Carnival Ecstasy passengers treated HORRIBLY!

[GoinCruisin]

Ummm, are you an insurance salesman by any chance...definately not a trial lawyer. rolleyes

 

No, but I am a business owner and have seen the same people in my own business... there are always people out there that want something for nothing... they LIVE FOR IT!!!!! :rolleyes:

[tahoe22]

Jshawnh - we were one of the 80 who took the refund. We had insurance but it does not cover any costs for the ship having propulsion problems, it does not provide any help in this situation. We wanted a refund as soon as we heard the cruise was delayed Monday just as we were ready to leave but Carnival told us no. We were were given 2 options by Carnival at 10:30 PM that night, we did not like either. I believe Carnival misled the people in the terminal by giving optimistic information and providing it late at night when many people were tired and had few options - no flights home, kids needed to go bed.

[TXRoo]

It reminds me of a movie I watched, this guy walks into a convenience store, throws himself down and starts yelling "Ow my back!!!" and then people run over to check on him and he starts yelling "Ow! My back AND my neck."

 

We live in a litigious society.

 

Corporate America = bad

Attorneys = good

 

*shudders*

[GoinCruisin]

It reminds me of a movie I watched, this guy walks into a convenience store, throws himself down and starts yelling "Ow my back!!!" and then people run over to check on him and he starts yelling "Ow! My back AND my neck."

 

We live in a litigious society.

 

Corporate America = bad

Attorneys = good

 

*shudders*

 

LOL Tx, was that movie "Friday"??? LOL!!!

[TXRoo]

Travel insurance would have covered any hotel rooms and/or airline tickets. Carnival offered a full refund if you didn't cruise.

 

What more are you looking for?

 

Jshawnh - we were one of the 80 who took the refund. We had insurance but it does not cover any costs for the ship having propulsion problems, it does not provide any help in this situation. We wanted a refund as soon as we heard the cruise was delayed Monday just as we were ready to leave but Carnival told us no. We were were given 2 options by Carnival at 10:30 PM that night, we did not like either. I believe Carnival misled the people in the terminal by giving optimistic information and providing it late at night when many people were tired and had few options - no flights home, kids needed to go bed.

[Cruising89143]

I can tell you after taking over a large number of cruises with Carnival over the years that they knew going into that cruise that it would not make it to any ports. This is just their way of covering their butts. Carnival has one of the worst records out there with break downs. Just look at the problem with the Holiday, Glory and now the Ecstasy this year alone. If they would do proper maintenance every once in a while maybe they would have less problems with their ships.

I also get sick and tired of reading the comments about how a cruise is "what you make of it". Why is it the cruise line is not responsible for giving passengers what they paid for? I guess if you are the type that drinks from sunup to sundown, you could really give a rats butt about the ship even leaving the port of departure. Some of us want a little more in our cruise vacations than a week long buzz.

[TXRoo]

Oh! Look at you just bust me out like that!!! I was hoping no one would realize I was watching that movie...but I loved it. It was hilarious!!! :D

 

LOL Tx, was that movie "Friday"??? LOL!!!

[GoinCruisin]

Tx, I'm almost positive it would not have covered hotel rooms or flights unless the cruise was actually cancelled... I remember this from the "hurricane" days... not 100% sure, but I don't think those things are covered unless the trip is cancelled...

[GoinCruisin]

Oh! Look at you just bust me out like that!!! I was hoping no one would realize I was watching that movie...but I loved it. It was hilarious!!! :D

 

LOL, don't worry... I have it on DVD :D It's a classic! LOL!

[TXRoo]

Then I would seek compensation from Carnival for that...if they did indeed seek out to cancel their cruise before they flew out to the pier and Carnival knew they might not make it out, then they should have covered hotel and flight.

 

Carnival IS wrong for letting everyone get to the ship before informing them with a letter.

 

Just so y'all know, I am not a Carnival cheerleader...and I do agree that they should have cancelled the cruise and fixed the ship before it went back out. But they didn't and they chose to do a cruise to nowhere and some people took that, that is fine. But those who didn't should be reimbursed any hotels/flight arrangements they had to make as a consequence of Carnival not giving proper warning.

 

And just so it is apparent where I am coming from, my DH is a shipboard electrician...I am well aware of how these problems crop up and how hard they are to fix and how it is a moment by moment issue.

[GoinCruisin]

Carnival IS wrong for letting everyone get to the ship before informing them with a letter.

 

I agree with that... they should have given the option when they informed everyone the ship was going to be late... They would have caught alot more people that way...

[GoinCruisin]

But, as TxMom stated, almost everyone on the ship was from TX, and most of them were from Houston, so might be a moot point...

[tahoe22]

Why is it a moot point? Texas is a big state, there were no flights at the time of the night. Many of the 80 that we stood outside with until 1 AM had to find hotels and flights at their cost. We called Carnival at 7PM and asked for a refund, we had insurance, but were told no. We traveled 1 hour to galveston, paid $50 to park and waited until 10:30 PM with 2500 people in a crowded space with little information before we received the letter. Then we waited until 1AM for our luggage. The longshoreman told us if Carnival would have decided 1 hour ealier our luggage would not have been loaded and it would not have been a shearch for a needle in a haystack.

[TXRoo]

True true...which leads me to wonder, if Texans are keeping all the ships out of Texas full, then why doesn't Carnival move the Elation to the 4/5 day cruises, send the Ecstasy to work the Bahamas and give us a larger ship for the 7 day cruises?

 

*hint hint* :D

[GoinCruisin]

True true...which leads me to wonder, if Texans are keeping all the ships out of Texas full, then why doesn't Carnival move the Elation to the 4/5 day cruises, send the Ecstasy to work the Bahamas and give us a larger ship for the 7 day cruises?

 

*hint hint* :D

 

You would think they would do that... Makes no sense that they have not done that yet. I know the Conquest sails full every week out of NOLA, they should have a larger ship in Galveston, there is an obvious need...

[TXRoo]

You know it is cheaper to sail out of NOLA than it is to sail out of Galveston for the exact same cruise on the exact same type of ship? I priced out the Ecstasy and the Sensation for this summer and the Sensation came out cheaper every time.

 

I think they are trying to crank every dollar they can out of the older ships. The bad part is, they put themselves in a position where the Rhapsody is considered the superior ship in the port when the Grand Princess and the Galaxy are not there, even though it is barely 300 tons larger than the Ecstasy/Elation.

 

They are giving their brand name a disadvantage by putting only two Fantasy size class ships there.

[Brneyznfl]

Tx, I'm almost positive it would not have covered hotel rooms or flights unless the cruise was actually cancelled... I remember this from the "hurricane" days... not 100% sure, but I don't think those things are covered unless the trip is cancelled...

 

Many travel insurance policies have trip interruption. I don't know if this situation would qualify for it, just throwing it out there for speculation.

[jshawnh]

I can tell you after taking over a large number of cruises with Carnival over the years that they knew going into that cruise that it would not make it to any ports. This is just their way of covering their butts. Carnival has one of the worst records out there with break downs. Just look at the problem with the Holiday, Glory and now the Ecstasy this year alone. If they would do proper maintenance every once in a while maybe they would have less problems with their ships.

I also get sick and tired of reading the comments about how a cruise is "what you make of it". Why is it the cruise line is not responsible for giving passengers what they paid for? I guess if you are the type that drinks from sunup to sundown, you could really give a rats butt about the ship even leaving the port of departure. Some of us want a little more in our cruise vacations than a week long buzz.

amen

[brn2crz]

I believe the number that didn't go was eighty. that is roughly 3.2 percent of the total passenger list. I think that would be considered a few by any standards. Why are you people so defensive of Carnival, and determined to focus responsibility on the passenger? Should I buy meal insurance, just in case I get food poisoning at a restaurant? I'm being a little sarcastic here, but my point is obvious. I love Carnival, but I don't want to be a sick member of a co-dependent relationship. Make Carnival take responsibility for its problems and fix them.

Shawn

 

Before I speak.I am the farthest thing froma Carnival defender,that there is .

 

However,the difference here is.The one choice you have is not to purchase the cruise ticket in the first place.If you do,and board the ship,Or not board.Then you only have yourself to blame.You accepted the terms..Which include living through,exactly what these poor folks did.Maybe its not fair.Maybe the cruise lines screw people regularly..But its all there,in black and white..If you don't want the risk.Then don't take a cruise.

The sad thing here is..Carnival has actually gone somewhat above what the contractualy had to do.

Again..I am NOT saying its right or fair.But it is the way they operate.

And yes,unless you can prove negligence,intent and fault.Then your own personal insurance is who foots the bill.Having worked in the food service industry for 23+ years.I can count on one hand the number of times the particular company I worked for,paid a food poisoining claim.

[karenh1127]

Would insurance have covered the cost of the cruise since we made no ports? I never bought any but I am curious if it would have covered anything on my cruise to nowhere.

Back in Sept. '01 my sister got married and honeymooned in Cozumel. Their flight home was scheduled for 9-11-01. Well you know what happened then and they were stuck in Coz for 2 solid weeks at their own expense because all flights to the US were cancelled. After 2 weeks they were finally able to catch a cruise ship to Tampa for minimal $$. Insurance didnt cover anything because it was an act of war/terrorism. Insurance coverage has alot of loopholes.

[GoinCruisin]

Would insurance have covered the cost of the cruise since we made no ports? I never bought any but I am curious if it would have covered anything on my cruise to nowhere.

Back in Sept. '01 my sister got married and honeymooned in Cozumel. Their flight home was scheduled for 9-11-01. Well you know what happened then and they were stuck in Coz for 2 solid weeks at their own expense because all flights to the US were cancelled. After 2 weeks they were finally able to catch a cruise ship to Tampa for minimal $$. Insurance didnt cover anything because it was an act of war/terrorism. Insurance coverage has alot of loopholes.

 

The cost of ports are not included in your cruise fare, so no. The only thing you pay for visiting ports is a port charge... which is usually minimal. If the cruise was cancelled, you could recoup your flight cost, meals, hotel, etc.

[brn2crz]

Would insurance have covered the cost of the cruise since we made no ports? I never bought any but I am curious if it would have covered anything on my cruise to nowhere.

Back in Sept. '01 my sister got married and honeymooned in Cozumel. Their flight home was scheduled for 9-11-01. Well you know what happened then and they were stuck in Coz for 2 solid weeks at their own expense because all flights to the US were cancelled. After 2 weeks they were finally able to catch a cruise ship to Tampa for minimal $$. Insurance didnt cover anything because it was an act of war/terrorism. Insurance coverage has alot of loopholes.

 

I agree.Insurance is not always the answer.

And I hope you don't think I don't feel for what you went through.I totally think that everyone should have been completly refunded if they did not want to go,and all travel expenses paid.For those that took the trip..I think compensation was good for the most part..50% on future trip maybe,or a 2 cat upgrade.Or some good OBC....But thats how I feel...Not how it is.

[voyagerfl]

I agree that the seas rolling are not the fault of Carnival... I would imagine when one is going on a CRUISE (ship + water), you would prepare for such things happening...

 

.

 

Actually could'nt engine troubles cause the ship to not be able to manuver as well as normal ????

[GMCOLT]

I have spent many years studying maritime issues including cruiseships. I am not defending Carnival, however to say they could have prevented the breakdown is not realistic. The last thing they want is a mess like this. Often these incidents raise attention from the Coast Gaurd. The Coast Gaurd inspects the ship yearly if not more often.

A few things folks should know:

These ships run almst 2 years straight between drydocks. US Navy vessels are docked 30% of the time. military vessels breakdown even with more "port" time. Cruise ships in all lines get run very hard.

 

They are complicated pieces of machinery that do break down regardless of ongoing maintenance. Parts for these vessels are often not carried by the ship-no way could they carry spares for everything.

 

It often may take hours to "diagnose" the exact problem. It may take a couple of days to take engines apart in order to find the broken part. The engines on these ships are as big as a house.

One maritme engineer told me that when one component fails there may be a chain reaction that can affect other operating systems.

 

In closing, this is not a carnival only issue. yes they have had more perhaps. Carnival has the most cruise ships of most other lines combined. In the last year Princess, Celebrity, Norwegian, Cunard have had breakdowns.

[MrFunInTheSun]

The PR department did the correct thing with that letter. You have to go into a situation on a positive note, looking at the best of it. If they had looked at the negitive, and started it with that tone, then worse then whad did happen could have happened. They had all plans to fix the situation and return to normal, as I've said on many posts and other have said the same thing, **** happens. We deal with what we have and make the best of it. So your plans changed, it wasn't all peachy, but there were still good times. If none of the trip was fun, then that was YOUR FAULT!! Think back to that long weekend or week vacation at a motel or resort on the beach, it rains for most or all the trip, your stuck in a motel room, with nothing to do without food. You are then forced to find your entertainment, food etc. But you would have made the best of that situation. Why was this cruise to no-where so bad? Did you not have food? Was there nothing to do? No entertainment? Exactly, you got some of all of the above at a very resonable price. Cruise price cut in half, and a discount on a future cruise. In lots of ways you made out more, and to think you'll have another vacation at a discounted rate. So move on, book your next cruise...smile, it could be worse.