Century 9th July St Petersburg Cancelled

[pog27]

It's an unfortunate situation and I understand why the OP is upset I would be too. I don't think the compensation is adequate either considering the St. Petersburg port of call is the main attraction for many people who book Baltic cruises. If a cruise is just about the ship why would people fly all the way across the atlantic?

[joelmarj]

I think what MOST people are really saying is this: It is NOT Celebrity that caused the itinerary change...and even though the G* may have been planned for months, they undoubtedly had no way to know that port closure would be an issue...you can have a conference and entertain tourists at the same time--especially since the tourists are bringing their own floating hotel rooms...

 

All Celebrity can really do is to alter the itinerary (and we've all been on cruises where the cruise lines have missed ports for a variety of reasons--like hurricanes, political or military issues, etc.)...

You certainly can't force your way into a port that's not allowing you to enter...

 

So, the real questions are:

1) Notice

2) Compensation

3) Replacement arrangements

 

As to notice, one would hope that the parties you are dealing with--either the cruise line or your TA--will provide you with sufficient notice to alter your plans if desired or possible. It sounds here like your TA dropped the ball a little bit.

 

As to compensation, the question is what is fair and reasonable to ALL parties since no one is at fault. When some folks read about people wanting to be compensated on these boards, they flash back to a thread a few months back where some guy did an elaborate production to claim Carnival owed him a free all-expense paid cruise to Hawaii because he had a few minor complaints about his cruise (like a stain on the lampshade in his cabin)...or the thread a couple of years back with the guy who though he should get all of his money back because he MEASURED his cabin and, per his calculations, it came up SEVEN SQUARE FEET SHORT of the size listed in the brochure!!

 

Obviously, going to Warnemunde instead of St. Petersburg is far more important than a stain on a lamp or a slightly off cabin size measurement...But the question is "What is reasonable?"...

 

First of all, there really can't be a "value" established for missing St. Petersburg...It's more of an inherent value than a dollar amount...And the cruise line doesn't really make any more money sending you to Warnemunde...Most of that shore excursion cost goes to the local contractors...Celebrity is still provisin you with the same number of cabin days, the same meals, the same entertainment, etc. The only real possible difference to them might be any difference in port fees (of course, that could be a negative as well)...So, their offerring you $250 is not to offset your shore excursion costs nor is it tied to any extra money they make (they don't...they'll likely lose money due to cancelled cruises and last minute logistical needs)...The $250 is merely a goodwill gesture.

 

The real issue is...that if you really want to visit St. Petersburg...and that is the single most important factor in your Baltic cruise...that you just need to realize you cannot do it as planned. It has become an impossibility. The answer is to CHANGE DATES (as my sister's friend did). The cruise line would undoubtedly have worked with you on this, even if they notified you AFTER final payment...

 

If it's important to you, RESCHEDULE...

 

Very well said!! Thank you for expressing what I was trying to get across. No one is discounting that St. Pete's may have been important to to some.

 

cruisemaster - I would think there are quite a few logistics involved in switching around itineraries to accommodate one port. It's presumptuous I think to assume they did not consider that an option without knowing their side of such a change. As for leaving little time to reschedule, if it was just after final payment isn't that at least 70 days before sailing? That's not enough time? Also did the other cruiselines notify people much sooner than 70 days out? I have to imagine that unless you were told immediately upon booking, that it never would have been enough time. I'm sure many people made airline arrangements as well as hotels that perhaps are not unchangeable. I can sympathize with that and it is a shame that such a critical port was lost out on. But again, my point is - how much is Celebrity really supposed to do? They let you cancel or switch and gave credits. What is a realistic expectation?

[wrp96]

Unfortunately for many people, they had all their plans arranged for this cruise (ie: vacation dates, airfare, hotel arrangements, etc); therfore, it is not so easy for them to just reschedule. Moreover, in the case of large groups such as family reunion groups it is almost impossible to rearrange everyone's schedule. St. Petersburg is definitely a major attraction for many baltic cruisers, and it is unfortunate that Celebrity notify their guests after final payment since it leaves very little time to reschedule. Other cruise lines such as Holland America were able rearrange the port order to keep St. Petersburg on the itinerary as seen on the 7/12 sailing of the Amsterdam. Maybe X didn't want to pay additional fees to the port to reserve a berth? Who knows?

 

With 24 ships trying to rearrange stops, I would say that it is likely that more than a few weren't able to get new berth dates.

 

It is definitely a disappointment - nobody doubts that. But it isn't Celebrity's fault, if you want to blame somebody, blame the US Secret Service that asked for the closure of the port for several days.

 

I've thought of doing a Baltic cruise so I could finally see Russia, but I finally realized a couple of years ago that there was no way a cruise to Russia would give me enough time. Obviously, the OP has a different priority - and there's nothing wrong with that.

 

As to when Celebrity notified people, I know that when they cancelled, there were still several people on other cruise lines, whose lines were still telling them that they were going to St. Petersburg on their original dates. Celebrity was one of the first to announce the closing of the port.

[Verystormy]

Some of you may know i work in the industry, - we normaly have a regular cruise in to St Petersburg at this time, but instead only have them either side of the meeting. And our broshure came out over a year ago!!!

We are a small company, so if we managed to plan it over a year ahead, how come such a big company couldnt???

They have been cynical and i hope it goes into the hands of the law