Just off the broken Dream the good and the bad

[roscoegirl]

I can not believe how many people are still making excuses for Carnival after 4 ship issues in a month. The whole fleet should go into dry dock until it can be proved no one else will be stranded.

 

 

Although not likely to happen, these type of opinions make sense. It is a bit much to have so many issues going on with Carnival's ships in such a short time frame. I believe Carnival IS beginning to feel the heat based upon the very large volume of recent and significant price drops! Clearly their new bookings are down and it seems like they're trying to hold onto the customers who had already booked prior to the latest round of problems... It very well be the best time for all cruise lines to REALLY put some action behind their concept of 'providing a safe' cruise vacation--if they want to re-gain the consumer's trust.

[cruiseonthebrain]

Hope it all worked out. And hopefully you will cruise again!

[thatsonofa]

amen!

 

Exactly!!! I'm sorry sir/ma'am, but we are going to have to make you stay on a resort style island for ten days while we try to figure out how to get you back to normal life of work and bills and bad traffic.

 

LET ME KNOW WHERE TO SIGN UP FOR THIS KIND OF PROBLEM!!!!

 

I would gladly have a panic attack while my vacation is extended and I'm sitting on a beach sipping on a drink, enjoying my forced vacation. :D

[CdrescherRBL152]

Cannot say for sure, but would guess that till the other ship arrived Carnival was talking to RCL's office who were using the number of cabins booked. Then when the ship was acutally there and they could get an updated account of cabins available, different then booked due to noshows. They then were able to get cabins for your whole group. Am sure they were tring to accomdate as many as possiable without breaking up groups who were travling together.

[CdrescherRBL152]

I can not believe how many people are still making excuses for Carnival after 4 ship issues in a month. The whole fleet should go into dry dock until it can be proved no one else will be stranded.

 

That sounds good if you make it industery wide. There were reports of 7 issues on board Regent of the seas 3 ships in Janurary alone. These issues are more wide sperd then most relize. If it had not been for the Triumph most of us would never had heard of the other 3 other then on CC. Last summer my brother-in-law and his wife went on a RCL ship. Exented by 3 days as on the last leg ship couldn't manage more then around 10 knots.

[halos]

Most (all?) ships sail full but I guess there are the occasional last minute "no shows." I'm sure it would be easier to take two people onto another ship than a group of people.

 

 

I read over on the NCL boards that there were 8 cabins (16 people) that used the Sun just to get to St Maarten, where they got off to stay there for a week. This is why there were vacant cabins.

This is truly an amazing coincidence....if you believe in coincidence. I don't. It pretty much was a little miracle.

[pink roses]

Our vacation was not ruined by any means. We all had a wonderful time and got home safely. I just think "the intimidator" as I called him should not have treated us this way.[/quote

I agree!

[pink roses]

Because of recent events in cruising I have added an extra week of medicines to my list of must brings. Though, I do not take Xanax I can image that even people without anxietys might need something when going through not knowing how you will be getting home. For those of us who work, it is not a simple thing to be gone an extra week or so.

[ncshp955]

Here is my opinion. You contracted for transportation on a ship not a plane flight. I think Carnival is obligated to comply in any reasonable way but I'm no lawyer.

 

However if I take a bus cross town and it breaks down should I be prepaired for a helicopter ride home? No.

 

Poor communication is polite word for lied to where I come from.

 

I do know the difference since I have been lied to by the CSR rep handling my canceled March 16 sailing. Feel free to read my roll call post.

 

Finally from one Floridian to another...Welcome home! Glad you had a great time. :D

I do not always think that poor communication is a lie. With so many people involved it is always possible for the "right hand not know what the left hand is doing" syndrome to happen. No one might have lied but told them what they had been told while someone else was told something different. I was not there I so I can't speak from this experience but with so many passengers and many Carnival reps involved some miscommunication is bound to happen. I think in this parties situation maybe a little to much miscommunication might have occurred but at least it all worked out and everyone got home safe.

[Mizzouaholic]

Why not just fly back?

[ncshp955]

Why not just fly back?

Some of the people in her group for one reason or another cannot or will not fly. That is a reason some people like to cruise. My DW missed her brothers wedding because she could not fly. Some people just can't do it.

[MrPete]

I do not always think that poor communication is a lie. With so many people involved it is always possible for the "right hand not know what the left hand is doing" syndrome to happen. No one might have lied but told them what they had been told while someone else was told something different. I was not there I so I can't speak from this experience but with so many passengers and many Carnival reps involved some miscommunication is bound to happen. I think in this parties situation maybe a little to much miscommunication might have occurred but at least it all worked out and everyone got home safe.

 

So if it's not a lie, it just changes to inept. Which is worse. I always find it's the former when pushed.

[Mizzouaholic]

Some of the people in her group for one reason or another cannot or will not fly. That is a reason some people like to cruise. My DW missed her brothers wedding because she could not fly. Some people just can't do it.

 

I'm confused. Sounds like a bit of stubbornness to me. I understand not flying under normal circumstances, but it just seems odd to 100% refuse in emergency type situations. Is there some kind of medical issues to do with altitude or something?

[Seago2]

1. Always cruise with a passport and an extra two weeks of meds at this point.

 

2. Going down to guest services multiple times on the same issue- particularly on something like this- would be enough to give anyone high blood pressure.

 

3. I've always flown fine, no problem, until that one flight. Going onto the plane I though I was walking onto a narrowing tin can. It was hell until we got to Atlanta- a stopover where I did not have to change planes. Too bad- I grabbed my baby and my carryon and staggered off, white faced, shallow breathing. It took therapy and Valium for me to fly again. Why it happened I will never know, except that I was in my first year of law school, with a new baby, and under a lot of stress- maybe that was it? But I will NEVER dismiss someone with a fear of flying ever. I fly all over the world now, no problem :).

 

4. Kudos to the OP for still giving compliments to Carnival, NCL, and saying the trip was an overall good one, despite the 24 hours... Can we all agree we would like to sail with her???

 

5. WOW.

[<3_2_Cruise]

I'm glad you all made it home safely!

[ncshp955]

I'm confused. Sounds like a bit of stubbornness to me. I understand not flying under normal circumstances, but it just seems odd to 100% refuse in emergency type situations. Is there some kind of medical issues to do with altitude or something?

I can tell you have been blessed not to have lived with or known someone who suffers from panic attacks. It took me a while to fully understand what my wife was going thru but when I did it made me realize that there are some things people cannot control. One doctor told me that it is a chemical imbalance in the brain and that sometimes meds can control it and then again sometimes they can't. I have read where someone who suffers from panic attacks can have a real heart attack when they try of overcome their panic by doing what they were afraid of. It is not always about flying either. Some people will never be able to cruise because of their fear of water.

[rjrpar]

Very glad you made it home safely - an experience you will never forget

 

By the way, anyone know the current status of the Dream?

[Rockee4055]

Although I am so sorry about your experience it really must have been tough for them as well. I mean trying to get 4000 people home, dealing with different situations like yours that need attention is not an easy task. This certainly isn't something they train for everyday like the muster drill.

 

The important thing is you got home safe. The thing that kind of shocked me was that they put you on an NCL ship, I don't know why but it did.

 

I guess I never even gave any thought to the fact that some people may not fly.

 

I'm glad you're home safe and sound.

[Aplmac]

Want to bet that those who got home on Norwegian

will now book Norwegian instead? :)

 

 

Heck I'm thinking that way myself and I haven't even been anywhere to get stuck!

 

.

[floridagal062]

The whole not flying thing is the reason I take cruises for my vacations. I am lucky enough to live in central florida with 5 different cruise ports handy. My husband and I used to fly all the time but after a very bad experience with major turbulence and thinking we were going down that may change your perspective. When they made us go to the doctor to prove we couldnt fly my blood pressure was 168 over 110 and my husbands set off the alarm. lol

 

My mom won't take a cruise because she is afraid of the water and flying. lol I've tried many times to take her but it will never happen.

 

I would love to go back and do the whole thing again. Was a great cruise and quite an experience. I need one more drink of the day and chocolate melting cake. lol

[gtalum]

Carnival does many things very well, but for some reason their corporate communication is terrible, both between corporate and customers and even between corporate departments. It's something they really do need to work on. I'm glad you enjoyed the trip up to that point, and glad you did finally get on the NCL ship.

[iv18-Diane]

Most of my party who flew home did not have passports as well as many others but they got around it somehow. It wasnt an issue.

 

I think next time you cruise you should all have passports. I would not cruise without one as you never know.

 

Diane

[WhoDat2009]

I would like to voice my support for those in the pro-paragraphs crowd

[bigmama9224]

Florida gal thanks i was also very curious as to what they did with people that don't fly, cause girl all my vacation are definately not flying..When my family found out about people being flown home they called me to tell me you see you would have had to take a plane probably with sleeping pills.

[vols_159]

So one of NCL oldest and smallest ship came to the rescue of one of Carnivals oldest and newest ships... Interesting.. OP im glad you made it home safe.. Ive never flown either and my wife says no flying she would have a panic attack if something like this happened and to get her own a plane I would have to knock her out..