Fascination with captains,cruise directors,and maitre"d

[icyfrost]

On the first couple of pages on the princess forums there are lots of members asking is that captain on this ship or when is that cruise director or maitre'd on vacation and so on, why is this important? do they really make your cruise? I do not get it. Most of the cruises i can't remember half the names or faces i just enjoy the cruise for what it is.

[ocean42]

Have never really noticed a good cruise director, but last year on the Grand we had Billy London who was awful, this did somehow affect the cruise. So for us a good captain, cruise director etc doesnt make a difference but a bad one can wind you up.

 

Mike

[Roses2]

We have wondered the same thing.

 

The Captain is responsible for the safety of the ship, its passengers, staff and crew. That is the reason he is important to us -- period. Some folks visualize Captain Stubing on the Love Boat and enjoy the opportunity to meet and chat with the Captain.

 

The Maitre'd is very busy managing all the food service aboard the ship. Some passengers confuse the head waiters with whom the interact as the Maitre'd. Head waiters are important to individual passengers. The Maitre'd not so much.

 

If yuou partake in many of the ship's activities, the Cruise Director probably would assume an important role in your enjoyment of the cruise. If you, like us, avoid most of these activities, the CD is of no importance to your enjoyment of the cruise.

 

The cruise is what you make it.

[teripp]

I was wondering the same thing :)

[DonnaK]

It's all part of the excitement and anticipation building up until the cruise, knowing minute details like this. With the curise 100's of days out, it's nice to have little things like this to look into even if it is seemingly inconsequential. It doesn't make a huge difference, but sometimes it matters.

 

There are some dynamic Captains and CD's who add to the energy onboard the ship. When you sail with a dull CD, you can notice the difference even if you don't partake in the activities, because it affects your fellow cruisers being positively occupied and happy, instead of runing amuk all over the ship bored. We sailed with a CD who had scheduled activities for 18-25 year olds, and a "Gray Zone" club for 18-20 year olds. This matters to some, and is only available on cruises with that CD.

 

And maitre-d's each have different policies regarding reservations in the anytime dining room, flexiblity with changing your dining assignment once onboard, checking cruise cards to make sure traditional diners aren't using the anytime rooms, enforcing the dress code, closing the doors to the traditional dining room after 15-30 minutes so no latecomers, etc.

[DeepWaterMariner]

Its a mystery to me. I enjoy a talented CD but I'm not a CD groupie.

[RickEk]

I do like to know who the Captain is because a good Captain makes for a happy ship.

[DonnaK]

I do like to know who the Captain is because a good Captain makes for a happy ship.

 

This is so true. There is a particular captain (on another line) who is much loved by the crew...he commands a certain respect from them, and they are happy working for him. This has a tremendous impact on the atmosphere, and level of attentive serivce onboard the ship. Happy crew = happy passengers

[u2cruiser]

I wondered this too, until we took a P&O cruise last year. Previous to that, I couldn't have told anyone the names of these important people on my Princess cruises, and really only saw the CD on the TV.

 

We had CD Leon de ste. Croix on Ventura and he was everywhere! You couldn't miss him. He did lectures, the cruise regatta, sailaways, and a host of other events. Luckily, he was also a very nice guy. The Captain was also all over the place and the Officers interacted with passengers constantly. It all made for a very nice cameraderie amongst crew and passengers that we hadn't experienced before, so now I understand when posters write comments about great (or not so great) CDs. :)

[paul929207]

I figure there is nothing I can do about the Captain, Maitre 'd, CD, etc. So why worry. I will have a good time regardless.

[Crzn-Life]

We don't obsess over who the Captain, CD & maitre d' are but we do believe that they are important to the overall enjoyment of the cruise. We've been on about 50 Princess cruises so we have formed an opinion about most of these folks and the affect their management styles have on the ship.

 

A good hotel manager sets the tone for the quality of service & most importantly the passenger services personnel & how they interact with passengers.

 

The maitre d' runs the food & beverage functions and he is definitely an important aspect of our cruise because the good ones usually have staff with better attitudes & this definitely affects the service. Also the maitre d' is key to getting your dining table of choice & some other perks. Some of our 'best' cruises were those where the maitre d' came by every evening to chat a few minutes. We're certain these interactions contributed to the quality of service we received.

 

We aren't CD fans per se nor do we go to the shows so we typically don't have much interaction with the CD but there are a few (very few) that we look forward to seeing. There are also a few that we dread having on the ship. The main reason is the CD is responsible for the Patter & additional activities. The better the CD, the better his/her staff and services will be.

 

The personable captains add to the pleasure of the cruise. Some we have become friendly with and look forward to seeing again. When we think back on some of our most memorable cruises in many instances the interactions with the captain and often their wives (such as meeting for cocktails, going on tours together, etc) were value-added experiences.

 

Knowing ahead of time who will be in these positions is all part of the fun of anticipating the cruise. For example if we know it's one of our favorite maitre d's we know the dining experience will be great from the start. If it's one of the not-so-good ones we know to adjust our expectations accordingly.

 

It isn't that we want to become the CDs' (or the MDs' or even the captains') best friends, we just want them to be very good at their jobs since they play such key roles in the overall ambience and 'personality' of the ship. The better they are the better the cruise.

[cruzinchris]

Speaking for my DH and I, when passengers have had special, memorable encounters with staff/crew members, it is a pleasure to reconnect with these folks on future sailings. For example, DH and I renewed our vows on the Dawn Princess a few years ago at which ceremony Captain Tony Draper officiated. We were excited to hear that he would be on another cruise and looked forward to seeing him again.

 

Similarly, we have had waitstaff, Maitre d's, and CDs who turn up on another ship and remember us from a previous cruise. These hard-working individuals spend a lot of time away from their homes and families, and they seem to enjoy seeing people with whom they've sailed previously and have the opportunity to serve us again on a Princess cruise :)

 

Sailing on the Island Princess in 10 days!

Chris

[Saruman]

It's been pointed out in another thread that the CD is responsible for the Patters. On a recent Sapphire cruise, the Patters were not available for delivery at night (for the next day) and that information that could have been included (and was on other cruises) was missing. This may not mean much to everyone, but some people plan their next day by the patters left in the evening.

 

I also believe some captains are more "conservative" (cautious?) than others in cruising in icy waters. I appreciate the concern for safety, but this sometimes means missing Sawyer Glacier in Tracey Arm entirely. Not criticizing them, just mentioning it.

 

As to the dining room staff, certain obnoxious behavior is less tolerated by some....and I don't mean enforcing dress codes.

[FLACRUISER99]

When something serious goes wrong you will really appreciate a Captain that keeps you informed rather then one that keeps you in the dark. Yes, I have sailed with both types!

[caber]

We had CD Leon de ste. Croix on Ventura and he was everywhere! You couldn't miss him. He did lectures, the cruise regatta, sailaways, and a host of other events. Luckily, he was also a very nice guy. :)

 

I remember Leon when he was just a member of the entertainment staff, then an assistant cruise director. He has done well. He is a great guy.

 

I wonder which member of staff would affect the staff performance most?

On Sea Princess recently we found the service to be not as good as previous Sea Princess cruises.

[BruceMuzz]

Getting to know a Captain, HM, or CD on your cruise (or knowing them already) can really enhance your cruise experience. They are very accommodating and usually quite happy to have some fun with you.

 

There are many special parties, dinners, menus, souvenirs, tours, and bridge visits that can be arranged by your new friends.

These fellows have been everywhere many times, live in exotic places, and can tell you amazing stories about all of them if you like.

 

Knowing them can even get you onto VIP lists on ships that they don't work on.

 

And it's always fun to join the Captain on the bridge and blow the ship's whistle as you leave a port.

[wizard-of-roz]

I really wouldn't call it a "fascination" as much as an interest. Because, it does make a difference as to how the cruise goes.

 

We too found that the Patters on last cruise [sapphire Princess] was very, very late in coming to our cabin and, we do plan our next day according to the schedule in the Patter. We couldn't do that, this last time. I didn't like it.

I like the schedule of the next days activities to be delivered before we retire that evening.

I like it when a crew member passes me in the hallway or on a deck and says "good morning" or "how are you enjoying your cruise?" I don't like it when I'm walking and a crew member can't wait to pass me or passes in front of me so as to almost trip me!!!!!

I know they have a myriad of jobs to do in a split second but, that said, rude is rude!

[wizard-of-roz]

Do I want to know these crew members on a "first" name basis. Not really! But, I do love it when they call me by my first name, after only being introduced to them once before!!!! How do they do that??? :confused:

[Shogun]

Hi All

 

On our first cruises did not care who the staff were they all work for Princess so they are all up to the same standard.

 

Then things go wrong and you find out very quickly which captains go that extra bit.

 

Our ship had engine problems so reduced power so could not make ports on time etc, parts were on route but needed to be a major port for fitting.

 

Within days we knew all the details what had broken, were it was in the world when it would arrive how long to fit,

 

we also had a new time table we would arrive late leave early but we would not miss a port we would visit ports out of order etc.

 

We felt captain was doing everything to keep our cruise going, another captain could have missed out a port etc .

 

Then when you see a captain watching MUTS eating burger and chips and chatting away you think he is a normal guy .

 

yours shogun

[DeepWaterMariner]

A good hotel manager sets the tone for the quality of service & most importantly the passenger services personnel & how they interact with passengers.

tours together, etc) were value-added experiences.

 

When you see these threads about CD's, captains, etc. it is the Hotel Manager that seems to always be forgotten. My feeling is that the hotel managers has a much greater affect on your cruise experience than the captain or the maitre 'd. If there is one person in the crew I want to be friends with than I choose the HM. They are the express route to solving almost any problem you're likely to run into on a cruise.

[icyfrost]

Its a mystery to me. I enjoy a talented CD but I'm not a CD groupie.

exactly and from reading here there seems to be a maitre;d groupie

 

In all of our cruises, you hardly see these members let alone them interacting with passengers.

[wizard-of-roz]

When you see these threads about CD's, captains, etc. it is the Hotel Manager that seems to always be forgotten. My feeling is that the hotel managers has a much greater affect on your cruise experience than the captain or the maitre 'd. If there is one person in the crew I want to be friends with than I choose the HM. They are the express route to solving almost any problem you're likely to run into on a cruise.

 

This is absolutely true. I have been very fortunate [because we travel with a Service Dog] to have met most of the Hotel Managers on every ship we've cruised on.

And, this goes for land based vacations, as well! Thank you for mentioning them.

[chrysalis]

And it's always fun to join the Captain on the bridge and blow the ship's whistle as you leave a port.

 

You are right....we were able to do that on the Ruby leaving Barbados:)

[Sauvignon]

I think that there is a bit of a 'Hyacinth Bouquet' factor going on here.

[u2cruiser]

I think that there is a bit of a 'Hyacinth Bouquet' factor going on here.

 

... in walks Onslow :p