Celebrity Cruisers Beware!

[2 4 the Road]

This review is to warn anyone who is contemplating cruising with Celebrity Cruise Line. On August 4 my husband and I were notified that our 2018 cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico had been cancelled. Please keep in mind that we have had this reservation since late March 2016. We had tried to take this exact trip slated for January 2017 but were told the cruise had been cancelled. So after being told it was in for repair, we proceeded to book the 2018 cruise date.

 

Now this exact cruise, for the second time, has been cancelled. Upon further investigation I have uncovered that Celebrity Cruise has thrown everyone that booked on this cruise off so they could sell the complete booking to a company not only for the 2018 date but also the 2017 sailing. Which means, Celebrity Cruise has no loyalty to its booked customers. All that matters to Celebrity is the almighty dollar!

 

We have cruised for over 20 years with different cruise lines and never once has a cruise line kicked us off a booked and deposit paid cruise. This little game of booking a listed cruise until something better comes along is totally wrong. They have disrupted many planned vacations without so much as a truthful explanation of why. I assume it is easier to say the cruise was cancelled instead of we don’t care that we have spoiled your planned vacation for a better offer from someone else. They offered to rebook us on the December sailing of this itinerary but we would be flying home the day before Christmas plus we would have to pay an additional amount due to an increase in the fare. Since we are senior travelers, with more years behind us than in front, being with family is very important to us which made this not an option.

 

We, and I assume many other passengers, are left to get their refunds from whatever source they used to pay for this trip. Thank goodness we did not make airline or hotel reservations. We did, however, purchase travel insurance and were told we could not receive a refund due to the time cancellation policy even though it was not our fault that the cruise was cancelled by Celebrity. After many phone conversations and endless time with several representatives, we were able to receive an exception and were granted the full refund of our purchase of travel insurance. This inconvenience is one more factor that Celebrity Cruise caused with this unwarranted cruise cancellation.

 

Celebrity Cruise should be ashamed of itself for listing a cruise and not living up to its responsibility of providing the service they so proudly tout. This disrupting a cruise of so many customers because they received a better offer should be a warning to anyone who sails with them. Your planned trip could be next! Celebrity Cruise is not looking out for anyone but themselves and will “throw anyone overboard” that may already have a paid reservation. Traveler Beware, Celebrity Cruise Line newsletters usually have a “Thank You for Your Loyally” remark in them, but experiencing their “thank you” first hand, we know that Celebrity Cruise Line and its’ executives have only one agenda, the bottom line, not the consumer.:mad:

[Ocean Dancer]

Royal Caribbean has done the same for many ships and many sailings , nothing new.

[BEAV]

Thank goodness we did not make airline or hotel reservations.

 

It's not possible to make airline reservations for a flight in 2018. Airline inventory only opens 11 months in advance.

Edited August 11, 2016 by BEAV

[avcruz]

Congratulations on your first Cruise Critic post.

It is unfortunate that this happened to you, however it is quite common with all cruise lines, not just Celebrity. They frequently charter out the entire ship to special interest groups. If they had not cancelled your reservation on that sailing, you probably would not have been happy either, as the large group would have monopolized many of the venues and amenities.

It is fortunate that it happened so many months out - gives you plenty of opportunity to find something else to substitute, and you're not committed to any airfares or other non-refundable arrangements.

I hope you manage to find other arrangements that will suit you and your family.

[KW Cruisers]

I for one keep booking the Feb/Mar Summit sailings "hoping" they get cancelled. Then we get extra OBC and fare matching on the S class suites. It has happened to us 3 times so far with the Summit, and each time we have received a total of $900 OBC ($300 OBC Perk + $200 from our TA + $400 for cancelling the sailing when booked in a suite) and all four perks.

 

I won't complain too much...

 

Shawn

[Bo1953]

Thank goodness the cruise was not next week!

 

Now you know not to book that ship and week again... :D

[NantahalaCruiser]

This review is to warn anyone who is contemplating cruising with Celebrity Cruise Line. On August 4 my husband and I were notified that our 2018 cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico had been cancelled. Please keep in mind that we have had this reservation since late March 2016. We had tried to take this exact trip slated for January 2017 but were told the cruise had been cancelled. So after being told it was in for repair, we proceeded to book the 2018 cruise date.

 

Now this exact cruise, for the second time, has been cancelled. Upon further investigation I have uncovered that Celebrity Cruise has thrown everyone that booked on this cruise off so they could sell the complete booking to a company not only for the 2018 date but also the 2017 sailing. Which means, Celebrity Cruise has no loyalty to its booked customers. All that matters to Celebrity is the almighty dollar!

 

We have cruised for over 20 years with different cruise lines and never once has a cruise line kicked us off a booked and deposit paid cruise. This little game of booking a listed cruise until something better comes along is totally wrong. They have disrupted many planned vacations without so much as a truthful explanation of why. I assume it is easier to say the cruise was cancelled instead of we don’t care that we have spoiled your planned vacation for a better offer from someone else. They offered to rebook us on the December sailing of this itinerary but we would be flying home the day before Christmas plus we would have to pay an additional amount due to an increase in the fare. Since we are senior travelers, with more years behind us than in front, being with family is very important to us which made this not an option.

 

We, and I assume many other passengers, are left to get their refunds from whatever source they used to pay for this trip. Thank goodness we did not make airline or hotel reservations. We did, however, purchase travel insurance and were told we could not receive a refund due to the time cancellation policy even though it was not our fault that the cruise was cancelled by Celebrity. After many phone conversations and endless time with several representatives, we were able to receive an exception and were granted the full refund of our purchase of travel insurance. This inconvenience is one more factor that Celebrity Cruise caused with this unwarranted cruise cancellation.

 

Celebrity Cruise should be ashamed of itself for listing a cruise and not living up to its responsibility of providing the service they so proudly tout. This disrupting a cruise of so many customers because they received a better offer should be a warning to anyone who sails with them. Your planned trip could be next! Celebrity Cruise is not looking out for anyone but themselves and will “throw anyone overboard” that may already have a paid reservation. Traveler Beware, Celebrity Cruise Line newsletters usually have a “Thank You for Your Loyally” remark in them, but experiencing their “thank you” first hand, we know that Celebrity Cruise Line and its’ executives have only one agenda, the bottom line, not the consumer.:mad:

 

I understand your frustration and anger - we are on an Asian cruise in October and were concerned that it might be cancelled in favor of a charter since they had canceled similar cruises the previous year.

 

That said, chartering is not all that frequent and though it never happened to you before over seveal years of cruising, charters and related cancellations also occur on many other mainstream cruise lines.

 

And yes, profit motive generally beats loyalty in the cruise business.

 

Best of luck in finding a replacement.

 

Larry

[Orator]

This review is to warn anyone who is contemplating cruising with Celebrity Cruise Line. On August 4 my husband and I were notified that our 2018 cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico had been cancelled. Please keep in mind that we have had this reservation since late March 2016. We had tried to take this exact trip slated for January 2017 but were told the cruise had been cancelled. So after being told it was in for repair, we proceeded to book the 2018 cruise date.

 

Now this exact cruise, for the second time, has been cancelled. Upon further investigation I have uncovered that Celebrity Cruise has thrown everyone that booked on this cruise off so they could sell the complete booking to a company not only for the 2018 date but also the 2017 sailing. Which means, Celebrity Cruise has no loyalty to its booked customers. All that matters to Celebrity is the almighty dollar!

 

We have cruised for over 20 years with different cruise lines and never once has a cruise line kicked us off a booked and deposit paid cruise. This little game of booking a listed cruise until something better comes along is totally wrong. They have disrupted many planned vacations without so much as a truthful explanation of why. I assume it is easier to say the cruise was cancelled instead of we don’t care that we have spoiled your planned vacation for a better offer from someone else. They offered to rebook us on the December sailing of this itinerary but we would be flying home the day before Christmas plus we would have to pay an additional amount due to an increase in the fare. Since we are senior travelers, with more years behind us than in front, being with family is very important to us which made this not an option.

 

We, and I assume many other passengers, are left to get their refunds from whatever source they used to pay for this trip. Thank goodness we did not make airline or hotel reservations. We did, however, purchase travel insurance and were told we could not receive a refund due to the time cancellation policy even though it was not our fault that the cruise was cancelled by Celebrity. After many phone conversations and endless time with several representatives, we were able to receive an exception and were granted the full refund of our purchase of travel insurance. This inconvenience is one more factor that Celebrity Cruise caused with this unwarranted cruise cancellation.

 

Celebrity Cruise should be ashamed of itself for listing a cruise and not living up to its responsibility of providing the service they so proudly tout. This disrupting a cruise of so many customers because they received a better offer should be a warning to anyone who sails with them. Your planned trip could be next! Celebrity Cruise is not looking out for anyone but themselves and will “throw anyone overboard” that may already have a paid reservation. Traveler Beware, Celebrity Cruise Line newsletters usually have a “Thank You for Your Loyally” remark in them, but experiencing their “thank you” first hand, we know that Celebrity Cruise Line and its’ executives have only one agenda, the bottom line, not the consumer.:mad:

 

First, welcome to Cruise Critic. I hope that your future posts will be positive as you experience the better side of Celebrity. I can most certainly understand your frustration as I too have experienced cancelations. One was due to an emergency Dry Dock, another was a charter. I must say that in both cases the compensation in terms of a substitute cruise and extra OBC worked in my favor. My schedule is flexible so I could switch. You might not be as flexible and may not do as well as you might. All lines do this as their real concern is the bottom line so this is not an exclusive Celebrity problem. Not an excuse, just a fact. I booked Japan next year knowing that it has a history of being canceled for a Charter. I'll certainly be disappointed if it's cancelled, but that's always a risk. Obviously the cruise you like has a history of being cancelled for Charter. My advice would be to try to avoid that particular cruise during the same time frame.

Edited August 11, 2016 by Orator

[dkjretired]

This review is to warn anyone who is contemplating cruising with Celebrity Cruise Line. On August 4 my husband and I were notified that our 2018 cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico had been cancelled. Please keep in mind that we have had this reservation since late March 2016. We had tried to take this exact trip slated for January 2017 but were told the cruise had been cancelled. So after being told it was in for repair, we proceeded to book the 2018 cruise date.

 

Now this exact cruise, for the second time, has been cancelled. Upon further investigation I have uncovered that Celebrity Cruise has thrown everyone that booked on this cruise off so they could sell the complete booking to a company not only for the 2018 date but also the 2017 sailing. Which means, Celebrity Cruise has no loyalty to its booked customers. All that matters to Celebrity is the almighty dollar!

 

We have cruised for over 20 years with different cruise lines and never once has a cruise line kicked us off a booked and deposit paid cruise. This little game of booking a listed cruise until something better comes along is totally wrong. They have disrupted many planned vacations without so much as a truthful explanation of why. I assume it is easier to say the cruise was cancelled instead of we don’t care that we have spoiled your planned vacation for a better offer from someone else. They offered to rebook us on the December sailing of this itinerary but we would be flying home the day before Christmas plus we would have to pay an additional amount due to an increase in the fare. Since we are senior travelers, with more years behind us than in front, being with family is very important to us which made this not an option.

 

We, and I assume many other passengers, are left to get their refunds from whatever source they used to pay for this trip. Thank goodness we did not make airline or hotel reservations. We did, however, purchase travel insurance and were told we could not receive a refund due to the time cancellation policy even though it was not our fault that the cruise was cancelled by Celebrity. After many phone conversations and endless time with several representatives, we were able to receive an exception and were granted the full refund of our purchase of travel insurance. This inconvenience is one more factor that Celebrity Cruise caused with this unwarranted cruise cancellation.

 

Celebrity Cruise should be ashamed of itself for listing a cruise and not living up to its responsibility of providing the service they so proudly tout. This disrupting a cruise of so many customers because they received a better offer should be a warning to anyone who sails with them. Your planned trip could be next! Celebrity Cruise is not looking out for anyone but themselves and will “throw anyone overboard” that may already have a paid reservation. Traveler Beware, Celebrity Cruise Line newsletters usually have a “Thank You for Your Loyally” remark in them, but experiencing their “thank you” first hand, we know that Celebrity Cruise Line and its’ executives have only one agenda, the bottom line, not the consumer.:mad:

 

 

Sorry for your inconvenience but every cruise line does this, you just happened to be unlucky.

[WestLakeGirl]

It should be no surprise that a publicly held corporation's number one priority is making money, the bottom line, etc

[Cruise Raider]

While I understand your frustration, this has happened to us twice so far and both times, we ended up with fabulous cruises and enjoyed the perks we received as a token of Celebrity's appreciation to their loyal customers. In other words, we made not only lemonade but lemon cake out of lemons and ended up doing quite well on our plans. Maybe it is too fresh and I would have been really irritated if they hadn't refunded my insurance due to their cancellation.

Not meaning to discount your frustration, but I now oftentimes book a couple of itineraries in case they cancel one of them. I haven't heard that Celebrity cancels their cruises without ample notice -- like once passengers have paid for their airfare. I may be wrong on this but on my cruises that were canceled, we were notified well in advance of being able to purchase airfare.

They also give you a list of cruises they will make available to you for the same pricing and perks that you currently had on your original booking. If you choose a different cruise, they still have offered some onboard credit. It doesn't sound as though you will be taking them up on this, though. I just know that it has worked out to our advantage twice when our cruises were canceled. Hopefully, you will find something that works out for you, whether on Celebrity, on land or on another cruiseline.

[Karynanne]

It should be no surprise that a publicly held corporation's number one priority is making money, the bottom line, etc

 

 

Bingo.

[funandsun]

I'm an occasional cruiser and this situation is why it will never be my #1 vacation choice.

 

Going through the efforts of finding something I like at a time that fits into my schedule only to be told months later that the company has changed its mind and no longer wants to honor my reservation is frustrating and I understand where the OP is coming from. Yes, it has happened to me and I did rebook with a small added incentive, so it did work out in the end.

 

I can understand unforeseen circumstances like problems with the ship, but not simply because they want to charter it out after already taking reservations for a listed itinerary.

 

Doesn't stop me from cruising totally, but does cause me to always consider other alternatives first. Cruising is just a change it up type of thing for me as result of these chartering issues. The cruising industry seems to be getting along just fine without more of my dollars and I'm happy with my vacation choices, so no biggie. 😃

[JUST TRIPPIN']

I also tend to agree with the OP. I am well aware that cruise lines do this sort of thing. I am also aware that many people from the colder climates ( like myself), generally cruise from Jan to Mar and the Southern Caribbean is a favourite itinerary.

 

Both 2017 and 2018 seasons have no available cruises left for their valuable and loyal customers.

 

We went with a western itinerary this coming year but will look elsewhere until they need the little man's money again.

[kitty9]

People keep saying that all cruise lines do these charter cruises, and while that may be true, Celebrity seems to have a higher number of these full and partial charters. After doing a quick count, I found that Celebrity has 49 scheduled full or partial charters for the rest of 2016 and all of 2017. Royal Caribbean has 57 partial or full charters for the rest of 2016 and all of 2017. By far, these two lines have the most full/partial charters. Kind of looks like the parent company of these two lines prefer having groups on board.

[cruiserlove]

Sorry, op. That does sound disappointing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[C 2 C]

Celebrity Cruise should be ashamed of itself for listing a cruise and not living up to its responsibility of providing the service they so proudly tout. This disrupting a cruise of so many customers because they received a better offer should be a warning to anyone who sails with them. Your planned trip could be next! Celebrity Cruise is not looking out for anyone but themselves and will “throw anyone overboard” that may already have a paid reservation.

 

It is always painful when a customer commits to a product and the vendor forces us to change.

I've always felt that once payment is received there is a certain level of certainty that a product will be delivered as "contracted", weather, mechanical issues, acts of terror or threats excluded.

 

Unless one's own "ox is being gored" many posters will offer no sympathy because in true capitalist fashion an increase in company profits is the duty of the corporation. Since some posters aren't affected the implication is that you should have known better than to think you could actually enjoy a product that you bought in good faith.

 

I believe that Celebrity makes more of these changes on a ship basis than other cruise companies and that all we can do is voice our disappointment because the pattern is obvious.

 

We have had many cancellations of and alterations to our plans over the years. We now book very close to sailing date.

 

We still like the product provided by staff and crew on the ships but as in your situation, company practices are often not appreciated.

[hcat]

Infinity in Oct has also been problematic...as it is sometimes chartered for use as a floating convention hotel.

 

This happened for our 2016 ABC Island cruise. While negotions went on we were left hanging with no concrete info shared... we got tired of uncertainty so we switched to a later date. Glad we did b/c Celeb eventually revised a portion of its schedule and canceled our orig booked date.

 

More recently Princess canceled us from a Pacific Coastal based on "redeployment" . It was done far in advance, so no harm, and we then found a similar cruise on Celeb which we which was not previously offered. Guess they all do it. They must make more on a charter than regularly booked cruises....

 

We no longer book cruises involving airline tix or hotels that cannot be cancelled or changed...to avoid issues beyond our control.

[floridatravelersforlife]

It is always painful when a customer commits to a product and the vendor forces us to change.

I've always felt that once payment is received there is a certain level of certainty that a product will be delivered as "contracted", weather, mechanical issues, acts of terror or threats excluded.

 

Unless one's own "ox is being gored" many posters will offer no sympathy because in true capitalist fashion an increase in company profits is the duty of the corporation. Since some posters aren't affected the implication is that you should have known better than to think you could actually enjoy a product that you bought in good faith.

 

I believe that Celebrity makes more of these changes on a ship basis than other cruise companies and that all we can do is voice our disappointment because the pattern is obvious.

 

We have had many cancellations of and alterations to our plans over the years. We now book very close to sailing date.

 

We still like the product provided by staff and crew on the ships but as in your situation, company practices are often not appreciated.

 

I second that and add "vote with your wallet". Affinity Programs are not what they used to be!

[BecciBoo]

 

You have 2 yrs to cruise, book another.

 

I can agree with being disappointed but seriously, not worth this dramatic a reaction. You'll get the OBC go the next week and be fine:cool:

Edited August 11, 2016 by BecciBoo

[jabrown40]

I was cancelled for March 2018, but simply chose a different cruise, received extra obc and kept my same fare and perks for an S class ship. I knew ahead of time that it would probably be chartered and already had plan B in place. It was so far out, it made no difference in my plans.

[woody14h]

We booked for our 50th anniv. on the Equinox for April 2017. Cancelled, bummer. Re booked on the Silhouette TA in April 2017. Now I am concerned that this might be a problem as well. The CC posts are minimal. People might not be as ready to cruise Europe with the happenings there. IMHO, that was why the Equinox is remaining in the Caribbean. We'll see. On the Reflection in October on a TA. Will get a feel for this turn of events on board.

[NancyIL]

Infinity in Oct has also been problematic...as it is sometimes chartered for use as a floating convention hotel.

 

This happened for our 2016 ABC Island cruise. While negotions went on we were left hanging with no concrete info shared... we got tired of uncertainty so we switched to a later date. Glad we did b/c Celeb eventually revised a portion of its schedule and canceled our orig booked date.

 

More recently Princess canceled us from a Pacific Coastal based on "redeployment" . It was done far in advance, so no harm, and we then found a similar cruise on Celeb which we which was not previously offered. Guess they all do it. They must make more on a charter than regularly booked cruises....

 

We no longer book cruises involving airline tix or hotels that cannot be cancelled or changed...to avoid issues beyond our control.

 

We were booked on the Sept. 11, 2016 7-night Pacific Coastal cruise from Vancouver to San Diego. When Celebrity wanted to charter the ship for 5 nights in October, the Sept. 11 cruise was changed to an Alaska cruise, and 2 7-night Pacific Coastal cruises were added on Sept. 18 and 25. We moved to the Sept. 25 cruise and were given $100 in onboard credit for our inconvenience. Last November the charter fell through, so Celebrity changed our 7-night Pacific Coastal cruise to a 12-night one. They gave us an additional $100 in onboard credit when we decided to keep the cruise - at a higher price, of course. Our travel agent also got Celebrity to freeze our prepaid gratuities at 7 nights instead of 12.

[Oceangoer2]

People keep saying that all cruise lines do these charter cruises, and while that may be true, Celebrity seems to have a higher number of these full and partial charters. After doing a quick count, I found that Celebrity has 49 scheduled full or partial charters for the rest of 2016 and all of 2017. Royal Caribbean has 57 partial or full charters for the rest of 2016 and all of 2017. By far, these two lines have the most full/partial charters. Kind of looks like the parent company of these two lines prefer having groups on board.

where/how did you find out about the X charters?

[GordonJasmine]

I can understand your frustration! I remember how disappointed I was when the stop at Belaire was cancelled on our last cruise. And that was just a port, not the whole cruise. We must be lucky (so far) because in over 20 cruises we have yet to have one cancelled. Except, of course, when Norway met her sad end.