Stops at San Juan cancelled for 2020/2021 season!

[island lady]

18 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Not really, sucks to see plans change

 

Yeah, I just remembered that you have had plans drastically changed, or something..since I know you are not a fan from an experience (or two?) of sailing out of SJ.  You warned us!  😉 

[island lady]

12 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

Sailings in January will not be affected

 

I have B2B2B this coming January, and then B2B January 2021.   Thinking the same thing, January 2020 most likely safe, but....not so sure about 2021.  

[island lady]

4 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

and soon to be their beach stop in Antigua. 😉

 

We have January 2021 booked on Freedom after being amplified.  Sailed from SJ once, am I missing something other than the cultural immersion.

 

 

So at this rate do you think my January 2021 on Freedom is safe, as of now?  I know speculation but wondering. 

 

I am booked 1/10 and 1/17/21...not sure that is going to happen now...but more than enough time to change to something else if we have to I guess.  

[John&LaLa]

9 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Yeah, I just remembered that you have had plans drastically changed, or something..since I know you are not a fan from an experience (or two?) of sailing out of SJ.  You warned us!  😉 

 

Anyone that cruises excessively is going to experience cancellations and port changes.

 

In my opinion 

[island lady]

2 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Anyone that cruises excessively is going to experience cancellations and port changes.

 

In my opinion 

 

You have had your share of bad luck indeed, I have only had port changes..so far.  I suppose I am due...but question is...where and when?  😮 

Edited November 27, 2019 by island lady

[PhoenixCruiser]

We are currently on our fifth cruise out of San Juan and have only had one negative experience which was on the Brilliance.

Aruba yesterday



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[davekathy]

4 minutes ago, PhoenixCruiser said:

Aruba yesterday

Man, you're killing me. It's a very cold and a whiteout here and I'm not talking white sandy beaches. 

Edited November 27, 2019 by davekathy

[brookie848]

5 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

I didn't see much of a cultural immersion on our cruises out of San Juan.  We just didn't like the crowding on Freedom class.

 

Our first cruise out of San Juan was total cultural immersion. It was the NCL Dawn's first sailing after Hurricane Maria. Of course, a lot of people cancelled, so deep discounts were offered to locals. I'd say 70% of the passengers were locals. They were all so thrilled to have food, water, and air conditioning. We had many large family groups that were happy to all be together and have a chance to relax and forget their troubles for the week.

 

Our sailing out of San Juan earlier this year didn't have very many locals on it and I missed the vibe. 

 

And I have to say thank you to all the people on the Royal ship that sailed after the hurricanes in 2017. You were all very helpful answering all of my questions as our cruise got closer. I hope San Juan gets this all figured out. We enjoy sailing out of there and are always considering trying out Royal's ships/itineraries out of there. 

[cruiselvr04]

Figured this was political.  Hoping Royal doesn’t pull out.  DS has March cruise booked out of San Juan and airfare purchased.  He would be very unhappy.  I don’t think I’ll worry him about this yet...watch and see.  

 

I feel bad for the loss of tourism this will have if true.  Less hotel rooms booked,  less food bought in restaurants, less folks extending their vacations there like we always did.  Plus it’s a great way to see those more southern and less frequently visited islands.  It would have a trickle down effect.  Hope they can work it out or at least not cancel the cruises already published.

 

If they stop San Juan as a port of call so be it but I’d hate to see all those with hotels and airfare booked on Freedom be disappointed.

Edited November 27, 2019 by cruiselvr04

[island lady]

47 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Man, you're killing me. It's a very cold and a whiteout here and I'm not talking white sandy beaches. 

 

Got your skis waxed up my DS friend?  😄 

[island lady]

12 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

Figured this was political.  Hoping Royal doesn’t pull out.  DS has March cruise booked out of San Juan and airfare purchased.  He would be very unhappy.  I don’t think I’ll worry him about this yet...watch and see.  

 

I feel bad for the loss of tourism this will have if true.  Less hotel rooms booked,  less food bought in restaurants, less folks extending their vacations there like we always did.  Plus it’s a great way to see those more southern and less frequently visited islands.  It would have a trickle down effect.  Hope they can work it out or at least not cancel the cruises already published.

 

If they stop San Juan as a port of call so be it but I’d hate to see all those with hotels and airfare booked on Freedom be disappointed.

 

If my upcoming B2B2B January 2020 on Vision is cancelled...I will be looking for refund on my cruises, my shore excursions, my hotel, and my flight.   😠

 

Though I really don't think they will do that to cruises booked that leave under 90 days out.  Or at least, I wouldn't think so anyway.   

Edited November 27, 2019 by island lady

[davekathy]

1 minute ago, island lady said:

 

Got your skis waxed up my DS friend?  😄 

No. Currently I'm doing other duties as assigned. Preparing for a house full of friends tomorrow. Gotta go. Just got another tasking. You two have a peaceful and enjoyable day tomorrow. 🍷🍷

[island lady]

Just now, davekathy said:

No. Currently I'm doing other duties as assigned. Preparing for a house full of friends tomorrow. Gotta go. Just got another tasking. You two have a peaceful and enjoyable day tomorrow. 🍷🍷

 

You as well...my house will be smelling like roasting turkey tomorrow morning.  🙂 

 

And no...not these guys in my back yard...though they have fattened up with me giving them birdseed hand outs...I have "pardoned" them.  😉 

 

 

[Ourusualbeach]

In a statement to travel agents, Royal Caribbean issued the following statement:

Royal Caribbean reviews and adjusts itineraries and deployments every year.

The rumors regarding cancellations of sailings departing between April 2020 – March 2021 from San Juan are incorrect. We have not cancelled any of our ships visiting or homeporting in San Juan.

Though we have not yet announced our full 2021-2022 deployments, we do expect fewer calls from San Juan for the 2021-2022 season and we will be able to provide more details once we have announced our itineraries. 

No decisions regarding deployment beyond those dates have yet been made.

On Tuesday, some news outlets in Puerto Rico began reporting Royal Caribbean was planning to cancel 90 calls to San Juan, Puerto Rico for the 2020 and 2021 season.

[A&L_Ont]

26 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

 

The rumors regarding cancellations of sailings departing between April 2020 – March 2021 from San Juan are incorrect. We have not cancelled any of our ships visiting or homeporting in San Juan.

 

Sounds like my Freedom January 2021 SJ departure is safe.

[island lady]

17 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

Sounds like my Freedom January 2021 SJ departure is safe.

 

Me too.  "Sea" you on board?  

[Blue Eyed Belfast Belle]

3 hours ago, island lady said:

 

If my upcoming B2B2B January 2020 on Vision is cancelled...I will be looking for refund on my cruises, my shore excursions, my hotel, and my flight.   😠

 

Though I really don't think they will do that to cruises booked that leave under 90 days out.  Or at least, I wouldn't think so anyway.   

We are on Vision March 2020 and were just about to book our flights from Ireland.

 

After the Oasis TA  cancellation, although we got a £300/$400 payment towards flights not booked through RCI, I was still out of pocket to the tune of nearly £500. 

 

This is giving me a sinking deja vu feeling 😯

[Coralc]

1 hour ago, Blue Eyed Belfast Belle said:

We are on Vision March 2020 and were just about to book our flights from Ireland.

 

After the Oasis TA  cancellation, although we got a £300/$400 payment towards flights not booked through RCI, I was still out of pocket to the tune of nearly £500. 

 

This is giving me a sinking deja vu feeling 😯

 

I don't blame you. It is rotten to not know what their intentions might be. One would hope that everything would go as planned. Would your travel package insurance help you if the departure port was the only thing <possibly> changed. The cruise wouldn't be cancelled altogether as Oasis was. 

[pstone1]

We have sailed from SJU every year for the last 5+ years and have never had a bad experience.  We are currently scheduled to stop there as a Port of Call in February.  I am planning to pick up my annual quart of jalapeño/cilantro sauce from our favorite restaurant and Jim is planning to buy at least one case of Medalla Light to bring home.  

 

Although it sounds like we shouldn’t have to worry, we will be very disappointed if RCL cancels our stop.

[Cherries Jubilee]

This doesn’t make me want to invest much time and anticipation on my August 2020 cruise on the Freedom.

[Ourusualbeach]

10 minutes ago, Cherries Jubilee said:

This doesn’t make me want to invest much time and anticipation on my August 2020 cruise on the Freedom.

Read post 114

[mpdog42]

On 11/26/2019 at 8:14 PM, taglovestocruise said:

Cruise Ships Canceling Calls to San Juan

According to El Nuevo Dia, Royal Caribbean is canceling 90 calls to San Juan, Puerto Rico for the 2020 and 2021 season. The news was released by Fermin Fontanez, the director of the Authority for Public-Private Partnerships that these cancellations would happen.

However, the cruise line has apparently confirmed to the site that no itineraries have been changed and they are “still standing on the same full itineraries.”

The reason for the cancellations is the privatization of the cruise docks in San Juan due to much-needed maintenance that is needed. Around $250 million investment is needed to make sure cruise ships can continue to dock there in the years to come. There is an urge for governer Wanda Vazquez to not go ahead with the privatization so this news is fluid.

We will have to see how this works out as the port authorities and Royal Caribbean usually have an open dialogue and it has come as a surprise with the cancellations.

The 90 canceled visits to the eastern Caribbean island would mean 360,000 fewer tourists and in turn, would have an economic impact of $44 million. Authorities have also stated that an additional 30 departures from San Juan are being canceled and that apparently includes Freedom of the Seas which is operated by Royal Caribbean.

Allure of the Seas and Symphony of the Seas which are both Oasis-class cruise ships are also impacted by the canceled calls. Carnival Cruise Line has remained committed to the island and has even recently announced new sailings with the Carnival Fascinationcruise ship in 2021.

If Carnival was really "Committed" to the island, They would put in a better ship than Fascination!!!

[mayleeman]

12 hours ago, NateUpNorth said:

Seems pretty logical:

 

Cruise lines: "What will port fees look like in 2021-2022?"

San Juan (government or port management company): "No idea"

Cruise lines: "What's the reno plan, will it affect access?"

San Juan: "No idea"

 

Cruise lines: "We're gonna hold off planning any itineraries for now."

 

So....San Juan is just a typical teenager?!?!?

[PhoenixCruiser]

Man, you're killing me. It's a very cold and a whiteout here and I'm not talking white sandy beaches. 

My family in Wisconsin said the same [emoji44]

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[HBE4]

1 hour ago, mayleeman said:

 

So....San Juan is just a typical teenager?!?!?

 

Actually, a blank stare followed by a "whatevs" and  the all important eye-roll would be more typical.