Not happy with flight booked thru Carnival

[txjudy54]

We will be going on a cruise out of Miami on Sept. 20th. I have always booked directly with Carnival but this time I used a TA I have used for years for other vacations. I assumed (you know what assume means!!) I would be booked to fly directly into Miami but NOOOOO!! We are leaving the day of our cruise thinking everything would be fine and still hope it is. Carnival booked us to fly into Ft. Lauderdale. We leave Dallas at 7 AM, change planes in Atlanta with a 1 hour layover and then into Ft. Lauderdale at 1:00. We bought transfers thru Carnival and also insurance. When I found out about the flight, I called my TA. She called Carnival who changed our flight to 5:55 AM, 2 hour layover in Atlanta and still getting into Ft. Lauderdale at 1:00. She said Carnival said that was the best they could do so if we have a delay in Atlanta we would have more time!! BS - still getting into to Ft. Lauderdale at 1 and then a 45 minutes (Carnival said 20 minutes) trip to Miami. They would not let me change and come in a day early. Sorry this is so long but I am so frustrated. If I call Carnival, all they will say is I have to talk to my TA and Carnival can only give me general information. Thanks everyone for letting me vent!!! Live and learn!!

[tinyrose]

Why would a good TA book a flight through Carnival? I would think that a good TA would do a separate booking. Am I missing something?

[winddawn]

We will be going on a cruise out of Miami on Sept. 20th. I have always booked directly with Carnival but this time I used a TA I have used for years for other vacations. I assumed (you know what assume means!!) I would be booked to fly directly into Miami but NOOOOO!! We are leaving the day of our cruise thinking everything would be fine and still hope it is. Carnival booked us to fly into Ft. Lauderdale. We leave Dallas at 7 AM, change planes in Atlanta with a 1 hour layover and then into Ft. Lauderdale at 1:00. We bought transfers thru Carnival and also insurance. When I found out about the flight, I called my TA. She called Carnival who changed our flight to 5:55 AM, 2 hour layover in Atlanta and still getting into Ft. Lauderdale at 1:00. She said Carnival said that was the best they could do so if we have a delay in Atlanta we would have more time!! BS - still getting into to Ft. Lauderdale at 1 and then a 45 minutes (Carnival said 20 minutes) trip to Miami. They would not let me change and come in a day early. Sorry this is so long but I am so frustrated. If I call Carnival, all they will say is I have to talk to my TA and Carnival can only give me general information. Thanks everyone for letting me vent!!! Live and learn!!

I'm so sorry that you have to endure this frustration related to your vacation. The good news is that since you bought Carnival's cruise/fly package (flyaweigh), Carnival takes responsibility for you making it to your cruise. That means that if something happens that Carnival will either hold the ship for you or pay to get you to the ship if for some reason they can't do that. Details here:

 

http://www.carnival.com/legal/fly-aweigh.aspx

 

Nobody wants unforeseen events to come between them and their hard-earned vacation. Next time, I hope you will consider making your own pre-cruise arrangements which include flying into your embarkation city a day early with convenient flight times. Making a night or two before your cruise part of cruising fun is very worthwhile not only for the experiences you can have in your embarkation city, but also for peace of mind of much better odds of arriving timely and being able to embark your cruise rested and without unnecessary stress.

 

I'm wishing you the best possible outcome. :-)

Edited August 20, 2014 by winddawn

[deborahjo]

Niece flying into Orlando the day of our cruise on September 13. She purchased Carnival transfers. The stupid thing is they have her going home out of Melbourne. Told her no transfers thru Carnival to Melbourne. I booked this cruise for us.

 

I called Carnival and told them they better find her transfers from Port Canaveral to Melbourne. The lady said sorry but Carnival does not have the. I told her they arranged this flight they better find her a way there. Magically transfers appeared.

[txjudy54]

We have always driven down to Galveston and left from there. This is our first time flying somewhere for a cruise. I just thought it would be better to have everything booked thru Carnival so if something happened we would be covered. I also thought that since we were going out of Miami we would fly into Miami. Never imagined we would be booked to fly into Ft. Lauderdale. Like I said - live and learn.

[ldlewis45]

Wow, a 1-hour layover in Atlanta is REALLY risky. At least you got it changed to a 2-hour layover, so unless something major happens, you should make the connecting flight. If your cruise is out of Miami instead of Fort Lauderdale, you'll probably be boarding around 2 pm or later.

[Tapi]

I'm very sorry that you're dealing with this. I know that I'd be stressed to the max if those were my travel arrangements.

 

Unfortunately for you, those flight are well within the guidelines described in the Carnival website. Although they are less than desirable, they shouldn't have come as a surprise to you if your TA had informed you about the guidelines (or if you'd gone on the website and read them yourself).

 

Booking Carnival Air should be approached as booking a guaranteed cabin. You may get "upgraded" (in your case, an early nonstop flight right into Miami), BUT you must be prepared for the "worst case scenario" (in your case, connecting flights arriving in Ft. Lauderdale and pushing the time limit).

 

As bad as your flights may seem, Carnival will book you on flights arriving as late as 2:30pm :eek: so I guess you didn't do as bad as you possibly could've. In my opinion, a 2:30pm arrival is insane, but it's within their guidelines. And that's why I would NEVER book air through them.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Edited August 21, 2014 by Tapi

[cruisinpips]

Carnival is NOTORIOUS for flying passengers into FLL then bussing them to Miami. This must be financially advantageous for them, otherwise it would be much more simple to fly passengers into Miami. We learned our lesson several years ago when we booked air through them and they flew us from our local airport in Northeast TN. to Detroit, then to FLL. We were the very last people on the ship and all passengers were at safety drill when we boarded.

Because of this, We never book through the cruise lines, and we always fly down at least one day early! Sorry to hear of the same stories still occuring. Wish you the best and hope all things go as planned. :D:D

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Why would a good TA book a flight through Carnival? I would think that a good TA would do a separate booking. Am I missing something?

 

The cruise lines can buy flights in bulk and sometimes offer big savings over what a TA can do price-wise on a separate booking. But, as the OP found out, you often pay in convenience and lack of flexibility regarding changes.

Edited August 21, 2014 by Ryndam2002

[Talisker92]

The cruise lines can buy flights in bulk and sometimes offer big savings over what a TA can do price-wise on a separate booking. But, as the OP found out, you often pay in convenience and lack of flexibility regarding changes.

 

Amen!!! We always book our own flights just for that reason

[lazyart]

Have never flown in for a cruise, but I'd definitely do it the day before. That's a lot of travel and would just wipe me out for embarkation night. Return flight can be the same day... wouldn't bother me.

[peggisue]

Just think if your luggage is delayed .... or worse!

[Budget Queen]

For others, take a look at the sticky on the cruise air board.

 

A significant issue with some cruise air booking is the air ticket class. As mentioned, if these are restricted tickets, with a problem, you may not have the benefits you may assume you do. An example would be a canceled flight, that your ticket class would be the last accommodated, meaning you would miss your cruise. Agian- take the time to read the sticky, very well written.

[pbsteve]

FLL is waaay cheaper than MIA. but I would blame your TA for the fiasco, not carnival. Carnival is getting you there on time as promised. Your TA could have saved you a ton of money by booking you separately. For my flights from milwaukee to cruise out of miami the day after you (flying in the 20th) it was 300 cheaper to book myself. You have a bad or lazy TA. As far as carnival not talking to you except general info, thats how it goes when you book with a TA, and your TA should have told you Carnival will only talk to them by contract.

[Carnival Cutie]

A few years ago I booked a cruise through Carnival that was leaving from Miami. When we got our itinerary we found out we were flying to Fort Lauderdale and transferring from there to Miami. When I called about it I was told they use the cheapest route. As it turns out it is cheaper for me to fly into Fort Lauderdale rather than Miami, even with the cost of the transfer. Now when I book my cruise I take care of my own flight. As someone said previously, you live and learn.

[D4]

I'm so sorry that you have to endure this frustration related to your vacation. The good news is that since you bought Carnival's cruise/fly package (flyaweigh), Carnival takes responsibility for you making it to your cruise. That means that if something happens that Carnival will either hold the ship for you or pay to get you to the ship if for some reason they can't do that. Details here:

 

http://www.carnival.com/legal/fly-aweigh.aspx

 

I'm wishing you the best possible outcome. :-)

 

Hopefully you have passports so you can fly to the first port if you miss the ship. Good luck!

 

At least you know to book your own air in the future (and fly in at least a day early.).

Edited August 21, 2014 by D4

[jb456]

Spirit, direct flight from Dallas to FLL.. $102 gets in 9:47am.. checked bag $30 per bag

[Bulldog3777]

Got the impression the TA was doing what she was told. Book everything through Carnival. Maybe I read it wrong. I can't imagine a TA booking flights through Carnival unless told to do so.

[NCTribeFan]

When I first started cruising, we booked everything through a TA and she booked our air through Carnival. We always had a crack-of-dawn flight, Carnival transfer, and sometimes didn't arrive at the pier until mid-afternoon.

 

It wasn't until I found Cruise Critic (after 5 cruises) that I discovered, thanks to all the great, useful info on these boards, that I could book my own air and usually save enough to cover the cost of a reasonably-priced pre-cruise hotel and eliminate SO much of the stress!

 

This close to sailing, I doubt there's anything that can be done. Aren't the flights also locked into the final payment date? I can't remember, since it's been so long since I booked cruise air.

[champagne123]

This thread has me soooo angry.

Instead of doing the Single Digit Dance, this poor family has to be stressed to the max. Good luck OP. I hope you have a wonderful time despite the stupidity of your TA

[jakesnana]

FLL is waaay cheaper than MIA. but I would blame your TA for the fiasco, not carnival. Carnival is getting you there on time as promised. Your TA could have saved you a ton of money by booking you separately. For my flights from milwaukee to cruise out of miami the day after you (flying in the 20th) it was 300 cheaper to book myself. You have a bad or lazy TA. As far as carnival not talking to you except general info, thats how it goes when you book with a TA, and your TA should have told you Carnival will only talk to them by contract.

 

If you read the FULL thread, the TA was only doing what she was told to do, and that is book everything through Carnival.

 

While I agree a decent TA should have explained the pitfalls of doing this and the economics of booking your own air and a pre-cruise hotel, the TA may have explained that to the OP and we were not made aware of it.

[sailor_jimc]

Ok.. so all of you are doing nothing to help and only saying things to make the OP more stressed about the situation. Is it ideal? no I would say not, but getting into FLL at 1PM and making it to Miami before the ship leaves is very doable. Especially in September. Odds are really good that the flight will go without any delays.

 

They have Carnival booked flights and carnival transport to the port. So it's all on Carnival to get them there. MORE than likely they will not be the only ones on that flight going to Maimi on Carnival transport. so if something DOES happen Carnival will hold the ship as long as possible or get them to the next port to meet the ship.

 

Now, things you can do to help your situation-

1) you will most likely have to wait for others to get their luggage but IF you can.. try to pack as much in carry ons as possible. IF you can have all your stuff with you and not have to wait for luggage in FLL that will speed things up. Also if your bags get lost or delayed then having a couple of changes of clothes with you will allow you to just have you bags flown to the next port and delivered to the ship instead of waiting around hoping they come in on the next flight or something (Since it's Carnival air and transport They will take care of lost bags)

 

2) have passports and not birth certificates. IF you have to fly to the first port to join the ship, you will not be able to do that with BCs. There is still enough time to get passports if you don't have them. - This is not REQUIRED, because most likely you will make the ship. But it would take some stress away knowing you have a back up plan in case.

[txjudy54]

My husband and I both have passports so that is not a problem. My TA did say she could book our flight separately but I thought (now I know better) that it would be better to have everything booked thru Carnival in case something happened Carnival would take care of us. I am not blaming my TA, she did what I told her to do. I just assumed we would fly directly into Miami since we cruise out of that port but now I know better. Hoping for the best.

[yankee04]

I know what it is like to be stressed trying to make a cruise. It happened to me once. I told myself that I wanted to save a bit of money so I flew out the day of the cruise from New York to Miami. We were expected to arrive at 12:30 with plenty of time to get to the cruise terminal A huge storm starts while we are minutes away from taking off. All flights were stopped for 3 hours. When we finally made it and got our bags and took a taxi down to the terminal, it was 3:55. They held the ship for us and we boarded a couple minutes after 4. Only two people came in after us. The muster drill was already in progress (and almost over actually).

 

After that near miss experience, I either cruise out of New York or fly in a day early if cruising from somewhere else. The stress isn't worth it.

Edited August 21, 2014 by yankee04

[Bookbug53]

My first cruise Carnival booked us to Miami, arriving after 2, for a Miami sailing. I have never booked through them since! We arrived in Miami on time and still did not get to the port until almost 4 for a 4pm departure! We had to wait for other travelers, wait for luggage to be loaded, and then drive a ridiculous long route. Stepped on board at 4:01. So stressed! We always go the day ahead now and do our own flights.

 

You may be arriving at 1 but you might have to sit and wait for their bus to fill before it leaves the airport.

 

On the other hand, they will wait for you. :)