Getaway 4/27/19 Transatlantic Shortened by Two Days

[cruiseSEA52]

A couple years ago I was on a Royal Carribbean cruise.  A couple months before the cruise they made an itinerary change as they needed to work on the adipod.  They provided 50% of the cruise fare paid as a refundable on-board credit, and in lieu of that people could elect a full refund of the cruise.  Has me thinking I made a mistake booking NCL for this summer.

[peacefulOR]

16 minutes ago, cruiseSEA52 said:

A couple years ago I was on a Royal Carribbean cruise.  A couple months before the cruise they made an itinerary change as they needed to work on the adipod.  They provided 50% of the cruise fare paid as a refundable on-board credit, and in lieu of that people could elect a full refund of the cruise.  Has me thinking I made a mistake booking NCL for this summer.

 

Thank you for your support. This is my second TA with NCL....they missed Zeebrugge last one also. Have taken TAs as long as 21 days with other lines and not missed one port, much less have 2 days taken away at the last minute. If you stay with NCL, please get the "cover me whatever happens" because not all trip insurance covers this kind of trip reduction.  Our state was one of the ones not covered so we are pushing at Norwegian for better compensation. Royal has shown excellent customer service; we picked up a lot of their Oasis passengers after it was damaged. Happy cruising....we intend to have a great cruise based on the onboard experience and hope the same for you.

Rainey

[Granny DI]

1 hour ago, dexddd said:

SFO had gobs of rain during that drydock so I do cut them slack and feel they took good care of us even though the refund check took 16 weeks to arrive for some of us.  The CEO may have visited but wasn't on the ship although Klaus was there and is probably the best person I've meet from NCL who could take charge and improve things.

 

The outside work lasted the whole trip which seems long compared to the rain delays plus the spa was out of action for weeks after our sailing.

 

Bottom line, NCL recent drydocks have not gone well.

Totally agree.

Our experience with NCL disasters goes back to the original ship built for Hawaii. We booked a year in advance of it’s completion at the shipyard in Germany. . Shortly before the ship was to start sea trials in the North Sea it sunk. Everything below deck 5 was damaged. At this point NCL had a major problem. They took an older ship and revamped it for the Hawaiian market. They offered us a deal we couldn’t refuse to keep us from cancelling. Hated the ship but loved the cruise! We sailed the rebuilt ship years later.

[fstuff1]

19 minutes ago, cruiseSEA52 said:

A couple years ago I was on a Royal Carribbean cruise.  A couple months before the cruise they made an itinerary change as they needed to work on the adipod.  They provided 50% of the cruise fare paid as a refundable on-board credit, and in lieu of that people could elect a full refund of the cruise.  Has me thinking I made a mistake booking NCL for this summer.

 

yeah, ncl should have said 25% refund + $300pp for airfare changes if you chose to stay with the cruise OR cancel with 100% refund.

if they did that, then not upping the offer would be ok.

 

i think that way would have been better marketing wise and cheaper/less headache than 25% off, 25% towards future cruise and $300pp for travel expenses.

 

[peacefulOR]

17 minutes ago, fstuff1 said:

 

yeah, ncl should have said 25% refund + $300pp for airfare changes if you chose to stay with the cruise OR cancel with 100% refund.

if they did that, then not upping the offer would be ok.

 

i think that way would have been better marketing wise and cheaper/less headache than 25% off, 25% towards future cruise and $300pp for travel expenses.

 

 

You have a good point; there are some who could do that, even at the last minute. Many of us have multiple plane connections, hotel stays at both ends, booked excursions, etc. So, the current offer still isn't acceptible to the hundred or thousands currently booked on the Getaway who can't change vacation plans, reservations etc. this late. It's the timing and the skipping of the 2 best ports with a poor substitution that needs to be compensated.

[JerseyCruisers2019]

Six days before sailing and NCL's website still shows this as my booking.  There's got to be some false advertising / fraud laws they're violating here....

[mainelycruising]

5 hours ago, sawsgal said:

Still showing as a 12 day in my reservation, six days out!

 

Seems like they care about accurate information on their site as much as they care about customer loyalty and proactive communication.

 

 

Print a copy and take a screenshot of it ... it might become handy if a class-action lawsuit develops.  

[mainelycruising]

Here is the schedule for the drydock, in Brest. The Getaway had a refurbishment there in 2018 as well.  Azipod/thruster issues again?

 

http://crew-center.com/brest-france-cruise-ship-schedule-2019

[mainelycruising]

3 minutes ago, JerseyCruisers2019 said:

Six days before sailing and NCL's website still shows this as my booking.  There's got to be some false advertising / fraud laws they're violating here....

 

Has NCL contacted you directly?  Many passengers have heard via their TAs, and not from NCL, about this itinerary truncation.

[Granny DI]

3 minutes ago, mainelycruising said:

Here is the schedule for the drydock, in Brest. The Getaway had a refurbishment there in 2018 as well.  Azipod/thruster issues again?

 

http://crew-center.com/brest-france-cruise-ship-schedule-2019

I said on Friday there was more to the story and perhaps there was a problem with the ship that needed to be addressed ASAP.

The worst case option for all passengers would have been to cancel the cruise.....then everyone is out lots of money at this point. That was my biggest fear when I booked a post dry dock cruise.

[luv2kroooz]

3 hours ago, fstuff1 said:

 

marketing + negotiating tactics.

start with lowball offer then work your way up till the majority of peasants stop bitching.

That about sums up NCLs culture of customer service, too. Just throw something at them and hope they go away. Wow!

[hilcadon]

I cannot believe that this could happen on any cruise. The last minute notice is totally unacceptable, and everyone should have been given the option to cancel with a full refund. I am booked on the April 28th TA on the Pearl and had looked at this cruise also. I did not like the itinerary and would have been livid if this had happened to our cruise. I booked it so that I could go to Normandy and return to Ireland since we were there last August. We were debating buying some cruise next certificates for our next cruise and were tying to decide where we wanted to go. After this nightmare we booked our next TA with QM2 in July 2020 and I think I will avoid any further cruises with Norwegian. I hope that everyone is able to make the best of this situation and I wish you happy sailing and perhaps in the end Norwegian will do right by everyone. 

[Mercury]

5 hours ago, PTC DAWG said:

While I’m not on this cruise, the offered compensation seems fair to me...

 

That said, any cruise on any line right before or after a dry dock is a crap shoot....good insurance is a must. 

How do you find out when a ship is going into dry dock?

Is this posted well in advance as we usually book our cruises a year in advance?

[fstuff1]

4 minutes ago, Mercury said:

How do you find out when a ship is going into dry dock?

Is this posted well in advance as we usually book our cruises a year in advance?

 

you have to research it yourself.

i found out about it because i wanted to do a back to back.

but ncl's website didnt list getaway for may 9th.

 

did research and found out it's in drydock after it reaches england.

 

 

[slowwalker]

We are also booked on this cruise.  There is no way I would have booked it as a 10 day cruise only going to England.  Unlike some, I don't much care about the ports because I am confined to a scooter and have difficulty getting around so I frequently stay on the boat but I am not happy having to pack and do airports for a shortened voyage.  I think this is not the trip I booked.  This is a substantial change and not due to unforeseen circumstances.  We should be allowed to cancel with full refund of all ship's charges and airfare.  I, for one, do not want to get on a ship where everyone is angry and unhappy at the changes that were made.  It stinks.

Slowwalker.

[Hockeyref]

1 hour ago, slowwalker said:

We are also booked on this cruise.  There is no way I would have booked it as a 10 day cruise only going to England.  Unlike some, I don't much care about the ports because I am confined to a scooter and have difficulty getting around so I frequently stay on the boat but I am not happy having to pack and do airports for a shortened voyage.  I think this is not the trip I booked.  This is a substantial change and not due to unforeseen circumstances.  We should be allowed to cancel with full refund of all ship's charges and airfare.  I, for one, do not want to get on a ship where everyone is angry and unhappy at the changes that were made.  It stinks.

Slowwalker.

Yes, this should be a carefree vacation of fun, frivolity and relaxation. I cannot imagine how unpleasant this cruise may be with 4,000 angry and unhappy passengers. 

[NLH Arizona]

45 minutes ago, Hockeyref said:

Yes, this should be a carefree vacation of fun, frivolity and relaxation. I cannot imagine how unpleasant this cruise may be with 4,000 angry and unhappy passengers. 

Hopefully everyone will be able to enjoy their cruise, even under the circumstances, and not take any hostilities out on the crew and officers, since they had no say on what happened.

Edited April 21, 2019 by NLH Arizona

[texmex.ferr]

6 hours ago, mainelycruising said:

Here is the schedule for the drydock, in Brest. The Getaway had a refurbishment there in 2018 as well.  Azipod/thruster issues again?

 

http://crew-center.com/brest-france-cruise-ship-schedule-2019

This has obviously not been updated, the link still shows Getaway going into drydock on May 10, there is nowhere it shows it going into drydock on May 7th, or 8th.(2 days earlier than scheduled).

[wwwfla]

36 minutes ago, texmex.ferr said:

This has obviously not been updated, the link still shows Getaway going into drydock on May 10, there is nowhere it shows it going into drydock on May 7th, or 8th.(2 days earlier than scheduled).

I don’t recall that anyone or NCL said early drydock was occurring.

[JerseyCruisers2019]

16 minutes ago, wwwfla said:

I don’t recall that anyone or NCL said early drydock was occurring.

 

That's the reason they gave for dropping the Le Havre and Bruges ports and ending the cruise 2 days early. 

 

From the letter they sent:

"Dear Valued Guests and Travel Partners,

 

As part of The Norwegian Edge® refurbishment program, Norwegian's commitment to elevating the standard of excellence across its fleet, Norwegian Getaway will now be entering her scheduled 2019 drydock earlier than originally programmed. As a result, the sailing departing on April 27, 2019 has been modified from a 12-day to a 10-day Transatlantic sailing. The ship will now arrive in Southampton, England on May 7, 2019. "

[erdoran]

Just fyi, I had mentioned before you have the option to dispute your credit card bill (for those who paid by credit card) for the cruise.  You can dispute it even after you have paid it.  I’m not a lawyer and I don’t know if you would win.  FWIW my husband had bought a 12-month service contract on the very expensive and essential handheld computer he used in his business.  10 months in the company went out of business.  He disputed the charge, which he had paid in full almost a year earlier, and won because the company failed to honor the contract.

 

in this case, you bought one thing - a 12 day cruise - and got something else - a 10 day cruise - and you don’t have the option to cancel for a full refund.  Clearly it’s not a good idea to cancel and then dispute, as there is no guarantee you will win.  There’s an argument to be made NCL didn’t deliver what you bought; NCL’s counter-argument will most likely be the 25% refund (which was issued automatically) and their contract.

 

No idea how it will turn out, but it would be interesting to see, AND it would also be an additional way to express your displeasure.  

 

Do NOT do this frivolously or to take advantage; if you are satisfied with NCL’s compensation then don’t dispute the charge.  OTOH if you are dissatisfied with what NCL ends up offering, this is an option.  You may not win, but if you are dissatisfied when all is said and done, this is a way to show your displeasure.   When you dispute, write a letter of dispute explaining WHAT you are disputing and WHY, and include documentation (e.g. your initial itinerary and revised itinerary).  And be up front - state the compensation you were GIVEN and ACCEPTED and why that is unsatisfactory.  

[gogators!]

 

We're on this as well and are devastated.  25% is a joke, which is low for taking half the ports (and the good ones) away.  Does not come close to the cost of stranding us.  2 days stranded and they will only pay airfare so you can return early from the cruise they ruined.  NO ONE, AND I MEAN NO ONE WOULD BOOK THIS CRAPPY ITENERARY, and they know it.  They kept Portland England (which there is about as much to do as Nassau, Bahamas), yet we lose paris and belguim.  They could have kept either instead of a port where the highlight is a damn lighthouse.  One week from sailing.  Shame on you NCL.

 

Let's keep one thing strait.  This was a voluntary decision made by NCL at the very last moment.  There was no act of god, no mechanical failure, nothing but NCL's convenience of dry docking a little bit early.
 

We'll see how they wiggle out of their "cancel for any reason" policy which we paid dearly for.

[Osnab]

On ‎4‎/‎19‎/‎2019 at 7:20 PM, purpleally said:

Trip interruption?   There will be extra costs for two hotel nights that were unexpected?

Why should the insurance company pay this?  It's unreasonable for NCL to do this.  $300 for airfare changes?  That's not enough, if someone is flying business class.  And to go from 5 ports to 3, that's not why most people go to Europe. 

I hope that NCL does the reasonable thing and allow those who wish to cancel to get a full refund, and make them whole on airfare, too. 

[Osnab]

37 minutes ago, erdoran said:

Just fyi, I had mentioned before you have the option to dispute your credit card bill (for those who paid by credit card) for the cruise.  You can dispute it even after you have paid it. .  

Excellent point! 

[Osnab]

NCL:

Is anyone from your customer service dept going to reply to these posts?  You need to deal with this in a proper manner.