Freedom of the Seas - Mechanical Problems

[APDMOM]

For those who are doubting the emergency on Dec 7th... As someone with inside information, without sharing the confidential information, I can tell you there WAS a real emergency with a baby, helicopter evacuation is a last resort option, and the doctor HAD to go with the ambulance. Very few ambulances are equipped with the unique tools required for this kind of emergency. It was a very unique situation. I know everyone will believe what they want, but some here, who know my reputation on CC, will help lay the rumor to rest that this was a "made up" emergency.

 

It would be really nice if the person who shared about "a crew member" telling them that there was no sick baby, would share that crew member's name... I think such a disloyal crew member who would sink to the low of spreading this blatant lie should have consequences.

[keywasted100]

I don't know of anyone who is doubting the emergency, the issue is RCI not giving us all what we paid for. We got a raw deal because of a crippled ship! They had no contingency plan in place should a medical emergency happen on this ship which had already had to shorten the itinerary. They also tried to keep it from the passengers until the wry last minute that the ship had propulsion issues.

[LMaxwell]

I don't know of anyone who is doubting the emergency, the issue is RCI not giving us all what we paid for. We got a raw deal because of a crippled ship! They had no contingency plan in place should a medical emergency happen on this ship which had already had to shorten the itinerary. They also tried to keep it from the passengers until the wry last minute that the ship had propulsion issues.

Exactly. The ship was broken regardless of the medical emergency.

 

They are giving big obc this week for the same itinerary and did so upfront. Hmmm.

Edited December 23, 2014 by LMaxwell

[keywasted100]

We are very angry the RCI isn't doing anything for those of us on the 12/7 sailing. I wrote a letter to Adam Goldstein and emailed it today but it probably has the same chance of being read as I do hitting the Powerball. They don't care about our business! I booked an 11 night cruise while on Board the Freedsom and if RCI is not going to be loyal to us then our loyalty ended with our last cruise! We have made it to Emerald status and we're trying to get to Diamond but for what-? So much for the Crown and Anchor who I now call the Frown and Wanka

[LMaxwell]

We are very angry the RCI isn't doing anything for those of us on the 12/7 sailing. I wrote a letter to Adam Goldstein and emailed it today but it probably has the same chance of being read as I do hitting the Powerball. They don't care about our business! I booked an 11 night cruise while on Board the Freedsom and if RCI is not going to be loyal to us then our loyalty ended with our last cruise! We have made it to Emerald status and we're trying to get to Diamond but for what-? So much for the Crown and Anchor who I now call the Frown and Wanka

Michael Bayley is in the driver seat now.

 

Mbayley@rccl.com

[keywasted100]

RCI has now come back with they are not giving any compensation

To those who were on Freedom 12/7-12/14. I was originally told by the resolutions dept. that we would all receive some kind of compensation and we would all receive an email outlining the compensation. Now I am being told there is nothing for us! I was basically forced to sail on a ship that was only operating at 66% instead of 100%. I paid full price for a cruise that should have been discounted. If I had been told when I booked that the ship was having mechanical issues I would have chose another ship or waited until the ship returns from dry dock, I asked if they would let me reschedule to when the ship is repaired and I was told NO. Everyone needs to email Agoldstein@rccl.com perhaps if we flood his box they will do something

[APDMOM]

I don't know of anyone who is doubting the emergency, the issue is RCI not giving us all what we paid for.

 

You may have not had a chance to read all the posts. winobucs is spreading the doubt.... just read their posts. They said a crew member told them there was no real emergency. Well, there was, and we need to trust that the captain and doctor did the right thing. The sick baby needs to be out of this debate alltogether. Too many people are speculating about helicopters, ambulances, etc.

 

The captain and crew have nothing to do with RCI's lack of reimbursement. The captain even made an announcement that his staff has nothing to do with the circumstances, and he urged passengers to treat his crew with respect, and take up our issues with the office on land. I respect that some feel this fight is worth the ~$50 you may get for an inside cabin. It is just not classy to start questioning the actions of the captain when it comes to caring for a critically sick patient.

Edited December 23, 2014 by APDMOM
typo

[ratred]

Here's the issue I have had the vessel been at 100 percent, it would have still been in Grand Cayman when the fell ill. I also have an issue with the Captain he told me personally that there was no helicopters in Cayman Islands available for airlift.

 

I just don't understand why RCL would tell so many non truths. Then they put the blame on the child so sad

P

[Big_G]

Here's the issue I have had the vessel been at 100 percent, it would have still been in Grand Cayman when the fell ill. I also have an issue with the Captain he told me personally that there was no helicopters in Cayman Islands available for airlift.

 

I just don't understand why RCL would tell so many non truths. Then they put the blame on the child so sad

P

 

Put the blame on the child? LOL!!! You must be a politician. Talk about double speak. :rolleyes:

[LMaxwell]

Put the blame on the child? LOL!!! You must be a politician. Talk about double speak. :rolleyes:

Let's put that aside and ask the REAL question here...

 

Why is Royal Caribbean offering OBC for this week's sailing; it is a reduced itinerary that should have been the same itinerary as 12/7. People that boarded 12/21 were given the OBC right off the bat. I believe the alternate itinerary cruises immediately before and immediately after the 12/7 cruise were given some form of compensation.

 

It just makes no sense to me. For the past 4 cruises when guests boarded there were conditions known that would impact itinerary and three out of four of those cruises were given compensation.

[HiCSailor]

And you won't see it. Coco Cay is handled differently than other ports.

I was just wondering about that. Figures... Lol.

[Big_G]

Let's put that aside and ask the REAL question here...

 

Why is Royal Caribbean offering OBC for this week's sailing; it is a reduced itinerary that should have been the same itinerary as 12/7. People that boarded 12/21 were given the OBC right off the bat. I believe the alternate itinerary cruises immediately before and immediately after the 12/7 cruise were given some form of compensation.

 

It just makes no sense to me. For the past 4 cruises when guests boarded there were conditions known that would impact itinerary and three out of four of those cruises were given compensation.

 

You're right. All things being the same, Royal should be consistent. It's just too bad that these threads tend to spin out of control with absurdity.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[pennielz]

Here's the issue I have had the vessel been at 100 percent, it would have still been in Grand Cayman when the fell ill. I also have an issue with the Captain he told me personally that there was no helicopters in Cayman Islands available for airlift.

 

I just don't understand why RCL would tell so many non truths. Then they put the blame on the child so sad

P

 

I'm not sure how you can make the claim that the ship would have still been in Grand Cayman. Do you KNOW what caused the child to fall ill? Was it something that happened on ship that would have happened on ship anyway if the ship had left at the scheduled time? Unless you are a member of the child's family you don't KNOW what was or wasn't untruths! Just get over it and quit blaming an ill child for your lost port charges!

 

Did anyone here even care how the family would feel if they read some of your comments? No! Of course, not! All any of you are worried about is what you think you are owed for YOUR losses! Your loss was minimal! A few dollars that you would have blown anyway! You had a cruise vacation! Get over it!

[LMaxwell]

I'm not sure how you can make the claim that the ship would have still been in Grand Cayman. Do you KNOW what caused the child to fall ill? Was it something that happened on ship that would have happened on ship anyway if the ship had left at the scheduled time? Unless you are a member of the child's family you don't KNOW what was or wasn't untruths! Just get over it and quit blaming an ill child for your lost port charges!

 

Did anyone here even care how the family would feel if they read some of your comments? No! Of course, not! All any of you are worried about is what you think you are owed for YOUR losses! Your loss was minimal! A few dollars that you would have blown anyway! You had a cruise vacation! Get over it!

 

What a rude and unnecessary post. Maybe you can address why 3 of the past 4 Freedom cruisers got compensation but one cruise did not and the company will not even address it. A child being ill has nothing to do with it; the company is the one repeating the line and saying that is the reason when clear as day to anyone that it is not. Are you on the payroll???

[ryano]

What a rude and unnecessary post.

 

A lot of truth to it though.

 

And no, I am absolutely NOT on the RCI payroll.

Edited December 23, 2014 by ryano

[robtulipe]

Unfortunately, I have my doubt that I will ever see the port charges refunded back on to my credit card as I didn't see it got credited back on to my on board account statement at the end of the cruise. After all, I was on the Grandeur back in August, and we missed Coco Cay, and I still haven't seen the port charges return to my credit card.

 

Personally, I'm very disappointed that RCCL is not treating everyone equally, and pretty much compensating everyone else but "ME". I don't know about others who were on the Dec 7th sailing, but for me, whenever I think of RCCL now, I felt unappreciated as a paying customer. After all, they treated everyone else who were affected by Freedom's mechanical problem better, and offering some form of compensation to ensure they continue to get their busiess.

 

I can totally understand where they are coming from, on a cruise of 4000 people, 1% of the passenger may get really upset and never book another RCCL cruise again due to how they handle the compensation on the Dec 7 sailing. That's only roughly 40 people, versus, if they were to offer a $50 compensation to everyone on that particular cruise, it would have cost them $200k. And their corporate accountant probably figure those 40 people will never generate $200k worth of revenue if they were to make them happy.

 

As time pass, memories and feeling will probably faded, but if any one were to ask me whether I would go on RCCL for my next cruise, my answer is most likely a "NO", as I don't feel they really want or appreciate me as a customer.

 

 

And you won't see it. Coco Cay is handled differently than other ports.

 

I was just wondering about that. Figures... Lol.

 

The way I understand it is there is one port fee charge for all Bahamas stops and if a cruise skips one port but goes into another, Grandeur's August itinerary shows Nassau and Coco Cay, there is no difference in this fee thus no refund.

 

My take on the Dec.7th Freedom cruise is the sick child causing the ship's return to Grand Cayman provided RCI with an convenient excuse not to give compensation to the passengers on that cruise.

IMO, the real problem, as many others have mentioned in this thread, is that because of the ship's propulsion problem the port stops were shortened and there was no possibility what so ever to make up for this delay and that resulted in Cozumel being missed. :mad:

Edited December 23, 2014 by robtulipe

[LMaxwell]

A lot of truth to it though.

 

Why was 12/21 cruise compensated when it was originally supposed to be same itinerary as 12/7 cruise? Royal is not being consistent. I think that is all anyone wants. Instead Royal is hiding behind the ill child and using that as a wall to ignore guests who spent a lot of $$$$

 

No one said that a sick child should not receive medical care; but most also said the ship loped back to PC over two days. If the medical need was determined that it needed to be in a US hospital they had to pass Key West, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach....to get to PC at 14 knots. I'm not going to second guess the medical care of a child, but this does not seem to convey a sense of urgency to me.

 

The bottomline is that people on 12/7 cruise, even if no child was sick at all, were due to get about half of the port time they had paid for. Same with 12/21. Yet one of those cruises got compensation right off the bat and one didn't. Remove the child from the equation (as that could not have been known at boarding time of 12/7) and simply ask why are people not being treated consistently?

 

I wasn't on the cruise but my horse in the race is for the thousands and thousands of dollars per year that I spend with Royal Caribbean I want them to treat me fairly and in a consistent manner. I want them to treat ALL guests fairly and consistently. It is clear to me that 12/7 guests are not being handled with consistency OR fairness. They should get what the 12/21 guests got, or the 12/21 guests should get what 12/7 got; nothing. Treat them equally and I am okay either way.

[LMaxwell]

The way I understand it is there is one port fee charge for all Bahamas stops and if a cruise skips one port but goes into another, Grandeur's August itinerary shows Nassau and Coco Cay, there is no difference in this fee thus no refund.

 

 

I don't believe this for a moment. Other cruise lines return port charges when they miss a private island stop in the Bahamas. The private stops are leased out by the Bahamas with an agreement of a per head fee when the ships are able to call on the port (tender in). None of the cruise lines are transparent in breaking down fees per port. But it is not accurate to say it is one fee for two ports. This is a case of being armed with the knowledge to ask because if you don't who will advocate for you? No one.

[William W]

The bottomline is that people on 12/7 cruise, even if no child was sick at all, were due to get about half of the port time they had paid for. Same with 12/21. Yet one of those cruises got compensation right off the bat and one didn't. Remove the child from the equation (as that could not have been known at boarding time of 12/7) and simply ask why are people not being treated consistently?

 

I wasn't on the cruise but my horse in the race is for the thousands and thousands of dollars per year that I spend with Royal Caribbean I want them to treat me fairly and in a consistent manner. I want them to treat ALL guests fairly and consistently. It is clear to me that 12/7 guests are not being handled with consistency OR fairness. They should get what the 12/21 guests got, or the 12/21 guests should get what 12/7 got; nothing. Treat them equally and I am okay either way.

 

Thank you! This is exactly it, and couldn't say it better myself on this one. This is exactly why I would hestiate to book another cruise on RCCL for my next one as I felt I'm being treated unfairly and unappreciated, or simply, they value other's business more than mine.

[JinxyB]

I agree- it's not about the money, it's the principal of treating all customers equally and fairly. The 12/21 sailing paid considerably more then we did on the 12/7 sailing because of the Christmas holiday, but that doesn't make it fair they were compensated and we weren't. Royal Caribbean is dead to me at this point, which is a shame because I am an avid cruiser and liked their product before this fiasco.

 

In regards to the sick child, my curiosity is killing me as to what medical devices a cruise ship infirmary has that an ambulance does not?!

[Pancake16]

So it's fair that another person paid significantly more for the same room than what you paid? It's the same room. Going to the same ports. Same food. Same service. With discounts, TAs, sales, "status" etc., we all paid different money for the same product. Hardly seems "fair" but RCCL said this is the price and we all signed up.

 

RCCL is reacting to all this "hub bub" and "complaining" calls, letters, emails. That's why some weeks got while others didn't! It is what it is. Seems ridiculous to keep berating the issue. IMHO.

 

Before the backlash to me...I'm on the December 28 sailing. I paid WAY to much, have a little OBC and really just want to KNOW what the anticipated ports and times will be. Anything else is gravy!

[JinxyB]

I guess what I'm trying to say is maybe RCI is shafting us because we paid less than the holiday sailings. I'd be really furious to be on a Christmas or NYE sailing and get 20 hours of ports/shortened ports with zero compensation, having paid premium prices.

[grover40]

Let's put that aside and ask the REAL question here...

 

Why is Royal Caribbean offering OBC for this week's sailing; it is a reduced itinerary that should have been the same itinerary as 12/7. People that boarded 12/21 were given the OBC right off the bat. I believe the alternate itinerary cruises immediately before and immediately after the 12/7 cruise were given some form of compensation.

 

It just makes no sense to me. For the past 4 cruises when guests boarded there were conditions known that would impact itinerary and three out of four of those cruises were given compensation.

We boarded on Dec 14th and received $175 OBC for Interior stateroom. Diamond Members and above got a little more...

[siestaclaud]

So it's fair that another person paid significantly more for the same room than what you paid? It's the same room. Going to the same ports. Same food. Same service. With discounts, TAs, sales, "status" etc., we all paid different money for the same product. Hardly seems "fair" but RCCL said this is the price and we all signed up.

 

RCCL is reacting to all this "hub bub" and "complaining" calls, letters, emails. That's why some weeks got while others didn't! It is what it is. Seems ridiculous to keep berating the issue. IMHO.

 

Before the backlash to me...I'm on the December 28 sailing. I paid WAY to much, have a little OBC and really just want to KNOW what the anticipated ports and times will be. Anything else is gravy!

 

I am on the phone with RCCL right now - 10 am ET Tuesday morning 12/23. CS agent says - and she also checked with supervisor- that no updates for the 12/28 Freedom sailing are available right now. She has no indication of when any update may be available - but she did say and I quote - "prior cruises have been given OBC due to problems with this ship. "

 

I expressed my concern that getting information out over the next 2 days (holiday) may be difficult. She validated my concern, stating there would be fewer CS reps in the call center, and executives would also be on holiday. But she did say cruise operations would be running as normal - however information/updates about our 12/28 itinerary might be slower to appear.

 

She was nice and polite. I was too. Just waiting it out. Hope we find out something soon so I can change our excursions before we leave home. NOW - back to wrapping, cooking, cleaning - and oh yes PACKING - I haven't even thought about that yet......ok maybe a little.

[indie]

Has anyone received anything about their 25% future cruise credit from the 11/30 Sailing?