Rhapsody Rough Seas

[AmazedByCruising]

Wow... now this is customer care due to unforseen circumstance.

 

It's nice, but just that IMHO. I would be rather angry if a cruise I was longing for, that needed begging the boss to get the time off, organizing a place for the dogs, my grandma flying all the way from Toronto, and where we would visit the port we officially got engaged was simply refunded with maybe some $300 future OBC. This situation is bad luck for the cruise line, but they are either insured or don't even have to because the operation is big enough to handle complete ships to cancel a few cruises/year. The real bad luck is for the guests booking their second cruise two years in advance, being really excited, only to find a nightmare and a flight home after one day on the ship. They need proper compensation.

[MommaBear55]

It's nice, but just that IMHO. I would be rather angry if a cruise I was longing for, that needed begging the boss to get the time off, organizing a place for the dogs, my grandma flying all the way from Toronto, and where we would visit the port we officially got engaged was simply refunded with maybe some $300 future OBC. This situation is bad luck for the cruise line, but they are either insured or don't even have to because the operation is big enough to handle complete ships to cancel a few cruises/year. The real bad luck is for the guests booking their second cruise two years in advance, being really excited, only to find a nightmare and a flight home after one day on the ship. They need proper compensation.

 

I don't know how they chose who got to stay in a different cabin and who went home. What has been stated is that they got refunded the price of their cruise and got 100% of what they spent towards a future cruise. What more should RCI done? No one wants this type of accident at sea, but accidents do happen. During Hurricane Sandy we sat in port for two extra days, missed two ports and got nothing other than the port fees refunded. No complaints from me because the weather is unpredictable.

[iheartbda]

It's nice, but just that IMHO. I would be rather angry if a cruise I was longing for, that needed begging the boss to get the time off, organizing a place for the dogs, my grandma flying all the way from Toronto, and where we would visit the port we officially got engaged was simply refunded with maybe some $300 future OBC. This situation is bad luck for the cruise line, but they are either insured or don't even have to because the operation is big enough to handle complete ships to cancel a few cruises/year. The real bad luck is for the guests booking their second cruise two years in advance, being really excited, only to find a nightmare and a flight home after one day on the ship. They need proper compensation.

"All affected do receive a full refund and a future cruise certificate of the same amount. RCI covered hotel/flight costs."

What, in your eyes, is proper compensation?

[ReneeFLL]

Since many cabins were flooded, we learned about 150 guests are affected and because of the time needed for repairs and cleanup, most (if not all) will be leaving the ship.

 

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Sorry to hear that happened. Hope no one was seriously hurt

I hope RC treats those passangers right, unlike the other recent fiascos. :eek:

[IsanTom]

You are officially my beer hero!!

 

I can't imagine being woken up to blown out windows- that must have been very very frightening. And on day 1 of the cruise to boot.

I was in the Navy, on a Destroyer, and several times we were flying

in the air between swells. It's sorta like a roller coaster ride, but we were

never in danger, so enjoy any special moments during your cruise. It's no

extra charge, so enjoy!

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

It's nice, but just that IMHO. I would be rather angry if a cruise I was longing for, that needed begging the boss to get the time off, organizing a place for the dogs, my grandma flying all the way from Toronto, and where we would visit the port we officially got engaged was simply refunded with maybe some $300 future OBC. This situation is bad luck for the cruise line, but they are either insured or don't even have to because the operation is big enough to handle complete ships to cancel a few cruises/year. The real bad luck is for the guests booking their second cruise two years in advance, being really excited, only to find a nightmare and a flight home after one day on the ship. They need proper compensation.

 

"All affected do receive a full refund and a future cruise certificate of the same amount. RCI covered hotel/flight costs."

What, in your eyes, is proper compensation?

 

Piggybacking onto the question... What exactly would you have them do differently?? When you cruise on the ocean (actually any large body of water), you are going to be exposed to unpredictable conditions. It completely confuses me when people are surprised that there is movement - sometimes extreme and/or surprise - while cruising.

 

I get that cruising is awesome! Otherwise I wouldn't be doing it either. Then again, I like that there is motion when cruising. I don't get why people want to complain that there was movement - especially when things happen that cannot be predicted when they know they are on a moving object (and a small one, relatively speaking as even the behemoths are small in comparison to the ocean) on a kinetic body of water that is always moving and changing!

[AmazedByCruising]

"All affected do receive a full refund and a future cruise certificate of the same amount. RCI covered hotel/flight costs."

What, in your eyes, is proper compensation?

 

This is. I'd expect the same compensation in a restaurant: "of course you don't have to pay after the electricity failed during appetizers, please do visit us again, next time is on us". That's a good deal. I'd be unhappy with less, more would be too much.

 

I just meant to say that I'm glad they didn't come up with some future OBC and chocolate covered strawberries, but I'm not in awe at the way RCL handled the situation.

 

Piggybacking onto the question... What exactly would you have them do differently??

 

So, nothing :) Bad luck can inherently happen during a cruise, which is nobody's fault per se, but the bad luck also doesn't strike that often. For the company it might be less than 0.1% of the cruises they offer, for a guest it could well be 100% of the cruises they make. IMHO that calls for generous compensations and RCL did just that.

[loubetti]

Leaving Barcelona yesterday Captain announced overnight rough seas were expected on way to Corsica. Between 4 and 5am a cabin announcement woke us up saying several cabin windows had broken and some cabins were flooded but situation was under control. This morning we found many people sleeping in Schooner Bar and Shall We Dance lounge. Captain Dimas spoke to them explaining a pressure point had been created when the bow and stern of the ship were temporarily supported between two swells with the middle of the ship momentarily out of the water. Five cabins on deck 3 had windows burst at the pressure point. Once water entered many adjacent cabins on 3 and below on 2 were also flooded. "

 

 

Despite inaccurate news reports of the ship being "hit" by a wave, our friend "chengkp75" nailed it in his response above, along with the captain's comments I have quoted in bold in this post.

 

What the ship experienced is called either hog or sag, or hogging or sagging. This places tremendous stress on the ship, and could certainly cause windows to pop / break. The captain's description describes hog.

 

Here's what each looks like:

 

 

 

In a worst case scenario here is what can happen:

 

[Virtopia]

I wonder how they accommodated anyone who had post cruise plans. I don't foresee there being any issues when I sail, but I do have post cruise plans and I wonder if that would be taken into consideration. If I was one of these passengers, I probably wouldn't necessarily want to go straight home.

[cincicruisers]

Scary situation. Not something that you can prepare for. Glad no seriously injured folks.

[Sharkb8]

N/a

Edited April 28, 2016 by Sharkb8
BS from OP

[BoyntonBeth]

Mindy, thank you for your updates on this incident. It is truly appreciated.

 

Mindy,

 

I agree. Your posts have been calm, level-headed, and informative. Too many incidents bring out the nastiness in people, even cruisers.

 

I was on RH recently for 4 weeks around South America. I saw the sincere concern than Captain Dimas felt and communicated.

 

I appreciate what you've done and I know the Captain does as well.:D:D:D

[webecruzin2]

Just goes to show me that "The Captain will sail around it" cannot and does not always happen. Hate it for those onboard but it is a vast ocean out there and we are nothing but a little speck floating around in it on these cruise ships.

 

Im on deck 10 all the way forward looking out the front of the ship on Magic in 5 days. Im really hoping for calm seas or it may be one helluva ride! Never done this before! :eek::o

 

I was in a similar location, very top forward on my first ever cruise in '83 NYC to Freeport. MS Scandinavia. We sailed through a storm off the Carolinas, 25-30 ft waves.

There was zero gravity as we walked down the hall to our cabin. It was fun!:D

[insidecabin]

What the ship experienced is called either hog or sag, or hogging or sagging. This places tremendous stress on the ship, and could certainly cause windows to pop / break. The captain's description describes hog.

 

captains description bow and stern of the ship were temporarily supported between two swells with the middle of the ship momentarily out of the water.

describes sagging

[little britain]

Thank you for such a well balanced informative report. So different to the hysteria regarding the Anthem one a few months back.

Safe travels home.

[Biker19]

Thank you for such a well balanced informative report. So different to the hysteria regarding the Anthem one a few months back.

If this had happened off the Carolinas with a much higher percentage of Americans, you might have had an Anthem type reaction. But, it happens in the Med, on an older ship with fewer Americans and no media - so, no hysteria.

[chengkp75]

If this had happened off the Carolinas with a much higher percentage of Americans, you might have had an Anthem type reaction. But, it happens in the Med, on an older ship with fewer Americans and no media - so, no hysteria.

 

Ah, but just wait for any US passengers who were disembarked to get home and find the first ambulance chaser to start the class action suit.

[Biker19]

Ah, but just wait for any US passengers who were disembarked to get home and find the first ambulance chaser to start the class action suit.

 

Nah, too late for that - their 15 min of fame is over - they were not greeted by cameras as they disembarked with their arm in a sling.:rolleyes:

[chengkp75]

Nah, too late for that - their 15 min of fame is over - they were not greeted by cameras as they disembarked with their arm in a sling.:rolleyes:

 

I don't know, the link back in post 54 mentioned that Walker's cesspool website was the first to mention the incident, and some comments were made about people being bloody from falling ceilings and walls. I'll keep the popcorn handy.

[internetwhiz]

I don't know, the link back in post 54 mentioned that Walker's cesspool website was the first to mention the incident, and some comments were made about people being bloody from falling ceilings and walls. I'll keep the popcorn handy.

 

 

 

Walker wasn't first. This thread was first. All he did was search Twitter.

[mpdp]

Sounds like all is ok. Hope no one was hurt. Another adventure

[MindyJohn]

After the rude awakening during night one, our cruise has been uneventful with excellent ports. Of course those who lost access to their cabins and had to (or perhaps wanted to) go home are not singing the same song. I asked one woman I"d seen with wet feet at GS a few hours after the incident how she was doing and how it transpired that she was able to be moved rather than leave, and she was not even aware some had been flown home from Corsica. So apparently things were handled discreetly on a case by case basis. She said her new cabin attendant has tried very hard to make them feel safe and comfortable with lots of TLC.

 

Our approach and sail in to Malta yesterday at sunrise was the most amazing thing I've ever experienced in cruising. For us...better than Venice, Istanbul, Dubai, Bombay and Stockholm which are all spectacular. We're thankful for each and every cruise[emoji1] [emoji1] [emoji1]

 

Happy cruising to all of you as well[emoji568]

 

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Edited April 30, 2016 by MindyJohn

[vickiw0318]

Thank you so much for your continued updates.

 

It just dawned on me that I once held a booking for this cruise. I had a conflict so I had to make a change. Your comments about the sail in to Malta made me realize this. I remember that the ports were going to be fantastic and it sounds like they have been.

[cinnamon]

Fantastic ports on the next one too, starting on Tuesday. It's a one-off itinerary we couldn't resist. 3 in Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Bodrum (Turkey) and Athens. The last of which is the only one we have visited before. Plus in and out of Venice.

 

Glad all is well on Rhapsody, can't wait to sail on her again.

[MindyJohn]

An officer told me today that most cabins that were flooded have been put back together and are ready for next cruises. Several which had the most damage are still being worked on. New carpet has been laid. We had another event today and could not attend the Captain's Corner. I'm hoping to catch a repeat on cabin TV or hear about it from someone else. Bon voyage to you, Cinnamon!

 

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