OK...this is my first time on this message board...I was just looking for updates to the Ecstasy cruise for today...3/12...
I just got off the Ecstasy (3/7) earlier this afternoon...let me explain why people were so upset...
It wasn't necessarily that we weren't going to be able to port...yes that was a bit upsetting to the first-timers (like me and my husband - all we wanted to do was swim with the dolphins!!!!)...but what made everyone so mad was the deception (or the feeling of it anyway) and the lack of STRAIGHT FORWARD COMMUNICATION!!! yes we were given notice before boarding...but the options read like ....
**it was very unlikely that we wouldn't reach port...that it would just be a few hours late into Cozumel and Calica would operate as scheduled.
**and yes that we would be given a 50% refund for a cruise-to-nowhere...
**or we could choose not to board and get a full refund.
We were upset - but most took the chance....
THEN...
We received a letter in our cabin that we were to go to some place called Progresso...I never heard of it and neither did most of the passengers...those who did cringed at the thought of going. At first, there was no mention about picking up parts there - it was made to sound like we were going there FOR US!!! Only the next day did they mention that they were picking up parts there.
But here's the kicker...why people were so upset...
If we went to Progresso, we wouldn't get our 50% refund...only a 25% refund, 25% off a future cruise, $40 per person on-board credit, and $100 per stateroom credit.
Seems like a lot, but really...considering all the deception and feeling like we were in the dark...very seldom did the captain let us know what was going on...we felt like we were going to Progresso ONLY to avoid getting our 50% refund...it felt rather...(scuse my french) chicken-s**t.
And that is basically where those people are going (the 3/12 cruisers)...they changed the initial letter to list Progresso as a possible port. So those people will get jipped out of 2 ports (and beautiful ones too from what I hear) and have those 2 ports replaced by a crappy fishing port called Progresso!
And I'm sorry, but have ANY of you spent 5 days on ONE SHIP?!?!?! I mean except for the 2 actual nice days that we had (thank God for that - we at least got some sun) I was gonna go stir crazy after a while!!!!! I think if the weather was better, we would have felt a bit better, but it was overcast and cold most of the trip.
I know this problem was not their fault, they can't help that the boat had problems, they can't help that we didn't get to go to port, they couldn't help the weather either...WE ALL REALIZED THIS. But that fact was, Carnival needed to compensate us for it. They needed to take care of us. And if we went to Progresso as a port, we felt that the "package" they offerred was not enough. And it really wasn't.
So there. Hope this clears up any misunderstandings about the passengers of the Ecstasy 3/7. We were not dealt with honestly from the beginning. And morale on the ship suffered...even the staff morale was a bit low...they never got a break from US! We were on the ship the whole time - never going into port. And those poor staff members have to do it all over again with this cruise...how horrible is that!!!!
So it wasn't just about ..."oh no...another day at sea away from work"...no - it was way more than that.
OH...and after NOT going to Progresso, they went back to the 50% refund, $40 credit per person, 25% off a future cruise, but they took away the $100 per stateroom credit. Some people spent that money the night before. I thought they should have just kept that - kinda chicken-s**t (again) to take that back.
Anyway, sorry I rambled so long, I just thought everyone should know how it REALLY happened. That we weren't a bunch of whiney complaining people....which is kinda how some of you made it sound.
Thanks.
cp
