Issue with flight booked thru Celebrity Air

[chg7676]

I booked & paid in full on 8/4/22 for 5/15/23 Celebrity Constellation cruise and on 9/7/22 booked & paid in full for American Airlines (AA) flights through Celebrity Air: CLT-PHL & PHL-VCE with Premium Economy on PHL-VCE. Was assigned seats 7J&7L, on right side by window. Originating AA flight, CLT-PHL, was changed by AA four times, while PHL-VCE flight and seats stayed same until the fourth CLT-PHL change, when PHL-VCE seats were changed to 6E&6H center section bulkhead seats. On the day of this change, I saw seat 7L had been assigned to someone else.

I contacted Celebrity, and after a 1.5-hour call, I was told by supervisor the seats had been changed by American Airlines and Celebrity could do nothing. After another hour-long call with American Airlines, I was told by AA supervisor that Premium Economy was guaranteed but individual seats weren’t reserved due to the type of ticket. I reiterated that we were assigned 7J & 7L when the reservations were made and fully paid for, but A A supervisor said that there was nothing she could do. On my own I was able to move the seats back a row from the bulkhead, but still had to stay in the center 3-seat section.

We have been on numerous cruises with other lines and booked flights through cruise lines but have never had a problem like this. I am now, and urge others to be, aware that when booking with Celebrity Air that assigned flight seats are not guaranteed, even though fully paid for.

[1Virgo]

As in a previous thread, I think. FBC  has had a lot of new staff.  Two agents = 2 different stories.  And, when I asked to speak to a FBC supervisor, she was the most condescending supervisor I ve ever spoken with.  

[NutsAboutGolf]

If one cares they can get the exact info on flyertalk.  Good to know, in short, with AA if booking a discounted fare (for PE it's discounted fare code is "P") through a 3rd party like FBC, AA apparently let's you pick your seat but doesn't let you confirm you seats.  Not sure if having status makes any difference

[Arizona Wildcat]

Things are different today.  The cruiselines are consolidators and thus their seats come with restrictions.  So. . . unless a significant savings, book direct.

Really simple.   Know what you are buying.

[TeeRick]

I have used Celebrity Air or Flights By Celebrity on several occasions.  Especially for expensive international flights and Business class.  Celebrity Air let's you hold your flight payment until the cruise final payment.  So it is like getting a refundable fare rate in case something happens.  That is their main advantage or maybe their only advantage.  Since you can book far in advance without paying, sometimes you get a cost savings. Not always.   But in reality they act as a go between (or agent) between you and the airline.  Celebrity offers this to us as an added option but they do not control airline flights, schedules, restrictions.  All completely up to your airline choice.  For the most part we arrange our own flights with the airlines and purchase the less expensive non-refundable fares directly with them.  And pay far in advance.

[chg7676]

Thanks to all who replied. I now know to be aware of the process and what the situation is if one goes through the cruise line and questions to ask if I book flights throught a carrier in the future.

[sanger727]

Seat assignments aren't guaranteed when booking through the carrier. Often seat assignments get changed because they change the size/style of aircraft. Every time we have booked flights months in advance we have had some amount of flight changes whether it be time changes or aircraft changes. And either of those can sometimes include seat changes. 

[wany]

Hate to tell you this, nothing on air plane tickets is guaranteed. Frankly, they don’t even guarantee you to get you to your destination in a timely manner. Seats can be changed due to many reasons, and in your case schedule change. Even had you booked on AA.com, you are not going to get your seat back unless people had those seats opt to move out.
Schedule change happens regularly if you book in advance. Flight schedule more than 3 months from today are nothing more than a suggestion that the airline is thinking about flying that route around that time using that aircraft.

[mahasamatman]

As stated above, seat assignments are never guaranteed on any airline regardless of the ticket type. You can't blame FbC for this one.

[Markanddonna]

I am currently at the airport on our last leg home on a flight we had to change for a medical emergency. Celebrity air has been great with their help, especially arranging wheelchair assistance at all four airports. I know there are some complications with cruise air, but this experience has us very pleased.

[terrydtx]

On 5/9/2023 at 3:50 PM, sanger727 said:

Seat assignments aren't guaranteed when booking through the carrier. Often seat assignments get changed because they change the size/style of aircraft. Every time we have booked flights months in advance we have had some amount of flight changes whether it be time changes or aircraft changes. And either of those can sometimes include seat changes. 

Yes this has happened to us on flights we booked ourselves. Last time was in 2021 on Delta to FLL, we got bumped out of FC seats the morning of the flight because of change of aircraft that day. We went from a plane with 18 FC seats to one with 12. I complained to Delta and was told we got bumped because we paid less for our tickets than others who didn't get bumped. My wife and I got put into center seats in the back of the plane, because that was all they had available. We got a whopping $75 travel voucher each for this, which we never used before it expired.

[wany]

1 hour ago, terrydtx said:

Yes this has happened to us on flights we booked ourselves. Last time was in 2021 on Delta to FLL, we got bumped out of FC seats the morning of the flight because of change of aircraft that day. We went from a plane with 18 FC seats to one with 12. I complained to Delta and was told we got bumped because we paid less for our tickets than others who didn't get bumped. My wife and I got put into center seats in the back of the plane, because that was all they had available. We got a whopping $75 travel voucher each for this, which we never used before it expired.

I am sorry to hear your involuntary downgrade experience.
Each airline has their own rule on who to be downgraded. Very often, it is not about how much you paid but which fare class you booked in. For future reference, DOT has regulations regarding this and you are entitled to a refund in fare difference between the class you booked and the class your end up flying. However, this is often difficult to do as you, the passenger, is unlikely to show proof of lower class ticket price of that trip to get that refund. The gate agent processing this are under enormous pressure to get the flight out and they often can only get the current price for the flight which may be more expensive than your first class ticket, hence not issuing the refund. Also, this is relatively rare situation that most agents are not familiar with the SOP. Major airlines, such as DL, AA, UA, have dedicated team to resolve this and give you refund after your trip (you need to call inand request). Low cost airlines are more likely to play games and refuse to help (they probably don’t have first class service anyways)

Another situation that is not well understood by the general public is called YUP fare. You may have noticed that first class tickets these days are not as outrageously expensive as they used to be. A lot of these are actually coach ticket that include an instant upgrade. This is not clearly shown during the booking provess and it is unreasonable to expect consumers to know this is what they have purchased. But this is world we live in. If you read your fare information carefully you will find this buried within. These tickets are often the first in line to be downgraded for many reasons. In this case, some clueless airline agent may claim you never actually had a first class ticket in the first place and the DOT regulation can be difficult to apply.

[sanger727]

51 minutes ago, wany said:

I am sorry to hear your involuntary downgrade experience.
Each airline has their own rule on who to be downgraded. Very often, it is not about how much you paid but which fare class you booked in. For future reference, DOT has regulations regarding this and you are entitled to a refund in fare difference between the class you booked and the class your end up flying. However, this is often difficult to do as you, the passenger, is unlikely to show proof of lower class ticket price of that trip to get that refund. The gate agent processing this are under enormous pressure to get the flight out and they often can only get the current price for the flight which may be more expensive than your first class ticket, hence not issuing the refund. Also, this is relatively rare situation that most agents are not familiar with the SOP. Major airlines, such as DL, AA, UA, have dedicated team to resolve this and give you refund after your trip (you need to call inand request). Low cost airlines are more likely to play games and refuse to help (they probably don’t have first class service anyways)

Another situation that is not well understood by the general public is called YUP fare. You may have noticed that first class tickets these days are not as outrageously expensive as they used to be. A lot of these are actually coach ticket that include an instant upgrade. This is not clearly shown during the booking provess and it is unreasonable to expect consumers to know this is what they have purchased. But this is world we live in. If you read your fare information carefully you will find this buried within. These tickets are often the first in line to be downgraded for many reasons. In this case, some clueless airline agent may claim you never actually had a first class ticket in the first place and the DOT regulation can be difficult to apply.

 

I don't think the OP was downgraded. They and the airlines all agreed that the premium economy seat was guaranteed. They were just upset that they booked a 2 seater near a window and instead got moved to the center section of the plan. 

 

I've flown Delta One first class and still had my seat moved - just as long as you stay within your class they don't owe you a thing. 

[Basketball wife]

Different issue. I booked one way air with FBC. I just tried to book the transfer from the port to the airport through manage your trip. It accepted my credit card info but when I clicked Pay Now, I got this message,

“Changes to cruise-only transfer arrangements are not permitted at this time. Please re-enter transfer arrangement or cancel changes made…”

 

1) Should I be worried that my air was cancelled? It is showing on the webpage…

2) Or, does booking with FBC also include the transfer to the airport?