RCCL BOOKED A b2b now claims violates jones act HELP

[London Bridge]

my husband and I booked a B2b to celebrate our 40 th anniversary .

We booked in February onboard the radiance in Australia .

The two cruses are on celebrity solstice Hawaii to Vancouver and a Vancouver to Seattle. We have purchased non refundable air through our travel agent including a precruise stop in kaui. When booking we specifically asked about whether this itinerary violated the Jones Act and were ensured that it did not. Now 8 months later Celebrity called and said the trip violates the jones act . They offered to cancel one leg of the trip and provide 200 each to cover the cost of air change fees. The problem is to fly home from Vancouver now costs 2000 more.

They also offered to have us disembark at the last stop Victoria and pay for us to transport ourselves to Seattle and they would refund 200 each to pay for a hotel and transportation to Seattle from Victoria and we would only miss one night of the second cruise. Again changing the air which we would need to do costs over 1500 because we could not make our flight. We are not keen on ending our vacation with this hassle.

 

Does anyone have experience resolving this problem satisfactorily and having the cruise line compensate them the full amount they are out since it was their error and they waited 8 months to inform us.

 

We are very disappointed in RCCL. Who washed their hands of it claiming it was a celebrity issue despite the fact that it was their agent who booked, we even tried calling crown and anchor since we are diamond members...

Edited October 27, 2014 by Host Walt
Minor correction requested by London Bridge

[justcrusn]

I don't have any advice on how to get more from the cruise line, BUT, I think it may actually be the PVSA you would violate and not the Jones act. My suggestion is to re-post this question in the celebrity forum also.

 

Best wishes.

[London Bridge]

I don't have any advice on how to get more from the cruise line, BUT, I think it may actually be the PVSA you would violate and not the Jones act. My suggestion is to re-post this question in the celebrity forum also.

 

Best wishes.

 

Thanks. Yes my research also indicates it is the PVSA but celebrity referred to it as the Jones act . Apparently the booking agents are not well versed on this law and we are furious that despite our asking and being told it was okay they wait 8 months to inform us otherwise ... We are researching our options

[Algebralovr]

We were on the Solstice with someone who ran into this in 2013. They got off the ship in Victoria, BC, rented a car, and drove to Seattle to catch the flights they had previously booked. The trip by car from Victoria to Seattle is about 5 hours. Alternately, you could cancel the second leg and take a shuttle from Vancouver to Seattle, a ride of about 4 hours. Interstate 5 runs the route you will need to take.

 

The refund of $200 each, or $400, should cover the car, hotel and meals for the one night and you won't have to make any air changes.

[Starry Eyes]

So you can get off the second cruise one night early. Then make your way from Victoria to Seattle. Isn't there a ferry to Seattle? If you do that, can't you keep your original flight?

[Algebralovr]

If you don't care to drive, there is a ferry that would be within the price.

 

http://www.viator.com/tours/Victoria/High-Speed-Passenger-Ferry-From-Victoria-British-Columbia-to-Seattle-Washington/d617-5113_W0042?pref=02&aid=g4525

 

It is such a common trip, the Seattle times even did a piece on it a couple of years ago.

http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2008116402_trthreecities17.html

 

looks like Amtrak has a picturesque way to travel it.

Edited October 27, 2014 by Algebralovr

[jayoldschool]

I'd do the train. Think of it as an excursion!

[fleckle]

my husband and I booked a B2b to celebrate our 40 th anniversary .

We booked in February onboard the radiance in Australia .

The two cruses are on celebrity solstice Hawaii to Vancouver and a Vancouver to Seattle. We have purchased non refundable air through our travel agent including a precruise stop in kaui. When booking we specifically asked about whether this itinerary violated the Jones Act and were ensured that it did not. Now 8 months later Celebrity called and said the trip violates the jones act . They offered to cancel one leg of the trip and provide 200 each to cover the cost of air change fees. The problem is to fly home from Vancouver now costs 2000 more.

They also offered to have us disembark at the last stop Victoria and pay for us to transport ourselves to Seattle and they would refund 200 each to pay for a hotel and transportation to Seattle from Victoria and we would only miss one night of the second cruise. Again changing the air which we would need to do costs over 1500 because we could not make our flight. We are not keen on ending our vacation with this hassle.

 

Does anyone have experience resolving this problem satisfactorily and having the cruise line compensate them the full amount they are out since it was their error and they waited 8 months to inform us.

 

We are very disappointed in RCCL. Who washed their hands of it claiming it was a celebrity issue despite the fact that it was their agent who booked, we even tried calling crown and anchor since we are diamond members...

Yes, it is a PVSA violation. You are certainly not the first cruise ship passenger to encounter it, and undoubtedly will not be the last either.

 

The easiest solution is just to change ships when you get to Vancouver and take a different ship for your Alaska cruise, if you can find one that fits your schedule.

 

Or do as they suggest and disembark at Victoria.

 

After traveling all that distance, don't let them talk you into canceling one leg and miss out on getting an Alaska cruise.

If you need to reschedule the Alaska cruise and/or your return flight, they should reimburse you for any additional expenses involved.

 

If your flight home is from Seattle and you don't want to change that, there are several low cost ways to get from Vancouver or Victoria to Seattle.

 

It is a pain when you run into this complication, but getting upset about it does no good so you just need to work around it and reschedule, or cancel the whole thing and get all your costs refunded, as we learned when it happened to us about 10 years ago when we innocently and unknowingly booked cruises that violated the PVSA. :eek:

 

 

We were not informed about it until the last minute because they apparently did not check for such conflicts on the ship manifests until the actual cruise time started to draw near.

In our case, it was a different cruise line that was involved.

That was how we came to learn more about the PVSA than we ever would have wanted to know.

 

I just hope that you paid for everything on a major credit card so that you can dispute charges if necessary and have the full protection of the credit card company behind you.

 

Edited October 27, 2014 by Host Walt

[Shmoo here]

Yes, it is a PVSA violation. You are certainly not the first cruise ship passenger to encounter it, and undoubtedly will not be the last either.

 

The easiest solution is just to change ships when you get to Vancouver and take a different ship for your Alaska cruise, if you can find one that fits your schedule.

 

Or do as they suggest and disembark at Victoria.

 

After traveling all that distance, don't let them talk you into canceling one leg and miss out on getting an Alaska cruise.

If you need to reschedule the Alaska cruise and/or your return flight, they should reimburse you for any additional expenses involved.

 

If your flight home is from Seattle and you don't want to change that, there are several low cost ways to get from Vancouver or Victoria to Seattle.

 

It is a pain when you run into this complication, but getting upset about it does no good so you just need to work around it and reschedule, or cancel the whole thing and get all your costs refunded, as we learned when it happened to us about 10 years ago when we innocently and unknowingly booked cruises that violated the PVSA. :eek:

 

 

We were not informed about it until the last minute because they apparently did not check for such conflicts on the ship manifests until the actual cruise time started to draw near.

In our case, it was a different cruise line that was involved.

That was how we came to learn more about the PVSA than we ever would have wanted to know.

 

I just hope that you paid for everything on a credit card so that you can dispute charges if necessary and have the full protection of the credit card company behind you.

 

 

I don't see where OP said the Vancouver/Seattle leg was an Alaskan cruise.

[K.T.B.]

I'd do the train. Think of it as an excursion!

 

Train is cheap too. Somewhere around $80 or so for 2.

[London Bridge]

Thank you all for this information. I think since the ship docks in Victoria in the evening it might be hard to get to Seattle for a 1:15 flight the next day but may be possible. If not it would now cost 1500 more to do the same air so we will have to deal with celebrity to see if they will reimburse.

My husband just wants to cancel the whole thing at this point maybe your suggestion of working with the credit card company is a good one..

[fleckle]

I don't see where OP said the Vancouver/Seattle leg was an Alaskan cruise.

They didn't, but what other Vancouver/Seattle route does the Solstice travel after the Honolulu/Vancouver leg? :confused: :confused:

 

[warmwinds]

Check in to Alaska Airlines (http://www.alaskaair.com). They do many short hops around the Pacific Northwest, and I'm absolutely certain they fly to Seattle from Victoria and vice versa (we've been next to the Gate leaving for Victoria several times).

[Shmoo here]

They didn't, but what other Vancouver/Seattle route does the Solstice travel after the Honolulu/Vancouver leg? :confused: :confused:

 

 

I don't know. I tried to look it up on the Celebrity website, but they aren't showing any Oct cruises. Could be a repo cruise, other cruiselines do that Vancouver/Seattle repo.

[London Bridge]

I don't see where OP said the Vancouver/Seattle leg was an Alaskan cruise.

 

Yes it is an Alaska cruise following first leg Hawaii to Vancouver

[London Bridge]

Check in to Alaska Airlines (http://www.alaskaair.com). They do many short hops around the Pacific Northwest, and I'm absolutely certain they fly to Seattle from Victoria and vice versa (we've been next to the Gate leaving for Victoria several times).

 

Yes they do but we don't arrive in Victoria until evening

Celebrity will pay for a hotel but not sure we can make a flight a 1:15 the next day from Seattle . It was the last flight of the day.

[Artemis]

Bummer!!! I see the Solstice's arrival time in Victoria is 6 PM, which is the precise time the ferry for Seattle departs. That would have been the most efficient solution.

 

Celebrity monitors this forum and frequently invites pax with issues to email them for help. I suggest you take the initiative and contact concerns@celebrity.com -- I hope they can be more helpful in problem-solving and help make this work for you. Good luck!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[fleckle]

Check in to Alaska Airlines (www.alaskaair.com). They do many short hops around the Pacific Northwest, and I'm absolutely certain they fly to Seattle from Victoria and vice versa (we've been next to the Gate leaving for Victoria several times).

That really would be the simplest and best solution to this dilemma keeping both original cruises, IMHO.

It is the one I would choose, especially given that the cruise line has already offered to pay for their hotel for the night and the transfer from Victoria to Seattle.

 

I certainly understand and sympathize with the OP's anger and frustration about the entire situation, but this solution would be the equivalent of taking a lemon and making lemonade.

 

The one night of the cruise that they would miss would be nothing, just the late night crossing from Victoria to Seattle, most of which is only time spent sitting out in the water waiting until they can dock the following morning.

 

It would actually be great if they could spend that night at the Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria, and then take a brief flight to Seattle the following morning.

 

Edited October 27, 2014 by fleckle

[warmwinds]

I thought I saw one that arrived in SEA at around 11:30 am? (I didn't know your specific date).

[fleckle]

I thought I saw one that arrived in SEA at around 11:30 am? (I didn't know your specific date).

It looks like the Vancouver - Seattle leg is scheduled for May 1 - 8, so if their original return flight out of Seattle is scheduled for May 8, they could either spend the night of May 7 at a hotel in Victoria and fly Victoria to Seattle the morning of May 8

 

or else

 

catch a flight from Victoria to Seattle the night of May 7 and spend the night at a Seattle hotel.

 

If Alaska Airlines doesn't work, there may be a small commuter airline they could take.

 

It would be even better if the cruise line would agree to switch their flight to a day later and give them an additional hotel night so they can have an extra day to enjoy in Seattle, or Victoria,

a nice gesture as a form of compensation for messing them up this way in the first place.

 

[RKSue]

Thank you all for this information. I think since the ship docks in Victoria in the evening it might be hard to get to Seattle for a 1:15 flight the next day but may be possible. If not it would now cost 1500 more to do the same air so we will have to deal with celebrity to see if they will reimburse.

 

My husband just wants to cancel the whole thing at this point maybe your suggestion of working with the credit card company is a good one..

 

 

 

Are you saying 1:15 pm. Piece of cake. There are many ferries that you can take. Then you get the bus at the ferry terminal and have them take you right to SeaTac. There is also an express train from Seattle to the airport I think it's about 25 min ride.

 

Celebrity has access to air reservation. You can have them book you the flight home as well or like someone else suggested take Alaskan air to Seattle.

 

The cruise line can make the arrangements to get you to the ferry and from the ferry to the Seattle airport and pay the costs.

[Tapi]

There are flights very early in the morning from Victoria to Seattle. Alaska Airlines shows flights as early as 6:00am, arriving in Seattle at 6:39am. Plenty of time to catch that 1:15pm flight home.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[ghstudio]

Did you book these cruises directly with Celebrity or did you work through a travel agent? Whoever missed the legal issue owes you a solution...knowing the laws and rules is their job and the law certainly hasn't changed since you booked.

 

Fortunately, it does sound ilke there are some decent, although not perfect solutions. An early flight to seattle sounds the easiest.

 

Stay calm...celebrity will figure out how to make it right.

[WestLakeGirl]

OP said it was booked on board Radiance.

 

I say that Celebrity can do more to make this right. It's their fault

[fleckle]

From the passenger's point of view, it appears totally absurd that when you are already on a ship that will be docking in Seattle shortly, they would require you to get off the ship in Victoria and fly to Seattle instead of remaining on the ship for a few hours longer.

 

But that is the law. It is what it is, and there is nothing we can do about it.