I am SO bummed! I'm supposed to be in Hawaii right now

[80sGurl]

Thanks Monte, I appreciate your kind words!! For anyone that are parents out there, the hardest part was telling my kids because they were super excited. Especially my little girl, she was beside herself with excitement.. ugh! This is their spring break coming up.

 

Yes, of course I realize no one died here and life will go on, I guess it's just a MAJOR dissapointment, that's all. I am hoping to see Hawaii someday. I'm sad about the amazing cruise deal I lost though. I'm not sure if that one will ever come my way again. $2,600 for the week for 4 people for a Family Suite??? argh

 

We are sort of limited to when we can take vacation because of kids being in school, I don't like to take them out because we have a pretty strict school district & I hate them missing any school, so we only go on vacations during school holidays, and this was a pretty major vacation for us that we had planned for this year, with lots of time, excitement and prep involved :(

 

I'm so sorry about the whole thing being a giant screw over for you guys. But you know, I sort of admire the way you seem to be handling it all.

 

My wife & I were just talking and we think we also agree with you about how if it were us, we'd probably rather be stuck in Hawaii after or cruise than stuck and home unable to make the cruise. You have our sympathies and I hope that somehow, someday you're able to book Hawaii again. It's beautiful and worth the wait.

 

-Monte

[wharf rat]

Bigdog. Thanks. I forgot about the ship web cams. The top pic is ALoha Tower dock and the bottom pic is the warehouse dock. The Aloha Tower dock is the better dock, easier to get to, etc. The warehouse is a ways down the street and takes more walking to get into... Mahalo..

[mbisson]

Thanks Monte, I appreciate your kind words!! For anyone that are parents out there, the hardest part was telling my kids because they were super excited. Especially my little girl, she was beside herself with excitement.. ugh! This is their spring break coming up.

 

OMG-being a parent, now I really feel worse for you than before. I remember years ago we promised a neice of ours (then 5) we would take her to DisneyWorld with us and at about the last minute one of her drug addicted parents refused to let her go. I felt so badly for her but we gave her my promise to do it some day. Then a year later she passed. I still often cry about it all-the broken dreams, the broken promise and the loss of her life.

 

So make sure you let the kids know that somehow you'll do your best to fill this vacation dream for them.

[mbisson]

Bigdog. Thanks. I forgot about the ship web cams. The top pic is ALoha Tower dock and the bottom pic is the warehouse dock. The Aloha Tower dock is the better dock, easier to get to, etc. The warehouse is a ways down the street and takes more walking to get into... Mahalo..

 

That's a first for me! I had never seen the dog not know just about everything there is to know about anything to do with an NCL ship/port/excursion etc (of course I'm exaggerating-but the dog usually does know)!

[wharf rat]

The loss of ALoha AIrlines is a big blow to Hawaii as it is an old island carrier, goes back 61 years. ATA is a mainland based business.

 

For those of you who remember Aloha Airlines check out thir tribute on youtube. I cry every time I watch it....

 

[amartin042]

Have you thought about seeing if you can switch to a different cruise? Maby out of LA or San Diego? That way you still have a vacation even if it isn't the one you wanted. :confused:

[80sGurl]

at this point, my travel agent sort of bailed on my on friday and he doesn't work the weekends. When I call him on Monday, I may bring this up, see if his travel agency can offer SOMETHING, anything.... thx for the idea...

 

Have you thought about seeing if you can switch to a different cruise? Maby out of LA or San Diego? That way you still have a vacation even if it isn't the one you wanted. :confused:

[amartin042]

I know that NCL will only work with your TA but I would see if there is anyone who would help you since your TA abandoned you! It sure wouldn't hurt to call and ask and see if someone would be willing to switch you to a different ship for this weekend.:confused:

[juried]

Also, IF you can work your magical powers of persuasion and they swap you to another cruise ... make sure NCL Corporate knows you will "alert the media" and have your local newspaper write a great human interest story plus a press release to Associated Press, etc. no kidding, they can really spin this into something positive.

If I were you, I might actually contact the News now and maybe someone in Consumer Affairs at your local television station could step in to help you.

People need to see how airline closings disrupt families and hurt so many ( the thought of your daughter planning and dreaming about this cruise and then losing it is heartbreaking) are an all too famiar story these days, plus we all love to hope for a happy ending.

Good Luck,

Juried

[lgfromdg]

Even if you had insurance, it could never compensate you for your family's disappointment at missing your cruise, especially with such a great upsell. I cruised the Sun on 3/22 and flew down to Florida a day ahead of time. We had a snowstorm in Chicago and our flight was delayed an hour and a half. Shortly after we took off, 400 flights were cancelled. I know just how lucky we were to get down to Florida, many others weren't so lucky and had their vacations delayed or cancelled. Even though there are probably hundreds of people in the same situation as you, that doesn't lessen your disappointment. I feel so sorry for you and them.

[amartin042]

Also, IF you can work your magical powers of persuasion and they swap you to another cruise ... make sure NCL Corporate knows you will "alert the media" and have your local newspaper write a great human interest story plus a press release to Associated Press, etc. no kidding, they can really spin this into something positive.

If I were you, I might actually contact the News now and maybe someone in Consumer Affairs at your local television station could step in to help you.

People need to see how airline closings disrupt families and hurt so many ( the thought of your daughter planning and dreaming about this cruise and then losing it is heartbreaking) are an all too famiar story these days, plus we all love to hope for a happy ending.

Good Luck,

Juried

That is a great idea!! That could really work in your favor.

I feel so bad for you and your family and hope you can get this worked out somehow. I can't imagine how I would feel in your position.

[wharf rat]

The State of Hawaii (government) has set up a $5 million fund to help stranded travelers. Folks are being given Waikiki hotel rooms at Kaimainna rates (local rates). Most are taking it in stride. May be better to be stuck here than a lot of other places. Still sad tho' and a mess. Lay on the beach and shop.

[VoyageVirgin]

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your flight woes. It must be awful knowing the ship hasn't left and you can't get to it. Really feel bad for you.

 

You said in your first post that you had paid with "Carnival Points" so if most insurance companies are like the CSA we booked with they state in the contract that if you use points for any travel arrangements that are cancelled etc.. they do not reimburse you for that leg of the trip. ( I'm assuming it's because no cash was laid out per ce) So, even if you had bought trip insurance it may not have have covered the cruise. (I think) so no need to kick yourself about that. I do hope you find someway to get there - either by another port or Orbitz etc. best of luck.

 

M

[80sGurl]

The company I booked the cruise through, where I used my points, did offer insurance, so I probably would have rec'd money back, but not 100% sure.... Ya, it's a bummer knowing that right about now, it's 1pm Hawaiian time and we would probably be boarding the ship :(

 

At this point, I just need to let it go and move on and start fresh on Monday to try to get the Travel Agent to maybe offer some kind of something! :)

 

 

 

 

I'm terribly sorry to hear about your flight woes. It must be awful knowing the ship hasn't left and you can't get to it. Really feel bad for you.

 

You said in your first post that you had paid with "Carnival Points" so if most insurance companies are like the CSA we booked with they state in the contract that if you use points for any travel arrangements that are cancelled etc.. they do not reimburse you for that leg of the trip. ( I'm assuming it's because no cash was laid out per ce) So, even if you had bought trip insurance it may not have have covered the cruise. (I think) so no need to kick yourself about that. I do hope you find someway to get there - either by another port or Orbitz etc. best of luck.

 

M

[crew mom]

I feel so bad for you and your family. That would be heart-breaking to experience. I wish I had some different advice for you but it looks like all the previous posters covered it all. Hopefully you will be able to recover some of your $$ or be able to catch another cruise. :(

[iheartbda]

At this point, I just need to let it go and move on and start fresh on Monday to try to get the Travel Agent to maybe offer some kind of something! :)

 

Never have I seen anyone handle such a terrible situation with such control, objectivity, patience and any other positive word one can add.

 

I nominate you for the Grace Under Fire Award.:)

[KerCar]

Never have I seen anyone handle such a terrible situation with such control, objectivity, patience and any other positive word one can add.

 

I nominate you for the Grace Under Fire Award.:)

 

I second that nomination:) She is a total class act.

 

We're all rooting for you, Tina!

[80sGurl]

Thanks you guys! That's really nice :)

 

I really don't know how else to react, I'm at a loss. I've tried everything to get us there besides swimming (or chartering our own plane!) - someone looked into chartering a plane from San Diego and it was like $70,000 for 9 people!

 

Ironic thing - my 8 yr old daughter was invited to a bday party/slumber party tonight and originally we had said no because we were 'supposed' to be on the cruise, so now she can go. Guess what the theme is??? Hawaiian!! LOL

 

Sometimes I don't know whether to laugh or cry about this whole fiasco. Today is especially crappy because I keep thinking about boarding the ship today.

 

I will definately post here on Monday once I speak to the travel agent and see if there is anything that he was able to do, or can do

 

What was really frustrating to me was that Norwegian pretty much told me that I couldn't send a letter to NCL's Customer Service, the travel agent would have to. That doesn't help me much when the TA is highly unmotivated. That doesn't stop me though. I will probably send one to their Customer Svc and maybe one to their corporate offices, it can't hurt right?

[Guest pcreek]

I feel really bad for you on your loss of what sounds like a terrific vacation.:(

 

I also agree with contacting your local news / newspaper...perhaps a human interest story can somehow drum up some help for you that nobody else has thought of.....someone with a private plane, perhaps?

 

Hey..I'm a dreamer...whatever might work!:rolleyes:

 

Good luck to you in getting some kind of SOMETHING to be of some compensation for this. I wish you all the best!

 

Pamela

[whale-watcher]

You have such a great attitude...I will keep my fingers crossed that something works out between your TA and NCL!

[wharf rat]

I took my bag down and checked on board. Lots of people on board, mostly middle age/seniors. I saw no kids (most still in school ?). The ship will sail tonight at 8:00. It has a schedule to keep. So sorry for those struggling to catch up. Some of the passengers I talked to had been in Hawaii for a few days. The folks from Canada had no problem, or the the east coast ones (if they got a flight from there). It seemed to be mostly the ATA ones that were affected. The fault lies with ATA and ALoha, not NCL.

I made my booking through NCL. I tried for 2 months to get my TAs here to get me a cabin and they "could not"... Now the TAs here are all scrambling to find flights for those stuck here.

 

And I am cruising away...

[whale-watcher]

OMG-being a parent, now I really feel worse for you than before. I remember years ago we promised a neice of ours (then 5) we would take her to DisneyWorld with us and at about the last minute one of her drug addicted parents refused to let her go. I felt so badly for her but we gave her my promise to do it some day. Then a year later she passed. I still often cry about it all-the broken dreams, the broken promise and the loss of her life.

 

So make sure you let the kids know that somehow you'll do your best to fill this vacation dream for them.

That is such a sad story...I am sorry for your loss.

[80sGurl]

I agree, such a very sad story!! :( :( :(

 

That is such a sad story...I am sorry for your loss.

[chadbt]

Devastating. OMG! As so many have said, I'm so sorry about your situation. Maybe, with a little luck, you'll get the chance to make up the cruise...fingers crossed.

 

I am very nearly ready to book my second cruise, and had decided to skip the insurance, but I changed my mind.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[tysoncruiser]

Hi all,

 

I have a really depressing story... We were supposed to leave on a plane yesterday for Hawaii. Our cruise leaves this evening. I saw the ATA Airlines Bankruptcy announcement on Thursday, 1 day before we were supposed to leave.

 

I freaked! My tickets were no good.

 

So I literally spent from 10:15am Thursday till about 9:30pm trying to get alternate tickets. I also spent a good 4 hours on Friday making attempts to get tix... NOTHING. I went back and forth to the airport three times total and spent all day on the phone or internet with ALL the carriers.

 

I had an AMAZING deal on this cruise. I booked it with my Carnival Sea Miles credit card miles. I used up 88,000 points and basically got the lowest level room for $2099 for our family of 4.

 

The real kicker here and huge bummer?? About 3 days ago, the travel agent called and said Norwegian was trying to get rid of a Family Suite, so for $150 more per person, for the whole week, we could be upgraded. I jumped on that!! 3x the size of our original room, 2 bedrooms, a living room, large floor to ceiling french windows. We have never been to Hawaii, so we were all totally excited and I worked long and hard to make this happen.

 

It appears ALL the airlines are completely booked because of the bankruptcy of Aloha Airlines too. People are scrambling to get alternate tickets, hence I had no luck. I tried SO hard. I tried every angle, believe me. If you can find a flight, it's like $2000-$3500 round trip. That would be $8,000 plus and we just can't afford that. The soonest flights are Monday too, which is really too late.

 

So to make a long story short, we are here and not going. I am able to get a refund on the tickets because the first leg was thru US Air and they are going to refund me, which I'm thankful for.

 

Unfortunately I did not get Trip Insurance and I see where that was a huge mistake... you just never know what might happen. I am hoping that my travel agent can at least get the $600 upgrade back or even some kind of voucher to get a discount on another cruise... something! Even my 88,000 miles back?

 

Am I being unreasonable? I don't know, I guess I'm just emotional and sad about the whole thing.

 

If my agent doesn't get anywhere (and I really don't think he's trying too hard to be honest, because he'll lose a commission, I'm not happy with his response and lack of emotion at all) I have the Customer Relations number for Norwegian and I'm going to fax a letter and go from there. There's really not much else I can do.

 

That's my unfortunate story!! Thx for listening!!

 

Tina M

San Diego CA

Wow I really feel for you but at least you are home healthy and in your own beds, last week our flight was cancelled due to a snow storm, which was just the beginning, it took us 85 hrs of full stress alot of $ and no luggage to catch up to our ship, exchaused, but at least we had 8 adults, you should have seen the familys with kids, the elderly couple, terrible!