RCL Towel Policy All Wet

[bplazo]

I can see why the cruiselines does this, do you realize how many people would go on excursions and just not bother bringing back their towels? I would imagine alot of people would do this.

 

If you do not want to be worry about returning the towel than just bring your own. I have a towel that makes into a beach bag. Very convenient. I do not have a problem with their policy.

[H82seaUgo]

i too have been the victim of losing a towel. i simply grab a dirty one and turn that one in.

[coffeebean]

I haven't read all the posts in this thread yet so this may have been said already...it is my understanding that the charge for towels not turned in at the end of the cruise is to minimize chair hogs at the pool. I know I certainly wouldn't leave my towel for hours at a time on a pool chair knowing I just may have to pay $25. for the privlege of leaving that towel there.

[coffeebean]

Sorry...post deleted.

[coffeebean]

No way am I shlepping towels on my cruise and I live in driving distance to the embarkation port. I slather on lots of suncreen and I wouldn't want to use that towel again before washing and the 2nd thing I won't do on a cruise is wash towels :eek: I have bigger things to obsess over like.. which suitcase will hold all of my stuff and how many pairs of shoes will I pack?:) ;)

I was thinking along those same lines. I would imagine, without being able to wash the towels, they would be quite "ripe" by the end of a week long cruise. I also refuse to do laundry while on vacation.

[coffeebean]

I dont understand how they can charge you? On the two RC cruises I've been on, I got my card swiped when I took out two towels, and then just put them in the laundry bin at the end of the day, and never got charged.

 

Can someone clarify for me?

If you check out towels at the towel station, you are supposed to return them to the towel station. Don't they swipe your card again at the station to take the charges off?

 

I've been on cruises where they fill out a slip of paper with your room # and the amount of towels you take out from the station. Return them at the station, and they tear up the slip of paper. Now it's all done with the card but it is the same principle.

[PSCruiser]

First - I've been burned by the towel police - final bill had a towel charge on it (for no reason) I had to wait in line at guest services last morning to have it removed.

However, I'm for the policy and here's why: we were on the Radiance a few years back and it all the towels you wanted, al the time, they were actually using those racks in the pool area. I thought great, but in reality what happened is that it was a chair hog's dream - I would watch bunches of them leave the pool area for the day, leaving the 3-4 towels that they had draped on their chair. Of course, they were way too important to clean off the chairs, so they sat unused for another 2 hours until the pool staff decided to remove. I also saw a family with several chairs find a better set in the sun on the other side. The daughter was starting to move towels, but the father stopped her - he wanted to keep both sets in case the sun moved again. Couldn't stand this, so I walked over and asked if they were vacating the original chairs. He reluctantly said yes and moved the towels. I never went back to get the chairs but they were soon being used by others - felt like I did my anti-chair hogging good deed for the day! Anyway, the towel policy prevents this kind of abuse.

[cruisinfanatic]

I really don't know what the big deal is. You get towels swiped out at the beginning of the cruise and swipe them back in at the end. In between you simply exchange them when they are wet.

I sure wouldn't be running to the spa all the time just to avoid this.

[3CatsInMA]

Next month on the Serenade, I will be returning more towels than we check out in order to get a credit on my bill. Chair hogs beware!;):D

[Sheffie]

I think on our trip from the airport to Port Canaveral we will stop and buy some cheap beach towels to take on the ship with us. If my kids lose them, oh well. If they don't, then we have a nice souvenier from Florida! :D

 

Also I think it will be easier for them to keep track of 'their' towel if it doesn't look like the other 4000 out there!

 

I agree that they will be a LOT easier to keep track of, just don't forget that they may get dirty and stinky by the end of the week.

[H82seaUgo]

maybe some day the lines can do us all a favor and number code all the look alike towels, so that the towels and the code are assigned to only one passenger.

[Host Star]

I dont understand how they can charge you? On the two RC cruises I've been on, I got my card swiped when I took out two towels, and then just put them in the laundry bin at the end of the day, and never got charged.

 

Can someone clarify for me?

similar on Liberty of the Seas last week.. I was in line to return the towels and the attendant told everyone to just toss them in the bin.. he never asked cabin nos.. and I never got charged.. go figure

[crusinmama06]

It's not a new rule. We had to card swipe for towels on our Freedom cruise in 2007. They told us back then that we would be charged $25.

 

And when you walk up -- they don't even touch them -- they just say "how many" and ask you to throw them in the bin. You could have said "4". ;)

[KeywestK]

My simple solution to the "towel issue" has worked beautifully for us. I use the towels from the towel animals for the pool and/or beach, and I have never had a problem. After we use them, I just put them on the bathroom floor and the cabin attendant takes them away. I can't be bothered worrying about checking out towels at the pool deck, or schlepping towels from home.

 

I knew those towel animals would come in handy for something other than a cute photo op.....;):)

[cruisinfanatic]

My simple solution to the "towel issue" has worked beautifully for us. I use the towels from the towel animals for the pool and/or beach, and I have never had a problem. After we use them, I just put them on the bathroom floor and the cabin attendant takes them away. I can't be bothered worrying about checking out towels at the pool deck, or schlepping towels from home.

 

I knew those towel animals would come in handy for something other than a cute photo op.....;):)

not quite large enough

[BonTXNY]

On our last Rhapsody cruise in 2007 there was no swiping cards for towels up on the pool deck. There was a bin with freshly washed and folded towels and we took as many as we needed and returned them in the used bin before heading back down to our cabin. However, on port days, 2 fluffy extra large towels with the RC logo were placed in our cabin with instructions that we would be charged $25 each if not returned. We asked our room attendant for 2 extra. We like to cover our chair in one and have the other to get dry. He was very accommodating and of course we understood we would be charged if they weren't returned.

Maybe RCI staff should check all the outgoing luggage at disembarkation and confiscate all "hot" towels like they do with booze and irons during embarkation :confused::rolleyes:

[Lionesss]

I guess people do steal towels.

And sometimes they just re-arrange them.

We were sitting at the pool one sea day, backing in the sun. And even though Freedom says they prevent chair hogs, some areas of the pool had towels draped around them for what seemed hours on end.

An attendent walked around these chairs "towel Police" for hours. Finally after what seemed eternity he collected them, and took them away.

So maybe some lose their towels to the patrols.

Safe travels

[koterry]

That is my point. How much could those towels cost them? I was a nervous wreck trying to keep up with my kids and their towels! My granddaughter, not fully understanding the rules, turned one in one day and they just took it, no swiping it in or anything, so how can you tell me that they really keep track? One man we spoke to was charged for three and he did not check out any. With the amount of money we spent, we should have been trusted with their crappy towels. This is supposed to be relaxing, not grade school!!

Thats the policy and the rule. You know this up front, check out three return two you get charged for the towel, very simple, my granddaughter is 7 and she understood this concept quite well. And as far as the towel's cost if you had any idea what this policy saves RCCL each year you would not have made the comment you did regarding the "crappy towels".

[alexkrn46]

If you are in a suite there is no towel issue at all. But I do hate the policy since I like to return to my room with my towel wrapped around me, now someone has to go back and swipe the towel back in.

[joetrizeo]

I haven't read all the posts in this thread yet so this may have been said already...it is my understanding that the charge for towels not turned in at the end of the cruise is to minimize chair hogs at the pool. I know I certainly wouldn't leave my towel for hours at a time on a pool chair knowing I just may have to pay $25. for the privlege of leaving that towel there.

 

I always see tons of "25$ bills" laying around on deck.

 

If anything I think it maximizes chair hogging by adding another item of monetary value to put on a chair to claim as yours.

On any other cruise line (without monetary towel policy) a single towel on a chair is simply someones left towel!

[KeywestK]

not quite large enough

 

Of course they are--and I'm referring to the large tan towels. In fact, those large tan towels are exactly the same towels that the pool deck provided up until recently, at least on all the cruises we've been on in the past few years. When we were on Radiance last March, that was the first time I saw the newer pool/beach towels.

[musicfam]

Thats the policy and the rule. You know this up front, check out three return two you get charged for the towel, very simple, my granddaughter is 7 and she understood this concept quite well. And as far as the towel's cost if you had any idea what this policy saves RCCL each year you would not have made the comment you did regarding the "crappy towels".

 

 

How much it saves RCCL? We drink wine and a small plastic glass of wine by the pool was $9. I am really not worried about them losing money. For what we spent, they could let us use a towel without having to worry about it.

[negc]

If you are in a suite there is no towel issue at all. But I do hate the policy since I like to return to my room with my towel wrapped around me, now someone has to go back and swipe the towel back in.

During the cruise, we simply exchange the wet towels for dry ones and only have to swipe our card for the first one, and again when we make the final return. Not a biggie in my estimation. I wonder whether anyone is actually ever charged for an unreturned towel and except on the newest ships, the beach towels provided are hardly souvenir material so losses are likely minimal.

[kathyemma]

I really don't know what the big deal is. You get towels swiped out at the beginning of the cruise and swipe them back in at the end. In between you simply exchange them when they are wet.

I sure wouldn't be running to the spa all the time just to avoid this.

 

When I was on Oasis Nov 20th - a few of the towel guys would NOT let us exchange them! I was traveling with my family of four - we each had one towel checked out on our card. I went to exchange them all for clean ones - he wouldn't let me! He made me go get all four cards, check in four towels and then recheck them out. INSANE! At one point I also went to return two towels but since I didn't have both cards he wouldn't let me! Which is crazy cuz later in the week I was able to do it. The towel guy was able to pull everyone in family and show me how many towels were checked out. He was able to click in the box and change around the numbers. I guess some of the towel guys were having bad days and just wanted to make the towel exchange as difficult as possible.

 

And then at the end of the week I had three towels to return (which according to the towel math in my head was correct - I should have had 3 out) but when I went to return the towels they said I didn't have any checked out. ugh. What a pain.

 

Kathy

[Brad1185]

RCI makes up bogus towel charges. Check out 2 towels, return 2 towels, get charged for 2 towels. Guess this gives them some extra money.

 

For my dad they put the 2 bogus towel charges the last morning. People are concetrating on getting off the ship and not what's on the final statement.

 

At least he had the smarts to get written receipts each time he checked a towel out and in.

 

He also went o the front desk at midnight the last night and had a purser sign a printout of his statement that all towels were returned.

 

6 hours later there was a $50 charge for unreturned towels.

 

He took all his receipts, stood in the mile long line the last morning and the took off the fake made-up charges. Seems sad RCI has to go this low to try to get a few more $ from their passengers.

 

Celebrity and HAL have all the towels you want to use out by the pools without this nonsense.