Westerdam took the wrong route - is this fair compensation ?

[peajay]

We have just returned home from the Westerdam transpacific cruise from Tokyo via Alaska to Seattle. A very nice enjoyable cruise despite some rough seas and mediocre weather. However after  visiting three Alaskan ports and on the way to Victoria, the itinerary was to cruise through the inner passage. This was widely advertised as one of the cruise highlights and the best opportunity to see marine wildlife, we bought two souvenir mugs that were special for the cruise showing the cruise map and ports visited and  quoting the inside passage specifically

Unfortunately the crew  made an error and sailed west of Vancouver island, so no inner passage cruise for us. The captain announced that they made a mistake and tried to get a pilot at the last minute but none were available. He told us we would get a letter delivered to our cabin detailing the compensation. We did not get the letter and after persisting, guest services reluctantly gave us one. The offer is 10 % of the cruise cost given as FCC. Many people were really frustrated and angry and several that we talked to were very unhappy with the offer, for them, like us, they did not receive one of the highlights of the cruise. This is the first HA cruise we have taken, so I am interested to see opinions. For me this isn't compensation, because we get nothing if we don't buy another cruise, so this is basically a marketing inducement to buy another cruise. On other lines where ports have been missed that were no fault of the cruise line (unlike this one) we received OBC as immediate compensation. We travelled from Europe and at our time of life, we are unlikely to ever cruise Alaska again.  People that had done the inner passage previously, sadly told us that we missed the most picturesque part.

 

[Mary229]

You are lucky you are offered any compensation.  If you read your cruise contract they can change course at any time.  If you delved even deeper into your cruise documents you will note special qualifiers for inside passage cruising 

Edited May 13 by Mary229

[peajay]

I don't consider we were lucky to miss one of the best parts of the cruise.

[Alberta Quilter]

Which Alaska ports did you visit?  HAL considers the route around Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan to be Inside Passage. It is the Alaska Inside Passage.  It's the Canadian Inside Passage that is, IMO, more scenic.  But if you travelled the Alaska Inside Passage, I tend to agree with Mary, that you're lucky to get any compensation because they could just as easily say that you did travel the Inside Passage, just in Alaska and not Canada.

 

Having said that, I'm very sorry for your disappointment.  I totally understand it. 

[Khlela]

I honestly was not impressed with the inside passage. I prefer coming back on the outside. I know it feels upsetting but I do feel this is fair compensation. I missed my absolute favorite port last time, Sitka, and came the inside passage home. I was so upset and disappointed. I LOVE sitka and the inside passage was really disappointing. No compensation for us but I also didn’t expect it.

 

There are many cruise lines who wouldn’t have provided any compensation for something like this. 
 

im sorry again that you were disappointed. ❤️

[BaileyMJ]

OMG - I am in shock a sea captain stated they took a wrong turn - I can’t imagine he or the staff captain can make such a mistake and still be in employed.  
 

Now you plot a course and that can change due to weather/winds ship engines etc but that is what the officers on the bridge do 24/7.   I could see the scenario that due to weather sea conditions Captain would deviate the course to minimize or avoid rough seas for safety of the passengers and that would cause delay to your entry point into the inside passenger - there are only so many pilots available.

I am sorry you missed a scenic cruising but you must of had an amazing crossing snd more importantly I hope you had calm seas and no one fell or was injured.

[electro]

49 minutes ago, peajay said:

We have just returned home from the Westerdam transpacific cruise from Tokyo via Alaska to Seattle. A very nice enjoyable cruise despite some rough seas and mediocre weather. However after  visiting three Alaskan ports and on the way to Victoria, the itinerary was to cruise through the inner passage. This was widely advertised as one of the cruise highlights and the best opportunity to see marine wildlife, we bought two souvenir mugs that were special for the cruise showing the cruise map and ports visited and  quoting the inside passage specifically

Unfortunately the crew  made an error and sailed west of Vancouver island, so no inner passage cruise for us. The captain announced that they made a mistake and tried to get a pilot at the last minute but none were available. He told us we would get a letter delivered to our cabin detailing the compensation. We did not get the letter and after persisting, guest services reluctantly gave us one. The offer is 10 % of the cruise cost given as FCC. Many people were really frustrated and angry and several that we talked to were very unhappy with the offer, for them, like us, they did not receive one of the highlights of the cruise. This is the first HA cruise we have taken, so I am interested to see opinions. For me this isn't compensation, because we get nothing if we don't buy another cruise, so this is basically a marketing inducement to buy another cruise. On other lines where ports have been missed that were no fault of the cruise line (unlike this one) we received OBC as immediate compensation. We travelled from Europe and at our time of life, we are unlikely to ever cruise Alaska again.  People that had done the inner passage previously, sadly told us that we missed the most picturesque part.

 

Just did a TA on NCL the was suppose to stop at Gibraltar and Alicate and then finish in Rome.

Because of an engine issue, we travelled too slow that last 24 hours before Gibraltar so the stop was canceled, which meant the cruise only had 1 port stop in the 12 day crossing. 

We didn't even get the port fees refunded let alone any compensation.

I thing 10% FCC is pretty generous.

Lois

[Mary229]

46 minutes ago, peajay said:

I don't consider we were lucky to miss one of the best parts of the cruise.

I didn’t say you were lucky to have missed i said you were lucky to be offered compensation 

Edited May 13 by Mary229

[Sir PMP]

14 minutes ago, BaileyMJ said:

OMG - I am in shock a sea captain stated they took a wrong turn - I can’t imagine he or the staff captain can make such a mistake and still be in employed.  
 

Now you plot a course and that can change due to weather/winds ship engines etc but that is what the officers on the bridge do 24/7.   I could see the scenario that due to weather sea conditions Captain would deviate the course to minimize or avoid rough seas for safety of the passengers and that would cause delay to your entry point into the inside passenger - there are only so many pilots available.

I am sorry you missed a scenic cruising but you must of had an amazing crossing snd more importantly I hope you had calm seas and no one fell or was injured.

Right, I don't believe a captain will announce that they made a big mistake, that's a no no.

[Mary229]

6 minutes ago, Sir PMP said:

Right, I don't believe a captain will announce that they made a big mistake, that's a no no.

I have serious doubts that was said. A copy of said letter would be helpful

[AncientWanderer]

Yes, fair compensation, imho

[rafinmd]

I'm not convinced the Captain made a mistake.  There is no way a cruise ship can go through the Canadian inside passage without a pilot, and I think if someone dropped the ball it was corporate marine operations. While a Captain is responsible for everything on the ship, sometimes that includes things outside his control.

 

Roy

[HappyInVan]

1 hour ago, peajay said:

 

 The captain announced that they made a mistake and tried to get a pilot at the last minute but none were available. 

 

 

That's unusual!

[peajay]

12 minutes ago, Sir PMP said:

Right, I don't believe a captain will announce that they made a big mistake, that's a no no.

He definitely did say that they made a mistake I heard the announcement, and we have a letter that states that. We visited Kodiak and Sitka and then after Ketchikan we should have taken the inner passage south to Victoria.

[peajay]

HA is considered to be a premium cruise line and the prices certainly reflect that. I would say the way to judge a company is how they manage a bad situation, I am not too sure that their offer shows them in a good light ?

[pmjnh]

3 minutes ago, peajay said:

He definitely did say that they made a mistake I heard the announcement, and we have a letter that states that. We visited Kodiak and Sitka and then after Ketchikan we should have taken the inner passage south to Victoria.

 

@peajay, are you able to post a screenshot of the letter? It would be most helpful to assess thoughts on this.

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, peajay said:

The captain announced that they made a mistake and tried to get a pilot at the last minute but none were available.

I would have thought that booking a pilot was like booking a berth in a port, something that was done months in advance by HQ staff. So "they" may not have been a reference to himself or the ship's officers.

 

As for compensation, per the contract you aren't entitled to anything, so a 10% FCC of your cruise is pretty generous IMO.

[Sir PMP]

24 minutes ago, peajay said:

He definitely did say that they made a mistake I heard the announcement, and we have a letter that states that. We visited Kodiak and Sitka and then after Ketchikan we should have taken the inner passage south to Victoria.

Who was the Captain?

[BermudaBound2014]

1 hour ago, peajay said:

Unfortunately the crew  made an error and sailed west of Vancouver island, so no inner passage cruise for us. The captain announced that they made a mistake and tried to get a pilot at the last minute but none were available. 

 

 

That seems like a pretty big error. It's not like these ships are driving down US75 and just got off at the wrong exit.  I'm very surprised the captain admitted this mistake. Very.

 

With that, as disappointing as this maybe, the compensation is more than fair according to the terms and conditions you agreed to. I got $15 OBC for missing Fanning Island and thought that was more than fair (granted it wasn't crew mistake).

 

Edited to add, I'm shocked the captain put that mistake in writing!! Please take a photo of the letter and post here. With the letter you may have more leverage than missing a port for weather or medical.

Edited May 13 by BermudaBound2014

[Wehwalt]

I'd also like to see a copy of the letter. But it seems like exceptionally generous compensation, given no ports were missed and the weather there is always chancy, you might wind up seeing little but fog.

Edited May 13 by Wehwalt

[peajay]

HA is considered to be a premium cruise line and the prices certainly reflect that. I would say the way to judge a company is how they manage a bad situation, I am not too sure that their offer shows them in a good light ?

[peajay]

Here is the letter 

 

 

[peajay]

It's a pity that they didn't have one of these mugs on the bridge 🙂

[Sea42]

1 minute ago, peajay said:

Here is the letter 

 

 

Wow, good for them for admitting their error and offering compensation!

[Wehwalt]

Thanks for posting it. Very generous of HAL.