NCL Pearl Cancelled 07/05/19

[tobyt]

Stuff happens...that sadly is the way travel is...snowstorms, mechanical delays, it happens...my worst was being in London in 2005 during terror attacks...pretty safe to say that it was an experience but scary...my elderly mother and I walking through the streets of the city with the transportation system  shut down and workers streaming out..then leaving several days later a bomb threat called in on our plane and being deplaned as “dirty” back into Heathrow...yup stuff happens it isn’t all smooth sailing. I wish everyone the very best and hope they have safe travels. It will make a good cocktail story some day!

[sverigecruiser]

17 hours ago, ed01106 said:

I can transfer from savings to checking over the internet and can use my debit card as a credit card.

 

Some can but not everyone.

 

I can not transfer between my accounts when I'm abroad.

 

 

Edited July 7, 2019 by sverigecruiser

[fstuff1]

On 7/2/2019 at 1:41 PM, shadow1972 said:

I just received a robocall, and have confirmed this with my NCL cruise consultant that the 13 day Greek Isles & Italy from Rome has been cancelled due to unforeseen mechanical problems.  Way to give us a few days notice NCL.

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2019/07/05/thousands-vacations-canceled-after-mechanical-failure-norwegian-cruise-line-ship/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.6e73e13fff32

 

wonder what these mechanical problems are? (Article doesnt say)

 

[boxall]

Old news.  

[terrydtx]

34 minutes ago, fstuff1 said:

wonder what these mechanical problems are? (Article doesnt say)

The problems was with the propulsion system and the ship had to be dry docked for the necessary repairs.

 

We have friends who were on the cruise that got cancelled on the 5th, They arrived in Rome three days early on the day they were notified that their cruise was cancelled and now they are stranded for two weeks before their return flights. From what I see on their FB postings, other than a refund for the cruise cost, NCL has done nothing more to cover their out of pocket expenses and they will never use NCL again. They also bought cruise interruption insurance from NCL and I guess from what they have said on FB, it is pretty much worthless too. I see a lot of law suits coming NCL's way from this.

[NLH Arizona]

4 hours ago, terrydtx said:

The problems was with the propulsion system and the ship had to be dry docked for the necessary repairs.

 

We have friends who were on the cruise that got cancelled on the 5th, They arrived in Rome three days early on the day they were notified that their cruise was cancelled and now they are stranded for two weeks before their return flights. From what I see on their FB postings, other than a refund for the cruise cost, NCL has done nothing more to cover their out of pocket expenses and they will never use NCL again. They also bought cruise interruption insurance from NCL and I guess from what they have said on FB, it is pretty much worthless too. I see a lot of law suits coming NCL's way from this.

Why don't they change their flights to fly home immediatelly.  It might be more than the $300 per person they are getting for transportation changes, but they also have the 100 percent refund coming to them, which could possibly cover the additional charges? 

 

This kind of sounds like the FB poster, who posted three days before the cruise was to start that they were stranded at the Rome airport with nowhere to go.  I wanted to ask, why they came in three days early to Rome, if they had not hotel reservations.   

 

Edited July 8, 2019 by NLH Arizona

[fstuff1]

5 hours ago, terrydtx said:

The problems was with the propulsion system and the ship had to be dry docked for the necessary repairs.

 

We have friends who were on the cruise that got cancelled on the 5th, They arrived in Rome three days early on the day they were notified that their cruise was cancelled and now they are stranded for two weeks before their return flights. From what I see on their FB postings, other than a refund for the cruise cost, NCL has done nothing more to cover their out of pocket expenses and they will never use NCL again. They also bought cruise interruption insurance from NCL and I guess from what they have said on FB, it is pretty much worthless too. I see a lot of law suits coming NCL's way from this.

 

azipod problems?

same azipod problems that happened on the Star 2 years ago, and on a Jewel class ship (forgot name) last year?

 

[old nutter]

5 hours ago, terrydtx said:

The problems was with the propulsion system and the ship had to be dry docked for the necessary repairs.

 

We have friends who were on the cruise that got cancelled on the 5th, They arrived in Rome three days early on the day they were notified that their cruise was cancelled and now they are stranded for two weeks before their return flights. From what I see on their FB postings, other than a refund for the cruise cost, NCL has done nothing more to cover their out of pocket expenses and they will never use NCL again. They also bought cruise interruption insurance from NCL and I guess from what they have said on FB, it is pretty much worthless too. I see a lot of law suits coming NCL's way from this.

 

The Pearl is not in dry dock, it is still in a standard berth in the Port of Barcelona. NCL have only said she has had propulsion problems.  There is a great deal of the propulsion system inside the hull, not just in the pods, so it is very possible the fault is there, not outside underwater. I would doubt if NCL would just park her there doing nothing, so inside work is highly probable.  Also we have not yet heard from anyone getting the deaded emails if the cruises on 18 or 28 July will also be affected,  so let's hope not.

 

I have every sympathy for anyone who has lost their holiday, but I cannot see what part of 100% refund of the cost of the cruise would not cover "out-of-pocket expenses". It could well cover a 10 day holiday round Europe for example, so that you would get a great holiday and use the flights you already booked home from Rome on the 18th.

 

I wonder who would buy holiday travel insurance from anyone that doesn't cover you if the holiday breaks down? - looks like someone might have done.  Not reading the small print when you buy something is rarely successful in legal cases, so I seriously doubt that NCL legals are too concerned at this stage.  Life is too short to hold grudges, so better to look on the bright side - you are still alive and starting your holiday in one of the most beatiful and interesting cities in the world, so better to make the most of the new adventure and roll with it.

[tikruizer]

2 hours ago, old nutter said:

 

The Pearl is not in dry dock, it is still in a standard berth in the Port of Barcelona. NCL have only said she has had propulsion problems.  There is a great deal of the propulsion system inside the hull, not just in the pods, so it is very possible the fault is there, not outside underwater. I would doubt if NCL would just park her there doing nothing, so inside work is highly probable.  Also we have not yet heard from anyone getting the deaded emails if the cruises on 18 or 28 July will also be affected,  so let's hope not.

 

I have every sympathy for anyone who has lost their holiday, but I cannot see what part of 100% refund of the cost of the cruise would not cover "out-of-pocket expenses". It could well cover a 10 day holiday round Europe for example, so that you would get a great holiday and use the flights you already booked home from Rome on the 18th.

 

I wonder who would buy holiday travel insurance from anyone that doesn't cover you if the holiday breaks down? - looks like someone might have done.  Not reading the small print when you buy something is rarely successful in legal cases, so I seriously doubt that NCL legals are too concerned at this stage.  Life is too short to hold grudges, so better to look on the bright side - you are still alive and starting your holiday in one of the most beatiful and interesting cities in the world, so better to make the most of the new adventure and roll with it.

 

So true that the Pearl never went into dry dock.  I'm on the 18th sailing and keeping fingers crossed.  As of now, and according to one of the cruise tracking sites, the Pearl is sailing and testing the engine, which is something we were told yesterday in our roll call, that it would happen late last night or today.  I hope the issue has been resolved.

[old nutter]

8 minutes ago, tikruizer said:

 

So true that the Pearl never went into dry dock.  I'm on the 18th sailing and keeping fingers crossed.  As of now, and according to one of the cruise tracking sites, the Pearl is sailing and testing the engine, which is something we were told yesterday in our roll call, that it would happen late last night or today.  I hope the issue has been resolved.

Yes, you are spot-on.  She has been out for almost an hour and is beating up the Med at over 23 knots at the moment.  Hope all goes well and she heads of to Rome for the 18th for you.

[GA Dave]

On 7/5/2019 at 7:13 PM, mobilegb12 said:

Although it is unfortunate, machinery does break down and it would appear that the compensation which NCL are offering is reasonable under the circumstances both for the current cruise and the subsequent cancelled one.

My concern however is that it appears from comments from passengers on the terminated cruise that they have effectively been abandoned in Barcelona - from an earlier post this may not be the case for air booked through NCL - but I would have thought that NCL have a responsibility to convey passengers to the correct final destination. Why could they not have chartered aircraft to fly the pax on to Fiumicino in time to connect with existing flight arrangements? $300 flight comp sounds fine until you consider that many flights are booked on a non-refundable basis and the cost of purchasing a one-way fare at short notice would be prohibitive.

Hopefully those concerned have adequate travel insurance to pick up the cost. 

See Ticket Contract, paragraph 6, section (c).

(c) Itinerary Deviation: The Guest agrees that the Carrier has the sole discretion and liberty to direct
the movements of the vessel, including the rights to: proceed without pilots and tow, and assist other
vessels in all situations; deviate from the purchased voyage or the normal course for any purpose,
including, without limitation, in the interest of Guests or of the vessel, or to save life or property; put
in at any unscheduled or unadvertised port; cancel any scheduled call at any port for any reason and at
any time before, during or after sailing of the vessel; omit, advance or delay landing at any scheduled
or advertised port; return to port of embarkation or to any port previously visited if the Carrier deems
it prudent to do so; substitute another vessel or port(s) of call without prior notice and without
incurring any liability to the Guest on account thereof for any loss, damage or delay whatsoever,
whether consequential or otherwise.

[NLH Arizona]

On 7/5/2019 at 4:13 PM, mobilegb12 said:

$300 flight comp sounds fine until you consider that many flights are booked on a non-refundable basis and the cost of purchasing a one-way fare at short notice would be prohibitive.

 

I always purchase non-refundable tickets, but it doesn't mean I can't change them to another flight with a change fee.

[thistimeplease]

1 hour ago, GA Dave said:

See Ticket Contract, paragraph 6, section (c).

(c) Itinerary Deviation: The Guest agrees that the Carrier has the sole discretion and liberty to direct
the movements of the vessel, including the rights to: proceed without pilots and tow, and assist other
vessels in all situations; deviate from the purchased voyage or the normal course for any purpose,
including, without limitation, in the interest of Guests or of the vessel, or to save life or property; put
in at any unscheduled or unadvertised port; cancel any scheduled call at any port for any reason and at
any time before, during or after sailing of the vessel; omit, advance or delay landing at any scheduled
or advertised port; return to port of embarkation or to any port previously visited if the Carrier deems
it prudent to do so; substitute another vessel or port(s) of call without prior notice and without
incurring any liability to the Guest on account thereof for any loss, damage or delay whatsoever,
whether consequential or otherwise.

Blah, blah, blah, blah.......

 

mobilegb12 I totally agree with you, hopefully NCL did something to help those stranded.

[old nutter]

1 hour ago, NLH Arizona said:

I always purchase non-refundable tickets, but it doesn't mean I can't change them to another flight with a change fee.

 

I am afraid that is the risk you take for the reduced price.  I always do the same, but I always have that niggle a the back of my mind that one day it might bite me.

 

I think in circumstances like the first affected cruise I would probably have stayed on the ship in Barcelona until I could find a cheap way of getting across to Rome to match my original timings home.  I would probably tried to get a ferry if possible because that would have taken me to Civitavechia( One goes 6 days a week takes about 20 hours and costs a bit over 100 euros each).  On the second one, I think I would have tried to re-formulate the time to do the same.  Maybe a ferry or two round to the Greek islands making my own cruise up as I went along.

 

Looking at the small print, anything NCL do is really a customer service bonus!

Edited July 8, 2019 by old nutter
more info

[NLH Arizona]

20 minutes ago, old nutter said:

 

I am afraid that is the risk you take for the reduced price.  I always do the same, but I always have that niggle a the back of my mind that one day it might bite me.

 

I think in circumstances like the first affected cruise I would probably have stayed on the ship in Barcelona until I could find a cheap way of getting across to Rome to match my original timings home.  I would probably tried to get a ferry if possible because that would have taken me to Civitavechia( One goes 6 days a week takes about 20 hours and costs a bit over 100 euros each).  On the second one, I think I would have tried to re-formulate the time to do the same.  Maybe a ferry or two round to the Greek islands making my own cruise up as I went along.

 

Looking at the small print, anything NCL do is really a customer service bonus!

I think that some of the cancel cruise passengers are looking for:  A full refund for their cruise, transporation change fees, future cruise credit and, by what some have posted on FB, a free two week vacation in Europe.  And then folks have the nerve to say they will sue if NCL doesn't pay for the hotel, transportation, etc. for the two weeks until their flight was originally scheduled to leave.  Well, I for one, would love to be in a courtroom during one of these lawsuits, because it should be good for a bunch of laughts when the judge/jury hear what they got from NCL.

[littlelulu01]

1 hour ago, NLH Arizona said:

I always purchase non-refundable tickets, but it doesn't mean I can't change them to another flight with a change fee.

Sometimes it’s less $ to throw away the original ticket and just purchase a new one.  $150 change fee plus the cost difference of what you purchased originally to what fare is today. There’s some very inexpensive alternatives (likely much less than $150) to get from bcn to fco on budget airlines. 

 

Im sorry but I’m Perplexed by those claims of being “stranded.”  What if those “stranded” had instead got sick, missed the ship in port,  missed a connection flight and had hotel expenses?  the insurance company wouldn’t be paying the affected upfront.  I got sick on a Europe sailing and saw ship doctor.  I had to pay upfront and seek reimbursement for expenses. It took several months.  100% refunds plus 100% towards a future cruise for July 5th and 50/50% for the sailing terminated eary? I’d be off having a great land based trip and excited to get home and have a nice chunk of change to plan my next adventure! 

 

Granted its its certainly a bummer that a big vacation for those affected but Ncl’s offers must be a welcome benefit to most. 

[boxall]

Very interesting reading:

 

Loss of propulsion of the passenger cruise ship Norwegian Star Bass Strait, 18 nm SW of Cape Liptrap, Victoria on 10 February 2017

 

https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5772657/mo-2017-003_prelim.pdf

 

 

[smplybcause]

3 hours ago, NLH Arizona said:

I always purchase non-refundable tickets, but it doesn't mean I can't change them to another flight with a change fee.

 

Airlines do sell nonrefundable non-changeable fares, which tend to be the cheapest fare. So if someone purchased that (often called basic but not always) they couldn't change it for a fee. But that's a risk you accept when you buy those tickets - could turn into a penny wise pound foolish choice. 

[herdingdogmom]

2 hours ago, boxall said:

Very interesting reading:

 

Loss of propulsion of the passenger cruise ship Norwegian Star Bass Strait, 18 nm SW of Cape Liptrap, Victoria on 10 February 2017

 

https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5772657/mo-2017-003_prelim.pdf

 

 

We were on the adrift at sea Australia cruise.  I think NCL learned not to keep a ship in need of repairs in service from this incident.  The Star had been limping around Southeast Asia for 2 months on one azipod.  We were really hoping our cruise would be cancelled, but no.  Pre cruise, we had two itinerary changes and lost several important ports because they still didn't expect the repair to be completed on our 12 day cruise.  

 

There were technicians on board to make the "conversion" changes, but they could only work on it when the ship was in port.  So all cruises had overnights added to the itineraries.  

 

The mood on board was pretty good considering the circumstances.  It was crazy seeing the news helicopters hover as we were waiting for the tugs to arrive and then moving at 4 knots with a little tug in front of the ship.  We bailed in Melbourne and continued our long awaited trip to New Zealand by land and had a wonderful time.  

 

I have noticed, that NCL no longer shares much info about what type of repair is needed, but they don't delay repairs any longer either.  Sounds like the Pearl's fix was fairly quick if it is already doing trial runs.  Sorry for those on the cancelled cruise.

 

 

Edited July 9, 2019 by herdingdogmom

[tikruizer]

This is the Pearl going back to Barcelona after tonight's trial.  Hope everything went ok.  The picture is 1 hour old.

 

 

[boxall]

[Laszlo]

“We are already here in Europe and have non-refundable days on Amalfi Coast after the cruise. We are stuck and I need to figure out a plan for 2-weeks last minute. All of that planning for nothing — we are devastated and don’t know what to do!” wrote user mickeyfanz, who was traveling with a group of nine people for a birthday celebration.

 

Devasted? 

[mugtech]

7 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

 

 

Devasted? 

Excellent question!!!

[terrydtx]

On 7/8/2019 at 5:38 AM, fstuff1 said:

wonder what these mechanical problems are? (Article doesnt say)

Sorry double post

Edited July 9, 2019 by terrydtx

[terrydtx]

Some people in this forum must not have much experience traveling in Europe. July and August are the highest tourist months of the year and most of the better hotels and tours will be sold out. For those stranded now in Rome with no cruise to board last Friday, will find it extremely difficult to find good accommodations if they decided to stay in Italy for the duration of their original cruise dates. If they want to come home early they will find most flights back to the US will be already overbooked and they may have to wait several days for seats. The cost to change flights could cost a lot too. These hardships are something that their insurance or NCL will not reimburse.  From a cost standpoint a good 3 star hotel in Rome will cost last minute over $300 per night. Meals can cost over $100pp per day. When you add up all the costs of a land trip it will be more per day than what they probably spent per day for the cruise. So receiving a 100% refund from NCL will not come close to covering the land cost and the $300 for air will  not cover the added cost of changing flight either.