Engine problems on the Quantum of the Seas

[Ben Nicholls]

Just got this email for our Aug 15th sailing. It sounds odd they know about engine issues this far in advance and are unable to resolve them. I suspect it is more about the Skagway dock landslide. 

 

 

ABOUT YOUR UPCOMING TRAVELS

Dear Guest, Due to a speed limitation caused by a technical issue with one of the ship’s engines, we’ve reduced our speed between ports, which means we’ve adjusted some of our arrival and departure times in Alaska and British Columbia. As a result, we’ve replaced our visit to Skagway, Alaska with Ketchikan, Alaska on Wednesday, shifted our visit to Sitka, Alaska to Thursday, and we’ll no longer visit Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier on Friday. We’re terribly sorry for any inconvenience caused by this, but the safety and comfort of our guests and crew is always our top priority. Below, please find our revised Quantum of the Seas August 15th, 2022 itinerary.

Edited June 29, 2022 by Ben Nicholls

[smokeybandit]

Yeah that doesn't quite seem right, both the date and the issue, especially since right now Quantum is sailing at a respectable 17 knots. I also don't see any Quantum itineraries that even go to Endicott Arm. They all go to Tracy's Arm

Edited June 29, 2022 by smokeybandit

[lintr11]

I just got the same email. I’m on Quantum leaving on 8/8. We were scheduled for Endicott Arm not the Tracy Fjord. All our ports have now been cut drastically shorter than they were including the change from Icy Straight to Ketchikan.

[squierjosh]

25 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

Yeah that doesn't quite seem right, both the date and the issue, especially since right now Quantum is sailing at a respectable 17 knots. I also don't see any Quantum itineraries that even go to Endicott Arm. They all go to Tracy's Arm

My 8/1 cruise says Endicott

[smokeybandit]

Sure seems like the odds of these being sent in error is more than 50/50

[Lnowak887]

I received the same email for the 8-15 sailing.  I find it interesting that they cannot correct the issues with having 47 days until sailing.  I called Royal Caribbean customer service voicing my concerns about being on a ship with engine problems.  They offered to put us on the 8-11 Ovation sailing with an upcharge of over $3,000 or we could get a future credit.  

[celoplyr]

I did NOT get this email, and I sail on Monday. 

[squierjosh]

20 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

Sure seems like the odds of these being sent in error is more than 50/50

I don't think so, they've already updated the port times on my Royal page, and you can't even look at Juneau excursions anymore. Something is going on.

 

Edited to add my cruise date is 8/1

Edited June 29, 2022 by squierjosh

[Jt4428]

That happened to us about 5 years ago on one of our rc cruises (forgot which ship). They shortened our time in a few ports. . They gave us some obc  for compensation.

[squierjosh]

3 minutes ago, Jt4428 said:

That happened to us about 5 years ago on one of our rc cruises (forgot which ship). They shortened our time in a few ports. . They gave us some obc  for compensation.

$100 for a whole cabin. Big whoop. I'd rather see glaciers, since it's an alaskan cruise and all. 

[irishgal432]

I was on the 6/6 sailing and there was a small engine fire when we were in port which caused a total blackout shipwide for about an hour.  It delayed us leaving until it was given an all clear.  We were in a Grand Loft Suite which was aft and it looked like they were only using 1  engine as the wake wasnt the same as before the blackout.

[Jt4428]

6 minutes ago, squierjosh said:

$100 for a whole cabin. Big whoop. I'd rather see glaciers, since it's an alaskan cruise and all. 

I totally agree but if your hands are tied...nothing you can do.

[Lnowak887]

32 minutes ago, Lnowak887 said:

I received the same email for the 8-15 sailing.  I find it interesting that they cannot correct the issues with having 47 days until sailing.  I called Royal Caribbean customer service voicing my concerns about being on a ship with engine problems.  They offered to put us on the 8-11 Ovation sailing with an upcharge of over $3,000 or we could get a future credit.  

After thinking about it I bet they are using the engine issue as an excuse, my bet is it has something to do with high gas prices.  Skagway is 251 miles from Sitka

 

[reallyitsmema]

I was on the 5/16 sailing of Quantum and we left Seattle on time but then slowly stopped not too far from the pier.  There was no announcement of what was going on but the wake kept changing as we moved a little.  We eventually left about an hour later.

[neverbeenhere]

$ 100 that's about the price of a single person Mendenhall Glacier tour?  One person gets to go and tell the other about it... Yeah!!!

 

 

[HibiscusHoney]

We are sailing on Quantum on 7/25 and I haven't gotten any notifications of change, but our excursions keep getting cancelled for various unknown reasons (Canadian border issues, train issues...).

 

[jennianne]

2 minutes ago, HibiscusHoney said:

We are sailing on Quantum on 7/25 and I haven't gotten any notifications of change, but our excursions keep getting cancelled for various unknown reasons (Canadian border issues, train issues...).

 

i'm on this one too! our itinerary is different than the ones affected though. i'm wondering if that's why we haven't had any changes (yet)?

[HibiscusHoney]

I see that our Quantum itinerary is different than yours but I feel your pain! Excursions are everything in Alaska and it's tough to see them all sold out and changing. 

[JeffT237]

2 hours ago, Ben Nicholls said:

Just got this email for our Aug 15th sailing. It sounds odd they know about engine issues this far in advance and are unable to resolve them.

What is the new itinerary that the Quantum will now be sailing for your cruise?  What is RCI offering you for the change, just the $100 OBC?  So sorry this is happening, I know how much of a disappointment this is, we sailed with Princess in May to Alaska and had the same issue and we ended up with cancelled ports and were late to all of them.  Resulted in all excursions cancelled and about 15 total hours in Alaska.

[jlshouston]

We booked the Aug 22 sailing of Quantum and I haven't gotten any emails. I did browse the shore excursions 2 weeks ago and there weren't many left with availability. First time Alaskan cruise so I didn't realize I had to start early on on shore excursions, sometimes I wait until the day we board to decide if we are doing an excursion so I may be in trouble seeing a whale or a bear or an iceberg...

[CTSandy]

Got the email today for the August 8 sailing - no Icy Strait Point, no Dawes Glacier - substitution of Ketchikan and shortened time in ports.  Not happy about sailing on a ship that is having some type of mechanical issues before we even get out of port.

[cccult]

Our 8/1 sailing is changing too. canceling the glaciers 

email: 

Due to a speed limitation caused by a technical issue with one of the ship's engines, we've reduced our speed between ports and as a result, we've adjusted some of our arrival and departure times in Alaska and British Columbia. Regrettably, this also means we'll no longer visit Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier. We're terribly sorry for any inconvenience caused by this, but the safety and comfort of our guests and crew is always our top priority. Below, please find our revised Quantum of the Seas August 1^st, 2022 itinerary.

Day	Port	Arrive	Depart
Mon	Seattle, Washington		4:00 PM
Tue	Cruising
Wed	Ketchikan, Alaska	7:00 AM	4:00 PM
Thu	Sitka, Alaska	8:00 AM	4:00 PM
Fri	Juneau, Alaska	7:30 AM	3:00 PM
Sat	Cruising
Sun	Victoria, British Columbia	5:00 PM	10:00 PM
Mon	Seattle, Washington	7:00 AM

We know you were looking forward to visiting Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier, so to help make up for this unexpected change, we're providing you with an Onboard Credit to use during your cruise - $75 USD for Interior and Ocean View staterooms | $100 USD for Balcony staterooms | $200 USD for Suites. These credits can be used anywhere onboard. If at the end of the cruise you have a remaining amount left over, it will be refunded to your card on file.

Our Shore Excursions team will automatically reschedule any pre-paid Royal Caribbean International shore excursions affected by this change. In the next few days, your updated tour information will be e-mailed to you. In the meantime, feel free to browse all the exciting shore excursion options for your sailing in Cruise Planner to level-up your vacation.

Thanks for your understanding. We can't wait to welcome you onboard Quantum of the Seas!

[Jimbo]

3 hours ago, Lnowak887 said:

I received the same email for the 8-15 sailing.  I find it interesting that they cannot correct the issues with having 47 days until sailing.  I called Royal Caribbean customer service voicing my concerns about being on a ship with engine problems.  They offered to put us on the 8-11 Ovation sailing with an upcharge of over $3,000 or we could get a future credit.  

Sad to say but I would take the FCC or change it to either a northbound or southbound one way cruise in Alaska.

 

Those roundtrip sailings are garbage anyway from Seattle. Got to at least see Hubbard Glacier when doing an Alaska Cruise.

Edited June 30, 2022 by Jimbo

[jennianne]

1 hour ago, CTSandy said:

Got the email today for the August 8 sailing - no Icy Strait Point, no Dawes Glacier - substitution of Ketchikan and shortened time in ports.  Not happy about sailing on a ship that is having some type of mechanical issues before we even get out of port.

uh oh, that's the same itinerary as the July 25th sailing. I haven't received any email yet though. weird that the cruise the week before yours wouldn't have a change...

[BirdTravels]

2 hours ago, jlshouston said:

We booked the Aug 22 sailing of Quantum and I haven't gotten any emails. I did browse the shore excursions 2 weeks ago and there weren't many left with availability. First time Alaskan cruise so I didn't realize I had to start early on on shore excursions, sometimes I wait until the day we board to decide if we are doing an excursion so I may be in trouble seeing a whale or a bear or an iceberg...

Many of the tour providers have backed out of their contracts because they can't get seasonal workers to run the excursions. The next results is that there are far fewer excursions available and almost all are totally sold out before departure.