RCCL Uses a Child to Slip Between the Horns & ROOK Thousands of Guests

[A&L_Ont]

I've spoken with corporate and they refuse ownership of any problem and will not give us any compensation or percent off a future cruise. At this point it's the principle, not the money. They will not allow me to cancel my oasis cruise without penalty (past final payment). RCI is dead to me.

 

It is unfair that you weren't compensated when others were. However, if it is about the principle there is an option, cancel your upcoming cruise and take the penalty. Not the fairest to you, but to some principles come at great costs.

 

How much were other sailings compensated? I honestly don't know.

 

Maybe what you should do is go, but leave the lights on in your cabin all the time when you aren't sleeping, eat lots and lots of food, don't buy booze, make your own shore excursions and try your best not to give them more money. If you make it game you might have fun with the idea, instead of going into this cruise with this sour taste in your mouth.

 

If I was on your sailing I would not have worried about compensation. I would have been happy enough just knowing the sick child was in better care. I guess I worry about others well being more than myself.

[PSU]

I guess I don't understand the call for compensation if you miss a port. We are taken a number of cruises and have missed ports and we were never compensated.

One year, we took a transatlantic cruise out of Copenhagen and missed two out of the four ports because of bad weather. That caused us to have seven straight sea days.

We have also missed CoCo Cay three times. Again no compensation.

Perhaps the OP is saying that the missed ports were RC's fault because of mechanical problems. But I guess I would have just been grateful to be on a cruise since there are so many people in the world who are not able to take a vacation at all.

[fish6]

I too was on this cruise. My 14th sailing on Royal and 4th sailing on Freedom. We are loyal to Royal and for now will continue to be loyal as I know that they can deliver the WOW!

 

For the first time ever though since I have been sailing Royal they have left a sour taste in my mouth after the December 7th sailing. All we are asking for is fairness....end of story! I know they have the right to change itineraries and that a medical emergency does not mean that the customer gets compensated, however when people on our sailing see the OBC being handed out for other cruises it is very tough to swallow.

 

I understand why first time or second time cruisers might say they are done with Royal. If I were in their shoes I might be doing the same. Please contact Royal with your concerns. I personally received a phone call from their executive office and it was a good conversation. She told me that it would help if they heard from more people on our cruise. I honestly don't think we will get any sort of compensation in the end but all the phone calls, letters and concerns do get back to Adam's office (at least that is what I was told).

 

I just wish that Royal would have handled this better.

 

Donna

[Starry Eyes]

I've spoken with corporate and they refuse ownership of any problem and will not give us any compensation or percent off a future cruise. At this point it's the principle, not the money. They will not allow me to cancel my oasis cruise without penalty (past final payment). RCI is dead to me. I wrote a review detailing this scam (member reviews). RCI should have given us the option to cancel with full refund before the cruise.

Flashing back to the first time a cruise line (not Royal Caribbean, FWIW) changed an itinerary greatly (much larger change than missing a port and/ or adjusting times), unhappily I pulled out the cruise contract. then I realized the cruise lines can change pretty much any thing about the itinerary anytime. My choices are to reject cruising or to accept such contracts. So now, I treat itineraries more lightly; I consider them changeable.

 

JinxyB and the OP also need to read their cruise contracts (before final payment). If the terms of cruise contracts are not acceptable, do not cruise, period. By contract, the company probably did not have to give any cruiser compensation, and they did so for other cruisers as a show of good will. they are unhappy they did not also get compensation, but clearly an extenuating event occurred on their cruise. returning to port for the child's sake probably did largely result in missing another port; that sounds totally believable to me. Isn't FOS doing alternating itineraries? If so the cruises before and after we're meant to be different from theirs and are not realavant to the discussion. the similar cruises are the ones with the same itineraries 2 weeks prior and hence. Were they compensated?

[fish6]

Flashing back to the first time a cruise line (not Royal Caribbean, FWIW) changed an itinerary greatly (much larger change than missing a port and/ or adjusting times), unhappily I pulled out the cruise contract. then I realized the cruise lines can change pretty much any thing about the itinerary anytime. My choices are to reject cruising or to accept such contracts. So now, I treat itineraries more lightly; I consider them changeable.

 

JinxyB and the OP also need to read their cruise contracts (before final payment). If the terms of cruise contracts are not acceptable, do not cruise, period. By contract, the company probably did not have to give any cruiser compensation, and they did so for other cruisers as a show of good will. they are unhappy they did not also get compensation, but clearly an extenuating event occurred on their cruise. returning to port for the child's sake probably did largely result in missing another port; that sounds totally believable to me. Isn't FOS doing alternating itineraries? If so the cruises before and after we're meant to be different from theirs and are not realavant to the discussion. the similar cruises are the ones with the same itineraries 2 weeks prior and hence. Were they compensated?

As an example:

 

The 2 cruises after ours were compensated. One of them being the exact same (reduced times in port) itinerary as ours. They were immediately offered OBC on boarding day. We were not offered any on boarding day.

Edited January 2, 2015 by fish6

[kjkrmk]

I was on that cruise and the one before it. We did et compensation for the first cruise because of a total change in itinerary and short port times.Many of us also had very long waits in the hot sun before bording.

 

The Dec 7th cruise was nothing like that at all. A child was seriously ill and we missed ONE port and spent less time at the others because we lost time taking the child back to a previous port. the child did recover because of that action. All actions taken by the cruise line appear to be for the safety and well being of the passengers. Wanting compensation seems to me to be GREED!

 

To the OP and other greedy ones, if one paying passenger thinks the right thing was done and that is is NOT the same as the previous week, then there is bound to be thousands of passengers who think all is right. Remember back in school when you took a test and got a D or F as did some of your buddies only to find out there would be no grading curve because someone got an A? Do you think the airlines owe you a credit for a future flight because you paid more for your seat than the guy next to you?

 

The length of your cruise was NOT changed. You left on Sunday and returned on Sunday. The mechanical issues with the prop did not limit your use of the ship and it's amenities. The emergency stop with the sick child did not limit the use of your cabin, the gym, chair hogging at the pool, the internet cafe' or grabbing a coffee and people watch on deck 5.

 

You chose to make your trip unpleasant for yourself and those around you. You now make these boards unpleasant beating the issue into the ground in a last act of defiance as you walk away from this cruise line. You have vented. OK. Move on and stop wasting your life being bitter about this. You will never get these wasted minutes back.

[cruzincurt]

If you miss a port, then those port fees should be refunded if not having to be paid. But perhaps the ship still has to pay them since the dock space was reserved?

[LoveyHowell]

What I have read is that the cruises BEFORE and AFTER the 12/7 cruise received compensation upfront on embarkation day, if not shortly afterwards. On 12/7 no child was sick until much later in the week. The childs illness really has no bearing on the fact that the cruises surrounding 12/7 were compensated upfront and 12/7 was not.

 

My only thought regarding this was that 12/7 is a western itinerary which is shorter distance than eastern, and since it was the first run after the propeller removal maybe they thought they could hit all the ports, but with reduced times, and thus did not want to compensate people. This did not leave any room for delays.

 

Clearly RCI didn't want either a broken ship or a sick child. But that's what they had to contend with and they could have handled it better and should be willing to discuss with the guests, not stonewall them.

 

I agree with Marion Mom. Write to Royal Caribbean expressing your displeasure and the facts at hand. It is important corporate knows they need to deal with guests in a consistent manner, which is all anyone from 12/7 has ever asked for - consistency.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

Can someone clarify...

 

Were port charges for Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

Were costs for ship-sponsored excursion in Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

 

As long as those two things were done, I understand the disappointment, but not the anger. As mentioned, the cruise immediately before and the cruise immediately after were different itineraries, so can't be compared IMO.

 

However, if those things WEREN'T done, RCI is fully in the wrong.

[Sailor_Sally]

I can not believe that someone would be so upset over a little compensation so instead of enjoying your cruise you let this ruin it for you . Sounds crazy to me !

[Starry Eyes]

What I have read is that the cruises BEFORE and AFTER the 12/7 cruise received compensation upfront on embarkation day, if not shortly afterwards. On 12/7 no child was sick until much later in the week. The childs illness really has no bearing on the fact that the cruises surrounding 12/7 were compensated upfront and 12/7 was not.

 

My only thought regarding this was that 12/7 is a western itinerary which is shorter distance than eastern, and since it was the first run after the propeller removal maybe they thought they could hit all the ports, but with reduced times, and thus did not want to compensate people. This did not leave any room for delays.

 

Clearly RCI didn't want either a broken ship or a sick child. But that's what they had to contend with and they could have handled it better and should be willing to discuss with the guests, not stonewall them.

 

I agree with Marion Mom. Write to Royal Caribbean expressing your displeasure and the facts at hand. It is important corporate knows they need to deal with guests in a consistent manner, which is all anyone from 12/7 has ever asked for - consistency.

 

As the itineraries are totally different and the distances are totally different, the complainers should not be comparing their cruise to the weeks before and after. Spurious comparisons are not a request for consistency, though they might fool people unfamiliar with details.

 

As an example:

 

The 2 cruises after ours were compensated. One of them being the exact same (reduced times in port) itinerary as ours. They were immediately offered OBC on boarding day. We were not offered any on boarding day.

Again, we need to forget the cruise right after. Two cruises after is much more relevant. But might it be different, too?

 

for example, on 12/7, might sea and wind conditions predicted to be highly favorable, thus the line might have expected atimely cruise even with propulsions issues? Then perhaps the medical issue interfered, causing issues on that cruise? Two weeks later, perhaps sea and wind conditions were different from the start, immediately raising delay concerns, so the cruiseline made a good will gesture immediately? Just speculations, of course, meant to remind us all weeks are not the same.

 

I bet there is another big difference between 12/7 and 12/21: the fares. Erly December is usually one of the lowest demand, least expensive times to cruise. Christmas, on the other hand is one of the very high demand, most expensive weeks to cruise. Are the customers expectations not reasonably different? If the fares (not including taxes and port fees) are, for example, quadruple on the 12/21 cruise, should the compensation not be different?

 

it is awfully difficult to know if the ship would have made her itinerary if not for the medical issue, but for the sake of discussion...If the captain and cruise line really believe they could have given you the published itinerary had the child not been ill, do you still expect compensation?

[fish6]

Can someone clarify...

 

Were port charges for Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

Were costs for ship-sponsored excursion in Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

 

As long as those two things were done, I understand the disappointment, but not the anger. As mentioned, the cruise immediately before and the cruise immediately after were different itineraries, so can't be compared IMO.

 

However, if those things WEREN'T done, RCI is fully in the wrong.

 

YES our port fees were refunded. I cannot answer for excursions but I assume so.

 

Can we all please take the child out of this debate. I for one applaud what the Captain did in turning the ship around and returning to The Caymans. No one should question this when a child's life or any life for that matter may be at stake. Bottom line is that we had a shortened/adjusted itinerary as others did on boarding day and Royal decided to compensate some cruises and not others. Why not be consistent?

 

To clarify again this western sailing (December 7th) was the exact same sailing as December 21st the exact same ports and shortened time in port and they DID receive compensation and we did not.

 

BTW I still had a good cruise.....never been on a bad one. Any day at sea is still better than a day at work

Edited January 2, 2015 by fish6

[MADflyer]

Can someone clarify...

 

Were port charges for Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

Were costs for ship-sponsored excursion in Cozumel refunded for those on the 12/7 sailing?

.

 

Yes, I had read that the tours were being refunded directly in another post from the ship as the incident was occurring.

 

As so many ships miss Cozumel each season for one reason or another, I was happy that 'Tours Plaza' even had a full refund clause in their booking contract and email confirmation. So, even the independent tour operators take care of cruise passengers that face this unfortunate situation in some cases.

 

"We can refund the deposit in full with a written request by email, with at least two week notice. Within two weeks - 48 hours, a 50% refund will be given. All refunds will be effective 7 days after request. No refunds will be given if you cancel within 48 hours or for no-shows. Full refunds will be given in the event that your cruise ship does not make port."

[S.A.M.J.R.]

YES our port fees were refunded. I cannot answer for excursions but I assume so.

 

To clarify again this western sailing (December 7th) was the exact same sailing as December 21st the exact same ports and shortened time in port and they DID receive compensation and we did not.

How much compensation did the 12/21 sailing get?

How much more did the 12/21 sailing cost?

[MADflyer]

 

To clarify again this western sailing (December 7th) was the exact same sailing as December 21st the exact same ports and shortened time in port and they DID receive compensation and we did not.

 

 

Thank you for clarifying that.

 

The key difference then would be that the sailing on the 21st of December would have been classified as a 'Holiday Cruise' and RCI would have taken out a premium price from these passengers based on that designation.

 

I am sorry to point out that holiday cruisers are always highly valued by the cruise lines and have traditionally been treated very well for their loyalty and payment of premium cruise fares.

 

To put this in perspective the best prices available for this sailing per a pricing comparison website were

 

W Suite GTY, $3596 per cabin

X Balcony GTY, $2398 per cabin

Y Outside GTY, $2096 per cabin

Z Inside GTY, $1596 per cabin

 

This is premium pricing for a cruise on Freedom. These are all after final payment, meaning that many others who had booked far in advance had paid much higher fares for their sailing.

 

Rather than wait for the justified post cruise complaints to roll in for this sailing, RCI decided to be proactive and compensate in advance. This is an offer of goodwill and per the cruise contract not required.

 

A normal FCC for an incident is 20%. The OBC amounts given seem to be about 20% of what the lowest paying passengers paid for each category on the December 21st sailing. *OBC $300 Inside / $450 Balcony

 

I am sure some from this sailing are not satisfied with this situation and RCI and all cruise lines have it in their contract that they are required to do absolutely nothing.

 

I am imagining that the pricing for the 7th of December may have looked a little different and that RCI has simply decided to face complaints for this sailing on an individual basis.

 

As offered compensation for goodwill to unsatisfied customers at RCI seems to be around 20% or 25% of cruise fare paid based on severity of claim, they just want to relate compensation, if any, to cruise fare paid.

[awhcruiser]

What is the scam? Enjoy Carnival.

I've spoken with corporate and they refuse ownership of any problem and will not give us any compensation or percent off a future cruise. At this point it's the principle, not the money. They will not allow me to cancel my oasis cruise without penalty (past final payment). RCI is dead to me. I wrote a review detailing this scam (member reviews). RCI should have given us the option to cancel with full refund before the cruise.

[awhcruiser]

Did you read your cruise contract?

A poorly maintained ship creates the need for shortened itineraries and guests are COMPENSATED on ALL cruises EXCEPT where the life of a child was involved.

 

While the captain and his medical crew did a HEROIC job where this child and the family was concerned (& the shipboard crew was AMAZING from start to finish), RCCL USED THE INCIDENT TO EXCUSE SHORTENED PORT TIMES AND MISSING AN ENTIRE PORT...which was actually due to the missing prop... WITH $0 COMPENSATION.

 

Their land-side team offers canned responses, quoting contract terms, with NO OTHER ANSWER ON THE TABLE.

 

I'm a second time cruiser and will never go back.

 

Way to go, RCCL! :mad:

[Scotty G]

What RCI does relative to compensation is a business decision done in good faith.

 

If one reads the cruise contract it will be seen that RCI does not need to give any compensation for the OP's incident. The OP did not detail what actually happened so I am basing my input in what others have speculated.

 

We were on a Freedom cruise last year where we missed Labadee due to a medical emergency and had two more before the cruise was over. I believe three people were taken off for medical reasons at Cozumel. There were no discussions about compensation that I heard while on board.

[Big_G]

I guess the OP's seven comments in the original thread weren't enough so she had to start her own. Despite her comment there that she was moving on to Carnival, I guess she hasn't moved on at all. :rolleyes:

[spookwife]

to rook = to cheat

 

a rook is a chess piece. I have never heard it used in the context of meaning to cheat.

[delirious9876]

a rook is a chess piece. I have never heard it used in the context of meaning to cheat.

A rook is also a large black bird :)

[MADflyer]

a rook is a chess piece. I have never heard it used in the context of meaning to cheat.

 

Well, go to thesaurus dot com and you will find many colorful words for

 

To Cheat :

 

cheat

 

verb. defraud, fool

bamboozle

beat

beguile

bilk

bleed

bunco

burn

caboodle

chisel

con

cozen

crib

cross

deceive

defraud

delude

diddle

do

do a number on

double-cross

double-deal

dupe

fast talk

finagle

fleece

flimflam

fudge

give bum steer

gouge

gyp

hoodwink

hose

jerk around

milk

mislead

pull one's leg

ream

rip off

rook

rope in

sandbag

scam

screw

shaft

short

shuck

skin

snow

stiff

sucker

swindle

take

take for a ride

take in

take out

trick

trim

two-time

victimize

[LoveyHowell]

Thank you for clarifying that.

 

The key difference then would be that the sailing on the 21st of December would have been classified as a 'Holiday Cruise' and RCI would have taken out a premium price from these passengers based on that designation.

 

I am sorry to point out that holiday cruisers are always highly valued by the cruise lines and have traditionally been treated very well for their loyalty and payment of premium cruise fares.

 

To put this in perspective the best prices available for this sailing per a pricing comparison website were

 

W Suite GTY, $3596 per cabin

X Balcony GTY, $2398 per cabin

Y Outside GTY, $2096 per cabin

Z Inside GTY, $1596 per cabin

 

This is premium pricing for a cruise on Freedom. These are all after final payment, meaning that many others who had booked far in advance had paid much higher fares for their sailing.

 

Rather than wait for the justified post cruise complaints to roll in for this sailing, RCI decided to be proactive and compensate in advance. This is an offer of goodwill and per the cruise contract not required.

 

A normal FCC for an incident is 20%. The OBC amounts given seem to be about 20% of what the lowest paying passengers paid for each category on the December 21st sailing. *OBC $300 Inside / $450 Balcony

 

I am sure some from this sailing are not satisfied with this situation and RCI and all cruise lines have it in their contract that they are required to do absolutely nothing.

 

I am imagining that the pricing for the 7th of December may have looked a little different and that RCI has simply decided to face complaints for this sailing on an individual basis.

 

As offered compensation for goodwill to unsatisfied customers at RCI seems to be around 20% or 25% of cruise fare paid based on severity of claim, they just want to relate compensation, if any, to cruise fare paid.

 

We all know holiday vacations cost more than non-holiday weeks. But 12/7 cruisers were not on a free cruise. When I said consistency I meant actions of RCI, not necessarily dollar amount.

 

If compensation was calculated using a formula based on prices for 12/21 (pay more upfront, get more compensation) then even if that formula was applied to 12/7 they all still deserved something.

 

For what reason did 12/21 get compensation on boarding day and 12/7 did not? Those were the same itinerary (booked and paid for at least). Whatever the reason 12/21 got money is the exact same reason 12/7 should have gotten money.

 

I 100% agree with OP and the title of this thread. I am most bothered that no one at RCI wants to take ownership or address this. This may appease the cheerleaders, but some day they may be in the same position wondering why RCI won't give them a straight answer either.

[molsonschooner]

a rook is a chess piece. I have never heard it used in the context of meaning to cheat.

I have.

[Alwaysacruiseinthequeue]

I too was on this cruise. My 14th sailing on Royal and 4th sailing on Freedom. We are loyal to Royal and for now will continue to be loyal as I know that they can deliver the WOW!

 

For the first time ever though since I have been sailing Royal they have left a sour taste in my mouth after the December 7th sailing. All we are asking for is fairness....end of story! I know they have the right to change itineraries and that a medical emergency does not mean that the customer gets compensated, however when people on our sailing see the OBC being handed out for other cruises it is very tough to swallow.

 

I understand why first time or second time cruisers might say they are done with Royal. If I were in their shoes I might be doing the same. Please contact Royal with your concerns. I personally received a phone call from their executive office and it was a good conversation. She told me that it would help if they heard from more people on our cruise. I honestly don't think we will get any sort of compensation in the end but all the phone calls, letters and concerns do get back to Adam's office (at least that is what I was told).

 

I just wish that Royal would have handled this better.

 

Donna

 

My point exactly. I was given a more direct telephone number today and called. I was told the event was under review and they are considering how to handle it differently if it's determined necessary, once the review is finished. I'm told this can take many months and nothing at all can be done now - but that the calls they have been receiving are being put into the review. It's not rocket science and seems like a slam dunk to me; but at least it's a better response than the one I got from the general guest services rep initially. :rolleyes: