Anthem keeps docking us around

[shaun07]

considering how far we are away from nj I would think around 6 pm tomorrow night. I get that they have to organize a lot but just bring us into port. Keep us onboard for another day or two if they need too but just get us off the open seas

[NIATPAC29]

If that ship had went down. The ones on cruise critic who defending Royal Caribbean as if they could do no wrong would be singing a different tune. A very different tune if you had a loved one on board

[cheezwiz]

That part might be true. However, do you wish to dock and 100% of the people offload their own luggage after someone on board the ship somehow hops off and ties the thing to the dock?

 

When there are no ships scheduled to dock, the people who pilot the ships into the dock, tie it up, set up the walkways, unload the luggage, inspect the people coming off, arrange transportation from the pier and on and on, are off working elsewhere. It is not always possible to round up a decent sized contingent of works on a moments notice, not to mention union rules, to take care of 5,000 passengers.

 

Events such as this, do peel back the nasty side of American expectationalism (new word). Relax and enjoy. As long as you are on the ship, eat drink and be merry.

 

I do not think it is unreasonable that the passengers would expect that what they were told yesterday would have been reliable. All that logistical planning should have been done prior to RCCL announcing an arrival time. Elsewhere, one of the passengers stated that they were told they could arrange flights after 12:45pm. I would be truly put out to learn that I would now have to pay a second change fee were I in their place.

[fletch1027]

So why don't you get a hotel room for a couple days and use your booked flight. I read where some are doing that. See the sights

 

 

And likely go shopping for warm clothes. I can't speak for those on the ship, but what I pack for a cruise would not be able to be used for 3 days & nights of below freezing and windy Manhattan... :-)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[NIATPAC29]

So easy to defend their actions and say they did everything right because no one was killed or severely injured. Many have no compassion, if you had been on that ship you would have felt a lot different. Since it didn't happen to you all is okay

[cheezwiz]

So why don't you get a hotel room for a couple days and use your booked flight. I read where some are doing that. See the sights

 

Even with Hotwire or similar, that's a big bite to the wallet in that neighborhood.

[DrD]

Not everybody is financially prepared to do that. Some people actually have to save for vacation. Plus the hotel prices in NYC are very expensive.

 

I thought they were getting a refund on the cruise? Is that not true?

[shaun07]

So easy to defend their actions and say they did everything right because no one was killed or severely injured. Many have no compassion, if you had been on that ship you would have felt a lot different. Since it didn't happen to you all is okay

 

agreed, and maybe its not all the bad and i need to suck it up, honestly i really don't know, all i know is I thought we were going down and I was terrified. All I want is to feel secure and right now Rccl is making me feel the opposite

[tbill]

I thought they were getting a refund on the cruise? Is that not true?

 

Do you think that will be immediate? If it is great. If not then I still say that many won't be prepared to have additional travel expenses like that.

[crzndeb]

Trust me, there would have been just as many people complaining, had the ship not even sailed. It's human nature.

[shaun07]

Do you think that will be immediate? If it is great. If not then I still say that many won't be prepared to have additional travel expenses like that.

 

I got a letter in my cabin saying refund may take 4-6 weeks!!!

[NIATPAC29]

Is royal helping with hotels and air flights? Have they yet to say when they're returning to the terminal in New Jersey? 50% off a future cruise and nothing else and no other info is pathetic

[setsail]

I thought they were getting a refund on the cruise? Is that not true?

 

Exactly

[Kag1526]

Although I understand wanting off NOW (I am an overplanner and although I might now want off immediately I would want to know when either way for sure)

 

However I do understand why that may not be so easy. Just because its RCCLs responsibility to figure it out doesn't mean they can magically do that if they are being told from the port that no one is available to handle everything.

 

As much as you see it as RCCLs fault, its very possible that those managing the port schedules also see it that way. Its Anthem's fault that they went and now had to come back so early so why should we pay people overtime, make everyone run short staffed to support this port in addition to everything else we had to do, etc etc. Yes in a perfect world all those workers would be helping figure things out because those people on the ship had a bad experience but lets be honest... it wouldn't work that way.

[shaun07]

Is royal helping with hotels and air flights? Have they yet to say when they're returning to the terminal in New Jersey? 50% off a future cruise and nothing else and no other info is pathetic

 

yup, we won't charge you for almost killing you the first time so we will only charge half to try again .

 

That was dramatic :)

[karatemom2]

agreed, and maybe its not all the bad and i need to suck it up, honestly i really don't know, all i know is I thought we were going down and I was terrified. All I want is to feel secure and right now Rccl is making me feel the opposite

 

I have been mostly lurking here to read the news, but your comment really got to me. From many of the reports I have read from those onboard, including the editor from the Detroit Free Press the experience sounds extremely harrowing. I'm so sorry for you and all of the passengers and crew onboard. No one here has a right to judge or tell you how you should be feeling or acting. Clearly this was a terrible experience and everyone has a right to react in the way that they need to react. I have been stunned by some of the cold and callous responses I have seen here.

 

Frankly I'm amazed most of you posting are as positive and upbeat as you have been. I can only imagine most of the passengers just want to get the heck off that ship and get home and being given misinformation on arrival times and then getting delayed or no information when trying to make plans must be extremely frustrating. I do hope that you and your fellow passengers get some answers soon and are able to make arrangements accordingly. It does seem like RCI will need to do some real post-cruise evaluation of this incident - and perhaps learn from it.

Edited February 9, 2016 by karatemom2

[Ocean Boy]

...and you know this because you read it on the internets? :rolleyes:

 

Al Roaker and Matt Lauer said so this morning so it must be true.

[Kag1526]

Do you think that will be immediate? If it is great. If not then I still say that many won't be prepared to have additional travel expenses like that.

 

This I have little sympathy for to be honest. I have sympathy for the experience they had on board but anyone goes on a vacation without the financial means to get a hotel for a few nights and buy a few meals extra, even if that would be reimbursed later, really shouldn't be going on the trip.

 

If the ship sailed fine and they came back to a cancelled flight they would have the same problem, they would have spent the cruise funds, if they had travel insurance to cover the days until their flight those wouldn't come immediately and would need someway to have a place to stay too.

 

If the refund is coming through putting it on a credit card, even if you don't like being in debt etc is perfectly fine since the refund would come in to pay off the card.

[Lakesregion]

Relax and Enjoy??? That ship has sailed. It is RCI's obligation to put all the things that need to be arranged in place and let these people know pronto. Their lives were put at risk, their vacation is ruined and they have had enough. This was not some fun wild ride here.

 

You do know that this ship carries 5,000 passengers plus a crew of over 1,600. That is larger than many towns and villages from whence the passengers come from. Moving that many people off the ship through customs (who do not care a whit about circumstances (as they are paid by the government and work by the book) and out to proper transportation does not happen by magic. It is quite possible that the line was given improper information about docking times or possible that one union said ok and the other one said can't get our people there in time for the early docking. There are multiple unions involved in handling any ship in the ports of NY and NJ. This is not Singapore where one person runs everything and their word is law.

[Lakesregion]

yup, we won't charge you for almost killing you the first time so we will only charge half to try again .

 

That was dramatic :)

 

I am going to take a wild guess that Royal has lost you as a future customer and most likely anything more than the swan boats on a local lake will be beyond your comfort zone.

[conandrob240]

I don't understand all the blind support for rccl. It is quite possible that someone made a huge mistake sailing into that storm. It is quite possible they are doing a poor job handling this with those on the ship in terms of communication. It is quite possible they are responsible for the change in docking times/porting.

 

So, if people want to blame them, so be it. No one's calling your mother names. People are mad AT A COMPANY, for crying out loud. They can take it. It'll be okay.

[nyroadrunner]

If that ship had went down. The ones on cruise critic who defending Royal Caribbean as if they could do no wrong would be singing a different tune. A very different tune if you had a loved one on board

 

 

This!!!!^^^^^

 

 

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[reallyitsmema]

I don't understand all the blind support for rccl. It is quite possible that someone made a huge mistake sailing into that storm. It is quite possible they are doing a poor job handling this with those on the ship in terms of communication. It is quite possible they are responsible for the change in docking times/porting.

 

So, if people want to blame them, so be it. No one's calling your mother names. People are mad AT A COMPANY, for crying out loud. They can take it. It'll be okay.

 

I don't see any blind support of the cruise line in this thread. I thought we were all trying to talk Shaun off the ledge? He seems to be having a panic attack right now and most, not all, are trying to reassure him.

[karatemom2]

I am going to take a wild guess that Royal has lost you as a future customer and most likely anything more than the swan boats on a local lake will be beyond your comfort zone.

 

Wow! Exactly the type of comment I was referencing in my post. It is so easy for people who aren't even on the ship and didn't go through what those passengers went through to make judgments and snide remarks. Really? Did you not even notice that the OP put a joke about it being a dramatic statement with a smiley face!

 

I really don't think your comment was called for at all. How about having the slightest bit of sympathy for a bunch of people who have been through a rough experience and are now frantically trying to figure out how they are going to manage when the ship docks and basically gives them two hours to get off? Perhaps they would like to know how to plan for that - doesn't seem that unreasonable to me. Also doesn't seem unreasonable that people who have been scared and frustrated need to vent without being subjected to mean responses! :rolleyes:

[emeraldcity]

I was one of the ones on a future cruise affected by the Grandeur fire, so I can give you a bit of info on how the refunds worked. Those who waited to see the money on the credit card waited about 6 weeks. Then there were those (like me) who made immediate arrangements to spend it on a future cruise. I put a cruise on hold the same evening the compensation was announced and then I spent about an hour on the phone the next evening getting both the refund and the future cruise credits moved to the new sailing. (We used the future cruise credit for a very nice upgrade to a JS, since we considered that "found" money.)

 

The only thing they couldn't handle in the initial phone call was the application of the Diamond balcony discount. I was told to call back in a couple of days and get that sorted out, which I did. Another call, relatively brief, and they were sending me a new confirmation with another $325 off.