Those who we're on CP that got cut to 5 day 9/4 plz read

[TBR]

You book a cruise in the height of hurricane season and you want Princess to give you more of a credit.Thousands of people here in florida lost everything they own,some still are in shelters,many still without power or homes and you are whining about a few dollars. How self centered.Someone got more then me!

 

Princess did not close the ports,the Coast Guard did,all ports were closed to any incoming traffic and all ships were ordered out of the ports,as for hotels thousands of residents fleed their homes for what most thought was safer ground at hotels in other areas,many hotels along the beach areas were destroyed and people were sent to shelters,so what other accomadations should have be made to accomadate all the poor princess cruisers who lost a fews days off their cruise.

[Lawdog5611]

I was on this cruise as well and I feel the same as all of the others. I don't understand why we were given only 30% and the others were given 50% off. I would have also preferred shipboard credit rather than $$ towards a future sailing. In my eyes, Princess did not treat the people on the 9/25 sailing the same as the other one.

 

And TBR, if it were your $, you would feel the same way, unless you have expendable income to waste, which I don't. No one is being self-centered.

 

I still had a good time, but feel as someone else said...Why do I have to book with Princess again to basically get compensated like the other sailing?

 

I will be writing Princess a letter as well, having someone explain to me why our deal was worse.

[travelscrapper]

Thank you for you're words of wisdom....I'm well aware that I booked a cruise during hurricane season and I'm well aware of the destruction and devistation that Florida residents incurred....My best friends parents live in Punta Gorda and have lost everything..we we're forced to flee to Ft Meyers becuase of the wisdom of Princess dragging us all down to Florida to sit thru a hurricane. And we saw first hand what devistatin that area suffered. If you we're in our shoes you too would be asking for a refund as well. What makes us less valued as cruisers than those who cruised before use and received 50% back. I'm well aware that the Ports being closed was out of the control of Princess howver it was in Princess's control to have notifed us earlier than 4:30pm est when we we're already in route to Florida to catch the cruise that the Reservation center assured me would be departing at 5:00pm the next day.

 

SO TBR I think that you need to back off ---you have no idea what kind of experiences we had. Many of us live in a hurricane free area because we choose not to live 5 months out of the year in fear that our lives are going to be turned up side down becuase of a hurricane. Yes we voulntarly booked a cruise during hurricane season however we didn't volunteer to have Princess put us in harms way and spend the several nights in shelter's because Princess couldn't make a decison earlier in the day....when at 12:00pm est the Port Authority made public that the port would be closed and for 3 hours before my flight I sat and listned to the BS spewed by Princess res agents that we would in fact be leaving at 5:00pm the following day.

 

So yes I will continue to fight for a refund and just maybe I'll take part of it and light a candle in you're name and pray that you learn not pass judgement on others.

[rickdeb]

Hello fellow cruisers,

 

I hope that you get the same refund that was previously offered to those on an earlier shortened cruise. We were on the extended cruise (9/18/04) and you know that the capt was trying to get us back to port by midnight on the Friday. The coast guard told them they would not permit it. This was late afternoon on the Friday. I don't know how you expected Princess to let you know sooner than they knew! Don't forget that will all the new rules & reg's since 9/11 the cruise lines are bound to arrive/depart in scheduled dates/times and only certain factors (i.e., the coast guard) can alter that schedule. I do agree that the cruise lines could do better in the communication dept. Also, the port was scheduled to reopen rather quickly. Perhaps the decision made by Princess and all the other cruise lines (witness how none of them arrived back in port prior to Monday morning) to stay out for an extra two days instead of 12-24 hrs was based on the previous nightmare of saying they would return one day late and then having to change that, again, at the last minute.

 

Don't get me wrong, I feel that you are entitled to a refund and since they gave a 50% refund, shipboard credit etc a few weeks earlier those affected on your cruise should also receive the same. Having said that, I do hope that Princess, and the others, then put in place a policy to deal with extensions/shortened cruises with a set amt to be refunded/shipboard credits etc for each day the cruise is shortened. There were also quite of number of people on our extended cruise that had to shell out for unexpected expenses (not just shipboard expenses) that had not be budgeted for.

 

As for the other problems many of your fellow cruisers have voiced concerns about (attitude of staff etc), I wish I could help you out, but the same staff the previous week was wonderful.

 

Good Luck,

Debbie

[PINEVIEW01]

I was suppose to be on the Carnival Paridise on 9/5. Carnival gave us the option af a $200 credit for the missed day or a 100%. When we got to the Pacific side there was a hurrican there as well. This caused us to lose another port of call so we could spend the day going around it. They gave us $25 off for the second missed port.

 

All others that had shortened trips and interary changes where given a refund for days missed and a future credit. We where told they got the future credit as thier intenerarys where change and we where just losing a day. After our 15 day/5 port cruise got turned into a 14/3 ports you would have that that would have earned us a future credit. Nope! Here's $25 now be quit and don't talk to us about future credit.

 

That is why I was looking at Princess. I guess this just shows they are owned by the same people.

[jennat]

I understand that the port authority was untimately responsible for the decision. What we expected was for Princess to make the "hard" call and make a decision for their passengers a little earlier and not let them fly into harms way. If they made a decision that ended up not working out, they should make every effort to correct that error. Don't spout off to me that we are cruising in hurricane season so we should expect it or that the cruise line doesn't "have to" do anything. Of course they do. It is called PR. If RCL is giving 50% off and ship board credit and Princess is giving 30% off, what kind of message does that send (especially when they gave more off 3 weeks ago). As has been stated ad nausuim on this board, no one is putting their problems ahead of the hurricane victims. Get over this point. Just because you have a brain tumor does not mean my migrain doesn't hurt. I think all would have even been fine, if when we checked in we had had a great cruise, but as you can see from the numerous and specific complaints on the roll call board, it was anything but fine. I had a good time in spite of Princess not because of Princess. You don't get this kind of negative backlash unless their are serious problems. Travelscraper is right, just because you move into a hurricane state does not mean you are not upset that you are injured in some way by a hurricane. I am married to an accountant and there are limited times of year we can cruise. Prior to this year, 1986-2003 there were two major hurricanes to hit Florida. It seems a calculated risk. All I ask is that you do your best by me, give me a quality cruise (no matter what the length), and stand by whatever president you set. Don't allow me to fly into an oncoming hurricane, say run for cover and then scr** me (for lack of a better phrase) by letting me sail on a ship where the crew had better places to be. There are instances of profanity, eyes rolling, insulting comments, on and on. Read the roll call. You will be amazed. Hopefully Princess will step up tp the plate.

Sorry for the lecture.

Jen

[rexin]

"Just because you have a brain tumur does not mean my migrane doesn't hurt" I am going to copy this and use it elsewhere, funny. I wish things had been handled differently and it is nobodies fault but Princess Cruise Lines. None of this would be even being discussed if they had just done what they did last time, only three week earlier, and had a better supervised more enthusiastic cruise staff. We all are faced with difficult situations, it is how you handle them that sets a company or and individual apart. Instead of loyal enthusiastic PC supporters they now have a large group of unhappy customers. This was an opportunity for PC to shine and they didn't just drop the ball they really were telling us they don't want our business anymore. In the end it is just very sad.

[recia]

Keep in mind on the future credit you do not get the full amount. Your agent will deduct their commission from this and if I remember when Princess gave a $200 crdit from a problem I ended up with $155.

[rexin]

recia,

 

Are you sure about that? If true I really feel like a sucker now, I booked another cruise!

[travelscrapper]

Rexin~

 

Being a travel agent---I can't verify that all travel agents wont give you the full value of the credit. However at the agency that I work for---we take the lump in our pocket book just to keep our clients happy. Can't say that all agencies will do that....best to check with you Agent.

 

It's worth the loss of comission to keep our clients happy and repeat....gee Princess should take lessons from me.

[hsmom]

Hey Rexin - when did you book your cruise? We (Tom & Donna) are looking into Jan/Feb since that is the only time before 6/06 that Tom could go with me. The kids will pack themselves in my bag if we don't take them along so there will be 4 of us...

[rexin]

hsmom

We did the open booking so we don't know when we are going. Alaska for sure. Cindy left today for Florida, she just can't get enough of that place.

 

jennat didn't you use KK to book your cruise? Did you purchase the travel insurance?

[jennat]

Yes I did and no I didn't. Why do you ask? I learned that it might be smart to buy insurance from now on, however, it is the first cruise I have needed it and if you do an average I am still coming out ahead. :)

I am jealous of those getting money back but I also can afford the extra and loved the place we stayed at so that helps! We flew standby for free so no incurred debt there, thank goodness!

Rexin, tell me what your real name is. I have trouble putting screen names with the people I met. Thanks!

Jen

[jennat]

Rexin,

if you have anymore questions that aren't allowed here about travel agents, you are welcome to e-mail me mjcrouch@4dv.net . Also, k recommended using an independent insurance agency, I think it was global alert (globalalerttravel.com) instead of Princess as it was more comprehensive.

Jen

[rexin]

My name is John. I called the travel agent in question, I did buy travel insurance Global alert thru kk, and was told that it would not be covered due to the cruise not being cancelled. From what I can tell she was wrong but in the mean time I used frequent stayer points to get a hotel. I was just wondering if she told you the same thing.

 

She did say that the full amount of the discount would be applied. FYI

[jennat]

John and Cindy, John? Hey, hey! We so enjoyed meeting you two. You seemed like a lot of fun and always smiling!

Jen

[TBR]

[quote name='travelscrapper']Thank you for you're words of wisdom....I'm well aware that I booked a cruise during hurricane season and I'm well aware of the destruction and devistation that Florida residents incurred....My best friends parents live in Punta Gorda and have lost everything..we we're forced to flee to Ft Meyers becuase of the wisdom of Princess dragging us all down to Florida to sit thru a hurricane. And we saw first hand what devistatin that area suffered. If you we're in our shoes you too would be asking for a refund as well. What makes us less valued as cruisers than those who cruised before use and received 50% back. I'm well aware that the Ports being closed was out of the control of Princess howver it was in Princess's control to have notifed us earlier than 4:30pm est when we we're already in route to Florida to catch the cruise that the Reservation center assured me would be departing at 5:00pm the next day.

SO TBR I think that you need to back off ---you have no idea what kind of experiences we had. Many of us live in a hurricane free area because we choose not to live 5 months out of the year in fear that our lives are going to be turned up side down becuase of a hurricane. Yes we voulntarly booked a cruise during hurricane season however we didn't volunteer to have Princess put us in harms way and spend the several nights in shelter's because Princess couldn't make a decison earlier in the day....when at 12:00pm est the Port Authority made public that the port would be closed and for 3 hours before my flight I sat and listned to the BS spewed by Princess res agents that we would in fact be leaving at 5:00pm the following day.

So yes I will continue to fight for a refund and just maybe I'll take part of it and light a candle in you're name and pray that you learn not pass judgement on others.[/QUOTE]How dare the airlines allowed you to enter the hurricane zone and have to fear for your life,or is princess at fault for that too? Did they book your air a day ahead or did you? What about the airlines cancelling flights, if it was such a hazard for you to be here. You choose to live in a non hurricane zone then why not stay away from the 5 months in the hurricane zone. I hear there is a cruise on the great lakes,no hurricanes there. I think you should fault your TA for not advising you of the storm conditions. Up until about two hrs before the storm hit Stuart Fl.,the national hurricane center was not sure exactly where the storm was going to make landfall,it was predicted to touch land and bounce up along the east coast,it was then changed to go inland and up thru the center of the state,and guess what they were wrong, it came across the state north of tampa up thru state to Ga. So how could princess know more then 24 hrs in advance where it was heading when the hurricane center did not know? Every hurricane this season has not gone where intially forcasted to go.

[JerseyShore64]

Being in the Travel business most will tell you that an act of God is just that. I have a real problem with the refund demands if you didn't take credible insurance.

I do not believe that Princess or any other carrier could have detected when to notify who, in Florida we were told several stories and up until midnight of Sept 25th some were awakened to evacuate within hours.

When you book a cruise in Hurricane season its a roll of the dice. And all travel agents know that. Unfortunately, that happens to be a time of the year when the rates are lower, so its enticing.

As for the percentage of refunds, splitting hairs isn't going to help matters. Claim the other percentage with your insurance... Further, I ask again didn't your insurance company compensate you? If not, your next cruise you might want to invest in a company that has better coverage.

As for setting a precedence, in the documents it states refunds are subject to discretion... Now before you step off on me, I have been on 3 cruises myself where this has happened, and before you lynch the Cruiseline, think about it...

And my cruise last week on RCL gave me an option to cancel and get a voucher; not a refund... So they will have my money for a year to gain interest on...

[LovingFL]

I was on the 9/4.....or suppose to be on the 9/4 sailing of the CP but had to cancel due to the hurricane knocking out my power. I called to let Princess know that I would not be able to make the sailing prior to their "deadline" and was told I would get a 100% refund....I, as of to-date, have received nothing....only excuses of problems issuing the refund...
Anyone have any suggestions?

[rexin]

I had insurance and nowhere does it say they will repay me for a cruise shortened. It does pay if it is cancelled and it will pay for my travel delays but that is not what we are talking about.
1. The cruise was shortened by an act of god.
2. The cruise line decided 9/4/04 to allow a 50% refund and a $100 shipboard credit
3. The cruise was shortened by an act of god
4. The cruise line decided 9/25/04 to only allow a 30% refund and no credit.

In my book, and yours, a difference of 20% is not splitting hairs. How could we not complain?

I would appear that you were able to cancel you RCCL cruise since you state they will have your money for a year. Due to PC canceling our cruise so late that was not a real option for us.

[spongerob]

[quote name='LovingFL']I was on the 9/4.....or suppose to be on the 9/4 sailing of the CP but had to cancel due to the hurricane knocking out my power. I called to let Princess know that I would not be able to make the sailing prior to their "deadline" and was told I would get a 100% refund....I, as of to-date, have received nothing....only excuses of problems issuing the refund...
Anyone have any suggestions?[/QUOTE]
Be patient. When situations like this have happened in the past, it has taken several weeks for the refunds to appear. It's the same in my business - collecting on invoices is easy; processing credits and refunds is difficult.

[travelscrapper]

[quote name='TBR']How dare the airlines allowed you to enter the hurricane zone and have to fear for your life,or is princess at fault for that too? Did they book your air a day ahead or did you? What about the airlines cancelling flights, if it was such a hazard for you to be here. You choose to live in a non hurricane zone then why not stay away from the 5 months in the hurricane zone. I hear there is a cruise on the great lakes,no hurricanes there. I think you should fault your TA for not advising you of the storm conditions. Up until about two hrs before the storm hit Stuart Fl.,the national hurricane center was not sure exactly where the storm was going to make landfall,it was predicted to touch land and bounce up along the east coast,it was then changed to go inland and up thru the center of the state,and guess what they were wrong, it came across the state north of tampa up thru state to Ga. So how could princess know more then 24 hrs in advance where it was heading when the hurricane center did not know? Every hurricane this season has not gone where intially forcasted to go.[/QUOTE]


I'll just agree to disagree with you....Actually I LOVE my travel agent !!! She did advide me of the storm conditions---Per the Ft Lauderdale Port Authorities web site it was PRINCESS that told me to head down to Florida so I didnt miss my cruise the next day.

Like Rexin said the precedent was set 3 weeks earlier when they gave 50% back to the first group.

[ERsecurity]

Rexin,

You can call Princess and detach the next cruise from any TA if you desire. Then you will have to handle all the leg work yourself. The choice is yours...

[spongerob]

[quote name='rexin']I had insurance and nowhere does it say they will repay me for a cruise shortened. It does pay if it is cancelled and it will pay for my travel delays but that is not what we are talking about.
1. The cruise was shortened by an act of god.
2. The cruise line decided 9/4/04 to allow a 50% refund and a $100 shipboard credit
3. The cruise was shortened by an act of god
4. The cruise line decided 9/25/04 to only allow a 30% refund and no credit.

In my book, and yours, a difference of 20% is not splitting hairs. How could we not complain?
[/QUOTE]
If you want to list facts, please list all of them.

The 9/4 cruise was changed twice by Princess, caused by Frances deciding to take her own sweet time getting out of the way. Passengers received the additional discount as a result plus the OBC.

The 9/25 cruise was given a pro-rate refund of 30% based on the shortened cruise, PLUS credit towards a future cruise that varied by the type of cabin booked, and probably amounts to 20-25% of the fare paid.

I have read through the comments in your roll call thread. You sound like nice people so I read your comments about the on-board problems with some interest. Maybe you've got a case for complaint, but it is a separate issue entirely. It is interesting to read the posts many of your group made following the cruise - it sounds like some of you fed off each others' anger and disappointment and that might have influenced your perceptions. There wasn't 100% agreement that the service was terrible, though. Just my observation.

A few comments were made about going on the cruise because people booked their own air and didn't want to lose the money spent on plane tickets. Almost all the airlines bent over backwards to make sure that people whose plans were disrupted did not incur any additional expense.

It is well understood that cruise fares for the Caribbean in September are the cheapest of the year for several reasons - one of them being the risk of weather. In effect, compensation for [b]potential[/b] risk has already been built into the pricing structure.

I think the two cruises had some similarities and some differences. Should you get a further refund just because the other group did? In a way you have, though future cruise credits. Of course, I can't convince you to use them nor will I insult you by trying. All I will say is that the situations you described are unlike anything I've ever witnessed, and should be considered an aberration, not standard practice.

Good luck in your future travels!

[hendey47]

Rob, you are 100% right. I sailed with you on the Grand Princess last year when you went back to back. Believe me, the cruise on 9/27 was excellent. As you know some people will always complain and the rest of the cruisers start adding more and more until it festers out of control. Take care and which sailings are you going on this year.