rimmit

34 minutes ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

 

So funny yet true. I started cruising on my honeymoon and will keep cruising until I am nearly dead.

 

Good add-on to the conversation about how social media has made cruising a "mainstream" vacation.

Thanks.  And to add on to that, the normalization for the upcoming generation of parents to take their kids on larger and more exotic vacations has been a boon to cruising.  When I was growing up no one went to Europe until high school at the earliest.  Now I can’t count how many families I know that have brought their young kids, as in 7 or younger, to Europe or on a more exotic vacation.

My family is one of those and spear headed that effort.  We were literally stalking the ships RCI was installing nurseries on when they began putting them on ships in 2011.  In 2011 most people thought we were crazy for taking our 15 month old on TAs and to Europe.  There was no tiktok or Facebook live back then.  
 

Now social media and tiktok seems to have normalized that and a lot of parents (with the means) now brings their kids to random locations around the world and not just beach vacations.

RCI had a vision, and with some help from Carnival and NCL have managed in 14 years taken cruising completely mainstream.  While I am forever saddened by the many service losses along the way due to that, I definitely can’t complain about the stock price.  We’ve just moved on from cruising on primarily RCI as being our top priority when we cruise and that’s ok.  

They were ahead of their time in ship design, and now they are reaping the benefits.  If you’ve ever read the tipping point by Malcolm Gladwell, it’s an excellent book, and I’d say RCI and cruising has hit that point with the mainstream and I believe their stock will continue to thrive because of that.  There will be pull backs and corrections as always,  but this cats out of the bag and not even a pandemic could stop it.

Cruising has hit the tipping point.  For MANY years it was under the radar for the most part for the millennial generation, and even lots of Gen X.  No one wanted to be confined to a boat.  Even as RCI made the ships bigger and bigger to address these issues, since there weren't that many mega ships, only a handful of people experienced it, and even those that did had no way to share their experience.

With the advent of cheap fast onboard internet, tons of mega ships across multiple cruise lines, and an again millennial population that has some expendable income and values experiences and vacations way more than luxury cars and goods and cruising has exploded.  It was so hard for cruises to have social media real time advertising before.  Internet was cost prohibitive.  Now people stream facebook live things on ships and share instantaneously.  Word of mouth that cruising is great value and is no longer super boring and only for the newly wed and nearly dead population has no hit main stream levels.  EVERYONE goes on a cruise now it seems, whereas before I felt people would question why I cruise so much.

Cruising has changed its image over the last 14 years ever since the debut of the Oasis.  Now with sooooo many mega ships, and sooo many people who have cruised on them, it's become a very desirable vacation option.  Much more so than before.

We were on a partial canal crossing on the Jewel in Mar 2009. The stock had hit rock bottom and was trading around $5.  Everyone was depressed.  At the C&A party the cruise director and staff was trying to pump up the crowd saying “We’ll survive.  We’re strong.  It’s gonna be ok.”  Everyone told me to go home and buy for the OBC.  I got home from the cruise and it had already risen to $6 and felt I missed out but we still bought a couple hundred shares mainly for the OBC Benefit.

Have since bought and sold it off multiple times never perfectly timing it,  but definitely always getting a notable amount of more shares when rebuying.

Then in 2020 sold it off thankfully before the free fall, and bought back in near the low and added a bunch more cash when I bought back in.  I never thought RCI would become such a significant part of my portfolio, but it’s now become a sizable portion of it.  It has definitely made up for the many stock misses I have had over the years and then some. 
 

I hate what the product has become since I first sailed in 1992, but as a stock holder I am very happy.

They used to sell paper pants for guys outside St Peters.  Not sure if they still do that.

I searched the topic for 4 night formal night in the DCL forum but found only one more recent post in July so curious as to what those more recently have experienced.

For those on a more recent 4 night cruise (we’ll be on the Wish) what percentage of people would you say dressed up?  The wife and I enjoy getting dressed up, but if it’s minimal not sure if it’s worth the effort to find space in the luggage for a jacket and dress.  

Not trying to start a debate as I know this is a popcorn topic on here.  Just want an estimate of how many are dressing up.

We cruised extensively with our kids from the time they were old enough to board at 6 months.  We loved it.  Where else can you have a nursery or kids club on hand they can go to every day and all the entertainment on board.

All Inclusives have some but a cruise is definitely better and we’ve done both.  If you need and tips or suggestions just ask.  Our kids made Diamond before they were 5 years old on their own points.  Our son hit D+ around 9 IIRC.  Our daughter who is 8 now is 20 some points from D+

2 minutes ago, bucfan2 said:

Well, guess we love that part of the cost cutting (if that’s what it is). We enjoy the Indian dishes immensely. 

I just wish they’d pull the Filipino crew food.  They’ve made it for me in the past as a special favor.  I didn’t ask, they just see that I’m Filipino and back in the days of the 5 star service they’d really bend over backwards to impress you with what they could do.

6 hours ago, dunrobbin said:

The Windjammer was dismal.

 

 

The lack of pizza in the Windjammer was mind boggling.  I know it’s down in Sorrento’s but it’s a staple cheap comfort food and sometimes if I can’t find something to eat I default to pizza.  Plus for kids it’s an easy option. 

The increasing number of Indian meals is the definition of a cost cutting measure.   They just can pull the crew mess hall Indian food and throw it on the buffet.  No extra effort required.

10 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

It is still seems somewhat tame compared to the uproar during the Dynamic Dining era.

I agree.  Although that was more on the whole system than the food quality and service I felt. I really liked Dynamic Dining but that’s just me.  They had a great teriyaki steak that I loved.  Dynamic dining was definitely a bigger controversy for sure.

This time around its food quality and service versus upending and going to a more NCL style dining experience.

That was one instance where there was enough complaining RCI did do something.  We’ll see what happens here.

On 5/12/2023 at 4:46 PM, The Fun Researcher said:

I wonder how many people complained about the very same issues with the old menus? There will always be people complaining about the food. There were those before that compared it to cafeteria food.
 

Based on our experience on the Anthem in March the food was excellent, just as good as before.  I just missed some of my favorite items.

IIRC, as with any change there was some complaining but nothing on this level.

The number of “I am not a foodie posts, and I’m not picky, but this is just bad.”  Is notably higher.  And really what was not an issue at all before, which was getting your food hot, has become common place.  Service has never been the issue and now it’s front and center.  The food and MDR was a big enough issue on our cruise in late February that it was one of the main topics of conversation every time we sat down with new table mates in the MDR and with just random people at the bar 

With the previous change, we never had random conversations with table mates about the service and food.  It was standard dinner conversation or small talk.

This is all anecdotal, but where there’s smoke…

8 minutes ago, BND said:

Cruises used to be something that only very well off people did with any regularity or ever.  Not to say that someone who is well off couldn't do this, but you're getting a broader spectrum of society cruising now than you used to.    

Yes, crime crosses all demographics, but obviously skews into lower socioeconomics for a variety of reasons.

RCI demographic has changed drastically since the 80s without a doubt as has cruising in general as it is now accessible to the masses whereas before you had to be making a 5 percenter salary at minimum to truly afford a cruise without massive strain to a budget or going into debt for a vacation. 
 

While a large portion of that demographic still cruises on the main stream lines,  many have also moved onto smaller ships and more bespoke vacations and expeditions.  
 

You just can’t fill all these boats that fit 4,000-6,000 people with people in the 5th percentile.  There just aren’t enough them interested in cruising out there.

Looks like the name is Jeremy Froias.   
 

Cruises used to be relatively low drama places except for an occasional man overboard or missing passenger.   

2 hours ago, garywatson said:

A young couple, husband wife and two kids, is stressing out about their cruise tomorrow out of Canaveral because the husband lost his wallet earlier today and thus no longer has his drivers license. Wife has her DL and both have their birth certificates, and they have the photo of his DL that they uploaded as part of the booking process.  What's his odds of being allowed to board, and are there any magic words that might make it more likely?

 

This is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night, so I always travel with at least two (and usually four) acceptable means of identification, and I don't keep them all in one place.

I’d say very good that he will board.  Near 100 percent based on my friends experience in the port of Miami last April using a pic of an expired DL.

33 minutes ago, Jerseygirl1416 said:

Found it. He ended up using a picture of an old expired drivers license he had.

Yes.  This was my friend.  In all honesty,  everyone in our party (except my friends wife and his kids) were somewhat disappointed this wasn’t a bigger deal.   Mainly because we emphasized to him before we left that a passport or some other ID would not be a bad thing but he didn’t want to pay more money.  He totally dodged a bullet.  I was totally in shock how fast he got through security and was on the ship.  Minimal delay.  I’d been delayed boarding the ship because they couldn’t get their camera to work to take a picture than my friend got delayed by having no ID.

11 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

This story sounds like BS to me. Do you think RCI would tell one customer that they gave the cabin they paid for away to a higher paying customer they found? No way....

The use of “revenue team” is what made me believe the story, as who uses the term “revenue team” in regular speech.  They have also never bothered to post in a cruise forum before so it me not like they are trying to stir up a hornet’s nest. 
 

Also they had a long post history, none of which was trolling and standard conversation in a forum and respectful and has a pretty high rating.  Could it be BS definitely, but they did not seem overtly irate, just very understandably upset at losing the upgrade and then being put in an obstructed balcony.

I am normally not one to pass on “hearsay” but on review of the posters account and history and ratings, I could find nothing to indicate they would just go off the rails to create some crazy story.

I was mainly asking to see if this has happened to anyone else before and if so what compensation they were offered so I could offer some advice.

On another forum I saw a post of someone getting a Royal Up for an Owners Suite 2.5 weeks out.

They made payment, got an email from the concierge and everything.  36 hours prior to departure which they get a call that there was an error and they’ll be rebooked for their original stateroom class.  They did not in fact get the original JS they originally booked and instead were rebooked in an obstructed Balcony.  They state and this is a direct quote from the call they got from RCI that “Someone on the revenue team found a higher paying customer.”

After spending 3 hours on the phone, they state all they were offered aside from their Royal Up money back was $25 dollar OBC and a bottle of wine which is useless as they have the beverage package.  They state they will call again tomorrow to see what else they could maybe be compensated.  
 

This is for the April 19th sailing on the Navigator.

I was wondering if anyone has had this happen to them and could weigh in on what compensation they have maybe gotten in the past so I can relay it to the OP and give them some expectations regarding if they can get any compensation at all.  
 

RCI obviously owes nothing back aside from their Royal Up money and the original room they booked, but this would obviously be a huge blow to anyone if you were lead to believe you won an owner’s suite for over 2 weeks and packed accordingly and then had it reneged because RC’s “ revenue team found a higher paying customer.” After you were told you already won the OS.

Especially as they had already left for the embarkation port and packed as if they would have the extra space of an owners suite than a JS which was then reduced to an obstructed balcony.  

6 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Or, pick the cruise ship you like, with the amenities that you want, and price out (as we did before the shutdown) what it would cost to do an entire year on board. Compare that with pre-purchasing a 24 year lease and then putting an $80,000-$150,000 annual nut on top of it. If you calculate the annual cost over the life of the lease contract, the math will never work out in your favor on a residence ship.

It doesn’t work out in favor at all, but the itinerary is more varied and gets voted on by the pax.  Also get more overnights.  It’s definitely way more cost effective to do the world cruises for sure, but even then those itineraries while having some overnights still don’t have the number of overnights I’d like.

TBH, it’s unlikely to ever happen as I prefer a wide variety of vacations and wouldn’t want to lock up that level of cash into a ship.  I love the exploration and adventure of expeditions, safaris and just city hopping but really love the convenience of cruising as well.

Yeah.  It is scaled per apartment I believe.  
 

That is still crazy low in my mind to maintain a cruise ship, have free laundry, and all the other extras they include.

If the first ship is successful, I’d be onboard for the second offering.  Just need to see this model succeed first.

1 minute ago, orville99 said:

The reason I referenced Residensea was to let the OP know that what Storyline was pitching was not unique or new. I agree with you that even though the list price of an apartment might look doable, the hidden costs should be major red flags

Gotcha.  I mean, the monthly fee structure was very concerning to me.  I talked to Alister, the president for a while, and he assured me that the all inclusive pricing was more than ample to cover the operating costs of such a ship, and that given the number of passengers

I did not understand how a spa being included in the all inclusive pricing was feasible.  They would be booked 24/7 for an eternity.  I just went to the website, and it has undergone an EXTENSIVE revamping since 2020, and I no longer see spa services listed.  The website is CONSIDERABLY fancier now.   I also do not see what the fee structure is on the website either, and I am almost certain it was there initially.  I see that a child  is 15,000 PER YEAR and a teenager is 20,000 per YEAR.  That seems incredibly low for laundry service, food, etc.  

I remember it came out to between 4000-5000 per month for a couple, which to me given everything they included seemed insanely low, and I just couldn't buy into the snake oil.  The price was super reasonable at 850k, for the smallest inside, but I just could not wrap my head around how they would sustain a ship with such low fees.  Like any Condo association they do list the one time assessments, but even with one time assessments, I just can't get over how little the monthly fees were, given the amount they were offering in return.  They even offer doctor's visits.  If I'm wrong, than that's great, in that there is a very "cheap" reasonable option for living on a cruise ship in luxury, but it was too huge a risk I felt to buy in. 

21 hours ago, orville99 said:

The World by Residensea has been sailing for quite some time, and there is a wait list for available residences (which range from studios to three bedroom suites). The last time we looked into this, you had to have a minimum net worth of $5 Million just to begin any discussion with them, and a studio would set you back between $1-$2 Million.

https://aboardtheworld.com/

This is a different company than Residensea.  I talked to the owner of storylines back in June 2020 as I looked into it.  Thought it’d be a perfect time to buy into a cruise ship given the pandemic just tanked the industry.  At the time the cheapest inside cabin IIRC was 850,000 dollars.  To me it seemed like a risky investment.

Their monthly estimated fees that included EVERYTHING, as it was all inclusive, seemed bizarrely low and I felt that the business model likely wouldn’t be sustainable and that they would have to hike the fees tremendously very quickly.  If I remember right the fees they were quoting on a monthly basis were like 2,000/month per person.  This included EVERYTHING including fuel, food, massages and spa usage, entertainment, alcohol, etc.  It included everything.  I was SUPER tempted, but it just seemed to good to be true.   Looks like it has risen from 899 for the lowest inside to 1,079k.  That cabin prices seemed reasonable.  It was the low monthly fee that seemed tooo low to sustain a cruise ship in my mind.

I did listen to the sails pitch and even got a call from the owner though and talked to him.  Just felt too much like snake oil, and eventually those low fees would SKYROCKET to maintain the ship.

17 hours ago, chrismch said:

Okay, so no change expected in public areas.

 

That is unlikely.  Typically most dry docks are basic maintenance.  If Royal every does any major changes it is advertised heavily, “Royal amplification” or some other advertising moniker based on whatever current campaign they are running.  

27 minutes ago, LobsterStalker said:

Take no bites if you like ...The policy has nothing to do with 'cleaning your plate 'as some have suggested .

Kinda defeats the purpose of having 2 entree's if you're not gonna eat it though .That's the main goal I would assume , to cut down on the number of people who order a second Entree to just ' have a taste' of 1 of them. When told you can only have 1 at a time many will just not bother with the second ...

... In theory of course 

 

Cheers

So do they just take one away and bring the second one once you ask for the second one?

That really seems to be very micromanaging.  I do not order two entrees,  but sometimes I just tire of one item, but as I get toward the end of the meal feel the urge to go back to that item.  Like you take a couple bites of a steak but then want a carb so get eat the carbon the plate, but then want to go back to the protein.  

Just out of curiosity, do you have to just take one bite, eat half, or eat it all to get the second dish?  

At what point do they allow a second dish?

I am assuming they take out the first dish in order to get the second dish?  Is that the case?  Or do they leave the first dish as well once they deem you ready for the second dish?

This really is incredible micromanagement on RCI.

If there is anyone on this board that can sympathize with your situation, believe me, I am that person.   I have had more travel snafus than almost anyone on this board.  I do buy trip insurance and trip medical. 
 

In this situation, you have chosen to self insure, and the combined amount saved by not getting travel insurance over the years likely is quite significant based on how much you may travel.   That likely covers some if not all the cost of the trip.

RCI will almost assuredly not give you anything, but you can ask.  RCI and the mainstream cruiselines are the least likely to give you any sympathy and they stick to the T&Cs hardcore.  Your hotel, car rental, airline, Disney, or any other tour or travel provider may give you some show of good will but not RCI in 99.9% of cases, but you can always ask.  Your best bet is your CC.  Check your CC benefits. 
 

1 hour ago, cruiselvr04 said:

I think your financial planner is right.  We’ve had the same discussions.  We know our spending will decrease as we age, it just makes sense.  My mom lived on nothing her last few years except for insurance, food and utilities.  
 

My parents retired in 2015.  Up until the pandemic they were increasing spending year over year on some very exotic vacations.  Covid hit and they bought an RV.l with all the extra money from the cancelled vacations.  Didn't like the RV and sold it and bought an airstream instead.  Really went all out in 2022 on a couple vacations and now seems like 8 years later are slowing down a little mainly doing multi month trips in the Airstream, rather than exotic vacations.  Still have some bigger trips on the way, but to be honest they are running out of places they want to see as they have seen A LOT and enjoy the camper life.

But all the financial planners factor in decreasing expenditures as you get older just due to declining health and lack of interest as you run out your bucket list.