Aggressor or Peter Hughes for Galapagos

[sdwho]

We have been diving Aggressor Liveaboards for many years (between my wife and myself, we've done the Cayman Aggressor at least three times, the Kona Agressor, Palau Aggressor, T&C Aggressor (twice, and going on it for the whale trip week after next). And we're booked on the Fiji Aggressor next fall.

So we know the Aggressor's pretty well. But when we went to Galapagos a few years ago, we elected to go with Peter Hughes because it was a ten day trip. I have no complaints about Peter Hughes whatsoever. I found the crew knowledgable and helpful, the boat clean and well appointed, the food quite good.

In short, if they are still offering 10-day trips in the Galapagos (and I've read that they may be stopping them) and you can swing that, I'd go for the Peter Hughes boat. If you're doing a 7 day, I suspect its probably a coin flip.

 

[diveborg]

Back to my other question you seem to have missed: Do you really think it would haved turned out differently if this happened on the foreign flagged Aggressor boat??

Well, I don't think anyone can be certain. I do know that PH handled the aftermath of the tragedy badly, and that is the main reason I have a negative opinion of them. I would like to think that Aggressor would have done a better job, but that is just a guess.

 

[sdwho]

It really is impossible to say whether the Aggressor fleet would have handled the Belize situation any better than PH. As my previous post indicates, we are big fans of the Aggressor fleet, but also had a perfectly good time on the PH boat in the Galapagos. As for the Belize tragedy, PH certainly cannot and should not be held blameless, but these things are rare and unpredictable.

Several years ago, while on an Aggressor trip, we ran into a string of Hurricanes that forced us to cut off our diving and dock in mangrove along side the PH boat. In other words, it was a situation that paralleled the one in Belize. Fortunately, the storm changed course and we got little more than some rain and a bit of wind. But, in retrospect, had something significant happened, none of us on the Aggressor would've been prepared for it. Basically, we had a hurricane party, with lots of drinking. No one was wearing life preservers, or thinking about the possibility that we might need them. So, when I heard about the Belize tragedy, all I could think was "there but for the grace of God, go I."

Hopefully both PH and the Aggressor folks (and every other liveaboard operation) learned something from the Belize tragedy.

 

[deepstops]

It really is impossible to say whether the Aggressor fleet would have handled the Belize situation any better than PH. As my previous post indicates, we are big fans of the Aggressor fleet, but also had a perfectly good time on the PH boat in the Galapagos. As for the Belize tragedy, PH certainly cannot and should not be held blameless, but these things are rare and unpredictable.

Several years ago, while on an Aggressor trip, we ran into a string of Hurricanes that forced us to cut off our diving and dock in mangrove along side the PH boat. In other words, it was a situation that paralleled the one in Belize. Fortunately, the storm changed course and we got little more than some rain and a bit of wind. But, in retrospect, had something significant happened, none of us on the Aggressor would've been prepared for it. Basically, we had a hurricane party, with lots of drinking. No one was wearing life preservers, or thinking about the possibility that we might need them. So, when I heard about the Belize tragedy, all I could think was "there but for the grace of God, go I."

Hopefully both PH and the Aggressor folks (and every other liveaboard operation) learned something from the Belize tragedy.

You've hit the nail squarely on its' head.

As you've stated, I'd think every liveaboard operation in the world has revised how they'd deal with this situation.

This accident could have just as easily happened to the Aggressor boat IMO. In the actual tragedy, the Aggressor boat was docked immediately behind the PH boat and also full of divers. If it had happened to the Aggressor boat instead of the PH boat, the Aggressor lawyers would have done the same thing as the PH lawyers did as their corporation is set up very much the same way with a foreign "shell" company being the actual owner of the boat. I'm not saying it's right but it does isolate both companies from liability in the case of an accident.

 

[Mossman]

You've hit the nail squarely on its' head.
As you've stated, I'd think every liveaboard operation in the world has revised how they'd deal with this situation.

Have they? Peter Hughes' website still claims that in the event of cancellation due to weather, they will give no refunds. I'm sure plenty of people agree to these terms without really understand that this is a much different outcome than with most other dive boats. Usually, if there's bad weather and the boat doesn't sail, you get your money back. In Peter Hughes' case, if the boat doesn't sail because of a hurricane, PH keeps your money.

While some cost-shifting is understandable due to the ongoing expenses involved in running a boat and maintaining a crew even when the boat stays in the harbor, there's no reason to keep a passenger's money for the fuel costs that are saved when the boat doesn't go out. Peter Hughes' policy is simple greed. At the least, the passenger should receive a partial refund.

That said, as long as the passenger knows the risks, it's legitimate to contract to shift the risk to the passenger. The passenger can then accept the risk or shift the risk to a third party, i.e. travel insurance. While I'm not usually one to purchase travel insurance, my upcoming 10-day Galapagos trip, at a cost of over $10K (for 2) is not one I'm willing to risk being canceled without refund due to a bad storm.

 

[diveborg]

Hopefully both PH and the Aggressor folks (and every other liveaboard operation) learned something from the Belize tragedy.

Agreed.

 

[deepstops]

You've hit the nail squarely on its' head.
As you've stated, I'd think every liveaboard operation in the world has revised how they'd deal with this situation.

Have they? Peter Hughes' website still claims that in the event of cancellation due to weather, they will give no refunds. I'm sure plenty of people agree to these terms without really understand that this is a much different outcome than with most other dive boats. Usually, if there's bad weather and the boat doesn't sail, you get your money back. In Peter Hughes' case, if the boat doesn't sail because of a hurricane, PH keeps your money.

While some cost-shifting is understandable due to the ongoing expenses involved in running a boat and maintaining a crew even when the boat stays in the harbor, there's no reason to keep a passenger's money for the fuel costs that are saved when the boat doesn't go out. Peter Hughes' policy is simple greed. At the least, the passenger should receive a partial refund.

That said, as long as the passenger knows the risks, it's legitimate to contract to shift the risk to the passenger. The passenger can then accept the risk or shift the risk to a third party, i.e. travel insurance. While I'm not usually one to purchase travel insurance, my upcoming 10-day Galapagos trip, at a cost of over $10K (for 2) is not one I'm willing to risk being canceled without refund due to a bad storm.

I can't find anything on Aggressor.com about their weather policies.

This is from Peter Hughes FAQ section/Hurricane Plan:
Hurricane Guarantee:
In the event your dive vacation aboard any Dancer Fleet® vessel is affected by the implementation of our Hurricane Plan and you miss one full day of diving (6 am until 10 pm) you will receive a 20% discount on a future trip aboard the SAME VESSEL on which your trip was interrupted, With two full days of missed diving you will receive a 50% discount. Three full days of missed diving entitles you to receive 60% discount. Four full days of missed diving entitles you to receive a 100% discount. Missed dives will be calculated by the Captain’s log. The value of the compensation will be based on the price you paid for the interrupted trip. The discount will apply to the price of the boat only and cannot be combined with any other discount. Travel must commence within one year of the date of your interrupted trip. Other conditions will apply.

 

[diveborg]

I can't find anything on Aggressor.com about their weather policies.

I think this is what you were looking for: http://www.aggressor.com/storm_check.php

 

[deepstops]

I think this is what you were looking for: http://www.aggressor.com/storm_check.php

It seems PH's policy is actually better than Aggressor's IMO.

I hunted all around Aggressor's site for their policy. Where'd you find it??

 

[Mossman]

This is from Peter Hughes FAQ section/Hurricane Plan:
Hurricane Guarantee:
In the event your dive vacation aboard any Dancer Fleet® vessel is affected by the implementation of our Hurricane Plan and you miss one full day of diving (6 am until 10 pm) you will receive a 20% discount on a future trip aboard the SAME VESSEL on which your trip was interrupted, With two full days of missed diving you will receive a 50% discount. Three full days of missed diving entitles you to receive 60% discount. Four full days of missed diving entitles you to receive a 100% discount. Missed dives will be calculated by the Captain’s log. The value of the compensation will be based on the price you paid for the interrupted trip. The discount will apply to the price of the boat only and cannot be combined with any other discount. Travel must commence within one year of the date of your interrupted trip. Other conditions will apply.

Thanks deepstops. It's better than nothing, but a credit toward the exact same boat within a year isn't so easy to use, especially if something happens to that boat in the meantime. I'm not sure what they would do with my 10-day Galapagos trip, since there won't be any more 10-day trips after the end of the year. On the other hand, I wonder if the Galapagos get hurricanes?