Celebrity Cruises
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Celebrity Cruises - Jet Set Sail
Jet Set Sail Dear Sirs, Having just completed your survey re the above this is a follow up email to confirm details of my complaint. The experience of Jet Set Sail was a total disaster, a truly horrible experience and one which was possibly mis-sold under various consumer protection acts within the UK. The idea of a VIP Luxury Flight by Private Charter appealed to us as a way of starting our cruise, not realising what you actually meant was that you had chartered, for your use, a somewhat tired looking and dirty aircraft from a budget airline (which leaked water whilst in flight), with a meal, I use the term lightly, of such disgusting quality as to be inedible. How this can be described as 'Luxury' whilst crammed six across in seats which whilst having a 31" pitch as described, were so no narrow even my 5' 4" wife had problems with them I have no idea and most certainly does not equate with the OED definition of "Luxury", being 'the state of great comfort and extravagant living'. The first part of the definition is the deciding factor, that '.....of great comfort' which could assist in and determine for, any future claim for reimbursement of costs, as the flight was of no comfort, let alone great comfort. Had I so wished (and chosen to), fly this way I could have picked from several low-cost airlines, at prices considerably less cost than which paid you; for the prices paid it would appear we could have opted for Business Class from a major airline. This option was sold us as just that, a luxury flight, which it was most certainly not. Whilst not actually stated, thus keeping you within the Law, the implicit view given, (not just us but from conversations with other passengers on the flight), was that the flight and arrival would be a more muted and somewhat quieter experience with lounge facilities at Marco Polo airport similar to those of Stansted, and as passengers upon a 'a Luxury VIP flight' we would be met and treated with more courtesy and ease of passage through the airport, not be pitched in to the main terminal with a teeming mass of thousands of people. For the return journey we were again decanted to the main terminal with no private lounge facilities, (or if there were, we did not see and/or use any), having to endure seemingly endless queues for both security and passport control. Upon arrival at the gate there was an unorganized scrum of people, some of whom were waiting for other flights, at same. When our gate was finally called we were embarked onto the bus which took us to the aircraft, where upon arrival the doors were opened but we were refused permission to leave the bus, after some minutes we were returned to the terminal, again being told to remain within the bus; some five minutes later we again started for the aircraft where this time we were permitted to board. After boarding a gentleman did, via the planes communication system issue an apology for the delay, quoting "a misunderstanding"; that being the total explanation with no further information forthcoming, we eventually took off some 35 - 40 minutes after scheduled time. All in all, my views on this whole debacle are quite simply, Were we I treated as a VIPs', NO! Was the flight "Luxury", NO! Would we use or recommend this service again, NO! Was the experience worth the money, NO! Am I going to instigate action to recover costs, YES! Quite frankly if this is the level of service Celebrity are prepared to put their name to then I fear for the future as I, and believe several others, spread the word of this absolutely horrendous and unedifying experience. This element of the trip completely spoilt the memories of a most pleasing and enjoyable cruise, although if this is the way forward for Celebrity we will certainly review our cruising options, meanwhile being thankful we did not pre-book whilst aboard as had been our intention. Perhaps you would wish to comment upon points raised herein. Yours faithfully Mr R & Mrs E Anthony