When a cruise line has to miss a stop, skip a stop, or otherwise change its itinerary, it owes passengers very little.
It has to refund any port fees and taxes as well as any cruise-line booked excursions. It does not have to compensate passengers for excursions, beach-club passes, or anything else not booked through the cruise line.
In addition, according to your cruise contract, the cruise line does not owe you any added compensation.
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The contract isn't written that way to be mean or to ensure that a cruise line faces no consequences for missing a port day. It's done so the captain can focus on the safety of the ship, its crew and passengers without having to bring revenue or business into consideration.
Some passengers, however, say they should be compensated if their ship misses a stop — even when it's replaced with one that's arguably better. And that's something Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald pushed back on in a recent post on his Facebook page.
Image source: Daniel Kline/Come Cruise With Me
Carnival owes you nothing for a missed port
"I had a lady that couldn't go to Cozumel, went to Progreso instead, and is demanding a very literal $250 onboard credit," Heald wrote.
You can practically picture his wry smile as prepares to answer.
"You know, I think it's safe to say the huge majority of people that have written to me [— and] there have been hundreds and hundreds and hundreds every day since the news on this big hurricane came [out —] that everybody has been so kind and so positive and just really want to wish everybody who are in the path of the hurricane a safe and well time because to miss a port and say you owe us $250 is, I don't know what the word is I'm looking for. I have to be really careful," he responded.
Heald pointed out that the loss was minimal.
"I'm a bit tired myself. Nonsense, silly. You know, the crew is still there. You're still getting 5-10 meals a day. Everything's working. You're not in the path of a hurricane," he added. "The captain's keeping you safe."
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He did, however, try to be sympathetic.
"I know it's disappointing to miss a port, but is it wrong of me to say you've got to put things into perspective? You really, really do have to put things into perspective," he wrote.
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