that can help you with any cruise, perhaps any travel. And they are very often less money. NEVER more money.

 

Dan

[dan40]

Sorry 2X post.

 

Boards bad 2day.

Maybe FAY being next door is the problem?

Dan

[Giggles2007]

Welcome to CC.

 

I agree with the others as far as the rep being right about your attempt to upgrade. But her attitude was down right wrong :mad: . Bad day or not she should not have been nasty. I have worked with the public face to face as well as by phone and especially on the phone the person on the other end should never know that you are having a bad day. But like the others said, don't let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch. Her attitude should not keep you from Carnival.

 

Happy Cruising.

[Giggles2007]

Welcome to CC.

 

I agree with the others as far as the rep being right about your attempt to upgrade. But her attitude was down right wrong :mad: . Bad day or not she should not have been nasty. I have worked with the public face to face as well as by phone and especially on the phone the person on the other end should never know that you are having a bad day. But like the others said, don't let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch. Her attitude should not keep you from Carnival.

 

Happy Cruising.

[Giggles2007]

Welcome to CC.

 

I agree with the others as far as the rep being right about your attempt to upgrade. But her attitude was down right wrong :mad: . Bad day or not she should not have been nasty. I have worked with the public face to face as well as by phone and especially on the phone the person on the other end should never know that you are having a bad day. But like the others said, don't let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch. Her attitude should not keep you from Carnival.

 

Happy Cruising.

[cruisecastle]

This is my first post. YEH. I am traveling with a group of 8 families. I was the one who picked to use Carnival. We are on the Legend Oct. 19. on the western carribean. This is my third cruise with Carnival. Here is my problem. I was going to let my business pay for my sister and my room. When the bill came she had a balcony room,where we have OV room. The price difference is 260.00, so I thought I would upgrade. Ok we booked 9/20/2007 almost a year ago. The adviser we were using said he could not do it with out the superviser approving it. He also said he would let me do it if it was up to him. He transfered me to an a advisor and OMG she was the most hateful lady I have ever spoken to. I dealt with alot of people in my life and I AM NOT EXAGERATING she was so rude. I asked if I could upgrade;because at the time of booking I was not aware of the small price difference. I was under the assumption that you are elligble to change just because of the special you booked under. She then went off on a rant that I was basically stupid and did not understand anything. She told me I would have to pay todays rate and she said that would be 260.00 per person and then she said "that is 260.00 times 4 if you didn't now". I was just blow away by her attitude. My life is at a point where we are starting to travel alot. This is our 4th cruise this year 2-disney carribean and 1-ncl hawaii and this may be my final cruise with carnival. I know money is tight in the travel industy but customer service should still be a priority. O.K. what do you guys think am I being unreasonable about paying a reasonable price for an upgrade?

 

In other words you made a mistake and are angry you have to pay a higher price today so you make up a lie about a rude customer services person and post it here. Got it.

[Georgiagolfer]

Welcome to cruise critic, where you will find a ton of useful info.

 

You probably have a right to be upset, but be upset with the individual who was rude, not the whole cruise line. As others said, don't let some one who won't even be on the cruise with you, ruin a good time. Others also correct in stating the price is based on today's market when you change a booking, not on the date you booked.

[snoodel]

In other words you made a mistake and are angry you have to pay a higher price today so you make up a lie about a rude customer services person and post it here. Got it.

 

 

Slow down there skippy..

Why would you, not knowing this person, not knowing the details Automatically deduce that they are lying?

And you wonder why people dont return too often after a initial post?

:rolleyes:

[wentworth]

Originally Posted by cruisecastle

In other words you made a mistake and are angry you have to pay a higher price today so you make up a lie about a rude customer services person and post it here. Got it.

 

 

So you come on this board and call people liars just to be rude. Got it.

[copvet]

Very unnecessary remark "Cruisecastle". Welcome to CC "Glavine". Sorry for your run in with your PVP. As a rule these threads are very helpful. But like any other public board you have those that are very uninformed and judgemental. However, we all have bad days I suppose...Bon Voyage!:)

[Wennfred]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

First, you should always write down the names of the party you are dealing with when calling Carnival or your Travel Agent so that if later you have to you can call Guest Relations on this matter. Its hard to believe that a PVP Supervisor would be this rude.

 

You can not pay last years Sept 07 upgrade rates today. Todays rates as she mentioned are 260.00 per person. Thats usually what it cost to go to a Balcony. Some people are charged 300.00 per person.

 

Anyways this is just a minor mis-understanding, theres is no reason to get all uptight over it. Lessons Learned for your next booking. Don't let this mess up your whole cruise vacation.

 

Here is Guest Relations if you want to file a complaint against how you was treated.

 

Guest Relations

Carnival Cruise Lines

Carnival Place

3655 NW 87 Avenue

Miami, Fl. 33178-2428

305-599-2600

 

 

 

Fred

[Wennfred]

Sorry 2X post.

 

Boards bad 2day.

Maybe FAY being next door is the problem?

Dan

 

Glad you confirmed the bad board, I thougth I was finally banned for life :D

 

Couldn't log on today.

 

 

 

Fred

[Wennfred]

Very unnecessary remark "Cruisecastle".

 

So you come on this board and call people liars just to be rude. Got it.

 

Slow down there skippy..

Why would you, not knowing this person, not knowing the details Automatically deduce that they are lying?

And you wonder why people dont return too often after a initial post?

:rolleyes:

 

Thats Cruisecastle :D probably the most Ignored on this board.

 

 

Fred

[cusyl]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

[jimjamxx]

Glad you confirmed the bad board, I thougth I was finally banned for life :D

 

Couldn't log on today.

 

 

 

Fred

Me too I have just been able to log on. Even tried different computer.

JimmYjames

[sallyb]

You will love your cruise on the Legend, we just went earlier this year and it was a great ship and fun ports!:)