A Brooklyn family were forced to miss out on their dream eight-day cruise costing an eye-watering sum after being dealt a devastating blow earlier on in the day.
Earlier this summer, Tisha LaSaine planned to celebrate her 50th birthday by embarking on a holiday with her elderly mother, her twins and her oldest son.
However, the once-in-a-lifetime cruise trip took a turn on 30 June when the family’s flights to Orlando were delayed by almost two hours.
“We took off at 11:40 a.m. Our flight was scheduled for 9:54,” recounted Kaseem Miller, LaSaine’s son.
According to ABC7, Delta Airlines claimed the flight from JKF had been significantly delayed ‘due to a crew issue’ in a cancellation email.
The family were due to touch down at Orlando International Airport at 12:51, just less than three hours before their cruise ship was due to leave port 45 miles away at Cape Canaveral.
But when LaSaine realised the delayed Delta flight may impact the family festivities, she reportedly told her mother: “I went to my mom and told her ‘Mom I don’t think we’re going to make it’.”
Unfortunately, the woman – who had saved for the break while tirelessly working at a post office – was correct in her estimations.
It’s reported that by the time the group had trekked from the airport to the port it was too late – they could do nothing but watch their £6,500 holiday slip out of sight.
Tisha LaSaine had saved all year to take her family on a cruise (ABC7)
“We missed the whole trip,” complained Miller. “That’s a whole week. That’s eight days.”
His mother added: “I think I cried more than the kids and it was for them.”
After missing their cruise, it’s understood that the family returned to New York as they were unable to secure accommodation in Florida.
And while the money they’d spent on the boat was fully refunded, it seemed it wasn’t going to be as easy to be reimbursed by Delta.
According to the news outlet, the family asked for a full flight refund for missing their holiday but were only given an e-credit, which was only for the one way and worth £190 per person.
“I was like, that’s a lot of money for me to lose that I put out in a few months,” LaSaine said.
At a loose end, the mother contacted Nina Pineda and the 7 On Your Side team to help her get her hard-earned cash back.
The mother claimed she ‘cried’ after her family’s travel plans were decimated (ABC7)
After working with the ABC affiliate, LaSaine eventually received the remaining full ticket refund of £2,000.
“Delta apologized for the delay that led to their circumstance,” the company told the outlet.
LaSaine later claimed she was ‘so happy’ that the issue had finally been resolved.
If you’re thinking about heading on a cruise yourself, then a fanatic has revealed how purchasing one thing on a luxury liner can end up bleeding you dry.
Speaking to LADbible, Bradley Jones warned cruising newbies that splurging on at-sea Wi-Fi is one sure way to increase your travel costs.
LaSaine and her family were ‘so happy’ after eventually receiving the refund (ABC7)
“The big one: internet. Wi-Fi. That’s the biggest one,” the Welshman stated.
“So you go on a brand spanking new shiny ship and just like walking into a hotel, you think Wi-Fi is included but 75 percent of the time it’s not.
“At-sea Wi-Fi, you could buy a house for what it costs. And I’m not going to pretend that it’s cheap because it’s not, And that’s where the cruise fare comes into play,” he continued.
“Say you’ve picked the lowest cruise fair, and you think ‘Yeah, we’ve saved £200 a person’.
“There’s two of you and the two kids, but by the time you get on that ship you think ‘Christ there’s no internet and we have to buy Wi-Fi that £200 each’. You haven’t actually saved a penny.”
