Disney Fantasy -- Mechanical Problems

[RedM94]

I'm reading this thread as I leave on Fantasy on the 20th - so very interested in the issue.
I am a little dismayed by the greed and entitlement spewing from some of y'all.
Life happens - even to the most magical companies and people in this world. Perhaps Disney should create a storyline where the princess dies right before marrying her prince so y'all can get the full effect of bad things happening in life; or perhaps we experience these real issues in our daily lives and know the sadness and heartache real life has to offer.
We want Disney to be the 'never mess up company', 'happiest place on earth', etc. But what I can tell you... is if you take a photo of even the most perfect family in the world, under all the smiles, perfectly quaffed hair and perfectly set china in the dining room - there are issues. Life is not perfect, and holding Disney to the same standard is unfair.
Vacation should be more than Castaway Cay - it should be about relaxation, escape from normal life, enjoying ones company, etc; unwind for goodness sake.
I've been on a cruise where Castaway Cay was missed due to weather, while it wasn't fun, thats life. You accept it and move on - find something else to do with your time; I learned how to fold towels (not that i remember now or have attempted it at home) - I tried it.
Life is too darn busy - find a peace and a calm while on vacation - we only get so much time. Worry about things that matter, get mad about things that actually matter and forgive when people don't live up to your expectations; doesn't the world suck enough already?!

Yes, there were a few of those people on the ship. I witnessed one woman berating a CM because he young son would not be able to run the CC 5 K.

With that said, I think the vast majority of the cruisers were very understanding. We met a lot of great people having a lot of fun on the extra sea day.

I was just happy to be away from the cold and from work for the week.

 

[cruisingtwins]

It's not greed from the passengers or generosity on DCL's side. In theory Disney did not need to offer anything but they knew there would be some upset passengers about being in a ship with mechanical problems so they threw a bone at them to keep them entertained. The 20% off wasn't really 20% since you get 10% for booking onboard. So an extra 10% minus the OBC. I wouldn't call that generous in any way and lots of people don't want to book another cruise so the 20% is lost. I know if I was a first time cruiser and the ship had mechanical problems I would have zero interest in booking another cruise.

 

[cruisingtwins]

I hate that people are being called greedy for expecting compensation for being in a ship with mechanical failures. How much does a fantasy cruise runs these days 6k? That's a lot of money to most people. It's ok to have high expectations. Not that being on a ship without any mechanical problems should be considered high expectations anyways.

 

[Expatriat]

With all the comments and varying opinions, my mind keeps returning to the fact that the only missing scheduled component to this cruise was a mere 7 hours (normally turning out to be less than that) at Castaway Cay, yet some people bring up the full price of their cruise as though the entire experience was a waste for them. Interesting.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

With all the comments and varying opinions, my mind keeps returning to the fact that the only missing scheduled component to this cruise was a mere 7 hours (normally turning out to be less than that) at Castaway Cay, yet some people bring up the full price of their cruise as though the entire experience was a waste for them. Interesting.

If you read the other lines bogs, where this subject comes up much more often, you will see this opinion/debate is even more common and on incidents that are really serious ones, not minor like this.

As you pointed out, the cruise was not shortened and Disney offered compensation they actually were not required to.

AKK

 

[stitchlovestink]

It's not greed from the passengers or generosity on DCL's side. In theory Disney did not need to offer anything but they knew there would be some upset passengers about being in a ship with mechanical problems so they threw a bone at them to keep them entertained. The 20% off wasn't really 20% since you get 10% for booking onboard. So an extra 10% minus the OBC. I wouldn't call that generous in any way and lots of people don't want to book another cruise so the 20% is lost. I know if I was a first time cruiser and the ship had mechanical problems I would have zero interest in booking another cruise.

BUT You got this IN ADDITION to the traditional OBB Deal. So those on board could have booked 2 dummy cruises!! I'd take that deal ANY DAY!!

I hate that people are being called greedy for expecting compensation for being in a ship with mechanical failures. How much does a fantasy cruise runs these days 6k? That's a lot of money to most people. It's ok to have high expectations. Not that being on a ship without any mechanical problems should be considered high expectations anyways.

Well, I booked mine on opening day and and it was only a little over $2k before my discount. I have never come close to paying that kind of money for a cruise.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

It's not greed from the passengers or generosity on DCL's side. In theory Disney did not need to offer anything but they knew there would be some upset passengers about being in a ship with mechanical problems so they threw a bone at them to keep them entertained. The 20% off wasn't really 20% since you get 10% for booking onboard. So an extra 10% minus the OBC. I wouldn't call that generous in any way and lots of people don't want to book another cruise so the 20% is lost. I know if I was a first time cruiser and the ship had mechanical problems I would have zero interest in booking another cruise.

I can understand your feelings on the not wanting to cruise DCL again. Of course that raises a big issue.............what other line would you sail?. DCL has one of, if not the best record in safe operations of their vessels. They keep them in excellent shape. However operating a massive machine like a cruise vessel does have occasional issues, even DCL is not perfect. Considering the other lines serious breakdowns, fires, floodings, sinking's, collisions, ETC.ETC..who could you sail on?....Off the top of my head, your guidelines, rule out RCCL, Crystal, NCL, Princess, Costa, HAL and of course Carnival.

It does make for a problem.


We sail on the April 9, eastern, on the Fantasy.............we cannot wait to go.

AKK

 

[MPS516]

Kudos to ALL the Cast Members, they become easy targets for all those upset as they are the front line. I bet some on the Magic last night received the same aggression as some on the Fantasy received, as they were standing at the muster stations at 10pm last night while the Captain tried to confirm man overboard.

Thank You to all the hard working cast members that have made every one of our cruises special, regardless of rough seas, bad weather, sick passengers or whatever else has been thrown at them.

 

[JimGA]

Why should DCL give anything for mechanical failures? How much do you get from an airline if it suffers mechanical issues and crashes ? *sarcasm*

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

My one concern with this is parity. There is no excuse for berating front line cast members. I wonder though if the squeaky wheel was treated any differently. I am hoping that DCL didn't reward this behavior by offering additional incentives to these people.

As a former CM the squeaky wheel never got anything better than anyone else when I was dealing with them. I was the Operations Manager for a division of Disney Regional Entertainment. We operated DisneyQuest, ESPN Zone and Club Disney. Club Disney never had a high enough return so that division was shut down. I was working at the Chandler, AZ Club after it was announced we were closing our doors. Many people had bought annual passes and we were giving 100% refunds to the people who bought them, even though many had used 11 months worth of the AP. I had a lady rip me a new hole one day because of the closure. Obviously this wasn't my fault and tried very hard to empathize with her. After about 10 minutes of her abuse, she had the gall to ask me, "what she was supposed to tell her children on why they couldn't have Disney everyday?" I looked at her and asked her back, "I don't know, what am I supposed to tell my wife who is 7 months pregnant that I don't have a job in 30 days?" She shut her pie hole and scurried off. I had several job offers with Disney but she didn't need to know that.

 

[cgolf]

As a former CM the squeaky wheel never got anything better than anyone else when I was dealing with them. I was the Operations Manager for a division of Disney Regional Entertainment. We operated DisneyQuest, ESPN Zone and Club Disney. Club Disney never had a high enough return so that division was shut down. I was working at the Chandler, AZ Club after it was announced we were closing our doors. Many people had bought annual passes and we were giving 100% refunds to the people who bought them, even though many had used 11 months worth of the AP. I had a lady rip me a new hole one day because of the closure. Obviously this wasn't my fault and tried very hard to empathize with her. After about 10 minutes of her abuse, she had the gall to ask me, "what she was supposed to tell her children on why they couldn't have Disney everyday?" I looked at her and asked her back, "I don't know, what am I supposed to tell my wife who is 7 months pregnant that I don't have a job in 30 days?" She shut her pie hole and scurried off. I had several job offers with Disney but she didn't need to know that.

Your reply reminds me of our 2015 flight back from our cruise on the Magic. Due to weather we had to spend the night in Orlando. My wife was very kind to the gate agent and we got on the first available flight the next day and got a super deal on a very nice hotel. The lady thanked my wife for being nice! We noticed that those that were yelling at the gate agents didn't get the same deal we did. Sometimes life sucks, but how someone handles the stressful curveballs tells you a lot about a person.

 

[wxchick]

I'm reading this thread as I leave on Fantasy on the 20th - so very interested in the issue.
I am a little dismayed by the greed and entitlement spewing from some of y'all.
Life happens - even to the most magical companies and people in this world. Perhaps Disney should create a storyline where the princess dies right before marrying her prince so y'all can get the full effect of bad things happening in life; or perhaps we experience these real issues in our daily lives and know the sadness and heartache real life has to offer.
We want Disney to be the 'never mess up company', 'happiest place on earth', etc. But what I can tell you... is if you take a photo of even the most perfect family in the world, under all the smiles, perfectly quaffed hair and perfectly set china in the dining room - there are issues. Life is not perfect, and holding Disney to the same standard is unfair.
Vacation should be more than Castaway Cay - it should be about relaxation, escape from normal life, enjoying ones company, etc; unwind for goodness sake.
I've been on a cruise where Castaway Cay was missed due to weather, while it wasn't fun, thats life. You accept it and move on - find something else to do with your time; I learned how to fold towels (not that i remember now or have attempted it at home) - I tried it.
Life is too darn busy - find a peace and a calm while on vacation - we only get so much time. Worry about things that matter, get mad about things that actually matter and forgive when people don't live up to your expectations; doesn't the world suck enough already?!

We sail on the 20th as well! I think we will be just fine...the countdown is on!

 

[KarenMP59]

I can understand your feelings on the not wanting to cruise DCL again. Of course that raises a big issue.............what other line would you sail?. DCL has one of, if not the best record in safe operations of their vessels. They keep them in excellent shape. However operating a massive machine like a cruise vessel does have occasional issues, even DCL is not perfect. Considering the other lines serious breakdowns, fires, floodings, sinking's, collisions, ETC.ETC..who could you sail on?....Off the top of my head, your guidelines, rule out RCCL, Crystal, NCL, Princess, Costa, HAL and of course Carnival.

It does make for a problem.


We sail on the April 9, eastern, on the Fantasy.............we cannot wait to go.

AKK

So well said! Thank you!! I always enjoy your posts

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

So well said! Thank you!! I always enjoy your posts

Thank you kindly!

AKK

 

[RAD]

I wonder if the bad vibration the Fantasy has when going 21/22kts has anything to do with this latest problem?

 

[TCARON]

My wife and I were on this cruise and had an incredible time. Tortola was a great stop, with fantastic weather.
We would not have gone into CC due to weather even if we had docked.
Question: We were told by the reservations desk that the 10% placeholder reservation made on Monday would be optionally replaced by the 20%, in other words use the 10% with onboard credit or the 20% no onboard credit. We would not be able to use both for two separate trips. Does this make sense?

It is really sad to see the word greed being used from both perspectives. I believe that Disney has a responsibility to keep the ships in top working condition. I also believe that they were aware of the problem but were buying time before repairing resulting in a lot of apologies and future discount.

Disney seems to over complicate things when a simple offer would have made everyone feel good instead of wondering how the 20% is too be applied. Oh well, we will continue to go on Disney cruises, why? Because they are still the best line out there.

 

[declansdad]

For those that continue to pursue posts, of personal attacks , I ask you to read these threads ;
http://www.wdwinfo.com/guidelines.htm
http://www.disboards.com/threads/dis-board-basics.1010690/


You do realize other members are listening

May we have smooth threads for all

I've been away for a couple of days but I don't remember reading any personal attacks in this thread, what exactly are you talking about?

 

[mommy2allgirls]

Please forgive me if I missed it but isn't this type of situation covered in the cruise contract you sign? So really Disney didn't have to offer anything, is that correct?

 

[declansdad]

I hate that people are being called greedy for expecting compensation for being in a ship with mechanical failures. How much does a fantasy cruise runs these days 6k? That's a lot of money to most people. It's ok to have high expectations. Not that being on a ship without any mechanical problems should be considered high expectations anyways.

Expecting compensation in a situation where none is required does sound a bit greedy to me. The only issue they had was a missed port and that can happy on any cruise.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Please forgive me if I missed it but isn't this type of situation covered in the cruise contract you sign? So really Disney didn't have to offer anything, is that correct?

That's correct.