Comments on Reviews

I have been pleasantly surprised by some of the "perks" that Princess has handed out when something has gone wrong (E.g. $50 per person per cabin when we had to evacuate the cabin briefly while Medivac could bring the helicopter in; $50 per person per cabin when we couldn't maneuver Catalina Island and rerouted to San Diego for the day). In the one case, they certainly couldn't help that someone had a heart attack and in the second case, they would have endangered the lives of everyone by trying to use tenders on a very rocky ocean.

They didn't have to do anything technically / legally but I believe they do their best to promote customer loyalty.

And that is why Carnival usually reimburses passengers when a major change is made or allows them to cancel without penalty. If a port is miss, generally, the port fees and taxes are refunded. They need not do that, but they do. As far as things not booked through Carnival, I do not think they should be liable for them. I get frustrated with people that think the cruise line must pay for everything that goes wrong. For example, if a drunk spills a drink on me then Carnival must pay to have my clothes cleaned because they served the guy a drink. As Vickie put it "ship happens".

I must admit that I have a soft spot for Carnival and their desire to make things right. Early in our cruising "career" we booked the Holiday (sentimental reasons - our first ship) out of San Juan to do the Southern Caribbean. Now this was before you could do everything on line and the dancing of the ships was not easy to see; Carnival decide to replace the Holiday with the Destiny. We got a call asking if we would like to cancel and get all our money back (not including air) or sail on the Destiny or sail on the Holiday at it's new port of embarkation (don't even remember what that was). We chose the Destiny and we were upgraded to our first balcony for our inconvenience. We did not whine to get this, but now people seem to complain when things are not as perfect as they think they should be.

Your point is well taken.... but the customer isn't always right.

Sorry! Off my soap box now.

Don't get me wrong, I'll be upset like everyone on here if something happened and plans got changed. But, I'm going to try to make the best of it by looking to try to make it work before I cancel a cruise. I purchase no reason insurance and I know I'll be get it refunded which is what this person should of when booking or they wouldn't be so upset. Vacations getting canceled is a hard thing to do, but I'm not going to cancel over a change in ports.

What is your views on the air lines when they leave thousands of passengers stranded due weather, flight crew going illegal (flights hours expired) aircraft maintenance, ticket computers failing or whatever reason, should they be paying to house and feed all those passengers?

My point is that when a business leans on these "escape clauses" they go out of business - or at least - ought to.

I agree but my point is that it is crystal clear to anyone booking a cruise that "ship happens" and if that is not okay with them, don't book the cruise!

Yikes. Caveat Emptor is right!

I have not sailed on Carnival recently but in the past i was quite satisfied with the food, service, entertainment & activities.

This seems pretty clear to me ... And doesn't seem to be "fine print". Caveat Emptor.

7. RIGHT TO DEVIATE FROM SCHEDULED ROUTE, CHANGE PORT OF EMBARKATION/DISEMBARKATION, SUBSTITUTE TRANSPORTATION, CANCEL CRUISE AND ACTIVITIES, AND CHANGE OR OMIT PORTS OF CALL; SUBSTITUTION.

Except as otherwise provided, Carrier may, for any reason, without prior notice, cancel the cruise; deviate from the scheduled ports of call, route and timetable; call or omit to call at any port or place or cancel or modify any activity on or off the ship; comply with all governmental laws and orders given by governmental authorities; render assistance to preserve life and property; or change the date or time of sailing or arrival, change the port of embarkation or disembarkation, shorten the Cruise or substitute ships, aircraft or other transportation or lodging. Accordingly, You should not make any important arrangements or meetings based on the scheduled Cruise, which may change without liability to Carrier. Furthermore, the Master of the ship as well as the operator of any other means of transportation may, in his/her sole discretion, take any action deemed necessary for the safety, security, comfort, or well-being of any person or to prevent damage to or loss of the ship.

You had to ask - lol