Possible Carnival Cancellation/Delay

[charliealpha1]

Greetings,

Carnival Panorama sail 9/19 is no longer on Carnival website along with all other September sailings.

[Essiesmom]

My cancelled cruise stayed in my cruise manager (and the Hub app) until the day it should have sailed.  EM

[bury me at sea]

1 hour ago, Essiesmom said:

My cancelled cruise stayed in my cruise manager (and the Hub app) until the day it should have sailed.  EM

 

My March cruise cancelled by Carnival stayed in my Cruise Manager for days and I continued receiving marketing e-mails for Cheers, etc. for many days.

 

 

[Lottacruises]

My cancelled cruises stayed in mine too until the day of the cruises.

[skridge]

15 hours ago, firefly333 said:

 

 

As far as why cruiselines are booking cruises they know will be cancelled, they need the cash flow.

 

 

You don't see that as fraudulent?  I sure do.

[Cruiseboy06]

it sounds like they are going to cancel more cruises.............   Sold out line smells fishy

[Lee Cruiser]

This is exactly what started happening before the last round of cancellations. Many people said then that it was probably because of capacity cuts and it may be this time, but I'm not convinced.  Only one Breeze cruise (September 26) is showing up until November.  There are shorter cruises showing up out of Port Canaveral.  We have been booked on the Breeze on September 19 for well over a year.  So far we have only paid the deposit.  The final payment is due on June 21.  It was in July, but changed when we did a price reduction form.  We have been waiting until the last minute to pay.  But, at this point we will probably cancel instead of tying up the final payment.  Since we were booked before March 10, we can cancel and transfer our full deposit to one of our 2021 cruises.  I'm not very optimistic about September cruises at this point.

[devinc]

45 minutes ago, skridge said:

You don't see that as fraudulent?  I sure do.

 

Exactly.  This is why I feel like they are reducing capacity.  

[Tjcalley]

11 minutes ago, Lee Cruiser said:

This is exactly what started happening before the last round of cancellations. Many people said then that it was probably because of capacity cuts and it may be this time, but I'm not convinced.  Only one Breeze cruise (September 26) is showing up until November.  There are shorter cruises showing up out of Port Canaveral.  We have been booked on the Breeze on September 19 for well over a year.  So far we have only paid the deposit.  The final payment is due on June 21.  It was in July, but changed when we did a price reduction form.  We have been waiting until the last minute to pay.  But, at this point we will probably cancel instead of tying up the final payment.  Since we were booked before March 10, we can cancel and transfer our full deposit to one of our 2021 cruises.  I'm not very optimistic about September cruises at this point.

We booked before March. Would we be able to switch to a different sailing without a penalty ?

[Lee Cruiser]

1 minute ago, Tjcalley said:

We booked before March. Would we be able to switch to a different sailing without a penalty ?

You should be able to transfer the full amount to another future cruise.  All cancellation charges will be a future cruise credit.  Here is the email explaining it that we received from Carnival back in March:

 

March 11, 2020 Dear Carnival Guest,   We continue to implement increased monitoring, screening and sanitation protocols to protect the health of our guests, crew and the residents of the destinations we serve. Our measures are designed to be flexible to adapt to changing conditions and recommended best practices. For your reference, you can read our Travel Health Advisory on Carnival.com.   Nevertheless, we know our guests have questions about their upcoming cruise and we have relaxed our cancellation policy to provide flexibility should you wish to reschedule your vacation, as well as incentives to proceed with your plans. The following applies only to guests who booked on or before March 10, 2020. Guests who choose to keep their booking, as currently scheduled, for departures June through September, 2020, will receive the following onboard credit (OBC) amount: US$50, per cabin, for 2 – 5 day sailings US$100, per cabin, for 6 day sailings and longer If you choose to continue to sail with us, we will automatically apply your onboard credit to your Sail & Sign account. There is no need to call us.  You may also cancel up to 30 days prior to your scheduled departure date. Any cancellation charges will be held as a future cruise credit (FCC) to be redeemed on a cruise within one year of your original sailing*.  If your reservation included Fly2Fun air, any monies paid for your air fare will be included in your FCC.  If you purchased independent air, please contact your airline carrier as they are being flexible with change fees. Any pre-purchased Carnival shore excursions, specialty dining/spa or Fun Shop orders will be automatically canceled and refunds will be processed to your original form of payment by your bank within three weeks.  We are experiencing higher call volume than usual and are currently focused on assisting guests sailing March and April, 2020.  We encourage you to contact your travel advisor, Carnival Personal Vacation Planner, or access “My Cruise Manager” on Carnival.com to cancel your reservation.  Any penalties will be held in your account as a FCC.  You may also get answers to Frequently Asked Questions here. We appreciate your loyalty and look forward to welcoming you on board!   Sincerely,

Colleen Oliverio Vice President, Guest Services Contact Centers

[lobster1313]

1 hour ago, skridge said:

You don't see that as fraudulent?  I sure do.

Should Carnival and the other cruise lines shut down bookings indefinitely and cease planning for a resumption in operations because I guess that would be seen as fraudulent. 

[Tjcalley]

52 minutes ago, Lee Cruiser said:

You should be able to transfer the full amount to another future cruise.  All cancellation charges will be a future cruise credit.  Here is the email explaining it that we received from Carnival back in March:

 

March 11, 2020 Dear Carnival Guest,   We continue to implement increased monitoring, screening and sanitation protocols to protect the health of our guests, crew and the residents of the destinations we serve. Our measures are designed to be flexible to adapt to changing conditions and recommended best practices. For your reference, you can read our Travel Health Advisory on Carnival.com.   Nevertheless, we know our guests have questions about their upcoming cruise and we have relaxed our cancellation policy to provide flexibility should you wish to reschedule your vacation, as well as incentives to proceed with your plans. The following applies only to guests who booked on or before March 10, 2020. Guests who choose to keep their booking, as currently scheduled, for departures June through September, 2020, will receive the following onboard credit (OBC) amount: US$50, per cabin, for 2 – 5 day sailings US$100, per cabin, for 6 day sailings and longer If you choose to continue to sail with us, we will automatically apply your onboard credit to your Sail & Sign account. There is no need to call us.  You may also cancel up to 30 days prior to your scheduled departure date. Any cancellation charges will be held as a future cruise credit (FCC) to be redeemed on a cruise within one year of your original sailing*.  If your reservation included Fly2Fun air, any monies paid for your air fare will be included in your FCC.  If you purchased independent air, please contact your airline carrier as they are being flexible with change fees. Any pre-purchased Carnival shore excursions, specialty dining/spa or Fun Shop orders will be automatically canceled and refunds will be processed to your original form of payment by your bank within three weeks.  We are experiencing higher call volume than usual and are currently focused on assisting guests sailing March and April, 2020.  We encourage you to contact your travel advisor, Carnival Personal Vacation Planner, or access “My Cruise Manager” on Carnival.com to cancel your reservation.  Any penalties will be held in your account as a FCC.  You may also get answers to Frequently Asked Questions here. We appreciate your loyalty and look forward to welcoming you on board!   Sincerely,

Colleen Oliverio Vice President, Guest Services Contact Centers

Thanks!

[Organized Chaos]

10 hours ago, bury me at sea said:

My March cruise cancelled by Carnival stayed in my Cruise Manager for days and I continued receiving marketing e-mails for Cheers, etc. for many days.

 

A couple weeks ago, I got a Hub App alert reminding me that one of the activities I had marked was starting in 15 minutes. It was for our cruise back in March. 🤨

[Joe817]

4 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

A couple weeks ago, I got a Hub App alert reminding me that one of the activities I had marked was starting in 15 minutes. It was for our cruise back in March. 🤨

Well, that's kind of wonky. Maybe there's something to the theory that Carnival's booking engine/website needs fixing. 

I know, I know....I have a very good understanding of the obvious. 

[MeganGC1983]

18 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

A couple weeks ago, I got a Hub App alert reminding me that one of the activities I had marked was starting in 15 minutes. It was for our cruise back in March. 🤨

That’s just cruel and unusual punishment. No one is cruising but the hairy chest contest is in 15 minutes, there’s 4 comedy shows tonight and your MDR table is ready... haha just kidding! 🤦🏼‍♀️

[Organized Chaos]

7 hours ago, Cruiseboy06 said:

it sounds like they are going to cancel more cruises.............   Sold out line smells fishy

 

I don't know if they're going to extend the shutdown again or not. But it's reasonable to believe that some, if not all, of these early cruises could sell out. They're going to operate at partial capacity for a while, and it was stated that August bookings alone went through the roof when they first announced they were going to try to start up again in August. High demand, only 8 ships scheduled to start things off, and lower capacity means they'd likely sell out.

 

6 hours ago, Lee Cruiser said:

This is exactly what started happening before the last round of cancellations. Many people said then that it was probably because of capacity cuts and it may be this time, but I'm not convinced.

 

They announced the shutdown in mid-March and set their initial return date for about a month later, the second week of April, something like that. Then they extended the shutdown for another month. No one could've blamed it on capacity cuts because Carnival hadn't even mentioned capacity controlled cruises at that point. In early May, they announced they'd try to resume Aug. 1 with 8 ships that would be capacity controlled. That was their most recent round of cancellations and also the first time they mentioned anything about partial capacity sailings.

[Organized Chaos]

17 minutes ago, Joe817 said:

Well, that's kind of wonky. Maybe there's something to the theory that Carnival's booking engine/website needs fixing. 

I know, I know....I have a very good understanding of the obvious. 

 

3 minutes ago, MeganGC1983 said:

That’s just cruel and unusual punishment. No one is cruising but the hairy chest contest is in 15 minutes, there’s 4 comedy shows tonight and your MDR table is ready... haha just kidding! 🤦🏼‍♀️

 

I know, right. The alert was for the "comedy showcase" where they had both comedians each do a set, one right after the other. Here I was sitting at home on the couch, not on a cruise ship. They didn't have to rub it in.

[Organized Chaos]

There's a few people who keep pushing this conspiracy theory that Carnival is continuing to take bookings for cruises they supposedly know they're going to be cancelling, just to pull in some cash flow. First off, I don't believe it. Carnival Corp. as a whole has already secured their financials to make it to the end of the year, if the shutdown just so happened to last that long (I don't believe it will).

 

Let's say they do extend the shutdown beyond August and have to make another round of cancellations. The conspiracy theorists are claiming they're taking bookings for cash flow, but MANY of those people who would get cancelled (again, IF it were to happen) would take the refund option. They're giving it right back to the customer. Thousands of refunds. There's no gain for Carnival there. I don't know the ratio of those who opt for a refund vs those who take the FCC, but if I had to guess, I think half or more are taking the refund.

 

Carnival WANTS (and needs) to return to service as soon as they safely can. They're not sitting around the boardroom, enjoying being out of business right now, looking for ways to screw everyone over.

[firefly333]

I'm not a conspiracy supporter, but I do think they know already if august cruises will go or not.

 

Takes a lot of time to process the cancellations. Used to get a price drop and see it, I'm still waiting. Others say their refunds taking a long time. So maybe they are trying to catch up before they say if august is a go or no go, but I'd bet they already know. 

[tv24]

I can tell you from personal experience that cruise lines are taking 60 to 90 to 120 days to process refunds.  So yes, the refunds will eventually be paid, or hopefully be paid.  But in the meantime Carnival is holding deposits and full payments for months on cruises that were doomed from the get-go.

[PhillyFan33579]

15 hours ago, skridge said:

You don't see that as fraudulent?  I sure do.

What is fraudulent about planning to resume cruising? There is no doubt in my mind Carnival has every intention of resuming operations in August. If these cruises are cancelled it’s going to be the result of the CDC extending the no sail order. Carnival is not going to cancel cruises if the CDC does not extend the no sail order. 

[Doggielover68]

15 hours ago, skridge said:

You don't see that as fraudulent?  I sure do.

Sounds like a business trying not to go under. All of the travel companies (cruises, airlines, travel agency sites, etc) are doing the same thing. It's also why they entice people with "flexible" cancellation but then people can't get a hold of customer service to request cancellation...then if they are eligible for a refund, it takes 3 months to get it. 

 

Covid19 has ruined all industries. I know it is frustrating when it's your money tied up in the madness, but it's a risk you take when paying in advance for luxurious vacations. 

[Organized Chaos]

9 hours ago, firefly333 said:

I'm not a conspiracy supporter, but I do think they know already if august cruises will go or not.

 

Takes a lot of time to process the cancellations. Used to get a price drop and see it, I'm still waiting. Others say their refunds taking a long time. So maybe they are trying to catch up before they say if august is a go or no go, but I'd bet they already know. 

 

I think if they do know, they haven't known for long. Probably a result of the CDC meeting the other day. Aug. 1st is still a month and a half away and so much will change in that time. If they are, in fact, cancelling August (or beyond), I'd bet anything it's the CDC forcing their hand instead of being reasonable and letting the cruise lines wait a while longer to see how things play out. But I'm still not convinced they know for sure and I don't believe at all that they're intentionally looking to cheat customers.

[Lee Cruiser]

10 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

They announced the shutdown in mid-March and set their initial return date for about a month later, the second week of April, something like that. Then they extended the shutdown for another month. No one could've blamed it on capacity cuts because Carnival hadn't even mentioned capacity controlled cruises at that point. In early May, they announced they'd try to resume Aug. 1 with 8 ships that would be capacity controlled. That was their most recent round of cancellations and also the first time they mentioned anything about partial capacity sailings.

It was the June and July cancellations to which I was referring.  There were numerous folks on here talking about the fact that certain cruises were no longer available for booking several days before they were ultimately announced.  There was also much speculation that it was because of capacity reductions that these were no longer available to book.  Obviously that was not the case.

[Organized Chaos]

7 hours ago, tv24 said:

I can tell you from personal experience that cruise lines are taking 60 to 90 to 120 days to process refunds.  So yes, the refunds will eventually be paid, or hopefully be paid.  But in the meantime Carnival is holding deposits and full payments for months on cruises that were doomed from the get-go.

 

It stands to reason that it's taking them a long time to process refunds. Thousands upon thousands of cancellations in a few short months, not to mention they were forced to work with heavy limitations as a result of stay-at-home orders.

 

Carnival couldn't predict the future. They didn't know all those cruises were doomed "from the get-go." Their initial shutdown was only set to last about a month. Their first extension of the shutdown was, again, for another month. Each time they wanted & intended to begin sailing again. They didn't know for sure the shutdown would be as bad as it's been. Then the CDC stepped in and extended their no-sail order, so Carnival was forced to shutter its doors for another three months. And that's where we are now, waiting to see what happens for August.