Medical Emergency Royal Princess

[jb9991]

On our Royal Princess cruise (Jan 19-26) my SO had to be medically evacuated on St. Maarten.(Just as the ship was leaving port for 2 sea days) The service we received from Princess, the Port Agency, and the ship's crew were outstanding. It was very frightening experience. Three crew members were sent to our cabin to help me pack up and while we were in route to the hospital the port agency had someone take our luggage to a hotel and secure a room for us. A couple of hours had only gone by before I was contacted at the hospital by Princess Representatives. They assured me I was not stranded & they would make sure any/all arrangements necessary were taken care of. The representative patched a call through to my Mom so I could let her know what was going on. It turned out that my SO did not need to be admitted and they sent someone to pick us up and take us to the hotel. It was a nice place on the beach where we could see the ships. We had to go back in the morning to see a surgeon. A port representative picked us up and the hotel let us keep our bags in the room since we weren't sure how long we would need the room. The Dr. cleared us for travel and were were picked up, driven to a pharmacy for medication & then to the hotel to pick up our luggage & straight to the airport. We had to fly in to Miami & take a taxi to FLL to pick up our car. A lot had happened in one day.

 

We did purchase the Princess Vacation Protection, but the services we had received were not because of the insurance. We had to pay for the plane tickets, hotel room & medical expenses out of pocket. We will get paperwork to fill out for reimbursement.

 

We received a call from Princess this morning (we got home at 2 am from FLL) explaining all the procedures. They will refund remaining beverage package and the insurance covers the partial refund for the 2 days of the cruise we missed. We will get a check for any Casino credit or on board credit remaining. We also asked about the cruise DVD which we wanted to purchase but didnt get to and will get one of those. Also, they will give us the FCC because were going to book on board for a future cruise.

 

The five days we spent on the ship were wonderful (even if they didnt have

corned beef on rye sandwiches ;) ). We are already planning to repeat the cruise on the Regal and this time finish it ! )

[DrivesLikeMario]

So sorry your cruise was cut short, but thank God your SO is going to be okay and that you were treated so well. Welcome home.

[Pam in CA]

Glad to hear of your positive experience. We had a similar experience four years ago. Be sure to check your options re: insurance for "trip interruption." You should be able to submit a claim for hotel and other expenses up to the value of the days you were onboard. In other words, you should have the five days' pro-rated value of your cruise fare applied by the insurance towards your expenses.

[Whimsy]

I'm glad you were taken care of and I'm gliding your SO is doing well. I'm glad Princess took good care of you in this difficult situation.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[Colo Cruiser]

It does sound like things were handled well.

[paul929207]

I am glad everything worked out.

 

Just curious did you each have a passport? If not, how did that part work?

[Coral]

I am so glad you were able to fly home so that you can see your doctors back home.

 

Thanks for explaining the process. Glad you were well taken care of.

[Tyskie]

We had a similar experience in St. Thomas following a vehicle accident. My DH packed up what we and his Sister & BIL would need for a few days. There were 4 couples, 2 remained on the ship and packed the rest of our stuff and brought it home with them (no flight).

 

Princess was very accommodating, without their agent getting us the final accident report (and it took a LONG time - island time you know!) it would have hampered our full reimbursement with the insurance. We spent 3 days in a hotel - food - taxi, everything was covered. Trip was pro-rated. The only thing not covered was the Carib beer DH had while waiting for the food. :eek: :)

 

Hope your SO continues with good health. Happy future cruising!

Edited January 26, 2014 by Tyskie

[jb9991]

I am glad everything worked out.

 

Just curious did you each have a passport? If not, how did that part work?

 

yes, we had passports

[Steviewonder1]

We had a similar thing in Alaska with DW having a Gall Stone issue. We were medevacuated into Sitka. Princess had 4 folks waiting on me coming up from the dispensary to help pack up. Stayed in Sitka for 3 days, DW was given the green light, I called AMEX and said get us out of here and they did. The local travel agent furnished all rides I needed to/from the hospital. We got all expenses paid and a 50% trip reimbursement toward another cruise. Yes there is no reason not to get trip insurance as this was well into 5 digits. We have always bought travel/medical insurance and carry passports.

[Acosmo]

We were on this sailing with you, an announcement was made while we were waiting for sailaway that there was a medical emergency. I'm sorry your cruise ended this way but glad to read a follow up and that everything was handled well by Princess.

 

We rarely hear the real scoop or follow-on story when someone is evacuated. Best wishes to you and your SO and hopefully the Regal will be uneventful, medically speaking.

[riclop]

Good to know.

[gingera]

Glad to hear your experience was positive, but sorry to hear that you missed part of your trip.

It is so important to know what kind of travel insurance one buys and what it covers.

Also, to know how one's regular medical insurance if one is out of country or if it covers med air.

I am blessed to have my work insurance cover a one time med air coverage anywhere in the world.