Cancelled AGAIN

[BeasleysMom66]

I just got an email this morning stating that due to postponing the launch of the Brilliant Lady a number of upcoming voyages are now cancelled including mine for January on Valiant Lady.  This is the SECOND time this has happened to me.  I think I am officially done with Virgin.  Once I can understand but twice?  Nope.

 

Anyone else get this email?

[jon81uk]

Most people are discussing the cancellations in this thread 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2931423-what-happened-to-brilliant-lady/page/22/#comment-66056289

 

[AlaskaNewbie68]

Yep, me too...and they are offer $500 for airfare reimbursement????? OUrs was $600 a person. 

[Lustate]

4 minutes ago, AlaskaNewbie68 said:

Yep, me too...and they are offer $500 for airfare reimbursement????? OUrs was $600 a person. 

don’t worry, your travel insurance will cover it as it’s VV cancelling and not your control or choice. 

[CruisingWalter]

Oh my word, y'all who are affected are getting a killer deal on your next cruise. Take ANY cruise, no matter the length, you don't pay another dime.  Plus $600 - $1000 Sailor Loot. Holy crap, I kinda wish I was booked on Brilliant Lady. 

[red lobster]

I got the same email for my cruise April 6th, I'm not even upset about it. I just went in and cancelled my airline reservations. I'm torn on whether to just take the refund or rebook with the sailors loot. I'm just glad they let us know sooner rather then later. 

[BeasleysMom66]

10 minutes ago, CruisingWalter said:

Oh my word, y'all who are affected are getting a killer deal on your next cruise. Take ANY cruise, no matter the length, you don't pay another dime.  Plus $600 - $1000 Sailor Loot. Holy crap, I kinda wish I was booked on Brilliant Lady. 

 

This is the 2nd time they have cancelled me.  It is a killer deal if they have a cabin you want on a cruise you want and CAN take.  My work schedule is such that I can cruise in Jan/Feb.  ALL of the cabins I would be happy with on an intinerary I would enjoy are booked solid.  My only option is to gamble again and book another 2 years out.  I don't know what email you saw but I was only offered up to $600 in loot not $1000.  I wasn't booked on Brilliant Lady I was booked on Valiant.  Thankfully I had not made airfare reservations yet (was going to today) and just cancelled the Miami hotel room.  

 

It is a better deal for some?  Of course.   But for some of us it isn't a deal it just SUCKS.

[AlaskaNewbie68]

26 minutes ago, BeasleysMom66 said:

 

This is the 2nd time they have cancelled me.  It is a killer deal if they have a cabin you want on a cruise you want and CAN take.  My work schedule is such that I can cruise in Jan/Feb.  ALL of the cabins I would be happy with on an intinerary I would enjoy are booked solid.  My only option is to gamble again and book another 2 years out.  I don't know what email you saw but I was only offered up to $600 in loot not $1000.  I wasn't booked on Brilliant Lady I was booked on Valiant.  Thankfully I had not made airfare reservations yet (was going to today) and just cancelled the Miami hotel room.  

 

It is a better deal for some?  Of course.   But for some of us it isn't a deal it just SUCKS.

I'm with you...and my submission for a refund isn't going through. Of course can't get a human on phone. We found a San Juan trip on Celebrity and will do that. I think we got the last infinite veranda they had. If it wasn't our 25th Anniversary, maybe I would have booked it for a year out, but do I want them holding onto my money (we paid in full) for a year? Nope. 

[BeasleysMom66]

2 minutes ago, AlaskaNewbie68 said:

I'm with you...and my submission for a refund isn't going through. Of course can't get a human on phone. We found a San Juan trip on Celebrity and will do that. I think we got the last infinite veranda they had. If it wasn't our 25th Anniversary, maybe I would have booked it for a year out, but do I want them holding onto my money (we paid in full) for a year? Nope. 

 

They are probably being flooded with refund requests right now.  Much like you I couldn't get a live human on the phone either and gave up.  My refund request did go through but I did that before the whole story blew up.  Walter forgets that quite a few of us booked for anniversaries, graduations, birthdays and many other special occasions and for some like me this isn't the first time VV has cancelled on us.  I don't have unlimited time and flexibility to simply pivot and do another voyage.  I just can't trust Virgin any longer.  

[Don Kehote]

I mean, I'm okay with sailor loot.  Fine.  I already had a ton of it, though, so that's not so much a big help.  What would be cool is something that would let me put that toward the whole suite experience. Now THAT I could get behind.

[CineGraphic]

4 hours ago, AlaskaNewbie68 said:

my submission for a refund isn't going through

 

Currently, anything with an attachment doesn't seem to be going through.

 

[Gretchendz]

6 hours ago, AlaskaNewbie68 said:

I'm with you...and my submission for a refund isn't going through. Of course can't get a human on phone. We found a San Juan trip on Celebrity and will do that. I think we got the last infinite veranda they had. If it wasn't our 25th Anniversary, maybe I would have booked it for a year out, but do I want them holding onto my money (we paid in full) for a year? Nope. 

 

You can submit the refund form without the attachments and they will let you submit the receipts later.

[herdfans4]

44 minutes ago, Gretchendz said:

 

One of my clients got a $6,000+ cabin on the New Years Eve sailing when she had paid $3,000 for a shorter cancelled sailing.  Given she also gets $600 more sailor loot, and keeps the loot we had already piled on, she now has over $1,000 in loot too.

 

And what did people on NCL cancelled sailings get recently? I believe it was a 100% refund and a 10% discount on a future cruise

My TA said she could not submit form for cruise change until 9/11.  How did you already rebook someone and get feedback of availability?  are they not waiting until 9/11 like the email suggested

[Russiamomm]

1 hour ago, Gretchendz said:

 

One of my clients got a $6,000+ cabin on the New Years Eve sailing when she had paid $3,000 for a shorter cancelled sailing.  Given she also gets $600 more sailor loot, and keeps the loot we had already piled on, she now has over $1,000 in loot too.

 

And what did people on NCL cancelled sailings get recently? I believe it was a 100% refund and a 10% discount on a future cruise.

This is the sailing we’re trying for.  Did you get an actual booking confirmation or are they still looking into it?  I submitted the form and got an email back with a case number saying they received it and will get back to us within seven days.  That’s not a booking.

[Gretchendz]

1 hour ago, Russiamomm said:

This is the sailing we’re trying for.  Did you get an actual booking confirmation or are they still looking into it?  I submitted the form and got an email back with a case number saying they received it and will get back to us within seven days.  That’s not a booking.

 

Yes apologies for not being clear. No final confirmation, just that they are processing, just like you.

[Russiamomm]

6 hours ago, Gretchendz said:

 

Yes apologies for not being clear. No final confirmation, just that they are processing, just like you.

Thanks.  That’s what I thought.  We’ll see what happens. The way I read the email was that on 9/11 the website would let you rebook online or you send the form in now.  What I don’t know is if they will process any of the forms prior to the 11th.  I suspect the New Years sailing is going to be a popular option and may well sell out and I least wanted to get in the queue and submitted the form.  I don't know how they’ll pick who gets it if there are only a limited number of cabins available,  Hopefully it’s first come, first served.   This was also an incredible deal for us and was our first choice, but the cost of that sailing put us off and we booked for two weeks later (now cancelled.)

[CanadianCruiser21]

My interpretation is that they you will still need to fill in the form, even after the 11th.

You can submit the form now, and they will process it on the 11th if you are sure that is the cruise you want to take and you aren’t interested in any of the new sailings. https://vvinsider.com/full-itinerary-details-2024-2025-sailings-virgin-voyages/
 

Since that NYE sailing is so popular, maybe submit it now. Who knows now they will determine your spot. 
 

If you booked with a TA, you should get them to switch you now, as I’ve seen reports that TA’s can switch you on any currently listed sailing now, like the NY one, and it’s quite popular. 

Edited September 8, 2023 by CanadianCruiser21

[Gretchendz]

VV told me they would be processing forms starting Monday in the order received.

[Russiamomm]

1 hour ago, Gretchendz said:

VV told me they would be processing forms starting Monday in the order received.

Thanks.  Good to know.  Hopefully I was one of the first!  I called as soon as the email came in and filled out the form immediately. 
 

please keep us posted if you hear anything.  Thanks again.

[BethesdaSC]

On 9/7/2023 at 10:21 AM, Lustate said:

don’t worry, your travel insurance will cover it as it’s VV cancelling and not your control or choice. 

I contacted mine and was told NO, it’s not a covered reason. Seven Corners Travel Insurance 

[cantgetin]

2 hours ago, BethesdaSC said:

I contacted mine and was told NO, it’s not a covered reason. Seven Corners Travel Insurance 

Whether or not travel insurance will cover a cruise line canceling a cruise depends on a lot of things.  First is the details of the coverage (which people rarely read).  Next is the issue that they insurance will only pay what you are out of pocket after all recovery from the cruise line and airline.  For instance, in this case, VV is giving 100% refund if you do not choose to rebook, so you are out nothing there.  Next, if you have already purchased air, is it non-refundable or is it transferable for a small fee?  If you can transfer it, even if you don't have plans to, most insurances will only cover the transfer fee.  Have you booked non-refundable hotels already?  Same deal.  And while some travel insurances allow you to change the dates one time, many do not, so you are out that cost as well.

So, bottom line is that if you choose the option to get a full refund and not rebook, you will likely incur some out of pocket losses that your insurance may well not reimburse.  On the other hand, if you choose to move to another cruise date, you can try to turn some of that loot into take home money at the casino to cover those extra expenses or move to a dream cruise that might not have been possible otherwise and consider it a break even.

[crusinthrough]

On 9/7/2023 at 11:50 AM, BeasleysMom66 said:

 

This is the 2nd time they have cancelled me.  It is a killer deal if they have a cabin you want on a cruise you want and CAN take.  My work schedule is such that I can cruise in Jan/Feb.  ALL of the cabins I would be happy with on an intinerary I would enjoy are booked solid. 

How are the cabins taken?  Per the email, sailings will be available on 9/11.  Did you look at the potential itinerary options online in the PDF?

 

https://www.virginvoyages.com/travel-advisories/stories/august-2023-itinerary-updates

 

Sailor Itinerary Options Updated.pdf

Edited September 9, 2023 by crusinthrough

[ghostshark]

6 hours ago, BethesdaSC said:

I contacted mine and was told NO, it’s not a covered reason. Seven Corners Travel Insurance 

same. Berkshire Hathaway told me it was Vv's issue ("operational failure", or something like that), not theirs. 

[CruisingWalter]

On 9/7/2023 at 10:41 PM, herdfans4 said:

My TA said she could not submit form for cruise change until 9/11.  How did you already rebook someone and get feedback of availability?  are they not waiting until 9/11 like the email suggested

 

The forms are going through right now if you submit them. TAs are submitting them already on the client's behalf. 

[Gretchendz]

VV told me they will begin processing them on the 11th, in the order they were received.  If you know what you want to switch them to, get them in. You can do it or your TA can do it for you. Either works.

 

And of course, if you think one of the new itineraries, those are supposed to be open for booking tomorrow.

Edited September 9, 2023 by Gretchendz