Getting Better all the time

[Bridge Maven]

There have been many posts about how the overall cruise experience on mass market cruise lines, such as Celebrity, has declined during the past decade.

 

On the other hand, do you think there are some aspects of cruising on mass market cruise lines that are better now than when you first started to cruise?

[Mermen]

Good question. I wonder if that declining "experience" is really a decline, or could it be like many other experiences, things evolve and change over time and change is difficult for some: smoking ban, more relaxed casual dress, etc.? Gosh, I am just about middle-aged, and don't have decades and decades of cruising experience, but just with my brief cruising tenure, I think it gets better and better. Culinary (food choices, menu options, diverse / ethnic food stations and specialty restaurants), Spa services, cabin ammenities, service, etc.- for me at least, it has only improved.

 

Perhaps it is subjective to everyone? Loving my experience though, and welcome change, usually, when it occurs. :)

[4774Papa]

We have done two river and five ocean cruises in the past two years. We love cruising and seem to love it the more we do it.

 

Since I retired, we do about three trips a year, generally from 17-24 days in duration. I will say that getting home is also good.

[Karynanne]

Good question. I wonder if that declining "experience" is really a decline, or could it be like many other experiences, things evolve and change over time and change is difficult for some: smoking ban, more relaxed casual dress, etc.? Gosh, I am just about middle-aged, and don't have decades and decades of cruising experience, but just with my brief cruising tenure, I think it gets better and better. Culinary (food choices, menu options, diverse / ethnic food stations and specialty restaurants), Spa services, cabin ammenities, service, etc.- for me at least, it has only improved.

 

Perhaps it is subjective to everyone? Loving my experience though, and welcome change, usually, when it occurs. :)

 

I agree with you. IMHO, the cruising experience is better. My first cruise was in 1978, and I do remember the ship (HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam) having very low ceilings in the diningroom, and crowded public spaces. The cabins seemed cramped and the bathroom...almost extinct in size.

 

And now we are given more food choices and dining options. The Spa facilities are lovely and the cabins ample enough for a comfortable vacation.

[We're The Groupnors]

There have been many posts about how the overall cruise experience on mass market cruise lines, such as Celebrity, has declined during the past decade.

 

On the other hand, do you think there are some aspects of cruising on mass market cruise lines that are better now than when you first started to cruise?

 

Yes, the pricing is much better, which allows us to cruise more often!

[techwatcher]

I think the cruise experience continues to evolve. Ships have got bigger with more space and more facilities, specialty restaurants (almost unknown a decade ago) offer more dining choice (at a cost). Dress codes have relaxed and smoking is less welcome (both important to some).

 

On the other side of the coin the standards of service have declined; as an example it's not too long ago that your waiter at a full 10 guest table in the MDR would refer to each guest by name - not any more - they have too many tables to wait on these days.

 

We still enjoy cruising and it offers good value for money but for us the changes are a mixed bag.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Absolutely cruising is much less expensive then it was in the 1990's when I first started.

 

I did two cruises last summer because the prices are so reasonable.

 

I am going to Alaska for the 5th time and paid less for this cruise than any of my previous bookings in 1996, 1998, 2000 and 2005.

 

I cruise mainly for the creature comforts (Celebrity ships are just my style- streamlined and nautical) and the intinerary. I am not a fussy eater- so the food would have to worse than say Applebee's for me to complain.

 

So I am happy on any cruise that has a polite crew and clean environment. Today's ships have way more amenities than the ships of yesteryear also (like when I sailed on Holland America as a kid in 1978, 1980 and 1981)

[suec12]

I remember in the late 90's I wanted to take a Med. cruise with my teenage daughters and husband - it seems to me there was about one ship / cruise line to pick from, the Marco Polo. Maybe there were some European companies but I was not aware of them. What a difference a decade makes - now there are so many Med. itineraries plus many more options, and lovely ships. So yes, I'd say the choices we have are so much better than in the past.

[BigDaddy2002]

I think most people like to complain that things are getting worse all the time. In reality, most things in our lives are getting much better and have our whole lives. (Then again, I'm only about 49 so I don't really recall WWII, Korea, or the Cuban Missile Crisis.)

 

My wife's grandmother likes to complain that HAL has gone downhill since Carnival took them over. Never mind that her first experience was a few years ago - nearly 20 years after the takeover.

 

As Billy Joel sings, "the good old days weren't all that good and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems"....

[rebeccalouiseagain]

My 86 year old grandmother once said to me "I don't know what they are talking about "The Good Old Days" she said I'll take now!"

[Kartgv]

Assuming you're talking about the mass market lines here.....

 

Some things have gotten better: More choices in almost everything (ship size and type, itineraries, dining and entertainment venues); pricing - much cheaper than 20 years ago when inflation is factored in; cabin size - our first outside cabin had a "double" bed 3 1/2 feet wide that you could barely walk around; safety features and procedures; personally, the smoke-free areas are a great improvement for us.

 

Some things aren't as good as they used to be: food quality,except in added-cost restaurants; service quality - the majority of staff are well trained, but it's not the experience that it once was; overall elegance - the older ships that I remember, with their wonderful promenade decks are hard to find; sail-away celebrations, with streamers and confetti (I know, environmentally not a great idea) bands playing and hundreds of well-wishers waving from the pier; noise levels in almost all public spaces.

 

"Not as good as it used to be" doesn't necessarily mean "bad". We enjoyed cruising then, we enjoy it now . . . just a different experience.

[cruise kitty]

Our first Celebrity cruise was about 10 years ago, things that are much better now:

 

-Almost no smoke at all to deal with

-I can book AQ & not worry about dealing with formal nights or the MDR noise, love having smart casual every night except in MDR

-Prices are actually cheaper now than they were then

-Pre paying tips means no anxiety about hunting down crew or setting aside cash

-between pre paid drink pkg & obc (& pre paid tips) we expect to have a zero balance at the end of our cruise.

S class=no nasty shower curtains to deal with:)

[Waihekean]

I do not understand why people keep saying that service has declined, because over and over it is mentioned that Celebrity has great service:confused::confused:

[maitlandmom]

My very first cruise was in 1981 on the MS Dolphin. Boy have things changed for the better. We were some pretty rough seas and the waves were crashing over the decks because the ship was so small. I sail through tropical storm Arleene on the Zuiderdam and still made it to dinner. While comparing that Dolphin cruise to any other modern cruise may be unfair, the experience has gotten much better.

[Denny01]

Bridge Maven has started another interesting thread. Got me to thinking about changes and how I see them.

 

First cruise, which I wont compare too much to modern cruisng was on a MATS ship SS Gaffey going from San Franciso to Guam, in 1957. I was Very young and my dad, an AF pilot, was moving us to his new Air Base. Exciting. A guy would walk through the ship with handchimes calling us to dinner, entertainment was shuffleboard (no pools or much of anything) and no A/C in the SRs, my Dad rigged a scoop to bring air in through a 6inch porthole. We slept in bunkbeds.

 

But my first commercial cruise was on a Carnival ship in '95 then the Celebrity Mercury in '97, a month after she was launched. I agree, the waitstaff had fewer tables and spent more time with us, which by the way could also be a negative experience. And I believe some of the entrees such as some of the cuts of meat and the lobster and fish was better quality then.

 

But what got better? Most everything else. Yup, pricing is much better. Tipping process is much better - You dont have to bring cash, count it out and put into various envelopes, and then watch as your tablemates dont show up and stiff the staff.

 

The SRs are better, many more balconies at fantastic prices, better BRs especailly the showers on S-Class. Although some of the entrees may have taken a hit, I think the variety has increased. The Line doesn't repeat any meal for I believe 14+days. The Buffets have many more options and the buffet islands are much better organized than the classic buffet lines.

 

And I think the service has increased a good deal. The MDR waitstaff may have more tables, but I think the overall qualty of training is higher with most of the staff Very well trained. Our last cruise on the Eclipse was top notch for service.

 

The entertainment, especially the small groups in different venues are very high quality. And I think the tours are more varied, and with the internet and Roll Calls, you have many more options for private tours, which have increased hugely. I think the big productions are a higher quality. I got very tired of the WWII-era music and the same songs from the same Musicals....more variety now.

 

OK, I think I hit a lot of it. I find cruising to be overall a better package than it was 17years ago and is my primary vacation outlet. I dont think I can survive without a cruise in my future.

 

Den

[Waihekean]

Wonderful post, Denny01:)

[EithneMay]

The only thing I notice that is "better" is that we switched from RCCL to Celebrity.

Otherwise everything is about the same or has declined a bit.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Denny01]

Wonderful post, Denny01:)

 

Waihekean, appreciate your acknowledgment, very nice. I had to go look at where Waiheke was...sounds very neat and interesting.

 

What I found Very interesting is what the name of the island is from. According to Wiki, it means 'descending water', and refers to when the Maori explorer (I wont even try to spell his name!) stepped onto the beach, he took a leak! If that one is true, that is probably the greatest name of a place I've ever heard of!

 

But it sounds like a wonderful place to live.

 

Den

[Waihekean]

Well, Denny

I do not know if that is true, because I have never heard of it, but it sure made me laugh.:p:p:p

 

The name does mean descending waters and it is a really neat place indeed. Only 35 minutes by ferry from Auckland (largest city in NZ), bit warmer in temperature and with a lot of natural beauty and typical island life.