Interesting thread on RCI board

[Robin7]

Gee, I wonder why she didn't ask this on this board? ;) Heh. Interesting problem. As soon as I saw the $2580, my eyes about bugged out of my head!

 

Robin

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=880180

[chwawa]

She doesn't feel like getting jumped on by the lovers of Good Ol HAL where everything is always perfect, and it is always the customers fault. Once again, Good ol' HAL strikes again:mad:

Imagine sending out a letter such as that and then not honoring it! IMHO they have a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG ways to go in improving customer relations!

[TravelAddiction]

Hmmm...typo or not, IMO they should honour their official letter. One word for their office staff...proof-reading:rolleyes:

[Kiwi Kruzer]

One word for their office staff...proof-reading:rolleyes:

 

 

Proof reading?????Who does that these days,

case in point

a letter delivered on the last night of our recent Dawn Princess cruise.....

 

Dear xxxxxx,

 

Due to operational reasons,we have changed the suites and Captain Circle disembarkation lounge location from the Wheelhouse Bar to the Florentine Dining Room on Deck 5.

 

We truly apologize for this incontinence.

 

Once again thank you for sailing with Dawn Princess

 

Yous sincereley

 

Passengers Service Desk

[TravelAddiction]

Dear xxxxxx,

 

Due to operational reasons,we have changed the suites and Captain Circle disembarkation lounge location from the Wheelhouse Bar to the Florentine Dining Room on Deck 5.

 

We truly apologize for this incontinence.

 

Once again thank you for sailing with Dawn Princess

 

Yous sincereley

 

Passengers Service Desk

 

Well, I certainly hope they did this because the washrooms were closer at the Dr than at the bar for all the "yous incontinence" people:D:D

 

Oh my. LOL!!

[Luv4dacruise]

Wow, tough break. Thats not the OP's parents fault what-so-ever, granted, common sense to me says that $2580 pp credit is rather exorbitant for what they endured. Another red flag to me is the very random dollar amount. But since its authenticity is not in question, and it was HAL's mistake (regardless of it being a pretty obvious mistake to me at least) HAL needs to man up and honor the credit on the certificate.

 

Really bad PR for them if they don't......

[RevNeal]

She doesn't feel like getting jumped on by the lovers of Good Ol HAL where everything is always perfect, and it is always the customers fault. Once again, Good ol' HAL strikes again:mad:

Imagine sending out a letter such as that and then not honoring it! IMHO they have a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG ways to go in improving customer relations!

 

Before you jump on HAL loyalists too harshly perhaps you should note the kind of criticism that most of us tend to level against HAL-HQ in Seattle these days. We may, indeed, be protective of the ships, crew, and staff, and sluggish to criticize the sea-side operations, but criticism of the Administration, Customer Relations, and Corporate hierarchy is not at all unheard of on the HAL board ... even from people who are, unquestionably, HAL "fans" (like me).

[wrp96]

Considering that the OP on that thread didn't know that HAL was owned by Carnival they may not have realized there was a HAL board for them to ask the question. Many people only frequent the board for their particular cruiseline and don't know about the other boards on CC.

[hammybee]

It's an interesting dilema for any business.

 

What if the letter had said $25,800 or $258,000 or even $2,580,000?

 

Under these circumstances, HAL should honor the document it created.

It sounds to me like the OP of that thread has yet to make contact with the appropriate inside resource to make this happen.

[kyriecat]

Wow, tough break. Thats not the OP's parents fault what-so-ever, granted, common sense to me says that $2580 pp credit is rather exorbitant for what they endured. Another red flag to me is the very random dollar amount. But since its authenticity is not in question, and it was HAL's mistake (regardless of it being a pretty obvious mistake to me at least) HAL needs to man up and honor the credit on the certificate.

 

Really bad PR for them if they don't......

The thread doesn't list specifics so we're left to assume a few things. If the parents had booked a balcony or higher cabin on a 2 week cruise, they probably paid at least $4K each. Assuming the sewage issue occured within the first 4 days of their cruise and they were placed in an inside cabin, then they have been denied the use of a balcony for the next 10 days of the cruise. They also had to experience ruined luggage and the joys of stepping in raw sewage. They also were moved into a room with AC problems which seems to be a recurring theme on HAL lately. Maybe their cruise was $5160 pp and they were given 50% pp back as a credit. Not knowing the facts in detail and assuming some of my assumptions are correct ;), $2580 pp could be a fair value for the cruise problems even if it is an odd value.

[hammybee]

 

Maybe their cruise was $5160 pp and they were given 50% pp back as a credit. Not knowing the facts in detail and assuming some of my assumptions are correct ;), $2580 pp could be a fair value for the cruise problems even if it is an odd value.

 

I am thinking that if this couple had been significantly downgraded into the second cabin, the OP of that thread would have mentioned it.

 

I suspect they received a comparable cabin and the $2,580 represented a significant portion of the original cabin cost. It's probably within the realm of reason that this couple thought the credit was reasonable, given the plumbing problem, needing to switch cabins and lack of an in-cabin phone/AC issue.

 

Of course it is not routine for any cruise line to issue cruise credits for a substantial portion of a cruise fare for situations like this. Heck, if they did, no doubt, some passengers would volunteer for cabins with plumbing problems.:eek:

[kyriecat]

Of course it is not routine for any cruise line to issue cruise credits for a substantial portion of a cruise fare for situations like this. Heck, if they did, no doubt, some passengers would volunteer for cabins with plumbing problems.:eek:

I was making some assumptions since the details are very sketchy from the OP. I don't know what really happened and the amount might have seemed good or even generous to the OP's parents. I mean, they were willing to give HAL another try because of it. I don't know if I would. I'm going to guess if HAL doesn't live up to their credit letter, even if it was a typo, then they have lost cruising customers.

 

I WON"T be among the ones volunteering for a cabin with plumbing problems. I had that happen once at my house and the smell was enough to make my cookies toss - but there was no where to toss them. :eek:

[RevNeal]

I suspect they received a comparable cabin and the $2,580 represented a significant portion of the original cabin cost. It's probably within the realm of reason that this couple thought the credit was reasonable, given the plumbing problem, needing to switch cabins and lack of an in-cabin phone/AC issue.

 

Actually, no. Based upon the description, and given my past experience, it's more likely that they were moved into an unused staff/guest entertainment cabin ... one that wasn't outfitted for use that cruise (or, conceivably, for several cruises), hence no phone and AC taken off the computer routing system. The passengers may not have known that this was what it was because, very often, these cabins look quite a bit like a regular passenger's cabin, but that's what they are. On Vistas, for instance, those cabins are located on the Upper Promenade Deck along side G and H category outside cabins. Some are also found aft on the Main deck, also alongside passenger cabins. There are fewer of them on S/Rs that are in close proximity to passenger cabins, but they do exist. I don't remember which ship they said it was, but if it was the Eurodam it may very well have been the case that it was a staff cabin not too far away from their original location.

[mom2threecuties]

Hi Guys, OP here.

 

I had originally posted this on the RCCL board because that's my cruisecritic home :)

 

I have answers to some of your questions, but not all of them (and my parents are enjoying a cruise as we speak, so I can't ask them right now).

 

The cruise was a 12 night "Black Sea, Egypt, and the Holy Land" cruise on the Rotterdam. I'm relying on memory, but I think that they were booked in an oceanview that was about $3,500 pp. I'm pretty sure that the flooding occurred on the second night of the cruise. They were moved into a cabin that was in the same category, except that it had inoperable a/c and no phone.

 

You're definitely right that I haven't found the right person in HAL to contact. The original letter was sent to Mr. Kruse's office. The return letter was from Ms. Leonore. I haven't been able to get through to her, but I have spoken to two of her colleagues. One was not helpful at all, in fact he left a quite rude and snickering message on my parents' answering machine, and hasn't returned any of my three calls. The second person has been very nice and very quick to get back to me. Unfortunately, I don't think he has the authority to make a decision on this, and he isn't permitted to give me any other contact information.

 

To me, the issue is that HAL is not honoring the letter they sent, typo or no typo. If their original letter offered $250pp, it would be a different story. My parents have sailed HAL in the past, but based on this experience they probably would have moved on to a different cruiseline. But they received a letter offering them a generous credit, and decided to give HAL another try based on that.

 

Any input/advice would be most appreciated :)

 

Tricia

[tgetz]

Do you know which TA they used to book either the original cruise or this new cruise? A large travel agency will have much more 'pull' at HAL than any individual, and will know who to contact at HAL Seattle to make it right. I will not go into the problems i have had with the Seatle office, but persistance adn many, many phone calls and emails nicely requesting a supervisor, over and over again lead to a resolution of one issue. BUt on any other issue, my TA always handles it because they know who to contact and which buttons to push and sadly like others, i have had several problems with HAL for them to solve. It has definetly lead me to be very leary of booking with them again. but like everyone else. i love the ships and the crew on board.

[Jade13]

It's an interesting dilema for any business.

 

What if the letter had said $25,800 or $258,000 or even $2,580,000?

 

Under these circumstances, HAL should honor the document it created.

It sounds to me like the OP of that thread has yet to make contact with the appropriate inside resource to make this happen.

 

I want to know how much they paid for the cruise prior to taxes/gratuities/fuel surcharge? If this amount was more, well it would have been a red flag.

 

HAL needs to upgrade these guests (which they are requesting) especially since the ship is unlikely sold out. It sounds like they are trying to work something out.

[mom2threecuties]

Do you know which TA they used to book either the original cruise or this new cruise? A large travel agency will have much more 'pull' at HAL than any individual, and will know who to contact at HAL Seattle to make it right. I will not go into the problems i have had with the Seatle office, but persistance adn many, many phone calls and emails nicely requesting a supervisor, over and over again lead to a resolution of one issue. BUt on any other issue, my TA always handles it because they know who to contact and which buttons to push and sadly like others, i have had several problems with HAL for them to solve. It has definetly lead me to be very leary of booking with them again. but like everyone else. i love the ships and the crew on board.

 

They usually book directly with the cruise line, but I need to get verification on that.

[Jade13]

I want to know how much they paid for the cruise prior to taxes/gratuities/fuel surcharge? If this amount was more, well it would have been a red flag.

 

HAL needs to upgrade these guests (which they are requesting) especially since the ship is unlikely sold out. It sounds like they are trying to work something out.

 

Ok, I see about $3,500.00pp. It was the Rotterdam in the Med, so a more expensive cruise. I can understand why the couple thought it was a $2,500pp credit (its still less than they paid), but still a high amount. Ms. Lenore is the right person to contact.

[Pam in CA]

I agree with others who say that HAL should have honored the letter... AND, their credit should have been $2,580, not $250. This is a case where having a TA would make a difference but that's hindsight.

 

Let me give you my reasons why I think the credit should have been $2,580 and why HAL should honor their letter. Last summer, I was on the Crown Princess for a 10-day cruise. For 8 of the 10 days, my toilet pretty much didn't work. I'd call the Front Desk and report it; I stopped by the Front Desk and reported it; my steward told his Supervisor who reported it. I cried, I begged -- nada. I wound up having to use the public toilets, even in the middle of the night, because most of the time, mine wouldn't flush. I'd go off on an excursion and when I got back later in the day, the toilet would be cleared out. It would flush a few times and then stop working again and I'd have another evening, night and morning without a toilet. It was smelly, unsanitary and just plain awful but nothing seemed to be making a difference with the Front Desk.

 

Towards the end of the cruise, I was invited to a special Captain's Circle "most traveled" cocktail party with the Captain and when I went to the Captain's Circle rep to RSVP, I mentioned my problem. She was aghast, immediately looked up the records and reports and found that 90% of the reports hadn't been filed. She told me that it was an issue with the vacuum pump and that they were probably just clearing out what they thought was a blockage and not testing the vacuum pressure. She called the Engineering Dept directly and within an hour, all was fixed. I was able to give her names, times, etc. of everyone I'd talked to and she said she'd take care of it.

 

When I got home, I wrote a letter to Alan Buckelew, President & CEO of Princess, and explained in a clear, concise way what happened, what I'd tried to do to get the problem fixed and the lack of result. A few weeks later, I received a nice letter addressing every one of my concerns along with a $1,400 credit towards a future cruise. My TA emailed me a couple of days later to say that they'd received notification of the credit and which cruise did I want it applied to, so Princess followed up.

 

I was single in the cabin so that I feel that if there were two of us, each should have received that credit which is why I think that for this couple's issues they should have received a hell of a lot more than a measley $250.

 

I have other examples but saying they're getting a $250 credit is just plain wrong for what they went through.

[Cruiser809e8r09]

Wouldn't the ruined luggage and contents alone be worth more than $250? Man-up HAL!

 

Why are the HAL offices so disorganized? Do those crazy kids need some serious supervision?!?

 

[RevNeal]

Hi Guys, OP here.

 

I had originally posted this on the RCCL board because that's my cruisecritic home :)

 

I have answers to some of your questions, but not all of them (and my parents are enjoying a cruise as we speak, so I can't ask them right now).

 

The cruise was a 12 night "Black Sea, Egypt, and the Holy Land" cruise on the Rotterdam. I'm relying on memory, but I think that they were booked in an oceanview that was about $3,500 pp. I'm pretty sure that the flooding occurred on the second night of the cruise. They were moved into a cabin that was in the same category, except that it had inoperable a/c and no phone.

 

You're definitely right that I haven't found the right person in HAL to contact. The original letter was sent to Mr. Kruse's office. The return letter was from Ms. Leonore. I haven't been able to get through to her, but I have spoken to two of her colleagues. One was not helpful at all, in fact he left a quite rude and snickering message on my parents' answering machine, and hasn't returned any of my three calls. The second person has been very nice and very quick to get back to me. Unfortunately, I don't think he has the authority to make a decision on this, and he isn't permitted to give me any other contact information.

 

To me, the issue is that HAL is not honoring the letter they sent, typo or no typo. If their original letter offered $250pp, it would be a different story. My parents have sailed HAL in the past, but based on this experience they probably would have moved on to a different cruiseline. But they received a letter offering them a generous credit, and decided to give HAL another try based on that.

 

Any input/advice would be most appreciated :)

 

Dear Tricia,

 

Thank you for posting here and for filling in a few details. They are helpful. Suffice it to say, my remark over on the RCCL board holds true here ... HAL should honor their original letter and, although I am not a lawyer, I believe it is without question that you have a case and you should hold HAL administration's feet to the fire on this one. It's a signed letter and, as such, constitutes a contract which they must fulfill. At least ... that's how it seems to this layman (when it comes to the law).

 

On a related subject, I am familiar with the Rotterdam and there are some ocean-view cabins that are set aside for guest entertainment, chaplains, and Line officials. It just depends upon where they were moved (I'm just trying to figure out why the AC didn't work and the phone didn't work).

[Jade13]

Dear Tricia,

 

Thank you for posting here and for filling in a few details. They are helpful. Suffice it to say, my remark over on the RCCL board holds true here ... HAL should honor their original letter and, although I am not a lawyer, I believe it is without question that you have a case and you should hold HAL administration's feet to the fire on this one. It's a signed letter and, as such, constitutes a contract which they must fulfill. At least ... that's how it seems to this layman (when it comes to the law).

 

On a related subject, I am familiar with the Rotterdam and there are some ocean-view cabins that are set aside for guest entertainment, chaplains, and Line officials. It just depends upon where they were moved (I'm just trying to figure out why the AC didn't work and the phone didn't work).

 

I agree it should be honored. In this economy the ship likely won't be full anyway, so giving the requested upgrade should not be a problem.