Royal Caribbean passengers were not taken on board: more tickets for the cruise were sold than there were seats on the ship

Jai Rayner's vacation ended before it began. The 23-year-old, who lives in Brisbane, Australia, was planning to go on a cruise on a Royal Caribbean International ship with his wife Caitlin to celebrate her graduation from university. But when they arrived at the terminal for an eight-day South Pacific cruise from the Australian city aboard the Quantum of the Seas, they were told they could not board. What happened and how the company resolved the situation, the publication told USA Today.

Photo: IStock

The couple received a letter saying the company "was unable to allocate a cabin number for your reservation," a photo of the document states.

Rayner said they booked a cabin guarantee, which allows passengers to choose the type of cabin (often at a good price) but not the specific room. The cruise cost them almost $1900.

Rayner and his wife were among several passengers unable to make the trip.

The email outlined several options, including waiting to see if a room would be allocated and a $100 credit that could be used on board. The couple decided to wait, but after an hour and a half, Reiner said, workers told them there were no seats available and the cruise was full.

“It was absolutely devastating,” Rayner said.

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Royal Caribbean, the letter said, initially offered guests a full refund and a certificate for a future cruise worth 25% of their fare. But after Rayner contacted the company and posted about the incident on social media, the cruise line adjusted the compensation, giving the couple a full refund, as well as future cruise certificates for the full value of their fare and free deluxe drink packages.

A Royal Caribbean spokesman said demand for the cruise "has outstripped the number of available rooms."

“Unfortunately, efforts to accommodate everyone were not sufficient for our group of guests and some were unable to sail as planned,” a spokesperson explained in an email. He didn't say how many guests were affected, but Rayner estimated about 13 more "families or groups" were waiting for rooms, and 11 were ultimately denied boarding.

All affected guests were given options including rebooking on other dates or receiving a refund and credit towards a future cruise, a company spokesperson said.

“We take issues like this seriously and apologize for any inconvenience this may cause,” he said.

Stuart Heron, a cruise industry expert known as The Cruise Guy, said such scenarios are "extremely rare."

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“This is one of those specialized routes,” he said. “Passengers who booked a guarantee (rather than a specific cabin) may be left without a seat.”

Given the late notice, Chiron explained, the compensation cruise lines may offer depends on the circumstances, but could include “generous” credits toward future cruises and reimbursements for hotels, airfare and other expenses.

This cruise would be Rayner's first, and he plans to use the credit to book another.

“I certainly don’t want it to go to waste, but this whole thing has left me with a bad impression of Royal Caribbean,” he concluded.

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