Cancelled Galapagos Trip-Shattered Disney Memories

[beachbunny]

I booked ABD because of the Disney reputation. It is truly shocking that Mr. Paris from ABD said that all ABD should have done was to notify you of the cancellation. Really? Even after you were already on the ground in Ecuador? Come on. How many people would book ABD knowing that ABD's policy is to just leave you stranded in a foreign country with an e-mail notice of cancellation?

By the way, ABD uses a local tour operator in Ecuador. We met the owner of the company a couple of times. After ABD realized it was safe, it should have contacted its local tour operator to arrange an alternate land tour for you. Then you could have gone on the Galapagos cruise as planned.

At the VERY least, ABD should pay your airfare and any fees you paid to change your flight reservation.

Please press forward and keep us updated.

 

[Tozzie]

I am going to reserve judgement on this one, while I feel bad for the OP that her trip was cancelled there seems to be a piece of the puzzle missing considering what they did for me personally when I wrote a letter regarding my issues when they cancelled my trip I can't see them doing a complete 360 in cancelling this trip. It may have something to do with the fact the trip was booked using DVC points as I believe there are more restrictions and less option when using them. I for one am not going to abandon ABD based on one persons account and perception.

 

[lindasikora]

I am going to reserve judgement on this one, while I feel bad for the OP that her trip was cancelled there seems to be a piece of the puzzle missing considering what they did for me personally when I wrote a letter regarding my issues when they cancelled my trip I can't see them doing a complete 360 in cancelling this trip. It may have something to do with the fact the trip was booked using DVC points as I believe there are more restrictions and less option when using them. I for one am not going to abandon ABD based on one persons account and perception.

Since I assume that I'm now being referred to as OP, I'll respond. Frankly, I can't believe how dismissive ABD has been of us! I have been a long time Disney customer taking frequent trips to the parks, taken two cruise trips with them and this was our second ABD trip. As for vacation clubs points being a factor in how they wouldn't help us, I don't see it. If so, I would warn any other people being enticed to purchase vacation club points in order to take advantage of what would seem to be a wonderful travel opportunity. I have now spent over a month trying to get the company to reconsider it's hard line stance and they have essentially ignored me. I did appeal to various levels thoughout the company but have had no response other than Mr. Paris comments which I previously mentioned.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and many aren't concerned until it hits them personally. I just feel people should be aware of what type of assistance an individual is likely to get from the company. Of course when things go bad in a big way, such as the Carnival Cruise which invites the full court press, companies tend to bend over backwards to accomodate even offering free trips. Unforunately when things go bad at the individual level you will get very little assistance or recognition.

 

[sayhello]

Since I assume that I'm now being referred to as OP, I'll respond. Frankly, I can't believe how dismissive ABD has been of us! I have been a long time Disney customer taking frequent trips to the parks, taken two cruise trips with them and this was our second ABD trip. As for vacation clubs points being a factor in how they wouldn't help us, I don't see it. If so, I would warn any other people being enticed to purchase vacation club points in order to take advantage of what would seem to be a wonderful travel opportunity. I have now spent over a month trying to get the company to reconsider it's hard line stance and they have essentially ignored me. I did appeal to various levels thoughout the company but have had no response other than Mr. Paris comments which I previously mentioned.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and many aren't concerned until it hits them personally. I just feel people should be aware of what type of assistance an individual is likely to get from the company. Of course when things go bad in a big way, such as the Carnival Cruise which invites the full court press, companies tend to bend over backwards to accomodate even offering free trips. Unforunately when things go bad at the individual level you will get very little assistance or recognition.

lindasikora, "OP" is a shorthand many people on these boards use to refer to the "Original Poster", so that *would* be you Tozzie is referring to.

I *think* (and Tozzie, I hope you don't mind me "interpreting" here) that what Tozzie meant is, ABD's handling of these situations seems to vary greatly depending on the circumstances. I know that on the DCL board, we've seen the same sort of disparity on how DVC reservations are handled, vs the general "cash-paying" public. I think her point is well taken. Not that I agree that ABD should not have worked more closely with you, and been more forth-coming, but I know that DCL tends to treat DVC as a totally separate entity, with very little in the way of "we're all Disney" taken into account.

This year, they stopped taking DVC reservations for cruises for a period of several months (I can't remember the dates, but it was something along the lines of March of 2011 - Sep 2011). Apparently DVC negotiates a certain number of DCL reservations they can use for a year, and with the launching of the Dream, they used up those reservations. End of story. No using points for new cruises for that period of time. So I can see ABD management (since they are now the same as DCL) treating a DVC point reservation for ABD in the same way. Sort of the red-headed stepchild. NOT that I agree with this in any way, shape or form, but there is a precedence.

There have been several of us who have had our trips canceled by ABD who have had them bend over backwards for us. I was amazed at how accomodating they were when they canceled my Canadian Rockies trip. And we have another poster who was taken from her tour in China (due to the H1N1 scare) and held in quarantine for a week. Disney was there for her the whole time, and did such a fabulous job dealing with her that she went back & did the same tour the next year.

I hate to say it, but the DVC point thing *may* be a factor. Again, it totally does not dismiss how they've treated you, but it does somewhat seem to explain the disparity.

And I totally agree with you. DVC appears to be over-playing and misrepresenting the scope of what you can do with a DVC membership. A lot of folks who were counting on using points for cruises next year were really upset, and felt pretty deceived, because DVC is *on the ships* pushing DVC as a great way to pay for cruises. I'm thinking you may want to take this claim up with DVC, and see what *they* can do for you. Or at least complain to DVC about how ABD is treating you. Perhaps they can advocate for you. They really are 2 separate entities.

Sayhello

 

[WeLoveABD]

I can see the Carnival Splendor ship out of my window as I write this--quite a media event!

And you are right--people are entitled to their opinion, and the only people who truly experience the scope of frustration are those like you who are involved in the matter.

All that said, for many of us on this post, it doesn't all come together--my own experiences with ABD (and the parks, and the Disney cruises) have all been extremely positive, and I have to believe that the Disney business model and the culture within corporate strives to do the right thing by its customers. So, I guess--at least for some of us on this post--we were surprised by your story. But I would also agree that this is no reason to abandon ship, folks--not until we know more.

I also wondered about the use of DVC points--I'm not a member; wish I joined 10 plus years ago when I started doing more parks outside of Southern California/cruises--but when I looked at it a few years ago it didn't really work out re ABD etc. I did see that they gave the poster their points back; did they buy the plane tickets through Disney or on their own? They were in the country early for their own purpose as well as gearing up for Disney trip--so I have to assume they made the airfare purchase on their own.

So here we have a trip set up by Disney that is cancelled due to events beyond Disney's control--they refund the cost of the trip (here, points)--and otherwise tell the travelers they need to look to the recommended trip insurance. My understanding from prior experiences and posts is that if you buy air through Disney, that is reimbursed in the event the trip is cancelled, although I wonder how that plays out if you have already left on for the tour and it is cancelled?

But getting to the heart of this: clearly it is disappointing if your trip is cancelled. If I were doing the Germany trip and I get there and it has been cancelled due to some strike, I don't think I'd reasonably expect Disney to get me on some other tour of Munich etc. If I flew there under Disney's insurance and paid for the tour, then I would expect reimbursement for both flight and trip. If I flew in a week before on my own, not under Disney flight insurance, then I don't think it is reasonable for Disney to pay for my flight--certainly, pay me back for the tour cost.

There is always a balance between business and customer service--and Disney almost always excells at customer service. Should they/could they have done more here? Or...maybe the result would be the same but maybe they could have done more to discuss the situation. I can't say on that score because I don't know how the tenor and temperment of the correspondence went.

 

[RadioFanatic]

I've been reading this with interest as I have thought ABD would be a great way to introduce our 2 year old DS to Europe, etc. one day. I have learned one thing from this - if I plan on doing things outside of the tour, plan for it after the ABD portion so I'm not stuck in a country with a cancelled trip.
good luck OP, you deserve better than what you are getting!

 

[TammyAlphabet]

I will probably never book with ABD. Tauck, another tour company that I toured with, would never have done this. And I don't especially like Tauck.

 

[Tozzie]

lindasikora, "OP" is a shorthand many people on these boards use to refer to the "Original Poster", so that *would* be you Tozzie is referring to.

I *think* (and Tozzie, I hope you don't mind me "interpreting" here) that what Tozzie meant is, ABD's handling of these situations seems to vary greatly depending on the circumstances. I know that on the DCL board, we've seen the same sort of disparity on how DVC reservations are handled, vs the general "cash-paying" public. I think her point is well taken. Not that I agree that ABD should not have worked more closely with you, and been more forth-coming, but I know that DCL tends to treat DVC as a totally separate entity, with very little in the way of "we're all Disney" taken into account.

This year, they stopped taking DVC reservations for cruises for a period of several months (I can't remember the dates, but it was something along the lines of March of 2011 - Sep 2011). Apparently DVC negotiates a certain number of DCL reservations they can use for a year, and with the launching of the Dream, they used up those reservations. End of story. No using points for new cruises for that period of time. So I can see ABD management (since they are now the same as DCL) treating a DVC point reservation for ABD in the same way. Sort of the red-headed stepchild. NOT that I agree with this in any way, shape or form, but there is a precedence.

There have been several of us who have had our trips canceled by ABD who have had them bend over backwards for us. I was amazed at how accomodating they were when they canceled my Canadian Rockies trip. And we have another poster who was taken from her tour in China (due to the H1N1 scare) and held in quarantine for a week. Disney was there for her the whole time, and did such a fabulous job dealing with her that she went back & did the same tour the next year.

I hate to say it, but the DVC point thing *may* be a factor. Again, it totally does not dismiss how they've treated you, but it does somewhat seem to explain the disparity.

And I totally agree with you. DVC appears to be over-playing and misrepresenting the scope of what you can do with a DVC membership. A lot of folks who were counting on using points for cruises next year were really upset, and felt pretty deceived, because DVC is *on the ships* pushing DVC as a great way to pay for cruises. I'm thinking you may want to take this claim up with DVC, and see what *they* can do for you. Or at least complain to DVC about how ABD is treating you. Perhaps they can advocate for you. They really are 2 separate entities.

Sayhello

Sayhello you are correct for the most part I am also wondering about 2 things 2 which may or may not have something to do with it. From the Original post it appears the op arrived a day or two early and I am wondering if those arrangements were book through ABD or not. IF the OP did pre days and not through ABD, then I am sorry but ABD didn't strand her, do be really able to figure this out it would be helpful to know when you left for the trip and when you were notified that it was cancelled.

 

[beansf]

Whether or not ABD did the right thing, I don't know. However, I am sorry for the disappointment of the original poster. It stinks when stuff like this happens and I wish you had gotten the vacation you planned!

 

[lindasikora]

I've been reading this with interest as I have thought ABD would be a great way to introduce our 2 year old DS to Europe, etc. one day. I have learned one thing from this - if I plan on doing things outside of the tour, plan for it after the ABD portion so I'm not stuck in a country with a cancelled trip.
good luck OP, you deserve better than what you are getting!

That's an excellent plan! Wish I had been considered that before being caught up in this mess! If you are stateside when the cancellation occurs you only incur the airline change fee. Also I never anticipated that the travel insurance policy would not cover a operator cancellation. To this point I also need to stress that I had specifically asked the insurance representative from Travel Guard what occured if Disney cancelled the trip. She indicated that I would be cover for the full cash value of the trip and indicated that Disney would not refund the points, never did she indicate that if Disney cancelled the trip I would not be covered. Unfortunately it is stated in the minutia of the travel policy that operator cancellations are not covered

The chances of all these factors coming together probably doesn't occur very often. Percentage wise I suspect that there are'nt many people who combine the Disney trip with a pretrip of their own planning. Therefore, I am amazed at how ABD is sticking to it's corporate policy. Yes, these factors may have been beyond their control, they were also beyond my control and all I can be accused of is trying to salvage my dream trip!

As for my requesting a booking with another tour group, I was trying desperately to salvage this trip which was both an anniversary celebration and a 60th birthday trip for my husband. While ABD suggested that we return on a future date with them, we knew we would have to replace the airfare and wouldn't be in a position to do that so quickly! We very much wanted to see the Galapagos, it's been a dream for a very long time!!!

 

[DisFan10]

That's an excellent plan! Wish I had been considered that before being caught up in this mess! If you are stateside when the cancellation occurs you only incur the airline change fee. Also I never anticipated that the travel insurance policy would not cover a operator cancellation. To this point I also need to stress that I had specifically asked the insurance representative from Travel Guard what occured if Disney cancelled the trip. She indicated that I would be cover for the full cash value of the trip and indicated that Disney would not refund the points, never did she indicate that if Disney cancelled the trip I would not be covered. Unfortunately it is stated in the minutia of the travel policy that operator cancellations are not covered

The chances of all these factors coming together probably doesn't occur very often. Percentage wise I suspect that there are'nt many people who combine the Disney trip with a pretrip of their own planning. Therefore, I am amazed at how ABD is sticking to it's corporate policy. Yes, these factors may have been beyond their control, they were also beyond my control and all I can be accused of is trying to salvage my dream trip!

As for my requesting a booking with another tour group, I was trying desperately to salvage this trip which was both an anniversary celebration and a 60th birthday trip for my husband. While ABD suggested that we return on a future date with them, we knew we would have to replace the airfare and wouldn't be in a position to do that so quickly! We very much wanted to see the Galapagos, it's been a dream for a very long time!!!

Have you considered taking your complaint to the very top? Since it doesn't sound like you're getting anywhere with AbD, try writing to:

Mr. Robert Iger
President/CEO
Walt Disney Company
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521

 

[lindasikora]

Have you considered taking your complaint to the very top? Since it doesn't sound like you're getting anywhere with AbD, try writing to:

Mr. Robert Iger
President/CEO
Walt Disney Company
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521

Yes, thank you. I not only wrote to Mr. Iger but also to the president of the Parks and Resorts Division and to Jim West, the president of the Disney Vacation Club. All these letters have gone unanswered.

 

[hugscot]

That is very disappointing to hear. Can't believe they ditched you like that.