World Class First World Problems
Posted: Wed Jan 03, 2024 12:41 pm
Fourteen months ago Mrs. CR and I purchased a world cruise. Mrs. CR has been looking for years. We found a great itinerary that included several Mediterranean islands including Malta and Sicily; Israel; cruise through the Suez Canal and Red Sea with stops in Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia; down the east coast of Africa to Kenya and Zanzibar; West Indian Ocean islands Seychelles, Mauritius, Reunion; then around the Horn of Africa, Durban and Cape Town; across the South Atlantic Ocean to St. Helena where Napoleon was exiled; explore Brazil for two weeks including a stop in Rio and a week up the Amazon; then up through Caribbean; USA - Miami, Brooklyn, Newport RI; around Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Isle and into Quebec City; up to Nuuk, Greenland; two stops in Iceland; Belfast, Liverpool and finally Southhampton.
Then October 7 Hamas attacked Israel. The Ship cancelled our stop in Haifa, Israel, reroute #1.
Then late November the Houthis in Yemen began shooting at cargo ships. The Ship cancelled Jordan, Egypt but kept Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Reroute #2.
Mid-December a MSC cargo ship was attacked, hours later MSC Cruises cancelled our Suez Canal and Red Sea transit. WTF! What's this reroute going to look like.
Days later reroute #3 eliminated all the Mediterranean stops - Malta, Sicily, Rhodes, Cyprus. The new route takes us west through Gibraltar, down the west coast of Africa, around the Horn, up the east coast to reunite with the original route in Kenya. Madagascar was added along with the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, and Dakar. This really blows! The unique part of the World Cruise was its North-South trek including the Suez Canal transit; most World Cruises follow the Equator. Now our track doubles back around South Africa.
Then yesterday we were hit with Reroute #4. Changes were made due to yellow fever issues and not enough time for everyone to get jabbed, so Dakar, Senegal was cancelled; one day less in Kenya (our overnight safari is toast) and a second port in Madagascar.
I can understand MSC Cruises dilemma - finding open ports and services for a 2,500-person ship and have safe established excursions with only days notice before launch must be a logistical nightmare.
Do we have any options other than cancelling and losing a ton of money? Not really, not this late in the game. Chapter 6 in the Ship's Rules & Regs states that a Ship can change a route due to "war, acts of God, and disease". Basically, the passenger is along for the ride. However, Mrs. CR is on a Facebook site for the Ship and passengers are so upset many are getting organized to demand smoe form of compensation for such drastic changes. Meetings are already set to occur when we get aboard ship.
We embark in four days.
Then October 7 Hamas attacked Israel. The Ship cancelled our stop in Haifa, Israel, reroute #1.
Then late November the Houthis in Yemen began shooting at cargo ships. The Ship cancelled Jordan, Egypt but kept Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Reroute #2.
Mid-December a MSC cargo ship was attacked, hours later MSC Cruises cancelled our Suez Canal and Red Sea transit. WTF! What's this reroute going to look like.
Days later reroute #3 eliminated all the Mediterranean stops - Malta, Sicily, Rhodes, Cyprus. The new route takes us west through Gibraltar, down the west coast of Africa, around the Horn, up the east coast to reunite with the original route in Kenya. Madagascar was added along with the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, and Dakar. This really blows! The unique part of the World Cruise was its North-South trek including the Suez Canal transit; most World Cruises follow the Equator. Now our track doubles back around South Africa.
Then yesterday we were hit with Reroute #4. Changes were made due to yellow fever issues and not enough time for everyone to get jabbed, so Dakar, Senegal was cancelled; one day less in Kenya (our overnight safari is toast) and a second port in Madagascar.
I can understand MSC Cruises dilemma - finding open ports and services for a 2,500-person ship and have safe established excursions with only days notice before launch must be a logistical nightmare.
Do we have any options other than cancelling and losing a ton of money? Not really, not this late in the game. Chapter 6 in the Ship's Rules & Regs states that a Ship can change a route due to "war, acts of God, and disease". Basically, the passenger is along for the ride. However, Mrs. CR is on a Facebook site for the Ship and passengers are so upset many are getting organized to demand smoe form of compensation for such drastic changes. Meetings are already set to occur when we get aboard ship.
We embark in four days.
