Is there no quality control on Princess?

[pakarinen]

I've been reading posts on everything from tea selection to bathrobes to shore excursions and I'm getting the impression that there is little to no quality control on Princess (and others?).

 

I realize some folks are never happy and some are always happy and that a cruise is not a mass-produced thing like the 6 billionth McD's cheeseburger, but the range of comments and alleged inconsistencies in service is... mystifying.

 

Not trying to bash Princess here, and I usually think "glass half full", but I am curious. (And still looking forward to sailing!)

[Boarcephus]

We just returned from the Diamond Princess on an Alaskan Cruise and I ran hot and cold on it but that probably had more to do with my personal likes and dislikes than anything else.

 

They run a well oiled machine...check in was breeze, transfer to the train to Denali was perfect, we were handed a packet with our room keys and our luggage was waiting on us in the room when we got to both lodges. The staff could not have been more friendly or efficient, the rooms were plenty big, the workout facilities were great. The amenities on board were good.

 

I was not all that impressed with the food but I think that comes from having to feed 2000 people at once. I thought the food was very average. Lots of it but average. I felt the food on the Paul Gauguin was superior in many ways. One thing I noticed was i never seasoned anything on the PG while I was always trying to season my meal on Princess. Smuggled a jar of Zatarain's on board used the heck out of it.

 

What I don't like is sharing a boat with 2500 of my closest friends. This will be the last large ship we sail on.

[cruisemom42]

I have a feeling it's less about the inconsistency of the product that is delivered and more about the inconsistency with which that product is viewed by those who received it.

 

If you are used to sailing on budget lines, it may thrill you. If you are used to sailing on luxury lines, it may disappoint you.

 

If you have bad weather, it may negatively affect your opinion more than a sunny, warm cruise.

 

If you are having family stress while on board, you may enjoy it less than if you are on your honeymoon.

 

Need I go on? No two people view things in exactly the same light 100% of the time. In reading reviews on this (or any) site, you need to think of the law of averages. Throw out the the high and low scores and see what you're left with.

[Pam in CA]

Princess is as consistent as any other cruise line I've ever taken. Probably more consistent. I've been on HAL and had what I thought was the worst steward at sea yet someone down the hall said he was the best she'd ever had. Of course, she probably didn't have mold in her bathroom, a hair dryer held together with rubber bands, or had him walk into her cabin without knocking at 11:20pm while she was undressed, just to list a few things to earn him the title.

 

The point is that everyone has different expectations and experiences while on the same cruise. Is that inconsistency or lack of quality control, or does "stuff" happen? On my recent Celebrity cruise, my toilet didn't work for the most part for three days. It was a vacuum problem that affected a number of cabins. I reported it as soon as it stopped and was simply told, "We're working on it." No calls, no apology, no acknowledgement of any inconvenience even though it took them hours or most of the day, each day, to get the toilets working again. My sister next door had the same problem and lack of appropriate response. I spoke to someone else affected and they superciliously told me that they were called every half hour with an update. Inconsistency or lack of quality control? You tell me. I thought Celebrity's reaction was very poor customer service as I expected better. Because of this and other issues, I doubt I'll cruise Celebrity again.

[trikeman]

Pam, I think your right about everyone has different expectations. I know of a couple who had a 2 week vacation in the South Pacific ruined because it rained for 6 hours one day. It's not supposed to rain there. :rolleyes: I think if people did their homework before their trip and went with an open mind they would enjoy it more. Just my HO for what it's worth.

[Toddy709]

So many things are subjective! You will never find 3000+ people that like all the same things all the same way.

 

I read something earlier today on CC about how grossly overly salty Princess' food is. I, personally, LOVE salt! I'm reading this thinking, yum, but I can understand where other people would think, yuck!

 

If you're a mass produced product and you please most of the people most of the time, you are truly successful!

 

I love that in the cruising world there are so many different options. I don't think anyone will find something that is perfect all the time, but unless you're terribly picky, you can find something that is definitely satisfactory.

[Pam in CA]

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[cdngrl]

sorry to interrupt, but pam--really, another toilet issue on a cruise? poor you. it makes me kind of nervous to be on the ship with you next year!...back to your regularly scheduled thread already in progress....

[Times Prince]

I've been reading posts on everything from tea selection to bathrobes to shore excursions and I'm getting the impression that there is little to no quality control on Princess (and others?).

 

I realize some folks are never happy and some are always happy and that a cruise is not a mass-produced thing like the 6 billionth McD's cheeseburger, but the range of comments and alleged inconsistencies in service is... mystifying.

 

Not trying to bash Princess here, and I usually think "glass half full", but I am curious. (And still looking forward to sailing!)

As a person who thinks the glass half full you will have a GREAT cruise. We try not to let the little stuff bother us, and that smooths out the vacation experience.

 

One of our biggest surprises was when we took the same cruise on Princess that we had taken a year before and had a totally different experience. As we sat there in our cabin we discussed what had changed. We walked through all the obvious: service, food, entertainment, welcoming crew personalities and came to the conclusion that all had actually stayed at the same superlative level. We had changed, and that made all the difference in how we viewed the cruise.

 

So it's not only what is experienced but how and who experiences it. Look for the commonalities in the opinions, and that is likely the truth of the matter.

[Pam in CA]

sorry to interrupt, but pam--really, another toilet issue on a cruise? poor you. it makes me kind of nervous to be on the ship with you next year!...back to your regularly scheduled thread already in progress....

ROFL! Yeah. Go figure. This time, 60 cabins were affected so it wasn't just me. Maybe you didn't want to know that. :) See you next year.

[sunsetbeachgal]

The consistancy is what we love about Princess. From the moment we step on (decor has similarities between ships) and the foods we enjoy, we know what to expect and have never been disappointed. We have taken a cruise on one of the premium lines, and while we enjoyed it we don't feel for us that it is worth the additional $$ as Princess fits us so well!

[timetravler]

I have cruised with Princess since 1999 and have seen small changes, but all in all, they are very consistant. Embarking has gotten better and better and I think Princess does it very well. The food is great. I'm a foodie and have eaten in the top restaurant in the world. Yet I find Princess very good. When someone says the food is too salty, I scratch my head. I use very little salt when cooking and never have I found their food salty. I prefer the MDR over the buffet as how you see the food is almost as important as how it tastes. I only food item I do not like on Princess is the coffee, so we always buy a coffee card and get good coffee there. The entertainment is good, but not great. The staff is fantastic, especially with kids. One cruise with grandkids, the steward brought cookies every night to their cabin and they gave one grandaughter a full size birthday cake. Now I have never gone on a luxery cruise and I'm sure that would be much better. But Princess is very good for a main line cruise company.

[Toto2Kansas]

ROFL! Yeah. Go figure. This time, 60 cabins were affected so it wasn't just me. Maybe you didn't want to know that. :) See you next year.

Pam, if this keeps up, you will be booking cabins that are closer to public rest rooms. :(

[sunviking82]

I have 18 sailings. . 12 with Princess, 4 with RCI, 1 Celebrity, 1 Disney and I can say that what is generally stated about service, food, entertainment, etc...by each line is fairly consistant. The only inconsisitant part are the passengers each trip. I found that on longer trips, there is usually less complaining and more people are relaxing and enjoying themselves. The shorter trip usually have a lot of first -timers with unrealistic expectations and expect everyting to be 5 star and perfect.

 

I just usually go with the flow and enjoy my trip and filter out (and sometimes tell off) the negitive people.

 

We come back to Princess over and over because their style of cruising, the ship and the service meet our needs, an adult resort style retreat from reality. 7 days until this years' trip! Can't wait!!

[Loonbeam]

I don't think its a matter of quality control. Actually to me what their problem, no lets call it an issue is, is an attempt at too much customer service.

 

A lot of the issues reported (food and entertainment quality aside - that's subjective) descend from Princess not having clear written policies about things, and sometimes lax enforcement. Things that fall into this category include standing reservations (or any reservations) for AD, letting TD into AD, chair hogs, the list goes on.

 

Princess tries to give its staff the flexibility to handle situations to keep the customer happy, but that unfortunately results in inconsistent experiences across not just the fleet but sometimes on the same ship and that can impact people's opinion.

[georoc01]

I tend to agree, that for example, I have had one bad cruise. Well, we made the mistake of booking at the holidays (where the boat was 1/3rd children) and weather blew us out of 2 out of 3 ports. Issues related to other passengers and conditions really aren't princess fault.

 

Since then we have been more selective in choosing both the ship and the timing of our cruises and haven't had the same issues.

[ONT-CA]

So many things are subjective! You will never find 3000+ people that like all the same things all the same way.

 

I read something earlier today on CC about how grossly overly salty Princess' food is. I, personally, LOVE salt! I'm reading this thinking, yum, but I can understand where other people would think, yuck! ...

 

Your points are well taken for consider the cabin steward. He/she has ten, twelve, not sure really, but they have a routine that is applied to all his cabins. If there is something in that routine that is not to your liking, don't get angry, tell him/her. They are not mind readers.

 

Having sailed other lines where we justifiably referred to the Chef as Chef Norton; we think the salt content aboard Princess' food acceptable. Our fear is the sauce. When in doubt ask that it be served on the side and test and apply accordingly.

[jewopaho]

I don't think its a matter of quality control. Actually to me what their problem, no lets call it an issue is, is an attempt at too much customer service.

A lot of the issues reported (food and entertainment quality aside - that's subjective) descend from Princess not having clear written policies about things, and sometimes lax enforcement. Things that fall into this category include standing reservations (or any reservations) for AD, letting TD into AD, chair hogs, the list goes on.

Princess tries to give its staff the flexibility to handle situations to keep the customer happy, but that unfortunately results in inconsistent experiences across not just the fleet but sometimes on the same ship and that can impact people's opinion.

Funny ... we keep returning to Princess (7 cruises on 7 different ships) because of the product's consistency ("quality control," if you will). We generally know what to expect, and are rarely disappointed. Our one less-than-positive experience was on the Sapphire in '10, but much of it had to do with matters beyond the control of staff (i.e. absence of amenities found on other ships in the fleet). We're veteran cruisers (over 50 between us) and find that among the mass-market cruise lines, Princess is best at maintaining a consistent level of service and "quality control."

[moniquet]

I thought the food was ok. on Emerald, not memorable but acceptable. Dining room service was excellent and so was embarkation. Otherwise I don't think the word "quality" should be used when refering to Princess.

[Pam in CA]

Pam, if this keeps up, you will be booking cabins that are closer to public rest rooms. :(

Isn't that the truth!

[julia]

I was not all that impressed with the food but I think that comes from having to feed 2000 people at once. I thought the food was very average. Lots of it but average. I felt the food on the Paul Gauguin was superior in many ways.

What I don't like is sharing a boat with 2500 of my closest friends. This will be the last large ship we sail on.

 

To compare the Diamond to the Paul Gauguin is ludicrous at best.... it sails with 332 guests and is five times more expensive. :eek: Yeah... their food probably is a bit "more superior".

[Loonbeam]

That was my point. The product itself is pretty consistent, its policy that can vary from ship to ship.

 

Funny ... we keep returning to Princess (7 cruises on 7 different ships) because of the product's consistency ("quality control," if you will). We generally know what to expect, and are rarely disappointed. Our one less-than-positive experience was on the Sapphire in '10, but much of it had to do with matters beyond the control of staff (i.e. absence of amenities found on other ships in the fleet). We're veteran cruisers (over 50 between us) and find that among the mass-market cruise lines, Princess is best at maintaining a consistent level of service and "quality control."

[bdjam]

Note the name of this site - a lot of people come here to criticize the product. What we need to remember is that Princess usually sails its ships full and if everyone who was a passenger on Princess found quality control problems and reported them here, the servers hosting this web site would never work...

 

Wait...

 

Anyway, for a cruise line to be in business for over 40 years, they have to be doing everything pretty much with the appropriate levels of quality control.

[Kinkacruiser]

I have a feeling it's less about the inconsistency of the product that is delivered and more about the inconsistency with which that product is viewed by those who received it.

 

If you are used to sailing on budget lines, it may thrill you. If you are used to sailing on luxury lines, it may disappoint you.

 

If you have bad weather, it may negatively affect your opinion more than a sunny, warm cruise.

 

If you are having family stress while on board, you may enjoy it less than if you are on your honeymoon.

 

Need I go on? No two people view things in exactly the same light 100% of the time. In reading reviews on this (or any) site, you need to think of the law of averages. Throw out the the high and low scores and see what you're left with.

 

Well said. I couldn't agree more.

[avalong]

I don't think its a matter of quality control. Actually to me what their problem, no lets call it an issue is, is an attempt at too much customer service.

 

A lot of the issues reported (food and entertainment quality aside - that's subjective) descend from Princess not having clear written policies about things, and sometimes lax enforcement. Things that fall into this category include standing reservations (or any reservations) for AD, letting TD into AD, chair hogs, the list goes on.

 

Princess tries to give its staff the flexibility to handle situations to keep the customer happy, but that unfortunately results in inconsistent experiences across not just the fleet but sometimes on the same ship and that can impact people's opinion.

 

Your point is exactly why I think all the cheering and huzzahs regarding the new smoking policy may be somewhat premature....