Booking entire trip through RCCL

[Paid4c4]

If passengers book entire cruise vacation through RCCL including airfare will RCCL assist getting you to the ship should you have a plane cancellation getting to the cruise? Just curious.

Bill

[Ampurp85]

16 hours ago, Paid4c4 said:

If passengers book entire cruise vacation through RCCL including airfare will RCCL assist getting you to the ship should you have a plane cancellation getting to the cruise? Just curious.

Bill

Yes if you booked through the Air2Sea program it offers assistance in making sure you make your cruise do to flight issues. 

[ChessE4]

20 hours ago, Paid4c4 said:

If passengers book entire cruise vacation through RCCL including airfare will RCCL assist getting you to the ship should you have a plane cancellation getting to the cruise? Just curious.

Bill

As we speak my son is on the Voyager in Copenhagen about to sail, and he booked everything with RCCL/Air2Sea.   He was also set until the day of his US departure when the airline delayed his departing flight several hours, which would have led to a missed connection.  When he found out, he called Air2Sea and was quickly rebooked for his connecting flight from Frankfort.  No fuss at all.  He arrived a day early in Copenhagen, which is usually recommended.  (Had he flown a day later, he wouldn't have made the Copenhagen embarkation and would have been assisted in meeting the cruise at the next port.)  He also had travel insurance with RCCL, although we usually use someone else.  So my points are that Air2Sea worked out smoothly despite a last minute airline snafu, and travel to embarkation port a day early to avoid missing anything.

[AshleyDillo]

On 5/21/2022 at 3:38 PM, Paid4c4 said:

If passengers book entire cruise vacation through RCCL including airfare will RCCL assist getting you to the ship should you have a plane cancellation getting to the cruise? Just curious.

Air2Sea will do what they can but they are still at the mercy of the airlines and flight availability. You can help prevent as much travel issues as possible by planning to arrive well in advance of embarkation (the night before at a minimum).  Air2Sea will be a point of contact to get the assistance in rebooking something last minute, but you also need to be proactive if something happens to ensure that you make it on time.  Knowing what alternates exist to get you to your destination can help the process if there is an issue. 

[Moby Dick]

21 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Air2Sea will do what they can but they are still at the mercy of the airlines and flight availability. You can help prevent as much travel issues as possible by planning to arrive well in advance of embarkation (the night before at a minimum).  Air2Sea will be a point of contact to get the assistance in rebooking something last minute, but you also need to be proactive if something happens to ensure that you make it on time.  Knowing what alternates exist to get you to your destination can help the process if there is an issue. 

<not directed toward you personally/directly, AshleyDillo, I'm sure you already know this>

There is no better entity to rely upon than "yourself" in planning anything.  Even though you purchase services to assist you in making arrangements and to assist in unforeseen circumstances, it is still better to TRY to be prepared to help yourself, arrive early, and have a plan B.  

I would never arrive at my embarkation city on the day of the cruise.  Always, at least, the day before.  That's if I'm driving, taking a train, horse and carriage, or flying, etc etc.

[WesKinetic]

Not to get off topic, but I initially misread this as "Booking entire SHIP" and I was just thinking, "Wow, I wanna party with you."  

[Zacharius]

On 5/22/2022 at 7:14 AM, Ampurp85 said:

Yes if you booked through the Air2Sea program it offers assistance in making sure you make your cruise do to flight issues. 

In theory, and they'll make you think they can, but in reality...

57 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Air2Sea will do what they can but they are still at the mercy of the airlines and flight availability. 

Exactly. Flights are full again. Air2Sea can't add seats to a plane, or add flights to a destination. Caribbean cruises are a good example of this, where there are a lot of small islands with limited flights, not to mention the private cruiseline islands with zero flights.  They can only work with what the airlines offer. Another thing to keep in mind is that, if something big happens to cause delays, it will likely have a ripple effect through the system and you'll be competing with frequent fliers and full-fare customers, which will start pushing you down the list of priority for the airlines. 

Air2Sea uses a lot of fancy marketing language to say they'll get you to the ship. In reality, they can only do their best (and hopefully they'll at least try their best, not just try a little). Don't assume they'll get you where you need to go, when you need to get there.