Weather Problems, Missed Connection, What do we do now?

[cmcfy]

My wife and I were to have embarked from Lisbon on Ensigna today....unfortunately, our Chicago to Newark flight was delayed (east coast weather) by six hours causing us to miss the Lisbon connection. Continental was awful at every step (a Chicago boarding agent told me we just need to get to Newark "there are lots of Portugese coffee houses in NYC". No meaningful effort by exausted airline people last night....mgmt clearly didn't respond, left the front line staff hanging out there to deal with hundreds of mini-crisis'. My travel agent worked all night, it's unclear what OC did overnight, but all came togehter today....after what will be 24 hours in Newark, we're off to Madrid then connect (one tickets we had to pay for) to meet the ship in Bilbao.

My point? I'm not sure. Couple questions, I guess.

What did we do wrong? Why was this such an incredible mess all night with no clear indication that there would be a solution?

We did not purchase "insurance". I thought that just covered a last minute cancellation due to health problems....sounds like it would have required us to have been given more help after the delay happened? Any experience here?

Finally, any advice for cruisers joining the shift late?

And of course, words of encouragement welcome!

Thanks.

[digby]

IMO you did TWO things wrong:

1. You should have purchased insurance.

2. You should have arranged to arrive at the port at least one day at before the Insignia sailed.

[LHT28]

Sorry you missed the INSIGNIA.

1) fly in a day or more early

2) buy travel insurance!!! with trip interruption/cancellation/ delays

Hope you get aboard and enjoy the rest of the cruise.
relax!

[sacway]

nobody's perfect so don't be too tough on yourselves.

we also fly in a day (or two) ahead, this assures boarding and reduces the effect of jet lag on our cruise. we buy travel insurance, though the latter might not have done much more than paid your fare to the next stop (doesn't get you to the cruise any faster) and if you cruise a half dozen times with no snafus, call it a wash that you paid for the flight to the ship this time.

there are multiple companies and governments involved in these types of vacations. the airline business is not doing well in the US with many problems; many trips have problems and it sounds like your TA as well as you tried hard to get things straightened out. it is frustrating but your power as an individual consumer are limited, especially if your goal is to get somewhere more or less on time.

be happy that you are not on a trans-atlantic! where the "next stop" is many days away. be happy that the next port is not a place where you'd need special visas or where there is no commercial airstrip so you'd miss more days and another port. see, it could have turned out much worse. eat extra desserts to make up for the ones you missed. tell your story to others on board (if they seem interested) so they can feel good about their decisions to pay a few hundred extra dollars to go early and buy flight insurance, or to count their lucky stars that their flights weren't delayed.

and have a fabulous holiday.

[cmcfy]

Great input, thanks to all of you. We're rookies at this and it shows. We especially like the suggestions to arrive a day early...tough to do with limited time off work, but clearly well worth it given our experience! Anyway, we're about to leave Newark (fingers crossed), then it's Madrid and Bilboa. Can't wait. Thanks again.

[isabella52]

Insurance can be expensive, depending the amount of coverage & your age, but peace of mind is worth the price; especially in this day & time! And leaving a day or so early is always a good bet!
Hope all works out for you - sending positive thoughts your way!:)
Please do the same for us - we leave tomorrow (4 days ahead)!!:cool:
God speed to all!
P

[ClaudiaF]

A day late but just get on and be happy... and next time as everyone said ..go a day earlier just in case.
Have a wonderful cruise after that double martini ..you'll feel much better then ;-)

[shoshona2]

Dear Cmcfy,

As Claudia said, "...just get on and be happy."

You now learned a valuable lesson -- the more stops -- the more that can go wrong. Next time, take that extra day off from work -- it's no fun sleeping in airports. We got stuck at JFK during the August 2003 blackout enroute from LAX to JFK and had to sleep on the floor. Luckily, we allowed an extra day to arrive in London and get transported to Dover. We were the first flight out in the a.m. because they needed our 777 in London to pick up all the stranded passengers. Some people didn't get to the ship for days. We arrived 12 hours late and missed our ride to Dover. Our insurance paid for the expensive cab to Dover.

Sheila

[dbh62ark]

Welcome to CruiseCritic. It sounds like you've learned the lesson and are taking the adversity very well. I hate to hear about anyone missing the first day or two of a cruise, but the good news is that since Oceania usually doesn't have several sea days in a row, you should be able to catch up with the ship fairly quickly, and that's not always an option for others. (As you can see, I'm a glass half full person. :) Sometimes when things go wrong for us it just turns into a great adventure, and things can only go up from here, so I hope you have a great time on your vacation. Make a note for next time of www.insuremytrip.com to compare coverages on affordable policies for your next trip. :)

Donna

[dbh62ark]

P.S. I'd love to hear your thoughts on Bilbao when you return. There isn't much info on that port on the boards, and we call at that port on the August 27th Insignia sailing this year.

[shoshona2]

Hi dbh62ark,

When we were in Bilbao about five years ago, the main attraction was Frank O. Gehry's Guggenheim Museum. He did a magnificent job of changing an industrial seaport area into one with a breathtaking structure. The ultra modern art left us cold, but then we don't get excited about modern art. The building is a MUSTSEE. Go to www.guggenheim-bilbao.es and check it out.

Sheila

[dougiefresh]

We had a flight problem to northern Europe to start a cruise a number of years ago and decided to buy a last minute ticket on another airline(and only business class was available) in order to catch the cruise on time. You can imagine what that cost, it was thousands $$$. "Insurance" only paid $500 for airline delay, it was considered weather, which had the limitation.
Three things: 1. As other postings suggest, ALWAYS plan trip a day early.
2. If at all possible, TRY to minimize connections, best is a direct flight, if booked through the cruise line, it's worth it to pay a deviation fee to get a direct flight if possible
3. Realize the the "insurance" payment will probably be severely limited, so pay for the extra day up front
Oh yeah, and 4. Arrive a day early, the extra day up front is worth the peace of mind, and you can start relaxing and work on the jetlag.

Hope this helps!!

[dbh62ark]

Hi dbh62ark,

When we were in Bilbao about five years ago, the main attraction was Frank O. Gehry's Guggenheim Museum. He did a magnificent job of changing an industrial seaport area into one with a breathtaking structure. The ultra modern art left us cold, but then we don't get excited about modern art. The building is a MUSTSEE. Go to www.guggenheim-bilbao.es and check it out.

SheilaThank you for that information. We're not big fans of modern art either but will likely give the museum a try. I also noted that there is an old section of Bilbao. Did you walk around that area?

Donna

[shoshona2]

Dear dbh62ark,

Please go to their website and read about the museum. The artwork is secondary -- the building inside and outside is an incredible work of glass and steel. There is a photo of the museum on the website. When it opened, it put Bilbao on the map. We were on a Tauck tour and we went to the museum, spent several hours there and left. I don't know what is on Oceania's website about sightseeing there, but Tauck felt that this was it for Bilbao!!

Sheila

[dbh62ark]

I don't know what is on Oceania's website about sightseeing there, but Tauck felt that this was it for Bilbao!!

SheilaYes, I've seen photos of it, and it looks like it dominates the skyline like the opera house in Sydney and that building that looks like it has sails in Vancouver next to the Pan Pacific hotel. I'm sure if that's it as far as Bilbao goes, we'll be going because we can't miss anything. :) Maybe we will enjoy some great views like we do at the Getty Musum in your area. Oceania also has a tour to a few small villages in the area, but that's it. We're only in port from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. that day, so it will likely just be a short day for us.

Thanks again,
:) Donna

[BeBeReader]

Don't miss the Guggenheim in Bilbao -- just as you wouldn't want to miss the Guggenheim if you had a few days in New York to go museum hopping. Don't forget the magnificent topiaries adjacent to the Guggenheim and part of the grounds at the Bilbao site. There is little reason for a tourist to go to Bilbao except for the museum. It is world famous and has made Bilbau a tourist destination. The museum itself, as I recall it when we took our driving tour through the north of Spain a few years ago, has other exhibits beyond the ultramodern - we saw impressionist art there. A driving trip through the north of Spain with stays at Paradors, magnificent venues preserved and run by the government with lovely restaurants on site, is a trip in and off itself. Check them out on the internet!

[dbh62ark]

Don't miss the Guggenheim in Bilbao . . . we saw impressionist art there. A driving trip through the north of Spain with stays at Paradors, magnificent venues preserved and run by the government with lovely restaurants on site, is a trip in and off itself. Check them out on the internet!Oh my goodness, now you have found a hook for me! I LOVE Impressionist art. Thanks to all for the feedback on the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.

Donna

[shoshona2]

BebeReader,

Yes, I almost forgot about the magnificent topiaries. They were wonderful.

Donna,

Just take a cab there and spend the time exploring the museum and grounds. Check with the line how close they are berthed to the museum. If you ever come to L.A., you must see Gehry's spectacular Disney Music Hall downtown across from the Music Center. It reminds one of the Guggenheim in Bilbao. The neighbors said the metal finish caused the sun to reflect on their condos and raise temperatures 15 degrees, so the city had to have the structure made less shiny. I forgot what they used to do this.

No, you won't see any beautiful views from the museum as at the Getty out here. Bilbao is a poor industrial port which Gehry put on the map in Spain. You must come back to L.A. to see the recently opened (April) Getty Villa in Malibu.

Sheila

Sheila

[dbh62ark]

Thank you for those recommendations, and they sound wonderful. My husband usually visits the LA area for work once a year, and I try to go with him. I appreciate your insight as a local resident.

:) Donna

[shoshona2]

Hi Donna,

The Getty Villa was closed for four or five years to redo the museum. It is a MUST SEE when you come to L.A. the next time. Go on line and google the Getty Villa -- you will get an idea of how magnificent it is. It is free to the public, but you need a parking pass. The residents okayed the building of the Villa with limited parking. No parking pass -- no entry. They will issue them on line from their website. I had five passes for March, when we returned from the Nautica in March and couldn't go. Family illness. But, I will definitely revisit it soon to see all the changes.

Sheila

[dbh62ark]

I looked at the villa, and it does look like a great attraction. Thanks for the tip about the parking because I remember that it can be an issue at the Getty in LA.

:) Donna