zephyrella14

I was a flight attendant for many years and I've encountered many frightening situations in the air. I was surprised myself over how calm and in control I always was during those events, I felt no fear...

But on a ship....I dunno. #1 I can't swim and #2 the thought of the enormity and depth of the sea terrifies me. I'm still cruising though, fear won't stop me, but please forgive me if I'm one of the panicked, crying passengers if there is an emergency. :eek::eek:

I'll try to be more in control of my emotions in the face of possibly losing my life at sea:rolleyes: call me selfish if you will

The sinking of the Concordia should not be joked about, 32 people lost their lives.

I for one will be paying very close attention during the muster drill. If I drown it won't because I was an idiot and decided to ignore a demonstration that could potentially save my life.

I got one but it's 14-15 ???

Hi there, please be gentle with me :) I have never been on a cruise before but have always wanted to. It is my 60th birthday next March :( I'm a very young at heart and young looking 59 year old. I will be going on my own and am a bit nervous of which cruise to pick for the best price. I live in the UK, I'm tempted to Western Caribbean but would like to have the opportunity to meet other singles on the cruise, but if not, I'm happy with my own company. I just don't know where to start so any advice would be gratefully received ! Thanks.

Hi!! I'm planning my first ever cruise for my next birthday too. I've already found mine. I'm going to Alaska. I hope you find your perfect birthday cruise too!!:D

Crowds are aimlessly wandering and shopping. Is that your priority for visiting Alaska? If you plan some tours, they are limited capacity, so no issue. But frankly, if you aren't doing tours, I don't see much reason for visiting Alaska- if significantly higher priced compared to the Caribbean. :)

 

What is your concern with "crowds"? Simple to get away from the downtown shoppers.

 

And sorry, no, ships are still cruising Alaska in Sept. with other factors involved with more rain and far less daylight, cooler temps.

My priority is to see Alaska, ive never been. Ive been to the carribean, ive been all over the world, (i was a flight attendant for a few years) I'm asking my question because I've never cruised before, I've never been to a ship port before, I have zero experience with ship ports specifically the Alaska ports.so I'm thinking thousands of people in one port at one time, no way!!!. I don't like crowds, I'll deal with it on the ship, because really the ship is only my way to get to Alaska, the most affordable way for me to get to alaska at the moment..I can eat pizza for 10 days, or I can grab a ton of apples from the buffet and feed on that for a week, I don't care about crowded dining rooms. Thank to all for your input :) some of you have given me good suggestions. I have plans for other ports but Ketchikan, I'll have to do more research.

Rent a car. Get outside of the tourist trap in downtown Ketchikan. Plenty to see and do once you get away from the streetwalkers.

This is a great idea! Thank you.

Thank you for your responses. Your all right, I need to calm down and just deal. I just don't do well in large crowds and I had a moment. I do have excursions planned at all stops except Ketchikan... So I'm sure I'll be OK. Thanks again.

I was looking at ships scheduled to be in ports during my scheduled stops(Aug. 10-20) and it's REDICULOUS!! were talking 4-7 ships at once at each stop. How bad is it really? I'm imagining thousands of people in these small little villages and I'm considering canceling and rebooking for September. Is September any better?

Im calling tomorrow, afternoon maybe. I booked and put down a deposit on a standard inside cabin but I'm looking to move to a room more mid ship because im concerned about seasickness. The price difference is only $30 per person, I was just curious. It seems to me that if my TA called princess it should be easy enough book a different room...

Hi. I booked through a TA. Can I call and book a different room and pay the difference? Final payment isn't due for Months. Thank you in advance for you replies.

I know it was a disappointment for all concerned.

 

So what do you think they should have done??

 

Canceled a few years back before people started saving for the cruise?

 

Mike:)

Oh brother....

Really? What should they have done?...oh I don't know maybe take the ship in for repairs back in the beginning of summer when it first started to act up. Cancel cruises or move ships/ people around, maybe folks could have made other travelling plans...Oh yea or, they could have maybe canceled before everyone TRAVELED INTO PORT, BOARDED THE DANG SHIP AND SAT THERE FOR A DAY AND A HALF!!!

No doubt so many people were disappointed. And it is too bad Princess couldn't have made that call earlier. But as people have said, much rather cancel the cruise than end up with one of those "nightmare" cruises.

 

As for the compensation, having two upcoming cruises to replace the one cancelled would go a long way to making me feel mollified.

Yea, easy for you to say, you weren't the one sitting in the ship only to get kicked off...

Whatever , like I said the compensation was good but the whole event was still ridiculous...Princess blew it! Big time!

And you think Princess is not disappointed to lose a few million?

 

It's not like they planned this to happen.

 

Mike:)

Oh please. They earned losing a few million...

Their ships are their business! do not tell me they "didn't plan this"...they had to have known what condition the ship was in!

Clearly they still wanted to sail the piece of crap ship, Why else would you board 1900 people and sit in port until the next day...they were hoping to get away with one more 14 day cruise.....someone probably stepped up and gave them their choices once and for all; cancel or risk 1900 lives at sea and lose more than a few million!

I would be beyond disappointed, I really feel for all those people....

All your money back plus a free cruise and travel expenses?

 

I would be interested to know what you think Princess should give you.

 

Mike:)

Its not about what princess gave...

There were people who planned and saved probably bfor years, people who may have been celebrating birthdays and anniversaries and maybe marriages. This may have been the only vacation for the entire year for some people. Yea they got reimbursed, but jeez what a disappointment...

The decision process was flawed, but a full refund + 100% cruise credit and travel expenses sounds fair if the article is indeed correct.

This is the very least they could do...and even then I would be pissed!! A lot goes into planning a vacation...time and energy and sacrifice AND PLANS!!.. Ugh, there is really no excuse good enough to explain this. They knew the ship needed work..LONG before this.

Just was trying to get my cruise that I booked 1 month ago upgraded to the 3 for free special & they said no. Thought if I sent off an e-mail to show my displeasure they might respond with a little better response.

Hmm, wonder why they would not do that, is your cruise for 2014 perhaps?

Oooooh, I wanna know whats up. I'm nosy like that...

AND I can see why you would refuse the head waiters offer. Lol he offered to make the same dish, they attempted to get right twice, the next day. That's laughable...really head waiter? No thanks...lol I guess that was all he could think to offer you, at least he tried. :)

For some people bad food will ruin any kind of resort type vacation, food is just one of those things... Sorry you were disappointed.

Another poster mentioned spices used, that was a good point, I hate Indian food because the spices literally make me nauseous. I will have to remember that point if I eat in the MDR and hate it :)

I'm glad there will be pizza and burgers to eat on the Golden lol. For me, my cruise will be about the destination not necessarily about the ship or the food...but like I said I can see how terrible food would damper the entire trip, so sorry.

How about room A340? Anyone have any feedback?

I will reiterate a pet peeve that cruise lines should be penalized (by law) from chartering out a cruise less then 11 months prior to the cruise date. This is because customers will, in good faith, book a cruise far in advance which is something the cruise line's all encourage. Once inside of 11 months, many of these folks will opt to purchase their own air (airlines do not generally accept a reservation prior to 11 months). Most of these air fares are non-refundable and involve fees for changes. So when a cruise line charters a cruise and cancels inside of 11 months, they are "screwing" some of their best customers who often book far in advance. I would love to see a US Federal Law/regulation that requires a cruise line to reimburse any such passenger double the cost they have spent on trip arrangements (such as air fare).

 

Hank

Agreed. Not that I have ever been in such a situation but I can imagine my disappointment if my booked cruise would be canceled due to the whole chartering business, took me a lot of research and planning to find the right cruise.

Well said Hank!

I hope so too.

 

I see that you have a Golden cruise to Alaska. I did that cruise and loved it! As a matter of fact, that was the cruise that hooked my husband!

 

This deal is a hiccup. In the grand scheme of things, just a bump in the road. I want Princess to hold up their end of the bargain, but if they don't, no baby seals will perish.

 

We have all known there is a pretty big disconnect between Princess CS and the actual cruise. And I love to cruise with Princess. :)

Im so excited to go!!!!! Really the cruise for me is more about the destination then the cruise line. Although I completely understand loyalty to a stand up company. This will be my first cruise, we will see how we feel about this form of travel. I'm pretty sure I'll love the ship, its floating resort! Haha they are beautiful, so I've heard.

I for one think Princess should also stand by their product and their agreement, your a loyal customer, its the principle of the matter!! I say go all the way to the top and see what they say..why not?? Good luck :)

I did have an email confirmation, and I have sent that to customer service. Once they accepted my deposit at the price stated on the reservation confirmation, we entered a contract. I am hoping this will resolve soon.

I truly hope that they follow through with what you were offered, I will be a heck of a lot more confident as their customer about how the conduct business.

It's weird because the non-Costco one has a lot more options for additional add-ons and stuff. The Costco one is super basic and doesn't have as much to choose from.

I feel the same way. Maybe its best you call them and then they can give you a quote for the kind of coverage your looking for. I noticed that with Costco the "cancel for any reason" option is over $300 :eek: I'm going to wait a few months, I have no medical conditions. My husband and I are as "healthy as a horse" according to our doctor. I'm not worried about any waiver...