Jump to content

Norwegian just cut short the March 3 PoA Cruise!!


canadian-nurse
 Share

Recommended Posts

I'm a bit confused - why would you have to change plans for 5 days? It sounds like the only change is that the last port is a single day instead of an overnight.

 

They changed the itinerary by cancelling one of the days in Maui which was the second day of the cruise- this every other day was effected.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm a bit confused - why would you have to change plans for 5 days? It sounds like the only change is that the last port is a single day instead of an overnight.

 

They changed day 3 (second day in Maui) and moved all of the other days forward. So nothing lined up anymore. It has been a big hassle for any tours/rental cars etc not booked with the ship.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They changed the itinerary by cancelling one of the days in Maui which was the second day of the cruise- this every other day was effected.

 

They changed day 3 (second day in Maui) and moved all of the other days forward. So nothing lined up anymore. It has been a big hassle for any tours/rental cars etc not booked with the ship.

Ah, that makes sense to me now. I was misreading it as the final port was changed, not the first. My bad! You're right, that's a huge hassle, and you run the risk of popular activities already being booked up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I can't say what exactly the PR people are trying to say, but there really isn't any such thing as a one day drydocking. It takes 6-8 hours to pump out the dock, and the same to refill it. With the time needed to shift the ship to the Pearl Harbor drydock, that would only give less than 12 hours, at absolute best, for whatever is needed. Her last drydock was about this time in 2016, which was at the far limit of the statutory drydock interval. So, I believe that what is happening is that the ship is undergoing a "UWILD" (underwater inspection in lieu of drydocking), which ships less than 15 years old can do rather than drydocking twice in 5 years as required. This entails divers videotaping the entire underwater portion of the hull, and all underwater equipment like propellers, thrusters, stabilizers, sea chests, etc for the class surveyor to review. I'm a bit surprised that NCL was caught on short notice for this, but I believe that since the drydock was at the late end of the statutory window, they felt the UWILD could be done up to 2.5 years afterwards, but in fact it needs to be done within 12.5 years (plus or minus 3 months) of her delivery date, which would be Dec 2017, plus or minus 3 months, so Oct 2017 - Mar 2018. NCL has always had trouble with the regulatory differences between US flag ships and foreign flag ships, and this may be one more example of this.

 

Right, it was supposed to get out 3/15/16 but was a day late.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sucks for all involved and I'd be frantic as all hell too... but I remember leaning on the rail late one night talking with the captain of Pearl (at that time) as we barreled across the Caribbean about the finer points of the lost art of radio navigation (a conversation he delighted in having actually) and we drifted onto why the cruise before us had been delayed. I was expecting to get some stock answer about HQ/operational issues when... in a very Norwegian accent Stig cracked a big smile and said:

 

"Weee soocked a tiiiire intooo a bow thruuuusterrrrrr"

 

"That'll do it" I replied

 

"Yeeeeees it will" nodded The Stig sagely.

Edited by Notnewtoit
Link to comment
Share on other sites

They also delayed the departure for the March 10th cruise to Sunday the 11th. We lost the first day in Maui but all the same after that.

 

As djwool points out they also are delaying the next scheduled cruise by one day.

 

We are on this one and we got the email this morning.

 

We were supposed to leave on May 10 but now we get a night at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and depart on Sunday Mar 11.

 

Looks like the ship will be in dry-dock for 2 days to do whatever needs to be done.

 

 

They took one day off the end of one cruise and one day off the start of the next. No doubt they feel inconveniencing 2 cruise sailings by loosing a day each was better than cancelling one entirely.

 

 

Here is part of our letter:

The cruise is changing from a 7-day to a 6-day sailing embarking on March 11, 2018, and the ship will call on Kahului, Maui on March 12th from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm instead of staying overnight as originally scheduled.

Please review the revised itinerary information below - updated eDocs will be available for download on February 26, 2018:

 

Original: 7-Day Hawaii Inter-Island from Honolulu

Arrive Depart

10-Mar Honolulu, Oahu 7:00 pm

11-Mar Kahului, Maui 8:00 am overnight

12-Mar Kahului, Maui 6:00 pm

13-Mar Hilo, Hawaii 8:00 am 6:00 pm

14-Mar Kona, Hawaii 7:00 am 5:30 pm

15-Mar Nawiliwili, Kauai 8:00 am overnight

16-Mar Nawiliwili, Kauai 2:00 pm

17-Mar Honolulu, Oahu 7:00 am

Revised: 6-Day Hawaii Inter-Island from Honolulu

Arrive Depart

11-Mar Honolulu, Oahu 7:00 pm

12-Mar Kahului, Maui 8:00 am 6:00 pm

13-Mar Hilo, Hawaii 8:00 am 6:00 pm

14-Mar Kona, Hawaii 7:00 am 5:30 pm

15-Mar Nawiliwili, Kauai 8:00 am overnight

16-Mar Nawiliwili, Kauai 2:00 pm

17-Mar Honolulu, Oahu 7:00 am

We sincerely apologize for this unexpected change to your scheduled itinerary . We are providing you and those in your stateroom with a complimentary pre-cruise hotel stay at Hilton Hawaiian Village on March 10th. We regret that changes to the assigned hotel will not be possible to enable accommodation of all guests. Buses will be available to take your party and your luggage from the hotel to the pier for embarkation on March 11th between the hours of 10:30 am - to Noon.

If you booked shore excursions with Norwegian Cruise Line in Kahului, Maui on March 11th, these will be automatically cancelled and a refund will be processed to your original form of payment. Additional tours will be available for purchase on board for Kahului on March 12th.

 

Not sure how we feel about this yet. We lost a couple of shore excursions on this very expensive and now even shorter cruise. :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

........25% credit and The Hilton for a night seems fair.

 

IF you are able to use the 25% future cruise credit before 2/19/19. For those of us with next year's cruise already booked, we have to settle for the one day credit. :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

IF you are able to use the 25% future cruise credit before 2/19/19. For those of us with next year's cruise already booked, we have to settle for the one day credit. :(

 

Assuming not an NCL cruise, or I bet they would apply credit..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our cruise was supposed to leave the 10th. It's now the 11th bc of this. So they are docking 2 days. I'm piss because we are coming in a day early and had booked a hotel. Now we have to switch hotels. Because of the other cruise the Hilton is booked. So yes, great vaca lugging our luggage around. 8 days. 3 different beds.

 

Well, I can't say what exactly the PR people are trying to say, but there really isn't any such thing as a one day drydocking. It takes 6-8 hours to pump out the dock, and the same to refill it. With the time needed to shift the ship to the Pearl Harbor drydock, that would only give less than 12 hours, at absolute best, for whatever is needed. Her last drydock was about this time in 2016, which was at the far limit of the statutory drydock interval. So, I believe that what is happening is that the ship is undergoing a "UWILD" (underwater inspection in lieu of drydocking), which ships less than 15 years old can do rather than drydocking twice in 5 years as required. This entails divers videotaping the entire underwater portion of the hull, and all underwater equipment like propellers, thrusters, stabilizers, sea chests, etc for the class surveyor to review. I'm a bit surprised that NCL was caught on short notice for this, but I believe that since the drydock was at the late end of the statutory window, they felt the UWILD could be done up to 2.5 years afterwards, but in fact it needs to be done within 12.5 years (plus or minus 3 months) of her delivery date, which would be Dec 2017, plus or minus 3 months, so Oct 2017 - Mar 2018. NCL has always had trouble with the regulatory differences between US flag ships and foreign flag ships, and this may be one more example of this.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Assuming not an NCL cruise, or I bet they would apply credit..

 

True. We received credit for the shortened POA cruise and they were able to apply it to the already booked cruise we had with NCL, upon my request. Mind you, I have an excellent PCC, and we had an OK cabin on POA and the credit wasn't that huge :cool:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our cruise was supposed to leave the 10th. It's now the 11th bc of this. So they are docking 2 days. I'm piss because we are coming in a day early and had booked a hotel. Now we have to switch hotels. Because of the other cruise the Hilton is booked. So yes, great vaca lugging our luggage around. 8 days. 3 different beds.

 

Even getting the previous cruise off on the 9th, and you on the 11th, there is very little chance they are actually drydocking the ship, and are almost assuredly doing a diver survey. If they actually do drydock, there is a very good chance they would not be coming out of dock for several days, as there is always the possibility of surprises when the ship goes dry, that need to be repaired.

 

I feel everyone's pain, and I wish that NCL had gotten a better handle on this, but even after 14 years, they are still learning how to operate US flag ships.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Happened to us on the Jewel going to Alaska. Missed the main port we booked to see. Ended up an extra day in Seattle because our plane tickets were already paid. Was disappointed but decided to make the best of it and had a wonderful time! Enjoy.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even getting the previous cruise off on the 9th, and you on the 11th, there is very little chance they are actually drydocking the ship, and are almost assuredly doing a diver survey. If they actually do drydock, there is a very good chance they would not be coming out of dock for several days, as there is always the possibility of surprises when the ship goes dry, that need to be repaired.

 

I feel everyone's pain, and I wish that NCL had gotten a better handle on this, but even after 14 years, they are still learning how to operate US flag ships.

 

I'm curious.

Does skipping a dry dock for a diver survey change (shorten) the interval to the next dry dock?

How quickly are the videos reviewed?

If the videos reveal "surprises" that require repair, what then? Might they be forced to pull the ship out of service?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm curious.

Does skipping a dry dock for a diver survey change (shorten) the interval to the next dry dock?

How quickly are the videos reviewed?

If the videos reveal "surprises" that require repair, what then? Might they be forced to pull the ship out of service?

 

No, until a ship reaches 15 years old, the UWILD survey is an acceptable substitute for a drydocking, so it doesn't change the interval. Sometimes the video is shown real time to the surveyor (camera wired to surface monitor) and otherwise it is reviewed as soon as the diver comes up. Since the dives can take many hours, as each diver is relieved, his video can be reviewed while the next dive is underway.

 

I don't think I've ever heard of something being discovered during a UWILD that would require immediate repair or removal of the ship from service. Most frequently, things will be classed as either "repair within the next XX days (usually 90-180)" or "repair at next scheduled drydocking". The most frequently found things are dents in the hull from docks or tugs, and most of this can then be looked at from inside to see if the frames are bent, and if it is merely a dent in the hull plating without deforming any frames, then the dent can be left for the life of the ship, or repaired at the owner's choice. Even if frames are damaged, the most common repair is to cut away the damaged portion of the frame, make a new piece that conforms to the new, bent shape of the hull plating and weld in place. This kind of repair is usually acceptable until next scheduled drydocking. They may find things like missing nuts for holding sea chest gratings, that the divers can repair on the spot, but that's all I've ever seen.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just received a letter from NCL saying that our cruise from March 3-10 is being cut short by one day and the whole itinerary is messed up. I am furious. This is very last minute- half of our party is already on their way to Hawaii and we are leaving in the morning. All of our excursions, which are all with the ship, are messed up now. Every single one! They are putting us up in a Hilton hotel to make up for the night and are giving us a 25% future cruise credit. After this, we never want to sail with NCL again. This cruise was over $5600CDN for an inside cabin- that takes a long time to save. Has anyone else ever had this experience before?

Do you think they did this just to upset the passengers? Of course not, they must of had a reason. Just be glad they choose a Hilton, all the Hiltons in Hawaii are very nice. being upset, heck I understand, saying you will never sail NCL again is a bit over the top. Why not just calm down, enjoy your week and don't get all worked up.

 

OP,now I read your later post. There is a reason for the change as you can see. Yes, it does happen, unexpected inspections etc and yes, it is a disappointment but the ship can't control these things. You will still have the same number of days for vacation and I am sure NCL will be able to help with the planning of tours. of course I can imagine what a nightmare the tour desk will be the first day. I am sorry this had to happen to you.

Edited by newmexicoNita
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Our friends leave on Saturday sailing POA so they just missed this change. They are the same friends we planned a trip in October that NCL canceled the cruise. That "hot mess" for us still does not have our plane ticket issue resolved. In our case, NCL decided to kick us off and book the ship for a charter.

 

Is it something wrong with the ship or an overnight charter booked? It seems strange that two weeks in a row the ship will miss the last day.

are you saying they left you high and dry just a few days before sailing cause they booked a charter? Come on, that is never done. Yes,they will book a charter months out, just like other lines but never the day before or a week before sailing. It is a pain when one books a cruise just to have a charter put them off but they never do book a charter less than 6 monts out This situation, the OP is posting must have something to do with a mechanical problem or some other issue.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Beware, if you opt to be reimbursed for the missed day and your booking was done through a third party, NCL will not refund you the tax portion of the fare directly. You'll need to spend more of your precious time pleading your case to the third party to collect it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

are you saying they left you high and dry just a few days before sailing cause they booked a charter? Come on, that is never done. Yes,they will book a charter months out, just like other lines but never the day before or a week before sailing. It is a pain when one books a cruise just to have a charter put them off but they never do book a charter less than 6 monts out This situation, the OP is posting must have something to do with a mechanical problem or some other issue.

 

I reread thinking I may have been unclear but I did say our cruise is in October. The part of the charter was a question.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...