Roatan missed port

[2wheelin]

On the Crown this week and missed Roatan. Did anyone ask for or receive any compensation for this. Just wondering. What can be expected? Yes, I know the contract states this might happen.

[RickEk]

On the Crown this week and missed Roatan. Did anyone ask for or receive any compensation for this. Just wondering. What can be expected? Yes, I know the contract states this might happen.

 

The customary compensation would only be the refund of the port fees...

[Pam in CA]

This happens all the time. No compensation as Princess can't control the weather, tides, etc. Those onboard will receive the port charges for this port credited to their onboard account. It's usually a dollar or two.

[paul929207]

Unless the problem was caused by Princess, you will only get a refund of the port fees.

[piper28]

Unless the problem was caused by Princess, you will only get a refund of the port fees.

 

Yeah, you're not going to get any compensation, but I'd argue that when they miss port here it's always Princess' fault: they picked a truly awful spot for the port. I know I spent a morning watching from our aft balcony when we ended up not making port, and really couldn't believe just how bad the approach is for them to get in.

[Pam in CA]

Yeah, you're not going to get any compensation, but I'd argue that when they miss port here it's always Princess' fault: they picked a truly awful spot for the port. I know I spent a morning watching from our aft balcony when we ended up not making port, and really couldn't believe just how bad the approach is for them to get in.

That's true of many ports. So what you're saying is that Princess should put only ports that are easy to get into on itineraries and be able to guarantee the port. If that were the case, you'd miss some of the most interesting and beautiful ports; plus Mother Nature always has the last word no matter how easy or difficult it is to stop at a port.

[RickEk]

I, of course, agree with Pam. It is, apparently, a difficult approach to Mahogany Bay in Roatan, but as someone else noted, the ship couldn't even tender at the other port because of the weather. Carnival built this port and Princess is obligated to use it...

 

As an aside, I've been on a cruise to Bermuda twice. We missed the port the first time and many grumbled that it seemed that the weather was good enough to dock. The second time we went, we made it, but I was simply amazed by how long the approach was to the Royal Dockyard. It seems like you circle half the island as the ship traverses the approach. It's just the way it is to navigate the reefs that surround the islands.

[dclark]

The Roatan approach for the ship is really daunting/intriguing. It looks like you travel down a lane (marked by buoys on both sides) and it switch backs a few times. If surf is rough, they won't be able to pass through it. I think this was done because there is coral/rocks on either side of the lanes.

[Fat Bottom Gurl]

Would you not get a refund for Princess Excursions booked in that port?

[RickEk]

Would you not get a refund for Princess Excursions booked in that port?

 

That pretty much goes without saying... :)

[Vol fan]

We missed Roatan a few years ago on the NCL Pearl due to civil unrest. Roatan would not allow us to dock. We were, of course, refunded our port fees and excursion costs.

It's a beautiful island and we are going there again in March. There are many places the cruise lines visit that occasionally have to be missed because of weather, etc. But it would be a shame to avoid those places altogether for the few times the ships have to bypass them.

[2wheelin]

It was disappointing to miss but now I'll just have to book another cruise and try again. It was announced that all excursions would be refunded but nothing was said about port fees. So I asked pursers desk and the gal there seemed perplexed at the question but wrote it down and they later called our cabin to confirm a refund (about $10/person). Was just wondering if you didn't automatically get it if you didn't ask.

[Times Prince]

... many grumbled that it seemed that the weather was good enough to dock.

We have seen this on several cruises where we've been unable to dock. The weather "looks good" but in reality is a true hazard. Once in Cozumel the captain attempted docking, but with the ship oriented to the dock it was cross-wind, causing a list (not good). We never closed that last severl 100 feet. Another time in Myconos the sea didn't look bad until we saw a ferry coming out of port - with waves crashing over the bow of the ship.

 

I am grateful for experienced Captains who care about the safety of ship and passengers.

 

And yes, we were refunded port fees and any Princess Excursions costs automatically.

[Steven_&_Daniel]

We were disappointed that we were unable to dock at Roatan on Crown Princess last year. Since Princess excursions are not prepaid, that's not an issue. I suppose if you booked a private tour, you might lose money.

 

We hope to make it to Roatan someday. Have many people tried getting there on a later cruise and missed it more than once? (obviously a possibility)

[DShock]

Roatan is tricky and of course its in everyones interest for the captain to make a good call. If the wind and swells aren't just right they won't go in...that simple. We've been to Raotan twice on Princess. Both times same thing happened. Get just outside the entrance and sit, hoping conditions improve, only to leave both times. Maybe this March, the third time, will be the charm and we will make it. Not a big deal to us...the ports are not why we cruise.

[RickEk]

It was disappointing to miss but now I'll just have to book another cruise and try again. It was announced that all excursions would be refunded but nothing was said about port fees. So I asked pursers desk and the gal there seemed perplexed at the question but wrote it down and they later called our cabin to confirm a refund (about $10/person). Was just wondering if you didn't automatically get it if you didn't ask.

 

Refund of port fees is automatic...

[watergal]

That's true of many ports. So what you're saying is that Princess should put only ports that are easy to get into on itineraries and be able to guarantee the port. If that were the case, you'd miss some of the most interesting and beautiful ports; plus Mother Nature always has the last word no matter how easy or difficult it is to stop at a port.

 

Was on a Seabourn cruise last year and due to inclement weather, missed a port. EACH pax was compensated a considerable amount due to the 'inconvenience.' Class act. Mother Nature, take note. :)

[Pam in CA]

Was on a Seabourn cruise last year and due to inclement weather, missed a port. EACH pax was compensated a considerable amount due to the 'inconvenience.' Class act. Mother Nature, take note. :)

Yup. And how much more did you pay for a cruise on Seabourne than you would for a comparable cruise on Princess? No question that Seabourne is a first class cruiseline. My expectations would be much higher for a cruise on Seabourne than Princess. :)

[rdsqrl]

Was on a Seabourn cruise last year and due to inclement weather, missed a port. EACH pax was compensated a considerable amount due to the 'inconvenience.' Class act. Mother Nature, take note. :)

If I could afford a Seabourn cruise, I don't think I'd care if the ship ever made port. Not as long as the caviar and champagne held out . . .

[piper28]

That's true of many ports. So what you're saying is that Princess should put only ports that are easy to get into on itineraries and be able to guarantee the port. If that were the case, you'd miss some of the most interesting and beautiful ports; plus Mother Nature always has the last word no matter how easy or difficult it is to stop at a port.

 

That may be true, but I think Carnival Corp has to shoulder some blame on this one. They decided they had to follow the trend of creating yet another self-contained port so that people don't have to go out into the "real" Roatan, and chose what is truly a god-awful location for the dock (although I'm sure the government of Roatan shares some responsibility for that too). Here, the ship has to back in, do a 90 degree turn, and back along some pretty shallow water to get in. All it takes is wind from the wrong direction and it's just not really possible. Of course, it *looks* easy to the novice, so you also get a lot of people that look out, and think that the weather doesn't look bad enough to prevent you from going in. (Most of those people would also pick traversing the shallow area to get in, since it's the more obvious route in). All this at an island that already had a perfectly respectable dock (although I don't know if RCI kicked them out, since I think they're the ones that have spent a lot of money at that dock).

 

To give it the proper ambiance of course, they have you backing up towards a wreck of a ship :).

[2wheelin]

We were disappointed that we were unable to dock at Roatan on Crown Princess last year. Since Princess excursions are not prepaid, that's not an issue. I suppose if you booked a private tour, you might lose money.

 

We hope to make it to Roatan someday. Have many people tried getting there on a later cruise and missed it more than once? (obviously a possibility)

 

Could we possibly start a support group for people who have missed Roatan and get Princess to schedule a cruise that just goes there. They could make attempts 5 days in a row to get in and once we had a port day, sail around the ocean for the remainder of the cruise.

[geoherb]

We were fortunate that our one cruise that went to Roatan the ship was able to dock there. We ended up missing Princess Cays, however, later on that cruise and received a credit for the port fees on our accounts.

 

On another cruise, mechanical problems made us late getting to St. Thomas. We lost half our time there. The captain issued a generous onboard credit to everyone.

[gooch47]

Still haven't made it to Greenland after three tries.

[Pam in CA]

I understand the frustration with regards to a port that is frequently missed for whatever reason but I don't think that's enough to remove it from an itinerary. I've missed Grand Cayman a couple of times, Rhodes once, Reykavik, and many other ports. I would have been very disappointed to miss St. Johns, which has one of the narrowest port entrances I've ever seen. While someone might not enjoy a port as much as someone else, that doesn't mean it has no interest or value to others. The good news is that there are so many itinerary and port choices. I just don't get upset if a port is missed, probably because it's happened to me so many times.

[2wheelin]

More likely to be upsetting when you can only cruise once every five years, but amazingly, I took it in stride and grabbed a deck chair.