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5 years since my last RCI cruise and wow how the standard has dropped!!!!!


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I said the opposite. Those are real capital investments, not "appearances".

 

I agree completely.

 

To me as well. (y)

 

There is no reason why they "can't have" - rather there is a reason why they "don't require" - because enough of the people they're trying to attract don't want to be beholden to such rules.

 

Many people have excessively passionate feelings for their preferred cruise line and therefore have rather negative and visceral reactions to the loss of any aspect of what they prefer. They feel that their past purchases have earned them some deference from the cruise line on an on-going basis, and that both the cruise line and the cruise line's future passengers should all support those legacy aspects of cruising regardless of their own preferences.

 

 

Ok, the core is that I totally misread the meaning of your post. And for that, I apologize.

 

Still, to a lot of other posts, in every single aspect of my life, from the clothing at work to the clothing at nice concerts and restaurants at home, there's been a relaxation of being formal. I have to deal with it at home, so it's pretty easy to deal with it on a cruise ship.

 

On a funny side note- I work for one of the top 10 companies in the world- and 20 years ago, I happened to be at a work event our CEO showed up to. There were 10-15 people dressed as if they read the "Dress for Success" book a dozen times. And one guy in a polo shirt. Guess who the CEO was.

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On a funny side note- I work for one of the top 10 companies in the world- and 20 years ago, I happened to be at a work event our CEO showed up to. There were 10-15 people dressed as if they read the "Dress for Success" book a dozen times. And one guy in a polo shirt. Guess who the CEO was.

 

I'm guessing the COE was the chief executive officer. Okay, I'm really guessing that the COE was the guy who had made it and thus no longer needed to dress to impress. When I'm on vacation I'm not looking to impress anyone. Often time I barely meet the minimum standard (business casual on formal night). Though I hate ties (give me five minutes with the person that invented them) I can at least live with a tie. A jacket in the Caribbean?!? :mad: :mad: :mad:

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My original post was about a noticeable change in standards since my last RCI 5 years ago, and yes I did notice a huge change in the dress of passengers and this surprised me , as did the very poor entertainment on offer , drop in food standards and other things too . I wanted to know if this was now standard on RCI .

Since I started cruising 8 years ago I have enjoyed A certain standard of on board experience which unfortunately fell below what I had expected of RCI . I will stick with the other lines Ive sailed with in the future and just hope standards on these dont go the same way .

Sounds like a plan. Out of curiosity's sake, which other cruises have you taken (outside of RCL) over the past 5 years?

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Sounds like a plan. Out of curiosity's sake, which other cruises have you taken (outside of RCL) over the past 5 years?

 

Ive cruised with MSC NCL and Thomson , just to say my first ever cruise was with RCI was on Grandeur of the seas and this got me hooked on cruising , which is why this last cruise felt so disappointing I loved the previous 2 RCI cruises

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I'm guessing the COE was the chief executive officer. Okay, I'm really guessing that the COE was the guy who had made it and thus no longer needed to dress to impress. When I'm on vacation I'm not looking to impress anyone. Often time I barely meet the minimum standard (business casual on formal night). Though I hate ties (give me five minutes with the person that invented them) I can at least live with a tie. A jacket in the Caribbean?!? :mad: :mad: :mad:

COE, and twice no less. [emoji33]

 

Oh, and the one time I didn't bring a jacket, we get invited to the Captain's table. Luckily MJ has a loaner program.

 

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Forums mobile app

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Ive cruised with MSC NCL and Thomson , just to say my first ever cruise was with RCI was on Grandeur of the seas and this got me hooked on cruising , which is why this last cruise felt so disappointing I loved the previous 2 RCI cruises

If, on average, those other three lines, do much better on the criteria you listed, RCI would be in big trouble - somehow, I don't think that is the case.

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Thomson mainly cater for the British market who tend to respect dress codes more.

 

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I wouldn't say that I personally respect dress codes more, trousers and shirt at worst, suit and tie at best, on a suggested formal evening, never a tux.

People can indeed wear whatever they please, even their C&A robes around the pool, but shorts and flipflops for dinner in MDR and bikinis at the bar in the evening???? Can't say I have ever seen anyone dressed like this but I guess there's a first time for everything.

 

To all...

Why beat up the OP? She's just stating a personal observation.

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Ive cruised with MSC NCL and Thomson , just to say my first ever cruise was with RCI was on Grandeur of the seas and this got me hooked on cruising , which is why this last cruise felt so disappointing I loved the previous 2 RCI cruises

OK...thanks for fleshing out your cruse experiences over the last few years.

 

I've sailed NCL (a lot) AND MSC (most recent). Your mode of dress complaints seem to be different than mine. Both lines embrace casual as well as formal dress. They don't care and most of the passengers do either.

 

Thomson is a cruise line I've never been on. However, I read this review about them here on Cruise Critic....

 

 

"Thomson's onboard experience sits somewhere between traditional (British cruise lines like P&O Cruises and Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines) and ultra-casual (now-defunct Ocean Village was something of a competitor). For the most part, Thomson follows a traditional cruise format. All five ships feature open-seating dining. On all ships, there's also a casual buffet restaurant open for all meals, and Thomson Dream, Thomson Spirit, Thomson Celebration and new ship TUI Discovery also have an a la carte dinner option. The dress code is casual except for the one formal night, when the buffet restaurant stays casual for those who don't want to dress up. Traditional cruise activities such as production shows and a casino are featured."

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Food and ice sculptures- while they are nice to look at- they are a complete waste. Can't eat the food, and the ice melts quickly.

 

Once was more than enough to see that.

 

 

You say that as if everyone's a repeat - and regular - cruiser.

 

For first time cruisers, that is their first time to see them. Or even if you don't go regularly, just like going to an annual show or similar, it can be interesting to see things again, later.

 

Incidentally, every time I was at one of these, there were people taking pictures of the display, because they appreciated the art and effort in it, and difference in being a special occasion. Just because it's not your thing doesn't mean that others didn't appreciate it.

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I'm guessing the COE was the chief executive officer. Okay, I'm really guessing that the COE was the guy who had made it and thus no longer needed to dress to impress. When I'm on vacation I'm not looking to impress anyone. Often time I barely meet the minimum standard (business casual on formal night). Though I hate ties (give me five minutes with the person that invented them) I can at least live with a tie. A jacket in the Caribbean?!? :mad: :mad: :mad:

 

How intelligent is it to start the day by tying a little noose around your neck?

 

 

- Linda Ellerbee

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Thomson mainly cater for the British market who tend to respect dress codes more.

 

Sent from my Kestrel using Forums mobile app

 

Really? I cruised once out of Southampton. The ship was the Independence of the Seas. 2011

 

I saw more sleeveless undershirts and tattoos on that cruise than I ever did before or since.

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COE, and twice no less. [emoji33]

 

Oh, and the one time I didn't bring a jacket, we get invited to the Captain's table. Luckily MJ has a loaner program.

 

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Forums mobile app

 

Sorry, I deal with Close Of Escrow dates a lot, not with CEOs.

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I can't speak for Thomson, but you're in for a rude awaking on MSC and NCL, especially NCL.

 

glittergal1 says she has already cruised with those lines, so I doubt that she is going to be surprised.

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You say that as if everyone's a repeat - and regular - cruiser.

 

For first time cruisers, that is their first time to see them. Or even if you don't go regularly, just like going to an annual show or similar, it can be interesting to see things again, later.

 

Incidentally, every time I was at one of these, there were people taking pictures of the display, because they appreciated the art and effort in it, and difference in being a special occasion. Just because it's not your thing doesn't mean that others didn't appreciate it.

We always enjoyed it they always did an amazing job.

 

Sent from my Kestrel using Forums mobile app

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Really? I cruised once out of Southampton. The ship was the Independence of the Seas. 2011

 

I saw more sleeveless undershirts and tattoos on that cruise than I ever did before or since.

You are always going to get a diversity of people.

The main British difference is Formal night is usually very well respected in a dress sense.

 

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And keep in mind that that was before RCL acquired Celebrity and started moving toward a model with Royal Caribbean becoming the more affordable option on average and Celebrity serving up the more upscale experience on average.

 

He was sailing on Carnival. I didn't mention that because it didn't seem important, but just for clarity's sake.

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Thomson mainly cater for the British market who tend to respect dress codes more.

 

Things I heard before having actually visiting England:

 

Americans are fat & lazy, unlike Brits. (I will actually say that I've seen just as many fat in my visits to England as I have here)

 

Americans are sloppy dressers, unlike Brits. (I actually think that generally speaking it was a LOT sloppier in at least London than anywhere I've been here. TRACK SUITS EVERYWHERE! UNDERSHIRTS EVERYWHERE!)

 

Americans are rude, unlike Brits. (This is just flat wrong. Generally speaking, we couldn't really ever find anyone in London that could be bothered to help anyone. Generally speaking, I can walk up to people here and say "Can you tell me where ____ is?" and get an answer. Londoners acted like I was threatening their children.)

 

 

Pluses and minuses to all cultures.

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Things I heard before having actually visiting England:

 

Americans are fat & lazy, unlike Brits. (I will actually say that I've seen just as many fat in my visits to England as I have here)

 

Americans are sloppy dressers, unlike Brits. (I actually think that generally speaking it was a LOT sloppier in at least London than anywhere I've been here. TRACK SUITS EVERYWHERE! UNDERSHIRTS EVERYWHERE!)

 

Americans are rude, unlike Brits. (This is just flat wrong. Generally speaking, we couldn't really ever find anyone in London that could be bothered to help anyone. Generally speaking, I can walk up to people here and say "Can you tell me where ____ is?" and get an answer. Londoners acted like I was threatening their children.)

 

 

Pluses and minuses to all cultures.

I only found big Americans at WDW Orlando not in New York.

In London most of the people you see are foreigners to us too.

Come to the North East of England and you will always find people very friendly.

The only noticeable dress preferences is on Formal night when even on 3 or 4 night P&O short cruises most men wear tuxedos or suits.

 

Sent from my Kestrel using Forums mobile app

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