Elation cancellation
 

As someone, who had been booked and fully paid on the Elation for several months, my cruise is now cancelled. The option of getting $100 shipboard credit on another cruise is pathetic! No allowance has been made for the extra cost on another ship. No allowance has been made for the cost of changing flights or the loss of hotel booking which is now useless. Carival may have acted altruistically in providing housing, but they ALSO made a deliberate self-interested financial choice in swapping Ecstasy passengers onto Elation.

I'm sorry, but I can't agree. I was booked on the Sensation, and I think Carnival's offer is generous.

Perhaps FEMA is paying Carnival a ton of money, but it would have to be a very large amount to replace the onboard revenue from gambling, drinks, shore excursions, spa treatments, etc.

If the ship can really help people in need, then Carnival did the right thing. And if your hotel and airline act as well as Carnival did, you won't be out any money. (If not, blame them, not Carnival).

Sure, it will be a pain to have to make all of our travel arrangements over again--no question about it. True, we might not find a deal as good as the one we had (though you never know).

But compared to losing your house under a wall of water, it seems a pretty minor complaint, don't you think?

You were inconvenienced when your vacation plans were disrupted. Big deal.

The hurricane victims’ lives have been completely destroyed. They have lost their homes, jobs, possessions, but worst of all many have lost loved ones and might never get the closure of knowing what happened to them. I can’t imagine a worse nightmare. Do you have any idea how badly they would like to trade places with you?

Sorry but my sympathy lies with the hurricane victims, not the cruisers who must rebook. Put it into perspective and you will see that you got the good end of this deal.

I respect Carnival for what they are doing in order to help.

It would bother me to lose a much anticipated vacation. However under these circumstances you chalk it up to c'set la vie and move on. Carnival got $$ from FEMA but chose to bear the brunt of thousands of potentially angry passengers booked on these ships so I don't think it was that easy a decision to make. There will be another time for you but for the victims of Katrina now was of the essence. JM2C.

I am sorry you lost your vacation - but people have lost their homes and everything they own.

cfs2000,

Have you thought about getting the American Red Cross to divert some of their donations to YOUR cause?

You sound truly needy.

Ouch! But I like it. :S-

C'Mon--that was a bit harsh. Part of the point of these boards is to have a chance to vent without being taken too seriously.

You're right. Sorry for any offense.

Venting is good. I hope by venting to this board, the OP has learned that his/her disappointment is not something to get terribly upset about, especially in comparison to what others are dealing with. This is not a major loss.

We also were canceled on the Elation. I too feel more could have been offered but let's look at the extra cost as a small contribution to the helping of the victims of Katrina.

I think some of the posters have been a bit harsh. I was booked on the Ecstacy and have been moved to the Elation. If my trip had been canceled I would have been very disappointed. But that is a totally separate issue from the compassion I feel for the victims of Katrina.

I've been glued to CNN with a broken heart and have made contributions. I'm not selfish or cold-hearted. I have no doubt whatsoever that my cruise being canceled is meaningless compared to the horror others are suffering. But, I've spent countless hours for close to a year putting this trip together and it involves a group of more than fifty people.

If my cruise had been canceled it would not be a "tragedy" -- but it would be a disappointment. I'm sure I would be upset that all of the people I've coordinated and encouraged to join my group would be losing $$$ on hotels and flights. But that does not mean that I don't care about the hurricane victims. I would never want anyone to endure what they've been through -- or what lies ahead.

By the way, I find it interesting that I have never received official notification about the change in the ship. I only learned about it by going to Carnival's web site after I heard about it on the news.

One more point . . . maybe I'm jaded, but I have a hard time believing that Carnival's decision was motivated by pure altruism. But I hope it was!

I just read that Carnival's irreversible contract with FEMA for the ships netted $4,000.00 per person per month.

Well, it would have a to be irreversible--once Carnival cancels the cruise and all passengers made other plans it's not like they could turn around and fill the ship in a week. But from what I've read, it certainly looks like Carnival got a screamin' deal from the feds. and is making out like a bandit on this one. Consider:

Total payment: $236 million
Weekly payment: $9.076 million
Total cabins/3 ships (i.e., 1/2 passenger capacity): 2,778
Cost per cabin per week: $3,267

This looks to me like more than they would get on these older ships with few balconies and suites. Even if you add in drinks, gambling, etc. and you look at full capacity and high season rates, I doubt there top line would be higher. In the Sept-early December doldrums, it would certainly be lower.

Then, if you subtract out the cost savings they'll get from no port charges to pay, minimal fuel costs, and (assume) reduced or no food costs, no alcohol costs and reduced personnel costs--their bottom line looks outstanding.

Now, as Carnival uses this ships/short cruises to introduce new customers to cruising, who knows what the real long-term cost will be to them. It's aslo hard to say how much damage will be done to the ships (depending on who they end up housing--if anyone).

But no doubt they're scored big-time on this one. Say what you will about CCL, but no question they're the smartest guys in the business. They've turned a disaster that almost certainly would have lost them money into a home run.

I believe I read that FEMA assumed the cost of any refurbishments.

With Arison or Dickenson doing the negotiating, they probably have Chertoff washing their cars on Sundays as well...

Now the reported Carnival payment is "at least $192 million." I wonder if they'll get less because there doesn't seem to be much demand for people to stay on the ships...

Triathlete, are you implying that these poor, homeless people are going to be the new generation of cruisers? That they'll be living it up, drinking and playing blackjack? In that case, I hope that "After 8" is ready for the onslaught of business they should expect when all these new cruisers purchase their tuxedos!

Leona:

It's worse than that. It would appear that these poor, homeless people don't even want to go on these ships for free!

What does that say about the intelligence of us not-so-poor folk who not only pay good money but get very excited about the prospect of cruising???