This week my blog is more of a question.

A query if you may, on what expectations you feel you have a right to when you book a holiday.

You expect to have a good time. You expect to get into all of the ports that you have carefully chosen this cruise for. You expect the food to be good and the on board service to be great.

But more importantly, most fundamentally – you expect the cruise to actually take place!!!!

Imagine then our dismay earlier this month when Royal Caribbean announced that their 2020 sailings from Southampton on Independence of the Seas were to be cancelled as they had decided to move the ship to America for the US Market.

Imagine going about your business and then getting a call from us advising you that your well chosen, hard earned cruise was being cancelled.

As you can imagine we had some very upset and frustrated people to try and help get another cruise rebooked.

Royal Caribbean were offering a future cruise voucher worth 25% of what the original cruise fare was of the cruise on Independence to use of their next cruise. But a lot of customers booked months ago when there was a free drinks campaign on and this had now finished so were really going to struggle to find something of equal value.

Add that to the dilemma that a good number of passengers were booked on the Fjords cruise which were very very limited on the one other ship they now have planned in Southampton – Anthem of the Seas.

After searching for alternatives and having to switch some passengers to a different cruise line Royal Caribbean announced they were offering a drinks package on Anthem bookings from Southampton. Goodness me, what could this have not been in place at the time of their sudden announcement. As travel professionals it would have helped us cushion the blow when initially ringing our customers. I feel it could have been handled a lot better and more smoothly.

 

What made them make this huge decision to move the ship to the US I hear you ask?

It may be mainly down to the fact that they have just spent $250 million dollars on the newly renovated ‘Perfect Day’ at CocoCay in the Bahamas. It is promoted as a one of a kind experience with the tallest water slide in North America, viewing the island 450 feet up in a helium balloon or spend your day chillaxing in the only private overwater cabanas in the Bahamas.

Have a look at the video below from Royal Caribbean Cruises to get a taste of all that the island has to offer.

BUT should the US Market benefit from this amazing day experience to the detriment to the UK market? Are we being short changed so that Royal Caribbean can take as many passengers to the island they can to try and recoup some of the money they have spent on its development? Are they putting $$ in front of their guests from the home nations?

I would love to know your thoughts on this.

Is this move going to damage the UK customer base of Royal Caribbean?

Are people going to vote with their feet and move their cruise to an alternative cruise line?

Should Royal Caribbean be offering more in the way of an apology to its passengers based in the UK?

Or are we a small fish in a very big cruising ocean and it won’t make a difference in bookings for the UK market?