What should Carnival have done better?

[kelz66]

Just on the path of the hurricane for instance. Had I been home I know the online sites are updated every 3 hours. We heard NOTHING all day the day before the hurricane, the Carnival folks acted like nothing was going on. They put up one map dated 8 am on the map board, no further updates until after dinner, a updated map showing 7 pm was put up. You mean you dont think any Carnival folks could get online and print up a new map all day with a hurricane bearing down on Galveston?? I personally didnt have a laptop and went by the map board hourly hoping Carnival put up a new map. They also put this map on several stations on the tv, the one that wasnt updated all day.

 

Nothing was said to us all day, only rumors from one person to another. How hard would it have been for someone on the staff to get online to print up a new map and give us some hurricane updates during the day with the hurricane bearing down. Folks here say well why??? the hurricane path never changed, but we had no way of knowing that if we were not online (long line) and didnt bring a laptop.

 

Again it was the lack of information and the uncertainty many of us are complaining about, which no one who wasnt there seems to get.

 

did they cut off the major network TV feeds to your cabin?

 

It was on all 3 networks and CNN too.

 

If you wanted to know that badly couldn't you have turned on the TV in your cabin?

 

:confused:

[Abear2]

For those that were on the cruise I am sorry that you had a bad experience. I am sure most of you lost your car/vehicle at the port in Galveston. For the people that have lost a family member or friend in this hurricane you have my deepest sympathy. My opinion on the cruise that should have canceled when they called a mandatory evacuation... is that you could have canceled and not gone. I know you would have lost your money,unless you purchased the cruise insurance, but hey it's better than losing a life or vehicle. Look at these people in Houston, Galveston and surrounding towns/parishes that have lost everything they own. I mean I would have been glad just to lose my money from a cruise instead of my life or everything I own. I know this is what all these people are thinking right now. I am a two year survivor of cancer and I can promise you that I would have been happy to be complaining about losing money from a cruise, rather than my cancer. The point I am trying to make here is that if you look around, there will always be someone that is worse off than you. In my parish this is the second time in three years that half of the people flooded again. I am one of the fortunate ones that only had minor damages compared to them. I have my life and my home so I have no reason to complain. I am sorry if some of you don't agree with me, but it's my opinion.

[ryanpatricksmom]

As far as the communication issues, I can't speak to them because as the affected cruisers pointed out, we weren't there. I do think that it was an unfortunate situation which couldn't possibly have a suitable resolution, no matter who did what. I do sympathize with your plight, and certainly understand the frustration. While for many of us a few extra days onboard would be a plus, those who have work related concerns could be in quite a predicament. I cruise without my kids, so I also understand that in some cases being away from your dependents for additional days could be a problem.

 

I purchase travel insurance when sailing during hurricane season, and clearly that helps with the financial burden, but that only minimizes the negative impact when a bad situation arises, it doesn't mean that affected passengers shouldn't be unhappy.

 

I do believe that Carnival should have allowed passengers to change their cruise plans, at no charge, when the warnings were issued. While I understand that no cruiseline can control mother nature, it only seems fair that if there is a reasonable opportunity that the ship will not be able to return its passengers to the point of embarkation, then those passengers should not have been faced with the decision to lose their entire cruise fare, or sail and risk returning to a different port.

 

Having said that, I do think that parking at the Galveston port was not a wise choice. For those passengers that left their cars, while I recognize that hindsight is 20/20 and you do have my sympathy, I'll bet that next time you would park inland and take a taxi the rest of the way. We can certainly all learn a lesson there.

 

I for one, do not think that it's entirely the passengers' assumed risk for sailing during hurricane season. When a cruiseline operates during hurricane season, they also assume potential responsibilites....keeping passengers safe is a great start, but not quite good enough. Complaints regarding the airlines run rampant. I don't hear anyone saying that at least nobody fell out of the sky today in bad weather. It's understood that the Captain will keep the passengers safe. It's understood that a port can be missed or substituted. I don't think that it's understood that you can be left at a port 350 miles away from your embarkation point without some assistance. It's possible to operate within the contract and provide better customer service.

[Mio]

I think this cruise should have been cancelled. My friend and I were scheduled to go on this cruise (which would have been our 1st), but we decided not to get on that ship. It was very scary to see the way the waves were beating against the sea wall before the storm was schedule to hit Galveston. We kept calling to be sure they were still sailing and we also told them that we couldn't get on the island, but they told us to show our boarding information and we would be allowed on the island and we were. We asked if we could reschedule and they told us we would lose our money, so we just took the loss, because we begin to weigh out the what if's, what if something happens to our car, what if we can't get back to the port, what if this storm is a really bad one. I'm glad we didn't go!!!!! I think carnival made a bad decision;they ended up losing money and time by having to go to a different port and probably some good customers, but i don't think they really care because they are in the business to make money!

 

 

I agree with you, I was in the Conquest the week before with Gustav and they don't care, they don't give you the choice and don't even tell you if they are going to change the route, they wait until you are there are the port to hit you with the news. Their only botton line is to make sure to keep the money at any cost.

I called them on the Saturday30 before our cruise was leaving on the 31 and they were plain rude and all they tolm me was we don't have information because the are waiting for the captain of the ship and he is at see, that is what they told me, like if were living on the 19 century without any tipe of communication devices.

That is my story

[gemsm]

Congrats on sounding mean then, you succeeding. I am so amazed at the lack of compassion on this message board and folks who were not there, but so willing to say Carnival was not at fault in any way for not communicating with us.

 

 

Firefly -- I never said Carnival was not at fault in any way...I said is that my guess (and yes it is a guess) is that Carnival could not communicate much to you because they didn't know much. I have been at ground zero when a major hurricane comes through....I was in Port Charlotte when Charley landed there and believe me communication is not readily available.

 

I understand that people were upset that CCL didn't tell them what was going on I was just trying to point out to you guys that they might not have been able to because they themselves didn't know what was going on.

 

The thing I was annoyed about was the people that were complaining that Carnival didn't help them with their independent air travel and that they didn't provide transportation back to Houston or Galveston. I know they did eventually provide transport back to Houston but it probably took them a few days to coordinate the logistics of that and I don't believe any cruise line is responsible to provide free transportation to the port from any airport. Even if you book air through the cruise line you still pay for the transfers to and from the airport.

 

I'm sorry you had a bad vacation and lost your car but to tell you the honest truth knowing what those people in Texas are going through and how bad a lot of them fared...to me a bad vacation pales in comparison.

[VolzCruiser]

Over and above misinterpreting what folks said .... didn't you say you dont have the money to cruise for at least several more years?? That you have no cruises booked any time soon? You are just hanging around here to hassle folks and post negative thoughts because you are too broke to cruise yourself.... at least judging from your posts for quite a while, they are all negative.

 

I guess I should laugh, the folks WHO WERE ACTUALLY ON THE CRUISE are posting to the topic and no matter what they say, someone who wasnt there feels impeled to say our viewpoints arent valid. Lets not let Carnival's reputation be tarnished, folks will fight to the death supporting Carnival. People who werent there all think they are experts on the fact that Carnival couldnt have done anything else, they were perfect, Carnival cant learn from the experience at all. If Carnival cant learn from the experience, then they deserve the PR hit. No company is perfect, surprise surprise folks.

 

 

Why is that someone who doesn't agree with you being mean or negative. I read the same post and I don't see it as being mean or negative just a statement of an opinion. Also attacking someone doesn't help your case it just makes you look like the mean and bitter person.

 

While I don't feel your viewpoints are invalid cause they are your opinions and that make them valid to you and to others that shared your experience. But as with all things there is another side to the story and you don't have that nor do I and we will probably never have the whole story. We have yours and Debe story we also have accounts from other people as well and again different stories. I feel you and Debe had to deal with alot along with all the others on those ships also i am sure others are looking at bigger picture.

[marktac]

And let me guess...she happened to be one of those folks that Carnival used the additional time booking OUT of NOLA while withholding information from the rest of us pax NOT booked with Carnival Flight arrangements so they would NOT have to pay additional expenses while THEY waited to get a flight out....

 

Boy, Deb, I guess you wouldn't be so paranoid if everybody wasn't out to get you! :)

 

We've actually seen responses from about 6 or 7 people on CC that were on the ships (out of some 5000 or so), and the responses have been night and day. Some feel things were spiraling out of control, while others feel they were kept well informed throughout.

 

If you don't want folks to bash you because of your opinions, why are you bent on bashing others who appear to have dealt with things differently (dare we say "better") than did your group? I've not bashed you, nor do I intend to...I wasn't there. I know that there is some truth out there somewhere as to what really went on, and you are explaining your side of things. Let others explain their perspective as well, please.

[JHarry]

This is why i do not cruise during hurricane season. I always take my cruises from late november thru february. I have been on a cruise and was chased by a tropical storm the whole way to port, not fun. I feel for the people who were stranded and lost their cars at Galveston.

[Times Prince]

There were two questions mixed in the one survey.

 

Carnival Ecstasy should have offered passengers a cancellation option when the storm was imminent. We know of one passenger who opted to evacuate Galveston with their auto, sacrificing the cruise w/o travel insurance.

 

The second question (or first) deals with how they handled passengers on board. Given the Houston/Galveston situation (many areas still don't have power after almost a week) they did what was possible in diverting to New Orleans and offering passengers the chance to debark in something other than a disaster area.

 

Carnival honored their passengers' choice for personally planning their own air transportation.

[Richard in Panama]

I think the POLL is flawed because it only allows ONE answer. I think Carnival's only financial responsibility was to passengers who booked air with the cruise line. Whenever you book your own air you are taking the risk. Sometimes you can find cheaper flights, but you own the risk. I think cruise lines always need to communicate more with guests, particularly when decisions are going to impact guests. I think in these situations cruise lines should assist guests who did not book air with the cruise line as much as possible, but the added costs, if any, are the guest's responsibility.

 

So no one poll selection works for me.

 

Regards, Richard

[scrappinannie]

I said Carnival should have given people the OPTION to cancel or sail only because the people who drove down were putting their personal vehicles at risk.

 

You are correct in the fact that any time a cruise line like Carnival elects to support the Galveston economy 12 months out of the year instead of cherry picking only the months that will cause the least amount of headaches...they are going to have to deal with these kinds of issues. And I think Carnival does the best they can.

Before I address the question, I had to comment on this:

 

You take a risk parking your vehicle in ANY lot, not just a cruise ship terminal lot during hurricane season. The damage done to those cars is in no way Carnival's fault and they should not be responsible for paying for damages sustained while those cars were parked in that lot. Period.

 

Now, on to the question at hand. I wasn't on the ship, so I don't even know what happened or what passengers were being told (or not told), but if I was onboard I would have expected Carnival to communicate early and often. Passengers should have been allowed a certain number of free phone calls or internet minutes to secure alternative travel arrrangements. If they purchased their air and/or transfer services through Carnival, then yes, Carnival should have stepped up to offer to get those passengers to their final destinations at no additional charge. Refunds should not even be an option. Read the fine print. Carnival reserves the right to change intineraries and arrival and departure ports at any time. In fact, you got an even better deal this time around because you ended up extending your cruise. Whether or not you enjoyed your extension isn't carnival's problem. Safety is their number 1 concern, as it should be. Everyone who booked on their own should have been given first opportunity to make those changes in travel plans as soon as Carnival knew of the port/itinerary change.

 

I don't quite understand why you'd want to return to Galveston in the first place. Ok, your car is there, you had flight/hotel reservations nearby. Guess what? Those don't exist anymore! The area has been wiped clear off of everything that was once there and it's unsafe, unsanitary, devistated. There's nothing to go back to. And even if you are a resident there, or nearby, you aren't going to be allowed back to your homes yet anyway. I don't understand wanting to be returned to this port when it's been so completely devistated just because "Carnival promised a cruise to and from Galveston."

 

I don't mean to sound insensitive. Certainly there were residents onboard these ships that were very worried about their homes and their families and for that reason truly did want to be returned to the Port of Galveston, but it's not those people I'm referring to. I'm referring to the "Carnvial owes me a refund because I cruised during hurricane season," people, therefore, I voted that Carnival should have communicated more frequently.

[LHP]

I don't know how the folks on the Ecstasy feel....

 

but as for the Conquest....

 

this is just in from John Heald's Blog.

 

Jen, the Cruise Director, wrote this to John.

sorry...I can't get the pictures to post...to see the pictures ...

you will have to go to:

 

http://johnhealdsblog.com/2008/09/19/a-big-sheet/

 

 

HI John,

 

We disembarked the guests this morning in Houston and it was very sad as this certainly has been a cruise to remember.

 

This is what happened on the last night of the cruise. We only had 362 guests left on board from our departure from New Orleans. The final show was in the back lounge at 10pm with comedian Carl Guerra, and I had told my Entertainment staff that we’d hang around after the show to chat with the guests as they’ve been so lovely all cruise………….well little did I know!

 

As I was taking the comedian off he actually passed the mic on to one of the guests, who then asked me to sit down at the front as they proceeded to do a whole presentation to myself and the entire crew. They had written a really nice song that involved all the other guests in the lounge…they had written all about the entire crew on board. They also sang a song to the theme of Gilligan’s Island…very funny! I’m usually pretty strong with emotional stuff, but my eyes filled up and I just couldn’t help myself as this has been a really tough 11 days and this gesture was just incredible.

 

They had a bed sheet that they had everyone on board sign (all 362 guests) here’s a picture…..All of the guests stayed around and I felt like Britney Spears with all the photographs being taken. I think everyone on the ship came over and hugged me.

 

My staff and all of the crew involved have been so fabulous…..I am really really sad to leave on Sunday!

 

Here’s some pictures and copy of the song.

 

Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale

The tale of a Fun ship Cruise

That started out of Galveston

For a 7-day tour …for a 7-day tour

 

The crew of the Carnival Conquest

With a captain brave & sure

Were set to give their very best

And take care of us, too

…and take care of us, too

 

The weather started getting rough

The big Fun Ship was tossed

If not for the courage of the Carnival crew

The Conquest would be lost

…the Conquest would be lost.

 

Ike kept us out of Galveston

We went to New Orleans

Then on to Bayport Terminal

To end our Fun ship cruise

…to end our Fun ship cruise

 

To Jen and Capt. Marino

And all their staff & crew

Who helped us through this stressful time

You have our gratitude

…our thanks and gratitude.

[Kurbanfan]

You Know that is really cool.......but what about the other 2,500 people that got screwed:confused: :rolleyes:

[Kurbanfan]

Before I address the question, I had to comment on this:

 

You take a risk parking your vehicle in ANY lot, not just a cruise ship terminal lot during hurricane season. The damage done to those cars is in no way Carnival's fault and they should not be responsible for paying for damages sustained while those cars were parked in that lot. Period.

 

Now, on to the question at hand. I wasn't on the ship, so I don't even know what happened or what passengers were being told (or not told), but if I was onboard I would have expected Carnival to communicate early and often. Passengers should have been allowed a certain number of free phone calls or internet minutes to secure alternative travel arrrangements. If they purchased their air and/or transfer services through Carnival, then yes, Carnival should have stepped up to offer to get those passengers to their final destinations at no additional charge. Refunds should not even be an option. Read the fine print. Carnival reserves the right to change intineraries and arrival and departure ports at any time. In fact, you got an even better deal this time around because you ended up extending your cruise. Whether or not you enjoyed your extension isn't carnival's problem. Safety is their number 1 concern, as it should be. Everyone who booked on their own should have been given first opportunity to make those changes in travel plans as soon as Carnival knew of the port/itinerary change.

 

I don't quite understand why you'd want to return to Galveston in the first place. Ok, your car is there, you had flight/hotel reservations nearby. Guess what? Those don't exist anymore! The area has been wiped clear off of everything that was once there and it's unsafe, unsanitary, devistated. There's nothing to go back to. And even if you are a resident there, or nearby, you aren't going to be allowed back to your homes yet anyway. I don't understand wanting to be returned to this port when it's been so completely devistated just because "Carnival promised a cruise to and from Galveston."

 

I don't mean to sound insensitive. Certainly there were residents onboard these ships that were very worried about their homes and their families and for that reason truly did want to be returned to the Port of Galveston, but it's not those people I'm referring to. I'm referring to the "Carnvial owes me a refund because I cruised during hurricane season," people, therefore, I voted that Carnival should have communicated more frequently.

 

 

Who are you referring to:confused: Who is asking for a refund:confused:

[BIGDADDYRICH]

Got Screwed = Choices

[BIGDADDYRICH]

Just Sometimes You Get Lousey Choices.

 

But Life Continues For Some Of Us

[Jemery]

As I read the comments of the folks who weren't on either of the ships, I am reminded of the movie Airplane, when the commentator says, "Shanna, they bought their tickets, they knew what they were getting into. I say, let 'em crash."

 

Carnival used to have a reputation for acting proactively whenever anything went even slightly wrong on one of their cruises so that the cruisers went home with an attitude of at least they did something for us; this time, they seem more like Rhett Butler in Gone With the Wind: "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn."

[Mikel1733]

As I read the comments of the folks who weren't on either of the ships, I am reminded of the movie Airplane, when the commentator says, "Shanna, they bought their tickets, they knew what they were getting into. I say, let 'em crash."

 

Carnival used to have a reputation for acting proactively whenever anything went even slightly wrong on one of their cruises so that the cruisers went home with an attitude of at least they did something for us; this time, they seem more like Rhett Butler in Gone With the Wind: "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn."

 

 

Not sure how many cruises you have been on. My first cruise with Carnival was 1992 and last was 2007. Frankly, they haven't changed.....they are great in my opinion. Let me know what industry or political group is doing a better job today than 5, 10, 15, 20 years ago.

[newcatintown]

No one can please all the people all the time. Get over it.

[eltigre]

The Ecstasy Sept 15th sailing people were disapointed & certainly we were getting antsy with all that waiting until Sunday night 7 pm for an answer are we going, aren't we going Monday

 

We came from near & far & all had to make other arrangements.

Some who live in the area spending their holiday with no water, sewer, communications or power.

 

However, non of us in that Roll Call have blamed Carnival for anything.

Knowing the season was 1 storm after another ( I booked back in January & hadn't anticipated such a bad Sept)we took our chances.

 

I think Carnival has done an outstanding job considering the circumstances were much more severe than most of us anticipated.

[gemsm]

I originally saw this story on NBC and all I could think of was I hope no one who lost everything in Galveston is watching this. I thought it was pretty insensitive to run a story about people having a bad vacation experience when a lot of people lost everything they owned.

[LHP]

You Know that is really cool.......but what about the other 2,500 people that got screwed:confused: :rolleyes:

 

And you know the other 2,500 thought they "got screwed" because you talked to each and every one of them????

 

Or just wishful thinking on your part.

how sad

[scrappinannie]

I'm referring to the general consensus of passengers who feel they are entitled to refunds when their itineraries get changed from the originals. Sorry, I know I wasn't clear on that. It was a general statement, not meant to represent those passengers affected by Ike. Just seems there are a fair amount of people I've come across on other threads believing or thinking cruise ship companies owe them for changes in plans. Not trying to be harsh, just trying to prove a point....traveling is a risk, we all make choices when we travel and we have to assume responsibilty for our choices.

[UFQ202]

OK I was one of the people on the Conquest and this is what I wish Carnival would have done to make a difficult time easier.

 

1. Keep us informed, even if all you can tell us is we don't know or we are still talking with Miami about the situation. We had CNN but once the worst was over the coverage was limited. The Denver stations only showed a small story so no help there. People were very anxious and just wanted to know we mattered. If they would have just kept up a current hurricane map would have helped alot.

 

2. After the announcement was made we would be going to New Orleans on Monday it was not announced we could make a free call from our cabin. If you went to the Pursers desk they would tell you but otherwise we found out from other passengers. The ship has only 14 lines so this was limited. Give us free INTERNET use or if they didn't want to make the INTERNET use free then they could have given people 10 or 15 minutes free for arrangements for their travel home. The line to use a computer was awful. I am sure they could have rounded up some laptops for use and had extra staff in the INTERNET café to help keep an eye on the laptops. Cell phones could be used but with so many people trying to call out it was not easy getting a signal.

 

3. I don't think it was Carnival's responsibility to get anyone home but they knew we would not be going to Galveston by AM on Sunday morning. At that time they should have been getting the 1-800-#'s to the airlines and car rental places. This way when the announcement was made at PM the information would have been available instead of people having to wait or try to get it on their own. Yes they did say we could stay on the ship but they were very unclear about that. No problem staying until Tue morning but they could not give a clear idea when or where we would go after that. Most people choose to go home at that point since many had go get back to work.

 

4. Once we arrived at the port of New Orleans it would have been nice if they had provided the buses to the airport. I am sure the company would have done a head count of those using the bus and then charged Carnival later. The buses were not expensive but it would have been nice.

 

Basically they really need to work on keeping the passengers informed at all times. This is just what I think that the Conquest and Carnival could have done. I do want to thank the CD Jen for trying so hard and appreciate all she did. Yes I did choose to cruise during Hurricane season but I did what I could to protect myself. I was lucky in that my oldest son was able to come to Galveston and take my car home. I purchased travel insurance and made sure I had important phone #'s with me. Once the announcement was made I was able to call Southwest and change my flight from Houston Hobby to leave out of New Orleans. Yes I plan on writing all this to the people at Carnival and I will be cruising with Carnival again. Like my DH has told me before Hurricanes are a fact of life.:)

[dan40]

Looking at the results of this poll and thinking that Carnival might know similar outcomes, from past experience, that 70% to 80% would damn them no matter what they did.

If YOU MUST do something and YOU know that 70 or 80% of people will damn you no matter what you do. Do you do all you can or do you do what is best for you?

 

 

 

The poll is completely unfair. It is done from the perspective of 20/20 hindsight. The results would be spectacularly different if done a day or 2 before the cruise. Carnival and ALL other lines that cruise the Carib. have left homeport a day or 2 before a storm hundreds of times.

 

Hurricanes are "Acts of God," they are not "Acts of Carnival."

 

Dan