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Federal authorities investigating cruise travel agency

beejaybeeohio

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Wow! (actually I misstyped this as "Woe" 1st)

My DH & I and 3 other couples fell victim to ecruise dot com out of Lake Mary FL in 2009, after choosing that agency via the cruise compete website. We paid for our cruise in full at the outset due to special incentives for doing so, and ignorantly thought nothing of the fact that the payment (less deposit) was charged to ecruise not Celebrity. Several months later ecruise filed bankruptcy. We were very fortunate that ecruise had actually brokered our bookings through a brick/mortar agency, that our chase visa refunded the monies paid to ecruise and that our booking for the cruise was intact.

Since that time, we have booked 14 cruises via Costco Travel and 1 via Crucon.

Hard lesson to learn!
 

RX8

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No surprise looking at this as a Monday morning quarterback.

The website/business is just 2 years old. According to linked-in the owner has zero experience as a travel agent. She should have stayed in the food industry based on her past experience.
 

mark201235

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My wife talked me into putting a $100 deposit on this exact May 2021 sailing w/ Hopkins Travel. She got info. from a co-worker a few months back and we placed the deposit. I told her it was too good to be true. I just knew it !

We both received emails today (although she heard from another friend who had paid in full a few days ago) that the trip was cancelled. I love it when I am right !

Mark
 

silentg

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Enchanted Isle.
My wife talked me into putting a $100 deposit on this exact May 2021 sailing w/ Hopkins Travel. She got info. from a co-worker a few months back and we placed the deposit. I told her it was too good to be true. I just knew it !

We both received emails today (although she heard from another friend who had paid in full a few days ago) that the trip was cancelled. I love it when I am right !

Mark
Will you get your money back?
 

pedro47

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I feel your $100.00 will not be return. IMHO.
 

dioxide45

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If your deposit was paid directly to the cruise line using your credit card, it seems like that payment will be refunded. If you paid your deposit to this company and then they turned around and applied the payment, then you may be out of luck or would have to dispute.
 

mark201235

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Will you get your money back?

I’m confident that we will because it ended up as a direct charge from NCL even though I provided the credit card info to Hopkins. We were taking a chance anyway because our oldest daughter could potentially graduate from the PhD program she’s currently in during May 2021. The last several spring graduation dates have been the same week as the cruise is scheduled. I was prepared to lose the $100 deposit if that was the case, but I’ll gladly accept it back under the current circumstances with Hopkins !

Mark
 

pedro47

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To the OP, please saved your cc statement / bill for documentation . So When you dispute the charge to Hopkins. You will have prove what happen.
 

Talent312

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Another good reason to deal directly with the cruise line directly...
or at least with an agency who you know well and had positive results.

The only Florida agency I deal with is "Best Price Cruises" in Part St. Lucie.
In business 22 years, w/a decent website, and helpful phone-friendly reps.
They also support the Humane Society of St. Lucie County (per Facebook).
.
 
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