Spiritual Seaweed?

Because I'm never satisfied with talking about myself here is the letter we sent to the travel agency that handled our travel plans.  When the cruise company asked for feedback on the agency SuperK and I demurred, preferring to talk with the agent first, as a courtesy.  The woman is a lovely person who technically followed the letter of the law; it was a case where our error (and - yes - this is ultimately our responsibility and ours alone) could have been caught a number of times before it became fatal but each and every time it blew through the stop signs.  What I'm proud of, ultimately, is that we've learned the lesson of not doing anything or saying anything when our emotions are running high.  After the stunning debacle at the airport we were shocked and pissed but mostly afraid.  So don't act - that's the lesson.  I feel like we paused when agitated and were able to handle our disappointment calmly and with dignity.  Spiritually is the word I'm looking for.  Intuitively handling situations which used to baffle us.  Taking action not based on a sudden hunch or inspiration but as a regular way of thinking.

Hi, there:

I wanted to loop back around and give you an update with our cruise company.  After a lot of communication they offered us some portion of our fare as a credit on a future cruise to be taken in 2024 and for that we are grateful.  They did ask about our interactions with our travel advisor - we were noncommittal at the time but did promise to expound further.

Our questions to you . . . 

1.  A reminder to check our passport validity would have prevented this foul-up as we would have had time to apply for a renewal under emergency conditions and would have been able to make the cruise.  Neither of us can remember you doing this verbally and it is nowhere to be found in any of our electronic communications. 

2.  We booked airline tickets as part of our package unaware that they were non-refundable.  The disruption to travel caused by CoVid made this unusual for most airlines as long as you're willing to take a credit.  We have done this already in the past.  It was distressing to find out we were out the entire cost of the tickets.

3.  While the cruise line's generosity has helped a lot we are still out of pocket a lot of money.  I know that the travel advisor and the travel agency receive substantial commissions on each booking.  So our question is this: do you and/or Avoya bear any financial responsibility here?

We have not completed our evaluation yet as we wanted to loop you in as a courtesy.  They asked a lot of questions as this cost them a chunk of money as well.

Your thoughts?

Little Stevie Seaweed