Ever Miss the Ship? We Did.

[Middleager]

57 minutes ago, ronandannette said:

I'm not sure I'm reading this right but are you suggesting we orchestrated this little escapade with the intention of conning the insurance company out of the cost of a late-night drive across a strange highway in the dark and a single night in a cheap hotel? That is truly hilarious! 🤣

. Sail-away time was 4:00 pm and the ship had already raised the gangway and were pulling lines 17 minutes before that.

So sail away time was 4pm, meaning you were supposed to be back onboard by 3:30pm.  Of course the ship needed to raise the gangway and get ready to sail away at 4pm.

 

I never said you orchestrated being confused and missing the ship. 

 

I'm saying if you are covered and compensated for being at fault and missing the ship, then many people can also be covered for being at fault (confused with time or anything, being drunk, overslept, etc.) for missing the ship and incurred expenses.  If the next port is many sea days and long distance away, that can mean a longer vacation at the last port or next port in Hawaii, Azores, Canary Islands, etc., instead of sea days, and get covered for the expenses for getting from last port to the next port.

[Capitan Obvious]

2 minutes ago, ronandannette said:

OK but that would not be at all helpful if one needed their Passports to get to the next port or home. 

 

True, but that isn't the question you asked.

 

Also...one might ask if the cruise line is obligated to be helpful when the guest fails to return in a timely manner.

[ronandannette]

24 minutes ago, Capitan Obvious said:

 

True, but that isn't the question you asked.

 

Also...one might ask if the cruise line is obligated to be helpful when the guest fails to return in a timely manner.

No, it wasn't originally - it's just come to mind since discussions here and me realizing just how fortunate we were. 

 

Obligated...interesting word. It implies the bare minimum requirement. There's a lot more than strict obligation involved in a good customer experience. Intangibles. Things that don't cost a company anything. When a bartender on-board remembers your name or favorite drink, it's not because they're "obligated", it's because that person has a personal value for providing a great experience, or has been trained to do it to conform to a company culture that values it's reputation for providing an great experience.

[kitkat343]

52 minutes ago, ronandannette said:

OK but that would not be at all helpful if one needed their Passports to get to the next port or home. Our only saving grace was that we are Canadians and were in Canada. If worse-had-come-to-worse, we could have gone straight home from Nova Scotia, but without the Passports we wouldn't have been able to get back into the States to meet the ship in Boston or get on our pre-paid return flights from there.

My understanding is that when you miss the ship, the cruise line is supposed to send two ship employees to open your safe and retrieve your passports, and leave them with the port agent.  Now, given the fact that you were both Canadian citizens who were left behind in Canada, it seems reasonably that NCL may have determined that the passports were better left in the safe, since you could either travel to the next port or reach your home without passports.  And there was a chance that if you realized very late that you'd missed the ship, you might have headed directly to the next port, which would be a problem if your passports were with the port agent in the previous one.  If you never reboarded the ship, the passports along with everything else would be packed up at the end of the cruise, and shipped to your home at your expense as noted by the poster above.

 

Please also note that in the case a few months ago of the family that missed the ship in Ward Cove, the family was stranded longer because although NCL retrieved most of the party's passports, NCL stated that they were unable to find one passenger's passport so the port agent was short one passport to return to the guests.  The family didn't want to leave until everyone could go together, so it all took longer to resolve.  

 

 I understand that some passengers choose to carry take their passports on excursions.  I would not recommend that, but ultimately that is the passengers' choice.  But if you do leave your passports in your room, please do so in the safe, so the cruise line can find and retrieve them easily if you get left behind in a foreign port.    

[Capitan Obvious]

35 minutes ago, ronandannette said:

No, it wasn't originally - it's just come to mind since discussions here and me realizing just how fortunate we were. 

 

Obligated...interesting word. It implies the bare minimum requirement. There's a lot more than strict obligation involved in a good customer experience. Intangibles. Things that don't cost a company anything. When a bartender on-board remembers your name or favorite drink, it's not because they're "obligated", it's because that person has a personal value for providing a great experience, or has been trained to do it to conform to a company culture that values it's reputation for providing an great experience.

 

Actually, it was...I quoted your original question when I replied, just go back to post #99 and look, your question was "And I wonder now what would have happened to our papers and belongings if we had NOT caught up with the ship?"  you mentioned nothing at all about "helpfullness".

 

That aside, providing a good customer experience is one thing, but you also need to be a good customer. Good customers return on time. Good customers don't inconvience everyone by missing the ship. By missing the ship, you CAUSED the problem. You may not like to hear it, but you aren't a "victim" here...you are the perpetrator. Better that you assume responsibility for that rather than expect the cruise line to cater to you because of your misstep.

[graphicguy]

Things go sideways like missing the ship, in a foreign country, it’s important to get to your native country’s embassy.  That’s why it helps that you carry a copy of your passport with you (if not your actual passport).

 

Once you miss the ship, it doesn’t matter what’s in your cabin.  It’s not going to help given you are not in possession of your passport.  The ship has no idea where you are.  The foreign country you’re in has no clue who you are.  

 

If it’s not clear yet, do not miss the ship.  There is  NO good reason short of severe health issues (in which case you hope medical personnel will try to figure out who you are and who to contact, another reason to have that info with you somewhere on your person) to miss the ship!

 

Know where the embassy is…make it part of your research and planning for the cruise!

 

(off soap box)

[ronandannette]

3 hours ago, Capitan Obvious said:

 

Actually, it was...I quoted your original question when I replied, just go back to post #99 and look, your question was "And I wonder now what would have happened to our papers and belongings if we had NOT caught up with the ship?"  you mentioned nothing at all about "helpfullness".

 

That aside, providing a good customer experience is one thing, but you also need to be a good customer. Good customers return on time. Good customers don't inconvience everyone by missing the ship. By missing the ship, you CAUSED the problem. You may not like to hear it, but you aren't a "victim" here...you are the perpetrator. Better that you assume responsibility for that rather than expect the cruise line to cater to you because of your misstep.

Not a victim - never, every implied we were victims or that anybody or anything else was to blame. Not once. And all the "catering to me" I was looking for was some clarity and a kind word, after the fact. 

Edited 4 hours ago by ronandannette

[Middleager]

17 minutes ago, ronandannette said:

Not a victim - never, every implied we were victims or that anybody or anything else was to blame. Not once. And all the "catering to me" I was looking for was some clarity and a kind word, after the fact. 

Your own words:
"my expectation of a customer-focused company to offer at least a gesture of concern and acknowledgement. That could have been done without any further liability and would have gone a long way to soothing our feelings. Like I said, I do this sort of thing for a living - smooth ruffled feathers"

 

You kept on talking about how NCL should've done these things, as if NCL did something wrong and owe you.  Liability?!?

 

You also said "We reboarded at 8:30 the next morning with just enough time to brush our teeth and catch our Halifax tour"

 

So on the one hand you rushed to get back on board, brushed your teeth, and catch the next tour.   You can rush, but you also expected NCL to soothing our feelings, and smooth ruffled feathers.

 

Did you think about apologizing to NCL for missing the ship and causing extra work, rather than NCL needing to do something about your ruffled feathers?  You also want coverage and compensation, for the extra expenses, for your own fault.  

 

You can say you're not playing the victim card, but people all can read between the lines.

[JSar]

On 9/26/2024 at 1:06 PM, graphicguy said:

I can say with all confidence, traveling internationally for work for 30 years, I never, ever lost my passport.  I make certain, always, that it's on my body somewhere.  

 

On a cruise, I make a copy of it and stick it in the cabin safe in case mine gets stolen.

 

Yep... I too keep my passport ON MY BODY when travelling with it. Usually in a waste pack that doesn't come off my body unless I am in the shower or in PRIVATE room (I do a lot of hiking where I stay in dorm rooms). I used to keep a printed photo copy like you do... but now I take a picture of it and it stays in 2 places... on my phone and in the "cloud" in a secure file that I can access from any phone or computer. I don't like leaving physical copies laying around. And I have had way too many problems with cabin/hotel safes not working... so never even bother trying to use them anymore! I just don't bring very many valuables when travelling... all valuables must fit in my waist pouch. 

[JSar]

On 9/26/2024 at 9:00 AM, PATRLR said:

 

 

I'm in the US and my Verizon plan includes calling to/from/in Canada.  And I don't think I have any special plan (but maybe I do). 

 

So... I am pretty sure Verizon is similar to ATT. No.. your plan probably doesn't AUTOMATICALLY include international calling beyond the US/Canada. You have to "add international calling" to your plan as an "extra" add on. With ATT... I added it once. It is NOT something that is always billed to your account on a monthly basis - so if you are NOT using it - there are no international plan charges. It is there for when you need it. So... every time I go to Europe... I get charged $12/day for each day that I use my phone internationally... up until I am charged for TEN DAYS max. So... whether you use your phone internationally for 10 days out of a 10 day trip, or 30 days out of a 30 day trip... you don't get billed more than $120 for the entire month. Verizon is the same... but I don't know if they still charge $10/day or if they increased to $12/day like ATT did this past year. But go to your plan and make sure  you add international calling BEFORE you head out! And when I do reach an international roaming tower... I automatically get a (free) text from ATT reminding me that I have their best international roaming plan available. BUT... if my husband does NOT have international calling on his phone (because he doesn't travel)... when we get too close to Mexico he gets a (free) text warning him that he has reached an international roaming tower area which warns him not to use his phone (We live near Mexico and sometimes drive on a road very close to the boarder). 

[JSar]

On 9/26/2024 at 3:10 PM, graphicguy said:

If there was a crime, help me understand what the ship would have done to help?  They can tell the port where you did not re-board that the last they knew of your presence is when you checked OUT OF the ship.  After that, they have no idea where you went.

 

Ship personnel have no authority at the ports.  That's why they make it a point to let you know if you do something like...oh, I dunno, get caught with cannabis.....they can't help you.

 

The cruise ships are not responsible for the passengers.  They have some responsibility to keep you safe ON BOARD.  But, when you get to a port, you have to take care of yourself.  That includes, getting back to the ship on time, regardless of the reason you missed the ship (like having a rental car with a clock not set to ship's time).

 

 

The whole idea is that if you went missing and you let's say were travelling solo, it is quite possible that the ship would be the first people to realize you did NOT return to the ship, and from their perspective... maybe you JUST missed the call back time... OR MAYBE... you MIGHT be missing. And while it is completely understandable they can't IMMEDIATELY follow up on each and every person who misses the ship... at SOME point... they DO have a responsibility to at the very least attempt to reach out to the "missing" passenger to find out what happened and if they can't reach the "missing" passenger... then at LEAST notify the emergency contact that is on file to let, AND/OR the local authorities them know the person did not return to the ship as planned. 

 

Does the cruise line have an obligation BEYOND that? Nope. Not their job to hunt missing people down. BUT... let's say I go on my 2 week cruise in December. Let's say I get off the ship the first Port day and don't return. People at home wouldn't know I am missing  until I don't return home TWO WEEKS LATER. But the cruise ship would have realized I didn't return to the ship after the first port day. AT SOME POINT... YES... they DO need to at least attempt to find out what happened to their missing passenger and notify SOMEONE that the missing passenger never returned to the ship. 

 

If they didn't, and I was the victim of foul play and my body wasn't "discovered"... police would lose two whole weeks of investigation time when the trail was still warm. 

 

And if travelling internationally... and someone doesn't return to the ship... I am sure there are all sorts of customs regulations that must be followed. Again... not the ships job to babysit passengers, but if someone doesn't return to the ship in whatever time a cruise line believe is reasonable... then they DO have an obligation to make some kind of reports of the missing passenger. 

 

YES... when you go to shore, you are responsible for yourself. YES... even when you are on the ship, you are responsible for yourself. But there IS an obligation to report a missing person at some point.. would be nice to know at WHAT point the cruise ship would intervene. If not immediately, then when? 24 hours? More? Less? At some point they ALSO have to clean out the room of the missing passenger... I would hope they would report the missing person to authorities first... 

 

 

Edited 1 hour ago by JSar

[JSar]

6 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

My understanding is that when you miss the ship, the cruise line is supposed to send two ship employees to open your safe and retrieve your passports, and leave them with the port agent.  

This bothers me because I know they say you can often leave your passports on the ship... but really... you are never supposed to leave your passport in a hotel or on a ship when you are travelling in a foreign country. You just never know when you are going to need it. And when not travelling internationally - you should always have your government picture ID with you. 

[Turtles06]

6 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

My understanding is that when you miss the ship, the cruise line is supposed to send two ship employees to open your safe and retrieve your passports, and leave them with the port agent.

My wife and I have actually seen this happen, in Quebec City of all places. We were on a Celebrity cruise, standing on an open deck above the gangway shortly before departure from this port, as we awaited sailaway. We could hear a security officer talking to the port agent – – it was clear that two passengers had not turned up by the all-aboard time. The agent was on his cell phone, apparently trying to reach the couple. In the meantime, another security officer came down to the gangway and handed two passports to the port agent. 
 

The story had a happy ending for the passengers, as the port agent was able to reach them by phone, and learned that they were at the Château Frontenac, still a bit of a drive from our docking location, which was not right downtown. The passengers had missed the last shuttle bus to the ship, but somehow, they were put on another bus to the ship. They were extremely fortunate that the Captain waited for them. The crew at the gangway said the Captain was incredibly annoyed and did not have a great deal of time to wait.  
 

 

 

 

[njhorseman]

41 minutes ago, JSar said:

This bothers me because I know they say you can often leave your passports on the ship... but really... you are never supposed to leave your passport in a hotel or on a ship when you are travelling in a foreign country. You just never know when you are going to need it. And when not travelling internationally - you should always have your government picture ID with you. 

 

You're wrong when you say "you are never supposed to leave your passport in a hotel or on a ship..."

 

In fact for many years the US Department of State specifically stated in writing that you should not carry your passport with you unless you were in a country that required you to carry it. State recommended leaving your passport in the hotel safe. Also at one time it was common practice in some countries for hotels to require you to turn your passport over to them at  check in. While no longer specifically recommending that you keep your passport in the hotel safe State uses the words "your passport should be carefully safeguarded".

 

Even today on some cruise itineraries the cruise line requires you to turn your passport over to them as it is needed for inspection by local port authorities given that ships often dock in the very early morning hours when passengers would be sleeping. In those circumstances cruise lines I've been on will give you a copy of the main page of the passport to carry ashore if you request it.

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, JSar said:

This bothers me because I know they say you can often leave your passports on the ship... but really... you are never supposed to leave your passport in a hotel or on a ship when you are travelling in a foreign country. You just never know when you are going to need it. And when not travelling internationally - you should always have your government picture ID with you. 

 

ProTip: You should never carry your passport off the ship, unless required by local authorities. That is how passports are lost or stolen. They are perfectly safe on the ship and should stay there for the duration of your cruise. Encouraging people to carry their passports is bad advice. 

Edited 28 minutes ago by BirdTravels

[IAcruising]

22 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

ProTip: You should never carry your passport off the ship, unless required by local authorities. That is how passports are lost or stolen. They are perfectly safe on the ship and should stay there for the duration of your cruise. Encouraging people to carry their passports is bad advice. 

 

Hardly a "pro tip". The pro tip is to carry your passport and ensure it's not lost or stolen. It's not that hard.

 

It's horrible advice to advocate the potential of getting stranded in a foreign country without your passport. I will never understand that reasoning.