maryandmarge

Hi Lisa

I have been following this from the beginning.   Really enjoyed all the information you were able to provide us cruisers to Alaska that will follow this first one.    You've given up a lot of your relaxation time to do these posts and pictures and we all appreciate it.    Looking forward to meeting you in person on the 9/4 Alaska cruise.   Safe travels home to you and Tom.   And to everyone else that is lucky enough to be cruising again!

Maryell

33 minutes ago, chocolate melting cake said:

I posted the following "plea" on John Heald's and our PVP Aida Hermann's FB pages. I was wondering if anyone in this forum could come up with a solution. 

              

Any advice???

 

 

 

We were thrilled to find that our 14 day Carnival Pride cruise – Oct. 31-Nov.13 would be sailing. Since we have had our Covid Pfizer vaccines for months, the fact that 100% of passengers were required to be vaccinated was WELCOMED! However, the final requirement presents a quandary. We are being told that at embarkation we have to present proof of a negative PCR test that has been administered 24 to 72 hours before boarding.

 

We have gone to (or called) our doctor, Walgreens, CVS, a test facility, a hospital and a fortune teller------all have told us the same thing, there is no guarantee that any Covid 19-PCR test results can be delivered within 72 hours. If the test labs are busy, results may take up to 6 days (144 hours).  Finally, many of the passengers will be traveling to the port of Baltimore during at least the day before sailing.

 

Therefore, we have these three questions:

 

1.  1.   Can the powers that be change the 72 hours to 144 hours?

 

2.   2    If #1 is unacceptable could the “rapid” Covid test be used?

 

3.  3     If, heaven forbid, the result was to come back (possibly a false) positive-----would we be able to get FCC because of a cruise that was, through no fault of our own, denied to us?

 

Thank you for any assistance you can provide,

 

Linda & Allen Caplan

 

We were also booked on that Carnival Pride cruise and received that notice last week.  We are vaccinated but because this is a 14 day cruise they want the PCR test also.    Like you I started checking around and got the same answers as you received.   No guarantee that the results would make it back in time.    Our final payment was due on 8/2 so today I called our Carnival Rep and told her we were going to cancel and wanted a refund for the deposit we had paid.    I explained everything you have said above and also told her it was an added expense that the passengers would have to pay.    She put me on hold for about 10 minutes and came back and said she had talked with the Solutions Department and they told her that we SHOULD be able to get results back in 24 hours time and that we should be able to find a place that would provide it for free.     I told her the SHOULD be wasn't a guarantee and we weren't willing to put out that much money when there was a chance we wouldn't be able to cruise and Carnival would NOT refund the money.    She did put in for our cancellation and refund back to my credit card.     

I had posted on the Roll Call for the N Amsterdam Panama cruise that is 21 days from Seattle or 17 days from San Diego early October to see if they had the same requirement.   I thought since Holland was a Carnival Brand maybe they had received the same notice.    People responded that they did not.   Unfortunately - the Holland trip was more expensive than the Carnival or I would switch.   

Safe travels all.   

On 7/21/2021 at 4:31 PM, jperry2011 said:

They must be operating something cause they booked my hotel. They probably laid everyone off since there was no cruise ships to transport people back and forth too. 

A hotel room is $200 anyways so if they aren't there at 930am to pick me up in the morning I'll hop in a taxi and make a few calls about fraud on my way to port Canaveral.

I too am one of the people that booked last year thru Go Port with the Hampton Hotel in Orlando and the shuttle service from hotel to pier in Port Canaveral and then back to airport after the cruise.   There were 3 of us booked and we are still out $279 and waiting for our refund that they promised they are going to refund to us after the cruises start up again.    We had booked them because of their great reviews prior to covid.    Hopefully they will stand by their word and process refunds when the cruising begins.   

Lisa

I've been following your 7/24 Roll Call since my sister and I signed up for the 9/4/21 cruise.   You always provide a ton of information to us as you would receive it.  It helps the rest of us prepare for what is ahead.      Looking forward to all the info you pass on to us from this first cruise for Holland to Alaska in 2021.   Safe travels to you and Tom - make sure you take time to relax and enjoy!!   Look forward to meeting you on the 9/4 cruise.

Maryell

11 hours ago, Red Haired Lady said:

That is what I am doing....I am flying in the day before and taking the free hotel shuttle from the airport to the hotel.  Then I have booked "Seattle Express" for both the shuttle from the hotel to the port AND the shuttle from the port to the airport at the end of the cruise. It is $37.20 for round trip.  They pick up at a specified list of hotels (see website).  And the shuttle from the port to the airport for departure leaves every 15 minutes from 7 AM to 11 AM.  See link below.

 

Cruise Ship Transfers | Seattle Express

 

 

Thanks for this info - I'm going to check into doing this instead of doing the $15 shuttle to pier thru the Hampton and the Holland American transfer from ship to airport after the cruise.    

Maryell

4 hours ago, Cajuntraveler said:

Does anyone in the Seattle area have info about the best way to get to the cruise ship from the SEATAC area?  We are flying in the night before and staying at an airport hotel that offers free transportation to and from the airport.  The last time we cruised out of Seattle we rented a car at the airport and dropped it off downtown and the rental car company took us to the ship.  A rental car doesn't look like an option this trip. Should we try to get a taxi from the hotel or return to the airport where taxis are more available or is there a shuttle to the port?

We are flying in the day before and staying at the Hampton on 28th Ave near airport.   Free airport shuttle and they offer a shuttle to pier the next morning for $15 that you can sign up for when you check in.   

19 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

I'm going to offer a little different perspective than most of the posters.  I don't disagree at all with other posters.  I've just been to Seattle so many times, and my flight arrives late afternoon the day before the cruise.  I am staying at the Radisson at SeaTac and my price all in $132.  They offer a free shuttle.  Next day I take the cruise shuttle to the Pier.  $29.  I don't have to handle my luggage once I get to the cruise shuttle which is at Sea-Tac.  I'll be coming in from San Diego after already having several days of vacationing, and Seattle just doesn't appeal to me anymore.  It just kind of depends on what your circumstances are and how much energy you have.  I find airline travel tiring, and just can't muster being a tourist after I fly in.  

We are coming in late afternoon as you are the day before the cruise.  We are on Holland America 9/4/21 to Alaska.   Coming from Cleveland we still have an early morning departure and a layover on the way there.   We decided that since we had been to Seattle before in a more relaxed vacation we would opt to save money on the hotel and we booked at the Hampton on 28th Avenue for approx. the same price as you.  We will grab a bite to eat somewhere and maybe lounge around the pool that evening.    The Hampton has free airport shuttle and also offers a shuttle to either Pier 66 or 91 for $15 the next morning to get to the cruise ship.  We will use the $29 transfer Holland offers to the airport after the cruise.    If we had more time - we would have looked for something closer to the attractions but for this short vacation this seemed like a good fit.   Safe travels everyone.  

Maryell

10 hours ago, LocoLoco1 said:

I am confused here: My HAL Rep. specifically told me in Jan. 2021, ‘Your two 2021 ALASKA cruises you paid for are hereby cancelled. Period.’ Therefor, I am now rebooked (by HAL.. not a travel agent) for Sept, 2022 on the Noordam. QUESTION: Exactly who is absolutely, positively cruising to Alaska with HAL in 2021? Not I. 

We are on the Nieuw Amsterdam 9/4/21 to Alaska roundtrip Seattle/Seattle 

2 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

 

That's hilarious!

1 hour ago, AKJonesy said:

Have you checked out the 7-24 Roll Call on this site?  It is very active.  https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2781447-nieuw-amsterdam-july-24th-2021-first-alaska-cruise/?tab=comments#comment-61143583

 

I check that Roll Call each time I check ours on 9/4/21 to see if anything new :)   

12 hours ago, SJSULIBRARIAN said:

I can't wait for Lisa's "Live From"

Me too since we are on the 9/4/21 Alaska sailing!   Can't wait to see what we can look forward to once we are on the ship.    Lisa's live feed will be great information for all of us...

Just now, maryandmarge said:

Please add MaryandMarge to the September 4, 2021 Alaska cruise

Just happy to have something fun to look forward to. 

Forgot to add ship name - Nieuw Amsterdam :) 

Please add MaryandMarge to the September 4, 2021 Alaska cruise

Just happy to have something fun to look forward to. 

5 minutes ago, RetiredRich said:

Flying in the night before a August 28 cruise and staying in a motel near Sea Tac airport.  Thinking about using shuttle express over a taxi to get to the port.  Getting too old to handle heavy luggage and have hernia also.  Will also need transport from port to airport after cruise.  Best ideas ???

We are staying the night before our cruise at the Hampton on 28th by the airport and they offer a shuttle to the pier for $15.   For return to airport after cruise we are using Holland's transfer 

Coming into view on Port Everglades webcam now

We are vaccinated and would definitely book something if it was someplace we'd like to travel to.   

On 12/18/2020 at 4:06 PM, wesport said:

We were on the 11 night 2/17/21.  I took that as a FCC. My $500 refund from 1/27/21 has not been received. ???

We were also booked on this cruise and when it was cancelled we requested the full refund.   It was a nice Christmas present yesterday when the credit showed up on my credit card.    3 1/2 weeks for a refund was really great.    Thank you Holland America for doing this....  Stay safe everyone - and hopefully some day cruising will return to normal.   

8 hours ago, beerman2 said:

Go Port Canaveral shows 79.99 for 2 round trip transportation.

Go Port Canaveral owes many travelers refunds for cancelled cruises starting back in March 2020 - check on tripadvisor under reviews and you will see many unhappy cruisers.   Myself included.  Still waiting for promised refund from 3/30/20 at approx. $280.     Ours included a night at hotel in Orlando.

Just a warning to those that didn't know this.    Safe travels.   

1 hour ago, Hamburger Hill said:

What is the best way to get from airport in Orlando to pier at Port Canaveral?

Do NOT use Go Port Canaveral. They had excellent reviews in the past.    We had a cruise booked out of Port Canaveral for April 2020 that was cancelled by Carnival.   The three of us had booked them as a package pick up at MCO, drop off at Hampton in Orlando, pick us up the next morning at hotel and drop us at cruise terminal in Port Canaveral and then picking us up after the cruise and dropping us back at MCO airport.   Cost was approx. $280.    When Carnival cancelled cruise Go Ports first email said we would get 100% refunded because Carnival cancelled due to Covid.   The next email said we would receive 70% which is what our signed contract shows.     That was 9 months ago.   Now their emails show that they will start refunds as soon as the ships start sailing again.     Whenever that will be.    I'm not the only one waiting on refund - check on tripadvisor.     So my suggestion is try to find any other option.    

1 hour ago, iancal said:

We have successfully used credit card charge back on a number of vendors.  Works like a charm.  BBB is fine but we have no desire to drag a vendor issue out for months.

 

We give the vendor a chance to respond.  No more than 30 days.  Less if we sense the run around.

 

We did not have any money owing from a cruise line but if we had we certainly would not have been waiting 90 plus days for a refund.  Others on this forum reported being successful with cruise line charge backs as well.   Instead of 90 days some had 4-7 day turnaround (or less) on credit card charge backs from cruise lines.

 

It is one reason why we never pay with a debit card or direct bank transfer.  Always use a credit card.  If you sense bankruptcy, immediately start the charge back process.

Someone had told me you only have a short amount of time to dispute it on your credit card.     Since our cancellation was 3/30/20 I didn't think I could back to Discover and tell them I wanted to dispute it with them because it was 6 months ago.    I'll check with them and see if I have any recourse to get my $279 back.    Thanks for your information.  

8 hours ago, Roger88 said:

I never understood all those go-port offers. It looks like a fraud to me. I would rather save some money and get a regular cruise with a some package on board that rely on some weird go-port package which does not give any promises.. I want to make sure I get what I pay for 

At the time we booked they had excellent reviews thru Trip Advisor.    Our $279 included picking up 3 people at Orlando Airport - shuttle to Orlando Hotel - One night paid at the hotel - Shuttle pick up from hotel and to the port of Canaveral before the cruise  and also picked up after cruise and taken back to Orlando airport.   As we are "seniors" and have never used Uber and did not want to deal with renting a car we chose this option.     Doing research and looking at the reviews it would have been a great deal.    Of course at that time - no one knew there would be cancellations, etc. due to Covid.   Time will tell whether they will stand behind their past reputation and make things right when things begin to open up.    I'd love to get my money back - even if it's only the 70% but I'm not going to count of it.    And I will not use their services again if they do survive the pandemic.  

We are in the same situation with Go-Port.    We cancelled 3/30 and were told at that time that we would receive a $100% refund in a couple weeks due to the fact that Carnival had cancelled our cruise in April.     That amount was $279.      About a month later when I checked status it was changed to 70% refund per the contract that we signed.   I've been reading reviews on Tripadvisor and so far it looks like no one has received any money from them.    The standard reply to any requests are - because of covid they do not have office staff to handle the situation at this time.    6 Months later - I would be surprised if we see any of this money.    

1 hour ago, drsel said:

3 hours ago, mtwingcpa said:

I have received a future cruise CREDIT under a CFAR clause, but not a cash refund (if that's what you're asking).

I was talking about cash payment from an insurance company

We had cruise planned on Disney Magic for February this year (before Covid).    We were ready to head to airport the day before and Grand daughter (8 years old) woke  up with 105 Temp.     We called and cancelled everything.     Parents took her to ER and they diagnosed her with Flu B and she was sick for a full week .    Insurance with Disney refunded all money paid for the 8 of us.   Spirit was nice enough to give us credit to fly in future.     Pre hotel cancelled with no problem.   Only money we did not receive back was the $18 ea for the shuttle from hotel to port because we didn't cancel prior to 48 hours.    We did have to provide copies of her Medical evaluation from the ER in order to get our money back.   We were very pleased with the results.  And so happy that she got sick before we left the house.   

4 hours ago, drsel said:

On all the major Cruise lines, the minimum agents commission is 10% and the maximum is 16%, depending on volumes.

 

This commission is paid only on the basic fare and not on the port fees or taxes.

 

The agents also have the privilege of buying OBC out of their commission at a discount. (The exact discount is unknown)

 

The giant online US travel agents are in the 16% commission bracket, so they can easily pass on 10 to 12%, depending on your Cruise fare.

 

Also there is a website, where the agents can bid for your cruise business and offer higher amounts of OBC.

 

So, if your basic Cruise fare is 4000 (excluding port fees and taxes), the giant agent will get 640 as commission.

So, he may offer you 400 as a discount, and still earn 240.

Or instead, he can use this 400 to buy OBC worth 500 and gift it to you. (assuming 20% discount only for Cruise agents).

 

Since they do hundreds or even thousands of bookings, they make a decent amount of profit.

 

Hope this answers all your questions and clears all your doubts. if not, just ask

Thank you so much - this really helps explain it.    

On 9/18/2020 at 9:35 AM, paul929207 said:

We often gt extra OBC deom our TA. Usually it is about $50 to $100 per person per leg. (We often book b2b)

This is what I thought maybe everyone was receiving from their TA's that gave OBC.  $50 or $100 or maybe a free dinner at one of the specialty restaurants.      But reading thru this forum it says that the TA usually receives 10 - 16% of basic cost of cruise and port fee.     And some people are receiving 10% from their TA - then how does the TA make any money?     I feel stupid asking this - but feel I must be missing the point somewhere along the line.   I apologize for this :)     And I do appreciate everyone who has helped me try to understand the TA's OBC offered to their clients.