The [Disney_Dream] returned to Port Canaveral from a mystery cruise to nowhere around 5:30 AM Sunday. The Dream embarked on an altered 3-night cruise Thursday as Sandy was approaching the Bahamas. Guest already knew Castaway Cay was off the itinerary and Nassau was a wait and see. After escaping down the east coast of Florida towards the Keys, the Dream attempted to make her way to Nassau on Saturday, but ultimately turned around and headed for home.
The 3-Night Bahamian cruise turned out to be a cruise to nowhere thanks to Hurricane Sandy.
Disney Fantasy
Reports continue to surface online that the Fantasy endured a really rough time Friday evening and worsened during the early hours on Saturday as she made her way back to Port Canaveral. Guests are reporting that Captain Tom came over the PA system twice after midnight to reassure guests that everything was ok and safe even though they were in rough seas.
Guests were asked to remain in their staterooms as it was not safe to be walking around the rolling ship. It sounds like the gift shops were trashed as things were tossed around.
Here is a video that was posted on CNN’s iReport by tneyedoc2020. The video shows what it was like in his stateroom, the message from Captain Tom, and the damage to the gift shops and other areas of the ship. (iOS users click here to watch the video)
Castaway Cay
Disney Cruise Line is still assessing the impact of Hurricane Sandy on Castaway Cay. Many of the permanent cast members who live on the island were evacuated to the Disney Dream.
Rebecca Peddie, Manager, Public Affairs Disney Cruise Line said, “We do have a crew hurricane shelter on Castaway Cay should we ever need it.” It is to early too say how badly the island was hit as Ms. Peddie said “We are still assessing the impact of Hurricane Sandy to Castaway Cay.”
The Dream was scheduled to return to Castaway Cay Tuesday October 30th, but switched with her day at sea on Wednesday 10/31 to provide more time for clean up on the island.
UPDATE: Reports coming in show that Castaway Cay weathered the storm well.
If you sailed on either cruise, we would like to hear your story.
We were on the Fantasy and it was the most frightening night I have ever experienced. Before dark, we could see how rough it was with 10-20 foot waves but marveled at how well the ship handled it. By midnight, that changed. The first time the ship listed violently to starboard and then port, I knew I wasn’t going to get any sleep. A few things shifted on the shelves so I was reassured since things weren’t flying around the room. About 10 minutes later, I was no longer reassured as the ship felt like it was going to tip over. Things flew off the shelves and desks as we got dressed to go down to deck 3 thinking the pitching would be less violent down there. That’s when the captain announced that we should stay in our rooms. Thinking it would be better to be on a lower deck if we capsized (can’t keep those Poseidon thoughts out of my head), we ignored the captain and took our belonging and life jackets down to deck 3. There we saw the damage to the shops and the Royal Court restaurant. There were surprisingly few crew members around but as I found out later, there was a lot of damage all over the ship so there was a lot to keep them busy. I spent the night on deck 3 listening to the ship creak and moan like it was going to fall apart. The pitching was less on the lower deck but every time the ship hit a big wave it sounded like an explosion and the entire ship shook violently for several seconds afterward. I don’t think anyone slept at all.
What really surprised me was the willingness of the crew members to talk about the damage to the ship the next day. I am a veteran of the Disney experience and the general rule is to present the facade of the magical experience. For them to break this rule meant that they were pretty shook up by the experience as well.
I have two questions:1) To the powers that govern the ships itinerary, was it worth it to try to stay on schedule? 2) To Captain Tom, if you had to do it again, would you have made the same decision?
We were on this ship also, and I kept thinking, why did the Captain leave St. Thomas? Why follow the storm up the coast? It was horrible. My fingers were slammed into the bathroom door. I fell out of bed on deck 5 three times because the ship was at about a 45 degree angle. It was so frightening. I am an experienced cruiser, but this was the worst I have experienced. I was sure that we would capsize or fall apart. I kept envisioning those two pieces of the ship being welded together. it was 1am when Captain Tom came over the PA system and said the ship is safe…I would imagine people were calling guest services as they heard the ship creak and moan and list and jump out of the water. There were waved breaking on our extended veranda on deck 5. At one point the Captain did apologize and said that the seas were much more rough than were reported or anticipated. I wonder how the next cruisers are doing with all the damage done to the shops and lounges and dining rooms.
Wow, some experience. Don’t want to do that ever again.
The cruise on the Dream was horrible. Rather than stay in the Gulf of Mexico where it would have been calm and sunny we followed Hurricane Sandy in very rough, rainy seas with winds up to 83 mph. Most outdoor activites were closed the entire trip. These included the Aquaduct, mini golf, shuffleboard and the pools for a good part of the time. It was too windy so we were all confined to indoors. It was miserable!!! Passengers were vomiting in the shops, stairways and theater. Disney you blew this one!
5 of us ranging from 12 to 61 years old were on this same cruise the past 3 days/nights. I agree it was easy to get cabin fever but having an open mind anyone that would blame Disney is a bit over the top. Having read what the Fantasy went through the night before it sounds like we had it easy. We didnt witness anyone vomitting in public thankfully. For first time cruisers it probably made a worse impact I’m sure. I’m ready for our cruise on the Fantasy in 4 weeks!
Cabin fever was not the case! We have been on several cruises in the past, and never had this happen! The Captain made VERY bad choices! I’m sure if you had a family member as sick as our daughter, you would not feel the same way! We were as bad as the Fantasy, I don’t know what ship you were on???
We had a family of five on that same cruise and I agree it was terrible. We had a man steal $260.00 from my purse before we even left port. The cruise security acted like it was no big deal. I have been on a total of 6 cruises in the last 8 years. 1st disney. I never get sick but this time I did. Really bad. I would have rather stayed in the gulf as well.
I was on the Dream and I 100% blame Disney. They knew about the extreme weather conditions and instead of doing the right thing and cancel the trip, Disney decided to put everyone’s safety in jeapordy including my children. They knew we were never going to make any ports. I know this information first hand because I contacted Disney Crusies the night before our cruise and after a long time of grilling the rep, he finally admitted to me that we were not going to dock anywhere and we should just enjoy the activities on the ship. (By way, they refuse to refund passengers the port charges for the ports we were not able to visit). Disney is more concerned about profit and not their customers. Still think we should have an open mind?
I just have some questions? If all of you that are whining that the ship should have never left port or should have stayed an extra day in the keys!!!! What would you have been asking for if they decided not to sail? Would getting a refund have been enough or would you have wanted more, maybe a free future cruise too!!! What if they would have left you in the keys an extra day in the sun having fun and then cruised north a day late? What about all those who had airfare on sunday. No call, NO show, Not getting a free flight home, so now you are paying even more to get home!!! You would have expected Disney to pay for your airfare since after all they left you on the boat passed when you were due home!!!!! Now say you owned Disney, What would you have done? Exactly what they did….. Your going to complain no matter what they did!!!!
Rachel were you on that ship? We’re your children vomiting on almost every deck? My grandchildren were. As a person who has cruised in all weather conditions including skirting a hurricane in the Pacific, I have not experienced what my family did. It’s a lot harder when kids are involved. I think most parents would have chosen the path of staying on board the ship in port rather than be bounced around for three days. What was wrong with sailing into the Gulf where it was much calmer? I just think there were many other options that were not explored. There will always be people not satisfied with their cruise outcome but in this case parents will always vote for their families safety.
Hello All,
I am so sorry for your experience on the Disney Fantasy. I was not on this ship, however, I was on the Carnival Sensation from 10/24/12 – 10/28/12 and I can tell you the difference between the two cruises.
1. 10/24/2012 – The staff told us as we boarded the ship that we were not going to Bahamas because the port was closed so they knew by 10:00a.m. that day.
2. They changed the itinerary to Key West instead. We sailed close to the coast to avoid Sandy and it was smooth sailing all the way there. I took a little longer because the captain was sailing at 10 nautical miles per hour to stay out of Sandy’s path. We arrived on 10/27/12 at 7a.m. We had plenty of fun and rest for the two days at sea.
3. 10/27/12 – We departed Key West around 2:30 p.m. On the way back, like most of the cruise ships, we were following behind Sandy. Things got really rough later that afternoon, so the captain let us know that he was going to slow the ship down so we wouldn’t experience so much turbulence at sea. Very considerate of the captain and Carnival.
4. Even after slowing down, it was still a rough ride, but nothing like the experience i’m reading about here. I have been on 15 cruises and I have to say, this was a scary cruise for me.
5. The captain, who obviously is very experienced decided to slow all the down to almost a complete stop to give Sandy time to get further ahead of us which would allow us to have a better ride back to port.
6. 10/28/12 – With all of this, we arrived at port 12 hours late at 7:30p.m and I had no problem with that. I’d rather get there without being horrified than any other way.
7. Lastly, Carnival gave everyone the option to stay on the ship one more day since they weren’t going out until Monday morning, helped with people who missed their flights and gave us a credit for the difference in the port taxes and fees. Most of all, the captain made sure we knew what was going on and what to expect.
After sailing with Disney four other times we were extremely disappointed when we departed off the Dream this morning. We were told Friday morning that the ship would never be in Tropical Storm force winds. We were never out of them! Our cruise to Nowhere consisted of high seas, high winds and cloudy, rainy weather because the captain chose to “follow” the hurricane the entire time. It was crazy and should have been avoided! It is doubtful that we will sail Disney again.
The cruise on the Dream/Nightmare was unbearable! My daughter was very sick the entire time from the rough seas. Captain Henry sucks! We were tortured for 3 days and nights! He should have stayed in the Gulf of Mexico where we woke up to pretty calm seas and a little sun. After being there for about 15 mins, he decides to once again make us miserable and head toward Nassau! WHY??? We rocked VERY hard all the way to Nassau, to be told the port was closed from damage due to the hurricane. You tell me Captain Henry didn’t all ready know that before we got there??? Just when we thought it could not get any worse, it did! On the last night, we headed back to Port Canaveral it was the most frightening night of our lives! Adults and children were falling all over and throwing up everywhere! A lady even passed out near the gift shop area! My husband feels it’s gross incompetence. We question Disney’s monatary motives with the ports! Why else would you push to go to Nassau where we all know the weather and damage was bad? I could go on and on about this, but am too tired because I have not barely slept in 3 days! If Disney was smart they should do the right thing and take care of their customers! We were told we could get 25% off the next cruise booking, really? We were willing to pay much more than that to cancel the trip to begin with, but they would not let us do that. We feel we should get a refund! We did not get to experiance the true Disney criuse. Huge disaster Disney! Shame on you!!!
Just got off the Dream this morning. I was travelling with a group of 15 family members, and for most of us it was our first cruise. We had all been looking forward to this family vacation, so it was extremely disappointing to have our ports of call cancelled, and most outdoor activities closed. We basically drove past the storm as it moved up the coast of Florida, only to turn around and chase it on the way back, This made for some pretty bad conditions during the trip, but last night was definitely the worst of all three days and scary. The word was already out on the Dream about the damage sustained on the Fantasy, so the crew seemed to be more prepared. I wish I could say as much for the passengers, since by last evening there were people getting sea sick all over the ship.
Disney cannot control the weather, but I do think they should have been more accomodating to passengers requests to rebook for another date rather than get on a boat that was driving straight into a hurricane. By refusing to do this they lost future business from many passengers, my family included, who found the cruise to be miserable.
Todd, Hurricane Sandy is not Disneys fault, but forcing people to go on the cruise is their fault. We were told that the dream would be out of rough waters and that safety of the crew is what matters most. Our balcony door broke due to heavy winds. Their are pictures all over the Internet of store fixtures falling and complaints of people vomiting every day on the cruise. Disney needs to make this right or they have lost a paying customer forever. My kids were sick for three days. The only thing I regret is listening to disney. Pure greed got the best of them this time. I spoke with employee after employee and they all agreed. They had to suffer along with us. If Disney is the kind of company that cares about money more than kids than I am sure there shareholders would like to know. I own a lot of disney stock and am embarrassed at how they handled this. We had great experiences in the past but is downright disgusting what they did.
My family was on the Fantasy last Friday night/Saturday morning (Oct. 26-27). It was really, really bad. The most terrifying night of my life. The ship suffered some fairly significant damage. And I am furious.
It didn’t have to happen. Either the Capitain of the ship or Disney Cruise Line management made a decision to take the ship into the storm because it was cheaper for them to do so (and get the next cruise going on time) than it would have been to wait in calm waters and return a day late. All of their talk about passengers’ safety is only talk. It sounds like other cruise lines kept their ships safe. Disney did not. They made the choice knowing full well that the ship would be in extremely rough water. When faced with the most important decision a cruise line will ever face — profits or safety — Disney Cruise Lines chose profits. Remember that.
I was on the Fantasy too. I can confirm everything Mel said. Just an absolutely awful, terrifying experience.
Did someone think to put the cat off Castaway Cay onto The Dream? I hope so … We love that cat and it sounds like the Island may not have made it? 🙁
We love the cat too!
I don’t know what cat your talking about but the dream did NOT make it to castaway .it was a cruise to NOWHERE !!!!!!
The Dream Evacuated Castaway Cay on the previous cruise when they found out about the storm headed that way. I am grateful I was not on the next one. So sorry to hear about ya’lls experience. Our cruise was truly magical with only the beginning of rough seas. I think I would just not book during hurricane season the next time. But I am surprised that Disney didn’t compensate the people that were on that cruise.
I FEEL THAT DISNEY SHOULD HAVE RESCHEDULE THE CRUISE. THEY OVERLOOKED THE SAFETY OF ITS PASSENGERS. THEY NEW VERY WELL THAT THE SHIP WAS FACING HARSH WEATHER CONDITIONS, YET THEY STILL SET SAIL. THE TRIP WAS NOT A PLEASANT ONE. PEOPLE GOT SICK THE CHILDREN WERE SAD. THE CREW WERE TRYING TO HELP, BUT THE SHIP IS NOT EQUIPPED FOR ACTIVITIES FOR THREE DAYS. IT WAS TRULY A WASTE OF TIME, NOT TO MENTION THE DANGER IN OPEN SEA. I FEEL WE SHOULD GET A REFUND OR A HUGH DISCOUNT ON OUR NEXT TRIP. IT IS A BAD CALL BY DISNEY AND DOING SO MANY PEOPLE WILL NOT USE DISNEY AGAIN.
I was on the cruise to nowhere and agree with all of the fore mentioned comments. It only got worse on the last night. It got bad within the first few hours of the cruise. I felt more like a hostage or prisoner than a guest or passenger. This was my second, and probably last, Disney cruise. I have lost all trust in DCL’s decision making abilities. For no reason what so ever, they put my family at great risk. I do understand my culpability for getting on the boat in the first place, but did so only after DCL calmed my fears with their lies. Never again DCL. Oh, and FWIW, we are long time DVC members, so we do love Disney.
While I don’t condone Disney’s choice to sail into bad weather, I also have to question the passengers who chose to board in the first place.
My family was booked on the 10/25-10/28 Dream sailing. We were watching the weather intently – deciding FOR OURSELVES whether the storm was going to adversely impact the vacation. And after seeing the storm become a hurricane the day before sailing, we chose to cancel our trip.
My guess is that other people chose to go because of their own financial investment – they didn’t want to lose the money they spent. What they expected, or hoped for, was that Disney would elect to cancel the cruise (or go somewhere safe), relieving them of the choice of having to sacrifice money for safety.
Disney did what Disney always does – they chose to maximize profit. If you think they would ever do otherwise, you’re mistaken.
Exactly!
Jeff, I agree with you that we decided for ourselves to go on that cruise, but I feel deceived, I trusted on fake words to make my decision. I can speak for myself and my family, there is no money that worth our safety, and is not that we hoped, is what Disney responsibles informed and commited to do (to go somewhere safe). I called immediatly the night before on seeing the news of the hurrican and the itinerary change and they ensure they were going to change the itinerary making their guests safety their priority and that they would sail away from the storm to a calm place. We’d made an 8 hours flight and drove another 3 hours all the way there, how would we suppose to know that a company such as Disney is would risk passengers safety for profit? They would risk such a sensitive thing as security and passengers health? OK then guilty for trusting them, but never again.
Disney did not evacuate all of the crew members on Castaway Cay. My brother works there (lives there for 3 months at a time) and we have yet to hear from him that he made it through the hurricane 🙁
Alyson,
Please let us know when you hear from your brother. I’m sure I can speak for everyone hear that we hope he and the others still on the island are OK.
Alyson: I hope your brother is ok. I understand that there’s a hurricane shelter on the island and that they hunker down there during a storm.
We were on the Disney dream during the storm also. I understand Disney cannot control the weather but they (the captain) can control where the ships goes. Why not find calm seas and sunshine in lieu of purposely sailing in rough seas and wind for 3 days. As an airplane pilot the captain is the final authority on operations. I think the captain blew this one in terms of where he took the boat and Disney blew it on how it handle the customers.
My family was also aboard the Fantasy and it was HELL! I too spent most of the night and early morning midship deck 3 to lessen the movement, but due to the noise I couldn’t remain in the atrium so I sat in the prelude. I watched the crew work to bring everything off the shelves in the store, one of their own get wedged between display cases as they rolled back and forth. Heard from others that piano had over turned in La Piazza, windows in Cabanas were shattered.
In the airport that afternoon a family member was told by a 9 time Disney cruiser and sailor himself that this was inexcusable and while moving into port he was out on the 4th deck asking why we were being tugged in. The answer is haunting.. Because our props were damaged so badly that the ship was not able to turn itself anymore and that is why the Fantasy did not make a return voyage out Saturday the damage was too extensive for them to sail.
I totally agree Disney has no way to controller the weather, but when PR is saying we are all enjoying a “sunny day at sea” I really would like to know what other lies we were being told.
Many in my party have cruised before, however my sister and family had not. I will have a hard time getting myself on a boat again so Disneys 25% discount is no good to me.
The Fantasy departed Port Canaveral around 10 PM on the 27th. Not too sure about the report of the props being damaged…. Tugs are used to dock large ships like the Fantasy all the time.
With the high winds at PC these large ships are huge sails. The tugs help keep the ships under control.
Not sure where you got fantasy didn’t sail. We watched it depart just fine with no trouble. If you have ever cruised before tugs always bring ships in and always take them out.
My Familand I (3 kids) were on the Dream cruise to nowhere!!! The kids were horribly sick the 3 days and the last evening especially. A 25% discount on a future cruise!!! So we get to spend more money in order to be compensated for this one!! I fully understand that weather can always be a factor, but we couldn’t even enjoy the indoor activities as the boat was rocking so much and it was difficult to walk straight , many of the passengers were sick or tending to sick children. Not sure I will ever sail or trust Disney again, Shame on you!!!!
Kelly,
I’ve heard the 25% discount is only valid on a 3-Night Dream Cruise. Can you confirm this for everyone.
Yes, that is correct! Not sure how many people want to take them up on that! They need to do something better than that!
Not true. We were on the fantasy and the 25% off is extended to all cruises AND Disney world vacations booked in 2012 through 2013. Everyone on the cruise received a letter explaining what the 25% covers….hmmm, makes you wonder who was really on the cruises???
Scott, you are wrong.
You were on the FANTASY, Kelly & Lindsay were on the DREAM.
The offers are different for each ship.
The offer for the Dream passengers is for a 3 day Dream cruise ONLY.
This is true.
Disney Cruise Line Gesture of Goodwill email
we were on the Oct 25 not so ‘Dreamy’ cruise also, it was the first for our family of 5, including my elderly parents. They were stationed in their room the last two days becauase the rocking was so much they can’t keep their balance, i dont’ see how any once could and to go anywhwere in the ship. my father is still sore today from being bounced around. we walked through hallways and literally staggered from one side of the hallway to the other, dec 3 animators palate to royal gardens where the handrails bruised my mom’s hip. The aquaduck, mickey slide, miniature golf, everything was closed, i do not understand why this captian choose to take us into those weather conditions toward nassau. I’d rather have stayed in south florida where we could have sun and not have to endure the 20 foot waves and sea sickness. we couldn’t enjoy our verhanda because it was raining most of the time and with all the rocking we got sick, i wish it would have been cancelled rather than put us through that. the 25% discount is no good since we can use FLR rate, then we still had to fork out parking fees at the end… bad call, they could have at least covered our port fees 🙁
Scott,
We were on the 10/25 cruise and the 25% off is indeed only valid for the 3-Night Dream Cruise through December 1, 2014. Very disappointed with Disney after this cruise.
the 25% discount is only for 3 night bahamian cruise on the Dream. Even through the misery, our guest room host Wichuck? was awesome, adanna and marco and ali our servers and jennifer and selami at bon voyage, Great people. My husband has a new favorite beer ‘Stella’, not sure where to find those here in the states though, Cudos for these cast members who were roughing it through with the rest of us and kept smiling.
Reply I was also on the Disney Dream, aka the ship following Hurricane Sandy. I agree with all the previous posts. My family and I suffered through many of the same issues. As a platinum castaway club member, I find it INSULTING for DCL to offer a mere 25% discount on a future cruise, especially after clearly demonstrating GROSS NEGLEGENCE and a vagrant disregard for the passengers safety. DCL elected Profit over the Safety of everyone on board.
The very least that the DCL should do in the wake of this tragedy, is to offer a full refund of the cruise and a choice of either a COMPLEMENTARY Disney cruise in the future or the equivalent value of a Disney Resort Vacation on land.
If Disney does not do the right thing by its passengers, we should unite and file a CLASS ACTION LAWS SUIT. On the grounds of gross negligence, we understand that they don’t control the weather; however they did chose not to re-book/cancel this cruise and to follow Hurricane Sandy’s path, which led to this disastrous trip.
Eddie: I hate to be the one to inform you of this, but try all you want, you’re not going to have much success in suing DCL. Cruise lines are flagged in virtually every country EXCEPT the US (or the UK) so as to protect themselves from liability for just this sort of thing. What happened to you is awful, but short of DCL’s guest “service” group deciding to compensate you further, you’re going to simply spend more money on a losing battle.
What the 6000+ passengers on the Fantasy and Dream SHOULD do, though, is band together and advertise heavily to show the rest of the world what really happened and how the decisions were made (essentially shaming DCL to do the right thing). Otherwise, DCL serves more than that many passengers every week, and while many are serial cruisers, many more are first or second-timers who will pay for the next voyage without hearing word one about this mistake.
Thanks for the advise, it’s really appreciated.
I fully agree that we should advertise against disney I was on the dream and my family was sick the whole time!
I agree with further action collectively. I’m sure we could find a local news station that would be interested in this story. If we cannot recover financial loss at least we can give everyone else what we all deserved (the truth). If anyone would like to discuss options let me know so we can discuss a plan of action.
If Disney does not step up and do the right thing my family will jump on the class action suit!
Unfortunately, things are a little more complicated than that. In the cruise contract you agreed to prior to sailing, you gave up your ability to join a class action. You agreed instead to only file individual actions against DCL.
“THIS CRUISE CONTRACT PROVIDES FOR THE EXCLUSIVE RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES THROUGH INDIVIDUAL LEGAL ACTION ON GUEST’S OWN BEHALF INSTEAD OF THROUGH ANY CLASS ACTION. EVEN IF THE APPLICABLE LAW PROVIDES OTHERWISE, GUEST AGREES THAT ANY LAWSUIT AGAINST CARRIER WHATSOEVER SHALL BE LITIGATED BY GUEST INDIVIDUALLY AND NOT AS A MEMBER OF ANY CLASS OR AS PART OF A CLASS ACTION, AND GUEST EXPRESSLY AGREES TO WAIVE ANY LAW ENTITLING GUEST TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION.” (Section 12)
In addition, you have only 6 months to notify DCL that you intend to sue… and then 1 year to actually get the suit filed. If you’re suing for damaged property, you have even less time (30 days after the voyage ended).
In all, though, the cruise contract makes it pretty hard to sue them successfully – unless you were physically injured as a result of their negligence… and even then, only to the extent you didn’t contribute to the injury (ie: leave your cabin after the Captain told you that the cabin was the safest place to be).
“NO SUIT SHALL BE MAINTAINABLE AGAINST CARRIER OR THE VESSEL FOR DELAY, DETENTION, PERSONAL INJURY, ILLNESS, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, MENTAL SUFFERING, PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY OR DEATH OF THE GUEST, UNLESS WRITTEN NOTICE OF THE CLAIM WITH FULL PARTICULARS BE DELIVERED TO THE CARRIER AT ITS OFFICE AT THE ADDRESS SET FORTH HEREIN WITHIN SIX (6) MONTHS FROM THE DAY THAT THE EVENT THAT CAUSED SUCH DELAY, DETENTION, PERSONAL INJURY, ILLNESS, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, MENTAL SUFFERING, PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY OR DEATH OF THE GUEST OCCURRED; AND IN NO EVENT SHALL ANY SUIT FOR ANY CAUSE AGAINST THE CARRIER OR THE VESSEL WITH RESPECT TO DELAY, DETENTION, PERSONAL INJURY, ILLNESS, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, MENTAL SUFFERING, PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY OR DEATH BE MAINTAINABLE, UNLESS SUIT SHALL BE COMMENCED (FILED) WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR FROM THE DAY THAT THE EVENT THAT CAUSED THE DELAY, DETENTION, PERSONAL INJURY, ILLNESS, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, MENTAL SUFFERING, PSYCHOLOGICAL INJURY OR DEATH OF THE GUEST OCCURRED, AND PROCESS SERVED WITHIN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY (120) DAYS AFTER FILING, NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW OF ANY STATE, TERRITORY, POSSESSION OR COUNTRY TO THE CONTRARY.” (Section 10)
My guess is that most people didn’t actually suffer any physical harm, and that everything here is emotional distress. And the contract explicitly excludes liability for “acts of god” and “perils of the sea” (Section 19). Which leaves you with Captain/Carrier negligence. So for that, you’ll have to prove that the Captain or DCL acted negligently, putting you at “risk” of physical harm (Section 9(b)), too. All of which would be manageable by your average attorney. But…
I would recommend talking with an attorney licensed in Florida and familiar with maritime law (it’s a rare specialty, but less rare in locations like Florida), because of Section 36:
“In addition to the exclusions from and limitations of the Carrier’s liabilities contained in this Cruise Contract, Carrier shall have the full right to invoke any applicable laws or statutes of any country providing for exoneration from or limitation of liability; and nothing contained in this Cruise Contract shall be construed or otherwise operate to limit or deprive Carrier of any such exoneration from or limitation of liability, or the benefits of any statute or law of any country which might be applicable providing for exoneration from or limitation of liability, including, but not limited to, the provisions of the Athens Convention, and all such rights and benefits are hereby expressly reserved.”
Sorry to be the bearer of not-so-great news. I would say there’s a chance for a claim somewhere, if the right attorney can craft the right argument.
Jeff you make some very valid points here. DCL took there time in “iron-cladding” the verbiage of the contract in there favor and created a uphill battle for any individual person or persons. DCL knows an individual would have to spend much more on a legal proceeding then probably the 25% discount or the worth of the cruise. Common tactic of corporations everywhere. I guess if someone could find the right attorney as you put it, the only angle I see here is the attorney would have to compare what DCL did to what other carriers did in this particular case. If I read correctly, that other carriers offered refunds, or the options to refunds or re-bookings do to passenger safety or corporate asset safety. If DCL were the “Black sheeps” here maybe that could play in the favor of the DCL passengers. Just a thought.
Cory:
Your point about the other captains is well made, actually. Negligence (within the US, usually) is based on a four-factor test: duty, breach, causation and damages. And duty, the first element, is based on what a similarly-situated person (and in this case, with the requisite experience) would have done. So being able to point to the other captain’s actions would get you over the duty, and possibly breach, requirement(s).
That brings us to causation. In Florida, they have a contributory negligence statute – which means that your damages, if any, are reduced in proportion to the amount you contributed to your own harm. I can see DCL arguing successfully, for the same reasons that a passenger would argue, that ample information was present to allow each passenger to know what the weather was going to be out there. So a good attorney is going to need to be very clear that the negligence wasn’t taking the boat out at all, but rather, taking the boat into the storm when others avoided it. In other words, passengers relied on the Captain’s decision-making skills and DCL’s promise, that they were going to stay on a course away from the storm.
Assuming you can get through duty, breach and causation, you now have damages. And remember that the cruise contract limits you to physical damages (and only any thus-resulting emotional damages). Since I haven’t yet seen anyone allege that they were physically harmed, even negligence won’t bring you to compensation without physical injury.
Our family of seven was on the Dream. We tried to transfer our funds to Disneyworld but were told it can’t be done. Disney did try to make the cruise to no where somewhat enjoyable. The shows were great! It was disappointing not to be in sunny weather as outdoor activities were so limilted . I don’t know why we couldn’t have gone to sunnier weather around the gulf! Saturday night was terrible with the strong winds and waves. Disney’s answer was to offer 25% off nother cruise which is fine if you are from Florida. We are from Missouri, therefore, seven airfares plus the cost of the cruise are out of the question. We should be refunded 25% in cash!
We were on the Fantasy. Yes it was scary, but the comments are getting out of hand. The Captain knows what the ship can handle. I thought they handled the morning craziness well. We had breakfast in cabanna’s. Then relaxed in our cabin for a while. Went back up to deck 11 and watched the tugs help us dock. We were lucky and drove so we were not in a hurry to get to an airport. They were nice enough to open the on deck food venues back up. We enjoyed a final lunch with our friends and were off the ship and on our way to WDW by 1:30. This was number 11 for us on DCL. We will go again. I wish it hadn’t happened but the first five days were fabulous!!
Joanne , I think if you threw up the food every time you ate you would think differently .
And if it was your first cruise and you got scared and didn’t get to enjoy anything that Disney offer on a normal cruise I don’t think you would write that “it’s getting out of hand” .and to see your kids suffer for 3 days it was just too much!!! I’m happy you had a good time but don’t judge the people who didn’t .
And you as well don’t have the right to judge people who didn’t have a problem with the decisions made. I was on the Fantasy as well. I was throwing up all night long, long after all the food in my system was out of me. I have been on 23 Disney cruises and today applied my 25% discount to the next one. Had they stayed out to sea another day, I would have had more problems. Yes it was rough, yes it was worse than we have ever experienced. We signed a contract agreeing to the terms in advance. I bought insurance for the trip because it was hurricane season and it was the reasonable thing to do. If you can’t agree with the decisions of the captain, then maybe cruising either isn’t for you or you should only cruise during non-hurricane seasons. I understand the frustration. I understand the fear some had. I don’t understand the rage. And I certainly don’t understand how you can blame others and threaten litigation when you fully understood the terms of the contract when you decided to sail (you have to click that you agree to them before you get the signature page online). I thought we had 6 decent days. Yes, the waves were increasing on Friday, but it wasn’t really getting bad until the evening.
I sailed on the Dream. It was extremely dissapointing, but the worst was feeling fear and trying to put up a front so my family would not get more scared than they already were. I have been on many cruises and different cruise lines. I have always had a soft spot for all Disney. Yes, I did board the ship because I would have lost my money, but I did trust Disney, all the other cruise lines who didn’t cancel either and their judgement. I never thought it could be this bad, I expected cloudy skies, three days at see and even nausea. I never thought I would feel fear. I did see vomit on the floor in front of the Royal Palace and Animators Palette right before the second sitting. Also, near my cabin, where it smelled like vomit the last two nights. The Aquaduck was closed after departure and I’m fairly sure it did not reopen the rest of the cruise. The ship made creaking noises the entire cruise. The last night, Saturday night, was the worst. During dinner, after 8:30, is when the weather became worst. The waiter spilled a dessert down the back of my dress, because of the ship’s movement. Moving through the ship was impossible. Items on the counters of my cabin slid to the floor. The captain did make two announcements, if I remember correclty he said it would be an hour and 45 minutes, but it was much longer than that. The last night was very scary! I do not blame Disney or the captain. I blame higher authorities, the ports should have been closed, or at least no departures should have been allowed. They really need to be more cautious, it could have been a very bad situation for any of the cruise ships out there. I will not say I won’t cruise again, but in a similar situation I rather lose my $3000. I lost them anyways.
But good for you for having the suggested dinner attire. You wouldn’t want to upset the dinner room attire police.
/end sarcasm
Who cares what I was wearing, I was attempting to describe how bad the ship was moving. Thanks for you concern.
I’m with you Eddie we can not keep it quite !!!! What they did to us and to our kids is wrong .. Maybe we need to go to news with it until disney hear us !!!!!!
Good luck with the news,…. I think they are up to 39 dead in Northeast from hurricane Sandy, towns flooded, 80-100 houses burned to the ground in Queens NY …. whats the bigger story, seasick people on a luxury cruise ship in the Bahamas with some souveneir shops displays tipped over or the catastrophy Northeast…??? Check out cruise critic, they have a nice article that explains the hazards of sailing during hurricane season.
Exactly! Someone finally puts it into perspective!!!!
I think we should get a petition together and forward it to news stations like CNN, ABC, CBS etc.. Disney just called me and informed me 25% or nothing. So my take is me and my family SUFFERED for three days and they don’t want to take any of the blame than their is only one thing they will understand, BAD PUBLICITY. This is not about money its about being decent.
Disney only understands like most companies do when it hurts them in the pocket book. We are much stronger together than we are separately just commenting.
Dee I agree and am all for it, lets begin the process.
Captin Tom s***s
That’s right
But my son and his friends were in the d lounge when the boat tipped and glass was breaking in the bar next to us and our dads were in the bar to so they felt it as much as we did
Im only giving dcl One more chance
https://www.bbb.org/file-a-complaint/
This is a link to the better Business Bureau which I believe Disney responds too.
Please ,all the passengers of Disney dream 10/25 who are not happy with Disney I put the link to BBB let’s us all write a complaint to them and let them call Disney!!!!
We did!
Just spoke with Joel , executive service rep, at Guest Services Communitions. He stated that ” Disney had gone over and way above what they have ever done previously by offering the 25% discount on a future 3 day Disney crusie. This offer conveys their sincere concern for my family and our experience”. He continued to say their would be no additional compensation with the exception of the Port Taxes each passenger had paid. If any one would like to call him directly to let him know how touched they are by Disney’s offer his direct number is 407-566-3778. I too think we need to make this public.
Thank you for providing a direct phone number for the rep Joel. I will call him first thing tomorow and also I will file a complaint with the BBB. If anyone has phone numbers, names and email address for the Disney folks, please provide on this blog. I would love to start calling and emailing anyone and everyone affiliated with Disney.
How on earth can he make that claim when others have shared this????
“We sailed the Eastern Caribbean on the Magic back in Feb. 2010. Some of you may have heard this from others. We were the infamous “6-day” cruise that went out over school vacation that lost a day because the Magic got stuck at Castaway Cay due to very high winds the day before. Although a lot of us were upset that we went out a day late and missed a day on the ship, the captain made a good call NOT to leave CC because he would have put the guests in harms way. To compensate us…. here’s what Disney did. We got complimentary meal tickets for the remainder of the day, complimentary hopper passes to the parks for that day. They paid for us to stay an additional night wherever we were. Some were outside the park. We had an additional night at Wilderness Lodge (total for 1 night was $350). They also gave us 20% back on that cruise AND an additional 20% on any future cruises (no limit as to how many you could book). When we stepped off the ship, the 20% was already off my credit card!!”
I agree that at least Disney should get bad publicity. I called Disney and talked with Joseph Paris who was very condescending to me. Says he answers directly to Carl holz the president. He said he was sorry to hear that in “my opinion” it was a bad cruise but thinks Disney and the ship captain did everything right. Is it me or is this guy completely out of touch. Keep drinking the kool aid there Joseph!
No it’s not just you ,it’s you and I believe few more hundreds people that are very
upset. The captain still got his paycheck for this cruise it’s US that lost the money.
Glad to hear that I am not the only one that has dealt with Joseph and felt he was condescending. I had flash backs to my call with him over another issue and his “in your opinion” routine. Told me just because it was my opinion doesn’t make it right. I told him when I am the guest and it is MY money and MY choice of whether or not I will ever sail again my opinion my not be right but it is all that matters. He called me after I sent an email to Karl’s direct email. So, 23-cruises with DCL and will never sail with them again. Already booked three with RCCL.
Good for you, finally somebody in here taking action rather than continue to complain, taking their money elsewhere.
I have submitted my complaint online to Guest Communications and to the BBB. A comment I made online on the Staten Island Live article that Disney’s PR Rep Rebecca Peddie authored about the condition of Castaway Cay and that the captains of the Dream and the Fantasy ‘skillfully sailed around the storm keeping passengers out of danger’ was quoted in another article, and this afternoon I was contacted by KABC radio in Los Angeles who asked me to do an interview with them tomorrow morning at 7:50 a.m. PST. I would recommend that we all continue to blast the media until DCL does the right thing and both issues a public apology to all the passengers as well as offers some type of refund to all of us. It is awful that they put all of us through this and put us in such danger. I truly thought that we would not make it off the Fantasy, and much as I have loved cruising with Disney (this was our fourth), I may never be able to set foot on a cruise ship again.
Claire, how did your interview go? Is it available online somewhere? Please join the Facebook group and share whatever info you can! https://www.facebook.com/groups/104089969753549/
I wish Disney had made better choices for all of you. However, twenty years ago a hurricane hit a cruise ship we were on, after questioning the crew we learned that a ship cannot stay at port during a hurricane, it will damage the boat. I know why Disney went out, but really should have let customers reschedule. The trip should have been magical, so sorry for everyone’s horrible experiences.
The ships do not stay in port when a hurricane is coming ashore in that vicinity. The hurricane was not predicted to hit Florida at all at that point in which people were boarding their ships. Because the hurricane was expected to be well off-shore and heading to the North-East states, passengers felt secure about boarding, especially with the assurances given that they would 1. Possibly stay in port, and 2. They would not be going to Castaway Cove and probably not Nassau. The Dream was heading towards Key West, turned and decided to go to Nassau. I was tracking the ship on my iPad. So rather than stay in calmer waters the captain ELECTED to go into the rear of the storm and that is what most passengers are upset about. It just was not necessary. Many other ships took other options and avoided the storm. Disney DECIDED to go into it causing their passengers to be terrified. I am not reading about ANY OTHER cruise line but Disney who elected to try for Nassau, it was irresponsible. Like I said when the passengers made their final decision to board, Hurricane Sandy was not a threat to The Florida Coastline, the Bahamas were no longer an option and passengers knew this. The problems came when Disney decided to go into the rear of the storm when they did not have to.
I think some of the comments are over the top, to blame the Captain or have any negative comments regarding the crew and any actions taken or not during these cruises is excessive.
Everybody including Captain & Crew are all human and experienced the same discomforts as the guests and even more so infact, yet still tried their utmost as always to ensure the most magical experience possible despite the impossible conditions. A few have said the ships should not have departed on these cruises, yet these guests still went along, if the feeling was so strong you should have stayed home.
It was also mentioned that the ship should have stayed in the Gulf of Mexico, but dont forget the guests also have onward deadlines to meet in terms of when they need to be returned home.
The Bottom line is I think though minor errors may have been made on the navigational paths, you should expect these kind of inclement events to occur if you are sailing during a hurricane period and I think the Captain & Crew of both Ships should be commended for returning all guests safely, these are vastly experienced men who treat their jobs and the dangers of the Ocean with the highest levels of professionalism.
Also spare a thought for all the crew members who despite the exterior strength would have been as worried as any of you and all have families in all corners of the world who would have experienced sleepless nights during this time. The important thing is not that the Aquaduck of Gift Shop was closed but that everybody is safe.
As a crew member myself I am disappointed that anybody had a rough vacation but glad everybody is home safely!
The passengers of the Fantasy like myself and my children had no choice. We were on a 7 day cruise that departed on Oct 20th when there was not even a sign of a Tropical Storm or Hurricane. We knew nothing of the storm until Wednesday the 24th when the Captain notified us. I can tell you that there probably are very few of us on that ship that would have traded the inconvenience of being delayed a day by staying down in the Virgin Islands for an extra day versus going through that last terrifying night when we feared that the ship would capsize. I felt bad for the crew who were just as terrified as we were and yet had to clean up and sail out again still in bad weather the same evening. Maybe you should not comment when you have no idea what we went through. Now that I am home I can’t sleep still with the memories of how close we came to losing our lives on what should have been a dream vacation. Shame on Disney for such negligent decision making.
Tony, I agree that the crew did the best they could. The issue is more the decision making of Disney or the greed of Disney to even have the cruise leave port. I agree the crew did the best they could and suffered with us but please remember that they got paid while we were paying for a miserable time.
Disney knew that Sandy was a powerful storm before leaving port and had a good idea of what we were going to experience when it came to rough seas and bad weather, just like forecasters can predict what is hitting the east coast now. I paid for a great family vacation that includes the Bahamas, Castaway Key, and the pool and Aquaduck.
What I got was sea sickness, scared kids, and no sleep. Not a typical vacation. I am a business owner and if my customers dont get what they pay for they get their money back especially when the express their concerns before the boat left port.
I complained to the better Business Bureau and am looking to other options to least let people know that Disney took kids into a dangerous and uncomfortable situation. When I say dangerous I mean kids bouncing off the walls in the hall ways.
Alan one of the passengers email me and put a disput on their credit card. Hey were only disputing the port charges but after hearing he story the credit card company told them to dispute the whole charge. I don’t know if it will hold up but it might grab Disney’s attention that people are more upset than they think.
Tony- You must work for DCL!
Well said tony!!!! I understand everyone’s disappointment but you yourself must take some responsibility in the fact that you all knew what was going on in the ocean and YOU CHOSE to go!!! Those ships were leaving the harbor whether everyone went or no one went. In life we can either see the great things in life and enjoy the moment or sit and suck lemons. When you signed for you magical vacation the fine print stated that it is not guaranteed that you will go to these ports and you agreed to it !!!
Rachel again the storm was not threatening Florida, the ports were pretty much cancelled and most people knew that when boarding. What they are objecting to is being DRIVEN INTO THE STORM, there is no excuse that you can come up with for that. NO OTHER CRUISE LINE MADE THOSE DECISIONS. You must work for Disney since you were not on the ship, watched the ship leave port and are so adamant about sticking up for a company that made a HUGE ERROR IN JUDGEMENT about where to take the ship AFTER they left Florida.
I agree! And I can speak on the subject…stateroom 8174 aft….our server was from Jamaica, which took a hit. His wife and daughter were on the island without him, and he had no contact with them for 24hours. Yet, he managed to remain upbeat and positive to ensure the experience my family had during dinner was excellent. As did all other staff we encountered. The same can be said for our stateroom host, who was also from Jamaica…seems like we have lost some of our priorities here…we are fortunate that we simply lost a day on Castaway Cay and had a little rough water…what about those that lost everything, including their homes, or worse, family. And yes, I already scheduled next years cruise to western Caribbean…in middle November!
I just submitted my complaint to BBB too! I hope a lot of passengers will do the same.
My sister is being interviewed by her television station. PR Rebecca Peddie’s comments on ABC, USA Today, and Florida papers are nothing but cover up lies. We enjoyed sunny skies, they evacuated Castaways, sustained only minor damages like broken glass. This is a huge cover up and the integrity of Disney is in question.
This is Sophia and I am 9 years old. We were on the Disney Dream and left on 10/25/12. I really do love Disney but I was very upset because I never got to ride the amazing Aquaduck or do any activities outdoors. I was really excited to explore a new island because we don’t travel very much. We saved our money to go on this cruise and I was very excited. My Dad didn’t get to do anything with me because he was stuck in bed the whole time trying to feel better from motion sickness. Whenever I ordered room service the staff was very helpful and nice. Ruebin was fantastic with cleaning our room and leaving us special surprises in our room. At the end of our cruise I was very sad that I didn’t get to do a lot of things that I wanted to do. I thought that the Disney Dream would be a dream come true but it turned out to be a nightmare. I could go on and on but it would just be too much. Thank you, Sophia
Claire, Being on the ship I have every idea what you went through and I sympathize with you. I was just making the point that sometimes nature is the stronger force and that despite everything nobody least of all Captain or Crew would intentionally spoil your vacation but sometimes people make mistakes.
In the circumstances, to look at the bigger picture everybody returned safe and well
Tony , don’t you think that for the safety of all the kids it was better just not take the risk and cancel the cruise and let people reschedule ?it was pure greed disney knew we stay at sea for 3 days. On 10/25 sandy was cat 2 when they decide it safe.and you right I would stay home but I talk to supervisor 5 times and they PROMISE me I won’t feel a thing !!!!!!!
Mistakes? What mistakes? Disney isn’t owning up to any mistakes. Maybe if they weren’t folks wouldn’t be half an angry. But with no offical statement from Disney coupled with the insulting 25% discount Disney would rather this little incident just go away.
Just wanted to add my two cents and count to the number of people upset about the treatment we received from Disney. The captain of the Dream’s decision to sail back into a hurricane is inexplicable on multiple levels. Why they were obsessed with porting at Nassau is beyond me. The best case scenario was to be ported in a city that was hit less than 12 hours previous by a hurricane! Why would be want to port there? It seemed a very easy decision to me to stay out to the west and to avoid the terrible seas and at least use some outdoor amenities.
Our children were rolled out of bed by the tossing of the ship and we had to walk around vomit in the hallways. When I contacted Disney seeking a refund or at least a partial refund, they took no responsibility and basically told me I was entitled to my opinion but they don’t give refunds for weather. After I explained I was not upset about a hurricane as the weather cannot be controlled, but I was upset by the captain’s decision to sail directly into a hurricane, Disney had little to say and basically thanked my for my opinion. We feel we should have been given an option of not getting on the ship and rescheduling for a later cruise even if they didn’t give our money back. Since they told us to get on the ship or lose our money, they should return our money for their poor judgement.
I would not recommend this cruise line again to anyone I cared about as their judgement is obviously not pointed towards their client’s best interests.
Just a heads up the Royal Caribbean gave their customers the chance to get off the ship by 8pm with a full refund or they could stay on the ship and see what happens. It seems hard to believe that disney wouldnt do the same sort of gesture. I was on the fantasy so our situation was different….but both situations were awful.
well I shall comment no more as I have said my piece, there will always be some unhappiness in the circumstances, but in my view the correct actions were taken on the most part…really these are Billion Dollar ships, so to say that the decision to go ahead with cruises was purely for financial gain is nonsense, where would be the gain in endangering your Billion Dollar assets, simply the weather is unpredictable and unfortunately proved so.
People who had been told there would be no rough sea, well that was obviously the true belief of the people telling you. Nobody would lie to a guest in that respect, simply these are freak once in a lifetime conditions which none of us have experienced before, nobody can ever 100% say that conditions will be smooth all the time.
Do you really think that a Captain of Decades experience like Captain Forberg who Epitomizes Disney which any who have met him around the ship will say would deliberately endanger peoples safety?. Not a chance.
Also a late return to port has the knock on effect on the following guests on the next cruises, so always one party or the other will feel aggrieved..Better that the show goes on I think. and Just to say to Stacey in final note that Castaway crew were Evacuated to the Dream so no cover up at all in that respect.
The important thing is everybody got back in 100% safety, which I know I never doubted throughout
I have to say that I agree with Tony. I was a passenger on the Fantasy and I never once feared for my life in anyway. I was able to sleep most of the night. I was awoken by a few of the bigger waves but that is to be expected in heavy seas. I’ve spent a lot of time out on the ocean and in all different size boats. I’ve noticed that Captain Tom isn’t the best with words at times but he is very knowable and I never doubted him. The billion dollar ship that we were on was made to safely navigate those types of seas. If you don’t want to be subject to these types of storms don’t cruise during hurricane season. I for one was happy with the beautiful 5 days we had and I’ll be happy to take advantage of the 25% discount that was offered to everyone.
How did you sleep when the ship tilted so violently and caused all the damage? Not being an experienced sailor myself, I did not have the confidence in the ship or the captain that you did. When the Captain announced we were safe yet all around us there was evidence we weren’t, it’s hard to believe him. Would he tell us if we were in trouble?No, because it wouldn’t do any good and would scare trusting souls like yourself. I just wish Disney would admit that in hindsight, we should have stayed south of the storm a day later and quit belittling the danger we were in.
I agree with Tony. Last comment. As I was leaving in the enormous crowd exiting the ship, I did not hear of one guest injury. Sounds like everyone disembarked safely…..guess the Captain. Was right when he announced that we were all safe and the ship was performing well!
Tony: As a CM, your faith in Disney as an altruistic organization is commendable. But the facts don’t support your statements.
1. Billion-dollar ships or not, Disney only makes money when those boats are at sea. The real money is made in alcohol sales, port fees and spiffs from the Nassau stores, not to mention the various things you can buy/rent at Castaway Cay.
2. I have no idea whether folks were told that there were or were not rough seas. When I called DCL two days before to check on the status, I was SHOCKED that they hadn’t provided any information to cruisers when all of the other cruise lines were already announcing cancellations and/or itinerary changes. And the person I talked with essentially said that they had no intention of changing anything – but that “guest safety” was their “foremost concern”.
But it’s ignorance to believe that experienced Captains and their crews would not know that a storm of this nature would create foul weather. Even on Tuesday, 10/23, NOAA models had the southeastern coast of Florida and all of the Bahamas highlighted in blue – as a Tropical Storm watch. Jamaica and Cuba were already red – for Hurricane conditions. On Wednesday afternoon, Disney announced the itinerary change. By Thursday morning, 10/25, the Hurricane was sitting over the Bahamas.
As you don’t believe Disney CM’s would lie, I likewise believe that guests have faith in experienced seamen – and that they put their trust in these people to keep them out of harms way. Add in the Disney “magic” and I can’t, for a moment, think of this as anything less than negligent.
3. You’re right. Disney had to turn the boat for the next sailing. They needed to come back to port. Eventually. But a one-day delay (and the resulting smooth sailing and lack of PR nightmare) is potentially worth the cost of putting people up for the night before their next cruise. This doesn’t even take into account the tangible costs related to ship damage, cleaning, repair, etc.
4. You’re also right that, to the best of my knowledge, nobody died on either cruise – so 100% returned. But I don’t know that I would call it “safe”. The videos people are posting alone show the pitching ships. Just because everyone’s heart was still beating doesn’t mean that they got back safely. It just means they got back alive.
5. As Alyson Sonta said above, her brother was not evacuated from Castaway Cay… but those that were had been evacuated on the Dream’s PRIOR sailing – indicating that DCL had a clear picture of what could happen and took some steps to protect their staff (which was a good thing).
Overall, the problem here is one of credibility and public opinion. It’s hard to believe that two Captains, each with their own extensive careers, would BOTH, independently, choose to put their passengers into the storm. While Captains are ultimately held responsible for their ship – in this particular instance, I think there could be evidence that suggests that they were influenced by other forces.
It’s also hard to believe that the Disney Cruise Line, as an organization, made prudent decisions when you compare them to those of other cruise lines operating at the same time. At least TWENTY other cruise ships from five lines changed their itinerary to avoid the storms. Before Disney announced their changed itinerary, several other lines had already changed or cancelled their planned trips.
Again, all this says to me is that I need to continue to remember that *I*, and I alone, am responsible for my own safety wherever I am, including on property owned by the Disney Corporation. I am a professed Disney geek/freak and will sail on them in February, weather permitting. But I won’t put my safety solely in their hands. They haven’t earned that trust (and, if they ever had it, have now lost it).
Tony during the cruise on the Dream SEVERAL crew members told my daughter that they were afraid and did not know why we did not stay in port. When my daughter got on the ship she went right to the front desk and was told they would be staying in port. She was shocked when the ship started moving later that day. Disney had VERY POOR COMMUNICATION with their passengers during this event. My daughter got a lot of different answers and she started calling Disney several days BEFORE THE CRUISE. The only thing they knew for sure was that they would NOT be going to Castaway Cove. They were fine with that. I called disney myself and asked them where the ship was and where it was going and they said THEY DID NOT KNOW! Poor response. Disney is just lucky that everyone got back safely. It could have been a very different scenario.
What government agencies can we notify our concern to? Should we contact any elected officials? Disney’s action were disgraceful.
Ray, Look for my link to BBB and you can start by putting your complaint there.
The bigger picture is that The Disney Dream set out to sail on the 25th October in the path of a CAT 2 hurricane. It’s not like we were retuned home safe and well after being hit by an unknown, Passengers were unable to cancel or reschedule without forfeiting 100 percent of their investment and DCL assured us, despite several attempts to reschedule prior to travel, that there was nothing to worry about and we were safe with the Captains decision to sail the ship. Insurance companies such as Amex do not cover cancelations if a Captain decides to sail in a hurricane. This was supposed to be a vacation not a survival test!
We were on the Dream 10-25 thru 10-28 cruise. There were eleven of us and it was the worst cruise I have ever been on. You could see vomit in the hall and stair wells.what a waste of three days. We tried to cancel and go to WDW, but was told that that was not an option. Never again will we go on another Disney cruise. And we will tell everyone for the rest of our lives to never go on a Disney cruise.
I totally agree with you even though we did not get on the ship because they could not give us a plan what the plan was was for the cruise. We lost the money and they would not let us reschedule. They told us the captain will do anything to avoid the storm. I did not trust this. Seems that I was right. Not happy at all that we lost the all the money we paid for the cruise and don’t think we would want to sail with Disney ever.
Dee: I will post my complaint to the BBB in the morning. Thanks. Don’t pay attention to the comments posted by TONY or STEVE, they most likely work for DIsney. Anyone with common sence understands that DCL is guilty of GROSS NEGLEGENCE. They are only concerned with the bottom line, how else will they pay for their BILLION DOLLAR SHIPS.
I’m meeting with corporate attornies this week to review our cruise contract. Trying to investigate alternative ways to make DCL do the right thing. Acknowledge their error, Appologize, and offer a full refund. I also looking into alternative media that is not owned by Disney, to broadcast our story. I have some video and images, however I could use more.
I’m sorry to disappoint you Eddie but I’m not a Disney employee. I was a passenger just like you… I just know that for our trip Mother Nature got the best of us. I knew what hurricane season can bring. I also did research about Captain Tom before our trip. After all you are putting your life in his hands by stepping on his boat and I felt very comfortable doing it. I agree that the dream should not have gone out but when we left port no signs of a storm were present.
Steve: how can you say “no signs of a storm were present” when you left port? This isn’t the 1800s. Here are the links to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather data/forecasts for the NIGHT BEFORE the departure:
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2012/al18/al182012.public.011.shtml?
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2012/al18/al182012.discus.011.shtml?
and here’s the morning of (10/25):
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2012/al18/al182012.discus.013.shtml?
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2012/al18/al182012.public.013.shtml?
At all times, there was either a tropical storm or hurricane warning in place for the southeastern Florida coast as well as the Bahamas. Per NOAA, “PREPARATIONS TO PROTECT LIFE AND PROPERTY SHOULD BE RUSHED TO COMPLETION.”
Even if the weather was calm at port, they knew where the storm was at all times and chose to take the ship INTO or NEAR the storm. That’s a decision, not fate.
Even if the ship wasn’t built in 2011 (which it was), and even if the ship didn’t have it’s own radar systems (which it does), I am confident that every officer on board owns a cell phone with the capacity to see this data. There is/was no excuse for sailing into or near the storm.
Jeff,
I started covering the system back on 10/22 when tropical depression 18 formed.
Thank you and good job. I have some videos too that show our balcony door broke and the bed weather .i will send everything too CNN web and I hope someone will contact me. Keep in touch everyone so we know what next.
I maybe wrong but I think CNN has ties to Disney. I would try Fox News.
Keep us all posted Eddie.
My family and I also “survived” 3 days on the dream. I personally never understood the captains decisions, but relied on his experience and training. Our stateroom was on the very back of ship, 10th floor. Luckily none of us got sick but packing bags late sat night (after “believe” play) was very difficult. I dont think anyone’s mentioned that the 25% off letter was delivered to staterooms before second seating was complete – prior to most of the more aggressive waves and “tipping” – suggesting that they knew what we were headed for. We went through with the trip, and tried to enjoy what few amenities were available, but from now on will ALWAYS cancel if a hurricaine pops up with enough notice. Would have preferred more honest information during the bad weather (never knew the strength or location of Sandy) – like others, we were watching the clock after the 1hr 45 min timeframe given by the captain. Shame, still – lesson learned.
We were on the dream for a three night cruise a trip we planned months for and viewed it as a trip of a lifetime… Instead it was opposite from get go after leaving port the aqua duck was shut down and not reopened. The pool water were soo rough that only bigger kids and adults could get in. Fr. And Saturday the top deck was shut due to constant winds of 65-75 mph. The seas we constantly choppy and rough ppl were getting sick everywhere. I’m not sure why we didn’t stay near south Florida instead of trailing behind the storm Saturday and Saturday night! We were unable to get off any ports and Saturday was the WORST NIGHT!! I know it’s not the crews fault but it seems better decisions could have been made we stayed in bed in our room 85% of time bc of seasickness! This whole media crap about having sunny days is crazy!!! I know the weather can’t be predicted but this was already in effects three days pior to leaving and yes no one sustain bodily harm there was still a lot of physical and mental damage while aboard.
i’m just not understanding if there is a Hurricane in our direct path of the cruise intinerary, there should be the option to cancel. something needs to change in their contract for these unique circumstances.
I was also on the 10/25 Nightmare cruise and I have created a Facebook group for all of us who sailed on either ship to get together and determine the best way to get reasonable compensation from DCL. Please join and share freely. let’s get some news teams there as well. https://www.facebook.com/groups/104089969753549/
I agree with the earlier post, don’t book a cruise during hurricane season! You all had a choice to not get on the ship if you knew the storm was brewing… plus travel insurance is always a good idea but not sure if covers weather ‘an act of God’.
The travel insurance sold through DCL doesn’t cover acts of God/weather/etc. BUT, if you buy this insurance and the insurance company denies your claim (or any part of your claim) for any reason, DCL will give you a credit for future travel in the amount of the denied claim. So in this particular situation, if you chose not to go on the cruise, you would’ve called DCL and cancelled your trip. You’d then file a claim with the insurance company. They’d deny the claim as it’s for an uncovered event… and then DCL would provide you a credit for the full amount of your cruise.
Normally I don’t buy trip insurance – but for something this large, I felt it was a good investment.
Yes, Cheryl, we did have travel insurance, but if the ship sails you get no compensation because we choose not to travel, and the ship sailed. So we were out either way, and choose to sail because disney assured me that we would sail away from hurricane!!
Candace
All I can say is I was very afraid for my safety and the safety of my family who were not only horribly ill but scared for the high seas and the winds….For those of you who paid with American Express I encourage you to dispute the charges as an avenue for compensation, the port charges at the very least should be compensated. I don’t know about the rest of you but for two days after the cruise , every time I bend over it feels like the room is still swaying……sent two very tired kids to school on Monday…such a shame!!!
I just have some questions? If all of you that are whining that the ship should have never left port or should have stayed an extra day in the keys!!!! What would you have been asking for if they decided not to sail? Would getting a refund have been enough or would you have wanted more, maybe a free future cruise too!!! What if they would have left you in the keys an extra day in the sun having fun and then cruised north a day late? What about all those who had airfare on sunday. No call, NO show, Not getting a free flight home, so now you are paying even more to get home!!! You would have expected Disney to pay for your airfare since after all they left you on the boat passed when you were due home!!!!! Now say you owned Disney, What would you have done? Exactly what they did….. Your going to complain no matter what they did!!!!
Exactly Rachel!!!!!! Here is my thought!!Wow did you all realize you booked a cruise during hurricaine season? thats why you got it cheap! you pay for what you get it’s the luck of the draw! I have never heard so many ungrateful people in my life! You all knew before you got on the boat that there was a hurricane out in the water headed your way! Yes I agree the boat was rocking the waves were going to be bad but you still chose to get on! If you look at the marine locator online you stayed close to the shore! You were never in harms way! Why would they send you into a storm when there are so many greedy Americans to sue them???? You all are crazy! Be thankful they gave you 25% off they didn’t have to do that! Or sit on your soap box and have your pity party. We wonder why america is in the shape it’s in because everyone wants to blame someone else for stuff they willingly done! You signed the contract, you paid the money, you got on the boat! Quit blaming others and take responsibility for yourself! Have a great day!
My family paid 2,000 for three days not cheap in my opinion Larry.
The Fantasy on Friday/Saturday was a pure nightmare! Worst night of our lives! The lack of communication on Saturday morning was terrible! Very sad ending to an awesome vacation! I would like to know why we went right into that storm!
I really wish people would stop claiming that the cruise fare is cheaper because it’s hurricane season. Hurricane season starts June 1 and ends November 30. They don’t discount cruises during June, July and August, or Thanksgiving week for that matter. The reason for the lower fares is that most kids aged 6 to 18 are in school during this time. It has NOTHING to do with hurricane season.
Exactly
I think the decision to try and go to Nassau by the Dream was perplexing to our group as well. In my opinion, people would have handled the captain saying, “Listen, we’re just not going to be able to dock anywhere. But we’re going to stay down here around the Keys where we’ll have some calmer waters and maybe some sunshine”.
At the “Captain’s Briefing”, or whatever it’s called on Friday morning, he said we had a 50/50 shot of getting to dock in Nassau. Doesn’t sound like the best odds. Someone actually did ask why we weren’t just going to hang out where we were (off the Keys) and I remember thinking he didn’t really answer the question. The captain stated that if we stayed down there too long we would have to go to fast to try and make Nassau and that might be uncomfortable. Either he didn’t understand the question fully, or it was a foregone conclusion we were going to try for Nassau.
I realize that weather is always a factor and I was one who had hoped Disney would cancel before we left port because I can’t afford to lose almost 3 grand. Do I think they put us in harms way…no. BUT, I think they should have given us the option to sail or to change to a future cruise. Not a refund, just change the date.
The crew on board were great as usual, but they can’t fix a rough ride with no sign of sun and not much to do onboard, My feeling is if they were able to get us into Nassau, even if it was in shambles, we would have never seen the 25% offer.The kids we brought eventually got sick of edge and spent hundreds in the ahhrcade. I would love to get some of that back, plus the unexpected large bar tab. Port fees credited to my Disney Visa would be nice too!
As for Joel, I have dealt with him before and he was a great help. Tough situation he is in now. I am a glutton for punishment so I will most likely go again.
Dave: Given that I’ve been vocal about the fact that I believe cruisers should have some of the responsibility, this might come off as disingenuous, but I’m very curious why you didn’t pop for the extra $200 or so for trip insurance? I’m also curious about the “unexpected large bar tab”, not to mention the hundreds spent in the arcade, because all of these things seem to play into the decision making process (ie: they were completely controllable by you). Why would they credit this spending to you?
I did not get the insurance and was told it would not have covered this by a Disney Rep anyway. They said the insurance would deny the claim and I would have no recourse. I do know others like yourself that were told differently, so Disney needs to have ALL of their reps on the same page giving out the same info. As for the arcade, since we were not leaving the ship, it would have been a nice gesture for Disney to not charge the kids to play. The bar tab comment was meant as a joke!
I realize what happened and why and as I stated will likely go again. It was my decision to board…understood. BUT you would expect some leeway from Disney under the circumstances. I did not expect to hear that you already paid…either board the ship or lose 100% of your money!
This is my third cruise and have stayed at the parks more times than I can remember. Not what I haver come to expect from Disney.
I do wonder why so many, including Mr. Sanders jump so quickly to the defense of Disney. Are you all on here typing with your mouse ears on? Can Disney not make a mistake?
Thanks for the response. I’m really not here to defend Disney. I think that they should’ve cancelled the cruise or gone somewhere out of the storm (since I understand that they needed to get the boats off the docks).
On the insurance side, I don’t know what to tell you. I confirmed the scope/coverage issue 3x before I agreed to buy. The only trick is that if you get a credit because of a denied insurance claim, you have to use that credit in ONE single swoop and it’s ONLY good for cruise fees (not onboard expenses). So if you buy a cheaper “replacement” cruise with the credit, you don’t get to carry a credit balance… you lose the remaining balance.
But I don’t understand people who say that it’s 100% Disney’s fault. Nor do I understand those that want compensation for things they bought on the cruise. Plans change, weather happens. Heck, even when I’m at the Parks, a bad weather day can force us to stay indoors, or not get to use the pool, or close a single outdoor ride, etc. Would folks think to ask Disney for a portion of their ticket price back if a parade was cancelled due to weather?
So in the end, I think that the REAL issue here (for people that went on the cruise), was the Captain’s decision to try to head to Nassau and then follow the storm “home”. Up to that point, I would say that it was just a rainy/choppy cruise.
Thus, I agree that the 25% PR attempt from Disney seems a little lame given that the Captain’s decision is what caused a portion of the cruise to be horrendous. As other people have stated, I don’t know that everyone would be satisfied by ANY potential Disney reaction. What I think most people want is what NOBODY will get – an apology. They want Disney to admit that at least some of the fault is that of DCL and/or the Captain. But Disney won’t apologize because it can be seen as an admission of guilt/negligence.
I’m sorry you had a rough time and that you felt cornered into making the cruise or losing your money.
Thank you for understanding the real issue.
If you agree that the 25% PR attempt is a little lame for a portion of a cruise being horrendous, then I’m sure you’d agree it’s a lot lame for nearly an entire cruise being horrendous (the Dream cruise).
It’s also tremendously lame compared to the compensation given to folks who missed one day of a 7 day cruise – due to the prior cruise being delayed by weather and coming in a day late – in 2010 (from a Facebook post):
“We sailed the Eastern Caribbean on the Magic back in Feb. 2010. Some of you may have heard this from others. We were the infamous “6-day” cruise that went out over school vacation that lost a day because the Magic got stuck at Castaway Cay due to very high winds the day before. Although a lot of us were upset that we went out a day late and missed a day on the ship, the captain made a good call NOT to leave CC because he would have put the guests in harms way. To compensate us…. here’s what Disney did. We got complimentary meal tickets for the remainder of the day, complimentary hopper passes to the parks for that day. They paid for us to stay an additional night wherever we were. Some were outside the park. We had an additional night at Wilderness Lodge (total for 1 night was $350). They also gave us 20% back on that cruise AND an additional 20% on any future cruises (no limit as to how many you could book). When we stepped off the ship, the 20% was already off my credit card!!”
Dave you are absolutely right. The arcade should have been free for the kids since they shut down all the outside activities. I was on a cruise with Princess and they waived all charges for computer use for the length of the voyage just because it took a long time to sign in. Making these adjustments to keep passengers happy is the mark of a good cruise line. People Disney is fun for the kiddies yes but there are a lot of other cruise lines out there that have programs for children, rock climbing, golf, ice skating if Disney is so hard to deal with try RC, Princess, Holland America. You might even pay less for a seven day cruise than the over priced Disney for a three day. There are plenty of activities on all these ships and the ports still offer the same type of excursions like swimming with dolphins. Most cruise lines offer private islands. I have been on all of those cruise lines and there was always kids on board having a great time. If you want a Micky fix then go to Disney World.
I was on the Dream, room 9111, we had 21 in our party. Half of them became ill, most on Saturday night. What bothered me most is that DCL made a conscious decision to push on through the storm to make it to Port Canaveral in time to turn over for the next sailing. As I write this I am still suffering from vertigo. I can’t walk without feeling the ground shifting underneath me as if I am still being tossed around the sea. The entire three days consisted of some degree of rough seas. The captain and DCL had the option of remaining south of the storm but instead followed behind and ultimately into the storm to attempt to stop in Nassau and return to Port Canaveral. I am extremely disappointed in the decisions made my DCL in this storm. Saturday night was inexcusable. Everything on my desk was thrown to the floor as the ship violently shifted in the waves. The captain reported 45 minutes to cross the rough seas and assured us we were safe. For the next 4 hours the ship continued to rock more severely than it had the past two days. The 25% offering is an insult given the inconvenience and disregard for passenger safety. I have memories I will never forget from this cruise, and they are not the memories Disney advertises in their marketing. Something is wrong when a majority of the passengers were ill and afraid for their safety when it was completely preventable.
I had a chat with Mario in Guest Relations but it was clear that Mario had been given no authority from DCL to improve the situation. Without the pools, aqua duck, top decks, or shore stops the on board entertainment should have been adjusted to compensate. The projector in the Buena Vista Theater never worked reliably.
In conclusion, DCL did not chose to ensure passenger safety, they also failed to take steps to keep passengers engaged during a cruise to nowhere. I expected more from a Walt Disney company.
Wow. This is all very interesting. I was on the Dream. Deck 7. My wife and I were in 1 balcony cabin and we had 4 teenagers in the cabin next to us. While we were not thrilled with the rough seas and bad weather, we all still managed to have a good time and make it an adventure. Hurricane Sandy was our dark passenger. We were not going to let her spoil our fun. We knew what we were getting into. We voluntarily boarded that beautiful ship. Yes, Saturday night was quite bad and somewhat scary (and we are frequent cruisers) but there is nothing DCL could have done that would have pleased everyone. BTW – We already booked our next cruise on the Dream using the 25% discount. For November of 2013. And yes, I realize that is hurricane season!
Robert try dealing with a vommiting six year old and then make your comment.
Umm. Marta, You knowingly booked a cruise during hurricane season. Then you knowingly boarded a ship that was heading into the Atlantic Ocean during the middle of a hurricane. Spare me your drama please. You should have kept your 6 year old at home. Life is full of choices. You made the wrong one.
Robert, big man telling a woman who is upset off in your remarks. don’t you have anything better to do than to chastise and antagonize people on here who had a bad experience. Big man, small mind.
Marty, does hysteria and a sharp tongue keep you from checking your rhetoric?
Robert, not at all.
I was also on the 10/25 Dream cruise and have created a Facebook group for all of us who sailed on either the 10/20 Fantasy cruise or 10/25 Dream cruise to share and process away from the taunts and criticisms of those who do not share our positions. Please join and share freely. Let’s get some news teams there as well. We were wronged and the fact that reports from DCL to the press regarding the status of the cruises have been untrue only shows that DCL is aware that the decisions made were wrong. https://www.facebook.com/groups/104089969753549/
Robert, You are exactly right. You can make any situation in life exactly what you want it to be. Im so sick of the people whining about there was nothing to do. The shows did go on, and the activities were there for you to do. YOU chose not to participate. The weather kept you from being outside, but thats outside. There were so many activities to do inside.
Also for all of you who got sea sick. When you knew there was a hurricane in the ocean, you knew the water would be rough. There are arm bands you can wear to keep you from getting sea sick, there are also patches you can were (they offer these on the cruise) and there is Dramamine that you could have bought (ALSO offered on the cruise)
. We are frequent cruisers and my daughter gets sea sick even when the weather is beautiful. She wears the arm bands and takes Dramamine the whole time we sail and GUESS WHAT she doesnt get sick.Maybe instead of seeing your cup half empty you need to look at how blessed you all are and what a great opprotunity you had to take your family on a ship.
Its not disneys fault because of the weather or that you were ignorant enough to take your family on the ocean during a hurricane and didnt make proper arrangements to keep your family from seasickness!!!!! Grow up and take some responsibility for your ACTIONS!!!!
Oh and one more thing…. For those of you that are whining about the danger you family was put in and not sailed and said they should have refunded your money!! I Why then did you put your family on the boat if you knew you were sailing into such danger!, Whether you got a refund or not!!!! There is no amount of money worth my families safety. You sold your Families safety for $__________ fill in the blank.
Think about that for awhile……
IT ALL COMES BACK TO YOU, YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO KEEP YOUR FAMILY SAFE, IT NEVER WAS DISNEYS JOB, THEY ARE A BUSINESS…… Buisnesses try to make sure all safety factors are there. Just like bungiee jumping off a bridge, they have taken into consideration all the safety mechanisms, but you sign a waiver that you will not hold them liable if you are injured. YOU TAKE A RISK, AS YOU ALL DID GETTING ON THE BOAT!!!!!!!
Rachel, Rachel, Rachel, why on earth are you so angry??? You weren’t even on either of the cruises! LOL!! If you’d step away from your own arrogance long enough to read what people have said and truly understand the position they were all put in, you might be a bit less aggressive and a bit more rational.
No one is blaming Disney or DCL or the Captains for the weather. Let me type that again, slowly, for you. No one is blaming Disney or DCL or the Captains for the weather. Do you understand that now?
Mother Nature is responsible for the weather. Disney/DCL’s only responsibility when it comes to dangerous weather is to keep the ship(s) away from it.
I will not speak to the experience of the passengers on the Fantasy because I was not on it.
I was on the Dream. I received the following email from DCL on Wednesday, 10/24, as did all the other Dream passengers:
“We are currently monitoring Hurricane Sandy very closely as it moves north through the Caribbean towards The Bahamas, and wanted to reach out to Guests on the October 25th sailing of the Disney Dream® with this very important information.
At this time, the October 25, 2012 Disney Dream sailing will depart Port Canaveral as scheduled. However, given the predicted path of the storm, we realize that the ship’s itinerary will need to be altered as the storm passes through The Bahamas.
Unfortunately, the storm is expected to produce tropical storm and hurricane force winds near Nassau and our private island, Disney’s Castaway Cay for most of the day on Friday and early on Saturday.
Therefore the revised itinerary will be as follows:
Thursday, October 25 Port Canaveral, Florida
Friday, October 26 Day at Sea
Saturday, October 27 Nassau (pending weather conditions)
Sunday, October 28 Port Canaveral, Florida
The safety and security of our Guests is always our top priority. If necessary, our Captains are always prepared to alter the ships’ courses or itineraries to navigate away from inclement weather.”
********************
As you can see, and hopefully understand, we – the passengers of the Dream – were assured that we would be kept safe and away from the storm.
Do you see where it says “Unfortunately, the storm is expected to produce tropical storm and hurricane force winds near Nassau and our private island, Disney’s Castaway Cay for most of the day on Friday and early on Saturday.” ???
Friday morning we were off the Southwest tip of Florida, in relatively calm waters.
Did we stay there, kept away from the storm, as DCL assured us we would be?
No.
Captain Anderson turned the Dream around and sailed her BACK INTO THE STORM from Friday morning through Saturday – the EXACT time frame stated in DCL’s email as not being safe to do so.
Had DCL told us that we would be sailed in the storm, you can bet your life that we would not have gotten on that ship.
Of course then we’d be demanding a full refund and getting slammed by folks like you for that as well.
Sigh.
Wow I’m not angry at all lol I’m just saying instead of you all whining with your hands out wanting more, more,more , more…. YOU need to Take some responsibility
Oh and as far as your little Facebook website goes the only reason you created it and told everybody to come over there so you could talk about the situation is because you know as well as I do the truth hurts….
And what truth would that be? LOL!! The Facebook group was actually created to avoid dealing with ignorance such as you are displaying.
Thanks for your insults though. They clearly show what type of person you are. 😉
MIC KEY MO USE I love Mickey Mouse and what he gave you was a fair offer!!!! I am a great person and in no way did I insult you!! Just telling the truth and if it hurts you well I’m sorry!!!!
Rachel there is something wrong with you. Do you not see the majority of people here are saying that they were assured they would not be going near the storm? My daughter was told they were NOT LEAVING PORT AT ALL, just stay on board and enjoy the weekend in port. Disney lied and lied.
So Disney lied, now what? Can someone answer that question? Disney lied, screwed up and ruined your vacation, now what? What is there to do? Join a facebook group, complain on here? Now what? Where does all this get you? no where. I agree, it is devistating what you all went through, but now what?
Move on, Boycott Disney, take your money elsewhere or book a 25% disocunted future disney cruise, those are the only answers to the question that I posed.
Jim,
Glad you’re over it- we’ll make our own choices and if you don’t want to have any awareness about our ranting or any other action, I’m glad to hear we won’t be bothering you with it any longer. Adios!
I like your attitude Robert, the power of positive thinking and actions. When you have lemons, make lemonade! It is so sad to see the anger in a lot of these posts and all the wasted effort of creating facebook pages to slander Disney for sialing through rough waters.
There was no Facebook group created “to slander Disney.” No one is interested in slandering Disney. I think you are forgetting (or are unaware?) that the majority of passengers on Disney ships are Disney lovers, that’s why they are on the Disney ships. 😉
The Facebook group that has been created is for passengers who want to hold Disney/DCL accountable for the decisions made to sail two ships full of passengers into a known storm.
No one is asking you to agree with their position, however I am asking that you not spread untruths about their purpose and goal. Thank you.
Has there been any progress with the facebook group holding Disney “accountable” for their decisions to sail into the storm? Do tell, but I guess it is just more complaining with no results, but hopefully it is offering support for others and helping them move on.
And for those on the Fantasy, the bucket boys on Friday were awesome!!!!
Once again, wasted effort. What is DCL accountable for? Decision to sail into the wake of a hurricane during hurricane season? They offered 25% discount on future cruises, that’s about +/- $1000 off a future cruise, when they owe you nothing per the cruise contract, is that DCL taking accountability for rough seas and ruined vacations? If they stayed at sea another day, would all these people be demanding DCL be held accountable for missed airlines and extra nights in hotels? I just think it is a little extreme in here.
You don’t get it. It seems that all of those not on the ship, and DCL as well, want to make this about the weather. It is not about the weather. It is about poor decision making on the part of those in charge of the ship, be that the captain or corporate DCL. All of us that were on the ship get it. The weather was bad. That does not mean we had to sail into the bad weather. There was nice weather and nice seas not far behind us when we started heading toward a non-porting in Nassau. That nice weather and seas would have allowed a re-opening of the upper decks and the aqua duck and the outside decks – at least for awhile. And then those of us on the ship may have thought we received some of the entertainment we paid for – not to mention that meals could have been more enjoyable without having to watch the water in our glass shift from side to side. My guess is that everyone on that ship, save the captain, would have preferred that over what DCL actually delivered to us. They made the choice – and it was the wrong choice in the opinion of most of those on the ship.
Ditto Ron,
For those few who do not feel that they were duped…………….what are you doing on this blog where virtually everyone else is expressing their displeasure?? Why don’t you go to a “Disney Duped me and I love it” Bolg? If there isn’t one, you can start one.
Wrong choice/right choice? It is in the eye of the beholder, but in hindsight, I agree wrong choice. But what good does it do to rant and rave in here about it? There is no course of action to take against a cruise line, however you can take the 25% discount and make it up to your family by booking a discounted cruise, my advice go in April or May. Whether 25% is too much or not enough, at least it is something, best action is to book it agian and make it up to your kids or boycott Disney, take your money elsewhere, it is all water under the bridge now..
Much of the anger is in regards to what you have suggested to do – buy another vacation in order to get the vacation already bought. Many families save for years for vacations, and will not financially be able to take DCL up on the 25% offer. Simply refunding the 25% rather than holding it hostage probably would have gone a long way towards avoiding much of the anger and negative PR that is floating around.
And there’s always a course of action that can be taken, against any company that does not provide the product paid for.
I have found in life that there are people that can never be pleased no matter what the issue is. Look no further than this blog.
Why do you people continue to rant about the hurricane season? I live in Florida, yes through hurricane season every year. Ships sail during hurricane season. There is ample time to move around a hurricane. It is not a big deal. When cruise lines choose to sail INTO a hurricane is when it becomes a big deal. So stop ranting about hurricane season like it is some big taboo. It’s not like living in tornado alley where you only have minutes before it strikes. We all know DAYS before. Captains move their ships accordingly to avoid storms. These captains did not, that is where the problem lies.
The bottom line is we put our trust in DCL and they failed us. Revenue over all else in this case. If you pay for something and are assured that it would be one thing and it turned out to be completely different, then all trust is lost. DCL only told us that we’d be fine and would make at least one stop for one reason only- to keep our money. We are intersted in all available options to hold DCL accountable at this point. Some people had to re-assure their little ones that they wouldn’t die. It is unconscionable on Disney Cruise Line’s part that they are not willing to compensate these families. I told the reps. at Guest Services on day 2 that they should be ashamed to take all of these families in out in weather like that. We were told to come on the Dream and all would be well and experienced a nightmare as a result of putting our trust in the hands of a huge corporate conglomerate.
Agreed 100% Marty….I would expect it from Carnival, who caters to mostly adults, but not Disney who obviously targets children. My family are admitted Disney freaks, so it is more disappointment than anything.
We too were on the Disney Dream during Hurricane Sandy, leaving on October 25th. We had an awesome time! And knowing what we know now, we would absolutely do it again. We were there to celebrate my parents 50th anniversary, and we certainly did that.
We had vacation insurance, which we could have cashed in. Once a storm is a named storm you can cancel. But we didn’t want that. We were going to be together, and that’s what we did. Fortunatly, none of us suffered from motion sickness. Had we, I’m sure it would have been a different cruise for us.
I thought Captain Henry and Cruise Director Clayton did an outstanding job. I thought they were open with us and kept us well informed. There were many officers around the decks, and all of them were happy to answer any questions we had on where we were headed and the conditions outside. I thought the forum they held on Friday morning with the Captain, Cruise Director, Chief Engineer and Hotel Manager was a great way to keep the communication open about the status of the storm. I thought the Captain very clearly explained himself.
I was also bummed that we couldn’t have more outside deck parties. It would have been nice to see that. I was bummed that we couldn’t use the Aquaduck nor most of Deck 12 and Deck 13. It would have been nice to check that stuff out too. We’ll see it when we use our 25% off discount. But, it was a safety issues and couldn’t complain about the closures. I thought it was neat to see how Cruise Director Clayton kicked in the contingency plans and added extra things to do on the ship and it was REALLY cool how they could use the Atrium in a moments notice to host whatever party was necessary. They parties I attended were very crowded and it looked to me like everyone was having a BLAST.
BUT, I we were looking forward to that cruise for a long time. We weren’t going to let a stupid hurricane ruin the fun, and we didn’t. We had a blast, and gave my parents a spectacular party.
As far as other posts I’ve read of people falling and throwing up in the hallways, I guess I missed those decks, I didn’t see any of that. I did see the Disney Dream’s 3 person Protein Spill SWAT team addressing issues twice, both outside the Walt Disney Theater on different days. But it seemed that when a protein spill occurred, they were in and out so fast you would never know anything happened. The room service steward did tell us that they were very busy delivering food to state rooms and many people were not feeling well. But out and about on the ship, I generally saw the masses of people having a great time, not letting Sandy screw up the fun.
Some people go on vacations to see Tornados. We got to go on vacation to see a Hurricane. Not everyone can say that. I know many people will disagree, but I thought Disney and Captain Henry did a great job. Since we did have vacation insurance, it was our choice to go and knowing what we know now, I would do it again.
FYI. I was on the Fantasy and had booked a future cruise on board. The letter said the 25% off would automatically be applied to that cruise but when I called today it had not been done. They did apply the discount for me. So if you had already booked a cruise, call DCL and make sure you get the discount.
They are still working on all the bookings as they have to be manually done. I applied mine to another booking, but my onboard booking had not been done yet. My friend’s reservation was adjusted yesterday.
Wow RB, glad you and your family made the best out of it, like I said before, when you have lemons, make delicious lemonade! With a twist of vodka is nice too… That is great to hear but you will not be popular in here..LOL! Misery loves company on this blog..LOL
Jim,
If YOU aren’t miserable, then what are you doing on here yourself?
My family and I were on the Disney Dream chasing the hurricane, we had previously sailed in January 2012 and had a great time. I was just curious, when we left the ship in January the captain was standing at the gangway bidding everyone farewell. So I was wondering is this standard practice, if so WHERE WAS HE ON SUNDAY MORNING, because we did not see him. By the way to put this into perspective —- WHAT WOULD WALT DISNEY HIMSELF DO?????
Hey Jim, we get it. You are awesome, all knowing, you have it all figured out. Now shew, go away, I’m sure someone out there needs you.
LIKE!!
No, I would rather stay here and bother whiners…LOL!
No, you mean JUDGE people based on their views that are different than yours. I bet people hate to see you coming!
Nope not judging people at all on their views, I actually agree with most poeple in here, their vacations were ruined and it was a horrible night/trip, I totally get that, what I do not get is what is the point to whine and complain on a blog? What purpose does it serve? Websites and “blogs” should try to help others or serve as entertainment or knowledge/info. gathering, I see none of that here just complaining.
People process experiences in different ways. One of the largest complaints I have heard about this situation is that the passengers concerns are not being heard by DCL/Disney. Posting here and in other online forums/groups at least reassures these passengers that *someone* hears them. In that sense, it is part of their processing and healing. That being said, their presence here is completely logical and understandable.
What I personally don’t understand is your reason for being here. If you weren’t on either ship and don’t work for Disney, how does this entire situation affect you? What skin do you have in the game? Why is is so important for you to discredit and criticize those who were on the ships who need to do whatever they need to do to process and recover?
Beautifully put Diana. What are you doing here, Jim? You must live a boring life if you weren’t on either ship but continue to use your time in this way.
It’s a form of entertaiment and giving my opinion about “moving on”, that’s why I am here. What are your points for being here, if you have already posted your “opinion”, why return why keep posting? If you wnat to “help” others why don’t you all give insight or advice on how to deal with DCL to resolve issues you have with them? If you want DCL to hear, I would suggest contacting them directly or your travel agent and have them contact Disney with your grievances.
That’s exactly what the Facebook group is for Jim, to help others by hearing them, sharing insight & advice, and giving them avenues to air their grievances directly with DCL/Disney.
For anyone who isn’t yet aware of the Facebook group, it is a very safe and productive group and can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/104089969753549/
Jim you said
“If you wnat to “help” others why don’t you all give insight or advice on how to deal with DCL to resolve issues you have with them?”
First we need insight on how to deal with you, then we can get on with dealing with DCL.
You said “Websites and “blogs” should try to help others or serve as entertainment or knowledge/info.”
I agree, now help us by going away.
Attacking me now, first it was DCL, now me, geesh some poeple just love bashing others when they do not agree with their views. My advice to others is if you have exhausted your avenues with DCL, drop it, move on, just like I am going to do! move on from this blog.
We were onboard the Disney Dream. It was my bday present. I tried to see if I could go out this week, but Disney refused. I got the same stories you all did. I even got a rep telling me this cruise is non-refundable, if you don’t get onboard, we will keep all the money. So, we felt we had no other choice but to board and try to enjoy and believe the story told: we will keep the ship away from the storm. I am a very experience traveler, although my first experience in a cruise. All I wanted was to go a week later, not for free, I even offer to pay an extra fee if that was necessary.
For me it was a joke listening to the captain on the Friday session “Ask the captain”; I missed the opportunity to ask “Don’t you know you are following the path of the hurricane? Didn’t you know the tail of the hurricane is the worst? That is when I realized, DCL didn’t care about the safety of any of us. What a joke when he came over the speaker to tell us we could not dock in Nassau. I was like.. please don’t insult the intellegence of the passengers, we could have told you that yesterday. I think DCL forgot we got those little magic boxes in the room called TVs that was keeping us informed of the ship route and winds speeds.
I was lucky, we didn’t get sick. But seeing the water splashing on our 10 floor cabin was not fun. That was scary. What would have been the best scenario? take the ship to calm waters and let us enjoy the ammenities. I particular didn’t care going in a port, but did want to enjoy and get back the $$$ I paid. I live in FL, but unfortunetely couldn’t take advantage of the FL resident. After everything was said and done, I just wasted $2800 of my hard earned money. 25% off a next cruise doesn’t even begin to cover the time we all lost.
Disney needs to learn from its competitors. I applaud Carnival and other cruise lines for the decisions they made. As many said, Disney Dream captain only concerns were: (1) give us the illusion something was going to happen like stopping in Nassau, (2) bring the ship to Pt. Canaveral no matter what, and (3) get the ship quickly ready for his next departure.
My family was also on the dream. This was the worst vacation I have ever been on. Had nothing to do unless we wanted to spend even more money then we already had. It took 4 years to come up with the fund to take our 3 kids on a Disney cruise and they were so excited! But then it just went to heck in a hand basket. No pool as it wasn’t safe,no aqua duck which was the one thing they wanted more then anything. Then they due ided to give out free Bahama mamma’s for an hour and a half in 20+ ft sea’s. Really? People sick all over the place. Ordered room service sat morning and asked for a soda boat was rocking pretty good by then and was told I’d have to go to deck 11 or pay for it. You could hardley walk. This pretty much summed up the whole trip of dcl not caring. Watched the news the next day and they said Disney would have lost 11 million on the dream alone is she hadn’t,t sailed. We left port late,made no ports of call couldn’t go outside and there was little to do. We tried to make the best of it but the parties were so. Crowded and the adults were acting like kids and we didn’t feel safe being there. I,m not asking for free cruise but I feel we missed half the experience and should get something more the 25% . I called and asked if I. Would use my discount o. A 4 day out of Miami and was told no. I was told I could use it on a 3day park stay but only for the hotel. Big whoop I get the rooms cheaper on flash residents rate. I truley believe the 25% was a session based on the fact most people wouldn’t use it asit’s just to little if you figure in airline and hotel rooms. So dcl won’t have to give it out and the hits just keep commingle lol. As for Jim I know your type you take which ever side will make people the most angry it’s all fun and games for you. All I have to say to you is I’m sorry your life is so pathatic you can only get people to talk to you in places like this. I’ll pray for you to find your way to a life.
Cindy I pray you learn how to spell. As for you learning deductive reasoning I’m not sure that is within your grasp. I do agree that Disney is about making money but what no one seems to understand is that the ship is worth far more than the money they made in 3 days from the passengers. The thought that Disney would risk endangering a relatively new ship for less than one weeks revenue is preposterous! Now not being able to enjoy the outdoor activities one looks forward to on a Bahaman cruise that certainly is a bummer but even if you had been in a hotel bad weather would have spoiled that. Maybe if you had better researched your vacation you would have stayed at one of Disney’s All Star Resorts and gone to the water parks. I can personally tell you that the Crush ‘n’ Gusher at Typhoon Lagoon is much more fun than the Aquaduck. In doing that you could have saved yourself a lot of money and the 4 years you spent saving for this vacation.
I agree – Crush ‘n Gusher is much better than the AquaDuck. AquaDuck is cool, and on its own is really a cool ship feature.
Richard
Was I even talking to you? Are you always this rude or did you learn it through deductive reasoning? Lol Were you even on the dream? Pretty judgemental and angry so very angry.You need to relax might I suggest a cruise?
I
Cindy, you were talking to me and to everyone who reads the comments unfortunately posting on a public bulletin board is like yelling fire in a crowded theater. I will say that I really am not mad at you personally, I’m was more upset by the 170 comments like yours. They all are about the same no better no worse. Each one being filled with contradictory statements coupled with the same recurring theme of “I want more free stuff”. Just to make a point I’ll point out a few of your post contradictions.
1.)You said you tried to use the 25% on a 4 day cruise and had been denied anything but a 3 day cruise. The 25% credit was only good for one year so I’m not really sure how you could afford another cruise in one year when you say it took you 4 years to save for the first one.
2.) You said the 25% discount was worthless to you because you could get better deals with flash residents rate. It’s funny you being a Florida resident and yet claiming no understanding the affects of inclement weather could have on a Caribbean cruise during hurricane season.
3.) You claim that you had nothing to do but then said “but the parties were so. Crowded and the adults were acting like kids” which sounds to me like most people making the best of their vacation even if it wasn’t perfect and finding something to do.
I do think a cruise would calm me down and relax me greatly and since I have cruise on a 60,000 ton ship in the Caribbean during hurricane season with 35+ foot seas I would certainly know what can happen and wouldn’t expect compensation.
Look, I do not expect any compensation from Disney and am pleased with the 25% discount. Unlike the Dream passengers, our discount for the Fantasy applies to 7 day cruises as well. Also, unlike the Dream passengers, we were already on the ship when the hurricane became a threat. We did not have a choice at that point and were totally dependent on the judgement of the captain and crew for our safety. I would like to believe we were in no danger but can’t be sure of that since the damage to the ship indicated that the crew was not prepared for the extreme listing that occurred. If the captain would have announced that we would delay our port arrival by one day for the safety of the ship and passengers, I for one would not have questioned it. Sure, there might have been some people upset about missing flights, but a lot of people did anyway. I feel Disney would have incurred less criticism if they had erred on the side of safety and I hope a lesson was learned from this experience.
Sympathy people. ..if you have saved and saved for a special vacation to have it turned into a rolling vomit bucket, it takes a toll. I was on a sailing when I was 11 that got very rough…the boat ran out of sick bags!! There was vomit and vomiting people everywhere, it stunk and it gave me a fear of sailing, I will never ever go on a cruise for this reason. Weather is weather but if you are a company taking money off people in exchange to give them the time of their lives and you know setting sail is going to be rough on many passengers then give the people a choice to go or not. I am sure Disney have insurance! If the said company can avoid upset children and sick, scared people then they should. I know in the scheme of things an aqueduct being closed sounds silly but for a child it’s a HUGE deal, it’s what they have been dreaming of. My niece works on the fantasy and she said it was pretty hairy, we were worried about her. I feel so sorry for all those on the boat, what a horrible horrible experience. So all those saying suck it up, let these people get the experience out of their system it takes an emotional toll and they need to work through it…have a bit of sympathy and leave them alone, whether you think it or not they have gone through enough for the moment.
Thanks for the prayers Cindy!
Disney Cruise Line deliberately choosing profit over passengers’ safety and comfort by sailing into dangerous waters and putting thousands of lives in harm’s way
o Given no opportunity to either reschedule cruise or cancel cruise without complete forfeit of payment
o Lack of communication in days prior to boarding cruise regarding changes in itinerary and cruise embarkation
o Every member of our party experienced illness from extensive rough waters
o Understaffed children’s counselors in Oceaneer’s Club and Lab; child to counselor ratio was remarkably unsafe on many levels
o Any and all outdoor activities unavailable or cancelled from Thursday evening through end of cruise Sunday morning
o Spa sliding glass door to outdoor “Whirlpool Area” trapped us outside due to the high pressure winds (consistently reported at 70-85 mph on bridge channel) forcing doors to become inoperable
o Our stateroom was charged $146.87 for “Professional Fees” to have seven year old taken to Medical Center after being ill for over 18 hours due to rough seas and motion sickness for the doctor to give us a $2.35 pack of Dramamine and a Popsicle.
o Planned movies in Walt Disney Theater were either delayed at least 20 minutes or cancelled due to the projectors malfunctioning from the ship’s swaying
o Very few Disney characters available throughout entire cruise
o Could not access Spa equipment we paid for due to the over abundance of guests occupying equipment since all other activities were cancelled
o Saturday night’s sailing was so rough that a wine glass broke in half in our stateroom during our attempts to sleep
o Paid for Port Fees that we never visited
Disney has prided themselves for many decades on their dedication to providing vacations that allow family to grow and make memories that will last a lifetime; our recent experience has caused our family to now completely have a change of heart in how I feel about Disney’s true intentions and their loyalty in general. Our family had to endure an indescribable amount of mental and physical strain due to the Disney leadership’s failure to make decisions in the best interest of their guest’s safety.
I was not on either cruise but recently was on the Fantasy and thinking about how wonderful a time we had, why Disney would even allow this bag of worms to be opened. It just doesn’t make sense. They ended up leaving late the following day so why not just hang back in calmer waters and go in late? And for Carnival to make a better decision than Disney when Disney is the ‘best’ is just amazing to me. These ships I am sure are much tougher than we can imagine but it really should have been about the comfort of the guests. Not like Disney won’t make their money. Why even allow themselves to get any bad publicity at all? It was a poor decision in my opinion. Clearly you can choose to not get on the boat and I understand there are different degrees of interpretations of what happened. However as an outsider looking in, the prevailing question is why Disney did you even allow themselves to be in this position. We expect better and know they are better than this. Please Disney don’t make such a dumb move again. You work so hard as stated in your own ‘Be Our Guest’ book to ensure what happened on these ships never happens. Make a better choice next time. You work too hard the rest of the year to allow these kinds of choices!
There should be a comment box in every cruise ship so that after every trip, customers can drop their comments or suggestions for improvement or if they’re happy with the service. This way the cruise line would know what their customers think and act appropriately.
My partner and I were on the dream cruise celebrating his birthday Oct. 26th 2012. We were dissapointed because of Hurricane Sandy and the fact that we were sick the entire cruise. We had two more cruises booked after this cruise. We called DCL and tried to apply our 25% discount on one of the cruises that we already had booked. We were turned down because they were both 7 day cruises and the discount was only for a 3 day cruise. We recently called DCL again and are happy to say that they honored the discount on our 7 day cruise on the Fantasy in April….Thank You DLC
We also recently used our discount for a 7 night cruise on the Fantasy – combined with the onboard booking discount it makes for a great price! Now let’s just hope that DCL did indeed learn from this and this situation will never happen again!
I’m coming into this late but experienced cruisers are well aware that anyone booking a cruise that leaves anywhere from the East Coast between August and October is rolling the dice because of hurricane season. If you leave out of NY between November and March you then have the risk of nor’easter’s, major snow events and rough seas.
So, when in doubt, don’t book during peek hurricane season. If you’re like me and willing to take advantage of those off season discounts, purchase a travel insurance policy that allows you to cancel for any reason and receive a full refund. It’ll cost you a few hundred dollars but it’s worth the peace of mind if you ultimately decide to cancel because of severe weather.