Reviews of Mariner: How concerned should I really be?

[midnightferret]

So, I've almost got my group to stop waffling and we're just about ready to finalize our cruise plans.

 

RCCL Mariner is in the running, and I've seen that a lot of people really like the ship. I've noticed that many of the 01/11 reviews of Mariner were bad, but that a more recent (Feb) review was good. Of course, the itinerary is different: we would be taking her out of Galveston instead of LA.

 

Considering that we're going to have 1) A different itinerary and 2) a different embarkation port, how concerned about a group of bad reviews should I be? I mean, most reviews are subjective, and you have to take them with a grain of salt, but sometimes a whole bunch of negatives is a warning sign.

 

In your experience, would you be concerned, or would you ignore the reviews?

[39august]

I am not at all concerned about Mariner. We have sailed her twice out of LA and are booked twice out of Galveston. She is a lovely ship.

[ORANGEinINDY]

We cruised Mariner out of Canaveral (our 1st cruise) and LA (our most recent) and had a great time on both of them. Itineraries and climate were quite different on them, so that may make a difference in reviews.

We have also cruised out of Galveston (on Grandeur) and that was very nice (not as nice as PC, but better than LA)

IMHO if you pick Mariner you'll be fine and have a great time.

[rharvey999]

We have been on this lovely lady 5 times and would go back in a heartbeat. We are looking forward to her coming to Galveston.

[bigeagle12]

You will love Mariner. Was our favorite cruise to date.

 

Ignore reviews. They are to subjective (food, service, condition of ship, etc.). If things were as bad as some people report RCI would be out of business.

 

It all has to do with EXPECTATIONS .. go expecting to have a great time .. AND YOU WILL.

[reallyitsmema]

We have sailed the Mariner twice and would again if it wasn't going to be in Galveston.

 

I just went and read some of the negative reviews and they were for the repositioning cruises. One of the posters who was very negative was "diamond" but is a Celebrity cruiser not an RCL cruiser. Not sure they would have been happy no matter how perfect everything was anyways and found some of the comments pretty offensive. The most recent review is from someone who was on the original around the horn cruises, so knows that ship very well and they thought other than a few glitches, it was a great cruise.

 

I really think you have to take reviews with a grain of salt. Everyone has different expections. Getting upset over stationary and envelopes is not something that is going to carry any weight with me whatsoever. Pointing out the good and the bad but not getting overly upset over a shower cap holds a lot more weight to me.;)

 

Give Mariner a try and decide for yourself. Don't set your expectations too high but not too low either. Cruises are what you make of them and what is important to one, is trivial to another.:)

[suziqbert]

I too had read some negative reviews on Mariner - BUT the reality was SO much better than expected! We have been on 8 cruises, 7 on RCCL, and Mariner was our last one. She was beautiful, well laid out, and (mostly) easy to navigate. We absolutely LOVED the promenade, and have booked our next cruise on Explorer as a result. We were mid-ship on the 6th floor. Did not seem so big - easy to get everywhere.

Go with the idea that any day at sea is better than a day on land - and you will be all set!

Enjoy her...I'm going to see when I can go on her again!

Suzi

[cb at sea]

You need to realize that if you have a complaint, you're more likely to tell folks, than if everything is perfect...so you'll always have more "bad" reviews than good ones! Don't worry about it! And, stop reading reviews! Mariner is a great ship! You'll have a blast!

[hazeleyez3]

You should have nothing to worry about. She was my first cruise on Royal - I quickly learned I loved the cruiseline.

[FLACRUISER99]

So, I've almost got my group to stop waffling and we're just about ready to finalize our cruise plans.

 

RCCL Mariner is in the running, and I've seen that a lot of people really like the ship. I've noticed that many of the 01/11 reviews of Mariner were bad, but that a more recent (Feb) review was good. Of course, the itinerary is different: we would be taking her out of Galveston instead of LA.

 

Considering that we're going to have 1) A different itinerary and 2) a different embarkation port, how concerned about a group of bad reviews should I be? I mean, most reviews are subjective, and you have to take them with a grain of salt, but sometimes a whole bunch of negatives is a warning sign.

 

In your experience, would you be concerned, or would you ignore the reviews?

I never trust reviews. I have seen movies, hotels, restaurants, cruise lines and ships that I liked that had awful reviews. I'm a great believer in trying things myself.

[EydieG]

We have been on the Mariner three times and loved every minute of it. Of course, it has been a couple of years since she moved from Port Canaveral and isn't as easily accessible, but if it were possible we would said on her again.

[midnightferret]

Thanks y'all. I kind of figured.

 

I've noticed around here in Austin, for example, crappy restaurants get good reviews and good ones get crappy reviews, too. I was just wondering if something drastic had happened to Mariner I wasn't aware of! Also, it's always best to ask the experts were these trends are concerned! :D

[tonit964]

Unfortunately, we have only been on Mariner once and LOVED her!! It was a wonderful cruise.

She is a beautiful and fun ship. I hope we have the chance to sail on her again someday!

Go and have a great cruise!:)

Toni

[Icruzthere4Iam]

My response to the OP is his. Ignore the reviews. Before I cruised on Adventure of the Seas I read numerous reviews talking about how awful the ship was, and how rude the Puerto Ricans were, and how announcements were made in spanish etc etc etc. I had a fantastic cruise, never saw any rude guests and much like Disney an announcement would be made in english followed by one in spanish. It was like being on a different ship from the one I read all the reviews about.

 

There is a very vocal minority who will find something to be unhappy about no matter what. There is a vocal minority who think everything is perfect. The rest of us live somewhere in between. Mariner was a fantastic ship with a wonderful crew when I sailed her, enjoy your cruise:p Take care all, Jim

[Sharkb8]

Agree with the observation. We were part of the "Around the Horn" cruise and found the ship and crew to be delightful (not so much some of the passengers). As state prior, it's all about expectations. We've cruised on many RC ships, loved the Mariner and its crew and met all our expectations.

 

We have sailed the Mariner twice and would again if it wasn't going to be in Galveston.

 

I just went and read some of the negative reviews and they were for the repositioning cruises. One of the posters who was very negative was "diamond" but is a Celebrity cruiser not an RCL cruiser. Not sure they would have been happy no matter how perfect everything was anyways and found some of the comments pretty offensive. The most recent review is from someone who was on the original around the horn cruises, so knows that ship very well and they thought other than a few glitches, it was a great cruise.

 

I really think you have to take reviews with a grain of salt. Everyone has different expections. Getting upset over stationary and envelopes is not something that is going to carry any weight with me whatsoever. Pointing out the good and the bad but not getting overly upset over a shower cap holds a lot more weight to me.;)

 

Give Mariner a try and decide for yourself. Don't set your expectations too high but not too low either. Cruises are what you make of them and what is important to one, is trivial to another.:)

[wwcruisers]

Everything bad that you've ever read about Mariner is true -- AND -- she's haunted!! :eek:

Please call RC and tell them to send her back to the west coast at once! :p

(We really miss her -- :()

[logansnonna]

I too had read some negative reviews on Mariner - BUT the reality was SO much better than expected! We have been on 8 cruises, 7 on RCCL, and Mariner was our last one. She was beautiful, well laid out, and (mostly) easy to navigate. We absolutely LOVED the promenade, and have booked our next cruise on Explorer as a result. We were mid-ship on the 6th floor. Did not seem so big - easy to get everywhere.

Go with the idea that any day at sea is better than a day on land - and you will be all set!

Enjoy her...I'm going to see when I can go on her again!

Suzi

Hi Suzi,

We are sailing Mariner on 9/20/11 and have the furthest forward "hump" cabin 6612. I would love to hear your experience on the 6th deck midship. You can email me at logansnonna at hotmail dot com.

[Merion_Mom]

We have sailed the Mariner twice and would again if it wasn't going to be in Galveston.

 

I just went and read some of the negative reviews and they were for the repositioning cruises. One of the posters who was very negative was "diamond" but is a Celebrity cruiser not an RCL cruiser. Not sure they would have been happy no matter how perfect everything was anyways and found some of the comments pretty offensive. The most recent review is from someone who was on the original around the horn cruises, so knows that ship very well and they thought other than a few glitches, it was a great cruise.

 

I really think you have to take reviews with a grain of salt. Everyone has different expections. Getting upset over stationary and envelopes is not something that is going to carry any weight with me whatsoever. Pointing out the good and the bad but not getting overly upset over a shower cap holds a lot more weight to me.;)

 

Give Mariner a try and decide for yourself. Don't set your expectations too high but not too low either. Cruises are what you make of them and what is important to one, is trivial to another.:)

 

You made me go look to see whose review it is............. :D

 

Rick writes a GREAT review. But they were NOT on the original Mariner Around the Horn Cruise. Unfortunately. I would have enjoyed that cruise with them.

 

:)

 

midnight ferret, I *was* on that ATH cruise. I was on the Mariner for 53 consecutive nights.

 

I have no reservations in recommending the ship to you!

 

:)

[Merion_Mom]

My response to the OP is his. Ignore the reviews. Before I cruised on Adventure of the Seas I read numerous reviews talking about how awful the ship was, and how rude the Puerto Ricans were, and how announcements were made in spanish etc etc etc. I had a fantastic cruise, never saw any rude guests and much like Disney an announcement would be made in english followed by one in spanish. It was like being on a different ship from the one I read all the reviews about.

 

There is a very vocal minority who will find something to be unhappy about no matter what. There is a vocal minority who think everything is perfect. The rest of us live somewhere in between. Mariner was a fantastic ship with a wonderful crew when I sailed her, enjoy your cruise:p Take care all, Jim

 

Wise words, Jim. Very wise words.

[Pumbaamd]

No, we were not on the first Mariner Cape Horn cruise. We were on Mariner with Capt. Per for Mardi Gras 2010 from San Pedro. This was also Capt. Per's first time around Cape Horn.

Rick and Deirdra

[sidari]

Just remember with reviews that you cannot please All of the people All of the time! go and make up your own mind .... :)

[Jimnbigd]

I'm booked for March 25, 2012, from Galveston. I expect it to be very similar to the Voyager of the Seas -- after all, the Mariner is a Voyager class ship. I think it goes to dry dock shortly after my cruise. I wonder if the ship will change the English pub (deck 5) to be non-smoking? Derek Lewis is staying on the Voyager rather than moving to the Mariner because currently the Mariner allows smoking in the pub. I'm sure the smoke drifts into the rest of the Promenade area. Oh well, I'm not trying to start another smoking/non-smoking debate. I'm just surprised there is not more consistency among all Voyager class ships here. I'm looking forward to the Jade (Asian) section in the buffet. And there will be a Chop's steak house. And more teen area.

[reallyitsmema]

No, we were not on the first Mariner Cape Horn cruise. We were on Mariner with Capt. Per for Mardi Gras 2010 from San Pedro. This was also Capt. Per's first time around Cape Horn.

Rick and Deirdra

Ooops, sorry, I wonder who I confused you with then.:o It was still a great review though, stated both the good and the not so good. Both of our cruises on the Mariner were with Captain Per, he's great. At least he was able to bring the Mariner back around the Horn.

 

Merion Mom, I knew you were on the original OTH with another week added on for good measure.;):D I had followed that cruise because I wanted to be on it but decided disappearing for that long during my son's senior year in HS wouldn't be a smart move on my part.:p

 

To the OP, make sure you come back and tell us all about your experience on that great ship.:)

[Pumbaamd]

Ooops, sorry, I wonder who I confused you with then.:o It was still a great review though, stated both the good and the not so good. Both of our cruises on the Mariner were with Captain Per, he's great. At least he was able to bring the Mariner back around the Horn.

No problem. We say "Ooops, sorry", on here often!

Rick and Deirdra

[BecciBoo]

How concerned??? Not in the least. In fact, Mariner is one of our favorite ships. The crew is great and she has much more than Voyager. This time out we're doing Chops for the first time and all our cruise buds loved hanging out at Vintages. You'll love Mariner. After all, we are all different and a cruise is just what you make of it...with very few exceptions(tilt!)