It's Complicated -- review just published

[Hawaiidan]

When everything is said and done it is ourselves that choose how much or how little anything will affect you.

 

It appears that one incident a stuck lock caused a frustration that was allowed to get out of control. ( all ships bathrooms have good size exhaust fans that constantly ventilate the room...look above the toilet next time) It appears that the door lock functioned well enough for the Husband to easily open it from the outside. The concept that this was a life threating situation of potential doom is a little out or proportion.

 

From that point of nothing on the cruise worked right and they could not let go of the experience.. even when ashore. That is the crux of any travel experience...being able to go with the flow, be flexible and above all remain calm.

 

I have a simple litmus test I ask of my self " Hows this going to affect the rest of my life" Or in this case your cruise.

[true45]

re suitcases on bed, computerworks, it would indeed have been more "considerate" of Oceania to put the suitcases on the bed upon embarkation when they were FULL instead of leaving them in the hallway. :)Maybe it was considerate of them at the end but this is our 6th cruiseline and has never happened.

[cruzmaven]

When everything is said and done it is ourselves that choose how much or how little anything will affect you.

 

It appears that one incident a stuck lock caused a frustration that was allowed to get out of control. ( all ships bathrooms have good size exhaust fans that constantly ventilate the room...look above the toilet next time) It appears that the door lock functioned well enough for the Husband to easily open it from the outside. The concept that this was a life threating situation of potential doom is a little out or proportion.

 

From that point of nothing on the cruise worked right and they could not let go of the experience.. even when ashore. That is the crux of any travel experience...being able to go with the flow, be flexible and above all remain calm.

 

I have a simple litmus test I ask of my self " Hows this going to affect the rest of my life" Or in this case your cruise.

 

 

Yes, but I don't think its the incident itself that was the problem but the OP's perception that the customer service on board was disinterested and dismissive.

 

Things happen and we can deal with it, but when things break they should be fixed with appropriate follow-up, and that's what was lacking here.

 

I'm a big fan of O, love the ships and have had great experiences on board. However, the hotel services on board (customer service desk) can be standoffish and other aspects of the passenger services, tendering on the O class ships for example, can be disorganized to say the least.

 

There's no need to beat up the OP for reporting her experiences or to say she overreacted. Had the problems with the door locks and the toilet been dealt with properly on board, I doubt she would even have complained on here about them.

 

 

 

.

[true45]

hawaiidan,

 

Again I'm misquoted, I got the door open not my husband. I did not know when my husband would return to the cabin.I did not say specifically that this problem with Oceania affected my shore experience, just that it was hard to get over and I did not sleep. I did say the ports and excursions were great.

 

And most important, one does not "choose" how to react when faced with a situation like this. I was scared to the extreme and panicked. I hope you never are faced with such stress as I was and I hope you are not attacked for expressing your opinion.

 

Linda

[no fuss travel]

With the exception of river cruise lines, all ocean going cruises have pulled my suitcases out and placed them on the bed before dinner on the last day of cruising. I have just appreciated the fact that I do not have to get down on my hands and knees to pull them out from under the bed. Part of the reason why they might not put the full ones on your bed when you embark is because what if a suitcase has been delivered to an incorrect room. This does happen, especially when your cabin number has changed at the last minute and the passenger has put on their suitcase the labels that came with their cruise package.

[true45]

cruzmaven, you are probably right about me. If this bathroom thing was handled well I doubt I would have written the review that way at all. Little glitches can certainly be overlooked.

[Noxequifans]

When I read CC member reviews, I always remind myself that I am not dealing with a scientific random sample. Generally posters that have strong views (positive and negative) are most apt to detail their thoughts. i also know that I may not be getting the complete picture from these reports.

 

However, I do like to read them as it causes me to think about my own experiences on O.

[yorkiemomjn]

hawaiidan,

 

Again I'm misquoted, I got the door open not my husband. I did not know when my husband would return to the cabin.I did not say specifically that this problem with Oceania affected my shore experience, just that it was hard to get over and I did not sleep. I did say the ports and excursions were great.

 

And most important, one does not "choose" how to react when faced with a situation like this. I was scared to the extreme and panicked. I hope you never are faced with such stress as I was and I hope you are not attacked for expressing your opinion.

 

Linda

 

 

See, just as computerworks said would happen to him.......DH's fault....he should not have been gone so long! Just kidding! :p

Trying to lighten things up a bit. :D

[LHT28]

Maybe it was considerate of them at the end but this is our 6th cruiseline and has never happened.

Oceania may do things differently re the suitcase issue than the main stream lines

 

 

Lyn

[true45]

I think you are right hypercafe maybe I should stop defending

 

Lyn, you may be right too, I haven't been on other-than-mainstream lines.

[Sunprince]

I did read your review in full and btw I am not an Oceania cheerleader (have never sailed but might in the future). I am sorry that your vacation was ruined by this experience. I say ruined because it seems like you are still very upset about it and that is not the feeling anyone should have from a vacation

 

I think it all comes down to everyone has different personalities and reacts differently in different situations. It's all about perspective. I am in no way judging you but things happen in our lives that we don't control, it's all about how you deal with them. For me personally, I have had two times in my life where my life was at risk, one being woken at 3am by an intruder with a knife in a hotel room in St Martin and the other in a 6 alarm high rise fire where I was trapped in a stairwell filled with smoke (6 people died in this fire and I was not one of them because I kept the situation in perspective and did not panic). I can say that i did not sleep for months after both of these experiences and I learned a lot each time. Please try to take something positive out of your experience, the next time you find yourself in a situation where you are not in control, I do honestly hope you can come through it ok.

[true45]

sunprince,

I'm better, thanks. I'm very sorry you had those 2 experiences in your life.

The CC review was about my opinion of my 1st cruise on Oceania good and bad & the panic part was about how I tried to have the lock fixed, what happened when it was not done properly and my opinion of how Oceania handled or didn't handle the situation. Luckily, though it did affect my vacation, it was not the whole vacation and I loved the ports I visited. Hope you have some wonderful sailings yourself.

Linda

[digtexas]

Thank you for your review. Every board has many loyal supporters who want to hear no evil and in your case, a few are blaming the victim.

[pully8]

true45 just read your review and detailed account of how some of the experiences affected you. travelling can be tiring and stressful and that alone can impact on your experiences. our expectations can be high and sometimes we are disappointed. your review will assist others in explaining that sometimes things do not go as planned and to be prepared to accept that even with a quality travel company, perfection is not always a given.

 

we are considering cruising with oceania, we like their quality product and hope to try it soon. locked in the bathroom anywhere would not be fun and can understand your distress.

 

perhaps you might try oceania again if not there are many other options. also perhaps the events you have described could occur with other operators? some of the things that we have experienced over years of travel are now a source of amusement, but at the time may have been anything but that. good luck in your next choice and thanks for your review.

[true45]

A sincere thank you to those of you who read my review with an open mind. I don't expect everyone to agree with me or have the same experience. In fact, I think if I had a different cabin, I would have had a different experience. In political discussions I totally enjoy arguing points of view. Yes, I am vocal positive or negative. Where would Cruise Critic be if everyone was silent or only saw life through rose colored glasses.

 

But pulley8, I couldn't think about sailing again with Oceania since there was no communication onboard or after for a month from Oceania. The buck stops somewhere, with Management. After 20 cruises, with a couple of exceptions, things happened but management took responsibility and made it right and we did sail with them again. Here, by their silence, management refuses to accept that they caused a problem to their customers. There are a lot of employees and a lot of passengers. I was in business for many years. It is a testament to the character of Management how they make it right when their employees mess up. We are all people after all.

[computerworks]

[quote name='true45'] I couldn't think about sailing again with Oceania since there was no communication onboard or after for a month from Oceania. .[/QUOTE]

Just curious.. if so, then why spend the past few days on this Forum?

What are your expectations for Oceania's response after the elapsed time?

[pacheco18]

Nothing being accomplished on this thread.
OP posted a review -- she did not have to post a thread calling attention to her review but she did.
I guess she wanted sympathy because there was nothing anyone could do about her problem -- some gave her sympathy, others did not.
Folks can choose to buy into the issue or not-- as has been seem by the posts here.

But the horse is already dead. Edited November 22, 2013 by pacheco18

[true45]

computerworks,
I no longer expect any response from Oceania. Their silence is their response.

As to why I participated in the thread -- I could ask all posters on Cruise Critic the same question (not just the ones on this thread). I expressed my opinion in my review, I thought some especially new cruisers might be interested in my opinion and I tried to clear up here any misunderstandings and misquotes. I'm just doing what MANY others on many threads on many cruiselines have done. What is different here and also on Princess is the very personal attacks. Like the comment, "the horse is already dead". I did read and consider everyone's opinions -- some say I should stand up to the bullies (not my word) and some said better not to defend myself. I don't even know why I'm answering your question. But here it is. I was not going to let the vocal minority here on the Oceania thread be the ONLY voice. What would you do if you were criticized for a dissenting opinion and told in a nasty tone to shut up unless you painted a rosy picture?
I know there are nice Oceania passengers and excellent Oceania employees but this is MY cruise experience this time.
Linda Edited November 22, 2013 by true45

[computerworks]

OK, then... a more light-hearted question:

45 years of marriage and you still lock the bathroom door? :p

[orchestrapal]

[quote name='computerworks']ok, then... A more light-hearted question:

45 years of marriage and you still lock the bathroom door? :p[/quote]

lol Edited November 22, 2013 by orchestrapal

[true45]

computerworks,
reading comprehension? you are studying the review, know how many years I was married, yet??????:p
My husband was not in the cabin, the cabin door was left un-deadbolted for him to reenter if I was still in the shower. The bathroom door was locked to prevent employees, etc. from entering. Surprised I have to explain this to you.

[ShopperfiendTO]

[quote name='true45']computerworks,
reading comprehension? you are studying the review, know how many years I was married, yet??????:p
My husband was not in the cabin, the cabin door was left un-deadbolted for him to reenter if I was still in the shower. The bathroom door was locked to prevent employees, etc. from entering. Surprised I have to explain this to you.[/quote]

That's what the "privacy please" sign is for.

[true45]

shopperfiendTO, et al
You just can't admit Oceania screwed up, you will pick me apart until forever or is that another joke at my expense. You missed the point entirely

[NC&KY]

[quote name='true45']shopperfiendTO, et al
You just can't admit Oceania screwed up, you will pick me apart until forever or is that another joke at my expense. You missed the point entirely[/quote]
I was one of your first supporters, but I think you've done all you can. Many commenters have agreed with you that Oceania messed up on both customer service in failing to fix the latch when they were first alerted to the issue and then failing to follow up afterwards. Some absolute die-hard cheerleaders here will never admit to anything but perfection in the Oceania experience:confused:, and your continuing to insist that they do so won't make any difference. You have clearly accomplished what you wanted--to bring the problem to people's attention. I agree that the thread should end. We should all move on.

[true45]

Have a question for computerworks,
Considering your screen name -- can you help me upload a new picture into my signature? It got to the point that it is "false advertising" -- I've gotten a bit older.
I couldn't get the old pic to delete, then cruisecritic helped me & said I could now upload it but it won't take it. It is blank, just shows the cruises taken which I want to shrink.
Thanks for your help.
Linda