December 2024 Suez Canal transit - nothing yet from Crystal

[LNugent]

Hmmm….looks like this may be cancelled.  I hope they let us know soon as I would most likely book whatever alternative they offer. Otherwise I may look at other cruise line itineraries during that time as I need time to sort out flights, etc.  

[Stickman1990]

Totally agree @LNugent - it’s time for an announcement as they must know they simply can’t deliver the cruises as they currently stand - it’s a little disrespectful of those who booked these cruises to leave us hanging. They’re dealing with the 2025 World Cruise itineraries but seem to have forgotten about those of us booked on Symphony in December and January 

 

It’s almost 6 months until the cruise dates - so time to get the alternative announced and then market it - if they don’t give themselves time to market it then the inevitable will happen and the loading will be low 

 

Our group of friends joining us on these cruises awaits the announcement of the new itinerary, and the transition offer to those booked on the current sailings

 

But we’ve also put in place a plan C that doesn’t involve Crystal to ensure we’re enjoying a cruise these coming holidays 

[FlyerTalker]

40 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

it’s time for an announcement as they must know they simply can’t deliver the cruises as they currently stand - it’s a little disrespectful of those who booked these cruises to leave us hanging.

 

Thought problem:  Would you prefer that Crystal do

 

A)  Announce that the cruises are cancelled, and state that new itineraries will be forthcoming,

or

B)  Announce that the cruises are cancelled, and have both new itineraries AND policies for changes in place.

 

I suspect most all would want B.  I can just picture the complaints about "well, when are they going to tell us the details".  Especially since A is pretty much the de facto situation right now.

 

However, this is not as simple as many of you think.  Aside from the logistics of moving a ship and provisioning it, there are all the port details to arrange.  I can picture the complaining "why aren't the shore excursions listed" - we've heard it on long existing itineraries, so we'd hear it again.  And an even bigger question - what will Crystal do in the way of fare adjustments, refunds, credits and the like.  Many booked because of a great per diem - if Crystal just does a matching dollar credit, it will seem like a loss to many.  Or do they credit days.  Let's also consider air tickets that guests have bought - what's the Crystal position on those.

 

Personally, I'd rather have ALL of that wrapped up in a nice, comprehensive package, rather than get dribs and drabs.  And I definitely want Crystal to have a clear policy established for changes/credits/cancellations.

 

I'm sure that Crystal would be glad for anyone to pitch in and help them work this all through. 

 

55 minutes ago, Stickman1990 said:

They’re dealing with the 2025 World Cruise itineraries but seem to have forgotten about those of us booked on Symphony in December and January

 

Not really, IMO.  What they did was survey world cruisers as to what is their preference for revised itineraries post-Rio.  They have made no announcement about decisions or all the other items mentioned above.  I just think that there are different options for Symphony that a guest survey would not have helped with.

 

My wager is that they are diligently working on the issues facing both ships.  And will tell us when it can be spelled out as a complete package.

 

 

[Stickman1990]

@FlyerTalker - of course it’s option B - as the cancellation of the planned itinerary and option A is a forgone conclusion

 

If Crystal don’t know or haven’t booked alternate ports 6 months out I suspect they’ll struggle to put a credible itinerary together starting any later 

 

Of course they need the detail of the replacements locked in - but don’t you think potential guests and even potential new guests should be kept informed of the planned timing for any changes? It’s getting close now and air bookings will need to be secured by some guests 

 

As I said we have a plan C in place but we’d much prefer a Crystal centric plan B

[BWIVince]

I'm in 100% agreement with FlyerTalker about the logistics, and Terry is correct in the concerns of the timing from the passenger perspective.

 

From what we've seen so far, I think it's safe to say Crystal is clearly most of the way through the process of sourcing new port contracts -- unfortunately that's a process that takes varying amounts of time for each port depending on the authorities and legal departments on both sides.  Crystal can want it to happen as quickly as they want, but it's not a fast or predictable process, and one they have limited control in the timing of.  

 

Crystal knows all of the concerns, and they know the 6 month cutoff.  I SERIOUSLY doubt they're holding onto contracted replacement ports and are just twiddling their thumbs so they'll have a harder time selling the itineraries on purpose.  They just need to get the itineraries confirmed before they can start selling the new ones, and as FT said it would be a lot worse if they cancel the old ones without having new itineraries to move everyone to.

 

Everyone has the choice of canceling, or being patient and waiting to see what alternative presents itself.  Not everyone is in the position to be patient, and that's fine, but those that can will see what alternative presents itself soon one way or another.

 

Vince

[Stickman1990]

Projects, such as this, have targets and milestones and critical dependencies - maybe it would be good to share some (not all of them) with guests?

 

Sure they may get missed even but at least people will have an expectation with some basis rather than guessing 

 

Say they said our target is to let guests know by the end of May - that would at least give us some guidance. If they said we expect to let you know by late August though (using what I hope is a silly date to illustrate a point) then some would make different decisions based on that 

 

Right now I know the critical dates and dependencies for my plan C and am getting very close to initiating a booking (the minimal financial risk is far less than the upside of booking by a certain date)

[TER777]

They also need to bear in mind the payment due dates which for some is August 6 and for others JUNE 6. And what about if you’ve applied an Exceptional Initiative certificate to this sailing? What are the transfer procedures and limitations?

[BWIVince]

1 hour ago, Stickman1990 said:

Projects, such as this, have targets and milestones and critical dependencies - maybe it would be good to share some (not all of them) with guests?

 

Sure they may get missed even but at least people will have an expectation with some basis rather than guessing 

 

Say they said our target is to let guests know by the end of May - that would at least give us some guidance. If they said we expect to let you know by late August though (using what I hope is a silly date to illustrate a point) then some would make different decisions based on that 

 

Right now I know the critical dates and dependencies for my plan C and am getting very close to initiating a booking (the minimal financial risk is far less than the upside of booking by a certain date)

 

100% It would be nice if they communicated something.  It's a double-edged sword because when you open that door, questions explode 10-fold, but for all the reasons you pointed out, the closer you get to payment/cancel milestones or departure the more important a status update is even if they lack specifics.  It just gets tricky on the wording, because it's entirely possible to make the situation worse when things are still fluid...  But we're just about there where they need to say something regardless.

 

I especially feel for them on sourcing though, because the targets, milestones and critical dependencies when it comes to travel supplier sourcing are just about as close to useless as anything I've seen in my decades as a project manager.  The only milestone I've EVER seen even remotely impact contract deliverables are the (supplier) agent's year-end deadline on 12/31, and sometimes, SLIGHTLY, their quarterly cutoffs if those apply to their benefit.  (Sometimes it pays to slow-walk the contract to the next quarter if they already met their threshold for this quarter.). Project management in many parts of the travel industry can be fun, but trying to project manage sales processes in travel is incredibly exhausting,

 

Vince

Edited May 18 by BWIVince

[crickette]

BUT, if Crystal transitted the canal and Red Sea as they did in March, wouldn't that simplify sourcing and provisioning?  Both voyages were 17 days.

Edited May 18 by crickette

[Snuffie]

Why doesn’t Crystal extend the final payment due date until they have confirmed itinerary?

[Stickman1990]

7 minutes ago, Snuffie said:

Why doesn’t Crystal extend the final payment due date until they have confirmed itinerary?

Agreed - it’s crazy - some have a final payment date in early June - others early August - very inconsistent 

 

and then zero response to questions on the plans for these cruises other than we’re working it….

 

People need to plan flights and other arrangements so the longer they spin out giving us any degree of certainty the worse it gets 

[BWIVince]

1 hour ago, Snuffie said:

Why doesn’t Crystal extend the final payment due date until they have confirmed itinerary?

 

I can understand why they aren't speculating on planned changes not yet under contract, but I think it's time for them to at least revise the payment deadline to show good faith from the planning perspective.  They may likely give waivers if asked by an agent in the right way, but given the circumstances they should try to be more proactive and get more ahead of this given how close they're cutting it.

 

Vince

[Stickman1990]

I understand we’ll receive a communications along these lines from Crystal in the next few days - so by the end of June and before final payment date we’ll have our answer

 

”I understand that there has been much discussion of the upcoming 2024/2025 itineraries, specifically those involving the 2025 World Cruise with the Red Sea and wish to address it. We are incredibly saddened with the events evolving in the region and continue to closely monitor the situation. We want to assure you that Crystal places the safeguard of our guests and crew first in every decision we make.

We appreciate the input from the World Cruise survey along with the feedback many of you have posted online and given to us personally. Our teams have carefully reviewed this data and are curating an itinerary that reflects the exceptional experiences we are known for.

 

Of course, logistics on this scale take time and we appreciate your patience while we work with our partners to finalize details. We understand that in travel, time is of the essence and will have any changes communicated to you by June 28th, 2024. We also want to reassure you that once the change(s) are confirmed, there will be refund and voyage change options without penalty. As of now, normal cancellation penalties apply until these are confirmed”

[nnn]

Just FYI... We are booked on the April 9-19, 2025, cruise on Symphony, which is post-Red Sea and is scheduled to visit Israel.  Crystal just sent a similar email saying they are working on changes and will be in touch by June 28.