Venturing back to RCI from Princess

[FiveFamily]

We are booked on the Explorer of the Seas for the 9 day Bermuda/Caribbean itinerary out of New Jersey. We last sailed on RCI on the Voyager in 2004 for the 9 day itinerary out of New Jersey as it existed then(St. Thomas, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, Labadee and Freeport.) We switched to Princess thereafter for its 9 day out of New York primarily because Bermuda was included.) While the Caribbean Princess is not quite the Voyager/Explorer in size, we found the dining quality and service to exceed that which we had experienced on the Voyager. Now that Princess has pulled out of NY for a summer itinerary, we are going back to RCI. While I know its somewhat frowned upon on here to be overly critical of the mainstream cruise lines, I am in the apparent minority that believes that cruise ships in terms of dining and service should maintain at least hotel quality food without surcharge and excellent service. We do go to "premium dining" for at least one night when we cruise but go to the main dining room with "traditional" seating on other nights(as opposed to "anytime" options. My concern is the very apparent trend of less than favorable reviews on the Explorer, from the well known sewage smell in significant areas of the ship to the mediocrity of the dining experience(mostly food quality and selection) and apathetic service. These are not isolated reviews. Is RCI so confident in filling the berths at low prices that it can ignore its declining reputation especially on this ship? I've contacted RCI about the state of the ship and am considering canceling our reservation. No response from RCI as of yet. I am wondering if anyone else is booked on the Explorer before its 2013 drydock and is also considering canceling unless RCI takes some steps to address the concerns. Perhaps someone at RCI reads the cruise boards!

[uksimonusa]

Booked on a B2B in July, no thought of cancelling, seen loads of bad reviews on every ship, never had a bad cruise yet

[Mines]

I would agree with that. Food criticism is so very subjective. Sure there have been meals that I did not like, but had I chosen something else on the menu, I could have been raving about how good it was.

[Paulxyz2004]

I certainly wouldn´t cancel, but reading your post and your concern I think it might be the best for you to cancel. You´ve put your mind in a certain direction about the cruise already and you´ll be better off looking for a vacation catering more to your needs IMO.

[ryano]

I certainly wouldn´t cancel, but reading your post and your concern I think it might be the best for you to cancel. You´ve put your mind in a certain direction about the cruise already and you´ll be better off looking for a vacation catering more to your needs IMO.

 

I have to agree with this :) The sewage smell i would be a little concerned about for sure. I know opinions on food and service are way too subjective though.

 

i personally like the food on RCI and have never had anything but stellar service from the staff.

[TEXASMUNK]

Is it worth the risk of paying for a cruise where your expectations are not set towards enjoyment but are focused on the potential negatives?

Might it be worth more to you (your call) to abandon the convenient embarkation point and select a different ship or cruise line or embarkation point?

[Artemis908]

I was on the Caribbean Princess in June and the Explorer the year before that. Again, food is subjective, but I thought the food on the Explorer was better than the Caribbean Princess. Many times I couldn't even eat the food at the buffet and decided to go with the dining room for lunch most days, which was good.

 

I never smelled anything with on the Explorer and after reading through several posts about it, it seems to be something that hasn't bothered most people. If you dig through it you'll hear many people suggest the smelled something, but not enough to ruin their cruise. A few have made a big deal about it and it may be the location of their cabin.

 

I personally loved the Explorer and for me, Caribbean Princess wasn't cup of tea. Though the service was excellent and I had my wedding there that was wonderful.

 

Consider giving the Explorer a try, but if you think you are going to be worried about the smell, then don't upset yourself and just try out a different cruise line or location.

[KuffMUp]

I guess if I were you with the opinion you already have, I would cancel. I have read posts about the smell. I haven't paid enough attention to see if they were first time cruisers. My very first cruise, I could smell that "smell" just about every day and that was on Carnival. I have also been on private sailboats and smelled that disticnt "smell". I read one post here the other day from a person that lives on a sailboat and said that the fumes permiate the hoses etc and they completely replace their hoses every 3 years to avoid it.

 

Each cruise line offers something for someone. After our first trip on Carnival I swore I hated cruising. Didn't like the attitude of fellow passengers and the staff was unpleasant. We decided to give cruising another chance. While I enjoyed the cruise, again, I hated the layout and decor on the ship. We decided to give RCI a try and I couldn't have been more pleased. Elegant looking ships and the staff was so friendly. The passengers were very pleasant. The children seemed more under their parents control and were very well behaved. There are folks who love Carnival. It just wasn't for us. If you like the service, food, and atmosphere of Princess maybe you should stay with them. Seems to me you have already set this sailing up to be a failure.

[Dave4120]

I must also agree with others above. It would seem your mind is already in a negative state about the Explorer, that even if things do go well, you might not think so.

 

We will be going on the Explorer, March 19th and this will be our 20th cruise. I don't know if we are more open minded than others, but we've never had anything in all 20 cruises to complain about. Yes, a few minor things have come up, but again, everyone looks at things differently. I know when it comes to food in the main dining room, I've always had the attitude of that the entire experience is like being at a big bowling banquet, with the food being OK, and if really good, it's a bonus. I guess that is how I've kept myself in check. And, with everything else including sewer smell, etc....I guess that can happen on any ship and does. The main reason it happens in most cases is because many people just don't care and throw things down the toilet they shouldn't.

 

Best of luck with your decision, but unless something is majorly bad, how you view things determines your final experience. I've always been told and have studied that the mind can make or break you. I make sure I keep mine as positive as possible and that keeps those negative thoughts away.

 

We will be updating everyone on our experience when we get back from the Explorer on April 1st.

[Cruising89143]

I agree with the others. I would cancel. Sounds like you already have it in your mind that there are issues and I don't think you will be happy.

 

I for one never pay attention to comments concerning food. I have cruised for too many years and know that each and every person has different taste buds. Also, many people on this very board go with expectations that just cannot be met by a cruise line.

 

Second, on just about every ship that I have cruised among different lines, there has been some type of sewage smell. Some worse than others. IMHO it's just the way that the plumbing is designed on ships. I smelled it on the Allure last month. Wasn't bad but I got a whiff every now and then.

[alexkrn46]

Yes, cancel and find another cruise line.

[genegri]

A small group of us went on Explorer last year. Our cabins were all over the ship and we were lucky none of us noticed any smell anywhere.

 

But I certainly understand a bad smell more than anything can put a damper on the cruise. And from a cruise line's perspective it's difficult and expensive to have a true fix.

[GoochDSA]

We have been on Explorer twice (12/09 and 12/10) and never really had any of the issues some people have mentioned around here.

 

However, I have to agree with the others that say canceling might be in your best interest. It does appear that you are already in the negative state of mind about the ship. For most people, once you have that seed of doubt in your mind, it is a lot easier to start picking out the nagative things and ignor/forget the positive things, which means in the end that no matter how your trip goes there will be some sort of a negative spin to it.

[Dave85]

I think "hotel quality" is exactly what the food is on mass market cruise lines... Not exceptional unless you pay to go to a specialty dining venue, but typically good to very good which is enough to satisfy most people who sail such lines (myself included).

[lakelorain]

As you can see from my signature, I've been on the Explorer 3 times recently and will be going on her again in April. My experience has been stellar service, very good food and no odor.

However, I agree with the previous posters that if you can't go on the Explorer with an open mind, you should probably cancel.

[Cruising89143]

I think "hotel quality" is exactly what the food is on mass market cruise lines... Not exceptional unless you pay to go to a specialty dining venue, but typically good to very good which is enough to satisfy most people who sail such lines (myself included).

 

I would rate the food on Holland American "hotel" quality also, even though they are considered a "premiun" line. I doubt that Princess would be much better. I just think some people set their expectations too high.