Why Doesn't Royal Caribbean Treat Their Customers Well?

[kenandlaura06]

I am sure that these companies have insurance that would pick up any lost revenue due to storms that delay and shorten cruises. I think RCCL is just trying to pad their accounts because of Freedom being built.

 

Very possibly. So, when Carnival tries to outdo RCCL by building a bigger ship in a few years, perhaps their compensation won't be quite so generous.

[comfortcove]

It is kind of scarey on this thread. Cruising is supposed to be fun, remember?

[hdawson]

I'm constantly amazed at how many experts we have here that are pretty sure what is going on and being decided in the cruiseline's operation center.

[ilionite65]

The post from threeofus made me think of my cruise last Aug. on the Majesty. I had booked the cruise for myself, my married daughter and her daughter, who was 7yo at the time. The cruise was to be her back to school pajama party with her mom and grandmother (me!). Needless to say, we were all looking forward to it! When the storms started hitting I found myself worrying about our cruise and if we would make it. Then, I watched some of the devastation to some of the islands, caused by the storms, and was made aware of lives lost on those islands! Well, if you don't think I felt small for worrying about a cruise! As luck would have it, our cruise was between storms and we had a great time, but I learned a valuable lesson. This year we went to Myrtle Beach for her "party", but are planning on doing the Enchantment next Aug., with insurance and with our fingers crossed! Point of this post is, the really important thing to remember during this time of storms is the people in the path of these storms. May they stay safe and not have too much damage done to their property.

[herecomesthesun]

I have a cruise booked June 18 of next year, on the Mariner. Is it likely we will have any weather problems on our cruise? I read the Jamaican rhyme but it didn't mention June - does that mean we're safe from the hurricanes? We have travel insurance regardless by I was just wondering.

[Erie Dave]

We went on an Alaska cruise on the Radiance a few years ago. For those of you who don't know, an Alaska cruise costs A LOT more than a Caribbean cruise during hurrican season. We went in August. We had 5 days of rain and fog! We couldn't see the glacier because the fog was so thick, all of the excursions we had saved for, the helicopter to the glacier, float plane to a secluded lake, were all cancelled due to weather. Did we get any compensation? Did we ask for any? Did we expect any? The answer to all three is absolutely not. You can't predict the weather and you certainly can't blame any cruise line for weather.

 

For those of you who want to complain about something that no-one has any control over, cut it out. Get a clue. You are owed NOTHING. If you do get something, be grateful, and count yourself as fortunate! If you book a cheap, high risk trip without insurance, you deserve the loss, not the cruise-line.

[brn2crz]

In this particular instance, Carnival is giving more compensation to cruisers than RCCL. However, I am sure that if I read through Carnival threads, someone would be complaining about some time that Carnival has treated its customers poorly. Remember people, this is business...it is about money. RCCL is in business to make money as are all of the other cruiselines. They make calculated decisions with the bottom line in mind at all times. Obviously in this instance, Carnival thought it would be in their best interest to offer a full refund and RCCL thought it would be in their best interest to offer a 50% refund. Bottom line.

 

Ok, stepping down from the soapbox.:)

 

You are exactly right..And it was happening right here,same time last year.People were raving over how well folks were compensated by RCI (see above Mariner example) and folks on Carnival and NCL were screaming how they were screwed.

You are right Hdawson,they we don't know whats going on in their minds.But I have a pretty good feeling that the compensation is completly relative to amount of time lost/amount paid etc.

Hurricanes and cruise lines have been battleing it out for longer than most of us have been around.And you can bet RCI knows how to decide what is best for P.R. v Profit.

[NC Native]

DH & I were out there on A RCCL ship with Hurricane Gordan several years ago-We left a day late and the all the excursions were cancelled. When we caught up with the cruise ship that left on schedule, and learned of their experience, I appreciated our captain's decision to leave later. Their boat was rocking so had that dinner had to be cancelled because dishes would not stay on the table.

There were other unpleasantries that I won't go into detail about.

 

We lost a day. Big deal. We had a wonderul time-the cruise line gave us each $200 credit and served free Bloody Marys all morning long. I've said all along that I would sail RCCL anytime and I leave in 17 days on Granduer. I've got my fingers crossed that there is not a storm out there at that time, but that is a chance you take.

 

Now, I'm going back to 10 reasons.............Much more pleasant and entertaining reading.

[ricko1]

You asked if anyone has a problem with Royal Caribbean's plan to compensate the Majesty passengers at $100 per passenger or a 50% refund of cruise fare, without an option to cancel and get 100% of the fare returned. The answers to your question were basically, NO, I don't have a problem with it, consider it more than they are required to do by the cruise contract, and if you want to INSURE yourself against such a possibility, you should BUY travel insurance. I cannot conceive of WHY you think that this implies hostility on the part of any of the posters who responded to you. It seems that the ONLY replies you might have considered non-hostile would be from people who agree with you. Well, no one does. Why should Royal Caribbean pay people who decide not to buy travel insurance? If everyone who bought travel insurance, and everyone who did NOT buy travel insurance, received the same compensation, where is the incentive to buy travel insurance? People who had BOUGHT the insurance would be justifiably mighty peeved that they had paid a premium for something that they "didn't need" after all.

 

And you want to know "Why doesn't RC treat their customers as well as the other cruise lines?" I think that the answer clearly is, because people DO continue to book with RC, despite these "differences." I think that the result that you are likely to see is that the other cruiselines STOP compensating passengers more, and go to RC's model, because that business model seems to work.

 

Would I be upset if my cruise were altered? Of course. I MISSED my g-d*mn cruise last December. Did I blame Royal Caribbean, even though THEY were the ones who refused me boarding at the first port of call? Well, yes, but I HAD BOUGHT TRAVEL INSURANCE, so instead of stewing over it, I went to work at "persuading" the insurance company to refund my cruise fare, AND THEY DID.

 

Carol

Help please. I need to find a good insurance company for not just the Medical but trip cancellations and interuptions.. Can you or anyone help? ricko1 :confused:

[comfortcove]

Check out InsureMyTrip.com. You can compare policies and choose what you need and want.

[Merion_Mom]

ditto on the recommendation to use insuremytrip.com

 

be prepared to read a lot of clauses and explanations, but it's worth it if you want to find the right coverage for the risks YOU want to cover.

[jaxon41]

"For those of you who want to complain about something that no-one has any control over, cut it out. Get a clue. You are owed NOTHING"

 

Yah, all you folks who live in hurricane alley because you like that Florida weather -- I am sick and tired of jacked up insurance rates in the north, and higher lumber costs because of your choices. YOU ARE OWED NOTHING!!!!! sarcasm off -- and yes, I called sister in Lauderdale to check on her tonight.

 

BIG PICTURE, here folks. Easy question -- what raises insurance rates, on cruises, on houses, on malpractice, etc. Which cruise line would incur the higher claim rates?

 

Another point which is being missed is that earlier posts in this thread spoke of fair compensation from RCCL, some time ago. What changed? Why? and who is responsible? The latter question has been answered here, those who put up with it.

 

Next time you have a flight cancelled because of weather, and the plane takes you 1/3rd of your trip the next day, without a refund for the other 2/3rds -- I don't want to hear any grousing. BECAUSE YOU ARE OWED NOTHING!!!! You are just a little cog in the wheel, at the mercy of large corporations and you are owed nothing because you like being whipped, and keep going back for more. sarcasm off, again.

[beachchick]

We went on an Alaska cruise on the Radiance a few years ago. For those of you who don't know, an Alaska cruise costs A LOT more than a Caribbean cruise during hurrican season. We went in August. We had 5 days of rain and fog! We couldn't see the glacier because the fog was so thick, all of the excursions we had saved for, the helicopter to the glacier, float plane to a secluded lake, were all cancelled due to weather. Did we get any compensation? Did we ask for any? Did we expect any? The answer to all three is absolutely not. You can't predict the weather and you certainly can't blame any cruise line for weather.

 

For those of you who want to complain about something that no-one has any control over, cut it out. Get a clue. You are owed NOTHING. If you do get something, be grateful, and count yourself as fortunate! If you book a cheap, high risk trip without insurance, you deserve the loss, not the cruise-line.

 

But the bottom line is that you got a cruise that consisted of the number of days that you actually paid for, correct? What do you think should happen (that is, should RCI do anything) if someone pays for a 7 day cruise and the cruise is cut short by 2 days? A 5 day cruise is not the same as a 7 day cruise, IMO. You have paid for food, accommodations, and entertainment for 7 days; you should be able to expect that. If the weather means that the ship has to skip a port or that you didn't get to see a glacier, fine; you were still on the ship enjoying the cruise. If a cruise is shortened, you are not on the ship enjoying the cruise. I truly believe comparing missed ports or unviewable sights to shortening the length of a cruise is an apples to oranges situation.

 

In your case, of course RCI didn't owe you anything because they delivered what they promised (and what you expected), which was a 7 day (I assume; sorry if it was a different length) cruise. BTW, did you receive a refund for your missed excursions?

 

beachchick

[filosofe]

We went on an Alaska cruise on the Radiance a few years ago. For those of you who don't know, an Alaska cruise costs A LOT more than a Caribbean cruise during hurrican season. We went in August. We had 5 days of rain and fog! We couldn't see the glacier because the fog was so thick, all of the excursions we had saved for, the helicopter to the glacier, float plane to a secluded lake, were all cancelled due to weather. Did we get any compensation? Did we ask for any? Did we expect any? The answer to all three is absolutely not. You can't predict the weather and you certainly can't blame any cruise line for weather.....

 

Erie Dave,

You should post this the next time someone starts a thread about how they should be compensated for a weather related issue.

It's a GREAT example and really shows to those who, for some reason, insist cruise lines should be punished for weather related issues.

BTW...sorry the weather didn't cooporate with your Alaska cruise.

[xpcdoojk]

"For those of you who want to complain about something that no-one has any control over, cut it out. Get a clue. You are owed NOTHING"

 

Yah, all you folks who live in hurricane alley because you like that Florida weather -- I am sick and tired of jacked up insurance rates in the north, and higher lumber costs because of your choices. YOU ARE OWED NOTHING!!!!! sarcasm off -- and yes, I called sister in Lauderdale to check on her tonight.

 

BIG PICTURE, here folks. Easy question -- what raises insurance rates, on cruises, on houses, on malpractice, etc. Which cruise line would incur the higher claim rates?

 

Another point which is being missed is that earlier posts in this thread spoke of fair compensation from RCCL, some time ago. What changed? Why? and who is responsible? The latter question has been answered here, those who put up with it.

 

Next time you have a flight cancelled because of weather, and the plane takes you 1/3rd of your trip the next day, without a refund for the other 2/3rds -- I don't want to hear any grousing. BECAUSE YOU ARE OWED NOTHING!!!! You are just a little cog in the wheel, at the mercy of large corporations and you are owed nothing because you like being whipped, and keep going back for more. sarcasm off, again.

 

Actually they are owed nothing. When you sign a contract you are obligated or bound to its conditions. Of course, you have options. It is called insurance. You are forced to buy it for your car, but in the case of vacations you have two options. 1 you buy insurance from a second party and protect yourself against any risks that are defined in that insurance. 2 you self-insure. IE you take responsibility for the costs associated with things that can go wrong on a vacation. This is the option I choose most of the time, but it is not without significant risks. Now if the cruiseline did something wrong, and caused you harm then you would have a reason to complain and to seek compensation from the cruiseline. If a hurricane or other weather related event affects your sailing, what exactly did the cruiseline do to harm you. By the way despite this being a factual statement. My sarcasm meter's needles are pegging the the top of the chart due to the need to remove the emotion from this discussion and stick to the facts something you seem unable to accomplish. :p

 

jc

[FLACRUISER99]

How about the people that got a day or two longer cruise. Should they pay more,:confused: they got more than they payed for???

[madforcruising]

With the approaching hurricane, many departures have been cut short. Most lines are offering a full refund if you choose to cancel OR up to 50% back and 50% off on a future cruise if you decide to go ahead with the sailing. Royal Caribbean is only offering a 50% refund if you cancel and a $100 onboard credit if you decide to sail. Why doesn't RC treat their customers as well as the other cruise lines? If I were to book a future cruise during hurricane season, I think I'd lean toward any other cruise line than RC after seeing this. Your vacation gets cut short and they offer you 50% back if you don't go which means your out 50% and get no vacation. Or, you can go on another line, still take a shortened vacation, and get money back because your not getting the full vacation promised (or you can just cancel and get all your money back). Does anyone else have a problem with this?[/QUOTE]

 

To answer your question first - No. I have not a problem at all with this.

 

The compensation offered by other lines maybe more generous and thanks god we are all free to choose the line we want to sail with. However the reason for booking one line or the other to me is definitely not the possible sort of compensation I could get if something goes wrong. To such an argument is simply strange. OK this is of course just me but I´m not booking a vacation and looking or waiting for somethings going wrong and then cry for the best compensation. When booking I want a perfect vacation and not to worry about compensation. I know nothing is always perfect, but hey that´s the risk of life. Things go worng and and sometimes it´s nothing else than bad luck. Just get over it.

[waterrats]

When the storms started hitting I found myself worrying about our cruise and if we would make it. Then, I watched some of the devastation to some of the islands, caused by the storms, and was made aware of lives lost on those islands! Well, if you don't think I felt small for worrying about a cruise! As luck would have it, our cruise was between storms and we had a great time, but I learned a valuable lesson. Point of this post is, the really important thing to remember during this time of storms is the people in the path of these storms. May they stay safe and not have too much damage done to their property.

 

Yes. I agree. Lets have everyone be safe. why doesn't RCCL get a clue about that. So they break even by giving people a fair refund for missed days. At least that would make customers happier. I have no problems paying for 3 days and getting 3 days but when the cruise is cut short by 33% and they only offer a per cabin credit of $100, lots of people are going to get screwed.

 

You should post this the next time someone starts a thread about how they should be compensated for a weather related issue.

It's a GREAT example and really shows to those who, for some reason, insist cruise lines should be punished for weather related issues.

BTW...sorry the weather didn't cooporate with your Alaska cruise.

 

I have no problems with weather problems. I am a meteorologist and understand this more than most people. Yes, maybe the cruiselines shouldn't be penalized for bad weather but how bout the many people that save for a year or two to take the cruise and then get screwed. Thats not fair either. I am sure the cruiselines have insurance for this. Also, they can definitely offer a more fair refund and still break even. They are just trying to totally take advantage of the situation. By offering a 50% refund if you cancel, taking the 2 day cruise looks better than paying 50% for absolutely nothing.

[glen tev]

Were going on Voyager in 2 weeks and my 77 year old father in law actually wants to see a hurricane beacuse he likes waves,Doesn't bother me or him in the least.Remember"when life throws you a lemon,cut it up and do another shot of tequila"Can't wait for sept 9th-nine days of happy hour.

[madforcruising]

Yes, maybe the cruiselines shouldn't be penalized for bad weather but how bout the many people that save for a year or two to take the cruise and then get screwed. Thats not fair either. I am sure the cruiselines have insurance for this.

 

I agree the passengers shouldn´t be penalized for this, but your take on insurance is the wrong one. The passenger should have the insurance for not being penalized, not the cruise line. It´s the responsibility of the passenger to get insurance not the cruise line. If the passenger fails to insure himself, why should the cruise line be penalized for this?

[waterrats]

Were going on Voyager in 2 weeks and my 77 year old father in law actually wants to see a hurricane beacuse he likes waves,Doesn't bother me or him in the least.Remember"when life throws you a lemon,cut it up and do another shot of tequila"Can't wait for sept 9th-nine days of happy hour.

 

Hurricane swells on a ship are great. last year on CB the pool turned into a wave pool. Everyone was having so much fun. Now think if your cruise is delayed for 2 days and they offer you a refund of $100 shipboard credit or 50% refund if you cancel. Now how would you fell???

 

One thing that keeps me from sailing out of NY is if there is a storm, you run the risk of the itinerary changing to a Canadian cruise depending on the path of the storm. I wouldn't complain and wouldn't expect anything in return if they provide me with the number of days at sea as I had paid for.

[kenandlaura06]

How about the people that got a day or two longer cruise. Should they pay more,:confused: they got more than they payed for???

 

I think they should have to pay the people who lost a day of their cruise.

 

;)

[nosnobunny]

BTW is that Sushi in your avatar?:D

 

Not that particular picture but she looked just like it right down to the defiant look on her face.:eek: I had too much trouble trying to minimize her photo. Maybe I should take another shot at it.

Beth

[Clipper]

Everybody says to buy insurance-- which we do for medical and family emergencies-- but would the insurance actually pick up the 50% loss if one decided to cancel even though the cruise was eventually going to be up and running? I'm skeptical. I've never been very sympathetic about people crying for compensation because of bad weather, missed ports, etc. because we consider the ship to be essentially a hotel. But if I have prepaid for three nights at a big chain hotel (which is essentially what RCCL is) and the hotel blows away after the second night, I would not expect to be charged for that third night and would be very surprised if any chain hotel would do so. I guess I need to go back and read the RCCL contract carefully. We're rethinking our upcoming December trip because for the premium rates we pay for suites I'd feel rooked and I'm not sure I'm up to hassling with the insurance company. Better just to book at a luxury hotel that will provide what it promised.

[robsvacation]

While it's always fun to see the replies to this sort of posting (RCCL Fans Unite!) this comes down to one simple fact:

 

In this particular situation, other cruise lines are treating their passengers better than RCCL. All cruise lines share similar policies, yet RCCL has chosen to limit it's compensation. Wheither or not RCCL is within it's rights is not the yardstick to measure their response to this situation, it's what the other lines are doing. RCCL has chosen, for whatever reason, not to compensate their passengers as well as the other lines have chosen to.

 

It's just a competely different way at looking at the situation. RCCL wants as many people as possible to remain on this sailing and they've used both a carrot (the onboard credit) and a stick (you'll lose 1/2 your money if you don't). Other lines are in the same situation, but are just using a big bunch of carrots (get a huge onboard credit or sail with us some other time) How could you not be happier with the second set of options?