Is Carnival Splendor Compensation Fair?

[johare]

I hope THE CREW will be fairly compensated, since they will not be working over the holidays, due to no fault of their own.

A lot of people will not be working over the holidays due to no fault of their own.

[lady_cruiser]

Beside giving the passengers a full refund, reimbursements for additional expenses and a percentage off another cruise I think Carnival deserves 4-stars for stepping to the front of the line.

 

The crew and staff sent beyond their call of duty in providing for the comfort, well-being and safety of their passengers and crew.

 

GEAUX Carnival!

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Definitely more than fair - don't understand what more people would like Carnival to do. Carnival is not my line of choice but have sailed on them 3 times in 25 years. But I think Carnival's handling of this whole incident went above and beyond. I have a friend who was on the December 5th sailing and I am sure he is upset of the cancellation. However, I also think it is better to get the Splendor repaired properly rather than quickly. Carnival is losing a lot of money on this one which is unfortunate for all cruisers.

[okgirl]

I think it's fair. The 25% should for the most part cover any upcharges for rebooking this close to departure. If you want the biggest bang for your 25% buck, then cancel your vacation and book when the prices have normalized.

[noblepa]

Isn't a full refund, airfare change fees and 25 percent off a future cruise more or less what they give passengers when a cruise is chartered out from under them, or when an emergency drydock is necessary? Isn't this situation somewhat comparable, in that the ship has suddenly become unavailable for a scheduled cruise?

 

As far as booked passengers are concerned, it is certainly disappointing to suddenly have a cruise yanked out from under you, especially on such short notice and especially around the holidays. But I hardly think it is an insult, especially since this is not Carnival's fault.

 

Paul

[Sargent_Schultz]

Isn't a full refund, airfare change fees and 25 percent off a future cruise more or less what they give passengers when a cruise is chartered out from under them, or when an emergency drydock is necessary? Isn't this situation somewhat comparable, in that the ship has suddenly become unavailable for a scheduled cruise?

 

As far as booked passengers are concerned, it is certainly disappointing to suddenly have a cruise yanked out from under you, especially on such short notice and especially around the holidays. But I hardly think it is an insult, especially since this is not Carnival's fault.

 

Paul

 

It's a LOT more than what Royal offered us when Katrina took out New Orleans and our Christmas cruise with it. We did manage to get a refund and promptly booked a better cruise on Princess.

[Crusin6]

when I cruise, I buy my insurance from a third party and it usually costs upward of $100..and we have paid as much as $450 for our big Europe trip a few years ago for the whole family...and I know it is non refundable...and I buy it within 14 days of deposit........so if the cruise is cancelled...and CCL is covering air costs for those cancelled cruisers....what about the insurance costs? At this late date many of those cancelled may just decide to stay home....but they are still out the insurance costs......they can't use it and should get a reimbursement ffrom CCL for the insurance that was purchased to cover them in case something went wrong on a CCL cruise....now there is no cruise...and the pax who bought early to cover the pre existing illnesses are out their insurance plan premium!

 

So, if it fair....no, not unless CCL covers the travel insurance premiums!!!

[JRock59]

Yes I feel it's fair. I do feel bad for those who had a Cruise booked and now have to find either another one at higher prices or a different vacation. But in the past couple of years I've had to fly a lot and have had a number of flights late, moved to a different airport or canceled completely. And what have I got out of the airlines........zip, nada and not a darn thing! Most times I've had to either pay more to get on another flight to get to my final destination, pay for a hotel room overnight as I couldn't get another flight till the next day or even take a bus the final leg or wait 3 days for an open flight. So full refund including airfare and 25% off next Cruise yup that's fair.

[richstowe]

I am confused as to what a 25 percent off a future cruise means?

If you use it to book with a ES rate and then prices come down will they say "we will not OBC you until rates are

at least 25 % below what you booked at.

In that case won't this 25 % be worth exactly 0 $'s.

(don't flame -not making a comment -just asking)

[BK89014]

I only scanned this thread because I'm at work. I was on the 11/14/10 cruise and when they cancelled us we could move our date to any date through the first week of Feb. 2011. My rate per cabin I had paid was locked in. I have already rebooked (last Sunday) but didn't have to worry about the rate difference because I paid the same amount I paid for my 11/14/10 cruise.

 

Has anyone actually called to reschedule or see what cruises they will lock the rate in for? We had a choice of 2 or 3 December dates, all January dates and 1 Feb date on the Splendor. Also had the option of a few dates on the Spirit for their 8 or 9 day cruises.

 

If they don't offer that locked in price I would push a little.

[shellondra]

I think it's fair.

 

Does it still suck for all those folks - yes, but accidents happen. Nothing is ever guaranteed.

 

 

well said, I agree.

[*Mach*]

I am confused as to what a 25 percent off a future cruise means?

 

If you use it to book with a ES rate and then prices come down will they say "we will not OBC you until rates are

at least 25 % below what you booked at.

 

In that case won't this 25 % be worth exactly 0 $'s.

 

(don't flame -not making a comment -just asking)

 

 

It's 25% off regardless of how you book and it's combinable with most other available discounts.

It's simple... book your cruise, pay your deposit and use the reimbursement form to get a 25% reduction in the price from that point.

:)

[jebuell]

25%? Should be 50% with some OBCs and should be good for 5 years not just 24 months. Some people don't get vacation time every year and may not be able to go on another cruise in the next two years.

 

Plus there are a lot of other expenses that Carnival probably won't be refunding. Like all the brides and grooms who have now had their wedding canceled and just lost a ton of deposits, possibly. Will they cover that? I wouldn't expect them to so I doubt they will. It seems a little insulting that their response is "Whoops, sorry! But sail with us again and save $150".

 

What I find interesting is there are no back-up ships that Carnival can use. Is their entire fleet really in service right now? I get there are some statistical issues with that but really, nothing they can't work out for over a month?

[SMSACE6]

Yes!

[Chigirlcruzin]

25%? Should be 50% with some OBCs and should be good for 5 years not just 24 months. Some people don't get vacation time every year and may not be able to go on another cruise in the next two years.

 

Plus there are a lot of other expenses that Carnival probably won't be refunding. Like all the brides and grooms who have now had their wedding canceled and just lost a ton of deposits, possibly. Will they cover that? I wouldn't expect them to so I doubt they will. It seems a little insulting that their response is "Whoops, sorry! But sail with us again and save $150".

 

What I find interesting is there are no back-up ships that Carnival can use. Is their entire fleet really in service right now? I get there are some statistical issues with that but really, nothing they can't work out for over a month?

 

2 years is more than fair. Who doesn't get vacation time every year? I'm not asking to be sarcastic...I just don't know.

 

And no, there are no back-up ships. The entire fleet is in service or going through scheduled dry dock. It doesn't make much sense to have a multi-million dollar asset sitting idle.

[MrPete]

25%? Should be 50% with some OBCs and should be good for 5 years not just 24 months. Some people don't get vacation time every year and may not be able to go on another cruise in the next two years.

 

Plus there are a lot of other expenses that Carnival probably won't be refunding. Like all the brides and grooms who have now had their wedding canceled and just lost a ton of deposits, possibly. Will they cover that? I wouldn't expect them to so I doubt they will. It seems a little insulting that their response is "Whoops, sorry! But sail with us again and save $150".

 

What I find interesting is there are no back-up ships that Carnival can use. Is their entire fleet really in service right now? I get there are some statistical issues with that but really, nothing they can't work out for over a month?

 

Maybe it's time for them to look for a better job.

 

Back up ships? That's the funniest thing I've read this year. In addition to the wedding what ifs.

[*Mach*]

25%? Should be 50% with some OBCs and should be good for 5 years not just 24 months. Some people don't get vacation time every year and may not be able to go on another cruise in the next two years.

 

Plus there are a lot of other expenses that Carnival probably won't be refunding. Like all the brides and grooms who have now had their wedding canceled and just lost a ton of deposits, possibly. Will they cover that? I wouldn't expect them to so I doubt they will. It seems a little insulting that their response is "Whoops, sorry! But sail with us again and save $150".

 

What I find interesting is there are no back-up ships that Carnival can use. Is their entire fleet really in service right now? I get there are some statistical issues with that but really, nothing they can't work out for over a month?

 

 

As an apparently seasoned cruiser I'm a bit surprised at your last comment. There isn't a cruise line in the world that has a $500 million plus dollar ship just sitting around waiting to deploy. It would be financial suicide.

Consider that it took 47 days to move the ship from Florida to Long Beach. By that time the situation will pretty well have resolved itself...

:)

[cruising family of 3]

I think the refund and option for Carnival to hold the funds is fair but I do think, at least for those that were supposed to sail on the 11/21 and 11/28 sailings the 25% is on the lower side. For us, (my family) it is impossible to change vacation days this close and I don't have any extra money so I could not book something else while waiting for them to decide to cancel. Yes I expected it but since Carnival would not let us out and we had to wait for them I think that a little bit more that 25% would have been nice. Especially since now we have nothing for Thanksgiving as the rest of the family is going out of town and airfare is too expensive and a refund will not get to us in time. The 25% will likely only cover the increase in the cost of the cruise so it isn't really any discount at all. Yes I know it was not their fault and I appreciate that they are doing anything because I know that they don't have to. I feel that they should have let us know sooner. Considering how many sailings they just cancelled it is hard to believe that they really thought they were going to sail on the 21st. Why keep everyone hanging and those on extremely tight budgets, i.e. single parents, unable to make alternate plans? Don't get me wrong I support Carnival and have defended them a lot since this happened and will continue to sail on Carnival, just a bit frustrated right now.

[cynt]

I think it's fair. It sucks but life happens. GO TO DISNEY WORLD!! I think that's what I would do, especially if I was cruising the week after Thanksgiving and/or the first two weeks of December.

[pnjkeith]

Very Fair. CC Editor (OP) is just stroking the fire. Chintzy, Carnival is not.

[Renunciate]

Looks to me like what Carnival is doing is what is known in the insurance industry as "making the client whole". In other words, it's as if they had never booked the cruise. They now have no out of pocket losses. Carnival is covering the cost of changing airline tickets and even covering non-refundable tickets. Additionally, because they understand brand loyalty, they are providing an incentive to book a new cruise with them in the form of a %25 discount.

 

I dunno about you, but were it me, I'd be looking to use that %25 on a balcony suite on a 14 day Panama Canal cruise or something like that. :)

 

Fair? No, much more than fair. They went the extra mile and as a result, I'll now consider sailing on them even though I'm a confirmed Celebrity/RCCL cruiser.

[truchattycathy]

Fair? No, much more than fair. They went the extra mile. I agree!!!!

 

It is fair.

[Bo Didly]

Maybe it's time for them to look for a better job.

 

Back up ships? That's the funniest thing I've read this year. In addition to the wedding what ifs.

 

 

On the contrary i think thats a very good idea.

Why do you think it's not. How many vehicles do you have in your garage ;).

[jebuell]

2 years is more than fair. Who doesn't get vacation time every year? I'm not asking to be sarcastic...I just don't know.

 

And no, there are no back-up ships. The entire fleet is in service or going through scheduled dry dock. It doesn't make much sense to have a multi-million dollar asset sitting idle.

 

Military. Sub personnel getting 7 days in a row during the first 2-4 years is a miracle!

 

And sorry if I'm pissed. There was a lot of planning that went into this trip including an additional $1500 on my part that I won't get back. It took me 10 years to sail on a Carnival ship after my sister was raped by a crew member (which Carnival blatantly ignored and "swept under the rug") and I'd finally thought I'd forgiven them but two canceled cruises in one year may be my breaking point.

 

And by back-up boat I meant a similar boat running the same or similar cruises (7 day versus 8 day, etc.) that these people could go on. There is NOTHING on the Carnival website for Mexico during this time except the comparably crappy 3-4 day Baja cruises. There is ONE OTHER cruising the same week as our cruise and they are now trying to get over $1,000 for an interior cabin?! Ridiculous. So literally all of these people have to completely change their plans with absolutely no back-up options unless they expect us to fork over $750 for an interior cabin.

[MrPete]

On the contrary i think thats a very good idea.

Why do you think it's not. How many vehicles do you have in your garage ;).

 

Are you kidding? There's so much junk in there, not even ONE would fit!