What happens with no shows

[canadaman111]

A bit of background first. We are booked on the magic next January. We have 2 rooms booked with 3 people in each room. They are connecting rooms. My ex is now saying she won't consent to let me 2 teenage boys go. So if they can't go it puts us down to 4 people going. We booked with me and the 2 boys listed in one room and my wife and our 2 daughters in the other room. If the 2 boys booked with me can't go and we call and cancel them we would have to move one of the daughters to my room and have 2 per room. Would there be any problem keeping the 2 connecting rooms we have with just 2 in the room even though they can hold 3? Other option would be to just pay fully for 6 and only take 4. This way if their mother changed her mind they could still go. I assume Carnival doesn't care that they don't come if we pay for them. A few less mouths to feed. Do you have to inform Carnival ahead of time that they will not be coming? Do you inform them when you do online check in? Or do you inform them the day you board? One more question. We prepaid gratuities when we booked. Would those get refunded? What about the port taxes?

[bingomamma19]

3 minutes ago, canadaman111 said:

A bit of background first. We are booked on the magic next January. We have 2 rooms booked with 3 people in each room. They are connecting rooms. My ex is now saying she won't consent to let me 2 teenage boys go. So if they can't go it puts us down to 4 people going. We booked with me and the 2 boys listed in one room and my wife and our 2 daughters in the other room. If the 2 boys booked with me can't go and we call and cancel them we would have to move one of the daughters to my room and have 2 per room. Would there be any problem keeping the 2 connecting rooms we have with just 2 in the room even though they can hold 3? Other option would be to just pay fully for 6 and only take 4. This way if their mother changed her mind they could still go. I assume Carnival doesn't care that they don't come if we pay for them. A few less mouths to feed. Do you have to inform Carnival ahead of time that they will not be coming? Do you inform them when you do online check in? Or do you inform them the day you board? One more question. We prepaid gratuities when we booked. Would those get refunded? What about the port taxes?

First off...what is your custody arrangement?   How old are the boys?  Are you allowed to take the kids on vacation--why does she get to say no?     You may be able to go to court and get approval...you have the time before the cruise.

 

I would hold the reservations for now and try to work it out.  

 

[canadaman111]

The boys will be 18 and 17 when we cruise. She won't be able to stop the 18 year old. The boys live with me and the court settlement says she has to allow travel but that she has to sign a consent for each time they travel. I am sure I can win in court but it is going to cost a lot of money. I am hoping she will just be reasonable

[mdsgu]

To answer your questions, if you pay for 6 and only 4 show up, that's fine.  You won't get your cruise fare back on the no-shows, but you will get back the port fees and gratuities.

[Aplmac]

38 minutes ago, canadaman111 said:

The boys will be 18 and 17 when we cruise.

She won't be able to stop the 18 year old. I am hoping she will just be reasonable

.

I'd set the boys on her, to do a little persuasion!

IF she's a normal mother -lol- her darling boys will hold her heart-strings.

 

Let her boys make it plain to her, that THEY will be the ones to suffer

-not you- and they just might hold that against her, all the rest of her life...

perhaps not even speak to her ever again...

 

GUILT -one of the finest control mechanisms (other than Fear) known to Man

Just ask the churches.

[Cafedumonde]

1 hour ago, mdsgu said:

To answer your questions, if you pay for 6 and only 4 show up, that's fine.  You won't get your cruise fare back on the no-shows, but you will get back the port fees and gratuities.

How does this work?  Do they credit it to your onboard account during the cruise? Or back to original payment?  Do you have to request it or is it automatic?  If it does get credited to your onboard account,  is it refundable?

[Butterbean1000]

Why not call CARNIVAL and ask these questions.  Not that you are getting bad information here, but why chance confusion?

[Essiesmom]

If she won't let the younger one go, where is he going to be?  With grandparents?  Or back with her?  Does she think that if she doesn't consent, none of you can go?  I would just tell her that the older one will be going, she can't stop him, and she will have to explain to the younger one why he cannot go.  EM

Edited March 20, 2019 by Essiesmom

[cb at sea]

The cruise line doesn't care if ANY of you show up, once they have your money.  Any refund of tax/port fees will be as an OBC to your account.  It is refundable, if you find you don't use it on the ship (because you prepaid EVERYTHING)....then it will go to the card you used to link your shipboard account.

[mapman_2004]

59 minutes ago, Butterbean1000 said:

Why not call CARNIVAL and ask these questions.  Not that you are getting bad information here, but why chance confusion?

 

sometimes it's better to find out information elsewhere before calling, as they may force changes that you wish didn't happen.  I wouldn't trust a company that has greedy shareholders to do right by the customer fully.

[cruizergal70]

6 hours ago, Aplmac said:

.

GUILT -one of the finest control mechanisms (other than Fear) known to Man

Just ask the churches.

 Churches don't use guilt. People create the guilt in their own minds. It's on them.

[gtouch]

I am sorry that you and especially the kids are having to deal with that. Like a previous poster stated the boys or at least the 17 year old is the one she is punishing. Hope she relents and you all have a great time.

[RWolver672]

19 hours ago, canadaman111 said:

The boys will be 18 and 17 when we cruise. She won't be able to stop the 18 year old. The boys live with me and the court settlement says she has to allow travel but that she has to sign a consent for each time they travel. I am sure I can win in court but it is going to cost a lot of money. I am hoping she will just be reasonable

 

I would show her the court settlement and remind her that she has to allow travel.

[Shaded Lady]

Do the boys have the same last name as you? Is their passport in that name? Then you might not even have to worry about showing a letter- they would probably let them board with you without question, without a letter from her. The only concern might be if your ex-wife were to report this as a custodial issue- it might impact your departure- or your return. It probably all depends on how spiteful your ex is going to be.

 

As others have said, if you tell her that you're taking your older son, and she has to explain to your younger son why he's not able to go, she might relent. If she does at any point agree, get the letter ASAP and hold it til the cruise. Don't wait til just before you cruise, in case she changes her mind.

 

I'm far too used to the issues of dealing with a mean-spirited ex-wife, from the viewpoint of my DH's lovely former wife! She would do anything to spite us, even if she didn't have the right and lost in the end! and in her case, she didn't care that my step-daughter paid the price- as long as she perceived that she was 'winning' and my husband was 'losing'.

Edited March 21, 2019 by Shaded Lady

[Elaine5715]

Practical answer is yes, if you cancel prior to boarding, you can be switched from those staterooms to staterooms for 2 people.  Port fees and grats are refunded to payment method automatically for "no shows".  

[Organized Chaos]

OP, I'd definitely work harder towards getting your boys to go (whatever that entails) than deciding on a way to cancel or no-show them, which should be your last resort. Don't wait for her to come to her senses, work towards changing her mind. I don't know if that necessarily means using guilt or just trying to reason with her, but whatever the case, I think you'll feel better taking them with you. Or at the very least, knowing you did everything you could.

 

10 hours ago, RWolver672 said:

 

I would show her the court settlement and remind her that she has to allow travel.

 

He said she has to consent to travel, so when he said "she has to allow travel," I thought he meant she has to approve travel.

 

7 minutes ago, Shaded Lady said:

Do the boys have the same last name as you? Is their passport in that name? Then you might not even have to worry about showing a letter- they would probably let them board with you without question, without a letter from her. The only concern might be if your ex-wife were to report this as a custodial issue- it might impact your departure- or your return. It probably all depends on how spiteful your ex is going to be.

 

Carnival and CBP might allow it without the letter, but if he goes behind her back and takes them anyway, she's almost certain to raise a stink over it. Maybe even try to take legal action, regardless of whether she thinks she's right or not. I think that's what the OP is trying to avoid...legal hassle.

[stobe1]

On 3/20/2019 at 9:05 AM, mapman_2004 said:

 

sometimes it's better to find out information elsewhere before calling, as they may force changes that you wish didn't happen.  I wouldn't trust a company that has greedy shareholders to do right by the customer fully.

 

As a Carnival shareholder, I take exception to that.  Plus, every pubicly held company has shareholders. 

 

At the end of the day, companies exist to make money. Period. Carnival's way of making money is providing cruise vacations. Ford's way of making money is by making automobiles. McDonald's way of making money is by providing fast food.

[Shaded Lady]

5 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

Carnival and CBP might allow it without the letter, but if he goes behind her back and takes them anyway, she's almost certain to raise a stink over it. Maybe even try to take legal action, regardless of whether she thinks she's right or not. I think that's what the OP is trying to avoid...legal hassle.

I agree- and stated that in my post- he COULD probably get them on and off the ship without an issue from CBP or Carnival, but his ex-wife could be a completely different story!

[emoorehead]

16 hours ago, RWolver672 said:

 

I would show her the court settlement and remind her that she has to allow travel.

 

6 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

He said she has to consent to travel, so when he said "she has to allow travel," I thought he meant she has to approve travel.

This was how I understood it. That the mother has to consent to the travel not that she is forced to allow it. I have a similar court order with my son's father. We have to have each other's consent to take our son any further than the state lines.

 

Canadaman111, I am sorry that you are dealing with this frustrating situation. I understand all too well having a vindictive ex. As others have said, your oldest son will be 18 so she won't be able to stop him. But you have some time to get it worked out. I really hope that you can get things worked out and enjoy your vacation!

 

6 hours ago, Shaded Lady said:

she didn't care that my step-daughter paid the price- as long as she perceived that she was 'winning' and my husband was 'losing'

This is exactly how my ex-husband is. No matter that it hurts my son as long as he wins. And 99 times out of 100 I will give in to stop my son from suffering. And my son thinks the sun shines out of his dad's @$$. Go figure.

[deadmoney]

What is her reasoning for not allowing them to go?

[ashleycrew]

I have taken my kids on a couple of cruises without my wife. I had the signed letter but they never asked for it. If it were me I would just go, if they happen to ask for the consent letter oh well perhaps have one with a strange signature on it (believe me I doubt they ask). 

[Organized Chaos]

3 hours ago, ashleycrew said:

I have taken my kids on a couple of cruises without my wife. I had the signed letter but they never asked for it. If it were me I would just go, if they happen to ask for the consent letter oh well perhaps have one with a strange signature on it (believe me I doubt they ask). 

 

Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but it's not just a matter of traveling without both parents (who are still together). In the OP's case, it's a custody issue. Ex has to consent to travel, but she won't. I don't think he's worried about getting passed Carnival or CBP. If he goes without her consent, it could mean an expensive legal hassle that he's trying to avoid.

[jsglow]

Having read this terrible thread I'll just say how sorry I feel for both the OP as well as others caught up in BS like this.  Life's to damn short.

[bakersdozen12]

On 3/20/2019 at 4:37 PM, cruizergal70 said:

 Churches don't use guilt. People create the guilt in their own minds. It's on them.

 

You, clearly, were not raised by Catholic parents. Lol. 😊

[canadaman111]

On 3/21/2019 at 3:37 PM, Elaine5715 said:

Practical answer is yes, if you cancel prior to boarding, you can be switched from those staterooms to staterooms for 2 people.  Port fees and grats are refunded to payment method automatically for "no shows".  

What if I pay for them. I don't expect my money back. If they can't go can I pay the full price, call Carnival and say 2 of us won't be coming?  If I did that they wouldn't change our room assignment would they?  It matters because first we have 2 connecting rooms, and 2 we are booked next to another family we are going with