Vaccination policy leads to canceled cruise headache for local woman

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- One year after the pandemic hit the U.S., Christine Alexander was ready for a getaway.

In March of last year, she booked a trip for herself and her daughter, with Norwegian Cruise Line. Initially, the company told Alexander she would need to provide a negative PCR test upon boarding the ship on October 10.

"Which I have no objections with because most places you go, they ask for that, so… no problem," said Alexander.

Alexander made her final payment on August 2, 2021. But a few weeks later, said she got an email from Norwegian with an important message.

"Everyone that's boarding the ship has to have… fully vaccinated, at least six weeks prior to boarding the ship," said Alexander. "Otherwise, you will not be allowed to board the ship."

Alexander said she was fully vaccinated. Her daughter was not.

"I am not comfortable just yet giving my daughter {the vaccine}, because she just turned 14 years old."

Because of the updated policy, and the ongoing pandemic, Alexander called the cruise line in September to cancel her reservation and get her money back.

That didn't happen.

"They said, 'I'm sorry, we can't refund you anything.' The only thing they can give me is a full credit," said Alexander.

Wanting a full refund instead, Alexander called Better Call 4. And I called the company, to ask why she was denied a refund.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line tells me in part:

"Guests who canceled an upcoming sailing under the Peace of Mind Policy with an embarkation date through October 31, 2021, were not eligible for a refund but were protected from our standard cancelation policy," which is why Alexander won't get her money back but can sign up for another trip through December.

Alexander said she's staying put, for now. But has a message for other potential pandemic travelers.

"With this covid… just don't travel. Just don't travel because the policies just keep changing."

I also asked about travel insurance. Alexander said she was told by Norwegian that she would be eligible for a refund if she had signed up for insurance on her trip. She did not.

Here is Norwegian Cruise Line's full statement:

“On Sept. 20, 2021 Christine Alexander called in to cancel her original Oct.10 -17, 2021 reservation using our Peace of Mind policy and opted to receive a 100% future cruise credit per the terms of the Peace of Mind policy. Reservations canceled inside of the final payment period (60 days prior to sailing) are not eligible for a full refund back to the method of payment used to book. In Christine’s case, while she provided final payment on Aug. 8, 2021, she opted to cancel her reservation within the final payment period under our Peace of Mind Policy.

Guests who canceled an upcoming sailing under the Peace of Mind Policy with an embarkation date through Oct. 31, 2021, were not eligible for a refund but were protected from our standard cancelation policy, under the terms and conditions of the Peace of Mind policy.

As a reminder, Christine has the opportunity to apply the future cruise credit towards any cruise through Dec. 31, 2022. To provide additional flexibility, we also offer a one-time transfer option where she can request to transfer the future cruise credit to another guest.

Regarding our vaccination policy, we introduced our 100% mandatory vaccination requirement for all guests and crew on April 6, 2021. We notified Christine about the change in vaccination policy on April 26, 2021, July 3, 2021, and on Aug. 1, 2021 using the attached “You’re Booked” document. Additionally, on June 16, 2021, we sent Christine the attached correspondence regarding the ship change from the Norwegian Sky to Norwegian Gem, which also included information regarding our 100% mandatory vaccination requirement for all guests and crew.”

- Spokesperson for Norwegian Cruise Line

Click here to see NCL's updated policies for trips reserved during the pandemic.