A devastated family was forced to watch their cruise sail away without them after their flight to the ship’s port was delayed and there wasn’t enough time to make it.
Tisha LaSaine who lives in Brooklyn with her children, saved for a year to go on the week-long cruise, which was supposed to celebrate her 50th birthday as well as her son Kaseem starting his junior year at Hampton College in Virginia.
But when the family-of-four arrived at John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens the were horrified to find out their flight to Orlando was ‘delayed due to a crew issue.’
They were gutted, quickly realizing they had made a common travel error and not left enough time to make the $8,500 cruise.
‘We took off at 11:40am. Our flight was scheduled for 9:54,’ Kaseem told ABC 7, New York City’s local affiliate.
The only trouble was, their cruise was supposed to leave Cape Canaveral’s port at 3:30pm.
Tisha LaSaine, left, her son Kaseem Miller, right, and her twins were supposed to go on a cruise that left from Orlando. Their flight got delayed, which led to them missing the entire trip
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If their flight hadn’t been delayed, they would have landed in Orlando at 12:51pm, giving them plenty of time to make it to their cruise ship.
But when the average non-stop flight from JFK to Orlando takes about three hours, the family was cutting it close with the 11:40 departure time.
LaSaine told her mother, who was also going on the trip, that she didn’t think they were going to make it.
And their worst fears were realized when they finally made it to the dock, only to see their ship already out at sea without them.
‘I think I cried more than the kids, and it was for them,’ LaSaine said.
Travel expert Gary Leff says there’s a way to avoid a tragedy like this.
‘Don’t book short connections, such as less than an hour. And book your travel to arrive sooner than you actually need to get to the destination, so that later flights can still get you there in time in case of delay or cancellation,’ Leff told roadside assistance organization AAA in 2022.
After missing the cruise, the family flew back to New York immediately and LaSaine struggled to get a refund from Delta.
ABC 7 On Your Side, a consumer focused team at the news station, sent a letter to Delta and successfully pressured them into giving a full refund. Kaseem is pictured thanking ABC reporter Nina Pineda with a hug
They flew back to New York completely heartbroken.
LaSaine was able to get a refund from the cruise line for missing their entire eight-day trip, but ran into trouble when trying to ask for the same from Delta.
Delta only gave her an e-credit, which only covered their one-way flight down to Florida, not the flight back to New York. It was worth $250 per person, not even close to the full ticket price.
That’s when LaSaine sent a letter to ABC 7 On Your Side, a consumer focused team at the news station dedicated to assisting people who have unresolved issues with a company.
Nina Pineda, the reporter who interviewed the family, contacted Delta about this issue and was able to pressure the airline into issuing a full refund.
Delta gave LaSaine $2,600 back, the full value of the plane tickets.
‘That’s a lot of money for me to lose that I put out in a few months,’ LaSaine said. ‘I was happy, I was so happy.’