Cruise Fiascos

Cruise Fiascos: Dramatic Tales and Essential Tips

Dive into the dramatic world of cruise mishaps with our “Cruise Fiascos” category. These articles from the Consumer Rescue case files recount real-life stories of unexpected and often chaotic events that have befallen cruise ship passengers. From being banned from future cruises to dealing with onboard disputes, these cautionary tales are both entertaining and educational. Alongside each story, you’ll find practical tips and guidance to help you avoid similar situations, ensuring your next cruise is smooth sailing. Learn from cruise ship passengers’ experiences and make your cruise adventures trouble-free.

If you have a problem with a cruise line that you can’t resolve, contact the Consumer Rescue advocacy team. We’ll investigate and help you, too! Our assistance is always fast, friendly, and, best of all, free of charge!

Norwegian Cruise Line Joy, a cruise ship in the Caribbean, NCL cruise ship

Norwegian Cruise Line received a refund for our canceled flight. Is that fair?

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Norwegian Cruise Line handled all the details of Caleb and Karyssa Deslich’s honeymoon trip. So when American Airlines canceled their outbound flight, they expected NCL to come to the rescue. That didn’t happen, and the couple almost missed their Caribbean cruise.

Almost.

The Desliches came to their own rescue and spent an additional $700 on a replacement flight. They flew to Miami and arrived just in time to board Norwegian Joy before it set sail. 

The couple assumed Norwegian Cruise Line would automatically refund either their canceled flight or the replacement one. But that didn’t happen.

Now Deslich is asking the Consumer Rescue team to intervene and get their money back. He says an NCL agent promised to send the $700 refund and then reneged on the deal.  

So what does the cruise line have to say about the missing refund for the canceled flight? The answer will probably surprise you.

River cruise ship in Europe, Vantage Travel River Splendor ship.

How did I lose a credit card chargeback against a bankrupt company?

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There’s something very fishy going on with Eileen Whalen’s lost credit card chargeback against bankrupt tour operator Vantage Travel. It’s unclear who from the out-of-business company is fighting customer chargebacks for cruises it canceled, but someone is. 

Whalen was plunged right into the middle of this bizarre mystery last month. That’s when a strange chargeback response allegedly from Vantage Travel caused Capital One to reject her valid credit card dispute.

In that rambling missive, the grammatically and factually challenged anonymous author claimed Vantage Travel hadn’t canceled any cruises in September. To add insult to injury, the letter implied Whalen was misusing the credit card dispute process. In summary, it asked Capital One to return the funds to the bankrupt tour operator.

And that’s what happened.

Holland America cruise ship Volendam

Holland America put our luggage on the wrong cruise ship! Now what?

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Kin Wong planned a special Holland America cruise to celebrate his wife’s 61st birthday. Unfortunately, things went awry on Day 1 of the trip when the cruise line delivered the couple’s luggage to the wrong ship. Soon, the Wongs were cruising to Alaska on HAL’s Volendam, but their clothes were sailing on the Sapphire Princess instead.

Despite repeated assurances from Holland America that the cruise line would quickly correct its mistake, it didn’t. In the end, the couple cruised for six days without their clothes. 

Now, Wong is asking for Consumer Rescue’s help. He says Holland America ruined the birthday cruise meant to celebrate his wife’s birthday – and he wants compensation. Wong figures Holland America should refund $2,000 to make up for their unpleasant experience.

But what does a cruise line really owe a passenger if it loads their luggage onto the wrong ship?

The answer will likely surprise you.

This is a ship on the ocean owned by the company Vantage Deluxe World Travel.

Vantage Deluxe World Travel: Here are the true tales from bewildered customers

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Attention Vantage Deluxe World Travel customers: The news isn’t good if you’ve got a trip planned with this tour operator. The unfortunate reality is that you might not be going anywhere. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, my consumer advocacy team has been fielding a heavy volume of Vantage Travel complaints. But recently, the number of pleas for help from customers of the troubled tour operator has skyrocketed. 

On April 21, things went from bad to worse. That’s when the Vantage Travel website suddenly went offline and its phone system stopped working. Simultaneously, the administrator of the tour operator’s Facebook page disabled commenting.

But not before angry Vantage customers began sharing disturbing stories.

NCL denied boarding Norwegian Spirit, cruise ship on the ocean, Norwegian Spirit

I flew to New Zealand and got denied boarding my $8,154 NCL cruise!

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What if you flew 7,500 miles to take an NCL cruise only to be denied boarding at the pier? It happened to one stunned couple. Here’s their story.  

As Erin Beztilny’s flight from Vancouver touched down in Auckland last month, she could hardly contain her excitement. She and her husband were about to embark on a much-anticipated dream cruise aboard NCL’s Norwegian Spirit from New Zealand to Australia. 

At least that was the plan. But that isn’t what happened.

Norwegian Cruise Line's newest ship: Prima, a cruise ship on the ocean, Prima, NCL, cruising, sailing.

Did Norwegian Cruise Line really cancel this family’s cruise over a $112 transfer?

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Norwegian Cruise Line recently gave Evangelia Koumanidis some awful news about her family’s much-anticipated sailing aboard its brand-new ship Prima. In a baffling email, NCL canceled their fully paid $4,657 cruise – citing nonpayment.

Confident that this cancellation was a simple clerical mistake that Norwegian could quickly correct, Koumanidis called the cruise line. 

That’s when an NCL agent informed a stunned Koumanidis that there was no mistake. The cruise line had canceled the family’s trip 21 days before departure over an unpaid balance. 

But there was worse news on the horizon. That same NCL agent coldly explained that when a passenger’s cruise is canceled over an unpaid balance, no refund is owed. 

Now an incredulous Koumanidis is hoping Consumer Rescue can convince the cruise line to reconsider its decision. She’s certain that her cruise was paid in full and that NCL made a $5,000 mistake.

But what is really going on here? (March 24, 2023 Update)

Holland America kicked a couple off this ship. HAL, Cruise ship on the ocean.

Here’s how to get kicked off a cruise with no refund included

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Could you be accused of a crime, convicted and kicked off your cruise without any supporting evidence?

Halfway around the world, Elaine Chan discovered the answer to that question is yes. She and her husband were summarily ejected from their Holland America cruise in Helsinki. The captain accused Chan’s 65-year-old husband of assaulting a crew member. He then ordered the shocked couple to gather their belongings and get off his ship.

Chan wants to clear her husband’s name and get a refund from Holland America.

I promise this story will make you angry. It’s yet another troubling case of a company leveling a wild accusation at a customer and refusing to provide even a shred of evidence to support it. And it’s the consumer who pays the price — financially and emotionally.

Editor’s note: I first reported this couple’s cruise fiasco in July 2018, and it was subsequently covered by many media outlets. This article has been updated to include five things that will get you kicked off your cruise in 2023 as it moves to its new archive home here at Consumer Rescue.

Consumer Rescue Fiascos and Fixes at the foot of the page in the logo box

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