Thomson going bust

[dorothy09]

As cruise newcomers we booked our cabin on the Celebration through our local Sussex shop at a cost. We did get a nice cabin with unobscured view but it took ages to arrange as their computer system is rubbish. There did also seem a lack of enthusiasm among the staff. Perhaps they suspect their days are numbered in Thomsons new digital world despite the company promise to keep the shops open.

[davecttr]

Thomson Cruises is stuck in the past. There's no way to see which cabins are available, yet they're happy to take money off you to pre-book a cabin when you don't know whether you'd want any of those that are left. Crazy.

It does not work like that for me. I go to my TA and arrange a Thomson cruise. During the booking process I make it clear I will be reserving a cabin but won't confirm the booking and pay the deposit until the TA contact Thomson to check that a suitable cabin is available, at which point the booking and cabin reservation are made :)

 

Anyway Thomson cruises will be gone soon so we will have to deal with TUI.

[davecttr]

As cruise newcomers we booked our cabin on the Celebration through our local Sussex shop at a cost. We did get a nice cabin with unobscured view but it took ages to arrange as their computer system is rubbish. There did also seem a lack of enthusiasm among the staff. Perhaps they suspect their days are numbered in Thomsons new digital world despite the company promise to keep the shops open.

 

Quite a cheap cost to at £45? per cabin. Contrast that with P&O where you might end up paying hundreds per person to reserve a particular cabin.

[LondonTowner]

In tonight's London Evening Standard business section saying both TUI and TCook shares considerably down.

[dorothy09]

Learning a lot about booking cruises with different cruise lines on this website. Hundreds of pounds to book a cabin? Scary! We have booked hotel holidays through Thomson for a decade, usually on the internet, but switched to the shop as cruise booking seemed to have more pitfalls. The shop staff at our local store do not seem that bright - the manager is a particular pain - and I wonder how it will work when they introduce the fully digital plans. It took them a couple of years to replace their old computer system and this one seems just as bad. How's that going to work when they go fully online. Could be a real shambles but I suppose that is progress in their eyes as they will certainly reduce staff and close shops to make more money. However what I am reading about other companies on Cruise Critic suggests Thomson are not too bad.

[davecttr]

Learning a lot about booking cruises with different cruise lines on this website. Hundreds of pounds to book a cabin? Scary! We have booked hotel holidays through Thomson for a decade, usually on the internet, but switched to the shop as cruise booking seemed to have more pitfalls. The shop staff at our local store do not seem that bright - the manager is a particular pain - and I wonder how it will work when they introduce the fully digital plans. It took them a couple of years to replace their old computer system and this one seems just as bad. How's that going to work when they go fully online. Could be a real shambles but I suppose that is progress in their eyes as they will certainly reduce staff and close shops to make more money. However what I am reading about other companies on Cruise Critic suggests Thomson are not too bad.

 

It can be a complex matter. P&O have a 3 tier fare structure. 'Select' is available first and you pay the full price. for this you get to reserve your cabin and have priority on what dining type/time you prefer. As time passes they announce 'early saver' and 'saver' fares. Here you can't chose your cabin or dining type. You might get unlucky and find the saver fares are a lot lower, in which case you have paid 100's to reserve a cabin. It is somewhat a lottery.

[dorothy09]

Couldn't deal with that, we like to book early, select our cabin - I must have a window - and know as much as possible about our trip. Think Thomson are quite good at that so will probably stick with them even though they *robbed* us of £84 last time. Maybe we will still get it back, friends of ours got a refund after almost a year! Moneysupermarket are about to upgrade the claim.

[Pensioncruiser]

Must agree we book early and try to reserve a cabin we know, boring i know.Good luck with that dorothy09 I have just escalated our case via Resolver and after another 10 days then they escalate again to the MD, its good to know it's going to the right person and that you have full history, and its free!!

 

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[dorothy09]

Yes, our claim escalates tomorrow and then hopefully goes to the MD if still unresolved. Tried Ask Tony in the Mail and Which travel but with no apparent success. And Thomson Cares tweet desk did not care. Shop said they could not help despite booking with them, sadly the very efficient girl we booked with had moved on by then. They seemed to be totally unaware that one of the two repayments had been made available until we raised our query in the shop, how often is that happening? Not good PR from arguably our top travel company.

[Pensioncruiser]

Don't forget it doesn't escalate automatically they remind you and you just press the button.

 

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[dorothy09]

Okay, thanks for the advice