Is this GOOD or BAD news ? --- Dry Dock

[dlhamlten]

Apparently, the Serenade of the Seas Southern Caribbean cruise on which we are booked in 2006 from April 22 to April 29th is the last voyage before the ship enters Dry Dock.

 

What do you think are the pros and cons of being on this trip ? Has anyone taken such a cruise or even the first shakedown cruise after a dry dock ?

 

Will the ship look like it needs a dry dock ? Will provisions ( like lobster ) run short ? Will the crew be ready to take a break from passengers ? Are the first trips after a drydock filled with wrinkles that need ironing out ?

 

What has been your experience ?

[ruskatab]

I was on the Sovereign 2 weeks before it went into drydock. They had already started the project and it was very noticeable. I thought it was tacky of RC to start the job when the ship was still being used. They should of extended the project time so the passengers didnt have to walk around rude contractors. We were at the back of ship where most of the work was being done on the sports deck. We still had a good time but I wont book a ship again thats going into drydock soon.

[rubrrick]

I was on the Legend of the Seas this past May,one trip after she came out of drydock in Portugal. We had an OS, which is right under the Windjammer. We have had this same cabin twice before, and were very happy with it. Well.......this time there were terrible noises coming from above. We went up a deck to investigate to find that the Windjammer had been totally renovated. New flooring, new steam tables, new coffee makers, etc. There was a new coffee maker directly over our cabin, and every time that it ground coffee, our cabin sounded like an old style dentist drill was grinding away at a tooth!:eek: We had the Windjammer manager come down and listen and sure enough, there was the noise. Long story short, the head of maintenance listened to the noise, made adjustments to the machine, which helped, and finally after 4 days, was able to make the noise disappear. At least they turned the machine off at night so we were able to sleep!!:)

 

Some of the crew had been given time off during the time in drydock, and others had to work, laying new carpeting in several public areas. For the first few days, the crew seemed a little disfunctional, which was blamed on just getting things back to a normal routine.

 

I would think that on the last trip before drydock, food would still be plentyful, as so much of it is frozen. I believe that RCCL keeps their ships in good to excellent condition, as best they can, so a last trip before drydock should not be a bad experience.

 

Rick

[cyndyt]

I was on the Rhapsody the week before she went into her last drydock. The only difference was that the crew was a little more excited (at least those who get to go home during dry dock) and on the last night they started removing tables, chairs etc from the areas which were to be refurbished. In our case the solarium was completely emptied and bubble wrapped as they were going to be replacing the tile. On debarkation there is a lot more activity as they are loading on the supplies needs for the dry dock.

[dewayneg]

I would say if nothing else, you'll be sailing on the ship in its worst shape since its last upkeep.

 

And I bet its still beautiful.

 

Have a great trip.

[robsvacation]

Con's

 

Expect to find the ship in the worst condition, a combination of things needing replacement, outdated materials that are about to be removed, delayed repairs because "It's about to be replaced anyways" and a bunch of 1/2 started projects scattered throughout the ship.

 

Alot of the staff will likely be nearing the end of their contracts and therefore tired and a little apathetic, The rest will be looking ahead at weeks worth of hauling trash

 

Construction teams will already be onboard tearing stuff up and making noise

 

Staff will be distracted in preparation of the drydock

 

You'll be tripping over construction crews as you leave the ship

 

expect some of the pools, whirlpools, bars and other facilities to be closed down during times they normally wouldn't be. Expect areas of the ship closed off for reconstruction

 

And, saddly, if the last few RCCL major drydocks are any indication, expect RCCL not to care. There will be construction staff onboard with the attitude: "We have a ship to start renovating, we don't have enough time and what's with all these paying passengers getting in OUR way"

 

Pro's

 

You likely got this cruise cheap

 

 

 

All in all, RCCL has done a HORRIBLE job PR wise in regards to several of it's last few drydocks. Majesty, both pre and post drydock, was an unmitigated PR disaster: RCCL treated those passengers as replacable. Sovereign had construction crews tearing stuff up just before the drydock (there was a TLC show on this drydock which was interesting except for the fact they really didn't show the impact on passengers or all the 1/2 done projects passengers on that the first sailing dealt with) Nordic Empress/Empress of the Seas faired better with fewer complaints. The Legend stretching seemed to go much better, however I think that can be attibuted to having the sailing to Europe and the return trip as time to do work without passengers aboard.

 

All in All, I would avoid the sailing just before a RCCL drydocking and give the ship at least a month to sort out the bugs afterwards.

 

My advice: Rebook. There are enough horror stories on these boards that make it not worth the risk, IMHO.

[dlhamlten]

Robsvacation :

 

Thanks for your informative reply.

 

NO, I wasn't joking. I booked first and then learned it was the last cruise before dry dock. I was hoping that maybe the crew's attitude would be improved by the imminent break and that they would want to be especially good before they lose tip opportunities. I also thought they might want to use up all their food and booze so that inventory was minimized.

 

I can't book any earlier because of income tax filing season and this Itinerary is exactly what we wanted. We are going for scuba diving and have a Hump Balcony, so one "pays yer monies and takes yer chances' !

 

Hopefully, enough people will read your admonitions and decide not to go with us so that the price drops !

[RDeagazio]

DLhamlten-- I wouldn't worry, since the drydock will be a routine maintenance drydock and not a major refurb like Sovereign, Enchantment, Empress and Monarch which were totally differnt scenarios. You shouldn't notice anything out of the ordinary from a "normal" cruise. As for taking the first sailing our of a normal drydock, again there should be little to no noticeable difference... Now if this ship were being totally overhauled like the previously mentioned vessels-- I would wait at least a month, maybe more after re-entering service to make sure the work is completed and kinks ironed out.

[bluehorizonlover123]

I am sure your cruise will be fine. We sailed after a drydock and they were still fixing things up all over the ship. It didnt bother us that much.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

When we took Brilliance of the Seas to the Panama Canal it was the last trip before a dry dock for mechanical repairs, not refurbishing, plus it was the last Panama trip before a trans-Atlantic crossing to the Mediterannean.

 

What began almost instantly into our cruise was that every thing in the logo store was sold at a small discount and nothing replaced it. What I was told was that RCI sells off all merchandise that says Caribbean or similar on it, so that they can replace it with merchandise with references to Southern Europe. The shop looked like a bargain basement, then an empty basement. The other shops soon sold off their merchandise, too, but I did not feel the reductions were very attractive.

 

I honestly didn't notice that major interior repairs had begun while we cruised. Perhaps that is because this dry dock was said to be for engine and mechanical repairs. Oh, I almost forgot. They were in a big, big hurry to get us all off board at the end of the cruise because they wanted to depart Miami for the Bahamas dry dock as rapidly as possible. I think that is why the luggage area seemed to be very crowded and the lines very long. I had never experienced such confusion and crowding, even when we debarked Mariner of the Seas, a much larger ship.

 

One of the waiters told us that those crew members whose contracts weren't up had to work during the dry dock phase doing various chores and whatever they were needed or qualified to do.

 

When I booked the cruise, I did know it was the last trip to Panama before the summer European cruises, but I did not know the ship would enter dry dock right after we left. I honestly don't know if I would have realized the dry dock aspect. It was the way the ship was preparing to change over from the Caribbean to Europe that I noticed.

[crb04]

Took the first sailing after a routine/scheduled drydock on NOS this spring--no problems that I was aware of while onboard. Everything looked pretty clean and shiny, we were able to board, and get to our stateroom early. Wasn't any major construction or renovation work done as far as I know, so weren't really any 'bugs' to work out...

[searchgal]

We just booked for this same cruise (our first cruise by the way) to celebrate our 25th anniversary, with 4 of our best friends, we too all have "hump balconies. Main reason for chosing this week,(April 22nd thru 29th) was not only the actual anniversary dates for us and our best friends, but there will be no other ships in port in Antigua, St. Lucia, or Barbados, thinking of course this would make our beach days less crowded and more enjoyable. I had not heard of the dry dock until you brought it up. I'm hoping this won't put a damper on our first cruise experience, but I really appreciate all the input from fellow cruisers on the pre-dry dock conditions they've experienced- though I must admit the "positive ones" make me feel better. We did not get any discounts on this cruise, and honestly wouldn't have any idea how to persue one. Anxious to read more replies to your dry dock question.

[Luv4dacruise]

DLhamlten-- I wouldn't worry, since the drydock will be a routine maintenance drydock and not a major refurb like Sovereign, Enchantment, Empress and Monarch which were totally differnt scenarios. You shouldn't notice anything out of the ordinary from a "normal" cruise. As for taking the first sailing our of a normal drydock, again there should be little to no noticeable difference... Now if this ship were being totally overhauled like the previously mentioned vessels-- I would wait at least a month, maybe more after re-entering service to make sure the work is completed and kinks ironed out.

 

Im with RDegazio, every few years a ship enters drydock for just a routine visit to get a facelift. None of the Radience class vessels are near old enough to have to go through a major drydock like the Sovereign. Give her another couple regular drydocks and maybe in quite a few years they will give her a total rejuvenation, but not yet. I myself would'nt think twice about booking a cruise before a routine drydock. Have a great cruise!

[dlhamlten]

Thanks for everyone's opinions and input about Dry Dock.

 

Searchgal : I learned about the Dry Dock date from these Cruise Critic Forums and not from the Cruiseline.( I also learned about the advantages of Hump Balconies here. ) I hope your info about other ships not being in our ports of call is also correct. That would be great news.

 

As a first time cruiser, do you know about the Meet & Mingle party that Royal caribbean will sponsor if 25 or more passengers sign up ? They are free and might be a good way to meet others and share valuable info. I will include a link for you to find out about them and encourage you to sign up your group of 6. Thanks for your input.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=45718

[kitty1]

The Serenade is only 2 years old.... It' probably just for routine maintenance. She can't be in need of a major over haul. We sailed on her twice (2003 and 2004) to the Southern Caribbean and she was beautiful.

 

Go for the hump. The hump cabins are the best. We had one on the hump on deck 8 last fall and it had the largest balcony.

[IKE]

I hope You have a wonderful cruise. However, if I knew the ship would be going into drydock the following week, I would cancel the cruise if I was still in the cancellation period without penalty. As an example, something that just happpened to us back in March. We booked an inside cabin, mid ship, perfect location on the new "Caribbean Princess". We checked the deck plans and saw there was a space next to our cabin. We had our TA call Princess to see what was in this area and He was told, not to worry, just storage. Well it turns out it was the space where the Funnel on the Ship is located. The noise was out of this world, Couldn't sleep at night or take a rest during the day. After 3 days of complaining and not givng up, My Hubby finally got us another cabin. All kinds of workmen and Pursers Desk Employees must have checked our cabin for this noise several times a day and We still waited. The staff knew this problem was there but ignored it,hoping passengers would just live with the noise. It was worse at night when Ship picked up speed. There was rattling, banging etc. Well my point is if I knew ahead of time there maybe renovations going on while on my cruise, I would wait and go on another one . After that ordeal, I am being very fussy about everything in regard to the Cruiseship. One never knows what You are in for and You are stuck for the duration of the cruise. So I hope all works out for You and You enjoy the Cruise.Hopefully no work will start onboard until the following week when You are back. Ike

[jimbulger]

DLhamlten-- I wouldn't worry, since the drydock will be a routine maintenance drydock and not a major refurb like Sovereign, Enchantment, Empress and Monarch which were totally differnt scenarios. You shouldn't notice anything out of the ordinary from a "normal" cruise. As for taking the first sailing our of a normal drydock, again there should be little to no noticeable difference... Now if this ship were being totally overhauled like the previously mentioned vessels-- I would wait at least a month, maybe more after re-entering service to make sure the work is completed and kinks ironed out.

 

op--THIS POSTER IS CORRECT.....the difference is the type of dry dock All ships get it every so often...if its the routine variety no problems you will hardley notice....if it is a gutting like the aforementioned soveriegn, or monarch,Empress, or enchantment...THATS A BIG BIFFERENCE

[IKE]

I hope You have a wonderful cruise. However, if I knew the ship would be going into drydock the following week, I would cancel the cruise if I was still in the cancellation period without penalty. As an example, something that just happpened to us back in March. We booked an inside cabin, mid ship, deck 8,perfect location on the new "Caribbean Princess". We checked the deck plans and saw there was a space next to our cabin. We had our TA call Princess to see what was in this area and He was told, not to worry, just storage. Well it turns out it was the space where the Funnel on the Ship is located. The noise was out of this world, Couldn't sleep at night or take a rest during the day. After 3 days of complaining and not givng up, My Hubby finally got us another cabin. All kinds of workmen and Pursers Desk Employees must have checked our cabin for this noise several times a day and We still waited. The staff knew this problem was there but ignored it,hoping passengers would just live with the noise. It was worse at night when Ship picked up speed. There was rattling, banging etc. Well my point is if I knew ahead of time there maybe renovations going on while on my cruise,after this last ordeal, I would wait and go on another one . After that ordeal, I am being very fussy about everything in regard to the Cruiseship. One never knows what You are in for and You are stuck for the duration of the cruise. So I hope all works out for You and You enjoy the Cruise.Hopefully no work will start onboard until the following week when You are back. Ike

[IKE]

Sorry for hitting submit twice. Ignore 2nd message Ike

[searchgal]

Here's the link to Cruise Ship calendar - be sure to check the box for all other ships in port.

 

 

http://www.cruisecal.com/dnn/

[bluehorizonlover123]

Ike - we had ship noise on a Carnival cruise. It was due to the thrusters. they never changed our cabin but they did offer us 10% off a future cruise which we used and saved over $500. We were happy with that. Plus they gave us free photo coupons and we were able to get 6 free photos on that cruise and a couple free drinks too. So if you complain enough and they know there is a problem they will take care of it.

[kathy_bc]

How do you find out the drydock schedule?

 

thanks,

[ZPOOD@AOL.COM]

Hello, we are too booked on this cruise,hump balconies cabins #7602 and 7600 to celebrate my sisters 25 wedding anniversary as well. This will be there first cruise. This news of dry dock is all new to me. GRRRR. I am surpised a ship only 2 years old is going to be refurbished so soon. Took us a long time to settle on this ship(vacation time,itinerary,school sched, etc..) and our plane tickets are bought. So we are sailing. Hope it all turns out okay. We will all have to make the best of it. Keep you fingers crossed.

[dlhamlten]

Thanks for everyone's opinions and input about Dry Dock.

 

ZPOOD : I learned about the Dry Dock date from these Cruise Critic Forums and not from the Cruiseline.( I also learned about the advantages of Hump Balconies here. ) I have verified the info about other ships not being in 3 of our ports of call. so that is great news.

 

Do you know about the Meet & Mingle party that Royal caribbean will sponsor if 25 or more passengers sign up ? They are free and might be a good way to meet others and share valuable info. I will include a link for you to find out about them and encourage you to sign up your group . Thanks for your input.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=45718

[kenandlaura06]

Here's the link to Cruise Ship calendar - be sure to check the box for all other ships in port.

 

 

http://www.cruisecal.com/dnn/

 

Thanks!