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Very onerous and unreasonable Conditions for Cruising just issued by RCI


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I have today received an updated set of booking conditions (16 pages) for our upcoming Mediterranean cruise on Anthem for August 2022. Having read through the plethora of additional conditions now being posed by RCI in respect of COVID-19 and Health Protection Measures, I find them to be totally unreasonable, extremely onerous and in some cases may even be illegal (in the UK). They impose huge potential liabilities in terms of risk and costs that I am not prepared to accept. I am now in the process of cancelling this cruise and the other RCI cruises that I have booked and am now seeking a full cash refund for each of them.

I suggest that anyone who has booked or is considering booking a European cruise with RCI should carefully read these new conditions before going ahead. Just a “heads up” so that you are aware of this.

We also have two P&O European cruises booked for 2021 and 2022 as well as an MSC UK Islands cruise next month and neither P&O or MSC have imposed anything other than what I would call reasonable and understandable conditions in respect of COVID-19.

It is totally understandable that due to COVID-19 the cruise companies need to impose a number of additional precautions and restrictions but I think that RCI have gone completely overboard (excuse the pun) with them and many potential passengers will not accept what RCI are imposing and go to another cruise line who are much more reasonable and understanding about what the normal passenger is willing to accept to get onboard a cruise ship.

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1 hour ago, Jim S said:

I have today received an updated set of booking conditions (16 pages) for our upcoming Mediterranean cruise on Anthem for August 2022.

Do you really think what they send you today will still be the rules 15 months from now?  For perspective, remember that 15 months ago was pre-lockdowns.  If your soonest cruise is in August 2022, I wouldn't take any action today.  I'll be surprised if very many Covid restrictions still exist by then.

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Thank you for sharing. What a read it was. I can't believe that the "luggage will be electrostatically sprayed after you leave it outside your stateroom for collection, and we must wear any disposable gloves and any protective clothing if this is provided to you for use during the disembarkation process." Not worth doing laundry onboard. Just give me a decontamination suit to wear the entire cruise. Sheesh!!

I'm always productive in the science lab - GIF on Imgur

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This seems more like a legal CYA than anything else. With all the different countries cruise ships visit they want to make sure guests that are unhappy with additional restrictions, can't come back and sue them because the government where they stop or cruise from imposes additional lockdowns/rules/etc.

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7 minutes ago, 0_0 said:

This seems more like a legal CYA than anything else. With all the different countries cruise ships visit they want to make sure guests that are unhappy with additional restrictions, can't come back and sue them because the government where they stop or cruise from imposes additional lockdowns/rules/etc.

I agree with this statement above. I thought that having everyone cleared via antigen test upon disembarkation would have covered any "liability" or blame afterwards because in reality company's and anyone with "deep pockets" are always being sued for everything but this is "overboard" (pun intended)

Sadly, this is the world we live in today. 

Company's are going crazy in order to shield themselves from the exposure, I believe they figure if you want to enjoy our product you will do it while we are fully protected. I can absolutely envision a scenario of someone getting sick somewhere else & saying BUT I was on a sailing a few days ago so let me dial up Morgan & Morgan, ring ring....I caught COVID on a cruise shop ding ding ding! Excessive YES, but I so get it. 

Make It Rain Money GIF

 

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1 hour ago, Atlantix2000 said:

Do you really think what they send you today will still be the rules 15 months from now?  For perspective, remember that 15 months ago was pre-lockdowns.  If your soonest cruise is in August 2022, I wouldn't take any action today.  I'll be surprised if very many Covid restrictions still exist by then.

You may be correct, but what they issued today will stand for 2022 unless RCI amend and reissue the conditions. I am not taking any chances and rejecting these supplementary conditions now. My TA issued them along with the updated booking details. It was a Lift & Shift from our August 2021 cruise that was cancelled in March.

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I am booked on Anthem this coming Sept out of Southampton.  Have not rec'd any notice of conditions.  It seems strange to get them for next year  when things are changing so much.  I also expect my Sept Anthem cruise to be cancelled but who knows?  Or I will cancel because they cannot port in the countries that I wanted to see, maybe only UK ports.   I also do not know  when they will accept US passengers.   I just keep getting cancelled and keep making more booking reservations.......

 

 

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We anticipate that a number of our cruises will have no ports of call in the itinerary and this will be made clear at the time of booking. For cruises which do included scheduled ports of call, we will do our best to ensure that, where guests are able to disembark the ship, they are able to do so individually, although we may need to restrict disembarkation to guests who participate in shore excursions which are provided by us. Our ability to provide shore excursions is heavily dependent on local laws and regulations therefore some amenities in various destinations may be restricted or closed, and movement may be restricted due to physical distancing requirements. When you are either disembarking or embarking the ship at a port of call, you may be subject to additional mandatory health screening and checks. We will provide you with details of any additional health screening and checks prior to disembarkation at a port of call. Please note that the local authorities in the port of call may also require additional screening and testing of guests at the point of disembarkation and/or embarkation and you must comply with these requirements. Failure to comply with any of these health screening and checks or testing requirements will be considered a breach of the Guest Health Safety and Conduct Policy and your contract with us which may result in denial of boarding or disembarkation from the ship. Please note that we have no liability for injury or loss sustained in connection with shore excursions, subject to applicable law.

 

 

From page 8. I guess you have to decide/be prepared to be completely unable to actually visit any port of call on your itinerary. It's one thing if a port gets shifted or skipped (happens during regular time). It's an entirely different matter if they feel the need to control your experience even when you're not on the ship. Part of the risk/reward analysis I guess. 

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46 minutes ago, b_resh_uh said:

We anticipate that a number of our cruises will have no ports of call in the itinerary and this will be made clear at the time of booking. For cruises which do included scheduled ports of call, we will do our best to ensure that, where guests are able to disembark the ship, they are able to do so individually, although we may need to restrict disembarkation to guests who participate in shore excursions which are provided by us. Our ability to provide shore excursions is heavily dependent on local laws and regulations therefore some amenities in various destinations may be restricted or closed, and movement may be restricted due to physical distancing requirements. When you are either disembarking or embarking the ship at a port of call, you may be subject to additional mandatory health screening and checks. We will provide you with details of any additional health screening and checks prior to disembarkation at a port of call. Please note that the local authorities in the port of call may also require additional screening and testing of guests at the point of disembarkation and/or embarkation and you must comply with these requirements. Failure to comply with any of these health screening and checks or testing requirements will be considered a breach of the Guest Health Safety and Conduct Policy and your contract with us which may result in denial of boarding or disembarkation from the ship. Please note that we have no liability for injury or loss sustained in connection with shore excursions, subject to applicable law.

 

 

From page 8. I guess you have to decide/be prepared to be completely unable to actually visit any port of call on your itinerary. It's one thing if a port gets shifted or skipped (happens during regular time). It's an entirely different matter if they feel the need to control your experience even when you're not on the ship. Part of the risk/reward analysis I guess. 

The cruise lines that have been sailing have been doing the "cruise bubble" or "cruises to nowhere" for several months now. 

I'm not surprised that RCI has reserved the right to do the same. I'm actually surprised they are only reserving the right rather than saying they are going to do this.

So yes, it is a risk/reward thing you need to consider before going on your trip.

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1 hour ago, steverk said:

The cruise lines that have been sailing have been doing the "cruise bubble" or "cruises to nowhere" for several months now. 

I'm not surprised that RCI has reserved the right to do the same. I'm actually surprised they are only reserving the right rather than saying they are going to do this.

So yes, it is a risk/reward thing you need to consider before going on your trip.

They can not just say they are going to do cruises to nowhere; under current regulations that is not permitted from USA ports. 

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56 minutes ago, TXcruzer said:

They can not just say they are going to do cruises to nowhere; under current regulations that is not permitted from USA ports. 

I was referring to the cruises so far, none of which involved the US.  The quote from RCI doesn't say if it involves a US based cruise or not.

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3 hours ago, b_resh_uh said:

We anticipate that a number of our cruises will have no ports of call in the itinerary and this will be made clear at the time of booking. For cruises which do included scheduled ports of call, we will do our best to ensure that, where guests are able to disembark the ship, they are able to do so individually, although we may need to restrict disembarkation to guests who participate in shore excursions which are provided by us. Our ability to provide shore excursions is heavily dependent on local laws and regulations therefore some amenities in various destinations may be restricted or closed, and movement may be restricted due to physical distancing requirements. When you are either disembarking or embarking the ship at a port of call, you may be subject to additional mandatory health screening and checks. We will provide you with details of any additional health screening and checks prior to disembarkation at a port of call. Please note that the local authorities in the port of call may also require additional screening and testing of guests at the point of disembarkation and/or embarkation and you must comply with these requirements. Failure to comply with any of these health screening and checks or testing requirements will be considered a breach of the Guest Health Safety and Conduct Policy and your contract with us which may result in denial of boarding or disembarkation from the ship. Please note that we have no liability for injury or loss sustained in connection with shore excursions, subject to applicable law.

 

 

From page 8. I guess you have to decide/be prepared to be completely unable to actually visit any port of call on your itinerary. It's one thing if a port gets shifted or skipped (happens during regular time). It's an entirely different matter if they feel the need to control your experience even when you're not on the ship. Part of the risk/reward analysis I guess. 

So there's a good reason to book the ship with the most toys.

 

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On 5/12/2021 at 7:41 AM, Jim S said:

I have today received an updated set of booking conditions (16 pages) for our upcoming Mediterranean cruise on Anthem for August 2022. Having read through the plethora of additional conditions now being posed by RCI in respect of COVID-19 and Health Protection Measures, I find them to be totally unreasonable, extremely onerous and in some cases may even be illegal (in the UK). They impose huge potential liabilities in terms of risk and costs that I am not prepared to accept. I am now in the process of cancelling this cruise and the other RCI cruises that I have booked and am now seeking a full cash refund for each of them.

I suggest that anyone who has booked or is considering booking a European cruise with RCI should carefully read these new conditions before going ahead. Just a “heads up” so that you are aware of this.

We also have two P&O European cruises booked for 2021 and 2022 as well as an MSC UK Islands cruise next month and neither P&O or MSC have imposed anything other than what I would call reasonable and understandable conditions in respect of COVID-19.

It is totally understandable that due to COVID-19 the cruise companies need to impose a number of additional precautions and restrictions but I think that RCI have gone completely overboard (excuse the pun) with them and many potential passengers will not accept what RCI are imposing and go to another cruise line who are much more reasonable and understanding about what the normal passenger is willing to accept to get onboard a cruise ship.

I just spent a valuable minute of my life reading this post and there are no conditions listed. Please let us know what the conditions are.

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11 hours ago, b_resh_uh said:

We anticipate that a number of our cruises will have no ports of call in the itinerary and this will be made clear at the time of booking. For cruises which do included scheduled ports of call, we will do our best to ensure that, where guests are able to disembark the ship, they are able to do so individually, although we may need to restrict disembarkation to guests who participate in shore excursions which are provided by us. Our ability to provide shore excursions is heavily dependent on local laws and regulations therefore some amenities in various destinations may be restricted or closed, and movement may be restricted due to physical distancing requirements. When you are either disembarking or embarking the ship at a port of call, you may be subject to additional mandatory health screening and checks. We will provide you with details of any additional health screening and checks prior to disembarkation at a port of call. Please note that the local authorities in the port of call may also require additional screening and testing of guests at the point of disembarkation and/or embarkation and you must comply with these requirements. Failure to comply with any of these health screening and checks or testing requirements will be considered a breach of the Guest Health Safety and Conduct Policy and your contract with us which may result in denial of boarding or disembarkation from the ship. Please note that we have no liability for injury or loss sustained in connection with shore excursions, subject to applicable law.

 

 

From page 8. I guess you have to decide/be prepared to be completely unable to actually visit any port of call on your itinerary. It's one thing if a port gets shifted or skipped (happens during regular time). It's an entirely different matter if they feel the need to control your experience even when you're not on the ship. Part of the risk/reward analysis I guess. 

See,,, This is already dated and not likely. CDC green lit the "self exploration" in ports , a few days ago.  With things so fluid I'm really surprised at how jumpy people are. Nothing set in stone at this time...  Definitely CYA stuff. surprised they don't have a meteor disclaimer...

 

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On 5/18/2021 at 12:17 AM, tonyfsu21 said:

I just spent a valuable minute of my life reading this post and there are no conditions listed. Please let us know what the conditions are.

See my post dated May 12th where I provided links to the conditions in question. The 7th post that day.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well it looks like we will not be booking any more RCI cruises, at least for the foreseeable future. Our TA contacted RCI and they confirmed that the new TC’s that I posted earlier in this thread will be in force for all future cruises for at least another 12 months. Looks like P&O, MSC and Cunard will be getting our bookings from now on, as they are all taking a much more reasonable and realistic approach to the pandemic situation. ??

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3 hours ago, Jim S said:

Well it looks like we will not be booking any more RCI cruises, at least for the foreseeable future. Our TA contacted RCI and they confirmed that the new TC’s that I posted earlier in this thread will be in force for all future cruises for at least another 12 months. Looks like P&O, MSC and Cunard will be getting our bookings from now on, as they are all taking a much more reasonable and realistic approach to the pandemic situation. ??

So would these apply to my aug 21 Allure from Port Canaveral? As I contacted RC yesterday and they had no info for me??

Have just spoke with RC again and they maintain that these terms could change

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Not sure where these new TC’s will be applied. So far I have been advised that they apply to UK and European sailings for 2021 and 2022. I am not prepared to accept them and want a refund for any of the booked cruises where they’re to be applied. I did not get informed about these conditions when I booked each of my three RCI cruises, departing May 22, Aug 22 and Oct 22. They were only presented to me recently when RCI updated the details for the Aug 22 cruise. My TA has advised me to wait until just before the final balance is due, by which time the situation may have changed. If it doesn’t, then I will be requesting a full refund for the amounts paid.

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19 hours ago, Jill said:

I have an October 2022 on Odyssey out of Rome and I’ve received nothing. 

RCI are not consistent with the new TC’s. We also have two other cruises booked for May 22 on Allure out of Barcelona and October 22 on Odyssey (maybe the same cruise that you are on) out of Rome and they have not applied the conditions to those cruises (yet). ??

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41 minutes ago, Jim S said:

RCI are not consistent with the new TC’s. We also have two other cruises booked for May 22 on Allure out of Barcelona and October 22 on Odyssey (maybe the same cruise that you are on) out of Rome and they have not applied the conditions to those cruises (yet). ??

We’re on the 12 night Holy Land October 7

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