What's Fair Compensation for Canceled Cruise Calls?

[navybankerteacher]

The stated compensation seemed generous - particularly since the line clearly exceeded any contractual obligations.

 

Unfortunately, there are always those who are never satisfied if so much as a cloud passes in front of the sun on their vacation.

 

Whiners will always whine.

[Azulann]

Celebrity ship" Century" had mechanical problems at the port of Corsica during our Med. cruise in Sept 08. What a place to be stranded!! We stayed a day extra in port, so we had to drop Casablanca port of call. Everyone was refunded their prepaid ship excusion costs plus each stateroom got a ship board credit based on the price of their stateroom. We got $250 and our traveling companions got $450 credit.

For me it was like free money so of course I spent it all on the ship. :DIt was still a cruise of a lifetime.

[6rugrats]

This compensation seems extremely generous.

 

I have been on five cruises and on not one did we make every scheduled port. The only compensation I have ever received was a refund of port taxes once, and one glass of champagne.

[MMDown Under]

After reading this thread I went looking for more information about this particular sailing and found that the ship in question has had continual problems since being launched in 2000. While I may not normally subscribe to the "bad luck" theory it's hard to overlook the problems that have occurred since the champaigne bottled failed to break while she was being christened:eek:

 

For this particular sailing I would expect the cruiseline should reimburse the passengers one half of their fares for this first segment of the world cruise. Some passengers will be getting off in San Franciso and others joining the cruise as it continues onto Southhampton. The cruiseline failed to provide a seaworth vehicle to those purchasing a cruise. That failure, is what caused the missed ports which the cruiseline should be responsible for. Yes, I know "should" and "are" aren't always the same thing but can't hurt to dream about a perfect world can it?;):)

 

Normally I do firmly beleive that one signs a contract when purchasing a cruise that says that no ports are guarenteed so when a port is missed becasuse of weather or health emergencies there is no required compensation. When on a ship in the ocean things happen that are simply out of anyone's control. Safety of passengers always comes first and unfortunately ports get missed and/or changed due to weather and/or health emergencies of passengers. I do think that when this happens port fees should be reimbursed to passengers and while NOT required, it is GOOD customer service to offer passengers a gesture of understanding for their disappointment in the form of an OBC in the amount of say $50 pp. While certainly NOT a requirement the goodwill that a cruiseline can earn by offering this far outweights the amount of the OBC(remembering that an OBC of $50 will actually cost the cruiseline far far less than the 50 pp in terms of real dollars because of their markups)

 

I do beleive that a ships failure to perform which causes ports to be missed should be an entirely different story than weather issues that can not be controlled by a cruiseline. When a cruiseline fails to provide a seaworth vehicle they should be held responsible for missed ports. I think it needs to be a rembursed percent of cruisefare paid back to the passengers. I'll leave it to the math experts to determine the formula for determining the amount to be refunded.:)

 

I agree with your comments.

 

 

• It depends if the company knew the ship had problems in advance and didn't share that knowledge with its passengers.
  
• It depends whether it is a world cruise or part thereof, versus if it is a 1 week cruise.
  
• It depends whether people have saved and dreamt of a world cruise for years.
  
• It depends if the cruise company wishes to maintain goodwill.
  
• You see most people don't care what is in the fine print, they just want to be treated fairly.
  

[MMDown Under]

Most folks cruise for the cruising experience and the ship---I mean, if you were THAT interested in the ports, you'd just book a vacation directly there and actually spend time in that port, without the possiblity of missing it!

 

I don't agree with your statement.

 

Many people cruise for the unique ports of call, with the rest being a bonus.

 

If you wish to travel atw, across the great oceans, visit scattered islands of the South Pacific, sail through the Panama and Suez Canals, etc. you need to cruise by ship to see these wonders of the world.

 

People understand the necessity for missing a port because of bad weather, but missing a port because of a ship needing repairs, which haven't been attended to, is another matter.

[marco]

Although I would be disappointed missing the ports you metioned you had missed, getting 500 pounds, plus refund of 4 days of cruise fare, which I would assume is even more than 500 pounds, the other perks (shuttle/open bar) and I think the opportunity to see and explore more of Austraila (asuming your not from Austraila) for 6 days with thier complimentary tours......I'd consider myself sufficently compenstated.

[Moeve]

What is concidered fair may be something different to different people and nationalities especially when one bears in mind that there are many diffent booking conditions out there for exactly the same cruise.

 

If this were a German passenger the frankfurter List would apply giving givie him at least 30% of the day rate BUT if the passenger went to court and could proove that the dropped / missed ports were an integral part of the trip form him then this passenger could infact get more. What is very signifcant about this particular case is that there were some very exotic stops which some passengers will probably never see now for many reasons (trip of a life time, flight too long, age etc.)

 

It is also very easy for those not affected to be candid but when you are affect yourself the disappointment factor plays an big role.

[eandj]

In Mid March, a damaged thrust bearing impacted the 76,000-ton, 2,000-passenger Aurora's maximum cruising speed, prompting the P&O Cruises to cancel calls in Wellington, Napier, Bay of Islands, Moorea and Papeete. Passengers spent roughly six days docked in Auckland while the ship underwent repairs.

 

No question, missing that many ports on an expensive world cruise is a depressing prospect. But P&O compensated each Aurora passenger £500 for their troubles, plus provided a prorated refund equal to four days of their cruise fares. While the ship was stuck in Auckland, the line also offered free sightseeing tours, shuttle service to the downtown hotspots, and an open bar onboard.

 

We'd like to know: Is this fair? And what do you think is fair compensation for missed ports on a cruise? Share you experiences here!

 

Our neighbor was on the Constellation (I think it was that Celebrity ship) 2 years ago when it had the propulsion problems on thier Med cruise. They ended up stranded in Italy and missing some ports. They ended up with a FREE cruise of their choice for the amount they originally paid, prorated refunds for the days they missed, as well as free exccursions etc. The passengers that wanted to fly home instead of sitting for 3 days while the ship was worked on, were given the money for the change fee on their airline fees. The passengers were very satisfied with that. Our neighbors did a N. Europe cruise last summer for FREE.

[leisuretraveler]

I am currently on this cruise by choice (RSSC Voyager World Cruise). Most of us feel we have been given the full story as we've progressed, with full knowledge that some facts might not be fully known to anyone yet regarding the propeller/pod status.

That said, we did receive our segment from Singapore to Dubai gratis. We were offered an opportunity to disembark in Dubai and fly home business class, with prorated cruise refunds, and Regent shipping back our goods, apart from what we want to carry. At that time, we had a reduced schedule to Istanbul, the next segment stop, knowing we'd be at about 2/3 speed (13-14 kn) into the Gulf of Aden. Of course, many expedition ships and others only go that speed anyhow. By the time we'd gotten to Dubai, we had a stop in Cochin, where the pod was once again looked at and it was determined that it was to be fixed only in dry dock, but that might be in Dubai, and we'd disembark for maybe a week. Regent offered 25% off the segment and 25% off a future cruise for the following segment for those who stayed to Istanbul. Furthermore, they offered to fly, anyone who wished, to the Mariner to embark their Asian world cruise, disembarking in Japan about the same day we were to originally disembark, May 8. Some people accepted this. As we arrived in Dubai, we knew nothing certain about our future travel other than we would now have to go to drydock. When we arrived in Dubai, Regent had to contend with embarking guests who had limited knowledge of these problems, who were using precious vacation time on a cruise with unknown ports. Certainly, we were not going to any ports, except Safaga and Aqaba at that point, and Safaga was cut to one day rather than two, though it's now back to two. Many simply turned around and flew back home, expenses paid, hotels, etc, and a full refund. I am not aware if they got other future cruise compensation.

In the meantime, once things were reviewed from Dubai, passengers were then offered, 50% off the rest of the trip, but we would fully disembark on April 19 or 20 (our choice) in Citi., Italy. They will fly us home, business class, and ship any goods we don't wish to carry. In the meantime, they offered guests the opportunity to stay on the Mariner til Seward or Vancouver to disembark in domestic ports respectively, extending the cruise toward the last of May. Not bad! Also, those who wish to disembark in Aqaba, may do so, and arrangements are being made to tour the pyramids, etc., and end in Istanbul with the usual travel arrangements (esp. for those who had made post travel plans in Turkey.) In addition, some guests are leaving the ship in Italy and flying to Hong Kong to connect with the Mariner, even at that point.

Regent has been making all the flight arrangements and changing other, non-Regent, flight arrangements as well. Guests who left to go to the Mariner or otherwise, from Dubai, might have had up to two nights in a very nice hotel prior to flying. Since we have gone to 50% off the section (not a segment anymore) to Italy and refund on the untraveled section, we haven't checked to see if the 25% off a future cruise still applies. I also would like to have the missing 'days' added to the loyalty program. I've been waiting for the concierge to finish the urgent business before approaching her. I am going to ask for an air credit, as I'm staying in Europeawhile.

All in all, I hate having to miss the ports due to the pod. As it was, we had to miss Roratonga due to the sea conditions, Sri Lanka for political reasons, and Abu Dhabi because they delayed the last Regent ship's checkin for a 1/2 day. We pretty much knew all that from the beginning, and as others have pointed out, it's in the ship's contract. However, all of the crew and staff are still on board (more of them than we 400+-), we are transiting the Gulf now with a full compliment of security precautions and personnel, and all is well on this 6 star ship.

The highest level Regent executives came aboard the ship in Dubai, worked out plans for the compensation, travel, contingencies, etc., for the two days we were there, and we received a letter detailing the results before they left. Is the compensation enough? From the perspective of a leisure traveler, I think Regent has exceeded anyone's expectations on this, though not everyone on board agrees.

[windsor26]

I would be happy with you got. :eek:

 

So would I incidentally at the date of the problem the 500 sterling equated to $1000 US and on top of this they got back 6 days of the cost of their cruise plus a free open bar and free tours during the stay This is good compensation On Princess last year in order to do some engine maintenance and travel slowly they 'said' it was too rough to dock in Alaska (the log said it was fair) but we di d not get any compensation

[RetireeWannabee]

Sounds like they did a good job. Cash compensation, 4 days fare refunded, free sightseeing/transport in the 'temporary port city', open bar, etc.

 

To me it sounds like they did what they could to 'make the best of a bad situation' for all involved. I would have been happy with it. Disappointed, of course, to have missed ports, but satisfied that they tried to compensate fairly.

[Moeve]

The stated compensation seemed generous - particularly since the line clearly exceeded any contractual obligations.

 

Unfortunately, there are always those who are never satisfied if so much as a cloud passes in front of the sun on their vacation.

 

Whiners will always whine.

 

Ahh you see the lines will try BUT in some countries that just won't hold water because some countries have other legal guidelines pretaining to travel and such problems. Now if the lines sell their cruises in this country then they have to abide by all the legal requirements in that country. Oh the lines have no problems going for the much tighter cancellation policies either but do try to "see" it their way. Sorry lines but you can't have it both ways.

[Traveling Bob]

I agree with some of the others - a refund of port taxes paid should be it.

 

You are on a ship, at sea. Sometimes things happen and you should realize that before you go.

 

I think it is time for a Passengers' Bill of Rights. A hundred years ago, I would have agreed that "You are on a ship." But today, with the number of people traveling, the "Not my problem" language of the passenger contract needs to be changed. Some lines have realized that sticking to the contract will loose them customers and offer compensation, but others still don't. Last December when on a NCL cruise, we missed a port and there wasn't even an apology; only the announcement that we were not stopping. They could at least given everyone a free drink!

Just as it took legislation to required airlines to give compensation for lenghty delays, cancellations and yes, failing to get the passenger to the place that they paid to go, I beleive that it is needed for ships as well.

 

As with airlines, who frequently offer more that the minimum that the law demands, ships could do the same and there still would be discussion on what is fair. But when nothing is offerred, or when damages are incurred because of the lines failure to supply the travel as advertised, its time for legislation.

[grammasan]

We just returned from a 14-day Hawaii cruise from LA roundtrip. We were supposed to have 5 ports. We only made 3, so we had ELEVEN sea days. Princess Cruises refunded a crummy $5.64 port tax for missing Kauai. We missed 40% of our ports!!!!!! They blamed it on the 'weather' to get off the hook for any compensation. The truth is there was an ENGINE FIRE on the 5th night rendering the ship to travel for the next 9 days with only three engines. Hence we couldn't get into Kauai because manuvering the ship with 3/4 engines was too difficult for the Captain. We didn't get into Ensenada in time because it took too long coming across from Hawaii with one less engine. The captain was in too big a hurry to get back to LA so he could go on his precious holiday. So much for CUSTOMER SERVICE!!! The ship is going into drydock on April 15th for three weeks. Perhaps the next passengers will be happier.

[namildog]

I think it is time for a Passengers' Bill of Rights. A hundred years ago, I would have agreed that "You are on a ship." But today, with the number of people traveling, the "Not my problem" language of the passenger contract needs to be changed. Some lines have realized that sticking to the contract will loose them customers and offer compensation, but others still don't. Last December when on a NCL cruise, we missed a port and there wasn't even an apology; only the announcement that we were not stopping. They could at least given everyone a free drink!

Just as it took legislation to required airlines to give compensation for lenghty delays, cancellations and yes, failing to get the passenger to the place that they paid to go, I beleive that it is needed for ships as well.

 

As with airlines, who frequently offer more that the minimum that the law demands, ships could do the same and there still would be discussion on what is fair. But when nothing is offerred, or when damages are incurred because of the lines failure to supply the travel as advertised, its time for legislation.

 

If the cruise lines are forced into making provision to compensate for any little (or large) thing that goes wrong for the minority of cruisers won't that simply encourage them to increase prices for everyone?

 

I agree that the no compensation lines could review their policy but it sounds as though some lines already make good to excellent efforts to retrieve an unfortunate situation.

[Hudo]

We boarded the ship in Sydney to do the ports of Wellington and Napier to Auckland. We were advised by the Captain as the ship was going directly to Auckland for repairs, that we would be compensated for the 2 missed ports. We have been back in Sydney approx 5 weeks, after several contacts with P&O by our Travel Agent, have been advised that no decision has been made by P&O for Compensation as yet. We are surprised to read that Compensation has been made when we are being told a different story.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Thouse pre-paid tours can all add up so I can understand there frustration and belive they should have these refunded if they can provide docuements proving they will be out of pocket + £500.00 etc etc

 

I don't think the cruiseline should refund you for any indy excursions you have booked. If the insurance company is willing to do so, it would be in the documentation. But it's a major reason you should double check prior to pre-booking an indy excursion as to their cancellation policy.

 

The only port we've ever missed was Kona on our last cruise. After the captain announced that we would have to skip it due to high waves, I went up to the open deck so I can see the little I can as we were moving away. Somebody said that there was a couple onboard who were going to met up with family and friends in Kona for their wedding.

[Hudo]

In Mid March, a damaged thrust bearing impacted the 76,000-ton, 2,000-passenger Aurora's maximum cruising speed, prompting the P&O Cruises to cancel calls in Wellington, Napier, Bay of Islands, Moorea and Papeete. Passengers spent roughly six days docked in Auckland while the ship underwent repairs.

 

No question, missing that many ports on an expensive world cruise is a depressing prospect. But P&O compensated each Aurora passenger £500 for their troubles, plus provided a prorated refund equal to four days of their cruise fares. While the ship was stuck in Auckland, the line also offered free sightseeing tours, shuttle service to the downtown hotspots, and an open bar onboard.

 

We'd like to know: Is this fair? And what do you think is fair compensation for missed ports on a cruise? Share you experiences here!

 

We joined the ship in Sydney to Auckland leg and missed the Ports of Wellington and Napier which was quiet disappointing to us. We were advised by the Captain that passengers would be compensated in some form by P&O at missing these 2 Ports. We have been back in Sydney 5 weeks and after several contacts with P&O by our Travel Agent, P&O have advised that no decision on Compensation has been made.

[devondel]

having read all the garbage posted re the ill-fated world cruise have decided to put the record straight having been on the ship for 93 days around the world!

Firstly, i am not a complainer. We loved the ship, its facilities, food, staff - virtually everything was more than we expected. The uprising in Auckland could have been minimised but trust and belief in the info the captain gave out was totally lost as early as S Africa.

The shuttle to Durban centre changed to a shopping mall (and back again)out of town 6 times in 30 mins. It became clear that negotiations with the mall were taking place, with the mall winning. we were counted onto the bus and reported back - Carnival clearly getting a kickback from the mall.

This occurred again the following day at Richards Bay. we were bussed to a blacks only mall. The port had been described as an "up and coming holiday retreat" - it is the second largest coal handling port in the world!

Problems with shuttles/tenders and transfers were to be commonplace in other ports but the captain continued to be patronising and condescending. Open and honest would have been much better.

Leaving Sydney he knew his port propulsion was faulty - a master mariner would have sought repairs in sydney. Instead, he limped across the tasman sea on 1 engine! Plan B would have been asking for several tugs!! He had to get to Auckland for food/passenger replenishment. A friend boarded in Auckland and when i met him, asked what he made of the news that we were going no where - he hadn't been told! We had a balcony that looked at a rusty roof for 6 days, sewage was being collected by tanker such that we could not sit out. The passengers with the master suites had mercs with drivers at their disposal, the rest of us were offered 1 x 3 hour excusion to devonport, where we had been on day 2!

The classic was the sail away party on deck when we didn't actually sal away! A prob with oil system was discovered! (likely this caused the thrust bearing failure)overall we think we lost 1 sector ie 20% but compensation to us is 9%.

[devondel]

i am an engineer and still believe the ship has problems with its port side propulsion. on a bridge visit i asked why the starboard generator was producing 20MW whilst the port was producing 12MW. The 3rd officer claimed that the meters needed calibrating, he had been in the engine room and both sets were producing the same power. Any idiot looking at the wash at the stern could see that the port propellor was doing far less than to port one. This continued all the way to southampton.

To make up time we cancelled madiera and took the short cut into the north atlantic, calling at the azores instead of madiera, towards southampton. we were late into the azores, but left on time.

In NZ, a grandma missed a wedding, another missed seeing her first grandchild. what should the compensation be for this? Many world cruisers felt it wrong to seek to sue P&O (forgetting it is now carnival), the other extreme being a full refund as " I will never again be able to afford to visit the south pacific" There are many ways of calculating an appropriate level of compensation - we lost 5 destinations out of 32 -but carnival have chosen the meanest.

However, with the sole exception of the captain, the ship, its staff, food, entertainers and facilities were first rate. Love to be able to afford it again.

Final note; If the captain had prefixed his announcements with "this is YOUR captain speaking" instead of "this is THE CAPTAIN speaking" he may have made a few more friends.

[devondel]

We boarded the ship in Sydney to do the ports of Wellington and Napier to Auckland. We were advised by the Captain as the ship was going directly to Auckland for repairs, that we would be compensated for the 2 missed ports. We have been back in Sydney approx 5 weeks, after several contacts with P&O by our Travel Agent, have been advised that no decision has been made by P&O for Compensation as yet. We are surprised to read that Compensation has been made when we are being told a different story.

we did all around world but our compensation is exactly as widely advertised ie £500 (£100 per missed port) plus extra days in auckland reimbursed. over 850 passengers seeking legal redress in UK for a better deal

[GHDPeter]

Looks like Aurora is having the same problem, reports on board that they missed Bora Bora and I received an email saying that the departure from Auckland is to be delayed 24 hrs and that the visits to Napier and Wellington have been cancelled and replaced with a day in the Bay of Islands.

 

Those on board have received compensation of OBC of £100.

[lady_cruiser]

Four days in the same port due to repairs? I would settled for free open phone lines to call back home, one or two free excursions, and refund of my port fees.

[NMLady]

Looks like Aurora is having the same problem, reports on board that they missed Bora Bora and I received an email saying that the departure from Auckland is to be delayed 24 hrs and that the visits to Napier and Wellington have been cancelled and replaced with a day in the Bay of Islands.

 

Those on board have received compensation of OBC of £100.

 

You do realize that you have responded to a thread that is almost four YEARS old?

[John Bull]

You do realize that you have responded to a thread that is almost four YEARS old?

 

 

I think the thread was was dragged out from its slumber because the same ship (Aurora) has just suffered another problem with the oily bits.;)

 

JB :)