How should lines compensate Mexico travelers?

[beachchick]

I also think that the people on last weeks cruise should be followed up on, making sure that none of them come down with something, and if they do the rest of the passengers should be notified. Our Asst Room Steward was coming down with something at the end of the week, and the infirmary just sent him back to work. It was obvious he was sick, as there was huge beads of sweat rolling off of him.

 

As far as people on this weeks cruise, they definitely should be taken care of. Going to SF is a poor replacement for the MR, esecially since it is proabably cooler up there. Would rather get some credits onboard or for future cruises, or both, and stay in the warmer waters.

 

Makes me wonder exactly how much the cruise lines are "looking out for our health" as so many members have written. Doesn't matter that this was before we all knew about this outbreak. He could have had a serious communicable illness. You don't send your employees to deal closely with your customers if they are that ill.

 

Agreed about cruising north. No maybe about it, it will be much colder. In fact, the CA coast is due to get a late season storm starting Friday evening. It will be a "warmish" one (no freezing temps), but it will not be warm and pleasant by any means. Due to this springs weather patterns, our already cold ocean waters are even more so. On the central coast, our surface temps are in the 40s. Not exactly fun for water activities.

 

I'm in full agreement. The cruise line trying to protect our health is enough "compensation".

 

As noted above, the cruise lines are following the CDC recommendations, but not necessarily because they're so concerned about our health. They are certainly (and rightly) concerned about bad publicity if they insisted on sticking with ports in Mexico (assuming they're even open) and then had even one pax get this new flu.

 

IMO, it most certainly is not enough "compensation" to just change the itinerary and say, "We're only thinking of you..." so just shut up and deal with it. Of course, we all know that is basically what the cruise contracts say: We can do whatever we want and you, the customer, will just have to live with whatever we do. But pax do notice which cruise lines make gestures of goodwill (no, not full refunds) and which say, "It's too damn bad." And it does influence future travel decisions for many of them. It comes down to being short-sighted. Would it be better to "give" a little now and keep loyal customers for years or "take the money and run" and figure that there will always be new pax, so it doesn't matter how many we lose now.

 

The opportunity to rebook or the opportunity to cruise the vastly altered itinerary and receive a reasonable OBC (say, $100/person) with perhaps a small future cruise credit (say, $200/person) would go a long way toward making most people happy. More than that, it would show that the cruise lines do care about something besides the bottom line. They are a service industry, so simple dollars aren't the only things they should consider.

 

I don't think excessive compensation is appropriate at all. However, it seems clear that people will vote with their vacation dollars if they feel their concerns have been ignored.

 

Was due to leave on Mexican Riveria cruise on Carnival on May 3rd. Changed itinerary to San Francisco, Seattle, and Victoria, BC totally changes the cruise (I live in No. CA...it's cold right now, and even colder farther north). So, we're bagging it...will reschedule something later on as Carnival is giving a credit. But...it's a bummer, that's for sure. Would have been happy if they had just sailed south into the sun...now am thinking a cruise ship isn't the best place to be.

 

As much as we love Seattle (have to, our DD lives there) and British Columbia (including Victoria), we have no interest in the altered itinerary. There are suspected cases in Marin and Santa Clara counties with at least one confirmed in Sacramento county (granted, it's not all that close to the ports, but I can envision pax wanting to make a day trip out of it). So my question is exactly how much "safer" is it likely to be if/as this current outbreak spreads?

 

We would have bagged it too and rescheduled for another time on a warm itinerary. If I want to be cold, I can just stay home and "enjoy" the cold temps, heavy winds, and freezing ocean water. I hope you have a wonderful cruise, whenever you're able to take it.

 

I think they should only refund port charges for any missed ports.

 

Why should the cruise line recompense anyone for a situation they had no part in creating?

 

But as many have mentioned, the pax had no part in creating this situation either. IMO, it's in the cruise lines' best interest to "give" a bit (such as allowing rebooking) to keep customer goodwill.

 

If the replacement itineraries are significantly less expensive for the cruise lines (in both port expense and fuel costs), then they certainly aren't faced with any loss of revenue. When they've been "paid" for a more expensive itinerary, but only have to spend what it costs for a less expensive itinerary, then they are taking advantage of a situation to the detriment of their customers. How about if they refund the difference in what the MR costs and what the altered itinerary costs with proportional refunds to the pax? They would be out nothing and the pax would be happier and be "paying" for what they are actually receiving.

 

First of all, kudos to Carnival for allowing passengers who have yet to sail the opportunity to cancel. I don't think that the cruise lines should bear all of the expense of what most likely will be a global concern, but I do think that they should give their customer the opportunity to rebook the cruise sometime within the next year or so without penalty and for a comparable rate. This will go a long way to creating goodwill between the cruise lines and the customers. As for those who are currently sailing, I would be very disappointed if my Mexico cruise turned into a cruise to nowhere. I fully support a refund of the port fees and a reasonable discount toward a future cruise for those passengers. Best wishes for everyone's health.

 

Exactly! Customer goodwill is a precious commodity, especially given today's economy when so many people are reconsidering every expense.

 

However, I suspect that those who feel the pax should just shut up and be happy no matter what the cruise line does will not change their opinions. Some may be the same ones who say that, no matter how horrible something is and no matter what goes wrong, we should "be thankful" we're cruising and that there's "no such thing as a bad cruise" and that "things could always be worse." It doesn't make someone a complainer to want to be treated fairly, IMO.

 

beachchick

[printingchick]

It's a tough call.

 

This issue is not the fault of the cruise lines, who are doing their best to adjust to a bad situation. As a cruise passenger, I typically book a year in advance and spend the year researching the ports of call and planning excursions. To suddenly be taking an entirely different vacation would be jarring to say the very least. I think the best option is to allow people the opportunity to cancel with a refund or future cruise credit. Maybe some additional compensation would be helpful if the passenger is very close to the cruise date, given they've likely already reserved air fare and possibly booked private tours or excursions. Not to mention all the advance planning it takes to leave home for a week - arranging child care, pet care, vacation time from work, etc. The customer does deserve something for his/her time, trouble, expense and disappointment, but is it really the cruise line's responsibility???

[paula2051]

OMG We have 17 cases of swine flu here in SC..... hope they don't shut down the ports to the US!! I wonder how much they can PAY me to stay out at sea?

[nealstuber]

Its very difficult for me to feel bad for folks who booked a cruise into a swine flu infested country and are upset that the line is not taking them there.

 

I personally believe all this hype is much-to-do-bout-nothin. We have flu pandmeics every single year - but its a new word for the newspeople so they are using it OVER AND OVER AND OVER. Given this hysterical backdrop - all it would take is one dead or very sick kid and the cruise line would have a new owner - the kid's parents.

 

With full refunds being offered - I'm sure there are plenty of good air/resort deals to be had into Mexico if you are that wrapped on the notion.

[Skywench]

When you book a cruise, you are booking an adventure. How can you expect the cruise lines to take the financial hit for something totally out of their control?

 

You may look at your vacations as an adventure, but I don't. Maybe you'd just be happy to be on a ship and go anywhere, but not me. I booked a certain itinerary for a reason.

 

I think Carnival did the right thing by it's customers to let me cancel my Mexican Riviera cruise for Sunday and get full credit for another cruise. This is a total itinerary change, not just one port being substituted or another sea day. Not the vacation that I planned.

 

I have always been happy with the service that Carnival gives and this reinforces my loyalty as a Carnival customer.

[nealstuber]

OMG We have 17 cases of swine flu here in SC..... hope they don't shut down the ports to the US!! I wonder how much they can PAY me to stay out at sea?

 

I'm routing for them to close my kid's school - if that happens - Sunset beach here we come!

[Jaycue52]

Visiting another port---we are scheduled to go to Cozumel. We have already been informed that we will stay longer in Grand Cayman and then spend an extra day at sea. I have been to both Grand Cayman and Cozumel before. Take me to Belize or Costa Rica!:D

[jamers22]

Easy for me... just send me to another port, any port. I love adventure and seeing new places.:)

 

If another port is not available... credit for port fees would be great.:rolleyes:

[ctjon]

As long as they are doing other ports instead, they should do nothing. Most ports in the area are similar and why should people care.

 

They have the right to change ports whenever and they should not be made to compensate for issues such as this - it isn't their failure.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

If the ships chooses a subsitute port, why should there be compensation for missing a Mexican port? The only reason for compensation should be if the ship substitutes a Mexican port with a day at sea.

 

I know some folks will be disappointed but port substitutions happen all the time for a variety of reasons--bad weather, political unrest, unforeseen circumstances.

 

Some folks bitterly compalining would be the same ones who, if the ship had gone to a Mexican port, and passengers came down with swine flu soon after the port call, they would be up in arms about the reckless endangerment of passengers' health and so on. They would be the same ones demanding compensation for that.

 

I do see that some will see port substitutions as a public relations challenge to the cruiselines. Many passengers are far less understanding than I am about this topic. I still think the worst option is substituting a port call for a sea day.

[horric29]

I have a bone to pick with RCCL. I'm not normally really vocal on things but, substituting Cozumel with Cococay is just shady as anything. I would like my port fees or something refunded. Instead of going to Cozumel where we can shop and go on our excursion instead we go to their second private island because we are already scheduled for Labadee...

 

So we are stuck with their lousy cookout for a second day in a row... The food always seems to be cold, I was there on Majesty and the lines were huge, can't wait to see the lines with Liberty, we're stuck with another Tender day, AND biggest of all RCCL KEEPS ALL PROFITS on their own private island...

 

I don't normally complain about anything RCCL related but, like other posters said, take us to Belize or something... Give me a break!

[nealstuber]

I have a bone to pick with RCCL. I'm not normally really vocal on things but, substituting Cozumel with Cococay is just shady as anything. I would like my port fees or something refunded. Instead of going to Cozumel where we can shop and go on our excursion instead we go to their second private island because we are already scheduled for Labadee...

 

So we are stuck with their lousy cookout for a second day in a row... The food always seems to be cold, I was there on Majesty and the lines were huge, can't wait to see the lines with Liberty, we're stuck with another Tender day, AND biggest of all RCCL KEEPS ALL PROFITS on their own private island...

 

I don't normally complain about anything RCCL related but, like other posters said, take us to Belize or something... Give me a break!

 

It must be an extremely difficult situation for all of the lines as they jocky for limited space in the available ports. It only makes sense that if they have a port they don't have to compete with the other lines for - and it fits into a certain schedule - they need to jump on it. There are many ships that can get to Belize but don't have the option of CocoCay. I haven't looked at the itenerary you're talking about, but Belize is considerable futher than Cozumel. you'd be looking at a very shortend port day in a very long tender port that is going to be overcrowded - likely tenders will be in short supply. If you want to vent here - fine - but I encourage you to keep you itenerary suggestions to yourself once on board as you don't really seem to understand what you are asking for. And your underlying assumption that RCCL was just trying to stick it to you seems off base to me.

[Lookingforfacts]

The poll is flawed. Cruises out of Florida and Texas can substitute ports. Not dramatically different then ports that get changed for weather related issues. Some shipboard credit seems fair.

 

Cruises out of California are substituting cities residents of CA have already had the opportunity to tour. The cruise is essentially a cruise to nowhere. Those cruises are probably (technically) in violation of the Jones Act. JMO but those passengers are probably entitled to a lot. Right to cancel with cash refund. Passengers on those cruises should probably be given a substantial credit toward a future cruise.

[onesphinx2004]

Visiting another port---we are scheduled to go to Cozumel. We have already been informed that we will stay longer in Grand Cayman and then spend an extra day at sea. I have been to both Grand Cayman and Cozumel before. Take me to Belize or Costa Rica!:D

 

 

Could be wrong, but I thought I heard, this morning, that there is a suspected case of flu in Costa Rica. Hope I'm wrong. We are cruising out of Puerto Rico in a week, southern Caribbean route. Who knows how far this thing will spread in a week?? But then, perhaps the spread will abate.

[phoenix_dream]

I think it is unreasonable and unfair to expect cruise ships to take the financial hit of allowing cancellations without penalties and so forth. That said, if they do end up making money on the situation (ie, cancelled port charges, cheaper fuel) then they definitely should compensate the cruisers for that particular amount. This is a situation beyond their control, and as such we have to be realistic about what is happening.

 

Is that easier for me to say because I am not personally affected by the situation at this point? Of course. I freely admit that. :) But that also allows me to be more objective in my thinking as well. As long as they make good faith efforts to do the best they can for their customers what more can we expect. There is such a prevelant attitude these days of always looking for someone to blame and someone else to solve all our problems for us - this is just a bad situation and we all need to try to take the attitude that we're all in it together.

[m steve]

we were on a HAL cruise with St. Martin the key port for that booking. Due to high winds we couldn't dock at Grand Turk or HMC and were told when we reboarded in San juan that we wouldn't be able to stop at STM due to our being a tendered ship. They substituted St. Thomas where we all have been a number of time. The only credit was GT port charges. We still had a great time and didn't hear many complaints.

[phoenix_dream]

Could be wrong, but I thought I heard, this morning, that there is a suspected case of flu in Costa Rica. Hope I'm wrong. We are cruising out of Puerto Rico in a week, southern Caribbean route. Who knows how far this thing will spread in a week?? But then, perhaps the spread will abate.

 

One thing I think people need to keep in mind is the question of - is it really spreading or is it just being discovered around the globe because now everyone is aware of it and countries are now testing people where they were not doing so two weeks ago. I was on a cruise out of Puerto Rico two months ago. I remember noticing specifically how many people were sneezing and coughing. Sure enough, towards the end of my cruise I came home and got a bad upper respiratory infection that lasted four weeks before it went away. Could that have been a version of the virus that just hadn't mutated into something worse yet? Perhaps. Perhaps not. My point is that it is likely that it already has been across the globe for weeks if not months so follow common precautions, go , and have a great time.

[ByeBye1]

Anything but open bars works for me. I would hate to have a ship full of loud drunks.

[MM40]

I know I'm going to get yelled at for this post, but I have to say what's on my mind.

 

I can't believe what entitlement pigs (excuse the pun) people are.

 

It is not the fault of the cruise lines that there is a Swine Flu outbreak, and they are doing their best to safeguard passengers against a threat by altering their ports. People should be praising them for taking action and protecting them, where they don't technically have to.

 

I don't feel that they have any obligation to give passengers who are already in progress on a cruise any sort of compensation for keeping them safe.

 

Put yourself in the Cruise Lines' place... if it were your business, would you feel obligated to give people free cruises and such, losing probably what amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars at least, perhaps millions, for something that is effectively an "act of God" and not under their control?

 

The only result will be that they will have to put prices up on future cruises in order to compensate for the loss of having to compensate people for not getting to go to a couple ports! So everyone will pay for it.

 

I agree that it would be a nice gesture for them to allow people to cancel or allow changes to their cruise plans if they have not started their cruise yet, however. But that will be difficult for them too, meaning they may have to take ships out of service temporarily, and will probably have to pay staff for cruises they aren't working on.

 

I'm also sick to death of hearing people say, "Why won't they tell us further into the future what they're going to do? It's unfair!" Because, people, they don't KNOW what's going to happen, and they don't want to jump the gun and change all their ports based on panic and speculation.

 

If you look at the ACTUAL stats on this Swine Flu, it does not seem to be any more of a killer disease than any other influenza strain at this point. There have been something like 7 or 8 deaths GLOBALLY... that's NOTHING. Malaria and Dengue fever, which are present in many of the places these cruises go to kill that many people per DAY, yet nobody is screaming for their money back because they could contract one of those diseases!

 

I get the feeling the media has created panic where there is no need. On the one hand, it's good to make people as informed as possible, so that they can take some action to try and keep it from spreading, but it also creates such a state of panic where it probably isn't necessary. Currently, this flu can only be spread by direct contact with infected droplets. This means wearing a face mask will stop it in its tracks.

 

I would like to see the stats on other influenza strains and see if their death rates are any lower than those posted for swine flu. I doubt they would be.

 

In short, it's a time to band together and try to go with the flow, rather than blaming a cruise company for something totally out of their control.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself :).

[VAL57SMITH]

Cruise lines can't help when there is a flu epidemic. They should however, try to work with their customers who don't want to go north instead of heading towards warm weather. As much as I like going away, I did my four months of winter I don't want to rehash it. It is different when you book a cruise during Hurricane Season and end up going to Canada instead of Bermuda. That's the chance you take.

[exotica]

While I understand this could not be helped and appreciate the fact my upcoming cruise on the Mariner(5/10-5/17/09) was not cancelled. I booked the cruise several months ago based on the itinerary. Rescheduling is not an option. I would hope there would be some form of compensation such as refunded port charges, a voucher for discounts on a future cruise etc.

[Hornet84]

People need to be accountable here and read the cruise contract. The cruise contract allows the line to change the itinerary for any reason. I think avoiding a pandemic is a good enough reason. Go on the cruise and enjoy the alternate ports. They usually don't come up that often. I am actually thinking of booking a Mariner of the Seas trip now, because the ship will go to San Francisco, Victoria, BC and Seattle. Being an east coaster, that sounds better than dingy Mexico.

[FrozenOne]

This Swine Flu is everywhere! I would not let it stop my travel plans. I would take some precautions but it would not stop me from going on vacation.

As far as I am concerned, the cruise lines don't need to compensate you for missed ports or changing the itinerary. There are no guarantees and sometimes stuff just happens. :cool: If you get a credit for missing a port, I would consider it a bonus.

[Need-a-vacation]

I think the appropriate compensation depends on the degree of the change.

 

For the folks on the Splendor who got hijacked to San Francisco after embarking -- I think they deserve significant compensation. They ended up with a bunch of cold sea days and only one port. They didn't even have the chance to pack appropriately!! If nothing else, they should all get a free sweatshirt from the shop!

 

For the short Baja cruises that normally go to Catalina, San Diego, Ensenada: Losing Ensenada is not a huge deviation or significant change to the character of the trip. If they really want Mexico, go to tijuana from SD. Refund port fees if they don't go to another port.

 

For the MR cruises that will now be only Southern California itineraries or go up to seattle -- they should have the option to re-book for a later trip to Mexico or get a small on-board credit for the revised itinerary and a decent credit towards a future cruise to Mexico. This is a drastic change from the planned itinerary that truly changes the nature of the trip. To hide behind the contract and say "we're going to take you to canada instead of mexico -- tough cookies" is not right in this case. This isn't people being whiny about going to Manzanillo instead of Mazatlan.

 

Most of the caribbean itineraries can be reasonably modified to some sort of warm, beachy port stop. I wasn't delighted to go to Costa maya instead of Grand Cayman after Ivan, but not really a huge deal. I could at least wear the same clothes!!!

 

I agree with the sentiment that this is an opportunity to build or break customer relationships. I also think that the experienced, frequent cruisers may very well have a different perspective on it. If you go on 3-4 cruises a year, you can just figure you'll do MR another time and this will be different. For people that this is a rare treat, it's a little more impacting to have the trip canceled or significantly altered.

[John&LaLa]

Anything but open bars works for me. I would hate to have a ship full of loud drunks.

open bar is not a good idea. we experienced that on princess when the coast guard failed our inspection and the Sky never left lauderdale. they opened the bar for two days while they tried to get everybody home. it wasn't pretty. we left the next day for two short cruises out of miami. on a sepeerate cruise we could not dock in key west because of high winds so HAL refunded our port charges ($15 or so), gave us a sea day, and we had two bottles of house wine per table at dinner that night