A Brooklyn family missed their long-awaited cruise after a flight delay left them unable to reach the port in time. Tisha LaSaine, who saved for a year for the week-long cruise to celebrate her 50th birthday and her son Kaseem starting his junior year at Hampton College in Virginia, watched helplessly as the ship sailed away without them.
Upon arriving at John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens, the family was horrified to discover their flight to Orlando was delayed due to a crew issue. They quickly realized they hadn’t allowed enough time to make their $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.
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The family’s cruise was set to depart from Cape Canaveral at 3:30 PM. Their original flight schedule would have landed them in Orlando at 12:51 PM, giving them enough time to reach the port.
However, with the average non-stop flight from JFK to Orlando taking about three hours, their 11:40 AM departure left little room for delays.
LaSaine informed her mother that they might miss the cruise. Their fears were confirmed when they arrived at the dock to find their ship had already departed.
“I think I cried more than the kids, and it was for them,” LaSaine said.
Travel expert Gary Leff suggests there is a method to prevent tragedies like the one in question.
“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 returning to New York heartbroken, LaSaine secured a refund from the cruise line for their canceled eight-day trip but faced difficulties with Delta.
Delta provided only an e-credit worth $250 per person, covering just the one-way flight to Florida, and not the return flight to New York. This amount fell short of the full ticket price.
LaSaine reached out to ABC 7 On Your Side for help with unresolved issues with Delta. Reporter Nina Pineda intervened, pressuring the airline to issue a full refund.
As a result, Delta refunded LaSaine $2,600, covering the entire cost 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.”
