What are the chances we still have a reservation on this cruise?

[Amerie]

I have a wonderful CC aft cabin booked on the Millennium for a 12 night Wine Cruise on September 28, 2009.

 

Before Christmas, the cruise disappeared from the Celebrity Website, and upon calling Customer Relations, Captain's Club, and the Revenue department I was variously told, all on the same day:

 

• The cruise is still going ahead with no changes. (Customer Relations)
  
• The cruise has been cancelled. We have no information at this time. (Captain's Club...we have Elite Status).
  
• The itinerary is being changed. You will now arrive in Los Angeles (Previously San Diego). (Captain's CLub.
  
• The cruise is being chartered, but you will still keep your reservation.
  
• (Revenue)
  
• The cruise is being chartered, and you will lose your reservation. (Revenue)
  

As of yesterday, my reservation has been removed from "My Celebrity-Reservations".

 

Celebrity has had $900.00 of my money since the beginning of October 2008 and we have booked the time off of work. We have had no formal word from Celebrity whatsoever.

 

To experienced Celebrity Cruisers....what are my chances that this cruise will be going ahead? (Slim to none?)

 

Does it ever happen that a cruise is chartered, and you get to keep your cabin?

 

When does Celebrity finally get around to letting you know?

 

Does this happen very often? (It's a first for us).

 

:( We are very, very sad, as we've been waiting for one of the M-Class ships to do this itinerary for quite some time.

.

[Spender Nui]

I can't answer your questions but I think it's an out and out disgrace that something like this happens.

[CathyCruises]

Worse than dealing with the IRS, I swear! What a pain! I'd start looking for an alternative adventure just in case. I know I would be very disappointed if I were you. :(

 

Cathy

[warmwinds]

They will probably wait until they see if the charter group fills all the cabins - if not, they'll let you keep yours. More importantly I would try to find out WHAT group has chartered the cruise - if it's something that you would not want to be surrounded by for 12 days, I'd seek an alternative immediately. We were at a casino during a cigar convention once and it was abysmal.

[Amerie]

They will probably wait until they see if the charter group fills all the cabins - if not, they'll let you keep yours. More importantly I would try to find out WHAT group has chartered the cruise - if it's something that you would not want to be surrounded by for 12 days, I'd seek an alternative immediately. We were at a casino during a cigar convention once and it was abysmal.

 

Ewww...cigar convention...now that would be REALLY, REALLY bad, from my perspective. Ick!

 

Do you have any suggestions on how to find out? I asked Celebrity, but they "had no information"...my guess is they wouldn't tell me if they had.

 

I've tried all the avenues I know to find out, without luck. I once saw a website that listed many conventions and charters, but cannot locate it now.

 

Thanks so much for your help.

[FiggyWig]

The exact same thing happended with our booking. Had made the booking through a UK travel agent, about 3 weeks later the cruise disappeared from all websites as did our "My Celebrity" reservation that I had added to the X website. The TA could not instantly tell me what was happening nor did Celebrity UK, was given various possibilities as per the OP. Joy of Joy about a week later the cruise re-appeared on the website with an additional day, changing from 11 to 12 nights with an additional stop in Sicily at no further cost to us.:D

 

Hold tight - it may not be all bad news although it would be nice to be kept informed!

[Amerie]

The exact same thing happended with our booking. Had made the booking through a UK travel agent, about 3 weeks later the cruise disappeared from all websites as did our "My Celebrity" reservation that I had added to the X website. The TA could not instantly tell me what was happening nor did Celebrity UK, was given various possibilities as per the OP. Joy of Joy about a week later the cruise re-appeared on the website with an additional day, changing from 11 to 12 nights with an additional stop in Sicily at no further cost to us.:D

 

Hold tight - it may not be all bad news although it would be nice to be kept informed!

 

That IS encouraging news. Thanks for posting!

[ugen512]

No info on cruisingpower...the Millenium was moved from Austr/NZ to southern Carib after Alaska season but that shoul have no bearing on htis sailing. Cruising power shows it still there but n/a to book.

[Amerie]

No info on cruisingpower...the Millenium was moved from Austr/NZ to southern Carib after Alaska season but that shoul have no bearing on htis sailing. Cruising power shows it still there but n/a to book.

 

Thanks for checking CruisingPower.com for us.

[cantwait2cruize]

I would check your Roll Call section, maybe someone there has some information.

[hcat]

That your res has been removed from your personal res.area is of concern--do they still show you with a valid res when you call them..? If it is a charter that does not seem consistent with your having a valid res-- A group booking yes--but a charter implies some group took the whole ship--I am not a travel pro so only surmising!

 

We have had at least one Celeb cruise on Mille cancelled for a charter--got nice compensation but had to argue about the replacement cruise--we needed the same week we had arranged to take off from work--ended up discovering the Mercury which of course is a great ship..

 

More recently we went around & around with Royal C when our Mex Riviera trip was all of a sudden showing nothing on the website ..they had offered 4 & 5 night cruises during same dates as longer ones--it was quite confusing...no one could help us,..no one ever called us back & then lo & behold after several weeks of uncertainly our cruise was re-listed & the conflicting ones were deleted. We had already booked a back up which we then cancelled.. During the whole time no one we spoke to at Royal C seemed to know anything or have any ideas on how they could help s find out.....

 

I hope your situation works out & you get the cruise you wanted...it is frustrating to say the least!

[elena7seas]

That your res has been removed from your personal res.area is of concern--do they still show you with a valid res when you call them..? If it is a charter that does not seem consistent with your having a valid res-- A group booking yes--but a charter implies some group took the whole ship--I am not a travel pro so only surmising!

 

We have had at least one Celeb cruise on Mille cancelled for a charter--got nice compensation but had to argue about the replacement cruise--we needed the same week we had arranged to take off from work--ended up discovering the Mercury which of course is a great ship..

 

More recently we went around & around with Royal C when our Mex Riviera trip was all of a sudden showing nothing on the website ..they had offered 4 & 5 night cruises during same dates as longer ones--it was quite confusing...no one could help us,..no one ever called us back & then lo & behold after several weeks of uncertainly our cruise was re-listed & the conflicting ones were deleted. We had already booked a back up which we then cancelled.. During the whole time no one we spoke to at Royal C seemed to know anything or have any ideas on how they could help s find out.....

 

I hope your situation works out & you get the cruise you wanted...it is frustrating to say the least!

 

Hi Hcat:

 

I am also booked on this phantom sailing, and am hoping against hope that it will still be available to me.

 

However, our reservation has also disappeared from 'My Celebrity'. I only checked it yesterday afternoon, and by then the Celebrity customer service lines were closed for New Year, so I don't know if my reservation is still on file.

 

To date, we have not received any communications from Celebrity about this sailing being cancelled, so perhaps things are still in the air.

 

I am not expecting any compensation from Celebrity as the cruise is still 9 months out, but if the cruise is cancelled, I will be very disappointed, as this was a particular theme and itinerary that I have been waiting for, and was so pleased to find it on a M-class ship. The timing is also much better than the previous wine cruises which have been later in the year. Not to mention, I was finally going to be able to leave on a cruise from my home port...one short flight back from San Diego was going to be such a treat!

 

Keeping my fingers crossed!

[sammamishcruiser]

So sorry to hear about this! Try http://www.cruisett.com, I was just there and it shows the Millennium Sept 28, 2009 in Vancouver, BC and then going down the west coast to California! Good luck! I sure hope Celebrity gets this straightened out for you.

 

Melody

[hajekfam]

So sorry to hear about this! Try http://www.cruisett.com, I was just there and it shows the Millennium Sept 28, 2009 in Vancouver, BC and then going down the west coast to California! Good luck! I sure hope Celebrity gets this straightened out for you.

 

Melody

 

I wouldn't rely on this site for up to date info as it is not published by the cruiseline. According to their website:

About CruiseTT

All times are local.

All information is based on published schedule information.

Do not use to make travel plans.

If you can't get updated info from Celebrity, neither would they.

But that website looks like a great substitute for the now defunct "Cruise Ship Calendar" where you can check to see how many ships will be in port with you. A plus to this site, they also list the total number of people if all the ships in port were at full capacity so you can tell how crowded the port might be.

[CanWeGoYet?]

Thanks for posting that fantastic web site, I was able to see how many other ships would be in port for our cruise.

 

To the OP, so sorry you don't know if your cruise is a go and can't get a straight answer from X. I went through something similar with carnival when they canceled the first transatlantic I had booked. I was so disappointed but at least the status of the cruise was definite so I could make other plans. The very least X should be doing is letting you know whether you still have a booking. Inexcusable.

[tmyq]

I have a travel agent I use in So. Cal she said that she will be seeing her Celebrity District sales Mgr on Saturday the 3rd and might be able to answer this question for you. I will post the reply when she gets back to me.

 

J.

[kitty9]

Had a reservation once that was cancelled by the cruise line, and thank heaven it was cancelled. The ship was chartered by an "alternate lifestyle" group. While I don't care what others do in the privacy of their own homes, I just cannot imagine being on a ship.......well, just think about it.

[CanWeGoYet?]

Weird on board activities scheduled? :p Don't see how it would affect your cruise, but each to his own.

[NauticalDan]

If the ship is chartered, you won't get to keep your cabin. All the cabins on the ship are sold to the charter company when it is a full ship charter.

 

However, part of the cost of chartering a ship is the compensation that the cruise line will offer passengers already booked.

[elena7seas]

I have a travel agent I use in So. Cal she said that she will be seeing her Celebrity District sales Mgr on Saturday the 3rd and might be able to answer this question for you. I will post the reply when she gets back to me.

 

J.

 

Thanks to everyone who has replied. TMYQ...I will be interested to hear what your Travel Agent learns.

 

I called Celebrity again today and spoke to three different people, from whom I learned the following:

 

1. Sergio, the Cruise Specialist, did as much as he could, but the people with the last word on this are apparently in the "Deployment" department, and that department is on holiday today.
    
   Sergio insisted, however, (based on what he learned from the supervisors in Reservations), that the cruise is still on. It has been pulled from the Reservation system while they try to contact everyone who booked the cruise while the port of debarkation was still San Diego, to find out if they still want to reserve the cruise with Los Angeles as the port of debarkation. No one has called or email me since December 18th when I first called about this problem, and I have been home virtually full time from then until now.
    
   Sergio also insisted that the cruise has NOT been chartered.
    
    
   
2. After I talked to Sergio, I called the Captain's Club again. The person that I talked to there forwarded me to a supervisor in "Reservations" who said:
   

• the cruise is still on
  
• there had been a berthing conflict in San Diego, and the ship had to be redeployed to Los Angeles for disembarkation
  
• that Revenue is currently reassessing the inventory before putting it back on the system
  
• my reservation is still valid
  
• part of the delay in getting the inventory back on the system has been the Christmas vacation
  

She said that I could expect to be able to access my reservation by early next week.

 

So that's all I know for now! :p

[nmtraveler]

The Panama Canal cruise right after the Wine cruise has the same problem. Maybe this all has to do with the change in ports from San Diego to LA. I think you are still on because it's unlikely they have chartered out both of these cruises. I looked on the roll call page and no one has started one for the Panama Canal Cruise. Maybe someone should inquire about that one and see if you get the same runaround.

[dutchess43]

How terrible to not know what has happened. Hope all goes well for you.

[Amerie]

How terrible to not know what has happened. Hope all goes well for you.

 

Thank you.

 

We still haven't heard anything from Celebrity, either by phone or email.

 

Although I phoned this morning when the offices reopened, no one seems to be able to say anything definitive, other than that my reservation is still on file. The Captain's Club rep told me that removing a cruise from the system "to do inventory maintenance" isn't all that uncommon. I guess the timing and delay in this instance is just exacerbated by holiday closures.

 

I'll just wait a few days and see if the reservation system is restored for this cruise. I do feel sorry for people who lost an opportunity for reasonably priced airfares. Hopefully this situation will be resolved soon, and those people will be able to find even better priced flights!

[hajekfam]

Thank you.

 

We still haven't heard anything from Celebrity, either by phone or email.

Did you book directly with Celebrity or is your booking under a travel agent? If it is under a travel agent, Celebrity will contact them and have them contact your. If you booked directly with Celebrity, then they will contact you.

When our transatlantic, booked through a travel agent, a few years ago ended up being pushed back two days about a week before the cruise, Celebrity would not talk to me to tell me of my possible choices, they contacted my TA who then contacted me.

[Amerie]

Did you book directly with Celebrity or is your booking under a travel agent? If it is under a travel agent, Celebrity will contact them and have them contact your. If you booked directly with Celebrity, then they will contact you.

When our transatlantic, booked through a travel agent, a few years ago ended up being pushed back two days about a week before the cruise, Celebrity would not talk to me to tell me of my possible choices, they contacted my TA who then contacted me.

 

I booked this myself. I have never used a Travel Agent.