Atlantix2000

Years ago, when the government introduced dollar coins, they had a promotion where you could order the coins and receive them with free shipping. The government thought this would encourage people to get the coins into circulation. Instead, people ordered large quantities of the coins on their credit cards, received them for free, and immediately deposited them in their bank account. Note that this was back in the days when you got decent interest rates in a savings account. Then, you just pay your credit card bill on time....FREE MONEY!!!

I think Carnival's statement that they aren't starting until after the "no sail" order expires around the end of July tells us all we need to know. Royal is just canceling in waves to keep their cash flow a bit better. They are making trips to Asia to drop off crew. They wouldn't do that if they just have to pick them back up two weeks later.

Not to downplay their situation, but the language about "ability to continue as a going concern" shows up very frequently in financial filings. I think it is a required statement triggered by certain debt conditions. It's not good to have to include it but I'm also often surprised to hear about it from companies I'd never expect to be worried about.

When I hear that mantra, I respond by asking about things much closer to home. When's the last time you cleaned your car's steering wheel or the bottom of its cup holder? How about the computer mouse you use 8 hours a day at work or home? Or other equally filthy things in almost everyone's lives that are never thought about even in the cleanest of houses? That cruise ship gets cleaned daily and that was before this pandemic!

Disney hasn't said that; an analyst on some financial TV show said that. (There's a thread on here about it too). Disney is currently working on opening their Shanghai park with social distancing measures in place. Depending on how that goes, they may make announcements regarding their other parks.

When I go to the bathroom, I wash my hands IN the bathroom. Should I be required to wash again after taking 10 steps to the WJ entrance?

I haven't seen an update on the Cadiz port specifically, but I did find an article that Spain's parliament extended their lockdown until April 12th. Considering Spain reported that the last two days also had the two highest number of deaths, I don't really expect Cadiz to reopen anytime soon.

So does that bring it to 20 years to implement this supposedly vital piece of national security legislation? I think this law was cursed!

Don't forget that's going to be a short term capital gain which could have tax implications for you next April.

I'm a bit confused. You started the thread by saying... So I initially thought you booked through Royal and wanted to rebook through Costco. Now I'm thinking your first post was a typo and you meant you booked with Costco and are looking at rebooking through them. If that's the case, yes, Royal won't talk to you. However, with Royal's customer support, it's often true that calling back and talking to someone else will get you a different answer. Perhaps the same is true with Costco. I've heard multiple times that Costco is great for initial price but not so great if you need changes. Good luck!

Even if he wants this, the states may not lift their restrictions. I'm far from an expert on federal vs states rights, but if Florida keeps their mandated 14 day quarantine on anyone arriving in their state, I don't see how the cruise lines could consider starting back up.

Hmm, sounds like Royal is trying to "flatten the curve" on their cash flow! :p

Yes, that's just the way FCCs (Future Cruise Credits) work. The information is in plenty of threads. Perhaps Royal will change this policy given how many FCCs they are going to be dealing with over the next year. However, this policy existed long before Covid-19 came around.

When you rebook, there will probably be a new or similar promotion. They seem to rotate through the same few deals every few months.

The correct names, distinctions, and uses were well reported when they were first announced. However, outside of academics and researchers who actually have a need to speak correctly while they work, it is far simpler to pick one simple term and the media and the public seem to have settled on Covid-19 or coronavirus to refer to everything. Same thing happened with Obamacare (really the Affordable Care Act or ACA), same thing with just about any topic that gets complicated.

I'm not doom and gloom but I also see the reality that many americans are ignoring the warnings and enjoying their spring breaks. China got things under control in 2 months by literally forcing people to stay in their homes by sealing them in if they wouldn't comply. I'd say it's too late for america to recreate China's timeline.

There's a big difference between "running on one engine" (clearly false) and "one of the engines had major problems" (which may or may not be true). A crew member may have said engine even though they meant azipod because most people don't know that word. No one (not even Royal) can answer whether any refurbishment will be complete in 2020. Allure is still one of the newest ships in the fleet. If you consider cruising on her to be a waste of money, your expectations might be better served by a different (and far more expensive) company.

What grounds would you have for a dispute? If you file one, the credit card company will ask Royal to defend the charge, they'll say it's valid based on the contract you agreed to and your dispute will be closed.

They have canceled cruises to do work on a ship before. I believe it was Adventure that ended up with its remodel getting split into 2 stages due to a hurricane. When an opening appeared in a dry dock's schedule, they canceled several cruises with not much notice to take advantage. Of course, it may be harder to do that in the next couple years because a LOT of dry dock time is getting delayed.

I highly doubt the sponsor of a chartered cruise is going to get the first official word on what happens with a ship.

I really wouldn't expect consistent knowledge, handling, or policies at this point. Maybe in a week they'll sort out all details but for now, I would recommend just waiting to call. There's nothing to be gained by getting upset that Royal doesn't have all the answers on how to handle this unprecedented situation.

True, anyone can catch it and for the young and healthy, it most likely won't affect them. The problem is the young people would just end up spreading it to the older people.

Your group's cancellation may have been an accident, a misunderstanding, or they may have already known you weren't really going to sail, but I wouldn't have bothered trying to rebook everything. There was no way Royal was going to continue sailing much longer in the current environment. Even if your cruise had started on Sunday, it would have been turned back.

I have seen no reports of anyone actually being at CocoCay with 3 ships. I believe all the websites that showed three ships were using the generic itineraries from Royal which had a disclaimer that the port order would vary by sailing date. I haven't been proven right or wrong yet but itineraries are also starting to change due to the coronavirus so it may be some time before we really know the truth. I still stand by my prediction that there won't be 3 ships at CocoCay.

That's how I've always seen it described. There is no additional benefit for having more than 100 shares.