Royal Caribbean has cancelled the current voyage of Grandeur of the Seas as a result of the fire she experienced early this morning. Arrangements are being made to fly passengers to Baltimore from Freeport, Bahamas. Passengers will receive a full refund and credits towards a future cruise. Currently, there is no word on Grandeur of the Seas next voyage from Baltimore scheduled for May 31. (Update: The 5/31 voyage has now been cancelled.) Royal Caribbean issued the following statement this afternoon:
Unfortunately, the damage caused by the fire on Grandeur of the Seas will require us to cancel the rest of the voyage. We are currently working on making the necessary arrangements to return all guests to Baltimore, Maryland.
Royal Caribbean International will provide each guest with a full refund of the cruise fare paid. Royal Caribbean would also like to provide guests with the opportunity to sail with us again. We will be providing each guest with a future cruise certificate for 100% of the cruise fare paid for their May 24, 2013, Grandeur of the Seas sailing.
Royal Caribbean International is deeply sorry for this unexpected development in our guests’ vacation. We understand that this may have been a very stressful time for them. And we also know that it has significantly impacted their vacation experience. We appreciate their patience and cooperation in dealing with this unfortunate situation.
A dedicated telephone hotline has been established for family members of guests at 1-888-824-0012 or internationally at +1-408-916-9000. The cruise line requests that only families of guests use the telephone numbers in order to help ease call volume and ensure that they can receive information as quickly as possible.
Grandeur of the Seas was on a seven-night sailing that departed Baltimore, Maryland, on May 24, and had included port calls to Port Canaveral, Florida; CocoCay and Nassau, The Bahamas.
Media can stay up to date by following @RoyalCaribPR on twitter.
-MJ, May 27, 2013
Thanks, Marshall.
I agree. It felt like a safe gamble to just use the Sea/Land Passport Cards when we cruised in the past, but now I think it was not a smart idea, and next time I travel, I’ll buy a passport book before we leave.
Anyone know, what is happening with passengers with passport cards only? I’ve cruised in the past with only the card, and I saw on the news that passengers are being flown from Freeport, The Bahamas back to the United States.
It is my understanding you cannot enter the United States by air on a card only. With over 2000 passengers I have to assume SOME of them sailed on cards. What are happening to these people?
I have decided I won’t cruise again without a book!
@Steven,
While I don’t “know” this is happening, I think it is safe to assume that some level of coordination is taking place between RCL and CBP to facilitate entry for those without passports. I doubt there will be major problems. On the other hand, what if this were just a one off situation where one person needed to be evacuated back to the USA? While I don’t doubt that a situation like that can be resolved, it is just one more reason I never leave home without a passport.
Personally, I think a full refund and future cruise credit along with air transportation are sufficient. Depleted vacation days, I’d have to put in the win some lose some category. The guests did get three days of a normal cruise for free. And maybe every employer isn’t like mine, but if I returned early from a vacation, there’d be no issue with me returning to work early.
Of course, I wasn’t there and didn’t have to endure what the guests did. This is just me sitting here in my chair, comfortable on a Monday night. If there are ground transportation costs above what the guest would have endured anyway that aren’t covered, then I might have an issue with it.
I’d be interested in your opinion on the sufficiency of the compensation. Thankfully there were no injuries (AFAIK) but I’m sure losses, economically and otherwise, extend beyond just cruise fare (air/ground transportation, depleted vacation days, etc.).
When do you think they might make a decision about the cruises after this current one? What is your feeling on the amount of damaged caused by this fire…any gut impressions?
I would expect we will know about the next voyage within a day or two. I am only a wannabe sailor spit is hard for me to say about the damage. My gut instinct says that black smoke looks really bad on white paint, perhaps even worse than it is. But I would think the ship is out of service for at least two weeks. We will see what the experts say this week.
@Jane, they’ve cancelled the 5/31 voyage.