Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines Denied Boarding At The PIER! Port Canaveral Florida
1st, understand we are not world travelers. In fact we barely ever get out of town. But I wanted to fufill a 20+ year promise to my wife and finally give her that anniversary cruise she wanted. This was our 27th.
We understood that a Birth Certificate was legal proof enough for citizenship in the US for a weekend Bahamas cruise. And it is. And I thought I had the proper documentation. At least it was 29 years ago when we went to the Bahamas. But with homeland security the way it is, apparently it is not good enough anymore.
What I thought was our birth certificates from the State of Pa. that were handed to us by our parents many many years ago were actually only legal notifications that they were on file in the state. Ok, my mistake. Who knew. Fortunately, there were options in place to resolve these issues. We were told we could either have the state of PA. fax our certified certificates to the pier or produce our childs certificate because our names were on it. Here is where the things got sticky.
Although some states do, I found that the state of PA. would by no means fax our birth certificates anywhere! When I explained our situation and then questioned why, I was told thats the way it is. Some reason! I did find out however during our argument with the state, that in the 80's they started to send out those certifed birth cetificates. My kids were born after the 80's and I thought ok We're saved.
I was told at the pier they would except my daughters state certified birth certificate with the raised seal because our names were on it. I called my daughter and had that document faxed to the pier. Even though it said the "Commonwealth of Pennsylvania" across the document, It had the required certified raised seal, our names were of course on it, and it said "This is a certifed copy of the origional birth certificate" right on it, it was DENIED at the pier by the employee because the letter "PA" were not next to our names!
I asked her to clarify this, even though I presented the legal document required for us to board that boat, because of the way the document was formatted, which I had no control over, I was being denied our anniversary cruise.
I was out of options, My wife a blubbering mass crying for over 3 hrs sitting in a chair. And even though they don't accept hospital certificates I had my daughter fax it anyway because it DID state our names with the letters "PA" next to our names. But... since it was not legal... it was ALSO denied.
Ok, I understand the homeland security thing. But I felt this was obviously being carried too far! There was absolutely no common sense or logic being applied here. And when I asked the woman at the pier for a superior to talk to, I was DENIED that as well!!!!
At this point I realized there was NOTHING I was going to able to do to resolve this. So I asked for my luggage to be returned and of course my money refunded. I was given a number to call. When I asked for my refund I was denied that as well! The BEST they were going to be able to do is give me a 75% credit on another cruise? WHAT? They wouldn't let me on the FIRST one!!! We didn't miss the boat, THEY WOULDN'T LET US ON!!! And to top it off, when our luggage was returned eventually, it was destroyed. Sodas and water we were told to pack on the recommendation of our husbands travel agent, well two of the sodas were literally torn open at the seams and the clothing & suitcase ruined. Something that just couldn''t happen by accident.
I never felt more like a second class citizen in my life! And never felt more abused. What STUPIDITY we just endured! Not only after a 10 hour drive, was our anniverary ruined, but I was stuck in Florida without a hotel room, and out my cruise money besides. After checking into a dive for a hotel room, we tried to salvage was was left of our weekend.
My point to all of this is yes, we made a rookie mistake. And there were options in place to resolve it. But when we provided that legal document that was supposed to solve all this, it was denied anyways! A poor judgement call from an employee at the pier. If we would of not provided the legal documentation necessary to board that boat, I would of went home calling this a lesson learned. But we DID provide what was legally necessary and was denied anyways in the name of homeland security? That's all we kept hearing.
If they have an issue with the state of PA, well then they should take it up with them! 2 letters missing in the wrong place? Give me a break!
I have written letters to my travel agent, the CEO of the cruise line, Filed a formal complaint with the line, And written a couple of lawyers familiar with the cruise lines. It's been 10 days. As of today , no one has yet responeded.
I spent alot of time and money preparing for this trip, And alot of fuel getting there. And I don't think a 75% coupon for another cruise that I apparently cannot get on anyways is satisfactory compensation for what ridiculous bureaucracy we endured. NO US citizen should be treated in this manner.
If we were wrong, and I'm missing something, someone please let us know. I will drop this. But if we DO have a legal leg to stand on and you can help us, please let us know. Thank you.
Bruce
Cumming, Georgia
U.S.A.
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7 Updates & Rebuttals
Ripped off.
Montréal,,Quebec,
Canada
It's always someone else's fault...
#8Consumer Comment
Wed, June 27, 2012
The problem with Caribbean Cruise Lines and others like it is that they shift the blame to subcontractors or simply try to make you pay through the nose for so-called "employee errors". In my case, they first tried to blame the vendor (who definitely identified themselves as Caribbean Cruise Lines), Summer Vacation Experience, 21001 N Tatum Blvd #1630-192, Phoenix, AZ 85050. Then when I carefully confirmed step-by-step several times, (I recorded it all and have employee names, dates and times with all the other details) they repeatedly confirmed everything i had booked, including upgrades, and claimed i didn't owe another cent. Later, a phone call said I owed several hundred more or my vacation would be cancelled. That's when the lies, misrepresentations and contradictions got worse! They do everything to make it seem easier than it is and then wash their hands of you!
Mich49285
Stockbridge,Michigan,
U.S.A.
Take your own responsibility
#8Consumer Comment
Tue, January 27, 2009
As a United States citizen, it is your responsibility to find out the exact requirements before-hand when leaving he country. This is totally your responsibility, and you need to take ownership for your actions. This is no one's fault but your own.
The U.S. makes it so easy to obtain a passport, and regardless of how things were 20 years ago, you should have obtained passports for everyone leaving the country. What a hard lesson to learn, but a little bit of research up front would have resolved this issue with no problems at all.
Karl
Clovis,New Mexico,
U.S.A.
Passport Required
#8Consumer Suggestion
Tue, June 24, 2008
It is my understanding that a Passport is required for all international travel. 29 years ago when you made your trip it was not. I'd suggest leaving your birth certificates where they belong in a safe deposit box and obtaining passports for you and your family.
Michael
Summerland Key,Florida,
U.S.A.
So, where is the ripoff?
#8Consumer Comment
Thu, June 05, 2008
Let me get this straight. You are blaming the cruise line for something that YOU overlooked? What did you expect them to do? Were they supposed to make an exception to a DoHS rule just for you? That doesn't make any sense. Listen, I'm sorry your vacation was ruined. But this is your fault. The cruise contract specifically lists what you need to have in order to board the ship. This is not a lake boat ride. It is an international voyage. It requires extensive preparation. BTW, a faxed copy is not a "legal document."
Steve
Tucson,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Your argument is not with the Druise Line
#8Consumer Suggestion
Wed, May 28, 2008
It is with the US Department of Homeland Security. These are USDHS rules, not the cruise line's. If you had read the information the cruise line made available to you when you booked the cruise, or at any time since, you would have known this, and you would have known what documents you need. The cruise line also has all this information available on their web site. You have a computer and internet access to make this complaint, you might have used that same computer and internet access to visit the cruise line's web site and check what you needed.
I am sailing on Carnival in 4 days. The documents I need to sail are listed in the brochure I was given which helped me choose the particular cruise, on the Carnival web site and in the Boarding Documents I was sent. I cannot believe RCI is any different.
Admit it - you screwed up. Giving you a chance to get your passports and 75% off on another cruise is pretty good compensation. If you read the Contract of Passage that is part of your cruise documents you will see that that RCI really owed you nothing. They could not re-sell your empty cabin.
Steve
Tucson,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Your argument is not with the Druise Line
#8Consumer Suggestion
Wed, May 28, 2008
It is with the US Department of Homeland Security. These are USDHS rules, not the cruise line's. If you had read the information the cruise line made available to you when you booked the cruise, or at any time since, you would have known this, and you would have known what documents you need. The cruise line also has all this information available on their web site. You have a computer and internet access to make this complaint, you might have used that same computer and internet access to visit the cruise line's web site and check what you needed.
I am sailing on Carnival in 4 days. The documents I need to sail are listed in the brochure I was given which helped me choose the particular cruise, on the Carnival web site and in the Boarding Documents I was sent. I cannot believe RCI is any different.
Admit it - you screwed up. Giving you a chance to get your passports and 75% off on another cruise is pretty good compensation. If you read the Contract of Passage that is part of your cruise documents you will see that that RCI really owed you nothing. They could not re-sell your empty cabin.
Steve
Tucson,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Your argument is not with the Druise Line
#8Consumer Suggestion
Wed, May 28, 2008
It is with the US Department of Homeland Security. These are USDHS rules, not the cruise line's. If you had read the information the cruise line made available to you when you booked the cruise, or at any time since, you would have known this, and you would have known what documents you need. The cruise line also has all this information available on their web site. You have a computer and internet access to make this complaint, you might have used that same computer and internet access to visit the cruise line's web site and check what you needed.
I am sailing on Carnival in 4 days. The documents I need to sail are listed in the brochure I was given which helped me choose the particular cruise, on the Carnival web site and in the Boarding Documents I was sent. I cannot believe RCI is any different.
Admit it - you screwed up. Giving you a chance to get your passports and 75% off on another cruise is pretty good compensation. If you read the Contract of Passage that is part of your cruise documents you will see that that RCI really owed you nothing. They could not re-sell your empty cabin.