EZ Air Just Didn't Work

[truckmaker]

This note was sent to President Jan Swartz Monday and this morning we got a call from Princess basically saying the same as the Customer Service team onboard the Crown Princess. They did apologize nicely but other than that they had done everything legally required and there was nothing else. So do not feel that since you booked EZ Air with Princess they will get you to the ship this, sadly, is no longer the case as our daughter and several other parties discovered on February 25.

 

On February 15, 2019 my wife and I sailed on Crown Princess out of Fort Lauderdale. Our family of 5 were to join us on February 25 for another 10 days for our first family holiday together in a number of years.  

On that day our daughter and her partner were left waving to us on the dock as we sailed away! Their air travel and transfers were booked through Princess.  They arrived at the Fort Lauderdale airport at approximately 15:25, almost one hour before we sailed. The airport is 3 miles from the pier where the Crown Princess was docked. They were met by Princess Personnel who told them they had missed the boat and the gangplank was closed and that there were no more shuttles to the port. This was also the message on the Princess phone line. At that point in time we were in contact with our daughter by text message and I actually witnessed people still boarding and being scanned for their cruise cards using the gangplank. I explained what was happening to the Customer Service Agent onboard the ship who, even though I was very upset at the moment, I believe, that he said as long as they get here they can board. That was not allowed to happen.     

On February 27 we spoke to the Customer Service Manager, in his office on the ship. His explanation was that Customs and Border Services require a list of passengers one half hour before the ship sails. He stated that lately they do not allow any other passenger names to be added even if the ship requests. This did not answer the question of why Princess personnel submitted the list so early and did not delay when they knew they had several guests already at the airport. This is what we would expect from Princess and have witnessed it happen on more than one occasion.  We have a long history with Princess Cruises and have seen them go the extra mile many times. The published log of this cruise states that “At 16:00 with all crew and passengers onboard … we were ready to sail”. This is not accurate.  Princess knew at the time that our daughter and a group of other passengers were left at the airport and were told to make their own way to St Thomas.  In fact the ship did not depart until 16:18. There was not even an APOLOGY from the Customer Service Manager!      

They left our daughter stranded and only provided help booking flights to catch up three days later in St Thomas. On short notice they had to find land transport, hotel accommodations, etc. all at their own expense. 

Note that our daughter was actually at the pier before we moved away. They waved!

All the other Princess staff on the Crown Princess were absolutely wonderful. We enjoyed our room steward for Mini-suite Dolphin 310 and our waiter and assistant waiter at table 42 in the Botticelli dining room. They worked hard and were extremely efficient and considerate. This is what we have grown accustomed to on cruises with Princess.     

We have done nearly 35 cruises since 1992 on the old Dawn Princess and are saddened by the fact that this may be our last one, even though we have another one already booked for April 2020       

We are deeply disappointed with the Customer Service Manager in this case and feel that refunding “unused” onboard days, a bottle of wine, and some strawberries in the cabin when our daughter’s party finally boarded is an insult as far as trying to make up for the heartbreak caused by the way our family was treated.  The protocols being followed in this case have resulted in our deep disappointment and should be reconsidered so that others don’t go through the same heartbreak and disappointment. In addition, some form of formal apology seems to us to be a very reasonable request even at this date.

 

Thank you and good luck with Princess. We have a 35 day trip currently booked and are seriously questioning whether we want to go.

 

[Coral]

I am going to sound rude here but why didn't they fly in the day before? I have only flown in the day of the cruise my first cruise and I knew better from then on (late 90's). I would never have scheduled a flight that arrived so late.

 

I would think with all of your travels, you would have advised them to fly in earlier or the day before. I sometimes fly in 2 days early as I have had multiple issues with late flights.

 

I don't put the blame with Princess. If you think any other line would be better, I don't think they would be.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Coral

[oskidunker]

I thought they would pay to get you to the next port and pay for hotels. Not true, I guess. NEVER fly in the same day the cruise leaves.You are leaaving too much to an overburdened, lying Airline who promises on time but rarely delivers. Plus you have weather etc.

[wallyj]

Would you please clarify saying Princess only provided help booking flights to St. Thomas the next port of call where your Daughter could embark the missed departure port of FLL. A couple years ago I missed boarding the Caribbean Princess on a Transatlantic sailing out of FLL because my flight from LAX to FLL thru ATL was cancelled due to ATL being closed down due to weather, I was not informed of the cancellation until I arrived at the airport about 10pm. What I did learn was EZAir only provides protection to get you to the next available embarkation port that is allowed which was Bermuda. EZAir gave me the option of flying the next morning to Bermuda or waiting 2 days to fly me to Bermuda to save me hotel costs in Bermuda as I did not purchased travel insurance. I opted to fly early and wait for the ship to arrive, as I was told if I opted to try and fly day of arrival to Bermuda and missed the ship again I would be on my own. Princess did refund my 3 missed days, and paid for the air to get me to Bermuda. I believe this is all the EZAir contract allows for so unless EZAir did not pay for the flights to St.Thomas, I believe Princess did all they were required. This is the reason travel insurance is recommend, EZAir only covers air cost to catch up with the ship nothing else.

[Colo Cruiser]

I feel your pain.

 

IMO........

I would agree about flying in the day before.

We have taken the chance many times and have been lucky.

It only takes one delay to mess everything up.

I really don't think EZ Air should allow the booking of any flights the day of the cruise that arrive after noon.

I especially would not fly in the same day if was not a non stop. 

[Murphey]

As for flying in the day before, well, if you are retired that may work for you.  For many people each day off is precious and flying in, the day of cruise is just what they have to do.   I'd like to know why EZ air let them book a flight so close to sailaway.   We use EZ air a lot and it always makes sure we have plenty of leeway.  So, was the plane late?  If so, this is what travel insurance is for.  

[Coral]

Just now, Murphey said:

As for flying in the day before, well, if you are retired that may work for you.  For many people each day off is precious and flying in, the day of cruise is just what they have to do.   I'd like to know why EZ air let them book a flight so close to sailaway.   We use EZ air a lot and it always makes sure we have plenty of leeway.  So, was the plane late?  If so, this is what travel insurance is for.  

I am still working also and I treasure my vacation days. I still fly in a day or two before (depending on the distance). I don't have the luxury of a direct flight and have missed multiple flights. I will spare a vacation day than take the chances of missing a vacation. We all make priorities. Mine is to get to the ship on time.

[Jersey42]

1 hour ago, truckmaker said:

They left our daughter stranded and only provided help booking flights to catch up three days later in St Thomas. On short notice they had to find land transport, hotel accommodations, etc. all at their own expense. 

I definitely feel your pain for what happened.  I know some have suggested that they should have arrived the day before, but that is not always feasible.  If Princess let them book the flight thru EZ air, I am sure the flight was scheduled to arrive much earlier than it did.  As long as Princess offered them no cost air from FLL to St. Thomas, they did fulfill their obligation.  Yes, we have been on multiple cruises where the ship departed late to accommodate late arriving passengers. I have no idea when they do this and when they don't.  Unfortunately you cannot expect them to do it.  If you read the Air Transportation: Late Arrival Protection information, Princess is only obligated to provide flights to the next appropriate port. 

 

It does pay to read the fine print when purchasing any type of insurance (yes - I consider this EZ Air purchase to have an insurance component).  The headlines say "Ensures you'll get to your cruise if flights are delayed or cancelled, and we'll get you home if for any reason the cruise or Princess transfer cause you to miss your return flight."  But, if you read the details (below), they never say they will pay any of the associated costs except airfare.  If your daughter had purchased travel insurance, it would have covered at least some of the additional costs.

 

I would be curious to see if Princess offers them anything as a goodwill gesture.

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Transportation: Late Arrival Protection

Passengers who book air travel through Princess Cruises will be automatically enrolled in the Princess late arrival protection program. If guests miss or will miss their original port of embarkation due to airline delay or an airline service disruption, such as flight cancelation or flight re-routes, Princess will work with the airlines to find a reasonable alternative to provide flights to the next appropriate* port at no additional air cost to the guest.

 

Factors taken into account in determining the appropriateness of a port of call include, but are not limited to:

• visas and other legal documentation that may be required
• application of the Passenger Services Act to the new itinerary
• airport/port infrastructure
• comparability of cost, flight connections, and travel time required (note, any refund due on the unused air ticket must be used to offset the cost of the new air ticket) 
• where in the original itinerary this port is located

[4cats4me]

Always give yourself a cushion and fly in a day or two before  if coming from a really long distance, and especially during the wintertime,  when delays are more likely to happen.   So sorry this happened to them, but your story illustrates why it is important to   not cut it so close. 

We fell into this trap as new cruisers and had not one, but two delays, making it to our ship with around 1.5 hours to spare. We were clueless. 

Edited March 12, 2019 by 4cats4me

[partybarbie]

I'm sorry the ship didn't wait for your family.  I guess it pays to read the contract. I'm thinking that is why they were denied boarding as they arrived after the two hour requirement. 

 

This is from Section 2. of the Passenger Contract: 

• (iv) Arrive at least two hours before the scheduled or amended sailing time and have with You all required documentation. Attach a completed Carrier luggage tag to each piece of baggage.

[spyro1952]

Sorry but not PCL fault.  Sounds like flights  were booked with that arrival time and it does take time to get off the plane and get the luggage.  If the boat leaves at 4 pm hooking up with the rep at the airport isn’t going to cut it.

[Colo Cruiser]

6 minutes ago, spyro1952 said:

Sorry but not PCL fault.  Sounds like flights  were booked with that arrival time and it does take time to get off the plane and get the luggage.  If the boat leaves at 4 pm hooking up with the rep at the airport isn’t going to cut it.

Then they should not be a choice through EZ Air.

[CaribbeanIsland]

It doesn't sound like the OP is taking any responsibility in this and is placing all the blame on Princess. They need to take responsibility! This year half of my flights have had delayed. Fly in the day before. Even working people have to do this or risk having your vacation interrupted.

 

Flights are not reliable. Even in the summer there are storms that affect flights. There can be security breaches that affect airports.

[truckmaker]

Just to be clear - flying in a day early, while discussed and recommended repeatedly, was not an option for our daughter. In addition, these were Princess EZ Air flights booked through Princess. Also, they were actually at the pier before departure. Finally, Princess knew they were there at the time since I was at the desk and communicating with the travellers.

 

My reason for posting was to make others aware that EZ Air is not what I, and many others, thought it was. 

[Kamloops50]

This old news , EzAir will get you to the next port or refund you the cruise depending on what works better. In some cases if your flown to the next port US law is broken.

 

[Casey12]

54 minutes ago, truckmaker said:

Just to be clear - flying in a day early, while discussed and recommended repeatedly, was not an option for our daughter. In addition, these were Princess EZ Air flights booked through Princess.

Maybe your daughter will listen to the recommendations next time. If I can't fly in a day before -- I don't go on the cruise. I have never missed a cruise either. Other cruise lines will do the same thing.

[suekel]

I'm sorry this happened.  My first cruise we flew in the day of and they held the ship.  There were maybe 20 of us on a flight and as soon as we were on they closed the gangway.  Even missed muster.  On my cruise in January, they held the ship for 2 hours due to weather and people having trouble getting into SFO.  I now always fly in at least a day early.  

[4cats4me]

Moral of the story:  If one wants to make the ship on time, one must arrive on time, regardless of the method used for getting to the ship.  

 

Personally, if I couldn’t fly in ahead for a cruise, I wouldn’t go until I amassed enough vacation days to give myself that very important cushion.  

[caribill]

9 hours ago, truckmaker said:

They arrived at the Fort Lauderdale airport at approximately 15:25, almost one hour before we sailed.

Was the 15:25 arrival the scheduled arrival time or was the flight delayed or a later flight than was originally booked?

 

If that was the scheduled time, Princess should never have had flight as an option as that is significantly later than the time Princess says arriving flights should be scheduled.

 

The airport is 3 miles from the pier where the Crown Princess was docked. They were met by Princess Personnel who told them they had missed the boat and the gangplank was closed and that there were no more shuttles to the port. This was also the message on the Princess phone line. At that point in time we were in contact with our daughter by text message and I actually witnessed people still boarding and being scanned for their cruise cards using the gangplank. I explained what was happening to the Customer Service Agent onboard the ship who, even though I was very upset at the moment, I believe, that he said as long as they get here they can board. That was not allowed to happen.     

 

On February 27 we spoke to the Customer Service Manager, in his office on the ship. His explanation was that Customs and Border Services require a list of passengers one half hour before the ship sails. He stated that lately they do not allow any other passenger names to be added even if the ship requests. This did not answer the question of why Princess personnel submitted the list so early and did not delay when they knew they had several guests already at the airport. 

 

It is a Homeland Security requirement that the list be submitted when it was. But that is why passengers complete check-in online so the list will be complete even if the passengers have not made it to the pier yet.

 

Since there were other passengers besides your relatives, I am surprised that Princess did not hold the ship open for boarding until they arrived.I have been on Princess cruises when the ship was held for up to 7 hours after scheduled departure because bad weather had caused a number of flights to be late.

 

 

 

See my comments in red above.

 

Although flying in a day or more earlier almost always means being at the port for embarkation day, it is not always practical, possible, or affordable to do so. Princess realizes this and that is why EZAir allows flights to be purchased to arrive on embarkation day. Based on the number of Princess buses from the airport to the pier, many (most??) do arrive on embarkation day.

 

To me the basic question is was the originally purchased flight scheduled to arrive less than an hour before sailing? Or did the airline change flight times and Princess did not realize this had happened? Or was the flight delayed for some reason to arrive that late?

 

You have a right to be upset.

[PescadoAmarillo]

Princess did not have to hold the ship for late arriving passengers. That they sometimes do creates an expectation but, in reality, we have no idea how many passengers actually miss cruises because of flight delays (though sometimes, rarely, we’ve seen them arrive in the first port). 

 

Princess was responsible for booking flights to the first port when allowed by law, and this they did. I was not aware that they were not responsible for travel arrangements beyond that, only because in our missed EZ flight, we were disembarking the ship in China and a hotel and transfers were provided (eventually). I know that travel insurance would cover those costs, and hope the OP had purchased it. In today’s smartphone world, to arrange a hotel, especially in Florida, is easily done. Heck, I would have requested to be flown to the first port ASAP and enjoyed a couple of days there.

 

While Customer Services may have been uncooperative, I’m not certain there was much they could have done. I think the OP was given bad information by the first, lower level “agent” who told them that if their daughter arrived, she’d be allowed to board. This type of disinformation is given all the time (I’m not certain if it’s due to lack of training or an attempt to reduce conflict in the moment). Manifests are required to be submitted, and the cruise line can’t include the names of people not yet on the ship. Perhaps the ship could have waited, but it didn’t have a responsibility to do so. 

 

However, I think some people here are being unbelievably harsh in their judgment of the OP. The OP booked EZ Air.  They would not have been able to book a flight that didn’t arrive within an acceptable timeframe. It is simply not a requirement to fly in a day early for a cruise, and, in many cases, probably most cases, it’s just not possible. EZ Air is advertised as providing a level of insurance, with its next port guarantee, and would be my first choice if I had to fly in the same day the ship sailed. The OP did everything right.  To claim they were trying to shirk responsibility is ludicrous (frankly, that suggestion pi$$ed me off on the OP’s behalf).

 

The OP is understandably upset.  An objective review shows that EZ Air worked as it was supposed to. Perhaps the situation on the ship could have been better handled.  It’s unfortunate when anyone has vacations plans disrupted in this way, and I’m sorry the OP and his family went through it. 

 

Two other points...

The departure time cited in the log of the cruise is meaningless. I’m not sure these get changed much from one cruise to the next. 

 

I hope your daughter got her transfer cost refunded.  

[Casey12]

4 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

The OP is understandably upset.  An objective review shows that EZ Air worked as it was supposed to. Perhaps the situation on the ship could have been better handled.  It’s unfortunate when anyone has vacations plans disrupted in this way, and I’m sorry the OP and his family went through it. 

 

Two other points...

The departure time cited in the log of the cruise is meaningless. I’m not sure these get changed much from one cruise to the next. 

 

I hope your daughter got her transfer cost refunded.  

So EZ Air worked how it was supposed to and the OP is still upset. I am just amazed at how well traveled the OP is and is surprised at this. I would be curious if the OP's family had insurance. I don't think Princess did anything wrong.

[CaribbeanIsland]

5 hours ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Princess did not have to hold the ship for late arriving passengers. That they sometimes do creates an expectation but, in reality, we have no idea how many passengers actually miss cruises because of flight delays (though sometimes, rarely, we’ve seen them arrive in the first port). 

 

Princess was responsible for booking flights to the first port when allowed by law, and this they did. I was not aware that they were not responsible for travel arrangements beyond that, only because in our missed EZ flight, we were disembarking the ship in China and a hotel and transfers were provided (eventually). I know that travel insurance would cover those costs, and hope the OP had purchased it. In today’s smartphone world, to arrange a hotel, especially in Florida, is easily done. Heck, I would have requested to be flown to the first port ASAP and enjoyed a couple of days there.

 

Princess followed their contract. The OP wanted them to make an exception. They were wrong to assume this.

[epixx]

16 hours ago, truckmaker said:

So do not feel that since you booked EZ Air with Princess they will get you to the ship 

 

They left our daughter stranded and only provided help booking flights to catch up three days later in St Thomas.

 

 

Your title, "EZ Air Just Didn't Work " seems to contradict the facts you presented above.  Didn't EZ Air work?  Didn't EZ Air get your daughter to the ship without charging extra for the flight to St. Thomas?  Had she booked flights directly with the airline, would the airline have  been under  obligation to fly her to St. Thomas at no additional cost?  No; if she had booked directly with the airline, they would have fulfilled their obligation by flying her to Fort Lauderdale.

Edited March 13, 2019 by epixx
word error

[Essiesmom]

Were those passengers boarding while you watched carrying luggage?  If not, it's probably that they were transit passengers, doing the same B2B that you were.  EM

[happy cruzer]

Your letter details the emotional impacts yet omits some of the facts.  Adding some of the facts might get you more compensation.

 

When was the original flight scheduled to arrive?  Why was it so close to departure?  Did anyone notify Princess of the late arrival before 15:25?  Were they actually off the plane with their luggage and talking to Princess personnel at 15:25?

 

If Princess was notified early in the day that your family was going to arrive late, then was anything done to accommodate a later boarding?

 

Did the late arrivals have travel insurance?  If your schedule is such that you must arrive the day of the cruise and don't want to incur cost then travel insurance is needed.

 

Somehow it seems like the folks arriving late just assumed that EZair would work one way when in fact it works they way it did by getting to the next port.  Also note that many times, the late arrival is caused by something under the airline's responsibility like mechanical issues and the airline eats the costs involved and calls some of the shots on the rerouting.

 

We do appreciate the reminder of what EZAir covers but of course your example leads to lots of discussion.

 

Thank you.