Magic Late Departure out of Galviston

[sambycat]

thanks!
i have to say, my one suggestion would have been to unlock the wifi for everyone that day, we were too far out for cell service. but maybe they did for the folks who really needed it.

 

[lbgraves]

"Originally Posted by kcashner
Does anyone know whether guests who used a TA were contacted directly by DCL or whether DCL just left messages for TAs? "

can you book the dcl air through a TA? i guess assumed that DCL was your TA in a sense. all they said overhead was that if you booked air with disney, disney was rebooking it for you. i know several people we met were flying out the next day, not sure how they helped with any of that.

I think KC was asking about people who were suppose to board the Magic that day, not thosewho were on the ship and already knew about the issue.

 

[Candy Apple]

i’m guessing they didn’t say anything earlier because my first thought was people wouldn’t go to breakfast!

In fact, when they made the announcement just after 8 AM they specifically told the second seating breakfast group to go to their breakfast. We were first seating, but had already planned to eat at Topsiders. It was so foggy that the people at the table next to us didn't realize we weren't docked until we told them. This was around 7:30 AM.

I was up at 5 AM because when the ship doesn't rock I wake up. We were already "stuck" and not moving at that time.

 

[emma'smom]

I was on this cruise and we just finally arrived home at about 1am on Monday morning! What a long and wild scramble for new flights, finding hotels, etc. Glad to be home although we had to divert to a different city to get a flight and have someone drive 1 1/2 hrs to pick us up. We will go get our car from the closer airport we intended to
Fly back to tomorrow.

I agree that DCL did a great job keeping everyone entertained and well- fed. They did make phones available if you asked, but the lines were really long and we ended up using cellular at sea to call the airlines at one point. Dreading that bill! I overheard a cast member manning the Internet desk explaining that they were required to shut it down after a certain time... Not sure why.

My only gripe is that I wished they had updated more frequently even to say "we are still waiting" as it seemed like we were constantly trying to guess what might happen and figute out air options as available seats were fast disappearing. Then suddenly disembarkment began as a bit of a free for all with just a few announcements beyond express guests first.

 

[time for travel]

I was on the Magic ....as we returned and got caught in the fog. I thought it was wonderful that they opened up so many activities. My 7 yr old daughter enjoyed them with some tablemates....but I was stuck in the phone line for the whole time......and really wondering when to try and rebook. Also, I had purchased travel insurance with air tickets through Priceline and was told....insurance???..oh too bad for you....it doesn't work if it's weather related...only if you are sick, etc. So, they wanted $350 to change the flights plus $60 service fee. Hey, Disney.....can you help me out here??? I appreciate the phone lines opened...but it took me 3 + hours to sort of get it solved...so, that part really "clouded" my ending of the cruise. I know Disney can't do anything about the weather, but having to rebook the flights was no fun and certainly not magical. Also, I missed out on all the fun around the ship!!!! ugh

 

[txaggie94gigem]

Does anyone know whether guests who used a TA were contacted directly by DCL or whether DCL just left messages for TAs?

This was a problem many years ago--that even after I phoned DCL on a Friday morning and made sure they knew I was already at WDW, gave them my cell number, and they SAID they would contact me directly, they called my TA. It just made more issues as then TA had to run me down at WDW, etc.

I understand the idea of doing business thru the TA, but after travel is in progress, it doesn't make sense to not contact the guests as effectively as possible.

When i did registration online for my current cruise it gave me the option of getting updates from DCL by either email or text message...i think this screen was right around where you print your final cruise documents...it let me put in my phone number and sent me a confirmation text within 5 minutes and I booked my cruise through a TA...it has also sent me a reminder that since i am gold level i can now book excursions (withing 105 days of sailing right now)...

 

[lanejudy]

... Also, I had purchased travel insurance with air tickets through Priceline and was told....insurance???..oh too bad for you....it doesn't work if it's weather related...only if you are sick, etc. ...

Sorry to hear you had a difficult time! This is a classic example of how not all travel insurance is created equal. My first cruise I didn't know diddle about travel insurance and came out lucky that we didn't need it. Now I definitely research the plans and make sure it will cover what I might need.

 

[queenofeverything]

Sorry to hear you had a difficult time! This is a classic example of how not all travel insurance is created equal. My first cruise I didn't know diddle about travel insurance and came out lucky that we didn't need it. Now I definitely research the plans and make sure it will cover what I might need.

Absolutely!! We never go anywhere without travel insurance anymore. Mostly for things we don't think of! How expensive would it be to have to be airlifted off a cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean?? Yikes!

 

[kcashner]

Absolutely!! We never go anywhere without travel insurance anymore. Mostly for things we don't think of! How expensive would it be to have to be airlifted off a cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean?? Yikes!

Actually, an air lift in the middle of the Caribbean would be handled by the US Coast Guard at no cost to the guest--the US taxpayers pick up the cost. Now in the middle of the Atlantic or the Med, it might be different!

The Coast Guard does make some effort to recoup costs on "false alarm" calls...for instance, calling a man overboard alert as a prank. Don't ask me why people do such things.

But point made--not all insurance is created equal.

 

[mrkyyyle]

I was on the Magic ....as we returned and got caught in the fog. I thought it was wonderful that they opened up so many activities. My 7 yr old daughter enjoyed them with some tablemates....but I was stuck in the phone line for the whole time......and really wondering when to try and rebook. Also, I had purchased travel insurance with air tickets through Priceline and was told....insurance???..oh too bad for you....it doesn't work if it's weather related...only if you are sick, etc. So, they wanted $350 to change the flights plus $60 service fee. Hey, Disney.....can you help me out here??? I appreciate the phone lines opened...but it took me 3 + hours to sort of get it solved...so, that part really "clouded" my ending of the cruise. I know Disney can't do anything about the weather, but having to rebook the flights was no fun and certainly not magical. Also, I missed out on all the fun around the ship!!!! ugh

That seems weird that they wouldn't cover a missed connection due to inclement weather.

When we were delayed into port due to hurricane sandy and missed our flight, the travel insurance company said we would need to file a claim under missed connection. Got a letter from Disney stating the ship came into Port (x hours late) and submitted that to them.

 

[Weedy]

I was on the Magic ....as we returned and got caught in the fog. I thought it was wonderful that they opened up so many activities. My 7 yr old daughter enjoyed them with some tablemates....but I was stuck in the phone line for the whole time......and really wondering when to try and rebook. Also, I had purchased travel insurance with air tickets through Priceline and was told....insurance???..oh too bad for you....it doesn't work if it's weather related...only if you are sick, etc. So, they wanted $350 to change the flights plus $60 service fee. Hey, Disney.....can you help me out here??? I appreciate the phone lines opened...but it took me 3 + hours to sort of get it solved...so, that part really "clouded" my ending of the cruise. I know Disney can't do anything about the weather, but having to rebook the flights was no fun and certainly not magical. Also, I missed out on all the fun around the ship!!!! ugh

What did you want Disney to do for you??? They have 100's of people trying to rebook flights. They can't rebook everyone's flights, they don't have the manpower to do that.

 

[MelMtlk]

I am leaving on the magic Friday and pray this doesn't happen. I can go with the flow for leaving, but delayed home would stink! I really don't want to spend hours on the phone rebooking

 

[Our 2 Princesses]

I am leaving on the magic Friday and pray this doesn't happen. I can go with the flow for leaving, but delayed home would stink! I really don't want to spend hours on the phone rebooking

Me either! Hopefully the fog will not be an issue on our cruise...

 

[cypressmom]

I was on the Magic ....as we returned and got caught in the fog. I thought it was wonderful that they opened up so many activities. My 7 yr old daughter enjoyed them with some tablemates....but I was stuck in the phone line for the whole time......and really wondering when to try and rebook. Also, I had purchased travel insurance with air tickets through Priceline and was told....insurance???..oh too bad for you....it doesn't work if it's weather related...only if you are sick, etc. So, they wanted $350 to change the flights plus $60 service fee. Hey, Disney.....can you help me out here??? I appreciate the phone lines opened...but it took me 3 + hours to sort of get it solved...so, that part really "clouded" my ending of the cruise. I know Disney can't do anything about the weather, but having to rebook the flights was no fun and certainly not magical. Also, I missed out on all the fun around the ship!!!! ugh

What a hard lesson to learn. You really need to read your contract when buying insurance and make sure you will be covered in instances like this. I'm not sure what Disney could do for you since you booked your airfare on your own. If you had purchased through Disney, they would have rearranged your travel for you. I'm sorry your departure day was clouded and it was so difficult for you to get home.

 

[kcashner]

What a hard lesson to learn. You really need to read your contract when buying insurance and make sure you will be covered in instances like this. I'm not sure what Disney could do for you since you booked your airfare on your own. If you had purchased through Disney, they would have rearranged your travel for you. I'm sorry your departure day was clouded and it was so difficult for you to get home.

Exactly--if you book it thru DCL, they take care of you. If you book it on your own, you get to deal with it on your own. If you book thru a TA, hopefully your agency has a 24 hour emergency number--my first call would be to that number and let them deal with it.

Those of us who choose to book air/insurance/whatever on our own rather than thru DCL generally do it because we either get more flexibility or a lower price, but when something happens we all want the service that would have been attached to booking thru DCL. That's human nature, but from DCL's standpoint, it isn't realistic.

 

[cypressmom]

Exactly--if you book it thru DCL, they take care of you. If you book it on your own, you get to deal with it on insurance. If you book thru a TA, hopefully your agency has a 24 hour emergency number--my first call would be to that number and let them deal with it.

Those of us who choose to book air/insurance/whatever on our own rather than thru DCL generally do it because we either get more flexibility or a lower price, but when something happens we all want the service that would have been attached to booking thru DCL. That's human nature, but from DCL's standpoint, it isn't realistic.

We were able to drive to the port for our first cruise, but will fly the next time. I very well may use Disney for our air travel and/or insurance.

 

[jnweinmann]

Does anyone know when the outbound cruise accually left the harbor, or when the outbound passengers were boarded?

 

[riofriotex]

Does anyone know when the outbound cruise accually left the harbor, or when the outbound passengers were boarded?

I am in a Facebook group with the inbound cruise (the January 4 sailing), and someone posted: "Met some people whose daughter was a performer on the Magic. They sailed with us to see her (Ariel!) She called them late last night and said the Magic left port just before 10. They had their safety drill after the evening shows around 10:30. So, they did their shows before they left port."

On Cruise Critic, someone posted, "I checked the [harbor] webcam about 11:00pm CST and the other ship [Princess] was still in port. The Magic docks behind her and could not see."

I remember checking the webcam sight myself and the Princess ship left before midnight. That's good, because RCCL's Mariner of the Seas shares one terminal with Disney, and the Carnival Magic shares the other terminal with Princess, and they both had arrivals on Sunday. I checked the webcams that morning and both of those ships were in port.

 

[time for travel]

Well....guess I was tired when I posted my comments....no, I didn't expect Disney to pay for my missed flights....although, I would have appreciated a few more updates...so, I and others would know....try to get a late night flight or the next day or ? I THOUGHT my insurance would cover inclement weather....and perhaps, the time I called....the Priceline agent didn't know the details...I will pursue that issue very soon. Anyway, I ended up calling the airline directly.....what's another hour in line???? I got better results from talking directly to the airlines. Some people were getting or having to get flights as late as Monday! It's just that seats were going fast with so many people having to rebook. All in all, it was a great cruise and I would go again....and hopefully, not have the fog situation.....but after sitting in a line for a very long time waiting for a phone....it makes for a very tiring day and night! Glad everyone got home safely and happy.

 

[bats]

If you're from the UK, you have no option to DIY your flights .. DCL can't do them and it greys out that option for you on the website.
We are used to travel insurance though and always make sure it covers everything possible .. Even ash clouds from volcanoes (been hit with that one before)!
Glad everyone got sorted in the end ... What a pain in the bottom though!!!