Thread: Hanna-caused detour prompts 'mutiny' on Carnival Miracle

MD11F - I was not aware that notification was given prior to the trip to boarding passengers that the itinery may be changed, hence my remarks. Had I seen that somewhere I would have not said so.

I do blame Carnival though for going all the way to the Bahamas and then turning around to Newport. I think alot of people would have been less angry if they knew right from the start that they would be going on a modified Caribbean trip- say a day or two in the Bahamas with a stop in Bermuda, or a Canada/New England trip than sort of a half and half.

Playing Devils adovcate, it makes Carnival and the Captain look indecisive in their plan of action to the passengers to go all the way to the Bahamas and then go all the way up to Newport.

Yes, Hanna did a loop thing, but again it didn't happen all of a sudden, Meterologists were able to see it develop and knew it was coming back around. I just feel Carnival was not clear in their plan, and the communication of that plan to their passengers.

Scott

As the saying goes, "Hindsight is always 20/20." And it's always easy to second-guess decisions after the fact. So for us to debate why decisions were made or what information they may or may not have had before the decisions were made or that the captain did or did not provide adequate communication would be doing an injustice to those involed.

The bottom line is that they are not going to put passengers in danger and situations change, which often causes changes to plans.

When cruising, there are no guarantees - things happen.

Pete

The other thing to realize is that these are LARGE vessels.It is not like yo can squeeze one in just anywhere. I am of the opinion that there were other ships scheduled to be in those other ports causing space in those unscheduled ports become an issue. There are probably other factors that we are not thinking about in play as well.

Originally Posted by laser110

MD11F - I was not aware that notification was given prior to the trip to boarding passengers that the itinery may be changed, hence my remarks. Had I seen that somewhere I would have not said so.

I do blame Carnival though for going all the way to the Bahamas and then turning around to Newport. I think alot of people would have been less angry if they knew right from the start that they would be going on a modified Caribbean trip- say a day or two in the Bahamas with a stop in Bermuda, or a Canada/New England trip than sort of a half and half.

Playing Devils adovcate, it makes Carnival and the Captain look indecisive in their plan of action to the passengers to go all the way to the Bahamas and then go all the way up to Newport.

Yes, Hanna did a loop thing, but again it didn't happen all of a sudden, Meterologists were able to see it develop and knew it was coming back around. I just feel Carnival was not clear in their plan, and the communication of that plan to their passengers.

Scott

Scott, I am Ken, so feel free to call me by my name instead of my Username. I didn't think you were aware that prior notification was given to the passengers by Carnival before departure.

I however continue to disagree with you that Carnival was to blame for taking the Miracle to the Bahamas, then back to Newport, RI. Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Disney and NCL in these situations are monitoring every bit of weather info. from NOAA, Nat'l Hurricane Ctr, Satellite Weather Info. etc. With Hanna stalled where she was, Ike bearing down on the area, you don't want to have the ship in a storm and rough water, hence the decision to substitute Nassau with Freeport, which is further north of Hanna. That, coupled with Carnival having to get the Miracle back to New York in time for the next scheduled departure, they had to keep the ship in an area where it would be within easy reach of New York, so I fail to see your point about the indecisvness of Carnival and the Miracle's Captain.

Again, the company informed the passengers that itinerary changes were very possible. As Pete pointed out, situations change. I'm sure Carnival did the best they could, they deal with these circumstances every hurricane season, and they are certainly not going to put any of their ships or guests in harm's way, that's the bottom line. A lawsuit for negligence would not be in their best interest in any way shape or form. You can't please everybody.

I found an article detailing how cruise lines weather tropical storms, and will post it for everyone's reading pleasure.

Originally Posted by Cruise Planner

As the saying goes, "Hindsight is always 20/20." And it's always easy to second-guess decisions after the fact. So for us to debate why decisions were made or what information they may or may not have had before the decisions were made or that the captain did or did not provide adequate communication would be doing an injustice to those involed.

The bottom line is that they are not going to put passengers in danger and situations change, which often causes changes to plans.

When cruising, there are no guarantees - things happen.

Pete

Well said, Pete.

Originally Posted by starbusa16

The other thing to realize is that these are LARGE vessels.It is not like yo can squeeze one in just anywhere. I am of the opinion that there were other ships scheduled to be in those other ports causing space in those unscheduled ports become an issue. There are probably other factors that we are not thinking about in play as well.

Excellent point.

Ken, I agree with Scott on this one. I think Carnival could have been a bit more open from the beginning about the cruise and could have given the passengers a bit more of a heads up on where they were actually going. Yes, the probably said that there was the possibility of the ship changing destinations but that is a far cry from saying, "the hurricane is interfering with our ports and we will probably be going to the following locations"

Originally Posted by MD11F

I found an article detailing how cruise lines weather tropical storms, and will post it for everyone's reading pleasure.

Ken, where might we find this article?

Originally Posted by Char

Ken, where might we find this article?

In the Carnival thread just below this link, Char. Might be a good idea to Sticky it, do you think?

Originally Posted by nealberk

Ken, I agree with Scott on this one. I think Carnival could have been a bit more open from the beginning about the cruise and could have given the passengers a bit more of a heads up on where they were actually going. Yes, the probably said that there was the possibility of the ship changing destinations but that is a far cry from saying, "the hurricane is interfering with our ports and we will probably be going to the following locations"

Ok, Neal.