ams cruiser

31 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

Shows announced today that they will re-open between Spring and Fall 2021.

Pretty optimistic.  Let's hope we can put this nightmare behind us by then.  

My sister has had season tickets at Broadway SF for years, and, when their shows were cancelled this spring, they were informed that their subscription was being transferred over to next year.  

It took a really long time to get our refund for Hamilton.  They didn't issue them until after the date of the actual show, long after it had been cancelled.  There was a fair amount of unhappiness on social media about the way it was handled. Perfectly understandable that they were dealing with a horrendous situation, but Broadway SF would have made it so much easier on themselves if they had been more forthcoming on their website about where they were in the refund process, and that they were actually not planning to issue refunds until after the date of your particular show.  One person posted that he had given up trying to get information from them, and had told them he was going to contest the charge on his credit card.  He posted the rather angry response he got from them, which said that, if he did so, his name would be removed from the queue, and he would never be able to purchase tickets from them again!

16 minutes ago, George C said:

My problem is we also booked a concert which was postponed, doubt we will book the new date once they announce it , but I can resell tickets or give them to a friend in nyc. Several concerts in Dallas have been postponed also. 

A few years ago we had to cancel a trip that included the Calgary Stampede.  I had never re-sold tickets before, but I put them on StubHub, priced them in the same price range as what they were going for at that site, and ended up making little bit of money in the process.  We had bought great seats at a couple of shows at the Stampede for an early purchase price.  The buyers were thrilled to get better seats for less money than they could have gotten by purchasing direct.

23 hours ago, George C said:

We did get a refund for our broadway show that we were supposed to see in May. 

Excellent!  I was wondering about the NY Broadway shows.

22 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

We were supposed to be going to a show tomorrow that we paid for from our Senior Theater Club. Their office has been closed since March 16 and they have no plans to re-open. We also paid for a May cruise .We know we will get a refund of a credit but it may take many months.

22 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

We were supposed to be going to a show tomorrow that we paid for from our Senior Theater Club. Their office has been closed since March 16 and they have no plans to re-open. We also paid for a May cruise .We know we will get a refund of a credit but it may take many months.

Thanks, I'm learning this seems to be the norm.  I'm more concerned about a planned trip to Italy this fall (land tour, not cruise).  I hope the airlines will be flexible, because we don't feel like it will be safe for us to travel until a vaccine is developed.

22 minutes ago, markeb said:

@ams cruiser I'm guessing that if the venue is managing its own tickets and refunds from the box office, even a secondary box office, it's going to be pretty much a pure manual process requiring access to their systems at the office. Much though I hate Ticketmaster, they issue refunds, when there's a reason, very quickly, and have multiple locations to operate from. I don't know that they can issue refunds from home, but they'd be more likely to have sites open. Probably the same with the bigger Broadway outlets.

Thanks, this makes sense.  I mistakenly thought that BroadwaySF was a part of a bigger organization, and I realize, now, that "automatic refund" doesn't necessarily mean timely.

On 4/28/2020 at 1:16 PM, sparkle said:

Although not for a show, we are due a refund from a company.  When we talked to the employee, he said since all the businesses are on mandatory shut down, no one could go into the shop to process refunds. He said he could answer phones from home, but not much else. Not sure if that helps, but at least know we are in the same boat as you are.

 

Stay well and keep thinking positive.

Thanks!  I mistakenly thought that Broadway SF was part of a larger company.  I'm not in the tech world, so I was imaging a magic button you push to automatically refund all ticket holders.
We're grateful for our health as we shelter at home.  
You take care, as well!

I hope this is okay to post this here, so moderators, please delete if it is not. It is a question about ticket refunds.  We had tickets for Hamilton in S.F., and received a notice from Broadway SF on March 31st that the remaining shows were cancelled (Hamilton was schedule to run through the end of May), and that tickets would be automatically refunded.
 

Our refund has not been issued, and the response to an email inquiry was that this would be dealt with when the shelter-in-place is lifted, and staff can return to the ticket office.  There was mention of limited staff currently working, presumably from home?

We, ourselves, have been sheltering in place for 45 days, so the fact that the office is closed is not surprising. I guess that I (mistakenly), assumed that the "automatic" refunds would be more  -  automatic?

Just wondering if other venues, particularly on Broadway,  were handling refunds in a similar manner.

Thanks, and hope everyone is staying safe!  

1 hour ago, George C said:

I hope I don’t have to find out , have visited every year since I Moved from there in 1982. 

Fingers crossed things will have calmed down by then!

12 minutes ago, George C said:

We are scheduled to visit and have tickets for some shows in May , looks like we have a 50/50 chance I hate to cancel our annual trip . Glad we have insurance on airfare at least. 

With all of the confusion about what insurance will cover, I'm wondering under what circumstances they will cover airfare (besides the normal covered reasons, like getting sick.)

41 minutes ago, ams cruiser said:

San Francisco has just canceled all gatherings of more than 1000 people for at least the next two weeks.  (Our Golden State Warriors will play home games in an empty arena.)  The local news is reporting that today was Hamilton's last performance. Nothing official from the theaters yet, as this is "breaking news", but I am anticipating that my Hamilton tickets for late March will be refunded.  Disappointing, but a minor concern, in the grand scheme of things.  

 

Stanford University (and Harvard)  has asked all of their students to move out of the dorms, as they shift to online learning for the remainder of the year.  UC Berkeley has suspended in-person classes until the end of March, when it will be re-evaluated.

Just saw an article saying that an usher who worked part time at "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" at "Six" has tested positive for COVID-19.  The usher is quarantined, but, after "deep cleaning" both shows will go on.

 

Our local news also just reported that the Curran Theatre (Harry Potter) with a seating capacity of 1667 will continue performances with reduced audiences of no more than 1000 people.  I am hoping that this is some kind of mis-communication, and common sense will prevail.

  https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/theater/broadway-sf-cancels-hamilton-the-last-ship-performances-due-to-citys-ban-on-public-gatherings

San Francisco has just canceled all gatherings of more than 1000 people for at least the next two weeks.  (Our Golden State Warriors will play home games in an empty arena.)  The local news is reporting that today was Hamilton's last performance. Nothing official from the theaters yet, as this is "breaking news", but I am anticipating that my Hamilton tickets for late March will be refunded.  Disappointing, but a minor concern, in the grand scheme of things.  

Stanford University (and Harvard)  has asked all of their students to move out of the dorms, as they shift to online learning for the remainder of the year.  UC Berkeley has suspended in-person classes until the end of March, when it will be re-evaluated.

Just saw an article saying that an usher who worked part time at "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" at "Six" has tested positive for COVID-19.  The usher is quarantined, but, after "deep cleaning" both shows will go on.

Our local news also just reported that the Curran Theatre (Harry Potter) with a seating capacity of 1667 will continue performances with reduced audiences of no more than 1000 people.  I am hoping that this is some kind of mis-communication, and common sense will prevail.

5 hours ago, Captain_Morgan said:

 

The lawyer is the couple's daughter...

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/coronavirus/fl-ne-broward-couple-sues-princess-cruises-20200310-k4v3xuva5zcsbbodbeht5r7654-story.html

deleted - will try again with quotes

Some screen shots from our local news.  21 passengers were taken directly to the hospital.  It looks like passengers walked down the ramps into the tents that were set up, and then were directed to buses.  The Canadians are supposed to fly out of Oakland Airport at 9 p.m. PDT  

The newscasters mentioned that hundreds of others boarded or will be boarding buses to Travis AFB or the airport.  Disembarkation will stop at 8 pm. and resume again tomorrow morning.  Those remaining on board are still quarantined in their cabins.

The headline in the 4th picture shows a news conference about the 1st Corona Virus death believed to be contracted from a community unknown source in Santa Clara County (Silicon valley -   Google, Apple, Microsoft, etc.) Many corporations are having their employees telecommute.  There is a new legal order banning mass gatherings (more than 1000 people in attendance.) Football season (49ers) is long over, but  ice hockey (San Jose Sharks) is not.  In other news from California, Stanford University and UC Berkeley have canceled in-person classes, and the largest school district in N. CA is closed this week, due to possible exposure to the virus.

Things are evolving rapidly in the Bay Area, as they are in many parts of the country (and world).

27 minutes ago, Wehwalt said:

Am I correct if they are the first cruise passengers in quite a long time to sail under the Bay Bridge?

The only times I know of when cruise ships sailed under the Bay Bridge was when they were headed to dry dock at Pier 70, between Hunter's Point and Mission Bay.  There would not have been any passengers on them though.

I hope it is was a bit of a thrill and entertainment for the Grand's passengers today. Those out on balconies probably got some good pictures!

38 minutes ago, snoozecrooze said:

The interviewed passengers on ABC7 KGO have all mentioned how strong and optimistic they are, and how pleased they are with the service they have had. It is so great to see their spirits in light of the current circumstances and I really wish them the absolute best in the weeks to come.

 

As wrongly timed this comment may be, and I do apologize if this comes off as crass, sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge and through the San Francisco Bay is truly an enchanting experience and I hope some of the passengers were able to somehow enjoy a little bit of it under such great weather to cap off this entire ordeal. Hoping many others in the future can continue to and healthily enjoy this privilege of sailing through the beauty of the bay.

As you can see, it is an absolutely gorgeous day here in the Bay Area.  I hope that seeing our beautiful Golden Gate (and land!) lifted the spirits of the passengers.  I have sailed many times under the Golden Gate and Bay Bridge (on a much smaller boat!), and it is something one never takes for granted.

24 minutes ago, npcl said:

Actually in a case like this, if they have concerns that they may have contracted the virus, all one needs to do is to contact the Public Health Department in their county.  They will then arrange for testing, if they decide, the patient meets their criteria.

 

 

If one actually goes to their local doctor, then they might get tested, but it will probably be a commercial test that they will get charged for. As well as potentially infecting others in the Doctors office, test facility, etc.

 

In the US the focus on outbreaks such as this are structured to be mostly local  with County, State and then federal tiers.  The action level is mostly the local agencies.  They do the testing, the patient tracking, monitoring, etc.  The States level provides resources and some over site.  The Federal level is mostly consultative with protocol development, and advisory in nature, with little direct action responsibility.  The system is designed for most of that to be local.  

 

This is the first time in 50 years that you have actually had quarantines directed at the federal level.

Actually, in reality it’s not that simple.  The getting tested part, that is.  My friend’s mom was on the Grand Mexico sailing with the Placerville patient that passed away.  She has been ill since her return, with cold and flu-like symptoms, which are now getting better.  She stayed home and took the normal precautions for a regular illness.  When she heard about the death, she contacted her doctor, and was told she didn’t meet the criteria, but she could call the county.  Alameda County (where the Grand will dock) also said, given the test kit shortage, she didn’t meet the criteria. (I don’t know the details of why).   She is very concerned, if it is the Corona virus, about the exposure others have had to her, including family members who work in public schools, grocery stores, etc.

3 hours ago, clskinsfan said:

Dr. Antony Fauci this morning:

 

“If you're a person with an underlying condition and you are particularly an elderly person with an underlying condition, you need to think twice about getting on a plane, on a long trip,” he said. “And not only think twice, just don't get on a cruise ship.”

 

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/08/coronavirus-dont-get-on-cruise-ship-123718

Thank you for posting this!  Do we know what is considered “elderly” in this context?  The reason I ask is that I remember reading something on these boards about information  from Wuhan indicating increased risk after age 40. 😳.
 

And the point has been made here many times over, that even if you are not in a high risk group, you need to consider whether or not you can afford a possible two week quarantine.

The other question I have is where are all of these test kits coming from?  I understand this is a priority, but I live in the East Bay, down the highway from where the Grand will be docking, in Alameda County.  My friend’s elderly mom was on the Grand sailing to Mexico before this Hawai’i cruise.  She has been sick with cold and flu-like symptoms since her return, which are now getting better.  When she heard the news about the Placerville passenger on her sailing having passed away, she contacted her doctor, and was told she didn’t meet the criteria for being tested, but she could call county health.  There she was informed there is a shortage of tests.  She still has not been tested, and of great concern to her are the people who have been exposed to her since her return. To clarify, because she wasn’t feeling well, she hasn’t been out and about, but she has still been around family members whose jobs entail working with the public in schools, grocery stores, etc.

43 minutes ago, ams cruiser said:

Would this apply to passengers who already cancelled this cruise out of fear of the possible spread of the virus?  Asking for a friend of a friend, (really), who cancelled this March 7th cruise just last week , because she would be considered high risk were she to contract the Corona virus. (I don't think her travel insurance was cancel for any reason.)  I don't know what Princess's policy is towards people in her situation, for example, those who cancelled their spring Diamond Princess cruises before Princess cancelled the entire cruise.

 

I just learned that this friend lucked out because her TA decided to hold off on canceling the cruise..  So she did receive the email with the offer for a full refund and future cruise credit.  

58 minutes ago, flyguyjake said:

Email posted in the other thread

 

Dear Princess Guest:

 

We are very sorry to inform you that your Grand Princess cruise departing on Saturday, March 7, 2020 has been cancelled.

 

We have been notified by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that they are investigating a small cluster of COVID-19 (coronavirus) cases in Northern California connected to our previous Grand Princess voyage that sailed roundtrip San Francisco from February 11 to February 21. We are working closely with our U.S. CDC partners and are following their recommendations.

 

We anticipate that further review of the situation will be necessary when Grand Princess returns to San Francisco from her current voyage. As we cannot predict the length of the potential delay, in an abundance of caution we have regretfully decided to cancel your voyage.

 

We regret any disappointment this cancellation may cause. When we must cancel a voyage, regardless of the reason, we share in your disappointment and offer our sincere apologies.

 

All guests will receive a full refund of their cruise fare, Princess Air, Princess Cruise Plus pre- and post-cruise hotel packages, prepaid shore excursions and other prepaid items purchased through Princess, and taxes, fees, and port expenses. Your refund will be processed automatically via the method of payment used to pay for your cruise. As your cruise has been cancelled so close to departure, each guest will also receive a Future Cruise Credit equal to 100% of the cruise fare paid on this voyage. The credit may be applied to any future Princess booked by March 31, 2021 or any existing booking not yet paid in full and is non-refundable and non-transferable.

We understand this change may cause you to incur unexpected expenses, such as air change fees. Reimbursement of reasonable non-refundable out-of-pocket expenses will be considered on a case-by-case basis. A Refund Request Guide & Form is available at http://www.princess.com/refund-request; please complete and submit this form and any relevant receipts and documentation for our review. If you purchased Princess Vacation Protection or independent vacation travel insurance, please submit your claim through your carrier before submitting a reimbursement request.

Again, we extend our deepest apologies and hope we have the opportunity to exceed your cruise vacation expectations in the near future.

Kind regards,

Princess Cruises 

Would this apply to passengers who already cancelled this cruise out of fear of the possible spread of the virus?  Asking for a friend of a friend, (really), who cancelled this March 7th cruise just last week , because she would be considered high risk were she to contract the Corona virus. (I don't think her travel insurance was cancel for any reason.)  I don't know what Princess's policy is towards people in her situation, for example, those who cancelled their spring Diamond Princess cruises before Princess cancelled the entire cruise.

3 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

I have the following TKTS question, and can't find the answer on their site or in their FAQ:   when TKTS has tickets available on a certain day for a specific show, will each of the TKTS locations have the same inventory for that show?   I would assume that they are dealing with electronic tickets, and that the answer would be yes, but I've learned that it can be unwise to make assumptions about things.  🙃

 

Thanks for any info!

The TKTS app should tell you what is available at each booth.  Also, by Googling the question, I just found this on headoutblog.com/tkts-broadway-tickets/  

On 11/9/2019 at 4:41 AM, Ombud said:

Once you get your ticket # (which is different than the one that shows on Princess, call to get it) you can buy your seat from the Air Canada website or by calling them. I did. I only paid $25 more but wished I had paid $65 as that came with 1 bag free checked luggage + the front of the Montreal to SFO  nonstop flight

We did exactly this (paid $65 extra directly to Air Canada) when our tickets are issued, and got exit row seats with 1 free checked bag. It was so worth it!  Interestingly, our return flight on Alaska Air (JFK to SFO) was ticketed right away, but we ended up switching to AA, after the Alaska Air flight was changed.

On 11/7/2019 at 5:23 PM, George C said:

Remember the Lincoln center and South-street locations are a lot less crowded shorter wait time and if you buy a ticket on Friday for Friday night you can then buy another ticket for next days afternoon show , same goes for Saturday and Sunday afternoon show . Can not to that with Times Square location.  

Also, Seaport opens at 11 a.m., which, I believe, is at least an hour earlier than the other locations.  

I just used Playbill for discount tickets to see "Come From Away" last month.  I actually ordered them while I was standing in line to purchase "Beautiful" tickets at the TKTS booth.

On 10/17/2019 at 10:51 AM, Daniel A said:

Thank you for responding but I'm still confused.  If I am sailing from Canada to New York and the ship stops at Bar Harbor as a first stop for excursions in the U.S., Do I clear Customs in Bar Harbor?  Does that mean I would have to pack up all my luggage and present it to U.S. Customs and then take it back onto the ship for the remainder of my cruise?

Just did this cruise.  We had to show our passports to immigration officials who came on board in Bar Harbor. (Very long lines for this.).  There were customs officials in the terminal when we disembarked in NYC but they just waived us through.  No one ever looked at our luggage, and we never had to declare anything.

7 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

I've only done it in the reverse order, from Fort Lauderdale to Quebec. Our steward left a customs for in our cabin and we filled it out. He picked it up later that night or the next day. Nobody had to take any luggage anywhere. Nor did we have to present our passports to Canadian officials.

As it turns out, the Customs people just waved us through.  We had already been through immigration in a Bar Harbor, and had to show our passports there.