Itinerary chg'd, going to Freeport, not too happy

[DisnyMik]

When I reserved our cruise w/our TA at a group rate, we were told (and had a flyer made up by the TA), that we would have a 'day at sea' on our 4 day cruise Nov. 17-21, 2002. I was very happy about that as I had no desire to stop in Freeport, I was looking forward to the day at sea. When my husband and I went on a 7 day years ago, I enjoyed being at sea.
I happen to get out the itinerary she sent me and noticed that on there. I called hoping it was a misprint, but no it wasn't. She said "just don't get off the boat." She said originally, it wasn't supposed to stop there, but DCL chg'd that. Shouldn't she have told us before we booked that there was a change? We just booked this 10 days ago. I'm not sure I would have booked this cruise had I known, and I probably would have waited until next year.
Other than Doing the Dolphins, what else is there to do? We really hadn't intended on doing excursions and the Dolphins will be too costly for us right now.
I hope I am proven wrong, it won't be that bad and I'm just overreacting (as my husband says!)
I guess my gripe is that we weren't told and it's not a big deal to the TA (who happens to be a friend, although not close.)

Thanks for letting me vent!

 

[mmouse37]

If you have been following recent threads, this should not be too much of a surprise....the itinerary change has been discussed on several different threads lately. Though it is disappointing to have schedule change, I would try to make the best of it and just "don't get off the ship". You will find plenty to do onboard, and the pools/hot tubs will be much less crowded.

Yes, I agree the TA should have known about the change and let you know ahead of time. Don't worry...I am sure you will have a great cruise anyway.

MJ

 

[Diamond_Girls]

I do not blame you for being upset! I actually cancelled a cruise last year because of the same thing. I had it all booked, got the verandah room specifically for the day-at-sea and then got a call that Freeport had been added. It was more than I could bear! The good news is that cancelling that trip helped me save to go on the 7 day this year!!! I have about 30 days left to wait...

 

[DisnyMik]

Diamond_Girls,

Thanks! Finally, someone sees my point! I had actually thought about doing just what you did and save for the 7day, but I am afraid I would be disappointing 3 children and a husband who, before, was not as excited about it as we were, but now informs me that he is looking forward to it and he too would be disappointed! I thought that just "don't get off the ship" was not an acceptable response.

UGH! Such decisions, huh?

 

[Señor Ferrari]

Would you be able to change your sailing date by a week? If so, that might be the way to go. The 4-day only stops at Freeport every other week, so if you can change sailing date, you can still get your day at sea. I'd have the TA call and see if the reservation can be switched. You booked the cruise assuming that there would be a day at sea, so they should allow you to transfer to the same category without penalty. Whether they will is a different story, but I think it's at least worth looking into.

 

[wovenwonder]

If you treat either the Nassua stop or the Freeport stop as a 'day at sea' and stay on the ship --- you will have a blast!!!! That is actually the BEST time to be on the ship --- when most others are off on the islands. The pools are practically empty! Plus they quiet areas are truly quiet with so little people on board.

 

[KAR3600]

I just sailed on July 14, with a stop in Freeport, I too was hoping for a day at sea, but it was my mistake. Well, the port in freeport is a oil tanker stop, but not the worse thing in the world. We did get off the ship to do shopping in Port Lucaya ($100.00 round trip taxi ride for 9 people) it was NOT worth the money. We did not go to the International Market & Casino area, but I must say Freeport itself looked cleaner than Nassau.

We got back to the ship much earlier than most and had an enjoyable time in the pool, and just relaxed which was really nice.

 

[DisnyMik]

We were going to stay on the ship for most of our stop in Nassau only getting off for a short time to look around so at least the kids could see it, etc., come back and enjoy the afternoon on the ship and pools.

Since we booked at a group rate I'm thinking we wouldn't be able to change it. But I agree, I think we should have that option.

 

[AliPom]

If you remain on the scheduled cruise w/Freeport stop, as Wovenwonder mentioned, the pool deck will be less crowded and more enjoyable for you. My cruise date changed to the Freeport stop also. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the beauty in the day-at-sea too, but if you are stuck with the sail date like me, try to focus on the positive aspect in terms of pool crowds and relaxation. I do recollect on our past cruise day-at-sea wishing that we had actually gone to port so that the quiet cove pool would be more quiet and the hot tub less crowded.

Hope that helped your disappointment somewhat.

 

[Buschfan]

It seems like the port hasn't changed since we stopped there in the early 90's on an NCL ship. I remember seeing rusty oil tanks outside our cabin window quite well. There are some classic ships that have been abandoned here though. You can see quite a few ships from the now defunct Premier cruise line at this port. The Big Red Boats II and III are there along with the Rembrandt. It may be the last time you can see passenger ships from that era (besides the still in service Norway), at least from the outside.

 

[cyndilou01]

another good thing is that the cruise for Nov. 17th is a Pin Trading Cruise... there will be a lot of pin traders on board and maybe you can find the pin you have been looking for or start a new hobby...
I will be on the same cruise and was also Disappointed that we did not have a day at sea... but I will stay on board and enjoy the day... thinking of doing a spa treatment... not real sure got a few months to plan..... I know you are upset but enjoy the Magic of Disney you will have a great time with your family....
I also thought about the Dolphin swim not sure it is worth the money still waiting to hear more replies....
hope to meet you on the cruise... we are planning a dis meet with green ribbons keep in touch. Happy planning...