Talking about bad reviews for Pride.....

[Capri73]

We did write a review about numerous things that went wrong,but the loyals did not want to hear it.I accept that they love PG but we had a very different experience.Nothing was addressed on board,we meet with the HM almost at the very start of the cruise.Anyway my point is that people do not want to write negative reviews because of the backlash.I know I will never again.

[Host Dan]

Anyway my point is that people do not want to write negative reviews because of the backlash.I know I will never again.

And THAT is a problem!

Edited December 11, 2013 by Host Dan

[shipcamein]

"...but I hope you understand were I am coming from when I say that reviews that try and paint absolutely everything in a bad light are not very believable."

 

Yep, this is exactly the problem right here. Basically, if the review is all negative, it must not be true. (Sarcasm alert...)

 

Reviews can certainly be all negative. People with bad experiences tend not to recall the things that went right, unless pressed.

 

If I have a complaint, I will post it - I won't sugar coat it by saying something nice about the entertainment or whatever. If I wasn't happy, you're going to get a list of things that made me unhappy.

 

This leads to "everything" being painted in a bad light, and it's the truth (for someone).

[wripro]

Why does nobody complain when there's a review that paints everything in a positive light? That's equally suspect, isn't it?

[Host Dan]

Why does nobody complain when there's a review that paints everything in a positive light? That's equally suspect, isn't it?

Suspect of what??

[Roxburgh]

In the real world, things are never 100% perfect and never 100% bad. From time to time you get the odd glitch and from time to time you get service which is just superlative (even more so than usual).

 

There have been entertainers who I have hated (that ventriloquist) and others that I have loved. There have been wines that are pretty good and others that are pretty bad. Only once in multiple Seabourn cruises have I had a dish that I disliked but, on occasion, service can be a bit slow. Then again, some of the wait and bar staff are just outstanding ... like Gemma who kindly gave us a list of go-to restaurants in Dublin for our post-cruise visit. Just once room service didn't deliver. Dragi fixed it (I think I saw Dragi keel-hauling the offender later that day :D ).

 

On occasion there have been boorish guests like the guy doing the butterfly in the pool and one lady who was falling down drunk. Then there are others who seem to spend their time complaining about this and about that. Never very many but they exist. Also, on occasion, the smokers can be annoying. But mostly they are not. For the most part, however, the other guests are pleasant, interesting and fun to be with.

 

I could go on but I think I have made my point. Reasonable people generally have a sense of perspective and reasonable expectations. The Seabourn product remains a very good one and that is why we continue to go back.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Roxburgh

[softsands]

I'm on the Pride in late February, a last hurrah of sorts. I expect to have the same positive experience as I had with a previous SB cruise (Legend), regardless of the Windstar timing. And, I don't personally care if the red is poured in the same size glass as the white, as long as it has the expected taste. The burger better be cooked through, though. :rolleyes:

[ab21au]

I guess statistics would say that occasionally one will have all the bad experiences align on their cruise in which case they may give bad review. If my 3rd visit to the Observation Bar had been the first, I would have thought, yes the comments I had read about smoking are true, you couldn't walk in the door it was so bad. We just turned and went to the Patio Grill area. But I knew you get good times and bad because the first 2 times there it was fine and really enjoyed it. The service on the starboard side of the Colonnade was nowhere near as good as the Port side, but we didn't think, oh I'm not coming back here or complain, the food was just as good. Just tried to get the good side when we could and loved it.

[softsands]

We did write a review about numerous things that went wrong,but the loyals did not want to hear it.I accept that they love PG but we had a very different experience.Nothing was addressed on board,we meet with the HM almost at the very start of the cruise.Anyway my point is that people do not want to write negative reviews because of the backlash.I know I will never again.

 

That's a cop out. I don't give a rat's bum what somebody thinks; I'll tell it as I see it - but, I simply cannot believe any trip can be completely bad through and through. But if you say it was, then fine, it was. I'll not base my cruising perceptions and decisions on a single review.

[lincslady]

Roxburgh - you have pretty exactly described how a Seabourn cruise is to us, and I guess, most other people -mostly excellent or good, with the odd glitch.

 

Not much in life is completely perfect!

[tv24]

Supreradiationboy: Just re-read your comments. Thanks for taking the time to be so thorough and responsive to the points from the original (suspicious?) review. Very helpful.

[wripro]

Dan,

 

I was being a bit sarcastic. If a review is totally negative every suspects the poster of being biased or anti Seabourn. I was saying a totally positive review never gets the same kind of feedback as being suspect as a totally negative one.

[scamper]

I think this is the type of post that causes many to not even bother to share their experience on the boards. I recently received an email from a trusted friend (and SB enthusiast) that just disembarked the Pride. She went into detail the (horrid) experience she had. I asked her to post here, and she refused because of back-lash from SB die hards. Its too bad that we can't enjoy the good AND the not-so-good reviews. I'm sure the cruise lines LOVE the fact that many CC members are afraid to post anything but stellar experiences. Really too bad.

 

This is indeed unfortunate as many people, especially those who are considering sailing on a line for the first time, may depend on reviews. Frankly, I would never not consider sailing on a line because of a handful of bad reviews any more than I wouldn't see a movie or play based on one or two bad reviews. I would research and decide between the good ones and the not so good.

 

Finally, I would suggest to your friend that she post her review anyway. There is no need for her to revisit the review once posted. Unless she asks for feedback on a point or two, once she has said what she has had to say, there is no reason to say more. At least, that's my philosophy if I write one.

[rl787]

I must confess to being a Seabourn fan but quite frankly I do not accept some of the terrible-awful-dreadful-bad opinions of Seabourn or quite frankly any of the quality cruise lines. Yes things go wrong, food may not always be up to usual standard, the odd staff member a little sub par but some reviewers make out they were served food the quality of McDonalds and service standards equal to Ryanair. What a complete load of tosh. I do accept and believe that fair constructive criticism should be encouraged but in a balanced manner. Do any of the regular posters here actually believe that if some of the cruise experiences written about here were as bad as they say, there would not be dozens of people making the same accusations?......... One particular poster who I remember very well was criticising everything about her owners suite on Pride and how bad Seabourn was..........it droned on for days and days..... It is such a shame that the crew are subjected to such sometimes unfair criticism about their hard emotional labour and must make them feel that they want to throw themselves, sorry trip into a lifeboat. Well maybe some of us are a little too cocooned and need to accept that the days of the Raj are over and that this is the 21st century. I honestly do feel that all the major luxury cruise lines try to give us an excellent product at a reasonable price. I have said my piece and I am off to get my helmet and flack jacket to prepare myself for the onslaught.

[wripro]

That is why one should never simply rely on one review. One should read many and if the majority are good, believe those. If the majority are bad, believe those.

[Miss Jet Set]

Yes I remember the person in the owner's suite very well as we were on the same cruise

and after reading what she had to say I had to recheck was she talking about the cruise

we were on. At no time did we know about all the problems she talked about and as for

eating every day in their room -not so as we saw her dining most days in the Veranda.

Hopefully we do not see her again.

P.S. We had put on our comment card 10+10.

[Kilroyshere]

On the Pride now...got on in Ft. Lauderdale and one day left to go when we we leave in Aruba.

 

Some Executive staff were aboard for the initial first 4 or 5 days.

 

The Pride is absolutely in ship-shape fom stem to stearn, Skybar to MDR. It never has been better.

 

This has been amongst the outstanding cruises of our life. Weather notwithstanding, the ship is in pristine condition.

 

The service is amongst the most attentive, polite and professional we've ever had in all our years on Seabourn and elsewhere.

 

We've not seen one iota of the bad events, service or conditions mentioned herein and in other threads. Maybe that happened. But it's not happening now.

 

Even the house wines are being noted as better then previously.

 

Internet is slow...and if that's the worst thing I can find, I'll be glad to come back to SB over all other cruise lines if they perform any way like they have on this cruise.

 

Bravo indeed to SB for the cruise we're experiencing...

[tv24]

Kilroy: Thanks for your quick review, very reassuring. Most of us (maybe all?) have concluded that there is something quite wrong with the original review. It's good to get up-to-the-minute comments.

[Emperor Norton]

Kilroy: Thanks for your quick review, very reassuring. Most of us (maybe all?) have concluded that there is something quite wrong with the original review. It's good to get up-to-the-minute comments.

 

The problem is unless we can shadow everyone 24/7 we can't be sure how accurate a review is.

 

Even at the same table two diners can order the same dish and get vastly different results.

 

Sent via squirrels and a rotary phone

[softsands]

On the Pride now...got on in Ft. Lauderdale and one day left to go when we we leave in Aruba.

 

Some Executive staff were aboard for the initial first 4 or 5 days.

 

The Pride is absolutely in ship-shape fom stem to stearn, Skybar to MDR. It never has been better.

 

This has been amongst the outstanding cruises of our life. Weather notwithstanding, the ship is in pristine condition.

 

The service is amongst the most attentive, polite and professional we've ever had in all our years on Seabourn and elsewhere.

 

We've not seen one iota of the bad events, service or conditions mentioned herein and in other threads. Maybe that happened. But it's not happening now.

 

Even the house wines are being noted as better then previously.

 

Internet is slow...and if that's the worst thing I can find, I'll be glad to come back to SB over all other cruise lines if they perform any way like they have on this cruise.

 

Bravo indeed to SB for the cruise we're experiencing...

 

Please kindly ask them to keep it going for at least another 8 weeks, then they're off the hook...

[wripro]

Kilroy'shere,

 

Exactly the experience I had in November. Thanks for posting.

[Desert Princess]

I am cruising on my first Seabourn cruise on the Pride, Jan 26, 14 days! I can see that the good reviews far outnumber the bad and that is what I am counting on! Cant wait!! 36 more days!

:)

[kathy16]

We are booked in the cheapest category window cabin on the Jan 5, 2014 Pride sailing, and received an email of a potential paid "limited" upgrade available to a more expensive window cabin, or a "balcony". The upgrade price is about the same as if I had booked the more expensive cabins, initially, so it doesn't seem to be that much of a "deal". I would love to have a balcony, though.

I am still a little apprehensive about the "quality" of this cruise given all the discouraging comments lately,but the more recent reviews have me feeling a little more optimistic.

We really loved our Norway and Baltic cruise last year on the Sojourn, and we had been on the Pride several years ago in Asia- which was a wonderful cruise.

Thanks,

Kathy

[rl787]

Please do not worry about your trip, it will be at worse excellent and at best fabulous! There are nearly 2000 passengers a week on Seabourn cruises of which the vast majority have wonderful holidays. There are a few passengers who for some reason are expecting the service and quality of a private yacht experience, well for that to be possible they need to pay $100,000 a week and they are not, but that is their issue. To me these people will find something wrong with everything in life every day. I do accept that sometimes things do go wrong even on Seabourn, they are human after all, but if you mention it to a department manager I am sure you will find it will be attended to promptly.

You have been on two Seabourn trips yourself, I am 100% sure your up coming trip will just as good.

Have a fabulous trip and let all the guys and girls on board treat you to another memorable holiday.

[lincslady]

kathy16 - please bear in mind that the 'balcony' on Pride is a full height opening window, and you can just about get your feet on the little outside bit. Nice to have, for fresh air and looking over the side, but by no means a real balcony.