Nightmare - what would you do?

[MaryPoppinz]

Have we read that the semi-permanent passenger formerly on the Royal ... her name escapes us ... is now on the Sea? Could this be 'her' cabin?

 

I've been wondering that, as well....

[Roboat]

JulieH, it sounds like the very best thing to do is arrange a three-way call with Princess at their expense of course. The 8-hour time difference complicates matters obviously, so the timing might not be very convenient for you. Be firm and fair. It shouldn't be too difficult to get someone to change from one inside to another so that your daughter and friend can be close to you.

 

I agree. If possible, before that call takes place, I would want to be as certain as possible about my negotiating position:

1) Did the TA follow procedures with your booking re. UK passenger booking?

2) What exactly does your contract say about Princess's right to change cabin assignments?

3) Do you have something in writing that specifies your cabin assignment before they changed it?

4) Can you produce evidence that your reservation was marked no upgrade?

 

Assuming all of these answers are favorable to your case, I would request that the owner of the Travel Agency be present on the call.

 

I would ask that, in the effort for a quick resolution, Princess provide someone on the call who is able to make binding decisions, even overriding corporate policy if necessary

 

I would make myself, and the TA, available for the call day and night.

 

I would propose sending an advance email to the participants in the call with background and an agenda so as to make the call productive.

 

I would present, in the email ...

- It is your position that Princess booking has, in this case, created an error, as sometimes happens,

- Your intent is to provide facts supporting that position,

- You want to listen Princess's proposals to the situation, and

- You are optimistic that a solution will be forthcoming during the call,

- (Optional) Examples of acceptable solutions. You may also wish to explain problems with the solutions that been presented thus far.

- You see no need at this point take this matter outside the participants in the call. (Don't mention lawyers, or the press.)

 

This email should be written with the expectation that it will be quickly forwarded to Princess people who CAN fix problems, and will offer "guidance" to those who will represent Princess during the call. Give them at least 3 days to digest it before the 3-way call.

 

Anyway, that's just my approach. And I often find that when I try to write down my position in a dvance, I have a better picture of what is reasonable, and can stay focused during the negotiation.

 

I am also anxious to see how this plays out.

Good luck!!!

[spongerob]

Roboat, excellent advice! It is always helpful when entering any negotiation to have a goal set for the desired outcome, and alternative solutions if agreement cannot be reached on the primary outcome. Every service business runs into problems and will be anxious to get the problem resolved, particularly if you can get past the level that made the mistake in the first place and is trying to execute a CYA. As long as you communicate that you are willing to solve the problem amicably but will not take less than you originally bargained for, you should be able to get a satisfactory resolution. I view this case as being similar to an overbooked situation - they have to do something, so you've got the upper hand.

[Bodger]

Seeing as how Julie's cruise sails from Barbados on 12/24, for 14 days, possibly they already have booked someone else into that cabin for 14 days sailing from FLL on 12/17. Then there would be an overlap for seven days and the reason for the problem.

 

It still indicates that Princess can't manage their way out of a wet paper bag. They screwed us around on our Panama cruise, flying us from Toronto (Eastern time zone), west to Chicago (Central time zone) to then fly SE to San Juan in the Atlantic time zone.

 

All might have been fine except they were aircraft problems with an earlier SJ flight, so they gave them our plane. All the while lying to us about how they would hold the ship. As we approached SJ we could see the ship sailing away. I swore I would never sail Princess again (although I did this year).

 

We had to use their air as it started and ended in different ports. There are better choices out there.

 

Bodger

[mringenoldus]

The steps outlined have a much greater chance of a favorable outcome than immediate confrontation. However, persistance will also be necessary - the politely squeeky wheel.

 

I'm hoping that when you call you find out that the whole thing has already been resolved!

[cruisequeen10]

First, I am shocked that Princess would do something like this. You requested a specific cabin and that is what you should have. You paid for it. I can't believe that they would actually tell you that they needed your cabin for another passenger then changed stories and told you something else. This is ridiculous

 

Second, what has being from the UK have anything to do with this. They have passengers travelling from all over. I guess I don't understand the procedures if you are from outside of the US and Canada.

 

They should be upgrading you to the top accommodation for what you have been through and a hefty OBC.

 

It it was me, I wouldn't want my children far from my own cabin. At their age, who knows what could happen.

 

I am also a platinum member and if they ever try that with me, they are going to be in big trouble.

 

I hope that you get this resolved to the way you want it.

[jnc411]

Hi Julie , just wondering if there is anything new on this ??

Cori

[julieh]

Hi Cori

 

Well no one called today. I rang and was told that Cate was off today and Anna had gone home.(these were the two people dealing with me) No one else could help.

 

Patience has finally gone so I have emailed Cate and asked her to forward it to William in Santa Monica and I have also sent a letter to David Dingle who is the Chief Executive of Princess/P&O etc in the UK.

 

So we wait again. As soon as I have news I will post straight away.

 

Julie

[KamloopsCruisers]

Julie, thanks for the update. We've been considering trying Princess - and while we enjoy RCCL, Princess offers us a variety of new ports. I am however, quite particular about my cabin choice and I too would be infuriated if my choice of cabin was taken away from me. TA almost has us convinced to try Princess, but unless I see a good resolution to your problem, I'll hang on to my precious travel dollars and spend them elsewhere.

 

Be strong and persistent.

[spongerob]

Hang in there, Julie.

[bdjam]

TA almost has us convinced to try Princess, but unless I see a good resolution to your problem, I'll hang on to my precious travel dollars and spend them elsewhere.

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

I think that’s a good idea – given that there’s only been a few instances of booking mix ups reported here, it seems difficult to believe the whole Princess system is seriously flawed, but I guess I’m naive. Forget about the thousands of successful bookings that Princess accomplishes every day – let’s focus on the failures.

[galelynn]

Julie, I can't believe this is happening to you!!!OMG Anyway, I hope things get straighten out. I can't believe after all the cruising with Princess and on the Sea Princess that they would do this, I bet John and Lisa are both having a fit too. We had a BB gty. and they put us in a quad room at the just before the stern of the ship with non-conforming twins, at the time the TA was on a cruise, but I paid a little extra and got a BA in the middle of the ship. I watch the personalizer daily to make sure nothing else happens, we leave on the 5th of Nov. Hope all goes well, let us know. Lynn

[julieh]

Hi Lynn,

 

Yes this has been a nightmare for all of us. Hope you enjoy your cruise I am sure you will as it was wonderfull when we were on in May. Just hope we can get this resolved soon.

 

Julie

[cruisequeen10]

Kamloopscruisers,

 

Hi, a fellow Canadian and B.C.ite. Don't let this occurrence mar your thinking of how bad Princess is. They are now bad at all. Sometimes they slip up bit time, but not always. I feel sorry that this has happened.

[julieh]

Karen I agree with what you say about Princess. Once I get on the ship its heaven. The only problems I have ever experienced is a past bad flight problem and this which is far worse. I really hope they resolve this as I still want to be loyal to Princess but I just have had my faith shaken at the moment.

 

Julie

[mr green]

Princess must have seen this by now, and they should notice that potential cruisers are not very comfortable with the situation. john

[julieh]

Thanks John Its nice to know that people are supporting me even though there are a couple who are obviously just supporting Princess but I guess it would be a different story if they were in my position, unless they have some kind of connection with Princess (other than being a passenger).

 

Julie

[beachlovergirl]

I really hope that Princess straightens out their mistake soon.

 

I'm curious.....can you book a Princess cruise directly with UK Princess or do you have to use a TA? It sure doesn't seem like you're dealing with very good TA's........"worthless" comes to mind!

 

Dee

[bdjam]

Thanks John Its nice to know that people are supporting me even though there are a couple who are obviously just supporting Princess but I guess it would be a different story if they were in my position, unless they have some kind of connection with Princess (other than being a passenger).

Hmmm – whom might you mean? Just to clarify, I’m not actually supporting Princess – except to say that they are trying to rectify the change by offering a stateroom that they consider to be of higher value. If they’ve made a mistake, then they should fix it somehow, but I really don’t see evidence the mistake was theirs. I wish I was more than a passenger – and as much as people think I work for Princess, I’m sure not getting any benefits – so that I could see the data that Princess holds on this exchange. We’ve only heard their side of the story as it’s been passed from the Travel Agent to the passenger to the boards.

 

And like it or not, this isn't something that happens at Princess every day - again, they handle thousands and thousands of reservations - what percentage end this way? And right - it could be worse - you could have been over booked right off the ship.

 

Bottom line, I’m blaming your Travel Agent…if whomever it is didn't err in the first place, they should be fixing this for you...that's why you pay them a commission. As I’ve said, my TA isn’t the smartest or swiftest TA in class, but she never gets it wrong.

[Hucc]

Princess did something similar to us, as well. We had booked a cruise over 10 months out and booked a particular cabin. Even though it was an AE Minisuite, it was on Emerald, and had a larger balcony because it was the last one on the deck. This was a better cabin than any of the other minisuites due to the balcony size and the fact that it was covered. Our TA marked it as "no upgrade." We monitored it online and Princess did not change it. At least, not until we were in the air flying towards our destination. When we arrived at the port I turned on my cell phone to have a message from my TA. She knows what I like, and that I wanted that cabin. She told me that Princess wanted to upgrade me to an AA and she declined it. I thanked her for making the right decision. Well, at check in, come to find out , that we were still "upgraded" to the cabin my TA told us about. At check in, they told us we could either take that cabin or go home. Well, we took it at check-in but went straight to the Pursers Desk. After 2 hours of yelling and calls between our TA and the Princess head office they finally gave us back our original cabin. The head Purser was even trying to say that the other party had checked in already -- when we knew they had not. This thread has gotten my blood boiling over this issue again. Princess gave us a credit towards our next cruise. And, we got our original cabin back. But, to start a vacation with a "take this cabin or go home" and then a blatant lie by a senior purser ("the other party has checked in already") and to be treated so poorly left a bad taste in our mouths the whole cruise.

 

Best of luck in trying to resolve your cabin issue. At least you were informed before you arrived at your destination point.

[spongerob]

I'm not sure that the TA is necessarily at fault on this one. TA's in the UK are licensed and have to be little bit more on the ball. I guess there could be a few bad apples, but I think it's less likely to run into that than it is here in the US.

 

I tend to think that this is a case where someone in the booking department is trying to score some points with someone with whom they have some prior relationship. The same thing happened to another fellow I know, except it was done on the ship by someone in the Hotel Department. Unfortunately, it might be difficult to get the individual to 'fess up, since technically they followed guidelines and bumped Julie up one category. It's the daughter's cabin that causes a problem, it needs to be moved to. The solution should be fairly simple.

 

Bdjam is correct, though, in emphasizing that this is an unusual case and should not be used as a basis to slam everyone who works for Princess or the company itself. It's more a case of good intentions going bad.

[MaryPoppinz]

since technically they followed guidelines

 

Well, no. Displacing a passenger who has paid for a cabin isn't following a guideline.

[spongerob]

Nice timing, Hucc. :)

[spongerob]

Well, no. Displacing a passenger who has paid for a cabin isn't following a guideline.

 

You're right, Mary. An upgrade offer should have been made, not just implemented without permission, so that the issue with the second cabin could have been addressed. Someone in the booking office is trying to CYA, in my opinion. Internally, it might look like procedures were followed, while in fact someone appears to be disregarding the wishes of a booked passenger.

 

That's what I get for trying to get a post completed before Two And A Half Men starts. :o

[bdjam]

Bdjam is correct, though, in emphasizing that this is an unusual case and should not be used as a basis to slam everyone who works for Princess or the company itself. It's more a case of good intentions going bad.

Thanks for watching my back, ‘rob, but I still think we need to be careful before we make judgment as to what has gone on at Princess. Mistakes are made and some of them are without malice or in search of reward - and we've only got information third hand to determine if something is amiss. If Princess made the error, they should correct it, but it’s very difficult to say they did without the whole story. I don’t know that taking it out on the passengers who got the cabin, suing the cruise line or yelling at the purser’s desk is the proper way to resolve these kinds of situations. While someone has been given a cabin other than the one they picked I just don’t see it as being nightmare material. I guess because I’m just happy to be on the ship and am not that picky about a specific location, maybe I don’t understand the ire and the search for revenge that this issue has raised.

 

And I still think if the UK TA was doing their job, there’d be some movement toward a resolution.