- Report: #288060
Complaint Review: Carnival Cruise Lines - Miami Florida
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Carnival Cruise Lines
www.carnival.com Miami, Florida, U.S.A.
Phone:
888-CARNIVAL
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Carnival Cruise Lines Carnival added a $70 fee after the cruise was paid for, claims it will take up to two months to refund our money Miami Florida
My husband and I booked a cruise for February in July and paid for it in full in August. We were of course then surprised to received a notice on 11/19 that our "final payment" of $70 was due by 11/27.
I called American Airlines Cruises, who we booked our cruise through to find out what this additional payment was for, as there was no explanation on the letter. The representative at AA knew immediately what it was about and explained to me that it was a "fuel surcharge."
Apparently, Carnival decided that because the cost of fuel had risen, they would would pass that cost on to their customers. Ordinarily I wouldn't see a problem with this, but the reason one books and pays for a cruise ahead of time is so that you will lock in the advertised rate. What I didn't know, because I booked over the phone, is that Carnival apparently has a clause (according to them) that gives them the right to add on any fees they want up until the time you leave. Once I discovered this, I decided to cancel the cruise immediately.
There was no assurance that if I paid the $70, they wouldn't demand more money the next week. And again the next week. Basically, in my mind it amounted to extortion. If we wanted to take the cruise that was now less than three months away, we had to give them more money than we had agreed to.
So we canceled and they agreed to waive the penalties. But here is where my complaint really kicks in. They have now had my money for five and six months. It has been 10 days since I canceled the cruise and I still haven't seen a credit on my credit card. We would like to book another vacation but need that credit before we can do so.
So I called American Airlines today to find out where our money is and why it hasn't shown up on my card. AA informed me that it can take up to TWO MONTHS before it shows up.
We are supposed to take a vacation in February. That is now only two months away. And they aren't going to give us our money back until the end of January? How are we supposed to be able to book another vacation? It only takes a few minutes to process a credit!
I will NEVER sail on any of the Carnival owned ships (Carnival, Princess, Holland America, and Cunard.) Hopefully I will get my money back someday so I get a chance to vacation with a better managed company.
Teresa
Everett, Washington
U.S.A.
I called American Airlines Cruises, who we booked our cruise through to find out what this additional payment was for, as there was no explanation on the letter. The representative at AA knew immediately what it was about and explained to me that it was a "fuel surcharge."
Apparently, Carnival decided that because the cost of fuel had risen, they would would pass that cost on to their customers. Ordinarily I wouldn't see a problem with this, but the reason one books and pays for a cruise ahead of time is so that you will lock in the advertised rate. What I didn't know, because I booked over the phone, is that Carnival apparently has a clause (according to them) that gives them the right to add on any fees they want up until the time you leave. Once I discovered this, I decided to cancel the cruise immediately.
There was no assurance that if I paid the $70, they wouldn't demand more money the next week. And again the next week. Basically, in my mind it amounted to extortion. If we wanted to take the cruise that was now less than three months away, we had to give them more money than we had agreed to.
So we canceled and they agreed to waive the penalties. But here is where my complaint really kicks in. They have now had my money for five and six months. It has been 10 days since I canceled the cruise and I still haven't seen a credit on my credit card. We would like to book another vacation but need that credit before we can do so.
So I called American Airlines today to find out where our money is and why it hasn't shown up on my card. AA informed me that it can take up to TWO MONTHS before it shows up.
We are supposed to take a vacation in February. That is now only two months away. And they aren't going to give us our money back until the end of January? How are we supposed to be able to book another vacation? It only takes a few minutes to process a credit!
I will NEVER sail on any of the Carnival owned ships (Carnival, Princess, Holland America, and Cunard.) Hopefully I will get my money back someday so I get a chance to vacation with a better managed company.
Teresa
Everett, Washington
U.S.A.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
James
Des Moines,Iowa,
U.S.A.
A bit confused?
#2Consumer Comment
Mon, August 04, 2008
Perhaps when dealing with a travel agency some things are not explained as they should be. I have traveled with Carnival the past 5 cruises now. I understand the fuel surcharge. Although it is an annoyance it does make sense. Fuel is tremendously expensive for such large ships. However, if you are booking with Carnival through their website it says right there in plain english that for each day of your cruise there will be a $5 or perhaps $7 will be added to your total cost. So a 4 day cruise is an extra $20. Even a week long cruise is only gonna be an extra $35 per person. Not exactly a deal breaker for about 99.9% of people. The fuel surcharge is a new thing. My last cruise was the first time I had to deal with it. When I purchased the cruise through Carnival.com it said for each day $5 fuel surcharge will be added to my total amount for the trip. My 4 day cruise was $229. Add $20 for a total of $249. Obviously after fed/state taxes and what not I think I paid just short of $300. The thing is when I checked out and purchased the trip it showed up on the final bill before purchasing. It broke down everthing. It said the room was $229. The taxes $xx whatever amount they were and finally fuel surcharge $20 total. It was all right there and all taken care of right then and there. This doesn't sound right at all. Perhaps travel agencies need to be more direct with their clients about the surcharge in the future. Because from my experience it is all taken care of when you purchase your vacation right away, not months later out of blue!
Cory
San Antonio,Texas,
U.S.A.
Funny
#3Consumer Comment
Sat, December 01, 2007
My Dad and his wife go on cruises all the time. He called me and told me that they had received a similar notice that there was an additional charge of $120 on a cruise they were gonna take and they too were gonna cancel their cruise because of the added cost. I asked him what the cost of their cruise was. He said "I don't remember, $3 or $4,000. What are we talking 3 or 4 percent? I wonder how many people have canceled cruises because of the surcharge? Dumb move by the cruise lines.
