FAA grounded all flights to Florida missed cruise

[KPfromCT]

I'm not sure where you are pricing your insurance but you ought to shop around. Insurance could be more expensive (depending on your age and the number of people you are insuring) but it is not "much" more than $150. And second, there are a lot of reasons why you could miss your cruise. A missed/delayed/canceled flight is only one of them.

 

We are a family of 3. We never buy insurance.

 

What I was TRYING to say was, just the cost of a hotel the night before is CHEAPER than the insurance, and in this case, would have saved them.

 

Thanks!!:D:D

[BekkaW]

Again. The OP was talking about getting his money bach for the cruise. That has NOTHING to do with medical coverage.

 

In Australia travel insurance covers medical as well as trip interruption, loss/damage to your luggage and similar incidents. So, your statement that medical coverage is a different issue is not universally true. If I buy insurance I'm covering all of those risks.

[Firefighterhoop]

Let's get this out there first, I did not take the cruise insurance, I have been on 7 cruises and never needed, not even close. Now after saying that my party of 7 was scheduled to fly out of Nashville yesterday to Ft Lauderdale to board the oasis of seas with a 4:30pm departure. At approximately 9am the FAA grounded all flights entering Florida airspace due to severe weather. After waiting 4 hours to take off it was clear we were going to miss cruise. I called RCI they said I could meet the ship but two passengers did not have valid passports, they then said we could transfer and book on the allure the next day but not enough rooms. I then stated we would simply rebook on the same ship with same itinerary on June 18th and it began, all departments, emergency, post cruise, and passenger relations said sorry we will be keeping your $11,000 and you will get nothing not even a free pina colada, have a nice day. There were over 1000 passengers that missed this boat yesterday. Someone please give me some recourse. Taking all suggestions. Thanks

 

 

Not really a whole lot you can do. Sorry to be blunt. They gave you a few viable options, but sadly they weren't options that you could accept.

 

They offered you cruise insurance which would have covered you at 100percent because it was a weather delayed problem, and 2) people didn't have passports so you couldn't have made the ship the next day.

 

They also offered to have you meet the ship the next day (At your expense i'm sure) - again something cruise care would have covered and all except those without passports could have done (unless of course they were small kids and you couldn't leave them alone)

 

They offered the Allure... considering they offered it does that mean they had no rooms at all available for your group, or just none that you wanted to accept (Lesser value/class) ? Again, just wondering - seems odd they would offer it only to say sorry, its not available.

 

Pretty much your only recourse at this point is to call back on Monday and see if they will do anything for you for a future cruise because it was caused by weather. I wouldn't get your hopes up, and I highly doubt it would be a 100 percent refund or a simple transfer onto another ship (Unless it was much less value). I'm not even saying that it would happen because they don't like to do it - because they offer Cruise Insurance! When you decline the insurance you are pretty much taking all risks into your own hands.

 

I really hope that people use this as a lesson. yes the insurance seems like a silly add on because "I always make the ship", but it only takes one instance like this to pay itself off.

 

Again to the OP I wish you luck and hope RCCL is willing to at least make some concession for you - because like others have said, they really don't have to do anything per the cruise contract.

[Firefighterhoop]

We are a family of 3. We never buy insurance.

 

What I was TRYING to say was, just the cost of a hotel the night before is CHEAPER than the insurance, and in this case, would have saved them.

 

Thanks!!:D:D

 

Just remember the coverage of your medical insurance is VERY limited outside the US. The cruise insurance works as a supplemental policy and will cover almost everything (Including medical evacuations from island to home) that your regular policy wouldn't cover.

[richstowe]

Sorry for your misfortune.

 

How did you find out 1000 people missed the ship?

 

Can someone currently on the ship weigh in on this point because I highly doubt the ship would leave on time with this many passengers missing.

I love and believe everybody on CC and know they would never lie especially 1 post wonders but , A) how does the OP know 1000 people missed the ship and B) This is the first I've heard of 1000 people missing a cruise . Is it different if , let's say , 100 people missed this cruise ? I'd say yes .

 

Oh yeah , sorry you missed your cruise OP

[lakelorain]

My understanding is that air2sea is required to help you get to the ship. However, the folks without a passport still couldn't have gone.

 

You can board a plane leaving the US without a passport. Just need other accepted id. You can't come back by plane without one.

Edited April 3, 2016 by lakelorain

[2specialkidsforme]

Just a thought - call the credit card company you used to pay for the cruise. some cover travel related incidents -I know ours does.

 

So sorry this has happened to you. Hope you do have coverage through your credit card.

Edited April 3, 2016 by 2specialkidsforme

[Sunkissed Mommy]

Does anyone know if Oasis sailed on time yesterday or if they delayed departure since so many people were delayed?

 

I was at the port yesterday for a Car Auction (the convention center is at the port). It took us over 30 minutes to get in to the port from the main road (17th street) because there were so many people waiting to get IN. I live in South Florida and have never seen so much traffic on 17th street on a Saturday. (Yes, there were quite a few ships there). I did NOT seem to me that 1,000 people on just the Oasis missed the ship...

 

Also, air traffic did not appear to be closed. My three year old was remarking on the planes in the sky while we waited in the car line.

[Melozone]

I'm not buying what the airline told you. I live in So. Florida and THE WEATHER WAS FINE YESTERDAY!!!!!! We had some rain up north of us, near Orlando, but not in the southern part of the state. A cool front came in last night, but that wouldn't have affected a morning flight. I think the airlines lie when they have an issue with a plane, or crew, or something you can blame on them.

 

I live in Ocala, it was horrible here yesterday! It's pretty perfect today though.

 

I always get insurance and we live in Florida. Never know when an accident on the Turnpike could stop us.

[internetwhiz]

You can board a plane leaving the US without a passport. Just need other accepted id. You can't come back by plane without one.

 

 

Not true on Delta, nor any other airline I know of. You don't need one for a US possession, San Juan or St. Thomas but otherwise

 

[Melozone]

I was at the port yesterday for a Car Auction (the convention center is at the port). It took us over 30 minutes to get in to the port from the main road (17th street) because there were so many people waiting to get IN. I live in South Florida and have never seen so much traffic on 17th street on a Saturday. (Yes, there were quite a few ships there). I did NOT seem to me that 1,000 people on just the Oasis missed the ship...

 

We sailed on the 13th. The traffic was terrible. We sat for over 45 minutes to get into the port. Too many ships sailing on the same day.

[Paulette3028]

Let's get this out there first, I did not take the cruise insurance, I have been on 7 cruises and never needed, not even close. Now after saying that my party of 7 was scheduled to fly out of Nashville yesterday to Ft Lauderdale to board the oasis of seas with a 4:30pm departure. At approximately 9am the FAA grounded all flights entering Florida airspace due to severe weather. After waiting 4 hours to take off it was clear we were going to miss cruise. I called RCI they said I could meet the ship but two passengers did not have valid passports, they then said we could transfer and book on the allure the next day but not enough rooms. I then stated we would simply rebook on the same ship with same itinerary on June 18th and it began, all departments, emergency, post cruise, and passenger relations said sorry we will be keeping your $11,000 and you will get nothing not even a free pina colada, have a nice day. There were over 1000 passengers that missed this boat yesterday. Someone please give me some recourse. Taking all suggestions. Thanks

 

Oh, I think that there is very little chance that the OP is reading any of this...................... :cool:

 

How about I might not even believe there is ANY truth to what he posted.....and I feel this because:

 

IF: (a) the ship left without 1000 passengers on it there would have been plenty of threads about it

(b) the title itself : "FAA grounded all flights to Florida....." that surely would have made the news.

© the options that Royal gave them, to all of us that are frequent enough cruisers seem rather unlikely

 

So the OP stoked a lot of feathers here and even has a cruiser on a sailing next week worried.....and probably over a fabricated story -- JMO.

[grandgeezer]

It's ironic how the cruise lines can blame "Mother nature" for weather problems and not be held responsible for anything such as changing ports or cancelling cruises, but won't accept that for a valid reason from a paying customer.

[champagne123]

How about I might not even believe there is ANY truth to what he posted.....and I feel this because:

 

IF: (a) the ship left without 1000 passengers on it there would have been plenty of threads about it

(b) the title itself : "FAA grounded all flights to Florida....." that surely would have made the news.

© the options that Royal gave them, to all of us that are frequent enough cruisers seem rather unlikely

 

So the OP stoked a lot of feathers here and even has a cruiser on a sailing next week worried.....and probably over a fabricated story -- JMO.

 

Thank goodness....I thought I was alone.

[mac_tlc]

I checked Southwest flights from Providence to Florida for yesterday. There was a window where two flights to Ft. Lauderdale were cancelled and two to Orlando. This is rare for Southwest from Providence. However, all the flights to Tampa and Ft. Meyers are listed as having operated on time. So I am a bit confused on this issue.

 

We flew from Orlando to Hartford last night on SW. The afternoon flight to Hartford was cancelled, as was the evening flight from Hartford to Orlando. The departure board at MCO yesterday afternoon had a LOT of cancelled and delayed SW flights. The terminal was crazy ( but that is usual). There were more delays for the late flights, my guess is that is a cascading problem form the afternoon.

 

BTW, The weather in Orlando from 10AM - 3PM was bad, heavy rain, some lightning & thunder.

 

 

mac_tlc

[Paulette3028]

Thank goodness....I thought I was alone.

 

Well, we at least have each other as company on this 'thought pattern'.

[xxHadleyxx]

Just remember the coverage of your medical insurance is VERY limited outside the US. The cruise insurance works as a supplemental policy and will cover almost everything (Including medical evacuations from island to home) that your regular policy wouldn't cover.

 

That absolutely depends on your policy and people need to check their own policies to determine if they do or do not have coverage abroad and coverage for medical evacuation from a ship. When we lived in the US I checked that each year, and every time (through three different employers) it WAS covered.

 

We live in Germany now, where our standard insurance covers us within the EU and we pay about 80€ per year for an additional policy which covers our family of four for all medical (including evacuation by helicopter if needed) outside of that on all trips we take so long as no one trip is longer than 6 weeks.

 

We spend 6-8 weeks on holiday in a given year, plus a few long weekends. For us, like the PP being given so much flack--we are currently (still young and healthy, etc) money ahead to NOT buy insurance for trip cancellation/disruption/etc (since we have medical covered) and know we are risking losing our money if we miss a ship, or having to pay for our own flights home if we have to leave a ship for some reason mid cruise, etc.

 

We figure over the past 20 years, at $100 per trip for insurance (and with four it seems to usually be more than that) we have "saved" at least $12000 (figuring 6 trips per year--ie on the low end)--and since no one trip we take is ever even close to that cost, we are doing the right thing for us. I think for many people insurance makes more sense--but I admit that I get annoyed when people act like it is a MUST for everyone.

Edited April 3, 2016 by NHDisneylover

[Arzeena]

Let's get this out there first, I did not take the cruise insurance, I have been on 7 cruises and never needed, not even close. Now after saying that my party of 7 was scheduled to fly out of Nashville yesterday to Ft Lauderdale to board the oasis of seas with a 4:30pm departure. At approximately 9am the FAA grounded all flights entering Florida airspace due to severe weather. After waiting 4 hours to take off it was clear we were going to miss cruise. I called RCI they said I could meet the ship but two passengers did not have valid passports, they then said we could transfer and book on the allure the next day but not enough rooms. I then stated we would simply rebook on the same ship with same itinerary on June 18th and it began, all departments, emergency, post cruise, and passenger relations said sorry we will be keeping your $11,000 and you will get nothing not even a free pina colada, have a nice day. There were over 1000 passengers that missed this boat yesterday. Someone please give me some recourse. Taking all suggestions. Thanks

 

Very sorry this happened.

Check your credit card (the one you paid with) terms. Many credit cards have insurance for such purpose built in, especially visa signature cards. That is the only thing that comes to mind.

[xxHadleyxx]

How about I might not even believe there is ANY truth to what he posted.....and I feel this because:

 

IF: (a) the ship left without 1000 passengers on it there would have been plenty of threads about it

(b) the title itself : "FAA grounded all flights to Florida....." that surely would have made the news.

© the options that Royal gave them, to all of us that are frequent enough cruisers seem rather unlikely

 

So the OP stoked a lot of feathers here and even has a cruiser on a sailing next week worried.....and probably over a fabricated story -- JMO.

 

I agree things do not add up--at the very least there is a lot of exaggerating and missing information going on here.

[BeagleOne]

You can board a plane leaving the US without a passport. Just need other accepted id. You can't come back by plane without one.

 

Not true. The airlines face heavy fines if someone boards without a passport for a flight out of the U.S., and has to transport the person back to the U.S. at the airline's expense.

[BND]

I love and believe everybody on CC and know they would never lie especially 1 post wonders but , A) how does the OP know 1000 people missed the ship and B) This is the first I've heard of 1000 people missing a cruise . Is it different if , let's say , 100 people missed this cruise ? I'd say yes .

 

Oh yeah , sorry you missed your cruise OP

 

We were on Explorer 5 days after Superstorm Sandy hit NJ and we only had 400 miss due to the storm. I've never heard of 1000 people missing any cruise. I agree, 100 is more likely/reasonable.

 

We've been on 18 cruises and have bought insurance for every one of them. It's amazing how many people cut corners and pinch pennies by avoiding buying it and then want to be reimbursed when something does happen. Insurance is something you should have and hope you never use.

Edited April 3, 2016 by BND

[Melozone]

I just read on FlightAware that 14 flights were cancelled yesterday to Ft Lauderdale. A total of 274 flights cancelled, into, out of and in the U.S.

[nelblu]

We flew out of FFl yesterday after completing our Oasis cruise. Most of the flights on Delta were delayed up to 2 hours due to weather problems in the NYC metro area. Was scheduled to fly at 1:20 pm, but took off at 3:05 pm.

Made great time with the wind to our backs and landed at LaGuardia at 5:40.

A bit rocky, but acceptable overall. What a sight flying over the NYC skyline.

 

Thank God we did not fly today, as winds are whipping up to 50mph.

[lakelorain]

Not true on Delta, nor any other airline I know of. You don't need one for a US possession, San Juan or St. Thomas but otherwise

 

 

You are correct. I assumed this cruise stopped in St. Thomas so a passport would not be needed.

[msmayor]

Can someone currently on the ship weigh in on this point because I highly doubt the ship would leave on time with this many passengers missing.

 

It wouldn't surprise me at all if the ship sailed.

 

How long should they have waited? An hour? Three? Six? If the ship waited, then the port employees would have to be there. The porters, the longshoreman...all the support staff necessary to ultimately 'disconnect' from the pier and move out.

 

Not to mention that it is a Dept of Homeland Security requirement that manifests be turned in at least 90 minutes before the ship sails. Yet another delay once those passengers arrived.

 

If the delay is too long, will that mean a missed port?

 

Should the few thousand already on board have THEIR vacation altered to accommodate others?