Woulda Coulda Shoulda

If things had gone as planned with the 3-year cruise I signed up for in March, I would be on a flight to Istanbul CLICK HERE (ad) right now. I was one of the lucky ones, as it turns out. I cancelled my trip once I learned the management team had a falling out with the cruise line with which they had been in business. According to a recent CNN article I read, (link below), the cruise line hasn’t even completed their purchase of the ship that was to set out on November 1.

One-way flights are more expensive than round-trip tickets, but that is what I had planned to purchase. Those who decided to stick with the cruise, instead of cancelling as I did, and booked their flights will find themselves in a jam. That is, unless they purchased trip cancellation/interruption insurance. I always do so when flying. It has saved me lots in the past.

Once such case was my three-week trip to Key West, Florida CLICK HERE (ad) a few years before Covid struck. I booked my flight and paid well in advance. This way my purchase price was much lower than it would have been if I had waited. This could have been a disaster for me, as the airline decided to move my connecting flight to Key West to several hours earlier than my arrival in Atlanta. There was no way I would have been able to make the flight, as I would have been in the air.

Since my flight was cancelled by the airline, my money was refunded. However, the new flight I needed to book was at a much higher cost. Since I had purchased the right type of insurance, the company paid me the difference between my original flight and the new one I had to book. I really hope those passengers still planning on taking the Life at Sea cruise protected themselves in this way.

The other expense they may be on the hook for is their hotel reservation. I always check the cancellation policy. I had booked my room for this trip long before deciding not to go but made sure the hotel would allow me to pay when my stay was concluded, rather than in advance. There was also no penalty for cancelling the reservation up to one week in advance of the trip. Life Lesson. Never pay in advance for hotel stays. Always make sure you can cancel without penalty, if necessary. The farther out a trip is, the more important this becomes.

Years ago, when taking students to Europe over Spring Break and over Summer Vacation, I used a travel agent. She looked out for our interests. Once, she called me at the end of the school day. She told me, if I could bring back the airline tickets we had already purchased, she would be able to refund over $300 for each participant on the trip. All we had to do was to spend an extra two days in a five-star hotel in Amsterdam. Because we had used a travel agent, she saved us enough money to pay for the extra two days, in which we toured the city via canal boat, and visited the Anne Frank House CLICK HERE (ad). Priceless. 

The passengers still booked on the 3-year cruise won’t need their hotel reservations in Istanbul. From the CNN article, I learned the cruise won’t be leaving from Istanbul for some reason. The new port is in Amsterdam. The cruise line representative mentioned to the reporter that this is just a short flight from Istanbul. That’s absurd. It’s an added expense for the flight and another hotel to be booked.

It looks more and more like the original management team was correct. They warned us the cruise line may not have a ship ready for the cruise to start on time. They were also worried about what they perceived as a lack of transparency. Both issues are mentioned in the new article as well. You would think six or seven months would be enough time to make such a purchase, especially since a ship had already been located and the process had begun.

Perhaps my fellow travelers should have pulled back when I did. Some sold their homes, quit their jobs, retired early, and took money out of their retirement accounts. I’m saddened our dream was put in jeopardy. I hope they did the things mentioned above, bought trip cancellation insurance, and worked with a travel agent. This might help them recover some of their funds if the cruise doesn’t happen. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for them, as I know how important this trip is to them. It was to me too. At least, for me, there is no longer any risk to my finances or health. I wish them all a bon voyage.

CNN Article: CLICK HERE

 Photo Credit: Google Images

You’re reading from the blog, EnjoytheViewTouring.com.

Sign up to be notified when I post something new.

Have K-12 kids? Then you'll want my book, Free College, to show you how to help your kids earn lots of college scholarships, CLICK HERE.

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.