Guatemala strikes again...

Apologies in advance for boring everyone with this story, but writing it down might help calm me down :)

Because of a change in my work schedule, I needed to cancel two reservations for July 2015. Both reservations had been made through Azamara's website in the days that this was still possible. With that functionality now no longer available (which company sells on the Internet these days anyway :rolleyes:) canceling the cruises online turned out to be no longer possible. Very naively I assumed that this was just fine and that a quick phone call to Azamara would do the trick. How wrong that was...

What followed was a 2 hour heated debate with heavily accented Guatemala reps... First the regular rep, then his manager and ultimately the "Resolutions Department". Their position: Azamara never sold cruises on its website (bull****), the system showed I booked my sailings through a travel agent (bull**** too), and I therefore had to deal directly with my travel agent. No matter how many times I stated that I have never used a travel agent in my life, they simply persisted and kept adding that the system "wouldn't allow them to cancel the cruises anyway". In the end, the Manager literally said that nothing could be done until I stopped lying to him. Thank you for that... 25+ cruises in a Club World Owner's suite and that's what you call me?

After more than two hours it became clear that the conversation wasn't going anywhere, so I said "Fine, what travel agent does your system think that I'm using?". They gave me the name "Vacation Planner USA" (some of you know now where this is going...) and a phone number. I hung up angrily, counted to 10 and dialed the phone number. An automated message politely informed me that the phone number isn't in use.

With renewed patience I called Azamara back the next day and a lovely, American lady picked up the phone. I explained my ordeal to her and she simply said "Let's have a look". She then said "If they would have looked at the address of 'Vacation Planner USA', they would have noticed that it is the address of our corporate head office in Miami, so obviously you booked directly with us". One minute later both sailings were cancelled.

Interesting detail: apparently the system allowed canceling the sailings after all, so who was actually lying on the earlier call?!

Right, I feel better now :D

I'm boarding Quest in 2 days confident that the onboard experience will be as brilliant as always!

Cheers,

Floris

I've only sailed Azamara once but I'm looking forward to sailing with them again at some point. From your story I learned that if I ever need to call their customer service, I may just have to hang up and keep calling back until I get someone American :)

Amazed at your patience and persistence. Maybe that ongoing training that's been referred to a number of times hasn't got to the "cancel cruises" section yet. :rolleyes:

Thankfully I do use a TA and let them sort out any difficulties but here in the UK I had cause to write to Mr. Twynam, when Guatemala were being less than helpful with the TA and had a very rapid and helpful response.

This experience is unbelievable.

I believe Bonnie is on vacation at the moment but if she were monitoring this thread am sure that she would be offering the OP a sincere apology on behalf of Azamara.

We keep being told that the team in Guatamala are 'improving' but this is clearly not the case.

Have had my own issues with Guatamala in the last 10 days (thankfully It was my TA who had the grief) and had to contact Mr Twynam for assistance because I am in the UK. Yes the issue was resolved but all this should not be necessary.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise Floris

Floris, to be called a liar is clearly unacceptable.

If I were in your position I would certainly raise a complaint regarding your treatment.

Azamara needs to know that their agents are still not up to the job.

Furthermore, in spite of your cruises being cancelled, you deserve an official apology at the very least and certainly a refund of your telephone costs.

In the UK calls to Guatemala are charged at a premium rate.

Maybe you should also raise this incident with the future cruise rep on your next cruise?

Enjoy your upcoming cruise :)

I've only sailed Azamara once but I'm looking forward to sailing with them again at some point. From your story I learned that if I ever need to call their customer service, I may just have to hang up and keep calling back until I get someone American :)

Sadly I think that's the key lesson learned. When they tell you 'no', simply call back as the next person might just give you a completely different answer. Unbelievable!

Azamara's on board experience is so wonderful. It baffles me they can't get their shore-side support together. People have been saying that for years on Cruise Critic. How difficult can it be?!

Sadly I think that's the key lesson learned. When they tell you 'no', simply call back as the next person might just give you a completely different answer. Unbelievable!

 

Azamara's on board experience is so wonderful. It baffles me they can't get their shore-side support together. People have been saying that for years on Cruise Critic. How difficult can it be?!

Agree. I just posted about my Guatemala headache trying to get technical help with online registration and first being told that my computer was the "problem." Sure -- blame it on the customer. Great marketing strategy. LOL

The strategy of calling until you get someone who knows what they are doing applies to just about all telephone technical assistance -- cable, computer - airline -- it's called "getting to yes"

This has nothing to do with having the call center located in Guatemala. It has to do with training. The training is no better at the Miami office. Yesterday I had a huge problem with Comcast and the service center in the Philipines was amazing.

Floris, to be called a liar is clearly unacceptable.

If I were in your position I would certainly raise a complaint regarding your treatment.

Azamara needs to know that their agents are still not up to the job.

Furthermore, in spite of your cruises being cancelled, you deserve an official apology at the very least and certainly a refund of your telephone costs.

In the UK calls to Guatemala are charged at a premium rate.

Maybe you should also raise this incident with the future cruise rep on your next cruise?

 

Enjoy your upcoming cruise :)

Glendale ...there is a freephone number for Guatamala from UK. It is: 08000182020. Option 3 will take you to Azamara Guatamala...you will still get the same staff though!!

Glendale ...there is a freephone number for Guatamala from UK. It is: 08000182020. Option 3 will take you to Azamara Guatamala...you will still get the same staff though!!

Hi Joyce, yes I'm aware of that but I wasn't sure where Floris was based and whether or not they could access a freephone number.

I have never called Guatemala I let my agent deal with them :D

I usually book with a TA if they offer some worthwhile perks. Unfortunately, my TA only offered me a very small OBC for my next Azamara cruise. I called Azamara in October. An agent persuaded me to book directly. She told me that I would get more by booking direct than using a TA....and I would have control of my reservation if I wanted to make changes. I was promised an upgrade, air credit, and a 25% discount on excursions booked up until 4 days before my cruise. I booked my cruise and my air through choice air. The choice air price was $50 more than booking on the airline site. I tried calling Choice Air since they said that they matched published air prices. I booked my air through the Choice Air website because the choice Air phone line never answered. I tried calling Choice Air many times with no success. I called the airline to verify the booking. It was okay. Paying Choice Air/Azamara an extra $50 wasn't a big deal. I monitored cabin availability and when a more desirable cabin became available, I called Azamara and made the switch. I again was told that I would get the 25% discount when I booked my excursions up until 4 days before my cruise. I kept checking the website for excursions. It took months before they appeared on the website. I called Azamara direct to make my final payment. Then I was told that the discount on excursions was no longer offered. It had been withdrawn in January without my being notified. I was told..."sorry we didn't let you know". I called many times trying to get through to a person who wasn't in Guatemala who might understand. I never got through. All calls reach agents in the Guatemala call center. Those agents need training. They are rude. It was like reaching a dead letter office. I posted a question on the cruisecritic site for Larry Pimental in June. No response and the posting vanished. I am still looking forward to my upcoming cruise on the Journey. It will be my 3rd time on that ship. My previous cruises on the Journey were nice. I hope this cruise will also be nice. My mistake was booking directly with Azamara. It will never happen again. I hope that my cruise will be the opposite of my booking experience. I sail in 2 weeks.

I usually book with a TA if they offer some worthwhile perks. Unfortunately, my TA only offered me a very small OBC for my next Azamara cruise. I called Azamara in October. An agent persuaded me to book directly. She told me that I would get more by booking direct than using a TA....and I would have control of my reservation if I wanted to make changes. I

It is NEVER better to book direct than with a TA -- unless you have a TA who gives no perks at all.

Floris and All,

A sincere apology from us regarding your situation. Clearly the mistake was made by our call center agent and manager in Guatemala. I have sent your information and the other comments in this thread to our Lead Manager in Miami who oversees the Guatemala Call Center, we will deal with this immediately.

The call center is a work in progress and we know issues will come up, your experience is totally unacceptable. We will take the proper steps to fix it.

Thank you for brining it to our attention.

Joel

Floris, to be called a liar is clearly unacceptable.

If I were in your position I would certainly raise a complaint regarding your treatment.

Azamara needs to know that their agents are still not up to the job.

Furthermore, in spite of your cruises being cancelled, you deserve an official apology at the very least and certainly a refund of your telephone costs.

In the UK calls to Guatemala are charged at a premium rate.

Maybe you should also raise this incident with the future cruise rep on your next cruise?

 

Enjoy your upcoming cruise :)

Glenndale, I think read on CC a few weeks a free phone number for Azamara from the UK. It is 08000182020

I have spoken to Guatemala a few time mainly about flights for our forthcoming cruise and they are a nightmare. This will be the first I've ever let any cruise line arrange my flights, and it will be the last.

Glenndale, I think read on CC a few weeks a free phone number for Azamara from the UK. It is 08000182020

 

I have spoken to Guatemala a few time mainly about flights for our forthcoming cruise and they are a nightmare. This will be the first I've ever let any cruise line arrange my flights, and it will be the last.

Hi,

Thanks for the advice and see #9

Thankfully I have never needed to ring Guatemala ;)

Floris and all,

 

A sincere apology from us regarding your situation. Clearly the mistake was made by our call center agent and manager in Guatemala. I have sent your information and the other comments in this thread to our Lead Manager in Miami who oversees the Guatemala Call Center, we will deal with this immediately.

 

The call center is a work in progress and we know issues will come up, your experience is totally unacceptable. We will take the proper steps to fix it.

 

Thank you for bringing it to our attention.

 

Joel

Thanks Joel. I greatly appreciate your quick reply and the immediate actions taken.

Cheers,

Floris

Nice response. I hope that you have success.

Floris and All,

 

A sincere apology from us regarding your situation. Clearly the mistake was made by our call center agent and manager in Guatemala. I have sent your information and the other comments in this thread to our Lead Manager in Miami who oversees the Guatemala Call Center, we will deal with this immediately.

 

The call center is a work in progress and we know issues will come up, your experience is totally unacceptable. We will take the proper steps to fix it.

 

Thank you for brining it to our attention.

 

Joel

No matter how many times I stated that I have never used a travel agent in my life, they simply persisted and kept adding that the system "wouldn't allow them to cancel the cruises anyway". In the end, the Manager literally said that nothing could be done until I stopped lying to him. Thank you for that... 25+ cruises in a Club World Owner's suite and that's what you call me?

 

With renewed patience I called Azamara back the next day and a lovely, American lady picked up the phone. I explained my ordeal to her and she simply said "Let's have a look". She then said "If they would have looked at the address of 'Vacation Planner USA', they would have noticed that it is the address of our corporate head office in Miami, so obviously you booked directly with us". One minute later both sailings were cancelled.

 

 

Cheers,

Floris

OMG. Unbelievable! Where is Larry?

In the UK calls to Guatemala are charged at a premium rate.

Maybe you should also raise this incident with the future cruise rep on your next cruise?

 

Enjoy your upcoming cruise :)

Are you telling us that you do not have a toll free number in which to book an Azamara cruise?

I learned a lesson a few years ago. Don't book direct. Let the TA's deal with the headaches.

Glendale ...there is a freephone number for Guatamala from UK. It is: 08000182020. Option 3 will take you to Azamara Guatamala...you will still get the same staff though!!

Just saw this. Thanks.

Another example of why you always, always should book through a TA. Let that person deal with all the hassles and preserve your blood pressure.

I am very glad that things have worked out for you, Floris. Enjoy your cruise!

Are you telling us that you do not have a toll free number in which to book an Azamara cruise?

Correct, this has been talked about a lot here by UK guests, not only is it not a Freephone no as we call toll free it is at a premium rate number. However by using a website in the UK you can find standard rate charge numbers to call Azamara

I am wondering how long the additional cost line will last though there are plans to change in UK legislation in this connection if the call is in relation to a customer service issue

Correct, this has been talked about a lot here by UK guests, not only is it not a Freephone no as we call toll free it is at a premium rate number. However by using a website in the UK you can find standard rate charge numbers to call Azamara

 

I am wondering how long the additional cost line will last though there are plans to change in UK legislation in this connection if the call is in relation to a customer service issue

Found this ;)

Effect of changes in consumer law on the use of premium rate numbers

24 March 2014

Who should read this?

This compliance update is relevant to all providers of premium rate services (PRS) that use premium rate numbers (including 087 and 084 numbers) to operate customer helplines (regardless of whether the consumer contact relates to a product or service provided via that number or through other means [1] ), and to the Level 1 providers and Network operators through which these helplines are provided.

Background

In order to implement the EU Consumer Rights Directive, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) published the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 (‘the Regulations’) on 13 December 2013. The Regulations will take effect on 13 June 2014.

Apologies in advance for boring everyone with this story, but writing it down might help calm me down :)

 

Because of a change in my work schedule, I needed to cancel two reservations for July 2015. Both reservations had been made through Azamara's website in the days that this was still possible. With that functionality now no longer available (which company sells on the Internet these days anyway :rolleyes:) canceling the cruises online turned out to be no longer possible. Very naively I assumed that this was just fine and that a quick phone call to Azamara would do the trick. How wrong that was...

 

What followed was a 2 hour heated debate with heavily accented Guatemala reps... First the regular rep, then his manager and ultimately the "Resolutions Department". Their position: Azamara never sold cruises on its website (bull****), the system showed I booked my sailings through a travel agent (bull**** too), and I therefore had to deal directly with my travel agent. No matter how many times I stated that I have never used a travel agent in my life, they simply persisted and kept adding that the system "wouldn't allow them to cancel the cruises anyway". In the end, the Manager literally said that nothing could be done until I stopped lying to him. Thank you for that... 25+ cruises in a Club World Owner's suite and that's what you call me?

 

After more than two hours it became clear that the conversation wasn't going anywhere, so I said "Fine, what travel agent does your system think that I'm using?". They gave me the name "Vacation Planner USA" (some of you know now where this is going...) and a phone number. I hung up angrily, counted to 10 and dialed the phone number. An automated message politely informed me that the phone number isn't in use.

 

With renewed patience I called Azamara back the next day and a lovely, American lady picked up the phone. I explained my ordeal to her and she simply said "Let's have a look". She then said "If they would have looked at the address of 'Vacation Planner USA', they would have noticed that it is the address of our corporate head office in Miami, so obviously you booked directly with us". One minute later both sailings were cancelled.

 

Interesting detail: apparently the system allowed canceling the sailings after all, so who was actually lying on the earlier call?!

 

Right, I feel better now :D

 

I'm boarding Quest in 2 days confident that the onboard experience will be as brilliant as always!

 

Cheers,

Floris

Dear Floris,

As Spursgirl mentioned I am on vacation, aboard the Journey currently on the North Seas, heading to Edinburgh this afternoon. I'll be brief because, as you all know, the internet rates are high (!)

I am extremely sorry any of our call staff representatives were rude to you. That is not acceptable.

I have read a series of emails regarding this and it is being looked at at the highest level. I'm glad AzamaraJoel jumped in to reassure you this is being treated most seriously.

B.Rgds,

Bonnie

Dear Floris,

As Spursgirl mentioned I am on vacation, aboard the Journey currently on the North Seas, heading to Edinburgh this afternoon. I'll be brief because, as you all know, the internet rates are high (!)

I am extremely sorry any of our call staff representatives were rude to you. That is not acceptable.

I have read a series of emails regarding this and it is being looked at at the highest level. I'm glad AzamaraJoel jumped in to reassure you this is being treated most seriously.

B.Rgds,

Bonnie