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No refund and Sold under false advertising


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Booked Explorers of the seas for our 25th wedding anniversary as it was advertised as having 110 million Refit this has not been done and they are refusing  to give a refund but to me this was sold under false advertising as we would never have booked a 20 year old ship without it having had the work done so as Two disabled people have now lost the money we had saved for our 25th wedding anniversary and my husbands 65th birthday so thanks for that RC as this would have been out last cruise due to my husband having working age dementia that will only get worse so by the time we save up again to Replace the money we have lost he will be to ill to go as this would take 3 years to save I really do hope you can sleep at night 

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This is a fan site, and not affiliated with Royal Caribbean. Nobody there will read your complaint.

I doubt when they advertised the amplification of Explorer of the Seas (and Allure), they had no idea that the pandemic would hit and cause them to shut down for over a year and lose billions of dollars, making the amplification fiscally impossible.  I would never consider that "false advertising".  

Personally, I'd go anyway.  You haven't "lost the money".  You are choosing to do so by not going on the cruise.  You could still have a great time if you chose to do so.

Good luck.

(I can't speak for anyone else, but personally, I sleep quite well at night).

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Have you no trip insurance?  When is the trip?  Might you be covered under Cruise with Confidence?  Can you move to a ship more to your liking?  If you booked when the amplification was being advertised, it was clearly prior to Covid and probably CWC eligible.  Did you book yourself through Royal?  If so, call and ask what options you may have.  If you used. TA, call them.  Complaining here will do nothing. 

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2 hours ago, Michelle westley said:

Booked Explorers of the seas for our 25th wedding anniversary as it was advertised as having 110 million Refit this has not been done and they are refusing  to give a refund but to me this was sold under false advertising as we would never have booked a 20 year old ship without it having had the work done so as Two disabled people have now lost the money we had saved for our 25th wedding anniversary and my husbands 65th birthday so thanks for that RC as this would have been out last cruise due to my husband having working age dementia that will only get worse so by the time we save up again to Replace the money we have lost he will be to ill to go as this would take 3 years to save I really do hope you can sleep at night 

When is the sailing? It sounds like you booked some time ago so you should be eligible for cruise with confidence. If you say you are uncomfortable with the current protocols you should be able to get a refund.

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And BTW, although I don’t expect OP to return, we are booked on Explorer in October.   If, as you state, you are both disabled, the amp wouldn’t do you much good anyway as it usually means adding water slides and other physical activities which you might not be able to use AND the cruise fare will increase as a result too.

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Probably wont be answered as OG poster Probably won't return but i would love to know what website advertised refit at time of booking and exactly when booking was made, as it's been well spoken about on here and in news articles that RC refits didn't happen due to Covid.  

 

 

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53 minutes ago, Ray said:

Probably wont be answered as OG poster Probably won't return but i would love to know what website advertised refit at time of booking and exactly when booking was made, as it's been well spoken about on here and in news articles that RC refits didn't happen due to Covid.  

 

 

October 2019 it was advertised that it was going to happen in spring 2020. Unless the poster googled the ship since then and didn't look at the dates

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Hit and run people, hit and run. 

If this persons post had any shred of truth in it that means they booked the cruise prior to COVID (no one could predict COVID and it impact) and there were several ways for this individual to either get their money back.  Or if amplification was really the deal breaker they could have switched their cruise to any number of newer or amplified ships.

Hit and run. 

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We booked Explorer at Next Cruise in November '21, the Next Cruise agent told us that it was reamplified or whatever the terminology was... it was only after we booked and reading on this very forum that those upgrades did not happen.  So I do see how this is sort of false advertising when the Next Cruise staff has incorrect information. However, I'm still very excited to try a ship that is not an Oasis class for the first time.

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11 minutes ago, AlwaysRollin said:

We booked Explorer at Next Cruise in November '21, the Next Cruise agent told us that it was reamplified or whatever the terminology was... it was only after we booked and reading on this very forum that those upgrades did not happen.  So I do see how this is sort of false advertising when the Next Cruise staff has incorrect information. However, I'm still very excited to try a ship that is not an Oasis class for the first time.

Explorer of the Seas is a great ship, amplified or not!

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In this person's defense, I booked that ship a couple years ago, maybe less, stopped counting at this point. It wasn't until I came here that I found out it was not amplified and wasn't going to be. However, RC's website made it appear the upgrades were a done deal. I didn't care because I booked for the itinerary, not the ship. But the website was really misleading. I hope at this point they are not advertising features that the ship doesn't have and won't get anytime soon. 

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We're 10 days away from going on Explorer.  Yes, it would have been nice to be amped, but it did undergo a refurbishment in '15, so it's not like the ship is going to come apart at the seams.  Our last sail in '19 was on Serenade, that ship needed some love and care, but it didn't stop us from having a great time.

The sad reality for the OP is that if they didn't think the ship had been amped, they would have gone on and had a great time.  The amping adds some bells and whistles, Likely ones that they would not take advantage of, but when it's done, it's an afterthought.  What stays are the ports, the people you meet and the activities you take advantage of.

I can't imagine throwing away hard earned money because of that, but there's a lot of things in this world I can't imagine.

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10 hours ago, Matt V said:

In this person's defense, I booked that ship a couple years ago, maybe less, stopped counting at this point. It wasn't until I came here that I found out it was not amplified and wasn't going to be. However, RC's website made it appear the upgrades were a done deal. I didn't care because I booked for the itinerary, not the ship. But the website was really misleading. I hope at this point they are not advertising features that the ship doesn't have and won't get anytime soon. 

A couple years ago (again) was before COVID it has only been a little over a year since cruising resumed in the US.  Royal did say the ship would be amplified in 2020, they said the same thing about Allure of the Seas. 

Stop trying to make it appear as though Royal Caribbean engaged is some kind of deceptive practice when both these ships were scheduled to be Amplified in the Spring of 2020  and then the world shut down in the last week of March in 2020 and weeks later Royal announced later they were temporarily pausing the Amplification project to conserve cash.  During early days (most of 2020) of the shut down Royal Caribbean was burning over $1.2 Billion dollars every quarter, with a cash burn rate that high you still expected them to amplify ships?   Really???

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@Michelle westley  No Refund makes No Sense !  I am sorry about your troubles, but something about your story is not correct.  Our 25th Anniversary Cruise was the RCB Group Cruise to the Norwegian Fjords on Anthem, but that was cancelled due to Covid.  So we booked the Anthem coming out of the shutdown and got our first suite.  It was very nice and we loved it.  Good Luck to you - hope you find a solution that works.

Also, Welcome to the Royal Caribbean Blog Forums!

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On 6/14/2022 at 8:43 AM, JasonOasis said:

A couple years ago (again) was before COVID it has only been a little over a year since cruising resumed in the US.  Royal did say the ship would be amplified in 2020, they said the same thing about Allure of the Seas. 

Stop trying to make it appear as though Royal Caribbean engaged is some kind of deceptive practice when both these ships were scheduled to be Amplified in the Spring of 2020  and then the world shut down in the last week of March in 2020 and weeks later Royal announced later they were temporarily pausing the Amplification project to conserve cash.  During early days (most of 2020) of the shut down Royal Caribbean was burning over $1.2 Billion dollars every quarter, with a cash burn rate that high you still expected them to amplify ships?   Really???

I took screen shots of the ads where it  showed the ship with all these features that didn't exist, just in case I wanted to dispute it and get my deposit back. Based on the pics and verbiage, it looked as if it was a revamped ship. No where did it say soon to be amplified, or in progress. I don't care really. Cruise was canceled like all the others I booked. Not going to argue with you. 

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Has any of you that think Royal owes you something actually read the contract?  

No, I haven't!  But, if I thought I was being screwed because of a lack of receiving something, that's the first or second place I'd be looking.  The other place is the FAQ at Royalcaribbean.com. 

Now, don't get me wrong, I think that if Royal or anybody else advertises something without up front disclaimer/notification of cancelation or postponement, it SUCKS.  But, I think the below, just as one example, makes them harmless from the examples above.  I'm sure there are a lot more, not so up front, disclaimers or legaleze stuff that protects them.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/cruise-ticket-contract.pdf

7. CANCELLATION, DEVIATION OR SUBSTITUTION BY CARRIER: a. Carrier may for any reason at any time and without prior notice, cancel, advance, postpone or deviate from any scheduled sailing, port of call, destination, lodging or any activity on or off the Vessel, or substitute another vessel or port of call, destination, lodging or activity. Except as provided in Section 7.e below, and except as provided in Section 4.e or Section 4.f regarding an actual or suspected COVID-19 infection, and except where a refund is required by law as a result of a declaration of a public health emergency or government order cancelling the Cruise or delaying boarding of the Vessel by Passengers by three (3) days or more, Carrier shall not be liable for any claim whatsoever by Passenger, including but not limited to loss, compensation or refund, by reason of such cancellation, advancement, postponement, substitution or deviation.

JMHO - YMMV

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On 6/13/2022 at 1:22 PM, Michelle westley said:

Booked Explorers of the seas for our 25th wedding anniversary as it was advertised as having 110 million Refit this has not been done and they are refusing  to give a refund but to me this was sold under false advertising as we would never have booked a 20 year old ship without it having had the work done so as Two disabled people have now lost the money we had saved for our 25th wedding anniversary and my husbands 65th birthday so thanks for that RC as this would have been out last cruise due to my husband having working age dementia that will only get worse so by the time we save up again to Replace the money we have lost he will be to ill to go as this would take 3 years to save I really do hope you can sleep at night 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Bumping even though the OP is run away…..

We’re on Explorer now and the ship is in excellent shape, passengers are having a great time and, according to the ship’s hotel manager, the ship is fully staffed except for spa workers and shop clerks. This is everything I expected so far.

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Just curious, where is it advertised as “amplified?” Also, what does that mean, “amplified?” I understand that it means that the ship got upgrades, but what upgrades or lack thereof would get someone so mad that they cancel? 
 

The OP mentions dementia. While I’m sympathetic to this because my dad has it, does Royal “amplification “ include some sort of dementia accommodation? Wut. Does Explorer not have accessible rooms or other things for disabled people? I’m so very confused why this would be a deal breaker unless the ship was so out of date that disabled people couldn’t cruise. Also, why not talk to RCCL and ask for a transfer to a newer ship?

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21 minutes ago, CruisingNewb said:

Just curious, where is it advertised as “amplified?” Also, what does that mean, “amplified?” I understand that it means that the ship got upgrades, but what upgrades or lack thereof would get someone so mad that they cancel? 
 

The OP mentions dementia. While I’m sympathetic to this because my dad has it, does Royal “amplification “ include some sort of dementia accommodation? Wut. Does Explorer not have accessible rooms or other things for disabled people? I’m so very confused why this would be a deal breaker unless the ship was so out of date that disabled people couldn’t cruise. Also, why not talk to RCCL and ask for a transfer to a newer ship?

Here's the link for Royal Amplified ships which is where the "Amplified" verbiage comes from - Cruise Ship Renovations & Refurbishment | Royal Caribbean Cruises

Having done a little research (google is your friend) - Explorer was supposed to be Amplified in 2020.. and obviously that didn't happen due to the pandemic. The did go into dry dock prior to restarting service for maintenance but no upgrades.

Being "Amplified" doesn't mean it's any more or less accessible. Adventure OTS (same class of ship) hasn't been amplified, but it's plenty accessible for all. 

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22 minutes ago, CruisingNewb said:

does Royal “amplification “ include some sort of dementia accommodation? Wut. Does Explorer not have accessible rooms or other things for disabled people? I’m so very confused why this would be a deal breaker unless the ship was so out of date that disabled people couldn’t cruise. Also, why not talk to RCCL and ask for a transfer to a newer ship?

 

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On 6/13/2022 at 12:22 PM, Michelle westley said:

Booked Explorers of the seas for our 25th wedding anniversary as it was advertised as having 110 million Refit this has not been done and they are refusing  to give a refund but to me this was sold under false advertising as we would never have booked a 20 year old ship without it having had the work done so as Two disabled people have now lost the money we had saved for our 25th wedding anniversary and my husbands 65th birthday so thanks for that RC as this would have been out last cruise due to my husband having working age dementia that will only get worse so by the time we save up again to Replace the money we have lost he will be to ill to go as this would take 3 years to save I really do hope you can sleep at night 

One and done!

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Really sad the OP disappeared...they could have received some reassurance that Explorer is a great ship, Amplified or not. Maybe the "refit" was an article about a dry dock dealing with the regular propulsion and standard maintenance on mechanical issues. Judging by the way the post was written, I doubt they will be doing a sky pad or water slides...

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After having re-read the OP, I have no sympathy and think that if the cruise was as big of a deal as the OP made it out to be, she wouldn’t have just huffed and puffed and quit. It’s clear that disabled persons’ accommodations weren’t the issue as I have also looked at the current ADA accommodations on the Explorer. I don’t think it’s false advertising to say that a refit is planned for a future date. Especially given the overlap between the refit date and COVID. Lastly, as @smokeybanditsaid, the amped version likely didn’t have things that disabled elderly-ish people were going to look forward to. If the money was such an issue, I am somewhat sure that given the chance, Royal would have done something to help out. 

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OP wanted to rant in a very particularly entitled way. At most the amplification would have added activities of no concern to the OP and maybe updated a few staterooms. I don't want to assume anyone's fitness levels, because maybe they did have intentions of doing waterslides and the flowrider. However, unless you book refundable, an any reason refund is rarely an option for cruises. 

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