Never Cruising Carnival Again - PLEASE read and give me a chance !

[2young2care]

I did say I felt bad for the OP that he missed the ship. He has insurance, what more can Carnival do. They apparently have given him a discount on the next cruise.

 

This person insists she researches and checks EVERYTHING to make sure all of her travel arrangements are satisfactory and yet she still cannot read a simple letter and comprehend the OP's actual situation. Unbelievable!

[AJeray4TN]

I really only skimmed these pages so I might be totally wrong in saying this but... you state that you ALMOST missed the cruise meaning you still made the cruise so what the hell are you complaining about? If you want a tuxedo that badly go to the Mens Wearhouse!

 

A few drinks would have made me forget about our troubles!

You’re right... totally wrong for saying that. Try to be more informed before responding in the future, it lends more credibility to these "hallowed" forums.

[umwife11]

Holy heck...

 

19, 20 pages?

 

I don't know if that's impressive...or scary...

[Slimpickins]

You left out, "You should have reviewed before.....................................:D

 

Dan

 

Dude, I tried to read the entire thread before posting, but I felt the urge to respond. I suppose EVERYTIME you buy software and install it, or download it from a website you read each and every line of the EULA agreement. I'm sure when you bought your FIRST house that you read every single line on every single page of every single document. Please dude you must be living in some kind of wild dream. Normal your responses are fine(though very cold in fell), but your responses to this thread seem weird at best.

 

To okgirl, you need therapy.

[Slimpickins]

Today is April the 6th yet your last letter from Carnival is dated the 9th how do that happen...

 

Wouldnt be the first time Carnival messed up dates on a Form letter they send out. Remember the thread about Carnival coming after money from a cruise that was a month old, but the letter was dated 3 or 4 days before the cruise actually happened??

[dudaze11]

omg, i finally made it to the end...I can only say that I am glad things did not go horribly for my first two cruises because I did not find CC until right before my second cruise. Kinda sad how down on the OP people are...he obviously was not a cruise expert and did not know what his rights were in changing the fligh or whom he could or could not talk to. It seems to me that the bottom line of all of this is that carnival should have offered him a tux just as a kind gesture. They were not under any obligation to but it would have been a nice wow factor and we would be here 19 pages later. Have to say this is one of the funnier threads though..

[Livin4Real]

I really only skimmed these pages so I might be totally wrong in saying this but... you state that you ALMOST missed the cruise meaning you still made the cruise so what the hell are you complaining about? If you want a tuxedo that badly go to the Mens Wearhouse!

 

A few drinks would have made me forget about our troubles!

 

Had you bothered to read the very first post you would know what the OP is complaining about :rolleyes:

 

OP - sorry to hear about your troubles as well and hope that you stick with cruising even if it's with another line.

[Wennfred]

and we would be here 19 pages later.

 

You just made page 20 !!!! :eek: Went to bed and got up, WOW 20 Pages !

 

will this ever end?

 

 

 

Fred

[Nicole721]

I appologize .... I thought I had commented on this .... I have said from day one when asked about our vacation ..... " HORRIBLE start to a GREAT cruise ".

 

In my letters to Carnival .... I have also commented that I am hoping that this is an isolated and I would be willing to give Carnival a 2nd chance, probably next year, if Carnival addressed this letter fairly ... which I feel they have not.

 

If they acknowledged your complaint and admitted guilt and offered an apology, would it be enough for you?

 

Because I feel like you're tiptoeing around saying you want a free cruise, or a hefty discount on your next one.

 

If this was TRULY about the issue, I think an apology would suffice because you weren't out any money from the cruise.

 

So would an apology be enough?

[Slimpickins]

Not at all Nunu, you should pay closer attention. OP is being slammed because he didn't bother to do any research prior to cruising, but found this board pronto, quick, fast-like, when something went wrong. IF he had found us that quickly BEFORE his cruise, he would already know that Carnival customer service sucks and nothing can be done about it, and 2, never, ever, ever, ever, book your air through Carnival. Ever. Ever. Period.

 

Dont inhale the Blue grass please. Not everyone is so anal as most posters here and spend hours of research for a trip. Someone shouldnt be expected to spend hours of time researching. Maybe the OP googled something and found the site this way. Not everyone spend mindless hrs on a cruise forum before their cruise. Sheeeeeeeeeeeeesh!!!!!

[Wennfred]

Dont inhale the Blue grass please. Not everyone is so anal as most posters here and spend hours of research for a trip. Someone shouldnt be expected to spend hours of time researching. Maybe the OP googled something and found the site this way. Not everyone spend mindless hrs on a cruise forum before their cruise. Sheeeeeeeeeeeeesh!!!!!

 

Not everyone? you should look at my Roll Call 10,451 posts, 523 pages :D

 

 

Fred

[Nicole721]

Thank you for coming back and reposting. I had a long drawn out response to you this afternoon and it didn't go through before the big POOF.

 

So just to paraphrase. You are right. Carnival did not take care of a first time cruiser. We can all sit here and say "Well I wouldn't have done THAT". Well no kidding, most of us are veteran cruisers NOW.

 

I can remember my first cruise and booking cruise air to arrive at 1pm for a 4pm sailing during hurricane season. :eek: I KNOW I would never do that now. But I didn't know any better. And Carnival should have.

 

You know NOW not to book air through the cruise line. You know now never, ever to pack your medicine in the checked luggage.

 

And I don't know if the tuxes are always onboard in all sizes. We always have to order one for my hubby in advanced.

 

I can tell you that friends of ours on our last RCCL sailing forgot a piece of luggage at home. And it was the piece that held all of their formal wear. And RCCL volunteered to give them formal wear for the sailing.

 

I think the customer relations desk onboard dropped the ball on this one.

 

Remember we were ALL first time cruisers at one time. We didn't all come here as experts. So take it easy on him. ;)

 

 

But what could Carnival have done to prevent this? To their knowledge, this flight WOULD get in on time, with plenty of time. It's not like they booked them on a flight that would arrive at 3:30 pm. And if I remember correctly, the airport is about 20 minutes away from the port.

 

So that begs the question, what should Carnival (or any other cruise line) do for first time cruisers to make things more helpful for them? My first cruise was in 2004. I didn't find this site, but nothing went wrong. Why? Because I read my cruise contract, first of all, and secondly, there's a section on Carnival.com *for* first-time cruisers with all kinds of information (that includes the old standbys like don't pack your meds in your checked luggage).

 

Had the OP checked the Web site, this would have all been clear to him. His TA should have known this was a first cruise and forwarded him any and all information they had. My PVP does this automatically. We're going on the Miracle for the third time next month (the second time in four months) and he STILL forwards me the ship PDFs, the FAQ link, and pictures of our room category.

 

Carnival is handling this HORRIBLY, but the true blame lays on the OP and his TA. The big gripe seems to be the tuxes, and those would have been covered had the OP read and understood his insurance policy. Should we blame the insurance company for not clearly explaining to a first-time cruiser what their services covered? Of course not...it's clearly stated in the contract. Same goes for Carnival.

 

Bottom line?

 

He seems to be searching for a monetary compensation in some form and I'm not sure I think that's due because he didn't loose out on any time or money because of the error. It truly was his error for not doing his research. If he had, he would have had his meds with him, as well as any other necessities. They already had other clothes with them.

 

If you travel to a big city like NYC, Chicago, or LA, you do research. If you travel out of the country, you do research. It should be the same with a cruise. The information is there on the Web site, easily found, and in the cruise contract. I'm not sure what else the cruise lines could feasibly do to help new cruise passengers.

[Vanessa L]

Caveat Emptor. Buyer Beware. I don't trust anyone blindly when it comes to travel arrangements. The one time I flew through Carnival they tried the same thing with me and I told them it was unacceptable so they found another flight. Why would you hand over a credit card number to anyone and say "Make it happen"? I guess that's the thing that boggles my mind.

 

Exactly. And Kurbanfan, if you are that naive, I've got some ocean front property in South Dakota that I'd like to sell you. All you have to do is give me your credit card number and I promise, I WILL make something happen. Really. Seriously. I will.

[Livin4Real]

.

 

Bottom line?

 

He seems to be searching for a monetary compensation in some form and I'm not sure I think that's due because he didn't loose out on any time or money because of the error. It truly was his error for not doing his research. If he had, he would have had his meds with him, as well as any other necessities. They already had other clothes with them.

 

 

So...had this happened to you and you had called carnival multiple times in advance, concerned about your flight times (you did read that part right? Oh and the part that CARNIVAL WAS HIS TRAVEL AGENT.) and were reassured each time that it would fine then told upon arrival at port that you would have to leave your luggage behind or miss the ship you would be happy?

[Vanessa L]

Dont inhale the Blue grass please. Not everyone is so anal as most posters here and spend hours of research for a trip. Someone shouldnt be expected to spend hours of time researching. Maybe the OP googled something and found the site this way. Not everyone spend mindless hrs on a cruise forum before their cruise. Sheeeeeeeeeeeeesh!!!!!

 

Hours????????? Really Slimpickins? I Googled:

 

Results 1 - 10 of about 13,000 for flying with a tight connection on a cruise. (0.25 seconds)

 

Could be me, but here in Kentucky an hour is 60 minutes. I got answers in 0.25 SECONDS. Oh, I forgot, not everyone outside of Kentucky is computer literate, or for that matter, can read. Sorry, I assumed you might be one that could. :rolleyes: :eek:

[5waldos]

I have not read all 20 pages but I think, based on the letters back and forth, that Carnival is handling this terribly. Why they would arrange a flight with so little time for problems is unimaginable. And it doesn't seem like the onboard experience took this terribly seriously. Why not say- gee, we really messed up and let us try to show you that we can do better- here is a 50% discount on another cruise. The point of doing these things through the cruise line is so that you don't have to worry about the details- the cruise line is supposed to be the experts on issues like how not to almost miss your cruise. There should have been a packet for each of the families that night offering them what compensations they could (formal wear, toiletries, general help, etc) sent to them that night in their cabins. And the flight arranging crew should be seriously revamped to recognize that just in time is not good enough- especially in the winter. It is plain nuts!

[tedjazz]

Whatever X did in a certain situation has nothing to do with this one. There are many posts on this board of people praising Carnival for above and beyond customer service and many bashing Carnival's customer service. Those posts and incidents and X's have no part in this one.

 

The OP presented his side of the story. Carnival will not be presenting theirs. They decided to deny the OP for some reason. Nobody on this thread knows what that reason is.

Is the OP's side of the story true? ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE! It is naturally very slanted in his favor. SAME AS IT WOULD BE IF I WAS DOING THE COMPLAINING, OR YOU, OR ANY OF THE POSTERS BLAMING CARNIVAL WITHOUT THE WHOLE STORY.

 

The OP MIGHT be right

Carnival MIGHT be right

 

The FACT is that NONE of us knows the FACTS.

 

But the OP determination to get 10%, 15%, or even 50% off a future cruise he won't take, tells me he may not have been all so reasonable as he presents. ................. Just suspicion, and experience, on my part.

 

Dan

 

It looks like we have a new leader of the Carnival Cheer Squad...You Go Dan. Please enlighten us to the REAL Facts. Face it...Carnival dropped the Ball on this one and are not going to try to remedy the matter in a "Customer Friendly" way. Now this post has over 400 posts, just today and most are not cheering for the greatness of the Customer Service Department of Carnival. I'd say they have made a huge mistake by not addressing the issue appropriately...this kind of PR is not good. JMHO

[oldandslow]

Man, Royal Caribbean managed to really piss me off with their recent cutbacks so I thought I wonder over to the Carnival board to see what is happening here. After reading those letters and seeing Carnival's complete and overt lack of responsibility and caring for their customer, I am beginning to wonder if there is any cruise line worthy of my travel dollars.

You don't have to have an MBA to recognize that Carnival had implied as well as legal obligations, and that they care far more about the bottom line than attracting and retaining customers.

Kind of sucks all over: cruising, airline travel, hotel cutbacks - hopefully the pendulum doesn't too long to swing back.

[mzloolue]

Wouldnt be the first time Carnival messed up dates on a Form letter they send out. Remember the thread about Carnival coming after money from a cruise that was a month old, but the letter was dated 3 or 4 days before the cruise actually happened??

 

They do seem to have a problem with dates.

 

Perhaps there are frequent time warps in Miami...

[tedjazz]

Exactly. And Kurbanfan, if you are that naive, I've got some ocean front property in South Dakota that I'd like to sell you. All you have to do is give me your credit card number and I promise, I WILL make something happen. Really. Seriously. I will.

 

Is that the same Oceanfront Property you bought in Kentucky? BTW, soliciting payment for merchandise, in this case specific property in South Dakota, you can not or will not deliver, using the internet, is a Federal Crime. Just for your information. Sometimes it's good to know when your breaking the law. ;)

[newcatintown]

All CCL had to do was THROW THE DOG A BONE!!!

 

He'd have gone home, wrote to them about the sucky flights, and been done with it. Lesson learned.

 

But NO, CCL had to add insult to injury, in a manner of speaking. First time cruiser, formal night (or whatever you're calling it now)... was looking forward to the experience. It would have been no skin off of Carnivals a$$ to throw in two tuxs for one night. Goodwill goes a very long way.

 

The straw that breaks the camels back is often very small.

[Vanessa L]

It looks like we have a new leader of the Carnival Cheer Squad...You Go Dan. Please enlighten us to the REAL Facts. Face it...Carnival dropped the Ball on this one and are not going to try to remedy the matter in a "Customer Friendly" way. Now this post has over 400 posts, just today and most are not cheering for the greatness of the Customer Service Department of Carnival. I'd say they have made a huge mistake by not addressing the issue appropriately...this kind of PR is not good. JMHO

 

You know what, Ted? You are exactly right. But here is the rub: they have the best prices out there. For most, it is choose Carnival or wait to cruise, or worst, don't cruise at all. Wal-Mart is very similar. My DH hates Wal-Mart, hates what they stand for, hates pretty much everything about them. In the same breath however, he says, "I need you to keep the food budget at X." Guess how I make that happen? You guessed it. Wal-Mart. For the budget he gives me for food, I could not get near as much at say, Kroger, as I do there. So, while he won't set foot in a Wal-Mart, he begrudgingly knows I shop there. Carnival is the same way. As long as people are booking cruises with them because they have the best prices out there, there is no incentive whatsoever for them to change their customer service model.

[Vanessa L]

Is that the same Oceanfront Property you bought in Kentucky? BTW, soliciting payment for merchandise, in this case specific property in South Dakota, you can not or will not deliver, using the internet, is a Federal Crime. Just for your information. Sometimes it's good to know when your breaking the law. ;)

 

No ted, I am NOT that naive. My oceanfront property is on the Gulf Coast of Florida :D So call the FBI.

[RVman]

Although I’ve had great customer service with Carnival it does appear they dropped the ball on this one. I do think they could have handled this matter a whole lot better. I believe they should have offered the O.P. some kind of compensation.

I’ve had a couple of dealings with Carnivals customer service and I must say that I think a lot of it is who you deal with. It seems as tho they have no consistency what so ever. Yes I know every case is different but this O.P. has a legitimate claim. I can’t blame him for not cruising with Carnival again.

[joejo]

I think the degree in which I value fellow CC poster's comments has declined after reading this thread. Some of the posts are ridiculous. Many people don't have large quantities of time to spend viewing forum boards and also have no reason to without having had a problem. The OP took all the steps they thought they should prior to their first cruise and did more than many less vacationed travellers would.

 

I have read on here that the CC posters make up around 1% of the cruising population so it begs the question: how on earth should a 1st time cruiser know all the information prior to ever cruising? They were in contact with Carnival who repeatedly assured them that the product they purchased would be fine. Problems do arrise as this one did and it was out of Carnival's control. They could have held the ship longer but didn't. What followed was a list of what they should have done if they truly valued thier customers. A complimentary tux rental and few minor details make all the difference. Carnival did a poor job of handling this.