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Ultimate Ship Tour - Showing Respect

mathan416

By mathan416,
in Princess Cruises

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Bimmer09 "Live from...." Rare

Bimmer09

Posted
Posted
I attended an Ultimate Ship Tour on Saturday and I wanted to address something that Princess requests of all people that take the tour - showing respect to the officers that we meet.

 

I wouldn't normally do this, but I think I'm seeing the double edge sword of Cruise Critic and that can sometimes happen with hive mentality.

 

I was extremely disappointed with one particular guest on the tour that showed a considerable lack of tact and lack of decorum while asking questions on the tour.

 

While I know the soot issues that plague Royal Princess and the electrical problem that halted one of the Med tours are concerning, there is an appropriate way of asking a question about both matters.

 

I was aghast at the question placed to the chief engineer, which really wasn't a question at all but more a statement about what happened. It was as if this person, who was by no means an Engineer, knew what really went on when they didn't. The chief engineer corrected the person with facts about what happened.

 

The Staff Captain, and even The Captain do not need to be inundated with questions asked in such a way it sounds like you're out to embarrass them, or somehow smarter than them.

 

Princess does not have to run the Ultimate Ship Tour. It's a great thing that Princess, and other cruise companies do, which I appreciate; and I think most people appreciate these opportunities.

 

However, it is not an appropriate place to air all of your grievances about the ship. It's about learning about how people do their jobs and the hard work that ship staff do. And it's hard work - something I appreciated as a guest on board.

 

It's also not appropriate to look smug or act as if you know it all - because you don't. There's a reason you're not the captain of the ship.

 

I'm not saying people should not speak up, but there is a way of doing it with tact and appropriate tone and possibly more appropriate avenues.

 

For example, rather than putting staff on the spot, how about asking, "What does it take to do wind tests on a new ship like Royal Princess?" "Was it a failure of the engine or the electrical system, a few months ago and how do you as an engineer react to that?"

 

Princess is on the ball when it comes to customer satisfaction and issues. Some things just take time and simply do not happen overnight. I have some similar concerns to everyone, but keep in mind negativity breeds negativity - again hive mentality. If you learn to role with the punches, you'll have a great time. I know I did.

 

Great post! I have enjoyed 3 UST's in my short 4 cruise history with Princess and found the Officers very passionate about their jobs and their ship. I have enjoyed some "banter" with them and found them to have humor and grace. True professionals doing demanding jobs. I haven't heard anyone yet ask inappropriate questions of them but if there was any hint of interrogation I would be sure I would have to say something to get them to leave the subject alone.

 

We are all on a cruise and lighthearted, respectful and thankful should be watchwords of the day.

 

Thanks again.

 

Norris

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TracieABD "Live from...." Rare

TracieABD

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Posted

I had a very similar experience at a Chef's Table on the Golden. One of the women just insisted that the chef could not make her steak rare enough. She was loud and flashy and very, very attention-seeking.

 

I have the opportunity to do some presenting on a bit larger scale. i am often confronted with "the smartest person in the room". I was trained early in my career to approach them, personally introduce myself, and offer a time after the group training to answer their specific questions. In the many years that I have been doing this, only once has the "smartest person in the room" actually hung around after to have a conversation. It is all about power and ego. A good presenter (or tour guide, or professor, or lecturer...) will shut this down quickly so they can reach the general good of the whole group.

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Times Prince

Times Prince

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Posted
Did you ever see a passenger try to embarrass or put Capt. Yeomans on the spot at a Meet & Greet? He handles them so smoothly that half the time they don't even realize they look like fools.
Yes, we have. Capt. Yeomans is a class act, and isn't afraid to correct misperceptions - often with humor. He also checks out our roll calls to see what our needs/desires are before the cruise, so if there is anything he or his staff can do to make our cruise better, he will do so.
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Love.II.Cruise

Love.II.Cruise

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Posted

I've never experienced the disrespect part on an UST, but maybe we were the ones asking too many questions. :eek: Two questions we asked were to security and the doctor...

 

Do you have a brig and how many does it hold? If not, what do you do (they lock you in your cabin)?

 

How many people can you hold that have deceased? Ships do have freezers that hold dead people if necessary. Island Princess at the time could only hold 2.

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Royalty X

Royalty X

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Posted

Some people may have $150 to pay for the tour, but unfortunately no amount of money will buy them class and intelligence. We had similar questions crop up on our recent RCI cruise during the Captain's Corner Q&A. One lady, had already had her problem dealt with (she'd been moved to a new stateroom due to noises from the recycling process onboard), but she still felt the need to raise the issue in front of an audience. Now, of course, because the issue had been dealt with by the appropriate people, the Captain and the CD had no idea what she was on about. Majority of the people in the audience (and I'm sure the CD and Captain as well) thought she was an idiot!

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Stevesan

Stevesan

Posted
Posted (edited)

A bit off the main topic of idiots raised by wolves, but I remember when an equivalent to the "UST" was offered gratis by providing three separate tours: Bridge, Kitchen and Engine Room. I realize a few goodies have been added, but $150 worth?

A Princess employee probably won an employee of the year award by suggesting the three be rolled into one "for profit" tour.:p

Edited by Stevesan
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Redwing55

Redwing55

Posted
Posted
A bit off the main topic of idiots raised by wolves, but I remember when an equivalent to the "UST" was offered gratis by providing three separate tours: Bridge, Kitchen and Engine Room. I realize a few goodies have been added, but $150 worth?

A Princess employee probably won an employee of the year award by suggesting the three be rolled into one "for profit" tour.:p

 

And if an employee did suggest it, BRAVO. The tour is quite intimate which offers opportunities to see and get info that really isn't available elsewhere. And true, maybe one doesn't want a robe, jacket, photos, frames, some notepads, etc, but I really think if one priced these, they would be over $150 just for them. Behind the scenes tours are usually special. This one comes with a bonus with the goodies they hand out. If you haven't taken one, I strongly recommend that one does.

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jrzebird

jrzebird

Posted
Posted
A bit off the main topic of idiots raised by wolves, but I remember when an equivalent to the "UST" was offered gratis by providing three separate tours: Bridge, Kitchen and Engine Room. I realize a few goodies have been added, but $150 worth?

A Princess employee probably won an employee of the year award by suggesting the three be rolled into one "for profit" tour.:p

 

While 'behind the scenes' tours are very nice, they can't be compared to the UST. The UST is far more than adding a few goodies. It covers so many more areas than the Bridge, Kitchen and Engine rooms and the knowledge imparted by each department is so informative, it's almost hard to take it all in. Really, a wonderful tour and worth every penny. That being said, I do wish they would offer an alternative tour, without the goodies, for less money, for those of us who have done it already. I love my robe and wear it often.

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Thrak

Thrak

Posted
Posted

I wish I could take the UST. I don't know that my wife would be interested but I definitely would be interested. Taking the tour is one thing - challenging the crew is another. I've never been able to understand the a$$h0|35 who do things like this. Does it make them feel "cool" or "important" or what?

 

I accord people the respect their position deserves - until they show me they don't deserve that respect. It's happened in other venues but hasn't happened on a Princess ship. I have received only the best treatment and highest respect from all "official" persons on Princess ships. I can't imagine booking this tour and then using it to be a total jerk to the ship personnel.

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abbydancer2003 "Live from...." Rare

abbydancer2003

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Posted

Great post and excellent points. We did the UST on the Star and loved it. I also wish there was a way to do another one without all the goodies.

 

On another point, we did Hawaii RT from LA right after the Concordia sinking. At the Meet and Greet someone thanks the captain for not hitting Catalina. He took it with the humor intended.

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GreySkies

GreySkies

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Posted
Seeing that my entire wife's family is Chinese I take that as an insult to them as they would never ask that kind of question. Talk about people asking in appropriate questions.

 

It was not meant to be an insult. My sister-in-law is from China and when they ask about salaries, it is the equivalent of Americans asking about what your job is. Understanding other cultures is a tricky issue.

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Potstech

Potstech

Posted
Posted (edited)

I do not know what your intentions were with your question BUT it did insult many. There are many other ways to have made your point. And your failure to see it as such also raises several questions that I will not ask at this time. It has nothing to do with other cultures. My wife and her family and friends were very upset with your question. They wondered why someone would make such an insult about them.

Edited by Potstech
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