Who's fault when missed connection

[liv789]

I booked air through cruise line Royal Carribean Air2Sea, I have never done this before my last Greek island 11 night cruise from Venice on 5/23. We were looking for shortest flight time so took their Miami to Madrid to Venice flight. Since the cruise line booked it and this is the first time we ever changed planes in Europe, I never gave it a second thought. Well we missed the flight and first two nights of the cruise was spent in hotels three planes and a bus. What bothers me now is time between scheduled flights was 55 minutes but airlines guidelines states a minimum of 65 min. is needed in Madrid and when we tried to get help after missing the flight all the emergency numbers were US numbers. One would think with all the papers we get they would include a overseas emergency number. This made for a disappointing 32 anniversary. Rest of cruise whet well and we had 15 min. to spare on the way home Should air2sea of know better or is it buyer beware? liv789

[CantanaLobo]

... One would think with all the papers we get they would include a overseas emergency number. ...

One could read the "all the papers" beforehand to dispel any fanciful notions one might have gotten from the slick glossies.

Should air2sea of know better or is it buyer beware?

In the land of unicorns, lollipops, and marketing collateral, air2sea will coddle you so you have no worries. In my world, buyer beware.

 

Not a dig particularly against the cruiseline. Airlines (well, United anyway) are perfectly capable of selling you a ticket that does meet the MCT, and then later have a schedule change where the connection is now below the minimum. Check your reservation weekly regardless of where you get it from.

 

Out of curiosity, who paid for the hotels, three planes, and a bus? air2sea?

[cruising cockroach]

Other thing to watch out for is weather. A few years ago, there was the big storm that was about to hit the NE U.S. Airlines were giving weather waivers and allowing people to fly out days before the storm hit, if one had a regular ticket which is what a cruise-arranged flight rarely is. Those who had them for the cruise said they tried to get out early but the Carnival Corp.-arranged travel wouldn't let them. So they missed the first 3-4 days of the cruise (couldn't get out of the NYC area).

[FlyerTalker]

I booked air through cruise line Royal Carribean Air2Sea, I have never done this before my last Greek island 11 night cruise from Venice on 5/23. We were looking for shortest flight time so took their Miami to Madrid to Venice flight. Since the cruise line booked it and this is the first time we ever changed planes in Europe, I never gave it a second thought.

I think that says it all. You made some huge assumptions.

 

I will never cease to be amazed by how many people choose short connections, then have either concerns or actual problems with those very connections.

 

Then, you find that there are only USA "emergency numbers". Did you bother to check that before you left home? Or were you expecting someone there in Madrid to shepherd you through any problems? Especially since it was your "first time we ever changed planes in Europe", what kind of preparation did you take for that process?

 

I'm further going to wager that your flights were arriving day of cruise, and that there was no Iberia option to get from MAD to VCE other than the flight you missed. I'm sorry...that's just asking for trouble. You are putting all of your eggs into one basket with a thin margin for error. Did you try to get on the 10:00 Swiss flight via Zurich? Did you even have that on your radar?

 

Yes, I'm being tough. But this might prove to be a learning experience for others reading this thread - on the things you need to do, both before the flight and before your purchase.

[Globaliser]

What bothers me now is time between scheduled flights was 55 minutes but airlines guidelines states a minimum of 65 min. is needed in Madrid ...

As far as I can see the official Minimum Connection Time for your connection was 55 minutes, so your connection was legal. I don't know where the 65 minutes figure came from, but I don't think that it's accurate. And so what happened was, sadly, just what inevitably happens if things go pear-shaped and there's no margin for error. The only guarantee about travel is that things will sometimes go wrong, and usually there is nobody to blame but Lady Luck. But I'm glad you enjoyed most of the cruise anyway.

[Marisawrite]

What others have said. I learned the lesson the hard way too.

 

The lesson is, never trust your travel agent or cruise line to choose your flights for you. Don't assume they are taking every sensible precaution because they're not!

 

We booked our Baltic cruise through a travel agent who threw in free flights. It was a bargain, but because the flights were free, they went ahead and booked them without asking us (presumably they chose the cheapest option).

 

The outward flight was on the day of the cruise, at 7.30am. We didn't like the idea of getting up so early, but it didn't worry us because sailaway time was 5.30pm - plenty of time, we thought.

 

Well, we missed our flight. Luckily we were able to get two seats on another carrier but there was $400 down the toilet. We called Princess to let them know we'd be late (we'd booked their transfer) - but then we had to call them a few more times, because our new flight was delayed, then delayed again, then again ...eventually we boarded less than an hour before sailaway.

 

We later discovered that 30 other passengers had missed the exact same flight we missed, and only two of them had been able to get another flight in time. The other 28 had to make their own way to the next port. So we were very lucky! I will never fly on the same day ever again!

Edited June 14, 2016 by Marisawrite

[liv789]

RCL picked up all expenses till we were reunited with our cruise ship and gave us a 20% credit on a future cruise, since we missed two days. Wasn't really the way I wanted to start a 11 day cruise especially after flying from the states. I know stuff happens but when you are set up to fail at the begining it kind of ticks you off. The more I think of it the less I want a credit on RCL since we don't cruise on that line. Thanks for your thoughts though.

[liv789]

Thanks for the replies, it was a learning experience FlyerTalker, and we could not make Swiss Air because of the time to get our baggage from one terminal to the next. It was an option that Iberia said we probably could not make. Yes I did not reasearch an overseas emergency number but MAYBE somebody reading this can mention it to Air2Sea. We did not make the connection times, other guest took flights from MIA through NY and we would of done that if this was not available. FYI Iberias in flight magazine page 121 explains Madrid airport and times required for transfers. Flights arriving T4S (international) and leaving from T4 require 65 minutes. We also needed to go through a TSA type screening and customs. They gave us a red card but we did not realize Iberia boards 30 min ahead and closes door 15 min. before flight. By the time we arrived, there was no gate listed and we spent time trying to find out were it was supposed to be. Will be better prepared next time.

[RickT]

What others have said. I learned the lesson the hard way too.

 

The lesson is, never trust your travel agent or cruise line to choose your flights for you. Don't assume they are taking every sensible precaution because they're not!

 

 

The only person you can trust is YOURSELF and common sense. For my upcoming cruise, Air France has a 1 hr and 5 min connection in Paris. While that may be a legal connection and Air France will gladly book it there is no way I'd take a connection time that short.

 

So while it would be nice if Royal Caribbean, Air France, TA's,etc would keep an eye out for this they don't and it's up to each traveller to know where they are flying and what is considered a safe connection.

[Globaliser]

FYI Iberias in flight magazine page 121 explains Madrid airport and times required for transfers. Flights arriving T4S (international) and leaving from T4 require 65 minutes.

No, I still don't think this is correct.

 

Minimum Connecting Times are not guidelines. You would not have been booked on this connection if the connecting time was less than the published MCT. So I am confident that 65 minutes was not the published MCT.

 

In any event, if you book any connection that's close to the MCT, there is a real risk of missing the connection particularly if both the MCT and the booked connecting time are short in absolute terms. That's no problem if you have lots of margin elsewhere in your travel plans, and it's unfortunate that this happened when everything in your plans was absolutely time-critical.

 

Here is the entire list of MCTs published for an IB-IB international-to-international connection at MAD. You have to scroll down within it, but as far as I can see the first line that applied to your flights is the one that I've bolded, ie the generic IB-IB T4S-T4 MCT, which is 0:55. While it could in theory be different if you were booked on another airline's flight number, generally in this situation it should be the same MCT, and that's reinforced by the fact that your booked connection was exactly on that Minimum Connection Time.

Minimum Connect Times:
Connecting at MAD
Incoming airline IB
Outgoing airline IB
Flight type International to International

STANDARD.D/D...D/I...I/D...I/I.
ONLINE    .20  1.00  1.00  1.00
OFFLINE   .20  1.00  1.00  1.00
** OR * ARE ALL
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 3175 - FLT 3336 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 ALL  - FLT 7303 ALL - GYE TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 ALL  - FLT 7303 ALL - GYE TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 ALL  - FLT 7759 ALL - LIM TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 ALL  - FLT 7759 ALL - LIM TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 ALL  - FLT  339 ALL - SCL TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 ALL  - FLT  339 ALL - SCL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 ALL  - FLT 7319 ALL - SCL TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 ALL  - FLT 7319 ALL - SCL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7756 - ALL  GYE - ALL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7756 - ALL  GYE - ALL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7758 - ALL  LIM - ALL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7758 - ALL  LIM - ALL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 FLT  338 - ALL  SCL - ALL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .45 FLT  338 - ALL  SCL - ALL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7322 - ALL  SCL - ALL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7322 - ALL  SCL - ALL TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 EQP ALL - BUS TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 EQP ALL - BUS TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 EQP ALL - BUS TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 EQP BUS - ALL TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 EQP BUS - ALL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 EQP BUS - ALL TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT    1 - 3999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 6000 - 6999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 6000 - 6999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 6000 - 6999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 6000 - 6999 - FLT 7440 - 7480 ALL - LHR 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 4000 - 4599 - FLT 7864 - 7869 ALL - TLV 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7000 - 7230 - FLT 7864 - 7869 ALL - TLV 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT    1 - 3999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT 6000 - 6999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT 6000 - 6999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT 6000 - 6999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7440 - 7480 - FLT 6000 - 6999 LHR - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7864 - 7869 - FLT 4000 - 4599 TLV - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7864 - 7869 - FLT 7000 - 7230 TLV - ALL 
 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT    1 - 7999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT    1 - 7999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT    1 - 7999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT    1 - 7999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT    1 - 7999 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT    1 - 7999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT    1 - 7999 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT    1 - 7999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT 8000 - 8999 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT 8000 - 8999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT 8000 - 8999 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - FLT 8000 - 8999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 8000 - 8999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 8000 - 8999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 8000 - 8999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 8000 - 8999 - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 ALL  - FLT 7407 - 7439 ALL - HEL TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 ALL  - FLT 7407 - 7439 ALL - HEL TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II   .45 FLT 7407 - 7439 - ALL  HEL - ALL TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II   .55 FLT 7407 - 7439 - ALL  HEL - ALL TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 4000 - 4999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 4000 - 4999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 7000 - 7999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   FLT 7000 - 7999 - ALL  EQP ALL - BUS 
 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7999 EQP BUS - ALL 
 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 ALL  - FLT 1790 - 1799 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4599 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4599 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7230 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7230 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 ALL  - FLT 7231 - 7439 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7231 - 7999 TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7231 - 7999 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 ALL  - FLT 7231 - 7999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 ALL  - FLT 7481 - 7999 TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9006 - 9010 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9006 - 9010 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9017 - 9039 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9017 - 9039 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9050 - 9099 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9050 - 9099 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9115 - 9140 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9115 - 9140 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9200 - 9219 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9200 - 9219 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9410 - 9414 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9410 - 9414 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9700 - 9745 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 9700 - 9745 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 FLT 1790 - 1799 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 4000 - 4599 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 4000 - 4599 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7000 - 7230 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7000 - 7230 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 FLT 7231 - 7439 - ALL  TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7231 - 7999 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 7231 - 7999 - ALL  TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 FLT 7231 - 7999 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.15 FLT 7481 - 7999 - ALL  TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9006 - 9010 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9006 - 9010 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9017 - 9039 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9017 - 9039 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9050 - 9099 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9050 - 9099 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9115 - 9140 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9115 - 9140 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9200 - 9219 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9200 - 9219 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9410 - 9414 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9410 - 9414 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9700 - 9745 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II  1.30 FLT 9700 - 9745 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-IB II SUP   EQP ALL - BUS TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   EQP ALL - BUS TRM 4S - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   EQP BUS - ALL TRM 4  - 4  
IB-IB II SUP   EQP BUS - ALL TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 TRM 4  - 4  
[b]IB-IB II   .55 TRM 4S - 4  [/b]
IB-IB II   .55 TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-IB II   .45 TRM 4S - 4S 
**-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4599 TRM 4  - 4S 
**-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 4000 - 4599 TRM 4S - 4S 
**-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7230 TRM 4  - 4S 
**-IB II  1.30 ALL  - FLT 7000 - 7230 TRM 4S - 4S 
**-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4  
**-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4  
**-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4  - 4S 
**-IB II SUP   ALL  - FLT 5000 - 5999 TRM 4S - 4S 
IB-** II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  TRM 4  - 4  
IB-** II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4  
IB-** II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  TRM 4  - 4S 
IB-** II SUP   FLT 5000 - 5999 - ALL  TRM 4S - 4S 
**-** II   .45 TRM 1  - 1  
**-** II  1.00 TRM 2  - 1  
**-** II  1.00 TRM 3  - 1  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 4  - 1  
**-** II  2.45 TRM 4S - 1  
**-** II  1.00 TRM 1  - 2  
**-** II   .45 TRM 2  - 2  
**-** II   .45 TRM 3  - 2  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 4  - 2  
**-** II  2.45 TRM 4S - 2  
**-** II  1.00 TRM 1  - 3  
**-** II   .45 TRM 2  - 3  
**-** II   .45 TRM 3  - 3  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 4  - 3  
**-** II  2.45 TRM 4S - 3  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 1  - 4  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 2  - 4  
**-** II  2.30 TRM 3  - 4  
**-** II  1.15 TRM 4  - 4  
**-** II  1.30 TRM 4S - 4  
**-** II  2.45 TRM 1  - 4S 
**-** II  2.45 TRM 2  - 4S 
**-** II  2.45 TRM 3  - 4S 
**-** II  1.30 TRM 4  - 4S 
**-** II  1.15 TRM 4S - 4S

[vwrestler171]

There is a reason that EVERYONE on here says to buy your own flights.

[iancal]

When we shop or buy cruise air we always have a choice of flights/times/prices. If we buy cruise air, we select the airline, routing, price etc that meets our requirements. The times, including connection are clearly displayed.

 

We travel with carry on only but we would never select a tight connection if we did not have at least a day of pre cruise time scheduled in the departure port.

 

It is not simply weather either. Equipment delays, connection/incoming delays or airport delays on the first leg can cause the entire schedule to shift. Even with a two hour connection in ATL we missed the connection because of terminal delay on our first flight. It meant a painful reschedule in London. Fortunately we had carry on and we able to jump on flight without regard to claiming checked luggage.

 

We do not assume that the cruise line will magically wave a wand and make everything happen. After years of travel we take the approach that we have to take care of ourselves....notwithstanding the claims, promises, boasts of various travel providers. I do not think that fault matters. Once it happens it is done, does not matter whose fault it is since the result is the same.

Edited June 15, 2016 by iancal

[Donray]

There is a reason that EVERYONE on here says to buy your own flights.

 

Not everyone.

 

I guess you don't travel to Europe much. The cruse line (both ocean and river)will save you on cost and get you what you want.

 

I have used cruise air many times with no problem. This last one to Europe (got back two days ago) where I made my own arraignment was the worse because of delays.

[waterbug123]

Not everyone.

 

I guess you don't travel to Europe much. The cruse line (both ocean and river)will save you on cost and get you what you want.

 

I have used cruise air many times with no problem. This last one to Europe (got back two days ago) where I made my own arraignment was the worse because of delays.

 

How many of those times involved serious flight delays or cancellations? If none, then you may have gotten lucky and not realized how -up-the-creek-without-a-paddle you might have been with cruise-purchased airline tickets.

 

Yes, you can often save a lot on cruise-purchased air, but that cost comes at a potential price. You'll never know until the day of travel whether or not that "price" will be realized. ;)

[iancal]

Over numerous cruises trips in Europe, cruise air has only saved us money once. And that was a one way home from Barcelona. On several two way trips and at least 1 one way trip cruise air was more expensive.

 

We always check. I think it is the luck of the draw. And we always assume that our cruise air ticket will be a consolidator class ticket.

 

We are considering a fall cruise. We recently checked RCI/Celebrity cruise air prices (you do not need a booking to look at fares/routings). Cruise air was more expensive than we can do on our own by at least $150. per person depending on the airline selected.

[liv789]

Have been doing some research on my little problem. Looks like the in flight magazine I took with legal connect times is out of date as of Jan 2016 when Iberia magically reduced the legal connect time from 65 minutes to 55 minutes. They managed this by introducing numerous measures to streamline the transit of passengers. They also have improved there punctuality. We never had a chance!:mad: Took us 10 minutes to get out of plane and boarding is supposed to be done 20 minutes before flight is scheduled to leave. I just don't know why they made us run when plane was boarding when we landed (it was 2 minutes late). I contact RCL and they said it was a legal connect time.:D Liv789

[Globaliser]

I contact RCL and they said it was a legal connect time.

It was. And if you book a connection bang on the minimum legal time, then the position is that on most days, most passengers will make it.

 

If you were flying in a day or two before the cruise, it wouldn't matter that much if you missed the connection, and so it would be fine to book the itinerary with the shortest connection time (especially if your itinerary was one that had lots of backup options).

 

If your journey is time-critical, such that missing a connection would cause you substantial difficulty, then near-universal advice would be not to book one that was bang on MCT. Unfortunately, you've ended up having to learn that lesson from experience rather than taking advantage of advice before hand.

[scottbee]

I'm having difficulty believing that their MCT was 65 minutes, given the posted MCTs for IB-IB at MAD doesn't contain a single 65 minutes MCT.

 

Last cruise, day before we flew out (which was two days before the cruise), there were snow warnings for DEN and thunderstorm warnings for IAH; guess where we were supposed to change planes (yes, both). A quick phone call to the airline; who were offering free changes if you were routed through these cities; and we flew YVR-EWR-FLL instead (taking the last two seats on YVR-EWR). Turns out IAH was a mess and flights were cancelled, yet we arrived pretty much at the exact same time we'd originally scheduled. In the past a good travel agent had the time to do this sort of thing for you, but with commissions going from significant to zero for domestic flights, and people booking directly online, you're taking that responsibility yourself.

 

If you want someone to manage your flights for you, and act as a proxy if there are changes, there are such services, like cranky concierge.

[iancal]

The phrase 'legal connection time' is utterly meaningless in the event of equipment, weather, or connection delays.

 

A connection time my be 'legal' but it may not make much sense given the airport, the weather, the originating airport, etc.

 

Bottom line is that you can easily have a legal connection time and not connect. It happens to thousands of flyers every day. If your arrival is critical then consider a alternate routing with a reasonable connection time or travel a day earlier. We always check the route to see if there are multiple flights to the same destination by the same airline to our destination.

 

Don't depend on the cruise line or the legal connection times as a guide to a reasonable routing as you may be disappointed. We are fairly independent travellers. We take the approach that if anything goes wrong we will be on our own...and we plan accordingly.