Cruise line arranged air

[2BACRUISER]

If you let the cruise line arrange your flights do they typically give you a choice of flights, or do they offer one option and do they have preferred air partners, we are flying to seattle next year to cruise with cunard and are undecided as to booking our own flights or letting cunard arrange it for us. 

[ichiban35]

We have always been given a choice of flights.

[zqvol]

6 hours ago, 2BACRUISER said:

If you let the cruise line arrange your flights do they typically give you a choice of flights, or do they offer one option and do they have preferred air partners, we are flying to seattle next year to cruise with cunard and are undecided as to booking our own flights or letting cunard arrange it for us. 

You might ask this on the Cunard board. Every line is different. With NCL, as an example, you have no choice on airline, flight times, or connections. Cunard, being more upscale may be different. 

[Airbear232]

RCL and Celebrity give you your choice.  We like booking flights with the cruise if we’re flying in directly to take the cruise.  A few years ago, we flew into Rome for a Celebrity cruise.  My luggage was late.  If we hadn’t booked Air2Sea for the flight, I’d have been SOL.  As it was,  Celebrity got my bag to me a few days (12 day cruise).  They comp’d me for any clothes I wanted in their shops and provided free tux rentals.  If we fly in a few days early, then it’s not an issue.   Best wishes. 

[FlyerTalker]

1 hour ago, Airbear232 said:

My luggage was late.  If we hadn’t booked Air2Sea for the flight, I’d have been SOL.

 

Not really.  Delayed baggage happens, and your bags were returned to you.  As they would have no matter how you bought your air ticket.

 

1 hour ago, Airbear232 said:

As it was,  Celebrity got my bag to me a few days (12 day cruise). 

 

Celebrity did not get your bag back to you....the airline did.  And they likely delivered it to the port where the port agent delivered it to the ship.  Do you really believe that Celebrity was at the airports moving your bag to a new flight and moving it to find you?

 

1 hour ago, Airbear232 said:

They comp’d me for any clothes I wanted in their shops and provided free tux rentals.

 

The cruiselines I have been on, albeit more luxury lines, will do similar for guests who have delayed baggage.  Or your travel insurance will cover the expenses incurred with missing luggage.

 

Just a reality check.

 

 

[Airbear232]

15 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Not really.  Delayed baggage happens, and your bags were returned to you.  As they would have no matter how you bought your air ticket.

 

 

Celebrity did not get your bag back to you....the airline did.  And they likely delivered it to the port where the port agent delivered it to the ship.  Do you really believe that Celebrity was at the airports moving your bag to a new flight and moving it to find you?

 

 

The cruiselines I have been on, albeit more luxury lines, will do similar for guests who have delayed baggage.  Or your travel insurance will cover the expenses incurred with missing luggage.

 

Just a reality check.

 

 

I guess this is all a case of YMMV.  I’ve spoken with people on cruises whose luggage was delayed and they didn’t receive it at all for the cruise.  I had a concierge on Celebrity who kept us abreast of locating my luggage and getting it to me.  We departed Rome and I got my luggage in Istanbul.  While Celebrity didn’t physically move the luggage, they certainly handled the coordination to get it to me.  I’m grateful I got it and that was my reality check.  

[FlyerTalker]

18 minutes ago, Airbear232 said:

I guess this is all a case of YMMV.  I’ve spoken with people on cruises whose luggage was delayed and they didn’t receive it at all for the cruise. 

 

And that is completely independent of the cruiseline.  That would be a case of the airline unable to forward the luggage to the ship in an appropriate time frame.  So if XYX Airlines can't find or forward your luggage, it doesn't matter where you booked your ticket.  And if they can, then the cruiseline doesn't matter.

 

22 minutes ago, Airbear232 said:

I had a concierge on Celebrity who kept us abreast of locating my luggage and getting it to me.

 

Are you saying that if you had booked the air ticket independently, the concierge would NOT have done this?   Because if not, then that service is standard Celebrity procedure.

 

Again - please explain why having cruiseline provided air resulted in a different outcome than if you had booked your ticket yourself?  Because you previously asserted:

 

2 hours ago, Airbear232 said:

 If we hadn’t booked Air2Sea for the flight, I’d have been SOL.

 

 

[Airbear232]

5 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

And that is completely independent of the cruiseline.  That would be a case of the airline unable to forward the luggage to the ship in an appropriate time frame.  So if XYX Airlines can't find or forward your luggage, it doesn't matter where you booked your ticket.  And if they can, then the cruiseline doesn't matter.

 

 

Are you saying that if you had booked the air ticket independently, the concierge would NOT have done this?   Because if not, then that service is standard Celebrity procedure.

 

Again - please explain why having cruiseline provided air resulted in a different outcome than if you had booked your ticket yourself?  Because you previously asserted:

 

 

 

Still believe I would have been SOL without Air2Sea.  I believe that booking with them puts to onus on them to make things right in the event things go wrong.

[FlyerTalker]

24 minutes ago, Airbear232 said:

Still believe I would have been SOL without Air2Sea.  I believe that booking with them puts to onus on them to make things right in the event things go wrong.

 

One of the great urban legends of cruising.  I highly suggest to read the actual terms and conditions of Air2Sea (or any cruiseline air program) and come back with the wording that says the onus is on them.  Because until then, you are just "believing" and making a big assumption.

 

 

[CruiserBruce]

Put a little differently, I totally get that you are grateful and appreciative of their extra and thoughtful efforts. But to say the onus is on them to do this is stretching it a bridge too far.

[megr1125]

Cruise air can be great until it isn't.  I've been lucky when things went south BUT on ZERO of those occasions did Flights by Celebrity assist me.  I'd STILL be on hold had SAS not rebooked me almost instantly onto UA on one occasion, and onto a different one of their flights on another.  When I misconnected (BA's fault), again, Air2Sea didn't help (same company as Celebrity's since they're Royal) either and only sent an email saying "we'll get back to you in 24-48 hours" um, sure, my rear's already in LHR so please get me home.  

Caveat Emptor.  I've learned a ton about cruise air here on this board, especially from Flyer Talker, Globaliser et al,  and from the pinned post above from the late, GreatAm.  It's still good info.  Will I personally book it in the future?  I won't rule it out, but I know what I'm getting.

 

Will I suggest that it's fabulous and wonderful and the cruise line will help you?  HA. No.  I'm not that crazy.

[Globaliser]

9 hours ago, megr1125 said:

Cruise air can be great until it isn't.  I've been lucky when things went south BUT on ZERO of those occasions did Flights by Celebrity assist me.  I'd STILL be on hold had SAS not rebooked me almost instantly onto UA on one occasion, and onto a different one of their flights on another.  When I misconnected (BA's fault), again, Air2Sea didn't help (same company as Celebrity's since they're Royal) either and only sent an email saying "we'll get back to you in 24-48 hours" um, sure, my rear's already in LHR so please get me home.

 

To be fair, if you are already travelling then it's primarily the airline's responsibility to sort things out. Fundamentally, the cruise line was the agent which brokered the contract between you and the airline, which the airline is endeavouring to perform at that time. And in practice, if both the airline and the agent are simultaneously trying to change your travel arrangements to fix the problem that's arisen, things can go wrong when they fall between two stools.

 

Similarly, if baggage is mishandled, it's primarily the airline's responsibility to sort it out. Delayed baggage catches up with many passengers whose air travel was not arranged by the cruise line, just as sometimes it never catches up with passengers because there's only so much that any cruise line can do (eg it's unlikely to be airlifted onto a trans-Atlantic crossing in mid-ocean). There are also plenty of examples of cruise lines helping those whose air travel was not arranged by the cruise line, including arranging supplies from the ship's shop and (for me on one occasion) helping to get my luggage out to the ship on the cutter when it came to collect the pilot.

[Hlitner]

23 hours ago, Airbear232 said:

Still believe I would have been SOL without Air2Sea.  I believe that booking with them puts to onus on them to make things right in the event things go wrong.

You certainly can believe as you please.  However, after more than 50 years of extensive cruise experience and international travel, we respectfully suggest you are wrong!  When luggage gets delayed or misrouted by the airlines, it is completely up to the airlines to track down your luggage and get it to you.  Cruise lines (all cruise lines) deal with lost/delayed luggage on a daily basis.  There are folks, usually in the pursers or guest relations office who handle these issues on a routine basis.  How you booked the air (on your own, through the cruise line, etc) has nothing to do with the service.  The cruise line simply asks for your air information and contacts the appropriate airline.  The airlines have an office (and staff) dedicated to tracing luggage and they will work with the cruise line (or you...if you care to do it yourself) to forward luggage to you (assuming it is possible).  And by the way, if your luggage does get lost (it happens) or does not catch-up during your cruise, the cruise line will take no responsibility...even when they have handled the air.  They simply point their finger to the airline and tell you that its your problem.  Of course, you are free to file an insurance claim (with your own insurance) or just hang your head and cry.

 

Our own experience, with hundreds of flights to and from cruises all over the world, is that we are all at the mercy of the airlines.  The best you can do to avoid having luggage lost/delayed is to book non-stop flights and plan on getting to your destination (i.e. cruise port city) at least 1 or 2 days early.  If your luggage does get delayed, the odds are pretty good that it will catch-up the following day...assuming that your airline is able to find that luggage.  Its also a good idea to put an Apple Air Tag into each of your bags.  It can put you in a position of being able to help the airlines find your luggage.  This helped us retrieve a lost bag from AA.

 

Hank

[megr1125]

13 hours ago, Globaliser said:

 

To be fair, if you are already travelling then it's primarily the airline's responsibility to sort things out. Fundamentally, the cruise line was the agent which brokered the contract between you and the airline, which the airline is endeavouring to perform at that time. And in practice, if both the airline and the agent are simultaneously trying to change your travel arrangements to fix the problem that's arisen, things can go wrong when they fall between two stools.

 

Similarly, if baggage is mishandled, it's primarily the airline's responsibility to sort it out. Delayed baggage catches up with many passengers whose air travel was not arranged by the cruise line, just as sometimes it never catches up with passengers because there's only so much that any cruise line can do (eg it's unlikely to be airlifted onto a trans-Atlantic crossing in mid-ocean). There are also plenty of examples of cruise lines helping those whose air travel was not arranged by the cruise line, including arranging supplies from the ship's shop and (for me on one occasion) helping to get my luggage out to the ship on the cutter when it came to collect the pilot.

Correct, and I was more so referring to cancelled flights.  In my 3 cases, the cruise line didn't even try.  Sending me an email saying "we'll get back to you in 24-48 hours" when I am literally in the car on the way to the airport, isn't helping.  The first time they didn't even know it was cancelled (um?  I got 4 emails or texts, 2 from the cruise line's air department, but the agents on the phone couldn't help or do anything short of wait a couple days).  

I'm glad that the carrier was so fast in rebooking me to a slightly later flight (a whopping 15 minutes) and moving me to a partner carrier's nonstop.  My issue is that the cruise air departments say "we'll help you, book our air...." but when push comes to shove, we all know that seats are a finite commodity and depending on the cruise air departments' promise isn't the smart choice.

 

And personally, I have a list of at least a half dozen other options on the original carrier, partners, etc.  just in case things go awry.  Learned that from y'all over here!