Anyone on Insignia Now- Real Deal on Mechanical Issues Pls

[kibutzer]

Hello all,

 

Curious after reading the message about mechanical problems on Insignia.

 

Looking for anyone who is on Insignia, or will be disembarking before we get on May 17th. We are curious what the impact of the generator issue is, other than slower sailing? Also is there any noticable difference now that it has been annouced this ship is being sold?

 

Thank you for the info.

[JimandStan]

Hello all,

 

Curious after reading the message about mechanical problems on Insignia.

 

Looking for anyone who is on Insignia, or will be disembarking before we get on May 17th. We are curious what the impact of the generator issue is, other than slower sailing? Also is there any noticable difference now that it has been annouced this ship is being sold?

 

Thank you for the info.

 

The ship is not being sold, she is being chartered by Hapag Lloyd as of April of 2012.

[kaimedia]

We are on the April 23rd cruise out of Rome. We were told just yesterday by our TA who spoke with Oceania that a repair crew is currently aboard repairing the problem and that they hope to have the repair complete before our next Saturday departure.

[lmarmors]

We are on the April 23rd cruise out of Rome. We were told just yesterday by our TA who spoke with Oceania that a repair crew is currently aboard repairing the problem and that they hope to have the repair complete before our next Saturday departure.

 

That is good news! Should we expect an official statement from Oceania? Also, if repairs are done and Insignia can start cruising again at normal speed, will Oceania revert to the original scheduled times in port for upcoming cruises?

[Mura]

If that is the case, why did they change the Midnight Sun itinerary?????

[trina2]

If that is the case, why did they change the Midnight Sun itinerary?????

Yes, that is a good question. All this speculation is driving me nuts - it would be good if Oceania had a section on their website* that would release official updated statements. At least there would be some consistency between the information given out to different Insignia cruises. It seems there are a number of differing stories coming out via travel agents etc.

 

[Please note: I am not blaming travel agents. I just don't have much faith in this information. It is not easy getting the real information - there are people out there who will tell you anything just to get you off their back. Another Disclaimer: I am not saying that this is the case with Oceania, but it would help us all if we could look it up ourselves on their website.]

 

As yet, I have not seen any official statement from Oceania (and it hasn't been from the lack of trying).

 

*(if there is such place and I have missed it,:o would someone point me in the right direction)

 

If I could vote on one, I would like to cast my ballot in favour of:

We were told just yesterday by our TA who spoke with Oceania that a repair crew is currently aboard repairing the problem and that they hope to have the repair complete before our next Saturday departure.

;)

[lmarmors]

Does anyone have the email for Frank Del Rio (he's the CEO right?) He has posted on Cruise Critic before, and maybe he can tell us what is happening, maybe confirm that they are indeed repairing the damaged generator and clarify what will happen with the upcoming itineraries.

[JimandStan]

Does anyone have the email for Frank Del Rio (he's the CEO right?) He has posted on Cruise Critic before, and maybe he can tell us what is happening, maybe confirm that they are indeed repairing the damaged generator and clarify what will happen with the upcoming itineraries.

 

Be reassured that Mr. Del Rio reads these boards every day, and takes our concerns very seriously.

 

If he hasn't responded yet, it is almost certainly because the situation is still "up in the air", and somewhat beyond the control of the main office.

If you have any experience in the business world, you probably already know that some problems simply take longer to resolve, no matter how much money or good intentions are thrown at it.

 

Remember, that we are talking about repairing a piece of equipment that:

 

• was built in France, 13 years ago
  
• for another cruise line (Renaissance) that is now defunct
  
• must be used almost continuously on the ship
  
• is located in a very cramped engine room
  

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that Oceania would like to have this situation resolved yesterday, but very often these repairs are akin to fixing a flat tire on a car without pulling over.

 

As I pointed out in an another thread, pulling the ship completely out of service might get the problem resolved more quickly, but that would be unduly tough on those clients whose specific cruise were cut short.

 

Those passengers who booked their own airline arrangements would be particularly hard hit.

[lmarmors]

Personally, I have no reason to be anxious, since our cruise is not until July 25. I just feel bad for those who seek answers for cruises coming up in April and May.

 

Even if no immediate solutions are possible, it would be nice to hear from someone in an official capacity just to know what the plans are. I agree with you that it would be really inconvenient if they were to dry dock the ship and mess up people's private flight arrangements.

 

Also just curious...if they were to fix the problem, will they revert to the original schedules?

[phlewt]

We did get a notice from Oceania today that there will be delays on our August 22 cruise on Insignia (in the Baltics). Included is a revised arrival and departure schedule for each of the ports.

[caroak]

I called Oceania today and was told the problem is now being fixed but they do not know when it will be completed. If this is true, which I doubt, then why would they not anticipate it being completed by an end of August cruise which is four months away. It seems to me that O is just trying to appease passengers with a lot of misinformation.:mad: I also asked if once the problem is fixed would itineraries revert back to the original schedule and was told that if you booked through a TA they would be the one notified. Really, how difficult is it to also include passengers in an e-mail notification! Almost every day I receive some kind of e-mail advertisement from O so why not this. My TA is on vacation so if I had not read of this problem on CC I would still not have know of the changes. I'll find out by the end of the week if she was, in fact, notified.

[JimandStan]

I called Oceania today and was told the problem is now being fixed but they do not know when it will be completed. If this is true, which I doubt, then why would they not anticipate it being completed by an end of August cruise which is four months away. It seems to me that O is just trying to appease passengers with a lot of misinformation.:mad: I also asked if once the problem is fixed would itineraries revert back to the original schedule and was told that if you booked through a TA they would be the one notified. Really, how difficult is it to also include passengers in an e-mail notification! Almost every day I receive some kind of e-mail advertisement from O so why not this. My TA is on vacation so if I had not read of this problem on CC I would still not have know of the changes. I'll find out by the end of the week if she was, in fact, notified.

 

The ship:

 

It takes five times as long and ten times the money to renovate a highway while it is still in use, rather than closing it down for a week and just "getting it done"; similarly, when one is repairing machinery which must be used every day, progress is usually maddeningly slow.

 

Remember that everything must be reassembled at the end of every repair session so that the ship can maintain even her reduced pace schedule.

 

I feel for your frustration, but short of taking the ship out of service for the repair, there is little that Oceania can do at this point except to plan for the worst and hope for the best.

 

 

Oceania, the TA & you:

 

Although we tend to pick TA's in terms of "who can get me the best Goodie bag", these days, a Travel Agent still has a specific legal place in your communications with a cruise line.

 

Your Travel Agent is a professional that you chose to hire to guide you through a business deal, specifically this cruise.

 

In regard to this particular transaction, for Oceania to contact you, the passenger, directly would be inappropriate, as they are already aware that you are using the services of an Agent. Their not contacting you directly has nothing to do with the ease or difficulty of sending an email.

 

If you are not receiving information because your Agent is away, that smacks of a coverage problem in his, or her, office, and does not effect Oceania's duty to contact you through your chosen representative.

[lmarmors]

I am still hoping (and waiting) for Frank Del Rio, (who I have seen on these boards) to post an "official" notice as to what is really going on.... I understand that Oceania cannot contact everyone who has booked on Insignia, but a simple explanation on their website would not be an unreasonable request, or at least TA's should be instructed by Oceania to contact their clients. After all, not everyone is on CC.

[Lovetotravel33]

The ship:

 

It takes five times as long and ten times the money to renovate a highway while it is still in use, rather than closing it down for a week and just "getting it done"; similarly, when one is repairing machinery which must be used every day, progress is usually maddeningly slow.

 

Remember that everything must be reassembled at the end of every repair session so that the ship can maintain even her reduced pace schedule.

 

I feel for your frustration, but short of taking the ship out of service for the repair, there is little that Oceania can do at this point except to plan for the worst and hope for the best.

 

 

Oceania, the TA & you:

 

Although we tend to pick TA's in terms of "who can get me the best Goodie bag", these days, a Travel Agent still has a specific legal place in your communications with a cruise line.

 

Your Travel Agent is a professional that you chose to hire to guide you through a business deal, specifically this cruise.

 

In regard to this particular transaction, for Oceania to contact you, the passenger, directly would be inappropriate, as they are already aware that you are using the services of an Agent. Their not contacting you directly has nothing to do with the ease or difficulty of sending an email.

 

If you are not receiving information because your Agent is away, that smacks of a coverage problem in his, or her, office, and does not effect Oceania's duty to contact you through your chosen representative.

 

Do you work for Oceania? It sounds like it.

[JimandStan]

Do you work for Oceania? It sounds like it.

 

 

No, neither of us is affiliated with Oceania in any way, except that we love the product.

 

We've already had to switch allegiance from Cunard, to the Home Lines, to Royal Cruise Line, Royal Viking Line, and then to HAL; so we've been through all of this before.

[Mura]

Lovetotravel, I have to say that JimandStan were probably more polite in their answer to you than I might have been in their place. (Not that they need me to defend them.)

 

Regular readers here know that Jim&Stan are fans of Oceania, but they definitely are not shills.

 

Because they say something you don't like, you think they work for the company? I'm just asking!

 

When I first saw the question about how difficult it would be to email everybody on affected cruises (and no, I personally am not affected) I thought, no, it's not that easy to do. First of all, many Oceania passengers are not online. I know that just from talking to people on board who were surprised to learn that there are message boards devoted to various cruises. (And they NEVER asked how to access these boards. Never.)

 

Just because a certain percentage of cruisers subscribe to email alerts does not mean that it's so easy for Oceania to send out an email to everyone affected when an itinerary change happens.

 

Look, I don't like those changes either! I was affected when the Libya cruise became the non-Libya cruise. Most passengers didn't learn about the itinerary change until they boarded, although those of us at CC and the Yahoo board DID know.

 

But I can see that it is just not all that easy to notify everybody, and I appreciate that it can be very difficult for a cruiseline to know just when to cut the line.

 

I have also been accused in the past of being an apologist for Oceania. I am not. I see the warts as well as anybody else. But in general, I haven't found a cruiseline that I like better.

 

Just because someone has a different opinion about these kinds of changes doesn't mean they work for the cruiseline!

[hondorner]

Do you work for Oceania? It sounds like it.

Jim and Stan simply read things more carefully than most.

 

They also apply a more thoughtful, reasoned and logical thought process than many casual readers. We have learned to depend on them for thoughtful, carefully stated answers on which we can rely.

[BlewWater]

I guess I missed the original news about the Insignia problems being (somewhat ambiguously) referred to in this thread. Could someone please tell me exactly what the problem is, what is being done, and how it is impacting upcoming cruises? Thanks!

[LHT28]

I guess I missed the original news about the Insignia problems being (somewhat ambiguously) referred to in this thread. Could someone please tell me exactly what the problem is, what is being done, and how it is impacting upcoming cruises? Thanks!

Some generator problem was all we heard

Schedules are being changed

 

Other than that no news from the top

[lmarmors]

We are on the April 23rd cruise out of Rome. We were told just yesterday by our TA who spoke with Oceania that a repair crew is currently aboard repairing the problem and that they hope to have the repair complete before our next Saturday departure.

 

On April 16 this was posted by a CC member. Many members are responding and making comments, but no official word from Oceania as to what is being done, how long the repair will take and what will happen to future cruises schedules. I am thinking...by now Oceania should have some answers...it would be nice to have an "official" word from them.

[yorkiemomjn]

Jim and Stan simply read things more carefully than most.

 

They also apply a more thoughtful, reasoned and logical thought process than many casual readers. We have learned to depend on them for thoughtful, carefully stated answers on which we can rely.

 

Yes, we do and I, for one, feel the same way about your answers. :D

[caroak]

UPDATE: As of this afternoon my TA has not been advised by Oceania of the mechanical problem and our itinerary changes. This agency is a first-class agency and part of the Virtuoso Group who does a substantial amount of business with Oceania. This will be our first Oceania cruise and being negligent is no way to make a first impression.:eek:

[jtamchay]

I agree, but this situation has not hit the main stream press...not that I have seen.

I believe the CC people are out front on this issue and many more of the cruisers will only find out through their TA and maybe not even til they board the ship.

It will be a shock for those not hearing any of this til much later.

Hope it all works out and the minor malfunction is repaired.

My TA quickly notified me and it actually was before final payment so I was happy about that...I am July 25, 2011 cruise Scandinavian Splendours.

[screen-gem]

I have been in touch with someone currently on the Insignia (Apr 13 sailing, Athens to Rome) who reports that the ship is arriving late to some of the ports. At my request, the passenger queried one of the Officers regarding the faulty generator. His reponse was:

- "it's not really broken". The repairs that are underway are part of regular maintenance.

- arrival/departure times are being adjusted as needed.

- no ports will be canceled.

 

A quick check of Oceania's posted schedules for the upcoming Scandinavian Splendors voyages (Jul11, Jul25, Aug 8, Aug22) indicates adjustments have been made on all of them. Various port arrivals are now 30 min to 2 hours later than orginally planned. From that, I infer that that the 'regular maintenance' on the malfunctioning generator will not be completed any time soon.

 

Oceania reps have advised at least some TAs that these changes have "nothing to do" with on-board equipment problems. Rather, they are part of normal adjustments due to docking schedules, and that the schedule changes "were put in place by each port". Oceania went on to say that these types of changes occur all the time and that unless the change is greater than 3 hours they do not notify passengers booked either through an agent or directly with the line.

[jtamchay]

...all of that sounds like the "voices in the wilderness"...no one is stepping to the plate with a consistent message to the customers.

The Oceania mailing we received, through our TA, called it a minor malfuntion of the generator...that does not sound like what they are saying onboard "repairs under regular maintenance". It does sound like an ongoing issue that will not be resolved to the paid customers satisfaction on some cruises but likely it is all they can do and not go to dry dock for the repairs.

jo