How should lines compensate Mexico travelers?

[finucane]

We booked a Mexican Riviera cruise on the Sapphire Princess leaving on Saturday 2nd May - we have cruised Princess on several occasions, they are our cruise line of choice.

 

Due to the outbreak of 'Swine Flu' it is understandable and only responsible that they should alter the itinerary of the cruise. However, we would never have booked a cruise with the ports of call being San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara - especially not at this time of year when the weather is questionable and cool weather is the norm. This is our first vacation in 3 years and we booked a warm and sunny cruise, regardless of circumstances this is not what we are being offered - as their official statement reads 'these passengers are not receiving the cruise vacation they had anticipated'. I personally would not have had a problem with a ‘cruise to nowhere’ as long as the weather was good.

 

Having spoken to several representatives of the company we understand that there are no real alternative options for customers, they either take the cruise or lose their money. I appreciate that Princess has been put in this position through no fault of its own, but also understand the position their customers now find themselves in. My wife and I had no urge to take a cruise with the alternative itinerary (or weather) and subsequently cancelled our trip, if we lose our vacation and the funds we have paid Princess then regrettably so be it, but they will have lost repeat customers and we will not consider cruising with them again in the future.

 

The offer of a 50% discount on our NEXT Princess cruise is very poor and all but irrelevant, as previously mentioned and due to the apparent lack of loyalty to their customers, if this is their line of action we will not cruise with them again. I am also somewhat confused and a little incensed when their owner company (Carnival) are offering impacted customers a rebooking option, a cruise credit or money back. Kudos to them.

 

Being a business owner myself I would encourage all cruise lines to make an opportunity out of an adverse situation, especially during these difficult economic times - do right by your customers, lead the pack and reap the benefits. The alternative is bad press, dissatisfied customers and loss of future business.

 

Everything well stated and ditto on this end...

I would sending a hard copy of this and your concerns. We have had many ranking officers tell us that be it good or bad it is best to send hard copies via US mail, they get read as opposed to email...

[Midnight Writer]

I'd expect substitute ports if available.

 

 

why not travel to Key West or Jamacia instead. its close to them, We are leaving on July 12th... swine will be wine by then, and if its still here, we should be able to tell the ships listen we paid for the cruise now we want to go to grand caymon and jamacia so can we not do that leaving out of tampa?

is that a problem? they are almost next door...red

[PICKLEBALL WIDOW]

I was booked on the Conquest last Sunday and they only offered us $20 onboard credit if we went, or they would "hold on to" our money in the form of future cruise credit. $20 was a big slap in the face. First of all, it didn't come close to losing the port of Cozumel and, secondly, they should have at least refunded the ENTIRE amount of port fees each passenger paid for Cozumel.

 

It would have been nice to let us rebook at the SAME rate we originally got. Some of us spent hours finding the best deal possible for that sailing, and now we're forced to do it all over again. I just think Carnival's being a little cheap. I'd rather have my money back.

[stanford's girl]

Did RCCL's decision to allow people ashore in Cabo cause an abnormally high number of people to get sick or die? I don't see your problem here. Hindsight being 20/20, I do question Carnival's decision to disembark a sick passenger as most of the swine flue related deaths have been the result of other underlying medical conditions. But she it appears she's OK too.

 

In both cases I'm in the "No Blood-no-Foul" camp.

My point is that RCI told us on April 27th that they were following what the CDC had to say. But then they did just the opposite of what was recommended by the CDC concerning our stop in Cabo on the 28th!!

I took this off the RCI website so read it for yourself:

Like our guests, we take all health matters seriously. Although authorities have not raised specific concerns regarding the ports we visit in Mexico, we want to err on the side of caution.

So it looks like they decided to "take all health matters seriously" and "err on the side of caution" in Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan but NOT in Cabo. I'm sorry that you don't see the point in this. :rolleyes:

As for you questioning Carnival's decision in taking a woman off in Cabo who needed an emergency operation, is just plain ridiculous!! Should they have kept her on the ship and brought her all the way back to Long Beach instead, where she might have died before they got her there?? :mad:

[Tex_Jen]

Reminder about the Carnival ship....it was heading south and running the itinerary opposite ours on the Mariner. That means the ship probably turned around earlier in the day while we were in Cabo. Was the Mariner staff supposed to come round us up to get us out? I don't think so. The decisions for all the ships were made on Tuesday. You are citing the CDC's announcement on the 27th, but I know they were talking about that before we even left port. Again, the illnesses in Mexico have primarily been in the central areas. There are more confirmed cases in California and Texas than the west coast regions of Mexico. It was recommended to avoid nonessential travel. Cruising is nonessential, but my trip was booked. I'm sure all the cruise companies were staying in close contact to find out what the potential restrictions would be.

 

We need to allow cooler heads to prevail. My only issue with RCI's compensation policy was that they offered the following cruises after us much more. Telling me I get less because I made one port doesn't quite cut it.

 

Had they treated us all the same and given us nothing, I would have been fine. I know what my cruise contract says and am quite aware of it. Once they made the decision to give compensation, however, they needed to treat us all fairly, and I don't believe that has occurred.

 

Jen

[nealstuber]

My point is that RCI told us on April 27th that they were following what the CDC had to say. But then they did just the opposite of what was recommended by the CDC concerning our stop in Cabo on the 28th!!

 

I took this off the RCI website so read it for yourself:

Like our guests' date=' [b']we take all health matters seriously[/b]. Although authorities have not raised specific concerns regarding the ports we visit in Mexico, we want to err on the side of caution.

 

So it looks like they decided to "take all health matters seriously" and "err on the side of caution" in Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan but NOT in Cabo. I'm sorry that you don't see the point in this. :rolleyes:

 

As for you questioning Carnival's decision in taking a woman off in Cabo who needed an emergency operation, is just plain ridiculous!! Should they have kept her on the ship and brought her all the way back to Long Beach instead, where she might have died before they got her there?? :mad:

 

Did RCCL's decision to allow people ashore in Cabo cause an abnormally high number of people to get sick or die?

 

As to the woman with the operation...My DA (that's Dear Aunt) died of the flu following an operation about a year and a half ago. While the necessity of her operation was debateable, the mortality rates from flu in the hospital are quite clear. And that was a nice, state-of the art, hospital on Long Island - not at the early part of a category 5 pandemic. Honestly, I don't think anyone has the facts to say what could or should have been done - I'm just trying to demonstrate the importance of perspective.

 

Back to why "Cabo and not PV or MA". I think a quick look at a map might add some perspective. It would be like saying there's an outbreak in LA and the cruise line didn't follow the CDC recomendations by letting us go ashore in Hawaii but then turned around and told us we couldn't go to San Fransico or Seatlle because travel to the US was not recommended.

 

I really am bewildered by why you are upset about being allowed to go ashore in Cabo.

[stanford's girl]

Did RCCL's decision to allow people ashore in Cabo cause an abnormally high number of people to get sick or die?

 

As to the woman with the operation...My DA (that's Dear Aunt) died of the flu following an operation about a year and a half ago. While the necessity of her operation was debateable, the mortality rates from flu in the hospital are quite clear. And that was a nice, state-of the art, hospital on Long Island - not at the early part of a category 5 pandemic. Honestly, I don't think anyone has the facts to say what could or should have been done - I'm just trying to demonstrate the importance of perspective.

 

Back to why "Cabo and not PV or MA". I think a quick look at a map might add some perspective. It would be like saying there's an outbreak in LA and the cruise line didn't follow the CDC recomendations by letting us go ashore in Hawaii but then turned around and told us we couldn't go to San Fransico or Seatlle because travel to the US was not recommended.

 

I really am bewildered by why you are upset about being allowed to go ashore in Cabo.

Let me answer your question. I have no idea if RCI's decision to stop in Cabo caused "an abnormally high number of people to get sick or die" because surprisingly RCI is not releasing that information. But why would that number have to be "abnormally high" for you? Just one sick person is all it would take to infect the passengers and crew.

[stanford's girl]

I really am bewildered by why you are upset about being allowed to go ashore in Cabo.

I forgot to answer this. I am upset because if the RCI really meant what they said about taking "all health matters seriously" and wanting to "err on the side of caution", then why did they let their passengers off in Cabo? It seems to me that they were talking out of both sides of their mouth. :mad:

[redracer]

sorry this is a question. Did you receive any compensation or satisfaction from post cruise customer service? We spoke to Jennifer in corporate guest relations and she was rude to us in her answers. It would be one thing if they didn't compensate future cruises to Mexico. But not to compensate the ones that didn't get to go to where we were suppose to go to....I would like to still see Mazatlan....

[stanford's girl]

sorry this is a question. Did you receive any compensation or satisfaction from post cruise customer service? We spoke to Jennifer in corporate guest relations and she was rude to us in her answers. It would be one thing if they didn't compensate future cruises to Mexico. But not to compensate the ones that didn't get to go to where we were suppose to go to....I would like to still see Mazatlan....

As of yet I have not but someone (wolfshadow) on our roll call did and here is her post:

Well, I just got my 'Sorry you are disappointed' email from Royal Inc. And, as expected, they are playing the we have the right to change itinerary card and they are sorry we are dissatisfied with our service recovery, but this was a Corp decision and therefore there will be no further service recovery for our sailing. Oh, and they apologize for any disappointment we may experience from their response. They also mentioned that they pride themselves in being customer service oriented and it is never their intention to disappoint their guests in any way and they sincerely apologize for any inconvience we may have encountered due to this change of itinerary.

 

Gee, thanks! Now I feel better! :cool:

[mikesgcfl]

Disappointed by Princess. There are times a ship misses a port due their inability to dock based upon weather conditions. So missing a port does not require recompense, but this? At the very least Princess should offer room credit. It would be used in their shops and bars where the prices are inflated to start with. If not used the Princess has nothing to lose and a great deal of good public relations to gain. I just became a Platinum member. I would certainly think about using another line for my next cruise. :(

[nealstuber]

I forgot to answer this. I am upset because if the RCI really meant what they said about taking "all health matters seriously" and wanting to "err on the side of caution"' date='[/b'] then why did they let their passengers off in Cabo? It seems to me that they were talking out of both sides of their mouth. :mad:

DIDN'T MEAN TO ARGUE WITH YOU. YOU WERE THERE, I WAS NOT, HOPE YOUR NEXT CRUISE IS BETTER.:rolleyes:

[realmccoy]

Todaty,We returned from our 16 day Panama Canal Sailing, which was a disaster!

Once the swine flu affected the ship by missing 4 mexican ports, and in turn HAL (Westerdam) decided that we would stop in Guatamala and back trac to Nicaraga. I have read that Carnival were applying 100. per person on board credit, we did not get any compensation. THE DISEMBARKATION WAS THE WORST I HAVE EVER SEEN.

I will be contacting the HAL office in the near future.

 

Don't know where you heard that Carnival gave out $100 OBC. We were on the drive-by Splendor Cruise to Mexico and only received our $40 port charges. The OBC's are being given out to new cruisers for compensation for the missed Mexican Riviera ports. Carnival screwed us as we were stuck on board and they already had our $$$.

[cruzin w chris]

this is different from sailing during hurricane season as you know of the risk of hurricanes when you set sail and this is far different as you cant possibly see this coming and you should be compensated for this.

[sandydlc]

I was a passenger on the Carnival Splendor on April 26th.

 

There have been a few questions about why Carnival chose to allow a woman to be taken off the ship if there was a threat of the swine flu. We heard that she had actually suffered from a compound leg fracture so having her leave the ship in Cabo was imperative to her health and safety.

 

It was a difficult trip once the decision was made not to make any stops in Mexico.

 

What I'm curious about (and hope that someone here knows the answer)...why couldn't Carnival have just cruised around in the warm Mexican waters instead of going to cold, miserable, rainy San Francisco?

 

None of us were prepared for the cold climate and were forced to spend money on sweatshirts and ponchos, just to be able to leave the ship.

[stanford's girl]

I was a passenger on the Carnival Splendor on April 26th.

 

What I'm curious about (and hope that someone here knows the answer)...why couldn't Carnival have just cruised around in the warm Mexican waters instead of going to cold, miserable, rainy San Francisco?

 

None of us were prepared for the cold climate and were forced to spend money on sweatshirts and ponchos, just to be able to leave the ship.

I feel for you because I was on the Mariner that week too. :(

The answer our Captain gave us because if there was a medical emergency, he didn't want to leave anyone in Mexico.

[paradave]

We are in an intolerant society today which expects everything to always go their way.

 

Get over it, folks. I like freebees as much as the next person but there has to be limits.

 

Thinks happen over which no one has control. Bad weather, accidents, and illnesses. It would be a great world if everything went the way we wanted it, but that isn't going to happen!!!

 

The more we get freebees from companies, the more the cost of using their services is going to increase. And don't say they have insurance to cover those costs. Remember where the price of insurance comes from, your pocket. The user always pays. The same applies to taxes, the taxpayer pays in the end for services they want from their governments.

 

Cruises with multi stops in Mexico should have been cancelled and re-booked. One or two stops, Mexico avoided, no compensation.

[redracer]

I guess that's the difference between Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean. Carnival refused to even discount drinks to its CAPTIVE AUDIENCE let alone give any sort of credits for future sailings or otherwise.

 

When we headed back to California at the ship's top speed (22 knots) it was windy and the seas were rough, everything in the room was rocking. I am only glad I got off the ship in Long Beach and did not continue the horrid trek into SAN FRAN where it was raining and sloppy. I got to salvage some of my vacation on my own in SoCal where the weather was a little nicer.

 

I am dissapointed to say the least at the lack of customer service or CARE shown by Carnival Cruise Lines. I guess that the attitude you can have when you own soo many of the cruise lines out there.

 

Depending on the response I get back from Carnival Cruise Lines, I will never sail on COSTA, HOLLAND, CARNIVAL, CUNARD, P&O, SEABOURN, IBERO, PRINCESS, or AIDA all part of CARNIVAL CORP.

 

At lease we know that Royal Caribbean made some kind of an attempt to help it's customers in the way of credits...

I just got off the phone w/Royal Caribbean. The people that sailed on the 4/26/09 sailing to Mexico get no compensation. The future cruises get the right to rebook or $250. on board credit and credit for future sailings.How is that right? They have the opportunity to pack for warm weather. The ones held captive get the least satisfaction from customer service. We were told by Jennifer in corporate guest relations "if you read your Book" Unfortunatly she was RUDE. I called back and spoke to Alishia and she was pleasent. I was told we get no compensation only future bookings do...We were the most inconvenienced...That part I don't understand, Our plans were changed. Future crusies can pack for the colder weather. We had no options....No warm weather clothes. Please contact RCCL if you were on that sailing. They are taking notes. If no one received compensation for the inconvience it would be fair. To be rude to the ones that sailed and were the most inconviened is another thing.

[stanford's girl]

I just got off the phone w/Royal Caribbean. The people that sailed on the 4/26/09 sailing to Mexico get no compensation. The future cruises get the right to rebook or $250. on board credit and credit for future sailings.How is that right? They have the opportunity to pack for warm weather. The ones held captive get the least satisfaction from customer service. We were told by Jennifer in corporate guest relations "if you read your Book" Unfortunatly she was RUDE. I called back and spoke to Alishia and she was pleasent. I was told we get no compensation only future bookings do...We were the most inconvenienced...That part I don't understand, Our plans were changed. Future crusies can pack for the colder weather. We had no options....No warm weather clothes. Please contact RCCL if you were on that sailing. They are taking notes. If no one received compensation for the inconvience it would be fair. To be rude to the ones that sailed and were the most inconviened is another thing.

Great post!!! :D

The other thing I think people who were on the 4/26 sailing should do, is send a letter to the following people by snail mail.

Vicki Freed

Senior VP Sales (who heads the C and A program)

Royal Caribbean International1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

Adam M. Goldstein

President and CEO

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

 

Richard D. Fain

Chairman and CEO

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

Lisa Bauer

Senior VP of Hotel Operations

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

[finucane]

I just got off the phone w/Royal Caribbean. The people that sailed on the 4/26/09 sailing to Mexico get no compensation. The future cruises get the right to rebook or $250. on board credit and credit for future sailings.How is that right? They have the opportunity to pack for warm weather. The ones held captive get the least satisfaction from customer service. We were told by Jennifer in corporate guest relations "if you read your Book" Unfortunatly she was RUDE. I called back and spoke to Alishia and she was pleasent. I was told we get no compensation only future bookings do...We were the most inconvenienced...That part I don't understand, Our plans were changed. Future crusies can pack for the colder weather. We had no options....No warm weather clothes. Please contact RCCL if you were on that sailing. They are taking notes. If no one received compensation for the inconvience it would be fair. To be rude to the ones that sailed and were the most inconviened is another thing.

You are so right and RCCL thinks they had ya because they had ya...

I mean what is the difference between your 4/26 and our 6/21? The difference once again is that they had ya and they don't really have us in the masses, meaning all the cruises between those two dates!

These inconveniences are across the board and the cruise lines say that it is not their fault, well I got news for them it's not the paying/good faith customers fault either.

I have a feeling that they will eventually come around and work with you guys on the 4/26 but your going to have to complain in masses.

They (RCCL) finally bent when they realized they where wrong on both the Fuel Surcharge issue and the Crown Anchor "Diamond" debacle. When they bent on the FSC issue (for those who had already deposited) that is when they changed their contracts that gives them the right to do just about anything they want to do including change itineraries. Will it stand up in a court of law in the cruise lines favor? Probably not, it didn't with the FSC!

Somewhere, hopefully you/we/they all can come to terms on a compromise...

As far as contacting RCCL or any other cruise line? Mail, not email will get a look at like Janice (below) has so graciously pointed out and supplied contacts...

I don't think anyone is wanting to rip the cruise lines, we want them to survive and prosper so we can all enjoy.

On the other shoe, the cruise lines should want to provide as close as possible to the customer what they sold them, right now they are not.

If you go to the dealer to buy a Cadillac, they can't slip you a Kia!!!

Changing a single port because of weather is a lot different than selling a family who just went through an eternal winter from hell a once in a lifetime, "hot" tropical cruise and then telling them sorry we are taking you to Seattle, San Francisco and then BC. I believe most travelers are going to have issues with that considering most of them on these west coast cruises live in those ports...

 

Great post!!! :D

The other thing I think people who were on the 4/26 sailing should do' date=' is send a letter to the following people by snail mail.[/color']

Vicki Freed

Senior VP Sales (who heads the C and A program)

Royal Caribbean International1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

Adam M. Goldstein

President and CEO

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

 

Richard D. Fain

Chairman and CEO

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

Lisa Bauer

Senior VP of Hotel Operations

Royal Caribbean International

1050 Caribbean Way

Miami, FL 33132

 

Thank you Janice...

[stanford's girl]

You are so right and RCCL thinks they had ya because they had ya...

I mean what is the difference between your 4/26 and our 6/21? The difference once again is that they had ya and they don't really have us in the masses, meaning all the cruises between those two dates!

These inconveniences are across the board and the cruise lines say that it is not their fault, well I got news for them it's not the paying/good faith customers fault either.

I have a feeling that they will eventually come around and work with you guys on the 4/26 but your going to have to complain in masses.

They (RCCL) finally bent when they realized they where wrong on both the Fuel Surcharge issue and the Crown Anchor "Diamond" debacle. When they bent on the FSC issue (for those who had already deposited) that is when they changed their contracts that gives them the right to do just about anything they want to do including change itineraries. Will it stand up in a court of law in the cruise lines favor? Probably not, it didn't with the FSC!

Somewhere, hopefully you/we/they all can come to terms on a compromise...

As far as contacting RCCL or any other cruise line? Mail, not email will get a look at like Janice (below) has so graciously pointed out and supplied contacts...

I don't think anyone is wanting to rip the cruise lines, we want them to survive and prosper so we can all enjoy.

On the other shoe, the cruise lines should want to provide as close as possible to the customer what they sold them, right now they are not.

If you go to the dealer to buy a Cadillac, they can't slip you a Kia!!!

Changing a single port because of weather is a lot different than selling a family who just went through an eternal winter from hell a once in a lifetime, "hot" tropical cruise and then telling them sorry we are taking you to Seattle, San Francisco and then BC. I believe most travelers are going to have issues with that considering most of them on these west coast cruises live in those ports...

 

 

 

Thank you Janice...

My pleasure johnny-c!! :D I have written my letter and it has been mailed to all the people on that list.

I am hoping that others on the 4/26 sailing will also do the same. Posting your displeasure on this board is NOT enough. They need to hear from you by snail mail!!

[finucane]

My pleasure johnny-c!! :D I have written my letter and it has been mailed to all the people on that list.

I am hoping that others on the 4/26 sailing will also do the same. Posting your displeasure on this board is NOT enough. They need to hear from you by snail mail!!

The Captain on the Vision (I will not name him) had told us once in conversation at his dining table, "emails do nothing", the hard copy letters do get read and most often answered and resolved ...

[stanford's girl]

The Captain on the Vision (I will not name him) had told us once in conversation at his dining table, "emails do nothing", the hard copy letters do get read and most often answered and resolved ...

That Captain is 100% correct. :D

[davedawn]

This is the message I sent to Royal Caribbean. The response is, sorry, we are sticking to our offer. I will be sending hard copies of this letter to the list, thanks.

 

Dear Royal Caribbean,

We left the Radiance of the Seas today after the Valparaiso to San Diego cruise, which was supposed to stop in 3 Mexican ports in addition to the South and Central American stops. Due to the decision of Royal Caribbean to cancel those stops (I say their decision because the CDC did not prohibit these stops, the cruise line did), we missed all of our Mexico beach stops.

We appreciate the offer of a 25% discount on a future cruise, but are troubled by the fact that it is limited to Radiance of the Seas or Mariner of the Seas cruises. We are from the East Coast, and the added cost of flying to California to take advantage of this offer is prohibitive for us. We are Platinum Crown and Anchor members, and this was our tenth cruise on all cruise lines, but most of our cruises originate out of the East Coast in order to eliminate the time and expense of flying to a port.

It is only every 5 or 6 years that we endeavor to go on such a long cruise and incur the expense of airplane flights and 2-week vacations. We chose that cruise not for the sea days, but for the abundance of ports, particular those with beaches. This was that every 5 or 6 year cruise for us. We took it not for the specific Mexican ports, but because it included three beach stops we had not already visited, which are our primary targets when cruising (you would see in our past cruising that most cruises are to the Caribbean and Eastern Mexico.) The South American ports were a bonus though not our primary reason for choosing this cruise.

We are not drinkers or gamblers; therefore five sea days in a row were a huge disappointment for us. I will give the crew of the Radiance credit for doing their best to make those five days more tolerable.

Your offer, which requires travel to the West Coast within a year, is of no use to us because we cannot afford the time off or the expense of flying to the West Coast. Please reconsider your offer and make it for any Royal Caribbean cruise to take into account the fact that many of your loyal passengers are not West Coast residents or even from the USA, and therefore will not benefit from your offer the way West Coast residents will. Your decision may determine whether or not we choose Royal Caribbean in the future.

Respectfully,

David and Dawn

Radiance of the Seas

April 26-May 11, 2009

[SuzK]

We left the Coral Princess yesterday after 18 days, one day early in the "new" port of San Diego . We did not leave a car in Los Angeles and it was easier for my husband to pick us up in SD for the 30 miles to home rather than have him make a 130 mile round trip to San Pedro.

 

That being said, it was very disappointing to miss five ports in Mexico and trade them for another in Nicaragua and one my home town. Since this was not an exclusively Mexico trip, we were told to just forget about disappointment and maybe buy more drinks, shop in the stores, pay for meals in the "better" dinning areas and bid on wonderful "art" works.

I was 99% sure that after telling us on day two that we would not be stopping in Cabo, that our other Mexico ports were out as well. Rather than be honest, they waited two days to tell us that the other stops were canceled.

 

Rumors were quickly passed around about the crews telling passengers that a returning cruise ship with stops in Mexico was quarantined for seven days! Not only was this not true, it was repeated so often that I heard this at almost every meal where we ate with other people. I must add that all the days we missed in Mexico, my airline pilot husband was flying planes from the US to Mexico without any problems at all.

 

Did we expect a 50% future trip booking discount? No. I do however, believe that the ship and Princess could have provided services that would have mitigated the unhappiness that passengers were feeling. It is important to remember that goodwill gestures can go a long way in soothing disappointment.

The ship was full but when we dinned in Sabatinis ($20 charger per), there were only 3 other tables in use and many times, it looked empty. The spa looked empty as well. It would have made sense to offer a goodwill gesture of discounts and it would not have been a huge cost to Princess.