Explorer Review - 10/28/12

[velmasue]

We cruised to Bermuda on the Explorer for the first time in September. We thought it may be risky during hurricane season. However, we felt confident if a hurricane was in the path that the ship would be redirected and the risk would be minimal.

 

Thank you for taking the time to write such a thorough review. The information you are providing will certainly help us to make a more informed decision when cruising during hurricane season.

[Dave4120]

First Davy Jones...the first half of your review was worded perfectly and right on. The comments of BigEagle 12 were as dumb as dumb can get. First he or she did not even understand what you were getting at, and second those comments come from someone with half a brain. Your comments were about the safety or lack of safety created by RCCL, not whether you should have not gone on that ship. And JohnlCruise saying he loved it is another less than intelligent answer. Go on another cruise like that when the darn thing tips over, then make those comments.

 

Most people know that most, and I say most, not all businesses only care about profits and it doesn't take too much intelligence to figure that out. In any event, your reveiw was well written.

[ryano]

. And JohnlCruise saying he loved it is another less than intelligent answer. .

 

Why? Because its a different opinion than yours? :rolleyes:

 

First, it wasnt an answer. It was a statement of opinion.

 

Second, just who in the hell are YOU to tell what someone loved or didnt love.

[Dave4120]

His post if you can read correctly wasn't about what anyone loved or did not love. It was about the storm, the sea conditions, and, if RCCL took proper action during these conditions.

 

If you want to talk about whether you like or anyone likes to think you're on an amusement ride during questionable sea conditions, then there are posts for that.

[skiman1]

Winds up to 150mph, never heard the Capt. state that. Guess this is becoming like a fishing story. Shoot I've been in the North Atlantic on much smaller ships with much bigger waves than occurred here. Never felt scared and enjoyed the ride! Just too many fair weather cruisers now here on C/C that just want to complain about any little thing.

 

Yes, the ship sailed through a category 1 hurricane, I was never scared, the waves were not that big and I was on a starboard side balcony. Sail the North Atlantic during a storm and then talk about this.

 

Flooding on the ship, yes, some water did come in on the starboard side, not salt water, but fresh water from the rain. No green water reached deck 6 where the balconies start. The water that came in was leakage around some of the sliding glass door seals, hard rain and heavy wind can cause this along with some idiots opening their sliders to check the weather out. Some passengers also didn't lock their sliders properly either. I was on a starboard side balcony on deck 9 and never had any water come in. Some rooms did have water that seeped in, not flooded in! Carpets became wet and passengers moved to another room. I was a submariner for 28 years, I think I just might understand what flooding is!

 

Comparing the EOS to the Concordia is a farce. Ships are designed to sail through storms much worse than this, they are not designed to have a 300 plus foot gash in the hull below the waterline. Just a stupid comparison period!!! Oh, I know the ship could have lost power, well, the plane I flew on to get to the ship could have lost power. I'll take my chances on a ship in a storm with no power than a plane at 30,000 in clear weather with no power. There is always a lot of what ifs everyday in life!

 

Broken bones, I did see a girl with a sling on her right arm, no cast though and that was after Bermuda. I never heard of any broken bones on this sailing until reading some exaggerated posts here on cruise critic. Don't you think there would have been a cast on that arm if it was broken?

 

The fact of the matter is you chose to sail during hurricane season and you were too cheap to purchase insurance either through RCCL or another private company and now whine about this. Just flippin amazing. The ship sailed, it was safe!! Get over it.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise, spent hurricane day in the Viking Crown lounge watching everything and felt totally safe the entire time.

[edjny]

Winds up to 150mph, never heard the Capt. state that. Guess this is becoming like a fishing story.

 

Did you attend the "Captain's Corner" on Saturday morning at the Palace? If you did and were paying attention, the Captain stated that there were sustained winds of 120 knots (138 mph) for a period of time and he saw it peak for a very short time to 160 knots (184 mph). This wind occurred on Monday morning.

 

I totally agree with the rest of your comments...

[kaykels]

Winds up to 150mph, never heard the Capt. state that. Guess this is becoming like a fishing story. Shoot I've been in the North Atlantic on much smaller ships with much bigger waves than occurred here. Never felt scared and enjoyed the ride! Just too many fair weather cruisers now here on C/C that just want to complain about any little thing.

 

Yes, the ship sailed through a category 1 hurricane, I was never scared, the waves were not that big and I was on a starboard side balcony. Sail the North Atlantic during a storm and then talk about this.

 

Flooding on the ship, yes, some water did come in on the starboard side, not salt water, but fresh water from the rain. No green water reached deck 6 where the balconies start. The water that came in was leakage around some of the sliding glass door seals, hard rain and heavy wind can cause this along with some idiots opening their sliders to check the weather out. Some passengers also didn't lock their sliders properly either. I was on a starboard side balcony on deck 9 and never had any water come in. Some rooms did have water that seeped in, not flooded in! Carpets became wet and passengers moved to another room. I was a submariner for 28 years, I think I just might understand what flooding is!

 

Comparing the EOS to the Concordia is a farce. Ships are designed to sail through storms much worse than this, they are not designed to have a 300 plus foot gash in the hull below the waterline. Just a stupid comparison period!!! Oh, I know the ship could have lost power, well, the plane I flew on to get to the ship could have lost power. I'll take my chances on a ship in a storm with no power than a plane at 30,000 in clear weather with no power. There is always a lot of what ifs everyday in life!

 

Broken bones, I did see a girl with a sling on her right arm, no cast though and that was after Bermuda. I never heard of any broken bones on this sailing until reading some exaggerated posts here on cruise critic. Don't you think there would have been a cast on that arm if it was broken?

 

The fact of the matter is you chose to sail during hurricane season and you were too cheap to purchase insurance either through RCCL or another private company and now whine about this. Just flippin amazing. The ship sailed, it was safe!! Get over it.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the cruise, spent hurricane day in the Viking Crown lounge watching everything and felt totally safe the entire time.

 

Fishy story, huh? Well I happened to talk to the mother of the girl in the sling. It was broken, along with 2 other passengers sustaining fractures, and they are just the ones that I know of. I also heard the capt mention 184 mph wind, and also out of his own mouth called it a cat 3 because of the sustained winds and gusts. Just because YOU weren't scared doesn't mean others weren't.

It was scary. No denying it. DaveyJones, great review.

If anybody has any questions, check out the videos, there are several posted

 

[marnick1]

This is interesting to me. There seem to be two types of posters on the threads regarding Explorer and this storm:

 

1) This was a scary experience for the passengers (NOT life threatening but scary) and perhaps RCCL should have offered the same arrangements to those passengers that they did to Enchantment so they would not have to eat the costs of the trip should they chose to stay back.

 

2) I'm an old fisherman, navy captain, cruiser and this storm was nothing - its your own damn fault for getting on the boat if you were scared. I've seen bigger waves and greater winds and you're all wimps if you mention being scared!

 

It's so polarized -just like this country with the recent election. Look- I have no problem with disagreeing with a person but you all are attacking posters with venom. Try to understand there could be another viewpoint than your own. On Nordic Prince, I was not scared of the ship going down but my wife was terrified and had not been on another boat in 23 years - even river shuttles, etc. Just keep in mind everyone is different and has different fears and ways of reacting to the situation. And also keep in mind that the folks who say people should have bought insurance that the insurance would NOT cover you if the ship departed and you chose not to go. So for most it would have been a loss of 2-4 thousand dollars....

[ryano]

. And also keep in mind that the folks who say people should have bought insurance that the insurance would NOT cover you if the ship departed and you chose not to go. ....

 

RCI's CruiseCare WOULD have most certainly covered 75% of the cruise fare in the form of a future cruise credit, which basically boils down to just losing the deposit in a lot of cases, because of the "cancel for any reason" policy it has.

 

The way i see it 75% of something is better than 100% of nothing.

 

CruiseCare, that everyone puts down so much around here, wouldnt be such a bad choice in cases like this.

[kaykels]

This is interesting to me. There seem to be two types of posters on the threads regarding Explorer and this storm:

 

1) This was a scary experience for the passengers (NOT life threatening but scary) and perhaps RCCL should have offered the same arrangements to those passengers that they did to Enchantment so they would not have to eat the costs of the trip should they chose to stay back.

 

2) I'm an old fisherman, navy captain, cruiser and this storm was nothing - its your own damn fault for getting on the boat if you were scared. I've seen bigger waves and greater winds and you're all wimps if you mention being scared!

 

It's so polarized -just like this country with the recent election. Look- I have no problem with disagreeing with a person but you all are attacking posters with venom. Try to understand there could be another viewpoint than your own. On Nordic Prince, I was not scared of the ship going down but my wife was terrified and had not been on another boat in 23 years - even river shuttles, etc. Just keep in mind everyone is different and has different fears and ways of reacting to the situation. And also keep in mind that the folks who say people should have bought insurance that the insurance would NOT cover you if the ship departed and you chose not to go. So for most it would have been a loss of 2-4 thousand dollars....

 

That's interesting that you say WE are attacking people with venom. I see it the other way around. God forbid anybody posts anything slightly negative about their RCCL, even though good comments are in there as well. The cheerleaders jump all over everybody saying nasty things like "ITS YOUR OWN DAMN FAULT" (Your quote)

 

Most of us were not navy captains like yourself. Why do you have a problem with the fact that we were scared and feel the need to bash us? The OP said he went with the attitude that RCCL would offer a credit, like they did the day before for Enchantment. When they didn't he trusted them. The capt said it was far worse than he anticipated and many of us were scared. 184 mph wind is scary to us non-fisherman/sailor/captains and didn't think that was something we would experience. So relax, stop judging. You don't have to agree, but you are the one being mean and calling us wimps and cursing, NOT US.

[davy jones]

I saw (and smelled) inside cabins on deck 6 flodded by green water and the steward said as much. I'm sure that the water didn't come from their balcony doors.

 

The Concordia analogy is that just because one puts passengers at unnecessary without consequences and doesn't suffer adverse consequences, it doesn't validate the decision. I could also use a Russian Roulette analogy if it would make you happier. Irresponsible is still irresponsible.

 

Thank you for your service, but like the crew, you were trained for events like those. Most of the passengers were not.

 

I am only writing about my experiences and opinions and I have already stated that they were not nearly as extreme as some have reported. I am not going to refute those reports, because I do not know what they saw, just as I don't know what you saw from your perch in the Viking Crown.

[torromierda]

I have read and re-read your reviews and opinions and when adding them to the many conversations and experiences I shared with others on the cruise I would say that whilst you are not in any way scaremongering you are in a minority of people who feel we should not have sailed.

 

As a 42 year old, fit and able relatively new cruiser who experienced 18 hours of sea sickness I think they made ABSOLUTELY the right decision.

 

I flew in from the UK on Saturday afternoon and whilst staying at the Doubletree we monitored the Weather Channel and checked the RCCL website which was consistent in its message. We are sailing unless you see otherwise on this website.

 

So lets stop and think about what my options would have been had they not sailed. Staying onland in an area that I knew would be getting the brunt of a storm and power outages or taking to Sea with a Trusted and experienced Captain on a ship that frequently sails the Atlantic in Storm Season.

 

We had an inside Cabin 7th Deck and there was puddling in the corridors which was coming from the balcony cabins. I spoke to a few people who had those cabins and they felt that RC staff had done their best to make thing better for them, but many felt the initial offer of compensation was too low, well of course it was, it was an initial offer! Stay polite and focussed in your correspondence with RCCL, present your evidence properly and see what happens.

 

The first 24 hours were uncomfortable but the crew, the Captains management team and my fellow passengers bandied together with a bit of gallows humour and got through it.

 

Interestingly enough the BAU trip back was also quite choppy but with no Hurricane Fever to mention people just got on with it.

 

For me and my circumstances they made the right decision and I commend them for it.

 

As for the constant comparisons people are making the Enchantment of the Seas passengers options: GET REAL people!

 

Smaller Ship

Different Itinerary with a port of Call that could not be visited

Itinerary offered was to 'sail around for a bit and see where we can go'

 

We were offered the same Itinerary to a port of call with no damage and no risk of adverse weather at the Port, sailing in Storm Season. that is not a direct comparison is it?

 

In summary, I hope you dont percieve this as a personal attack, I can see where you are coming from and I commend you for being calm and subjective in your submission, particularly your experiences of Monday which mirror my own. When one of the passengers on my table in the MDR received her meal of a Hot Dog and some Potato Chips I quipped "You got a happy meal" and immediately regretted it when I saw the look of stressed out embarrassment on the look of the attending Waiter. so much so that I sought him out later in the cruise to make it clear that I was joking and that I knew the staff had done the very best job under difficult circumstance. And that is the bottom line for me, hindsight is a wonderful thing but in real time the Captain and the crew did wonders and I have nothing but praise for the Tactical and strategic decisions made.

 

I wish you happy sailing on any future Cruise.

[davy jones]

I have read and re-read your reviews and opinions and when adding them to the many conversations and experiences I shared with others on the cruise I would say that whilst you are not in any way scaremongering you are in a minority of people who feel we should not have sailed.

 

As a 42 year old, fit and able relatively new cruiser who experienced 18 hours of sea sickness I think they made ABSOLUTELY the right decision.

 

I flew in from the UK on Saturday afternoon and whilst staying at the Doubletree we monitored the Weather Channel and checked the RCCL website which was consistent in its message. We are sailing unless you see otherwise on this website.

 

So lets stop and think about what my options would have been had they not sailed. Staying onland in an area that I knew would be getting the brunt of a storm and power outages or taking to Sea with a Trusted and experienced Captain on a ship that frequently sails the Atlantic in Storm Season.

 

We had an inside Cabin 7th Deck and there was puddling in the corridors which was coming from the balcony cabins. I spoke to a few people who had those cabins and they felt that RC staff had done their best to make thing better for them, but many felt the initial offer of compensation was too low, well of course it was, it was an initial offer! Stay polite and focussed in your correspondence with RCCL, present your evidence properly and see what happens.

 

The first 24 hours were uncomfortable but the crew, the Captains management team and my fellow passengers bandied together with a bit of gallows humour and got through it.

 

Interestingly enough the BAU trip back was also quite choppy but with no Hurricane Fever to mention people just got on with it.

 

For me and my circumstances they made the right decision and I commend them for it.

 

As for the constant comparisons people are making the Enchantment of the Seas passengers options: GET REAL people!

 

Smaller Ship

Different Itinerary with a port of Call that could not be visited

Itinerary offered was to 'sail around for a bit and see where we can go'

 

We were offered the same Itinerary to a port of call with no damage and no risk of adverse weather at the Port, sailing in Storm Season. that is not a direct comparison is it?

 

In summary, I hope you dont percieve this as a personal attack, I can see where you are coming from and I commend you for being calm and subjective in your submission, particularly your experiences of Monday which mirror my own. When one of the passengers on my table in the MDR received her meal of a Hot Dog and some Potato Chips I quipped "You got a happy meal" and immediately regretted it when I saw the look of stressed out embarrassment on the look of the attending Waiter. so much so that I sought him out later in the cruise to make it clear that I was joking and that I knew the staff had done the very best job under difficult circumstance. And that is the bottom line for me, hindsight is a wonderful thing but in real time the Captain and the crew did wonders and I have nothing but praise for the Tactical and strategic decisions made.

 

I wish you happy sailing on any future Cruise.

 

No offence taken. You clearly would have sailed and a fully understand why you feel that way. You likely assumed less risk by sailing. A total cancellation would have not been in your best interest.

 

Based on the response to the Enchantment offering, I don't belive that I have a minority view, but we can't poll everyone. The Enchantment proposal would have well suited both of us. You could have sailed and the many hundreds of passengers that lived within driving distance could have decided based on their own personal feelings or situations. There were certainly numerous passengers onboard concerned about their own homes or loved ones. I live many miles inland. The damages in my area were limited to wind damage and massive power outages. My home was not impacted other than a power outage that we were not home for anyway.

 

I agree with you about the crew. Most passengers, myself included, pulled together, maintained good humor, and made the best of it. (I will avoid any lemon analogies) :) I hope that you did not infer that I was upset by the lunch offerings on Monday. I was not. Given the circumstances, serving only cold offerings may have even been appropriate. I didn't have to get my coffee or meal from the Red Cross or other relief agency. I've been there (not nearly as catastrophic as Sandy) and don't wish that on anyone.

 

I wish you well and hope we meet on a future cruise.

[ryano]

. The cheerleaders jump all over everybody saying nasty things .

 

Sigh, the tired, old, overused term Cheerleaders :rolleyes: How original!

 

What i find ridiculous is that anyone that disagrees with someones negativity is labled as a damn "cheerleader" around here but yet they whine about people calling names. It works both ways so why dont YOU take YOUR own advice and RELAX and STOP judging!

[torromierda]

One final thing DJ

 

.

Cheerleaders on other threads argue that the ship had an experienced captain and will argue that “all’s well that ends well” justifies RCIs decision. Think about this. The Costa Concordia sailed too close to the island many times before it hit the reef. Every time it was a reckless decision that exposed passengers to unnecessary peril. Every time they made it safely was luck. Finally, it hit the reef and sank. This ship also had an experienced captain. The only difference between the Concordia and the Explorer is luck and the grace of God.

 

Before anyone becomes frenzied, I am not even remotely suggesting that Captain Olav was negligent. I believe that he was only following orders from his superiors, like any good commander would do. He made the safest choice from a menu of bad options and performed admirably in the process. I am grateful to him and the Explorer crew for getting everyone through it as well as they did.

 

 

 

I have to comment specifically on this.

 

I sailed on the Explorer on your Cruise and the Concordia 6 weeks before her ill fated 'accident' when I had the 'pleasure' of meeting Captain Schittino, who I found to me a slimey, vain, peacock of a man who was more interested in staring at my wifes cleavage than engaging us in conversation. Captain Olav could not be more opposite to that and neither could the circumstances, With a Court case pending it's best not to say too much but it is clear from the documentaries that he was a proud man who enjoyed adoration and had a history of deviating course and taking manual control in order to showboat and bring his ship closer to land and offer salutes to the inhabitants, the shame of it is that one of his crew did not blow the whistle and prevent him from his actions.

 

Despite your disclaimer this your comparison is an insult and I would think a lot more of you if you withdrew it.

[torromierda]

thanks Fella, replies in Red

 

No offence taken. You clearly would have sailed and a fully understand why you feel that way. You likely assumed less risk by sailing. A total cancellation would have not been in your best interest.

 

Based on the response to the Enchantment offering, I don't belive that I have a minority view, but we can't poll everyone. The Enchantment proposal would have well suited both of us. You could have sailed and the many hundreds of passengers that lived within driving distance could have decided based on their own personal feelings or situations. - Very True now I think about it.

 

 

I agree with you about the crew. Most passengers, myself included, pulled together, maintained good humor, and made the best of it. (I will avoid any lemon analogies) :) I hope that you did not infer that I was upset by the lunch offerings on Monday. - No you definitely did not in your summary, some did at the time and shame on them.

 

I wish you well and hope we meet on a future cruise. We were in the same proximity during the Meet and Mingle. We were at the Meet and Mingle, I was wearing a white T Shirt with a Union Jack on the front and an even whiter face with green tinges. :)

[johnlcruise]

First Davy Jones...the first half of your review was worded perfectly and right on. The comments of BigEagle 12 were as dumb as dumb can get. First he or she did not even understand what you were getting at, and second those comments come from someone with half a brain. Your comments were about the safety or lack of safety created by RCCL, not whether you should have not gone on that ship. And JohnlCruise saying he loved it is another less than intelligent answer. Go on another cruise like that when the darn thing tips over, then make those comments.

 

Most people know that most, and I say most, not all businesses only care about profits and it doesn't take too much intelligence to figure that out. In any event, your reveiw was well written.

 

David. I'm entitle to my opinion and knowing that the storm was coming I still would have gone on the ship. And sir I still believe that RCC make the right decision. You where not there. How can you sit at home and tell us what is right and what is wrong?

Sir you need to get a life and spend less time on this board.

Try to have a nice day. Peace.

[davy jones]

One final thing DJ

 

 

 

I have to comment specifically on this.

 

I sailed on the Explorer on your Cruise and the Concordia 6 weeks before her ill fated 'accident' when I had the 'pleasure' of meeting Captain Schittino, who I found to me a slimey, vain, peacock of a man who was more interested in staring at my wifes cleavage than engaging us in conversation. Captain Olav could not be more opposite to that and neither could the circumstances, With a Court case pending it's best not to say too much but it is clear from the documentaries that he was a proud man who enjoyed adoration and had a history of deviating course and taking manual control in order to showboat and bring his ship closer to land and offer salutes to the inhabitants, the shame of it is that one of his crew did not blow the whistle and prevent him from his actions.

 

Despite your disclaimer this your comparison is an insult and I would think a lot more of you if you withdrew it.

 

I was comparing decisions, not Captains. The Explorer decision was made by landlubber corporate types in Miami. The Concordia decision was made by the Captain.

 

I only used the Concordia because it was a cruise ship incident caused because of a decision that put passengers at unnecessary risk. From what I know about the Concordia incident, the captain made the decision many times, perhaps even on your cruise. His final decision ended tragically.

 

I wrote that reputations for greatness are achieved during extraordinary circumstances. In this case, Captain Olav and the Explorer crew enhanced their reputations. RCI corporate, certainly did not. I believe that they saved RCI from a potential mess.

 

I did not personally meet Captain Olav, but was in the meet the staff on Saturday and the maritime trivia that he attended, as well as the large gatherings that he addressed. I found him to be a complete gentleman and a consumate professional. That is specifically why I added the comments about him. I thought it was clear that I was not saying that he was irresponsible or equating him to the Concordia captain. If some took it that way, I sincerely apologize. I have nothing but the utmost respect for him and he and his crew performed admirably throughout the cruise.

[kaykels]

Davy you won't make them understand. You were entitled to feel that way. I don't understand the bashing and name calling when you were just being honest with your feelings. Its okay to disagree, many on the ship were glad to go, many not. But on the ship I don't remember name calling. Our friends from over the great pond were happy to sail and the storm didn't bother them. Others didn't feel that way, but on the ship we were all family and trying to make the best of it regardless of who felt they should sailed or not sailed- without judgements.

 

We all agree the captain did a great job getting through it and it wasn't his decision to sail/not sail. The review was honest and you commended the crew, who by the way, were outstanding.

 

My final thoughts..... whether RCCL should have sailed/not sailed is debatable. No matter what side of the fence you are on, it doesn't matter. Nobody should be bashed on either side of that fence for having an opinion about it. The crew was great, the captain did a good job and we were all happy with the cruise after the storm.

Peace out.

Happy future sails folks.

[torromierda]

I was comparing decisions, not Captains. The Explorer decision was made by landlubber corporate types in Miami. The Concordia decision was made by the Captain.

 

I only used the Concordia because it was a cruise ship incident caused because of a decision that put passengers at unnecessary risk. From what I know about the Concordia incident, the captain made the decision many times, perhaps even on your cruise. His final decision ended tragically.

 

I wrote that reputations for greatness are achieved during extraordinary circumstances. In this case, Captain Olav and the Explorer crew enhanced their reputations. RCI corporate, certainly did not. I believe that they saved RCI from a potential mess.

 

I did not personally meet Captain Olav, but was in the meet the staff on Saturday and the maritime trivia that he attended, as well as the large gatherings that he addressed. I found him to be a complete gentleman and a consumate professional. That is specifically why I added the comments about him. I thought it was clear that I was not saying that he was irresponsible or equating him to the Concordia captain. If some took it that way, I sincerely apologize. I have nothing but the utmost respect for him and he and his crew performed admirably throughout the cruise.

 

Just like the Enchantment passenger options I still think the two cicrumstances behind the two instances are too different to be valid but your clarification of your thoughts behind it further clarifies your respect for Captain Olev and his crew so thank you for taking the time to do that.

[legallady]

First, the disclaimer: I am neither a cheerleader nor super-detractor, I've been on EOS numerous time but was not on EOS during Sandy, and I don't know what I would have done under similar circumstances. I do, however, reside in the tri-state area and survived the most extreme devastation wrought by the storm.

 

I'd like to throw out a few questions for thought and consideration:

 

1. If RCI were to have cancelled the cruise because of deteriorating weather conditions, or offered EOS passengers a chance to cancel and re-book as had been offered to Enchantment passengers, when should such decision or offer have been made? Immediately prior to sailing, upon arrival at Cape Liberty? The day before? Two days before? The particulars of the storm conditions changed hourly. What technology, what expert, what professional was to be relied upon in making a decision that concerned both passenger safety and sound business policy? More to the point, if RCI had cancelled the cruise, what would the complaints then be? When it was cancelled? How it was cancelled? Additional compensation for expenses? It was a no-win situation; no matter what decision RCI made, someone would find fault.

 

2. I don't think it's a sustainable position to believe that in proceeding with the EOS sailing on 10/29, RCI knowingly or intentionally jeopardized passenger safety for bottom-line profit. It's unrealistic and illogical to think that as a business policy, RCI would prefer defending lawsuits alleging negligence for passenger injuries sustained by sailing in a hurricane rather than writing off refunds for cancelled cruises. I believe RCI's decision to sail as scheduled and to take on passengers as booked was based on technical information that was not available to or known by the general public; and I don't necessarily believe that the public is entitled to such technical information as there are certain things that are outside the scope of passengers' rights or need to know.

 

3. Not knowing the specifics of individual travel plans, on the day of EOS's scheduled departure many distance-residing passengers were either en route to Bayonne or already in the area. Disregarding cell phone services and wireless technology (which were already problematic because of the storm), it's conceivable that many passengers could not have been reached to advise of the cancellation of the cruise or offered an opportunity to revise their travel plans prior to arriving at Bayonne. With public transportation in the area in the process of being shut down that Sunday in anticipation of storm landfall, with airports closed to all traffic, with hotel rooms already booked by locals under mandatory evacuation orders, where would these booked EOS passengers have gone if not aboard ship? Has no one considered that had these passengers upon arrival at Cape Liberty been offered the opportunity to cancel their cruise, they might then have been in more danger being now stranded in an area not familiar to them and without adequate shelter rather than aboard a ship that could take them out of the storm's path? Adding 3,000 or so passengers to a metropolitan area of several million might not seem like much but if that area is already under extreme emergency conditions, caring for an extra 3,000 people is a lot and would have put an additional strain on already over-burdened emergency systems.

 

4. Let's have a little perspective here. I'm not in any way minimizing the sailing conditions, the rough seas, the seasickness, bruises and broken bones sustained by EOS passengers prior to arriving in calmer waters BUT -- they had heat, light, hot meals, dry beds (for the most part) and entertainment. There are people in the tri-state area who have lost family, homes, possessions, are still without power and are still displaced out of their homes and living in shelters. And now we have snow!

 

Maybe it's time to move on, people. Just saying . . .

[davy jones]

Now back to the cruise…..

 

We awoke on Tuesday to a noticeably calmer sea. That was confirmed when we arrived for our WJ breakfast. The sea was a little choppy but looked and felt like glass after yesterday. The crew was preparing the pool area for a sea day and the sun was peeking through the clouds. We were back in normal cruise mode.

 

The Windjammer serves up a pretty typical cruise ship buffet breakfast. You have the usual fruits, breads, meats, hot and cold cereals, pancakes, scrambled eggs, French toast, beans, and the omelet person. There were two pleasant surprises. You don’t have to go to the omelet station to get fried eggs. The servers in one of the lines have burners and pans for fried eggs. Not only do you get your fried eggs faster, it reduces the lines at the omelet station. The other is an Asian breakfast area. I know little about the typical Asian breakfast, so I can’t comment. One morning, my wife had miso soup and added vegetables with her breakfast. She said that it was good. Perhaps I should have also tried it. They also have OJ of variable quality, drinkable coffee that is quite hot, and assorted teas, including English breakfast tea. Grapefruit sections would have made it perfect for me, but both of us were happy. We never had difficulty finding a table, but we usually arrive at WJ before the biggest rush.

 

After breakfast, we headed to the outside promenade deck to read, relax, and watch the ocean go by in shade and tranquility. The port side was being washed, so we headed to the starboard side, which is the smoking side. We are nonsmokers and selected a spot a considerable distance from the doors so we were never bothered by smoke.

 

Around noon, we started to head to WJ for lunch. We decided to have lunch later, so we went onto the pool deck. We usually don’t hang by the pool, preferring shade and solitude. A side benefit is that there are no chair hog issues. We were surprised to find a many available chairs in the area. It may have been just a little cool for some. We decided to sit there for a while to read and watch the activity. At 1, we went to the deck above to stand by the rail for a view of the belly flop contest. We don’t attend activities like this, but we found it to be quite amusing because work the crowd and play off of each other very well.

 

Since we were already there, we had lunch at Johnny Rocket’s, which was well worth the charge. After lunch, we went up to the sports deck and played miniature golf. We had to skip the 5th hole because a large aquatic bird landed there and sat there for a half hour, unfazed by the people and activity around him. The bird had a band around its leg. If I can figure out how to post a picture, I will so someone can tell me the species. I don’t know how far we were from land, but the ship was moving along at a steady rate, so I assumed that it was a considerable distance.

 

After golf, this middle aged fellow took a shot at the fountain of youth, also known as the rock wall. It was my first attempt at a rock wall anywhere. The harness guy reassured me by telling me that if I died, he would get fired. I got about 2/3 of the way up and hit a spot where the wall extended outward. At this point, I looked out at the ocean and started having mental images of me plummeting downward to impending injury or doom, despite the harness. I rappelled down to prevent my wife from cashing the insurance policy. I had given it a go, but was cursing myself for not finishing the wall. I vowed to return on Saturday to conquer the beast.

 

We then retired to the deck below behind Johnny Rockets. The deck was full of empty loungers with your choice of sun or shade. No one was on the deck. This was a perfect place to read and watch the ocean go by. Except for people using the steps, the only person to come through was a friendly crew member who struck up a conversation. He was taking inventory of the lounge chairs to determine how many were lost during the storm.

 

Later, I went to the fitness center for a workout. DW stayed behind to relax. On her way back to the cabin, DW stopped to cancel a reservation at Portofino. She said that she was quite happy with the food and service in the MDR.

 

The fitness center seemed smaller than some other ships that I have been on. However, at 4:00 PM, it was close to empty. It had the usual equipment, treadmills, bicycles, elipticals, stairmasters, and the usual weight machines. They were in excellent condition, looking almost new. Kudos to them for also having an erg rower, a most excellent machine for cardiovascular torture. The locker room had the usual sauna and steamer. The spa showers were disappointing though. They were just as small as the cabin showers. At least they were too small to fall in. :)

 

Our evening was similar to the evening before. We had a nice dinner in the MDR, experienced the Promenade, watched the production show, Invitation to Dance, which was entertaining, snacked in the café, took in some music and turned in for the night to end a fine day. We arrive in Bermuda in the morning.

[skiman1]

I saw (and smelled) inside cabins on deck 6 flodded by green water and the steward said as much. I'm sure that the water didn't come from their balcony doors..

 

So you are saying that the waves came up over the lifeboats and into the balcony doors on the starboard side of deck six. Holy cow Batman, the story grows!!! Just amazing in my book. Now we have 60 ft waves???:eek:

[sept10dsm]

I wouldn't doubt that at all. We sailed on the Grand Princess through TS Nicole in Oct 2004 and their main deck 7 waves came up to as well as balcony cabins above. The power of wind and water is nothing to doubt. We were in 70-75 knot winds and 25-30 ft seas at the time. Similar experience to what is being described for this cruise.

[Dave4120]

Hopefully the people that were affected more than others will learn from this experience, good or bad.